Fort Lewis College’s football team closed out a three-game road stretch with a come-from-behind victory last week at Western State. The win was a needed boost for the Skyhawks, who will welcome Colorado State University-Pueblo to Ray Dennison Memorial Stadium for FLC’s homecoming game at noon Saturday.
The visiting ThunderWolves, ranked 12th in the nation, present a daunting task for the Skyhawks, but stunning the ThunderWolves isn’t out of the question for FLC. The Skyhawks last win against Pueblo came in 2014 when the ThunderWolves were ranked second in the country, and FLC came away with a 23-22 victory.
“We’re feeling pretty good,” FLC head coach Joe Morris said. “We found a way to win last week in the fourth quarter. It was an exciting game, so we have a little momentum heading into the week, and if you can’t get excited to play the No. 12 team in the country then you probably shouldn’t be playing football.”
The 2014 win was the last time FLC (2-4, 2-4 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) beat Pueblo (5-1, 5-0 RMAC), which holds a 24-6 all-time record against the Skyhawks. The 2014 game also was the last time Pueblo traveled to Durango, and the remaining Skyhawks from the 2014 team haven’t been shy about bringing up the win this week.
“They can’t help it,” Morris said. “We haven’t played them here since then. We’ve gone up there twice and they’ve kicked our butt the last two years. The guys are excited. They’re looking at it and saying, ‘Any team can win on any given Saturday.’”
Pueblo’s national ranking comes as no fluke thanks to the ThunderWolves’ high-powered offense that leads the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference in scoring with an average of 40.3 points per game.
To keep Pueblo from running up the score, FLC will need its offense to eat up clock with its running game to keep Pueblo’s offense on the sideline. The Skyhawks should be up to the task with the emergence of running back Tyler Telphy, dual-threat quarterback Bo Coleman and PJ Hall, who is returning to action after missing a couple games because of an ankle injury. He played last week at Western State and was held quiet by the Mountaineers’ defense.
Telphy has been more than adequate for the Skyhawks with Hall, who is 668 yards away from becoming FLC’s all-time leading rusher, sidelined. So far this season, Telphy has averaged 5.9 yards per carry.
The Skyhawks also rank first in the RMAC in time of possession at 33 minutes, 55 seconds.
But it won’t be an easy task to keep Pueblo’s offense off the field. The ThunderWolves rank first in the RMAC in scoring defense (165 points per game against), total defense (333.7 yards per game against) and rushing defense (114.8 yards per game against).
“We’re looking to control the clock and get first downs,” Morris said. “One play at a time. That’s the only thing you can worry about when you’re playing a defense as good as (Pueblo). We have to execute and if you win enough plays, at the end of the game the scoreboard might be in your favor.”
Defensively, Morris said he expects defensive back Daniel Walker, who has missed time with injury, to be back on the field to give the Skyhawks a boost against the ThunderWolves passing attack.
But stopping Pueblo’s run will be key for FLC. The ThunderWolves have averaged 221.8 rushing yards per game with 19 rushing touchdowns this season behind the legs of junior Marché Dennard, who has 600 yards and nine touchdowns and has run for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns four consecutive games. Austin Micci also is a force with 440 yards and seven touchdowns this season.
“I think No. 1 is we have to take care of the running game,” Morris said of his defense, which has surrendered 168.8 rushing yards per game this season. “If we can find a way to put them in third-and-long situations, I think we have a pretty good shot.”
kschneider@durangoherald.com
If you go
Who: No. 12 CSU-Pueblo at Fort Lewis
What: Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference football
When: Noon Saturday
Where: Ray Dennison Memorial Field, Durango
Listen Live: KIUP 930 Am, 97.3, 106.3 FM
Twitter: @karltschneider
