GUNNISON, Colo. --- After the Mountaineers first loss of the season last weekend, Western Colorado returns home as they host New Mexico Highlands University at 1 p.m.  Saturday in Mountaineer Bowl. The Mountaineers will be going for their fifth win of the season for homecoming.
 
THE MOUNTAINEERS HEADING INTO THE WEEK | 2021 SEASON STATS
Western Colorado took their first loss of the 2021 season last weekend as they faced off against No. 5 Colorado School of Mines on the road. The Orediggers earned the 20-14 victory in overtime due to a few errors from the Mountaineers.
 
On the season defensively, the Mountaineers are allowing just 10.80 points per game - second in the RMAC (just behind of Colorado School of Mines) and seventh in the nation. They are also second in the RMAC in total defense - allowing 270.8 yards per game. Individually, Robert Garlock leads the team with 35 tackles to go along with an interception and blocked kick. Lane Farris is just behind him with 33 tackles, including a team and RMAC-best 10.5 tackles for a loss (with three sacks thrown in there to go along with a forced fumble and a fumble recovery). A third linebacker, Wyatt Buhr, is third on the team in tackles with 29.
 
Offensively, Cummbins leads the team in rushing with 482 yards - fourth in the RMAC - and leads the RMAC with six rushing touchdowns, tied for eighth in the nation. Hogan has rushed for 133 yards and two scores as well for the Mountaineers.
 
Connor Desch has completed 59.38 percent of his passes for 935 yards, nine touchdowns and six interception. Cole Riters leads the team with 16 catches for 242 yards while Damian Macias has 13 receptions for 110 yards.
 
NEW MEXICO HIGHLANDS HEADING INTO THIS WEEK | 2021 STATISTICS
The Cowboys are coming off a 46-16 home loss to Chadron State last weekend where NMHU dug itself a 29-0 whole after the first quarter and a 39-0 deficit at the half.
 
NMHU actually outgained CSC 420-404 with quarterback Ramone Atkins throwing for 209 yards while rushing for another 85 and a touchdown. Cameron High rushed for 67 yards while Kamari Mosby rushed for 46 yards and a touchdown. Lou Dorsey was the team's top receiver with seven catches for 54 yards. Defensively, Devin Coney led the Cowboys with 11 tackles and an interception.
 
Atkins remains in the top 20 in the nation and atop the RMAC in passing yards (1,367 - 19th in NCAA) and passing touchdowns (13 - 16th in NCAA). He's also eighth in the NCAA and tops in the RMAC in total offense at 336.8 yards per game. He's also the team's top rusher with 317 yards followed by High (306) and Mosby (229).
 
CJ Sims continues to lead the RMAC and rank in the top 50 in the nation in receiving yards (508 - 13th in NCAA) and receptions per game (5.6 - 50th) while he's second in the RMAC and 23rd in the nation in receiving touchdowns with five.
 
Overall, the offense ranks 17th in the nation and second in the RMAC in total offense at 467.8 yards per game.
 
Defensively, Terrence Jackson leads the team with 30 tackles while Coney has 27 and Malik Brown has 24 tackles, six pass breakups, a fumble recovery and two forced fumbles. Joseph Smith leads the team in sacks with two.
 
2021 WESTERN COLORADO NOTES
RED ZONE WARRIORS
It's no secret that the Western Colorado defense has been stellar to start the season, and a big part is they aren't breaking when teams reach the red zone (inside Western's 20-yard line). The Mountaineers have allowed teams to get to the red zone 10 times, allowing just one field goal and three touchdowns. Last week against Colorado School of Mines, the Mountaineers gave up three touchdowns (two in regulation and one in overtime).
 
The offense has done its job when it gets to the red zone as well, scoring 17 of 19 times and scoring a touchdown 14 out of 19 times.
 
'CUMMINGS NAMED THE RMAC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK (SEPT. 13)
Western Colorado's Josh Cummings big day on the ground led to him in a win over Western New Mexico led him to being named the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday. The redshirt sophomore rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries - averaging 8.9 yards per carry. This includes a 47-yard touchdown run by Cummings in the first quarter to get the scoring going for the Mountaineers in the 49-14 win over the Mustangs in Silver City.
 
'NEERS OFF TO FIRST FOR FIRST 4-0 START SINCE 1980
Western Colorado is off to its first 4-0 start since the 1980 team started the year 4-0 after defeating Fort Lewis on Saturday.  The Mountaineers will look to go 5-0 for the first time since 1979 when that team went 7-0 to start the season and won the RMAC title.
 
SEASON OPENERS
Western Colorado after its 2021-opening win is 33-63 all-time in season openers. Before this season, the last season-opening win for the Mountaineers came in 2014 against Wayland Baptist, 38-21, on the road. Of their 32 previous season opening wins, the Mountaineers have finished those seasons with a winning record 19 times (59.4 percent) and won the conference title 12 times (37.5 percent).
 
BAINS REACHES GAME NO. 100 FOR WESTERN AGAINST STEPHEN F. AUSTIN
Western coach Jas Bains enters his 11th season as head coach of the Mountaineers and last season's lone contest against SFA marked his 100th game as head coach. He's just the third coach in Western history to reach the 100-game mark - joining Bill Noxon (133 from 1971-84) and Carl Iverson (127 from 1988-2000).
 
MOUNTAINEER ALUM EKELER CONTINUES TO SHINE IN NFL
Western Colorado alum Austin Ekeler started his fifth NFL season with the Los Angeles Chargers and continues to make a mark.
 
Ekeler, an undrafted free agent signee out of Western in 2017 who signed a four-year, $24.5 million extension prior to the 2020 season, this season has rushed for 111 yards and a touchdown while catching nine passes for another 61 yards this season.
 
The 26-year-old who came to Western out of Eaton High School in Colorado owns the Mountaineers' single-game (344), single-season (1,676 - also owns the No. 2 and No. 4 spots) and career (5,857) rushing yard records as well as the single-game (5), single-season (19) and career (55) rushing touchdown records. He also owns the single-season (126) and career (378) scoring records at Western.