#7 CSU PUEBLO at #5 WESTERN COLORADO
1 p.m., Sat., Nov. 1 | MOJO Field at Mountaineer Bowl at the Rady Family Sports Complex | Gunnison, Colo.
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2025 Stats: Mountaineers | ThunderWolves

GUNNISON, Colo.  Just like last year, it will be a top-10 football Saturday when Western Colorado and Colorado State Pueblo meet, as the fifth-ranked Mountaineers host the seventh-ranked ThunderWolves in a national matchup at MOJO Field at Mountaineer Bowl at the Rady Family Sports Complex.

Saturday's game will also be Military & First Responders Appreciation Day at the Bowl.

 Last season was a top-10 battle at the Bowl between Western and CSU Pueblo, with No. 10 CSUP earning a 44-34 win over eighth-ranked Western after jumping out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and a 24-14 advantage at the halftime break.

This season's matchup pits two of D-II's best triggermen in Nash and the Pack's Roman Fuller.

Nash is first in the country in points responsible per game (25.7) while Fuller is 12th (18.0). The duo are tied for fifth nationally in touchdown passes this season (22), but Fuller has racked up more yardage with his arm, throwing for 2,195 yards for the 11th-highest total in D-II.

Nash, though, adds the rushing element to his game, leading the Mountaineers with 357 net yards and 8 touchdowns on the ground, compared to Fuller's net total of minus 31 yards on 19 attempts.

The Mountaineer defense will have its hands full with Fuller and wide receiver Reggie Retzlaff, whose 10 touchdown catches are fourth most in D-II.

The defensive line and the linebackers from Western have affected every offense this season, averaging 9.8 tackles for loss per game — tops in the nation — and 3.63 sacks per game (sixth).

Western's defense is allowing only 13.4 points per game, seventh lowest in D-II, while the ThunderWolves are averaging nearly 43 points per game.

Something's got to give, and the winner will have a cozy spot in the top 10 heading into the final weeks of the season.

PLAYER'S STATS

• Bailey Quinn, in his true freshman season, was thrust into the starting lineup at running back and has made the most of his time, scoring seven touchdowns while rushing for a net of 315 yards. He has also caught 12 passes for 180 yards and 3 touchdowns.
• Nash's receiving corps is spearheaded by the trio of Caden Measner, DJ Allen Jr. and Ramon Ruiz with Kai Goetze working into the mix from his tight end position. Measner's eight touchdown receptions are 11th most in NCAA DII stats and he leads Western with 569 yards and a 71 YPG average. Allen Jr. had six scoring receptions and 435 yards while Ruiz has caught a pair of touchdown passes while accumulating 368 yards. Goetze has scored twice and has 163 yards of receptions.
• Ian Loomis leads Western's defense with 63 tackles (35 solo stops) while accumulating 9 tackles for loss and 5 sacks and adding in a pick-6. Fellow linebackers Cameron Cooper (46 tackles, 10 TFL, 3 sacks, and 1 INT), Kaden Stewart (36, 5.5, 1.5), and Kade Musser (33, 7, 3) have been major contributors to the nation's No. 7 scoring defense.

UP NEXT
Western takes to the road for the last time in the regular season, heading to Chadron State (Neb.) College for a 1 p.m., Nov. 8 RMAC contest.