Game 7
Montana Tech (2-4) vs. Southern Oregon (3-3)
October 23, 2021
Raider Stadium
Ashland, Oregon

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Last Time
· Montana Tech last faced Southern Oregon University in Ashland on November 2, 2019
· The Orediggers defeated the Raiders 28-14
· The Orediggers rushed for 261 yards and had 425 yards of total offense in the game
· Tyler Folkes rushed for 103 yards and 2 touchdowns in the game, including a 57 yard score
· Blake Counts carried the ball 23 times for 103 yards
· Trevor Hoffman caught 4 passes for 91 yards and 2 touchdowns
· Carter Meyers led the Oredigger defense with 9 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and 3 tackles for a loss
· Raider quarterback Trent Banner rushed for 46 yards and passed for 304 yards,  2 passing touchdowns, and 3 interceptions

For the Record
· First year head coach Kyle Samson is making his first trip to Oregon
· Samson is 2-4 in his first season at the helm for the Orediggers
· The Orediggers have won the last two matchups against the Raiders
· The last time the Raiders defeated the Orediggers was on September 15, 2018 in Ashland
· Head coach Charlie Hall is in his fifth season leading the Raiders
· Both Montana Tech and Southern Oregon did not play in the shortened spring season in 2021

Checking the Numbers
· The Oredigger offense is averaging 353.7 yards per game and 23.2 points
· The Orediggers are averaging 116.2 yards rushing and 237.5 yards passing
· The Oredigger defense is allowing 400 yards and 28.7 points a game
· The Orediggers are allowing 179.8 yards rushing and 220.2 yards passing
· The Raiders offense is averaging 322.7 yards and 23 points a game
· The Raiders are averaging 545 yards rushing and 268.7 yards passing
· The Raiders defense is allowing 338.7 yards and 25.3 points a game
· The Raiders are allowing 132.2 yards rushing and 206.5 yards passing
 
Scouting the Raiders —The Raiders are coming off a 38-7 loss to Montana Western before the bye week. The Raiders are 2-0 at home this season and 3-0 when they are the home team. The Raiders hosted MSU-Northern at the University of Oregon in a rescheduled game due to air quality on September 11.
 
Senior quarterback Matt Struck has started the last five games completing 51.4% of his passes averaging 238.2 yards per game with 11 touchdowns and 5 interceptions. Sophomore Bryce Goggin leads the wide receiver core with 33 receptions for 507 yards and 4 touchdowns. Junior wideout Christian Graney has 28 catches for 234 yards and a touchdown.
 
Junior defensive back Stokes Botelho leads the defense with 35 tackles, 4.5 tackles for a loss and 1 interception. Junior defensive lineman Alejandro Sanchez has 29 tackles and 7 sacks this season.
 
Road Warriors—The Orediggers are 2-1 on the road this season. Tech has defeated it's last two opponents when traveling defeating MSU-Northern 23-13 and then-ranked No. 24 Rocky Mountain 31-29 in Billings.
 
Hoffman Season Highs—Junior wide receiver Trevor Hoffman caught a season high 7 receptions for a season high 93 yards against the College of Idaho. Hoffman leads the Orediggers in receiving yards (331) and receiving yards per game (66.2).
 
Harmer's Big Play— Redshirt junior defensive back Naoki Harmer finished the first half with a huge play against the College of Idaho. Harmer picked off a pass and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown to give the Orediggers a 20-7 lead going into the locker room. The Bellevue, Washington native barely dropped a second interception in the second half as well. The aggressive cornerback leads the team in broken passes this season with 10.
 
Solid Sophomore—Sophomore tight end Logan Kennedy caught his third touchdown of the season on a 17-yard completion from Jet Campbell in the second quarter. Kennedy has emerged as a scoring threat this season. The Laurel, Montana product has 15 catches on the season for 220 yards and is averaging 36.7 yards per game.
 
Freshman Sack Leader—Freshman defensive lineman Keyshawn James-Newby picked up his fourth sack of the season against the College of Idaho. The Helena native has had at least one sack in the last three games including a two-sack performance against MSU-Northern. James-Newby has 20 tackles on the season.