Game 5
No. 19 Montana Tech (4-1) vs. No. 9 College of Idaho (5-0)
Simplot Stadium
Caldwell, Idaho
October 8, 2022
1:00 p.m. Kickoff
 
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Last Time
· Montana Tech lost to the College of Idaho 28-23 in Butte last season
· The loss was disappointing after Tech led most of the game and the Yotes' defense picked up a fumble and ran it in for a touchdown late in the 4th quarter
· Naoki Harmer returned an interception for a touchdown prior to halftime giving the Orediggers a 20-7 lead at the break
· Jet Campbell passed for 173 yards and 2 touchdowns
· The Oredigger defense held the Yotes to 5 of 14 on 3rd down conversions
· Blake Allred and Cole Wyant had 9 tackles each
· Keyshawn James-Newby had 4 tackles and a sack

For the Record
· Montana Tech second-year head coach Kyle Samson is 2-0 on the road this season and 5-2 for his career
· Coach Samson is 3-3 against ranked opponents
· Saturday's game is the first time Coach Samson has faced an opponent ranked in the NAIA Coaches' Poll Top 10
· Coach Samson's has only faced the Yotes one time in his head coaching career
· The last time the Orediggers defeated the Yotes was in Caldwell on September 1, 2018 winning 36-16

Checking the Numbers
· The Orediggers lead the conference in scoring averaging 38 pts/gm and is 2nd in offense averaging 414.8 yds
· The Orediggers lead in passing averaging 242 yds/gm and are 4th in rushing averaging 172.8 yds/gm
· The Oredigger defense is tied with the Yotes in scoring giving up 13 pts/gm
· The Oredigger leads the conference in pass defense giving up 139.4 yds/gm and are 2nd against the run giving up 82.8 yds/gm
·  The Yotes offense is 3rd in scoring averaging 33.2 pts/gm and leads the conference in average yards with 428.8 per outing
· The Yotes passing is 4th in the conference averaging 205.2 yd/gm and their rushing attack leads the league averaging 223.6 yds/gm
· The Yotes defense is 2nd in the league giving up 246.2 yds/gm
· The Yotes pass defense is 4th in the league giving up 176.6 yds/gm and they lead the league in rush defense with 69.6 yds/gm
 
Scouting the Yotes—The undefeated Yotes (5-0) started the season unranked and have moved up to No. 9 in the recent NAIA Coaches' Poll. The Yotes defeated Carroll in Helena 31-20 last week handing them 15 TFL and 9 sacks. Quarterback Ryan Hibbs is only averaging 62.3 passing yds/gm. But the strong rushing attack of the Yotes is led by Allamar Alexander who leads the league in rushing averaging 98 yds/gm followed by Hunter Gilbert who is averaging 92.6 yds/gm. The Yotes defense has been stout this season tied with Tech in points given up per game (13) and the league leading rush defense. Senior linebacker Dylan Martinez leads the team in tackles averaging 5.8 stops a game. Senior defensive end Keagan McCoy leads the team in sacks with 4 on the season.

How About that Digger Defense—The Oredigger defense pitched their first shutout of the season holding MSU-Northern to just 26 yards of offense on the wet Homecoming weekend. Tech had a season-high 6 sacks and forced 4 fumbles. The Orediggers had a fumble recovery and sophomore defensive back Jadyn Downs had his first career interception.

Building Momentum—The Orediggers scored on their first 7 possessions last Saturday in the 73-0 victory over the Lights. Tech also scored on their first 3 possessions a week prior against Montana Western. Offensive production has been picking up each week totaling 467 total yards against the Lights, 400 yards against the Bulldogs, 383 yards against Rocky, and 379 yards was their lowest total of the season against Carroll College.

Hoffman Picking Up Speed—Senior wide receiver Trevor Hoffman had 5 catches for 124 yards and his second touchdown of the season. The game was his second over the century mark and he also had 99-yards against Western the week before. The touchdown catch was the second straight game Hoffman has found the endzone. 

Winterburn Finds the Way—Redshirt junior running back Kaleb Winterburn found the endzone twice against the Lights and both in the first half on just 5 carries running into the endzone from 6 and 1 yards out. Winterburn caught an 11-yard pass from Blake Thelen for the first touchdown against Western giving him 3 touchdowns in the last two games.

Another Solid Outing—Sophomore Keyshawn James-Newby led the Orediggers with 7 tackles and a season-high 3.5 tackles for a loss. The Helena native also had 1.5 sacks, tipped a pass, forced and recovered a fumble overpowering the Lights offense. James-Newby has 21 tackles, 2.5 sacks, 4 TFL, and broke up 2 passes in the last three games.

Perfect PATs—Redshirt sophomore kicker Ryan Lowry was a perfect 10 for 10 last week and hit a 31 yard field goal. The Pasco, Washington native is 23 for 24 this season on PATs and 7 of 9 on field goal attempts. Lowry's season long is 42 yards on field goals and his career long is 47 yards last season. Lowry leads the conference this year in made field goals with 7 and points by a kicker with 44. 

Renner Running Hard—Redshirt sophomore running back Ethan Renner got the bulk of the carries last week rushing 17 times for 99 yards. It was the first game Renner has seen this much of the workload. He averaged 5.4 yards per carry with a long of 15 yards.