The No. 8 Mountaineers fell to No. 10 CSU Pueblo Thunderwolves for their first loss of the season. The loss did not take the Mountaineers out of the running for the playoffs, but the team fell to No. 11 in the rankings. Two games remain, against Chadron State and Colorado Mesa.
Before kickoff, the game ball was delivered by one of the Gunnison County Hospital Flight for Life helicopters, as the game celebrated our military and first responders for Veterans Day. The ball was given to Mad Jack by one of the medics in the helicopter. The honorary captain for the coin toss was the director of Western security, Deshawn Wilson, in recognition of his years of service in the military and law enforcement. Joining him were this year’s team captains: quarterback Drew Nash and defensive backs Jack Jones and Ethan Sanchez-Maxwell.
The Thunderwolves started strong, scoring the first touchdown in the first two minutes of the game on a 7-yard pass. Neither team scored for most of the first quarter until the Thunderwolves kicked a field goal with seconds left on the clock, the score 10-0. The second quarter started with an 11-yard pass from Drew Nash to Daniel Parsek for a touchdown putting the Mountaineers on the board. Not even a minute later the Thunderwolves scored again with a 76-yard touchdown pass. CSU Pueblo scored another touchdown with three minutes left in the second quarter, bringing the score to 24-7. With just seconds left in the quarter, Cole Ritters caught a 49-yard touchdown pass from Drew Nash, to make it 24-14 at the half.
The Mountaineers came out strong in the third quarter, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough. CSU Pueblo was able to get past the Mountaineer defense and get another 76-yard touchdown in the first minute of the quarter. The third quarter progressed, with the Thunderwolves scoring another touchdown but Western was able to make a comeback with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Nash to Cole Ritters, making it 37-21. Western started the fourth quarter with an 80-yard touchdown pass to Bryce Vaz which brought the score to 37-27. The Thunderwolves responded with another touchdown with only four minutes left on the clock, bringing the score up to 44-27. The Mountaineers were able to score again with a 43-yard touchdown pass by Josiah Ayon, making it 44-34, but time ran out.
“They played a great game, hats off to them,” Mountaineers head coach Jas Bains said after the game. “I don’t think we played our best today but that’s the nature of the beast. Hats off to them.”
Despite the loss, the Mountaineers are focused on their final two games of the season and hopeful for a spot in this year’s playoffs. As they gear up for the final stretch, the prospect of a playoff berth fuels their drive, ensuring they finish the season strong and leave it all on the field. Don’t miss this weekend’s game on the road against Colorado Mesa. This is the Mountaineers final regular season game before the playoffs, tune into the live stream on the official RMAC website or gomountaineers.com.