This past Saturday at O'Harra Stadium the South Dakota School of Mines football team showed the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference that the Hardrockers are here to compete.
 
The SD Mines football program earned a massive victory this past Saturday against Colorado School of Mines at O'Harra Stadium in Rapid City. It was the first time the 'Rockers have ever beaten the Orediggers and on the 100-year anniversary of the first meeting.
 
The historic victory didn't go unnoticed around the league as junior QB Jake Sullivan lead the offense and earn the RMAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. He carried the ball 26 times for 120 yards (season best) and a score, leading the Hardrockers on the ground. He also went for 334 yards passing (season best) with two touchdown passes.
 
This game came down to the final few plays, which had the Orediggers on the brink of taking home a win. The Orediggers had one last opportunity to tie the game, but SD Mines senior cornerback EJ Deveaux played spoiler when he intercepted a Colorado Mines pass in the end zone with 1:24 left in the game which was the pickaxe through the heart.
 
Looking at the team statistics, the Hardrockers had 537 total yards of offense to 485 from the Orediggers. SD Mines tallied 196 on the ground and 341 through the air. Colorado Mines finished with 382 passing and 103 rushing yards. Both teams punted five times in the game.
 
Although it was a big win for the program, the Hardrockers now have their sights set on their next matchup --- against the Chadron State College Eagles, who are currently third in the RMAC team standings. The Hardrockers sit in fifth.
 
Chadron State had quite the games in Las Vegas, N.M., last week  against the NM Highlands Cowboys. The Eagles racked up 610 yards of total offense in their 55-35 defeat over the Cowboys. Chadron State scored on each of their first three possessions, for a score of 21-0. The Cowboys answered, and the two entered halftime with a score of 31-21.
 
Early in the third quarter, Brian Wood intercepted a Cowboys' pass and ran it back 100 yards for a touchdown to regain momentum for his team. This broke a Chadron State record. The score was followed by 24 unanswered points for the Eagles.
 
Derek Jackson led offensively with 185 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Ryan Wood led defensively with 12 tackles, nine of which were solo, and a recovered fumble that led to a field goal. The Eagles rank ninth nationally in recovered fumbles. Chadron State is now 4-2 in conference matchups and 4-3 overall.
 
Saturday's game will see the Hardrocker offense (500.9 ypg), which is No. 1 in the RMAC, take on the No. 3 defense in the conference. Chadron is third in the league but a big road win could propel the Hardrockers up the ladder. They will lean on the arm and legs of Sullivan as well as the Rocker Dawg Defense that has only given up one touchdown in the second half of play over the last two games.
 
Also on the line will be the Eagle-Rock Trophy as the meeting between the two programs is a renewed rivalry that was revived last year after a 20-plus year hiatus. The Eagles squeaked out a win during the 2016 campaign.
 
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In other RMAC games this past weekend, there are no teams that remain undefeated in conference play after Week 7.
 
Fort Lewis shocked the RMAC with a 35-24 upset over CSU-Pueblo (No. 12 at the time), who came into the game undefeated in conference play. Fort Lewis took a quick lead over the ThunderWolves and the game went into halftime with a score of 28-7. CSU-Pueblo scored 17 in the second half compared to the Skyhawks seven points, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit.
 
Tyler Telphy led the Skyhawks with 203 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. Tyrell Thomas had a 35-yard interception-return touchdown for Fort Lewis, who ranks 11^th nationally in defensive touchdowns. Defensively, the Skyhawks held the nation's 31^st ranked running game to 85 yards and the RMAC's top scoring offense to just 24 points. OJ Thompson had two sacks for a loss of 12 yards and nine tackles. Darrian Stinckney also had nine tackles, three tackles for a loss of six yards, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. CSU-Pueblo looked to make a comeback at the end of the fourth quarter, but Christian Woo sealed the upset win for Fort Lewis with an interception in the end zone. The Skyhawks are now 3-4.
 
The ThunderWolves fall to 5-1 in RMAC games and 5-2 overall.
 
No. 16 Colorado Mesa took on Dixie State in St. George, Utah, where the RMAC's leading rushing offense ran for a season-high of 436 yards on 58 attempts to defeat the Trailblazers 35-22. David Tann led the attack with a season-high 206 yards rushing and five touchdowns, moving him to a career 43 scores and fifth nationally in rushing touchdowns. Josh Brown led the receivers with three catches for 54 yards. Defensively, the Mavericks allowed just 133 yards of offense from Dixie State in the second half. Blake Nelson led with seven tackles, two sacks, two pass-breakups and a quarterback hurry. Darrian Turner notched 10 tackles and his first interception of the season. Colorado Mesa is now 6-1.
 
For the Trailblazers, who kept it close at the beginning, Kasey Allison finished with a season-best 140 yards receiving and a touchdown on seven catches. Mike Jones notched a season-high 14 tackles. Jaylen Moore picked off a Colorado Mesa pass and returned it 42 yards for a score, the first interception-return touchdown for the Trailblazers since 2014. Dixie State is now 3-3 in RMAC games and 3-4 overall.
 
Black Hills State made six interceptions, two each coming from Luis Bach and Drew Hebel, to defeat Western 40-0. This is their first shutout win since 2012. The first two scores for the Yellow Jackets came off career-long kicks from Trey Fleming (46 yards) and Jacob Parks (53 yards). Phydell Paris, who is sixth nationally in total touchdowns and first in the RMAC in rushing, ran for 100 yards and a touchdown, his fifth 100+ yard game of the season. Black Hills State is now 4-3.
 
Despite the loss, Rodray Perkins had a school record-breaking game for Western. Perkins went 63 yards on three kickoff returns, bringing his career total to 1,088 yards, second in Mountaineers' history. Western falls to 0-7.
 
Adams State faced non-conference opponent West Texas A&M in Canyon, Texas, where they fell just short, 17-14. Turnovers were costly, with Nick Rooney throwing three interceptions. Despite this, Rooney, who is ninth nationally in passing yards, set a school record with 45 completions. Chad Hovasse, who is 11^th nationally in receiving yards, set the school record for single-game receptions with 14. Hovasse also moved to second in Adams State history in career completions with 148. The Grizzlies are now 3-3 in RMAC games and 3-4 overall.