ELLENSBURG, Wash. - Central Washington University football is back on the road for the second to last time this season. The Wildcats head south to California for the series finale against conference foe Azusa Pacific. Winners of their last three, CWU will look to stay on track as the 2019 season nears its end.

GAME INFORMATION
at Azusa Pacific Cougars
Saturday, Nov. 2
6:00 p.m. PT
Citrus Stadium
Glendora, Calif.

ON THE AIR
• The game will be broadcast on KCWU Radio's 88.1 "The Burg" and 881theburg.com with Jeff MacMillan and Dave Heaverlo calling the action. The pregame tailgate show will get started at 5:30 p.m. PT on the Wildcat Sports Radio Network.
• The game will be webcast online for free through Central Washington's Stretch Internet portal at http://www.portal.stretchinternet.com/cwu/. The game will also be available to view On Demand following the conclusion of the live event.

KICKOFF
• Central Washington is set for its fifth GNAC game of the season and second against the Azusa Pacific Cougars this Saturday. The Wildcats will look for a season sweep against the Cougars in the road matchup.
• The Wildcats will look to get their overall record above .500 and hopefully extend their win streak to four games. They started their win streak three weeks ago when they defeated Azusa Pacific 44-6 at home.
• The Wildcats were picked to finish second in the GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll behind Azusa Pacific. They received one first-place vote and tallied eight points in the poll.
• The Cougars will look to end a three-game losing streak when they host the Wildcats. Their lone win of the year was a 38-12 win at Simon Fraser (B.C.) back on Sept. 28.
• APU was selected as the favorites in the 2019 GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll. They received two first-place votes and tallied 24 points in the poll. The Cougars were the preseason favorites after finishing 2018 with an 8-4 overall record, going 7-1 in the GNAC, and winning a share of the conference crown.
• The Wildcats will wrap up the home portion of the 2019 schedule next Saturday, Nov. 9 when they host non-conference foe Southwest Baptist for Senior Day.
 
QUOTABLE
Head Coach Chris Fisk
On His Team's Performance Against Simon Fraser: This is something we can build off of going into the Azusa [Pacific] game this weekend. We want to spin that momentum [from the win] into something positive this week. Our guys have been practicing really hard so we're excited to get down to L.A.
On extending the win streak to three and getting the team record back to .500: Everyone obviously knows that, but as always, we focus on the 1-0 mentality every week. With Azusa ahead of us, we just want to get down there and have a good performance so that we can continue to build.
On What He expects From His Team When They Face at Azusa Pacific: Right now, we just want to continue our momentum defensively. We've had three good performances in a row in stopping the run and we want to continue that. Offensively, we just need to continue being explosive. We're doing a great job of stretching the field vertically and running the ball so we just want to continue being effective in those areas. Also, want to win the special teams battle. We've done that most weeks and want keep that going as well.
 
GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• The Wildcats picked up a GNAC Player of the Week honor for the eighth consecutive week and this time they earned more than one nod, taking two of the three selections
• Michael Roots was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week, while Grady Graff was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week.
• Roots hit a career mark as he helped lead CWU to a 62-10 thrashing of Simon Fraser. The junior rushed for 221 yards and three touchdowns as he eclipsed 2,00 career rushing yards. With his marks, Roots now ranks sixth in career rushing yards with 2,163 and fifth in career rushing touchdowns with 21 for CWU. His total rushing touchdowns is now 11th all-time in GNAC history, while his rushing yards ranks 13th.
• On defense, Graff was the team's leading tackler in the Wildcats 52-point home win. He totaled nine tackles for the night, with eight be assisted and one being on a solo effort. Graff also had 1.5 tackles for loss of 11 yards and 1.5 sacks in the game. He also forced a fumble for the defense that CWU recovered. Along with leading the defense, Graff also handled all the long snapping duties for the Wildcats, a role that he has handled all of this season
 
SERIES HISTORY
• The Wildcats and Cougars will battle on the gridiron for the 19th time overall this Saturday. CWU currently holds a 11-7 advantage in the series following the 44-6 win back on Oct. 12.
• In 2018, the two squads split at 1-1 with both teams getting a win on each other's home turf. CWU won 45-31 in Glendora, Calif., while APU won 42-35 in Ellensburg.
• When playing in Glendora, CWU is 6-3 all-time against APU and has won each of the last two contests.
 
LAST MEETING WITH AZUSA PACIFIC
• The Wildcats controlled the game from the first snap as they handed the Cougars a 44-6 loss during CWU's Homecoming.
• CWU put up a season-high 667 yards of total offense and limited APU to just 241. CWU had six touchdowns on the night, all of which that came through the air.
• Christian Moore went 26-37 passing for 423 yards and a career best five touchdowns in the win.
• Tyson Rainwater also had a career night for CWU pulling in three touchdowns. He finished with 177 receiving yards on 10 receptions.
• Michael Roots led the ground game with 102 yards on 17 carries. Moore also tallied 70 rushing yards on 11 carries to finish the night with 493 yards of total offense.
• Jeremiah Vasquez was the leading tackler with eight to go along with 1.0 tackle for loss and a pass breakup.
• Isaiah Carbajal and Windy Isaia led the defensive front as both had 2.0 sacks on the night for a combined loss of 20 yards.
• Tyren Sams led the secondary with an interception and had two pass breakups in the win.
 
ABOUT THE COUGARS
• Azusa Pacific enters the weekend with a 1-6 overall record and 1-3 in GNAC play. The Cougars are currently on a three-game losing streak.
• As a unit, APU ranks in the bottom half of the conference in nearly every major statistical team category. They are the least penalized team in the GNAC with 49 flags for 433 yards.
• Anthony Catalano is the Cougars leading rusher with 215 total yards on the season. He has the second most rushing touchdowns with two.
• Dante Davis has the most rushing touchdowns with three. He has rushed for 123 yards on 32 carries.
• Tyrone Williams Jr. leads the passing game for APU with 1,151 yards on 76-144 attempts. He's thrown six touchdowns and been picked off four times.
• Jasiah Richard-Lewis is the leading receiver for the team with 440 yards on 24 receptions. He is tied for the team lead in touchdowns with two.
• Brandon Jackson is the second leading receiver with 261 yards this season on 21 receptions. He also has two touchdowns on the year to tie the team lead.
• Quentin Frazier leads the defense in total tackles with 46. He also has the most solo tackles with 27 to go along with one interception.
• Ben Sukut is just one tackle back of Frazier with 45. He is also second in solo tackles with. He is tied for the team lead in interceptions with two.
• Josh Olave also has two picks on the year to tie for the team lead. He has made 23 tackles on the year and forced a fumble along with recovering a fumble.
 
LAST TIME OUT
• Central Washington Wildcats Football picked up another big win as they secured their third-straight win and fourth overall. The Wildcats racked up a season-high 62 points in a 62-10 thrashing of the Simon Fraser Clan inside Tomlinson Stadium Saturday night.
• The Crimson and Black (4-4, 3-1 GNAC) dominated both sides of the ball racking up 573 yards of total offense on 70 plays, while the defense held SFU (1-7, 1-3 GNAC) to just 158 yards of total offense on 70 plays.
• Part of the Wildcats big home win and now 12th straight against SFU was the dominance of Michael Roots in the ground game. The junior eclipsed 2,000 career yards rushing in a night where he totaled 221 yards on 14 carries.
• CWU's prolific night started with three first quarter scores, two of which were touchdowns. Roots scored the first with a 56-yard burst in first 44 seconds of the game starting. Patrick Hegarty made it a 10-0 game with under 5:00 to play in the first with a 27-yard field goal.
• The Wildcats defense was all over the SFU offense forcing them to punt in the first two series before forcing a fumble and pulling down an interception in the following two drives, respectively.
• Grady Graff forced the fumble for CWU that was recovered by Hunter Eckstrom. The Wildcats were forced to punt on the ensuing drive but the defense once again stepped up to get the ball back. Chaz McKenzie pulled down the pick at the CWU 40 that set up the third score of the first quarter for the Wildcats.
• Christian Moore threw his first of four touchdowns on the night with a 21-yard high ball to Drake Owen. The score gave CWU a 17-0 edge going into the second.
• SFU's first of just two scores on the night came early in the second, thanks in part to a 22-yard boot from David Eisenkraft.
• The Wildcats once again scored three more times before halftime and it was a feeling of déjà vu as they put up two touchdowns and one field goal to lead by 31 at the break.
• Roots added his second rushing score of the night with a punch in from three yards out that gave CWU a 24-3 advantage with 7:31 to go until halftime. 91 seconds later after forcing SFU to punt again, Moore made it a 31-3 lead with a 11-yard strike to Tony Archie.
• Hegarty nailed his second and final field goal of the night right as the clock hit 00:00 in the first half to give the Crimson and Black a commanding 34-3 lead. He nailed a kick from 41 yards out, which is his longest of his career in a CWU uniform.
• Coming out of the break, the Wildcats decided to make it a repeat game in terms of scoring. CWU put up 17 points in each quarter of the first half and nearly mimicked it in the second half scoring a pair of touchdowns in both quarters of the second half.
• The first Crimson and Black touchdown of the third quarter took just 11 seconds and one play to get the offense going. Following a punt by SFU, Roots took a handoff for 82 yards as he blew by everyone to get to the end zone for the score. CWU's lead grew to 41-3.
• SFU was unable to respond on the next drove and punted yet again. The following CWU possession, Moore drove the team 91 yards in five quick plays to score touchdown No. 2 of the third.
• Moore found a wide-open Mykel Campbell for his first career touchdown at home on a 22-yard pass. With 7:16 to play in the third, the Wildcats led 48-3.
• SFU's lone touchdown of the night came with 3:59 to play in the third quarter. Solomon Hines scored on a four-yard scramble to bring the score to 48-10 going into the fourth.
• The Wildcats got the seven points back in the first four seconds of the fourth quarter with Moore and Campbell hooking up for another touchdown. Campbell made a high leaping one-handed catch that gave CWU a 55-10 advantage following the PAT.
• The Wildcats last touchdown of the night came with little field to work with thanks in part to SFU having some penalties on a punt. SFU punted from its own 13 and Owen returned the ball to the visitor 24 from the SFU 49. An unsportsmanlike penalty by SFU moved the ball up to the 12.
• With 12 yards of field to clear, the Crimson and Black needed just one play to score. Eric Wilkes got to the end zone on the 12-yard scamper to bring the final score to 62-10.
• Moore tallied 219 yards through the air on 15-32 passing and had four touchdowns. He also rushed for 28 yards on four rushes. Roots eclipsed 200 yards for the second time this year finishing with 221 and three touchdowns.
• Campbell had the most receiving touchdowns with two. He pulled in three catches for 52 yards. Tyson Rainwater led the way in receiving yards with 94 on six receptions.
• Graff led the defensive unit in tackles with nine. He also added 1.5 tackles for loss and forced a fumble. Billy Greer and Daeon Hudson each had eight tackles, while Greer led the team with in tackles for loss with 2.5. He and Graff both had 1.5 sacks on the night as well.
• Hudson and Jeremiah Vasquez also tallied a pair of pass breakups as well to help lead the secondary. McKenzie had the lone interception of the game and a pass breakup. As a unit, the defense had five sacks for a loss of 36 yards and 9.0 tackles for loss.
 
THE WILDCATS IN GNAC PLAY
• CWU is 3-1 in GNAC play following the 62-10 home win over Simon Fraser.
• The Wildcats are 3-1 in GNAC play under Chris Fisk.
• Overall, CWU is now 87-24 all-time in GNAC play since 2001.
 
THE WILDCATS AT HOME
• The Wildcats are 2-2 in 2019 in games played at Tomlinson Stadium.
• The Wildcats are 190-81-5 (.698) overall in 61 seasons of playing home games at Tomlinson Stadium. They are 2-2 under Chris Fisk.
• CWU has posted 15 undefeated marks at home in the 61-year history of Tomlinson Stadium since its construction ahead of the 1959 season.
 
THE WILDCATS ON THE ROAD
• Central Washington is 2-2 on the road under Chris Fisk.
• The Wildcats second road win of the season was also their first one in overtime in a 42-41 win at Western Oregon.
• The Wildcats have finished each of the last two seasons with five or more wins on the road, including a perfect 6-0 mark in 2017.
 
WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF
• The Wildcats are 2-0 this season when leading opponents at halftime.
• Central Washington in 2-4 under Chris Fisk when tied or trailing at halftime.
• The Wildcats finished 2018 with a record of 7-1 when leading at halftime.
 
21 AND UP
• CWU is 0-2 under Chris Fisk when scoring 21 or more points and is 1-1 when scoring 30 or more points. They are 3-1 when scoring 40 or more points.
• CWU finished the 2018 campaign with 7-2 mark when scoring at least 21 points in a game.
• When scoring 30 or more points, the Wildcats went 8-1 when scoring at least 30 points last season and were 8-0 when scoring 40 or more points.
 
HIGH POWERED CAT ATTACK
• The Wildcats have scored at least one touchdown in 172 consecutive games to keep a streak of not being shutout intact.
• The scoring streak dates back to week four of the 2004 season.
• In 2019, CWU has rushed for 100-plus yards in all eight games.
• CWU has totaled 500-plus yards of total offense in each of the last four games and eclipsed that mark in five games overall this season.
 
2019 GNAC STAT LEADERS
• CWU still leads the GNAC in total offense. The team averages 509.8 yards per game. That mark is seventh in Division II going into the weekend.
• The Wildcats still lead the GNAC in scoring with an average of 38.8 points per game, which is tied for 21st in Division II.
• CWU's passing averaging of 301.4 yards per game leads the GNAC. The average is 12th in Division II.
• The Wildcats are second in the conference in rushing offense with 208.4 yards per game. They are 34th in Division II with that average.
• Defensively, the Wildcats lead the GNAC in team sacks with 22.0, a mark that is tied for 35th in Division II.
• CWU's defense also leads the GNAC in tackles for loss with 61.0. The total is tied for 37th in Division II.
• Michael Roots is still the GNAC leader in rushing yards per game (137.0) and total yards (1,096).
• Roots' total rushing yards is currently fourth best in Division II, while his average ranks sixth.
• Christian Moore now leads the GNAC in passing yards average with 240.3 per game.
• Moore's average of 240.3 passing yards per game is currently 26th best in Division II. He sits atop the GNAC and ranks 22nd in Division II with a passing efficiency of 154.0.
• Tony Archie is second in the GNAC in receiving touchdowns with seven and is third in the GNAC in receiving yards per game (68.0).
• Archie's total receptions (40) leads the GNAC and his receptions per game (5.0) is also the top average in the GNAC.
• Moore is second the GNAC in total offense averaging 271.7 yards per game. His average is 21st in Division II.
• Roots leads the GNAC in all-purpose yards averaging 176.4, which is fifth best in Division II.
• Eric Wilkes is the GNAC leader in average kickoff return yards at 23.5. His 329 total return yards is second, while his 14 total returns are third.
• Defensively, the Wildcats have one individual ranked in the top-five in the GNAC in total tackles. Hamilton Hunt leads the team with 56 and is second in the GNAC overall.
• Billy Greer is the conference leader in sacks with 6.0 this season. His 35 sack yards also leads the GNAC. He now leads the GNAC tackles for loss with 9.5 for 44 yards.
• Isaiah Carbajal is second in the GNAC in both sacks and tackles for loss. He has 4.0 sacks for a loss of 14 yards and 8.5 tackles for loss of 20 yards.
• Tevin Gray is third in the GNAC in tackles for loss with 6.5. He has 28 yards total in those tackles.
• Tyren Sams is tied for the lead in interceptions for the GNAC with four on the year. His four picks is tied for 15th in Division II.
• Sams' 53 return yards from those four picks also leads the conference. McKenzie is tied for third in total interceptions with three.
• Patrick Hegarty is second in total punt yards with 1,482.
 
WILDCATS IN THE RECORD BOOKS
• A pair of Wildcats are climbing the top-10 all-time in the CWU record book in Michael Roots and Gavin Todd.
• Roots is now sixth all-time in total rushing yards with 2,163. He is just 30 yards from moving up to fifth on the CWU all-time career list.
• He has 21 career rushing touchdowns which is now alone at sixth all-time. He needs one to tie for fourth and two to sit alone at fourth.
• Todd is now tied for sixth all-time in program history in field goals made with 18. He needs two more to move up to fifth all-time.
• He is 10th in CWU history in field goals attempted with 23 and is now one away from moving up to a tied for ninth all-time.
 
AROUND THE GNAC
• It will be a full tilt of GNAC games this Saturday, Nov. 2 as the regular season nears its end.
• Simon Fraser will play host to Western Oregon for a mid-day tilt. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. PT.
• Azusa Pacific will host Central Washington for Senior Day. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. PT.
 
A WIN OVER AZUSA PACIFIC WOULD...
• Give CWU its fourth straight win and a season sweep against the Cougars.
• Hand APU its fourth straight loss and seventh overall of the season.
• Push the Wildcats record to over .500 (6-4) for this first time all season.
• Move Chris Fisk's career record against APU to 2-0.
 
A LOSS TO AZUSA PACIFIC WOULD...
• Be the eighth loss ever to APU and just the fourth ever on the road.
• Snap CWU's three-game win streak and bring the series record to 11-8 overall.
• Hand Chris Fisk his first career loss to APU.
• Drop the Wildcats record to 4-5 overall and 3-2 in the GNAC.
 
WILDCATS FOOTBALL HISTORY
• In 104 seasons of CWU Football the Wildcats have compiled a 524-338-24 (.610) record in 886 total games played.
• The Wildcats have won 10 or more games nine times in the history of the program and have posted 11 seasons of eight or more wins.
• Since joining the NCAA in 2001, CWU is 142-66 (.683) all time in 208 games played.
• CWU won a school-record 12 games in 2009 and made it to the Quarterfinals of the NCAA-II Playoffs.
• CWU has won or shared a combined 16 conference titles (8 NAIA, 8 NCAA) in school history with the last coming in 2018. As members of the GNAC (2001-05, 08-Pres.), CWU has won or shared eight conference titles.
• The Wildcats have qualified for NCAA-II Playoffs five times in their history since joining the NCAA in 2001, with the last coming in 2017. They are 3-5 all-time in the NCAA-II Playoffs.
• As members of the NAIA, the Wildcats made the NAIA Playoffs nine times and compiled an overall record of 10-8-1. They won a share of the NAIA National Championship in 1995 and made the semifinal round four times.
 
FISK AT THE HELM
• Central Washington Head Coach Chris Fisk is 4-4 all-time in his young career of leading the Wildcats.
• His first career win as the Wildcats head coach came on Sept. 21, 2019 in a 36-27 road win at Western New Mexico. His first career home win was a 44-6 victory over Azusa Pacific on Oct. 12, 2019
• Prior to becoming the CWU Head Coach, Fisk was the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach for CWU from 2016-18.
• In his second year as the offensive coordinator in 2017, Fisk helped guide the Wildcats offense that was one of the most-prolific in Division II as they made the NCAA-II Playoffs for the fifth time in school history.
• As the offensive coordinator, Fisk had the Wildcats offense rank in the top-five in Division II in total offense and scoring each of the last three seasons.
 
WILDCATS IN THE PROS
• There are five former Wildcats currently playing in the Canadian Football League (CFL) in Bo Banner (DE), Adam Bighill (LB), Kevin Haynes (LB), Bryson Kelly (DL), and Mike Reily (QB).
• Three former CWU football players have been selected in the National Football League (NFL) Draft. Byron Johnson was drafted in 1966 by the Dallas Cowboys, David Knapman was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals, and Eric Boles was drafted by the New York Jets in 1992.
• CWU Hall of Fame Quarterback Jon Kitna played in the NFL for 16 seasons from 1997-2013 for four teams in the Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, and the Dallas Cowboys.
• Kitna finished his professional career with 169 touchdown passes and 29,745 passing yards in 141 games played. He is currently the quarterbacks coach for the Dallas Cowboys.
 
UP NEXT
• CWU will return home for the final time this season next Saturday, Nov. 9 for Senior Day. The Wildcats take on non-conference foe South-west Baptist. Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. PT.