ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University Football Team (7-1, 6-0 LSC) welcomes the 16th-ranked Angelo State Rams (6-2, 4-2 LSC) for a Saturday evening tilt that could alter the playoff outlook for both teams.
 
CWU students attending the game will need their physical connection card to enter on Saturday, or else CWU students can go onto wildcatsports.com/tickets and select the student ticket option which gives students a QR code that they can show at the game for entry for free.
 
GAME INFORMATION:
 
Saturday, November 1
#8 Central Washington vs. #16 Angelo State
6:00 p.m.
Steve Hertling Field at Tomlinson Stadium
Ellensburg, Wash.
WATCH ($): HERE
LISTEN (88.1 The 'Burg): HERE
LIVE STATS: HERE
TICKETS: HERE
 
QUOTING CWU HEAD FOOTBALL COACH CHRIS FISK:
 
"The Rams are a very good football team. Early on they had two very quality wins over MIAA opponents that really set the tone for their season, but then their quarterback got hurt and they kind of had a stumble there in the middle part there, but now the quarterback's back and it feels like they're in a scenario where they're starting to get back on stride and back on tempo with the expectations they had at the beginning of the season. They're backed in a corner, they're fighting for their lives, they're fighting for playoff hopes. Just like I know how the Rams will be, if they're backed in a corner, they're going to come out swinging. I think this will be just like every matchup we've ever had with these guys. If you look at every one of them they've been decided by a touchdown or less and they're tight and physical games. It's usually for us the most physical game of the year, I think their O-line is 310 plus across the board in terms of pounds. They have big kids, they have physical kids, they have a great quarterback, they have great skill players, and we're going to have to be at our best to win this football game."
 
LAST GAME:
 
Both teams started slowly with three straight three-and-outs before CWU's Kennedy McGill found Ryder Bumgarner for a 22-yard touchdown. David Weber's PAT made it 7–0 CWU with 8:14 left in the first. MSU answered as Jakolby Longino hit Jaden Coulter for 90 yards, then Demonte Greene for a nine-yard score to tie it 7–7. McGill led another drive early in the second, connecting with Andrew Molloy for a 17-yard touchdown and a 14–7 CWU lead.
 
MSU settled for a 31-yard field goal to make it 14–10, but McGill broke free for a 58-yard touchdown run to push it to 21–10. The defense added to the lead when Brett McCalla returned an interception 90 yards for a touchdown, making it 28–10 CWU. After a fake punt conversion, McGill ran in another score from 37 yards out, extending the lead to 35–10. MSU hit a 50-yard field goal before halftime, but Samaje Featherstone's 85-yard kickoff return gave CWU a commanding 42–13 lead at the break.
 
The Wildcats picked up right where they left off in the third as Bumgarner ran in a 24-yard touchdown to make it 49–13. Ki'Marree Washington later added a 25-yard touchdown early in the fourth, increasing the lead to 56–13. From there, CWU's defense dominated, forcing repeated punts to seal the 56–13 victory for the Wildcats.
 
McGill gave an outstanding performance, completing 7 of 9 passes for 98 yards and two touchdowns, while also leading the rushing attack with 174 yards and two more touchdowns. On the ground, Bumgarner and Washington each added a rushing touchdown, with Bumgarner contributing 64 yards and Washington 55 yards, respectively. In the air, Bumgarner also led the 'Cats in receiving, hauling in three catches for 39 yards and a touchdown, while Molloy added 17 yards and a touchdown of his own.
 
Defensively, Jalen Webber led the team with eight tackles, followed by McCalla, who tallied five tackles, a tackle for loss, and a pick six. Kuma Scanlan also posted five tackles, and Mikaio Edward recorded one tackle, with both contributing a tackle for loss. Logan Lisherness added three tackles and a sack, while Chase Loidhamer had two tackles and a sack.


On special teams, Redding handled punting and kickoff duties, averaging 47 yards on two punts (94 total) and 65.5 yards on nine kickoffs (590 total). Weber went 0-for-1 on field goal attempts but was a perfect 8-for-8 on PATs. In the return game, Mika Roberson totaled 39 yards on four punt returns, and the LSC Special Teams Player of the Week, Featherstone, electrified the crowd with an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
 
The Wildcats totaled 488 yards while giving up 367 to MSU. The Wildcats earned 22 first downs compared to the Mustangs 17 but outgained the 'Cats in the air 234 yards to 98 yards. The crimson and black, however, earned more yards on the ground by a 390 to 133 margin.
 
The 'Cats clung to the ball for a resounding 35:00 during the game, only allowing the 'Stangs to possess it for 25:00. The 'Cats were 4/10 on third down attempts and 1/2 on fourth down attempts while limiting the potent Mustangs to 3/13 on third downs and 0/1 on fourth downs. The Wildcats had 4 penalties for 60 yards while the Mustangs also had 4 penalties, but only for 28 yards.
 
ABOUT THE #16 RAMS:
 
The Rams are currently 6-2 on the season including a 4-2 LSC record. They opened their season with a pair of big nonconference victories, first at Fort Hays State by a 28-7 score before defeating Emporia State in their home-opener by a 41-20 score. ASU rattled off two victories to begin conference play that saw the blue and gold take down Eastern New Mexico on the road 31-20 before knocking off their in-state counterpart Western New Mexico at home by a 56-27 score. They suffered their first defeat at home against then 9th-ranked UTPB by a 28-14 score before suffering a similar result at Texas A&M-Kingsville the following week by a 24-19 margin. They bounced back the past couple of weeks, first defeating Midwestern State at home for their Homecoming by a 48-24 score before taking down Sul Ross State 62-0 on the road last week.
 
Angelo State is currently outscoring their opponents 37.38 points per game to the 18.75 points they give up per game. The blue and gold have a very balanced attack, averaging 197.8 rushing yards per game and 183 passing yards per game. The Rams have a stout rushing defense only allowing 102.8 rushing yards per game and give up 245.38 passing yards per game to their opponents.
 
The Rams are currently successful on 40 percent of their third down attempts and 60 percent on their fourth down attempts compared to the 40.91 percent third down and 43.75 percent fourth down success rate opponents are averaging. Opponents are holding onto the ball slightly longer than ASU by a margin of 30:08 minutes per game compared to the 29:50 minutes the Rams hold onto the ball. Angelo State is a disciplined team currently averaging 58.13 penalty yards per game, racking up 50 penalties for a total of 465 yards this season.
 
Braeden Fuller has been the starting quarterback, completing 59 of 101 passes for 772 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Cameron Dischler leads the rushing attack with 449 yards and 3 touchdowns on 85 carries. Jayden Jones and Kaeden Smith also have eclipsed 300 rushing yards on the year with Jones accumulating 393 yards and 4 touchdowns on 75 carries while Smith has added 306 yards and 3 touchdowns on 46 attempts. Hunter Wallis and Corey Sandolph have been the favorite targets of the quarterback room. Wallis leads the way with 345 yards and 7 touchdowns on 22 catches while Sandolph has made 19 catches for 336 yards and 7 touchdowns of his own, respectfully.
 
Marquis Brown leads the Rams defense with 46 tackles while Alex Bouloubasis and Xavier Walter aren't far behind at 44 tackles. Owen Seaver is one of the best at getting in the backfield, accumulating 13 tackles for loss that include 7.5 sacks and leads the team with 5 quarterback hurries. Walton leads ASU with 4 interceptions while Brown has 7 pass breakups. 5 different Rams have a fumble recovery while Jeremiah McNeeley leads the team with 2 forced fumbles. 6 different Rams have blocked a kick so far this season.
 
Stefaan Forbes has been the main punter this season for ASU, punting the ball away 40 times for 1,658 yards with 13 landing within the opponents 20-yard line. Rance Purser has been the main kicker for the Ram, making 3/4 field goal attempts with his longest coming from 36 yards as well as having 48 kickoffs for 2,985 yards.  Donny Bishop has been the main punt returner, returning 14 punts for 113 yards while Zeek Freeman has returned the most kickoffs for a total of 219 yards and 1 touchdown. Eugene Liger has added a punt return touchdown while Alan Dobbins has added a 45-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.
 
UP NEXT:
 
The Wildcats will wrap up the regular season with two road games, the first of which happening at Sul Ross State next Saturday, November 8. The 'Cats make their first trip to Alpine, Texas for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff from Jackson Field.