Season Opener Arrives for Football at Angelo State for Thursday Night Football

SAN ANGELO, Texas – With fall camp complete, the Western Oregon University football team will open the 2019 season with the same team that opened the 2018 year in Angelo State University with kickoff set for Thursday night at 4 p.m. (Pacific).

Last year's game went right down to the wire with the Wolves coming back to take a one-point lead late in the fourth quarter before the Rams were able to drive over the final minute-plus to escape with the 24-17 victory in Monmouth.

Ty Currie passed for 276 yards and a pair of touchdowns, completing 23-43 with a long completion of 74 yards. Tyjuan Prince caught two passes for 79 yards, Ryan Reynolds added three for 60 and Chris Mack snagged six passes for 42 yards.

On defense, Nate Proctor, Jr., posted 12 tackles, with eight coming solo. He added a half tackle for loss. Andrew Weber collected 11 tackles including a half-sack. Curtis Anderson and Tyler Wharf each had an interception.

Currie led the passing attack a year ago and returns for his senior season after completing 161-294 for 1,851 yards and 18 touchdowns. Mack led the receiving corps with 34 catches for 356 yards and a touchdown. Anthony Bradley led the team in receiving touchdowns grabbing four, while Prince tallied three. Redshirt sophomores Marquis Sampson and Thomas Wright return for the 2019 campaign as Sampson snagged 11 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns, while Wright had 12 catches for 154 yards and three touchdowns.

Sophomore running back Omari Land returns to the backfield after carrying 137 times for 788 yards and a touchdown. He had a long carry of 58 yards. Senior Nico Jackson will also return to the backfield after playing in all 11 games in 2018, carrying 124 times for 519 yards and two scores. Jackson caught nine passes for 37 yards, while Land added six receptions for 40 yards.

The offensive line brings back three regulars in seniors Joseph Gonzales on left tackle, Aaron Turner on right tackle and junior Jakob Pruitt at center. The trio helped lead the Wolves to scoring 270 points in 2018, tallying 1,665 yards on the ground and 1,899 passing yards through the air. Overall WOU tallied 3,564 yards and 26 touchdowns.

On defense, Bo Highburger led the team with 103 tackles, 63 solo, along with 16 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, four passes defended, three quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery, three forced fumbles and a blocked kick. He has now transitioned to the sidelines as an assistant coach. Proctor returns to his spot at linebacker for his senior year as he was second on the team in total tackles with 80, posting 41 total stops. He also added 15 tackles for loss, six sacks, an interception, four passes defended, a quarterback hurry, two fumble recoveries and four forced fumbles. He started all 11 games. Sophomore Jaylin Parnell is back after a strong true freshman year at linebacker in which he had 47 tackles, 25 solo, 7.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, an interception, three passes defended, a fumble recovery, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick.

Junior Curtis Anderson returns at free safety after coming away with three interceptions in 2018, along with 44 tackles, seven passes defended, two quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble. Redshirt sophomore Ryan Minniti is back at safety as well playing in 11 games with 34 tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack, an interception, two passes defended and a quarterback hurry. Senior Tyler Wharf is back at linebacker after playing all 11 games last year with 30 tackles, two tackles for loss, two interceptions and seven passes defended. Sophomore Joey Sinclair returns at strong safety having played in 10 games last year with 27 tackles, 17 solo, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, two interception and five passes defended. Sophomore defensive back Machiah Lee played in 11 games last year as a true freshman coming away with 23 tackles, 15 solo, an interception and five passes defended in playing all 11 games. Senior Derek Parnell is also back at defensive back after playing in all 11 games last year with 23 tackles, six passes defended and a forced fumble. Senior Joey Roos is back at linebacker after collecting 22 tackles and four passes defended in playing nine games. Senior Court Hammond is back along the defensive line tallying 19 tackles, 10 solo, along with five tackles for loss, four sacks, two passes defended, four quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. Senior nose guard Gerald Saina returns after playing in 10 games with eight tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass defended. Sophomore Isaiah Abraham is back at linebacker after playing in all 11 games with seven tackles, six solo, a tackle for loss, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick. Redshirt sophomore defensive back KJ Ridders played in eight games last year with six tackles, five solo and a pass defended. Senior defensive end Anthony Kennison had six tackles, four solo in seven games last year.

Other players set to make an impact in 2019 on the early depth chart list include senior defensive back Braelen Evans who arrives from Montana State University. EJ Haag is set to start at linebacker this year as a sophomore. Redshirt freshman Tyrell Cummings is set to start at nose guard after transferring from the University of Central Oklahoma. Senior Blayne Burnett is set to start on defensive end after seeing action throughout his previous three years at WOU.

The specialists will feature a few new faces with junior Andrew Gross having transferred in from Corban and will handle both the kicking and punting duties. Local product Jackson Holstead will handle the long snapping duties, while Anderson is back at returner.

Junior Evander Willingham is set to start at tight end after seeing time over the previous season at the same position. Redshirt sophomore Jarren Ford is set to start at one of the four wide receiver positions after being in the program the previous few seasons. University of Oregon senior transfer Tyler Reid will start at one of the four wide receiver positions after arriving from Eugene. Junior Christian Needham is set to start at right guard after being logging time on the field each of the previous two seasons. Humboldt State transfer redshirt sophomore Avery Bilensky is set to start at left guard after arriving this season.

Angelo State went 6-6 a year ago and 4-4 in the Lone Star Conference. The Rams averaged 33 points per game and allowed 29 points, averaging 446 yards and allowing 413. They tallied 50 touchdowns and allowed 46. The Rams enter the 2019 season receiving votes in the Preseason AFCA Coaches Poll.

Returning quarterbacks Payne Sullins and Charlie Rotherham are back for the Rams. Sullins played in all 12 games, completing 164-297 for 2,465 yards and 15 touchdowns. Rotherham added 84-143 in completions for 856 yards and seven scores. Sullins was second on the team in rushing carrying the ball 122 times for 337 yards and two touchdowns. With top running back Tyrese Nathan gone, Tony Jones and Lloyd Howard return from last year after the two combined for nearly 400 yards and a pair of touchdowns in 2018.

The top two wide receivers from last year return for Angelo State in Lawson Ayo and Keke Chism. Ayou caught 58 passes for 1,073 yards and seven touchdowns, while Chism added 69 catches for 959 yards and six scores.

The defense will have a new look as top tackler Grant Aschenbeck graduated after tallying 121 tackles, including 8.5 for loss. Also graduating was Markus Jones, the National Defensive Player of the Year in Division II a year ago, who posted 36.5 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks in 2018. Hunter Kyle is back after posting 120 tackles, 54 solo, along with four interceptions last year. Leddy French is also back following an 85 tackle, two interceptions and both two forced fumbles and fumble recoveries.

Connor Flanigan is back at kicker after going 18-24 last year, connecting on 5-7 between 40-49 yards. On kickoffs, he averaged 60.2 yards, with 26 going for touchbacks on 79 total kicks.

Live video and stats will be available for the game as links will be posted on wouwolves.com once available. After facing Angelo State this Thursday, Sept. 5 with kickoff at 4 p.m. (Pacific), WOU will return home for the home opener on Saturday Sept. 14 against Texas A&M-Commerce with kickoff set for 1:05 p.m. at McArthur Field. The game will also be a Community Appreciation Game with FREE admission!

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