Football releases 2020 schedule featuring five home games, along with playing at Division I Idaho

MONMOUTH, Ore. – Coming off of a historic 2019 season, the Western Oregon University football team is set for another challenging schedule in 2020. The Wolves will play five home games and will open the season with a Division I opponent playing at the University of Idaho.

In addition to starting out with a Division I foe, a few teams will venture to Monmouth for the first time in awhile or first time ever in Texas A&M-Kingsville and Chadron State.

The season will open on Sep. 5 when the Wolves will travel to Idaho to face the University of Idaho in Moscow. This will be the first time since the 2017 season in which WOU has opened the year at a Division I opponent. That season the Wolves faced Idaho State in Pocatello. The 2020 meeting will be the first meeting between WOU and Idaho as the Vandals went 5-7 in 2019 that included a close win over Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponent Central Washington (41-31). Idaho went 4-2 at home last year with quarterback Mason Petrino throwing for 18 touchdowns and 2,244 yards. Aundre Carter rushed for seven touchdowns and Jeff Cotton caught seven touchdowns. On defense, two players went for over 100 tackles led by 138 from Tre Walker. Charles Akanno has 13.5 tackles for loss, Christian Elliss had 4.5 sacks and both Tyrese Dedmon and Lloyd Hightower recorded two interceptions apiece.

The home opener will arrive on Sep. 12 against Texas A&M-Kingsville. Western Oregon and the Javelinas have faced each other a lot in recent years as this will be the third straight meeting since 2018. While this will be the fifth meeting in the series, this will be the first in Monmouth since 2006 when the Wolves claimed the 36-10 victory. WOU is 4-0 all-time in the series after claiming the 26-14 win last year in Kingsville. WOU utilized a big third quarter to take control of the game and roll to the victory. Ty Currie passed for 183 yards, while rushing for 100 yards and three scores. Omari Land also went for over 100 tallying 101 yards on the ground along with a score. Defensively Ryan Minniti had six tackles to lead the way and both Jaylin Parnell and Blayne Burnett added five stops. Curtis Anderson recorded two interceptions and a trio of players in Jaylin Parnell, Tyrell Cummings and Nate Proctor, Jr., all had a sack. Texas A&M-Kingsville finished the season 2-9 and had a coaching change following the year. Last season away from home the Javelinas went 1-3. Luis Lopez led the ground attack running for 593 yards and 11 touchdowns. Both Koy Detmer, Jr., and Cade Dyal spent time at quarterback with Detmer, Jr., throwing for 1,484 yards and 11 touchdowns, while Dyal added 1,337 yards and six scores. Darrian Hambrick caught 50 passes for 682 yards and a pair of scores, while Alan Smith led the way with four touchdowns. On defense, Tre'Michael Tutt led the way with 120 tackles, with 60 being solo. Jacob Clarkson tallied 16 tackles for loss and four sacks, while b oth Kason Franklin and Amos Coleman had two interceptions apiece.

Back-to-back home games will follow with the first GNAC game of the season arriving on Sep. 19 when Azusa Pacific comes to Monmouth. The two teams will also meet again to close out the regular season on Nov. 14 at Azusa. The last time the two teams met in Monmouth was a memorable one for WOU as the Wolves made history when Proctor, Jr., was able to block the potential game-winning field goal to send WOU to the 23-21 victory over the Cougars. Since 2000, WOU is 7-10 against Azusa Pacific going 4-5 at home and 3-5 on the road. Last year was the first time in the series that the Wolves swept the season series. Prior to both wins last year, the Cougars had won the previous six matchups and the win in Azusa was the first on the road since 2012. In the historic win, Currie threw for 157 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 178 yards and a score. Land just missed triple digits with 96 yards. In the earlier meeting in Azusa, Currie, Land and Nico Jackson all rushed for over 100 yards. Marquis Sampson caught three passes for 66 yards and a score. On defense, Derek Parnell had nine tackles, eight solo. Jaylin Parnell collected a pair of sacks and also forced two fumbles, while Brealen Evans had a big interception early in the second half to stop a drive in the end zone. In the earlier meeting at Azusa WOU piled up 42 points in the 42-36 victory. The ground game combined for 330 yards and four touchdowns, with Land rushing for a trio of scores. Sampson and Justice Murphy each recorded a touchdown reception. On defense, Jaylin Parnell had eight tackles, while Joey Sinclair and Cummings added seven tackles apiece. Azusa Pacific went 1-9 during the 2019 season and 1-5 in GNAC play. Although a tough season for the Cougars, they came close in several games down the stretch pushing nationally-ranked Colorado School of Mines and Central Washington prior to the close finish in Monmouth. Gil'Scott Jackson led the ground attack rushing for just 272 yards, while Dante Davis had five rushing scores. Tyrone Williams, Jr., spent a majority of the time as the starting quarterback throwing for 1,780 yards and nine touchdowns. Anthony Catalano also threw for 644 yards and four scores. Receivers Jasiah Richard-Lewis and Brandon Jackson each caught three touchdowns and went for over 400 receiving yards with Richard-Lewis at 481 yards and Jackson at 424 yards. On defense, Quentin Frazier led the way with 70 tackles, Alex Benter had three sacks and both Ben Sukut and Josh Olave came away with three interceptions.

A trio of road games will follow the home meeting with Azusa Pacific as the Wolves will play at Simon Fraser on Sep. 26, West Texas A&M on Oct. 3 and Central Washington on Oct. 10. WOU once again dominated the series last year with Simon Fraser picking up a 51-14 win in Monmouth before a 45-14 win at Simon Fraser. WOU and Simon Fraser will meet again in Monmouth on Oct. 17. WOU is 21-1 in the series since 2000 with the only win for the Clan occurring in the first meeting back in 2000. Since then, WOU has won the last 21 meetings. During the most recent meeting at Simon Fraser, Currie threw for 314 yards and two touchdowns, while Land rushed for 101 yards and a score. Thomas Wright caught four passes for 118 yards and a score, while Jackson also added a receiving touchdown. Proctor, Jr., had eight tackles, while Jaylin Parnell had two sacks and both Derek Parnell and Anderson recorded an interception. During the first meeting in Monmouth Currie threw for 226 yards and three scores. Andrew Valladares rushed for 105 yards on just seven carries that included a touchdown. Jackson also rushed for a pair of scores. Land caught one pass out of the backfield, but it was a screen pass that went 90 yards for a TD. Shaw Jerome, Tyler Reid and Jarren Ford all added receiving touchdowns. Jaylin Parnell had seven tackles and an interception. LJ Lovelace posted 1.5 sacks, while Isaiah Abraham and James Toliver, Jr., also added sacks. The Clan went 1-9 last year and 1-5 in GNAC play, with their only win coming against Azusa Pacific as the two teams split their conference games. They went 0-5 at home and 1-4 on the road. Solomon Hines rushed for 464 yards and two touchdowns, Brandon Niksich threw for 1,926 yards and 10 touchdowns and Rysen John caught 53 passes for 861 yards and 10 touchdowns. Griffin Barrett led the defense with 105 tackles, Anthony Crescenzo had four sacks and three players had an interception.

The first meeting between WOU and West Texas A&M will take place on Oct. 3 in Canyon, Texas. Last year, the Buffs returned to prominence after following multiple seasons of no more than six wins since the 2013 campaign in which they won 11 games, West Texas A&M went 8-3 in 2019 and 5-3 in Lone Star Conference play. The Buffs went 4-2 at home and 4-1 on the road. They faced several similar opponents to the Wolves last year including wins over Azusa Pacific (35-16), Central Washington (48-41), Eastern New Mexico (35-14), Texas A&M-Kingsville (35-31) and Midwestern State (34-24). They also faced Angelo State, falling by three (14-17) and Texas A&M-Commerce, falling by a pair of touchdowns (20-34). Duke Carter IV paced the ground attack rushing for 651 yards and five touchdowns. Nick Gerber and Jordan Johnson each tied for the team lead in rushing touchdowns with eight apiece. Gerber threw for 2,016 yards and 16 touchdowns starting every game in 2019. His main target was Semaj Mitchell who caught 32 passes for 457 yards and six touchdowns. Juwan McCall added 29 catches for 404 yards and four touchdowns.

WOU will close the three-game road swing at Central Washington on Oct. 10. It will be a quick turnaround as the teams will also face each other on Oct. 24 back in Monmouth. The two teams put together an impressive pair of close games in 2019 with each winning on the other's home field. The win for WOU in Ellensburg was the first since 1998 when the Wolves picked up the 36-26 win on the road on Sep. 28. Currie threw for 171 yards and two touchdowns, while Land had a huge day on the ground rushing 21 times for 171 yards. Jackson just missed reaching the century mark as he piled up 93 yards. Currie added three rushing touchdowns to go along with 62 yards. Wright caught one pass, but it was a big one that went for a 50-yard score. Proctor, Jr., led the defense with nine tackles, while Tyler Wharf added six. Anderson had another big game in the secondary with two interceptions. During the rematch in October, Central Washington was able to comeback in the fourth quarter to force overtime and eventually pull out the 42-41 victory. Currie threw for 242 yards and four touchdowns, while he rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown. Land added 104 rushing yards as well. Ford caught three passes for 121 yards and a touchdown. Evander Willingham had a pair of touchdown receptions and Sampson added one as well. Proctor, Jr., again led the way with 10 tackles, nine being solo, along with a sack and forced fumble. Jaylin Parnell had seven tackles and a tackle for loss. Sinclair collected a pair of interceptions. Since 2000, Central Washington is 27-7 in the series with WOU going 5-11 at home and 1-15 on the road during that time. The Wildcats went 7-4 and 5-1 in GNAC play last year. They opened the season with a close game at Idaho before falling short (31-41). Following that loss to West Texas A&M on Oct. 5, they would go on to finish the season winning six straight games. Michael Roots led the rushing attack going for 1,515 yards and 14 touchdowns. Christian Moore and Canon Racanelli split time at quarterback until Moore took control midway through the season as he threw for 2,224 yards and 28 touchdowns. Racanelli added 856 passing yards and five scores. Tyson Rainwater led the receivers catching 48 passes for 795 yards and five touchdowns. Tony Archie had the most receiving touchdowns with eight, catching 49 passes for 651 yards. On defense, Donte Hamilton had 107 tackles, with nine tackles for loss. Billy Greer collected seven sacks and Tyren Sams had five interceptions.

Following weeks facing Simon Fraser (Oct. 17) and Central Washington (Oct. 24), Oct. 31 will turn into a bye week as the orginally scheduled game at Tarleton State has been cancelled, as the Texans, who are transitioning to Division I FCS, took a different game that week against a Division I opponent.

The following week on Nov. 7 will be Senior Day when WOU welcomes in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opponent Chadron State to McArthur Field. The Eagles, most recently known for having Danny Woodhead come through the school setting multiple records on his way to playing in the National Football League, went 6-5 last year and 5-5 in RMAC play. Chadron State went 3-2 away from home in 2019 with their most impressive win coming at Dixie State on Oct. 26 (40-27). The Eagles last played a GNAC school during the 2017 season when they traveled to Arcata, Calif., to face Humboldt State as the Lumberjacks rolled to the 56-13 victory. Elijah Myles led the rushing attack with 1,077 yards and 12 touchdowns. Dalton Holst threw for 3,114 yards and 33 touchdowns, with Tevon Wright catching 74 passes for 1,146 yards and 16 touchdowns. On defense, Travis Wilson collected 124 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and three sacks. Tyler Lewis just missed reaching 100 tackles ending up with 93, which included 12 tackles for loss and four sacks, along with three interceptions. Noah Kerchal led the team in sacks with 5.5 and along with Lewis having three interceptions, Tyree Fryar also had three INT.

WOU will then finish the season on the road at Azusa Pacific on Nov. 14.

All home games will be played at McArthur Field with a kickoff time of 1:05 p.m.

WOU finished the 2019 season 7-4 overall and 5-1 in GNAC play to secure their first share of the GNAC title in school history. Individual leaders for the season included: Omari Land, rushed 171 times for 1,014 yards and nine touchdowns. Ty Currie led in rushing touchdowns with 11. Currie completed 140-256 for 2,397 yards and 20 touchdowns. Thomas Wright led the team in receptions with 26, yards with 524 and in touchdowns with five. On defense, Nate Proctor, Jr., led the team in overall tackles with 70, tied for the team lead with Jaylin Parnell in sacks with 6.5. Jaylin Parnell led the team in solo tackles with 44 and in tackles for loss with 10.5. Curtis Anderson had the most interceptions with five. Derek Parnell broke up 15 passes on the season, Blayne Burnett had eight quarterback hurries. Jaylin Parnell forced three fumbles and three players blocked a kick in Proctor, Jr. (to secure a share of the GNAC crown), Burnett and Anderson. In special teams, Andrew Gross punted 33 times for an average of 38.55 yards with a long of 56 yards, six inside the 20 and four that traveled over 50 yards. He went 3-6 on field goals with a long of 37 yards and averaged 58.4 yards on 64 kickoffs. On returns, Tyler Reid returned 10 punts for 115 yards, with a long of 26 yards. Anderson returned 29 kickoffs for 636 yards, with a long of 63 yards.

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#22 Isaiah Abraham: DB; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#3 Curtis Anderson: DB; 6' 2"; Junior; 1V

#94 Blayne Burnett: DL; 6' 3"; Junior; 2V

#14 Ty Currie: QB; 6' 2"; Senior; 2V

#81 Jarren Ford: WR; 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS

#96 Andrew Gross: K/P; 6' 1"; Junior

#7 Nico Jackson: RB; 6' 2"; Senior; TR

#83 Shaw Jerome: WR; 6' 1"; Sophomore

#23 Omari Dixon-Land: RB; 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS

#29 Ryan Minniti: DB; 5' 10"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS

Players Mentioned

#22 Isaiah Abraham
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: DB

#3 Curtis Anderson
: 6' 2"; Junior; 1V
: DB

#94 Blayne Burnett
: 6' 3"; Junior; 2V
: DL

#14 Ty Currie
: 6' 2"; Senior; 2V
: QB

#81 Jarren Ford
: 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS
: WR

#96 Andrew Gross
: 6' 1"; Junior
: K/P

#7 Nico Jackson
: 6' 2"; Senior; TR
: RB

#83 Shaw Jerome
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: WR

#23 Omari Dixon-Land
: 5' 11"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS
: RB

#29 Ryan Minniti
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Sophomore; RS
: DB