Utah Tech football pregame vs Montana St

[Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] well greetings and salutations and welcome to Trailblazer football here on the fan Sports Network and Trailblazer Sports Vision Devin Dixon Kaden for master it's game one let's go Caden we are all fired up we're here outside the stadium at the Atwood plaza where the tailgate getting going and we are fired up for the season home opener we are and this is going to be so much fun man ready to get back into a brand new season of Utah Tech TR Blazer football it was a fun season last year here we are again hanging out at the tailgate as well a new experience for us our first tailgate this is exciting man yeah Montana State Bobcats coming to St George Utah glad you're with us we've got the pregame show presented by San Hollow Resort and boy oh boy oh boy should be a great crowd tonight should be good weather actually a little Cloud covered tonight temperature was a high of 98 today and it should be a little later start the kickoff 8:00 p.m. local time so shouldn't be too bad I'm sure some of the St George players for Utah Tech prefer the hot weather for those Montana boys getting going tonight yeah you know that's one of the things we see a lot even with covering our high school ball and we see it here at the Collegiate level that that he can always play a factor you might see some cramps in these early season games so yeah definitely expect the heat to be a factor but listen we're used to it down here in southern Utah Montana I don't know if they're going to be used to it or not but listen they're playing in New Mexico just last week in the Heat and they took care business down there speaking of that game week zero Montana State scores 21 unanswered points to come back and spoil the home debut of first year head coach Bronco minhal and the storyline tonight is they've already played a game Utah Tech hasn't a lot of teams improve a lot between week one and week two uh or week zero and week one in this instance and Lance Anderson talked about this earlier in the week and of course he's making his debut longtime coach Stanford under David Shaw coached a ton of NFL players Kaden but there's going to be a little bit of butterflies this is the first time he's ever been a head coach yeah for sure but listen he comes with a great pedigree he's got a good resume um this is a coach that I feel like Utah Tech is really excited for the players I know are super excited about it and and he does come in again yes with a lot of football knowledge but it's a first time head coach position for him so we'll see how he fits into the mold I know listening to the coaches show earlier in the week uh Rod zundel voice of the Trailblazers asked him hey how's it being in charge of kind of everything right and he's like not going to lie it's tough right so we're expecting him to to hop into that driver seat take control and I I think he's going to do well this is a tough preseason schedule starting tonight with the number four team in the latest FCS rankings Montana State you go to Los Vegas next week to take on UNLV last I checked they were winning today uh that game is in progress right now we'll get you score here in just a minute uh and then that's going to be a legionaire stadium what a treat for the guys to go down to the newest NFL stadium and then of course Northern Arizona back at home so some early games that the Trailblazers will have to play well if they're going to win any of them absolutely listen Montana State came in ranked as the number four team in FCS so that's obviously a tough game in itself it's always tough when You Face FBS competition as you mentioned at Allegiance stadium and and you're right 100% a treat I think that's the perfect word for it how often do you get to play in an NFL stadium and lucky for the UNL players they get to do it every single home game but uh here at Utah Tech we don't always see our players getting that as a as an option so it's fun to have that option coming up next week but you're right before we get into that UAC play there's some tough games on the schedule right now for these Trailblazers by the way UNLV next week's opponents up 14 nothing right now at the University of Houston uh you know a lot of games going in conference play too to bring you up to speed right now uh Mississippi State this one's in the fourth quarter just under seven minutes to go they are leading Eastern Kentucky 49-7 uh West Georgia right now the newcomer to the UAC conference they are beating Samford they were 13-point underdogs in this game they're up 38-29 and there's just about 6 minutes and 50 seconds left in that one so welcome to the UAC that's a good way to get the season going for West Georgia absolutely that's a team I don't know a whole lot about because they weren't in the conference last year so seeing that means to me that these guys are at least ready to come out and play some football in week one that's always impressive to come out and get a win in week one it's it's tough it might be the toughest week in the whole season just cuz you're so uh I wouldn't say unprepared but ingame situations you've just never done it right so you got to get into those first games get the Jitters Out West Georgia how about it how about it yeah looks like they're closing in on a win not officially final yet uh other scores in the UAC to open up the season Arkansas State leading Central Arkansas but only 13 to3 that's just starting the second half Baylor's putting the hammer down on Tarlton State up 35 to three there's about 8 minutes left in the third quarter in that one North Alabama uh that one about 7 minutes left in the third quarter Memphis is beating them 31 to nothing and how about abene Christian they're hanging with Texas Tech right now that one going to the half right now Texas Tech Red Raiders up 32-21 but abene three touchdowns already in that first half yeah that's not too bad from abene and uh you know looking at the preseason polls abene isn't set to be a huge threat so to see them coming out and playing that well is is uh it's really nice to see you can't talk about the UAC without talking about our neighbors to the north and suu who took on University of Utah on Thursday night yeah it didn't go well for the t- birds I still think they're going to have a good season be very competitive but Utah looked really good cam Rising five touchdowns in the first half that was impressive Isaac Wilson played most of the second half at quarterback entire second half actually uh did throw a touchdown as well but uh I think the key there is quarterback play for suu and we'll see them not tell till late late late in the season and that's a road game for the Trailblazers up in Cedar City in the battle for the ax but uh you know what I mean they got to figure out the quarterback but they got out of that game rather unscathed as far as injury goes I remember I was at Aon Stadium I think it was back in 2017 Rolls Royce Freeman had four touchdown runs and suu had three or four guys lost for the season when you're playing those money games against big teams that have a bigger nutrition budget than your total budget you've got to stay injuryf free so that's going to bode well for them um but yeah 49 nothing that was a a beat down but I think a lot of people expected that with Utah and the anticipation of keithy back he had three touchdowns they look really good they did look really good cam eising coming back had a great first half his first half stats I think a lot of quarterbacks would be happy to have that as a full game right there 10 completions five of them were for touchdowns yeah it's it's insane if you're throwing every other pass as a touchdown I mean that's come on that is absolutely unreal want to give a shout out to the band behind us band cheerleaders coming on through through the Stream shout out to them and uh excited to see what they have prepared for us in game tonight as well they've really uh made this fun for the fans so uh if you're watching or listening on the fans Sports Network get on down here still time to join the tailgate uh we got the Jumbotron uh TV with the pregame show out here Blen we've got the band the cheerleaders uh coach fate now on the baseball team is uh throwing some cornhole over there that uh coach fate and the guys made fresh chicken tacos come get them they're absolutely free in fact I invit invited uh coach F now to drop by the set he's going to join us here about 720 so we'll have him jump on the air with us as well we got a lot to get to uh early in the week I caught up with in fet and let's hear what the new tight end one of the newcomers that came to St George has to say about his time here and the season opener Andie F tied in with me here newcomer to the Trailblazer football team how we doing bud I'm doing great I'm doing great expectations for for the tight end room are high this year I mean you guys got not just you but three for other guys where we could be see some jumbo packages how's fall Camp going gearing up for this home opener fall Camp has going great I mean the tight ends are a huge part of the offense so we're going to look to get the ball to us and doing that is going to be pivotal in our success with this game tell me about the journey to get here the off season going in the portal nerves what was that like the decision to come to St George Utah for you and your family I mean what happened in the portal it was it was a scary time because it was just a feeling of uncertainty but um Coach Stevens he he made me feel like at home and it was honestly a no-brainer coming out here tell me a little bit about you you growing up where you're from and uh you know obviously the dreams you have maybe to play professionally Someday I'm from Boston Massachusetts of course I'm trying to play in the NFL and it's going to be a great a great um opportunity for me to come from here to the NFL who's your biggest fan Mom Dad brother sister you got anybody that's your biggest fan the whole household how many is in the whole household all five of us my mom my dad and my two two sisters will they be at greater Zion Stadium this weekend uh they won't be this weekend but for the rest of the season I'll definitely be at the games were you always big growing up were you always a tight end or did you convert to tight end later later on in high school or college I converted my senior year of high school and but I was always big um my all of high school I was always above 63 so it's nothing new nothing new talk talk to me a little bit about the Bobcats defensively what do you see they played that week Zero game um coach Steven offense tell tell us a little bit about the game week preparations that you guys are installing yeah um they're going to be a physical team I mean we match up very well against their back end so we're going to be able to exploit that really well and um just executing at a high standpoint is going to be it's going to be very important for us tell me about run to pass ratio I'm sure there's Trailblazer fans coming to the stadium getting ready for this game Saturday night and they probably want to know we going we going to be airing it out or we going to have a pretty balanced offense what do you expect we're going to be pretty balanced but we're going to start off with that run so we can open up the pass game for sure how much pride is in the tight end room as far as the Run blocking goes I mean that's only half the job so if you can't if you can't block you can't play so that's really it what do you think of St George so far man I mean first time playing the stadium what are the butterflies for you going to be like um I love St George so far and um as far as nerves go I'm not too nervous I'm just ready to go out there and play and play at a high level obviously it looks like we're going to see multiple quarterbacks for receivers for tight ends is that going to be seamless no matter who's who's out there as your signal caller I mean whoever's out there we're just going to go out there and execute we all know what we're doing and it's just going to be executing at a high level hey it was great to talk to you man good luck go get him we'll see you on a Saturday night thank you so much yes any filet e with us here and uh cheerleaders getting ready to do a little routine for everybody here at the tailgate party season opener greater Zion stadium and Devon Dixon Caden for master is presented by Sport Court of Southern Utah you can take a multi-purpose court or a basketball court right to your backyard and excitement High tonight and good to talk to the new tight end and this is a good tight end room Kaden there's some Talent um they've got the local guy Eric Olson J McKuen back for his fifth season and then in F the these three tight ends could catch a lot of passes they chartered a lot of the passes in Fall camp and the tight ends caught a lot more than the wide receivers collectively so I'm excited to see how the the offensive coordinator Greg Stevens used the tight ends tonight yeah absolutely I'm very excited to see what happens there and as you mentioned one of them being a local kid and Eric Olson it's always fun to see any of our local guys coming out and playing right there so that in itself is very exciting yeah get a glimpse of the cheerleaders here like and um let's go Trailblazer football it's back baby and it's actually a beautiful night for football isn't it absolutely listen cloud cover night the wind is finally dying down it was a little windy earlier today but can't ask for much better here with the cheerleaders in the band hanging out out at the tailgate uh we did get a chance and we're going to hear from Jared fotu in just a minute he is kind of the heart and soul of this defensive unit uh coach Monahan is now taken over as the defensive coordinator that's the other thing for trail wizer fans to watch tonight new OC new DC that's what happens when you get a new head coach yeah absolutely it's a new staff entirely so that's one of those things we're excited to see tonight is how this new staff works right we saw that uh that air it out kind of offense last year it's going to be different they're going throwing tight ends into the mix and speaking of tight ends we didn't see those last year they're back into the program here now uh a little bit later in our pregame show we're going to break down the quarterbacks a little bit got some video from Fall Camp we'll look at the running backs a little bit closer as well I I am excited about Greg Stevens like I mentioned the new OC I think fans are going to like it we're going to see a lot of different sets and a lot of different uh plays that you haven't seen that happens when you get a new regime and so but we're like the fans we don't know what to expect Kaden tonight and this is a really good Montana State coming into town absolutely it's a really good team that we're going to see here tonight lot to again a lot to be uh let free for us right we're going to we're going to see what happens but we just don't know what it is yet all right let's catch up with Jared Fu here's what Jared Fu one of the leaders defensively had to say getting you ready for the home opener all right here with linebacker of the Utah Tech Trailblazer Jared F2 leading up to the season home opener against the bobcast of Montana State Jared how are last minute preparations going getting ready for a quality FCS opponent yeah they're going great you know it's a great team that we're preparing for and we're doing everything we can and get ready and so yeah we're super excited to go out there on Saturday SI six home games this season six Road games but you you got some close ones but there's nothing like the home opener for some of the newcomers you know what are the butterflies going to be like on a Saturday night yeah you know it's the home opener is always you know we get a ton of fans out there and stuff and energies are high so it'll be good it'll be exciting some of the younger guys will get a good taste of college football and yeah we're just super excited obviously let's go to the film Montana State played New Mexico week zero what did you see as you were breaking it down and how big of an advantage is it to to have some film with them already playing a game yeah I think it's a great Advantage you know we were able to see what they did last year and kind of compare it to what they've thrown into you know their scheme this year and just be able to have a whole extra week to be able to prepare I think gives us a a great Advantage how's the adjustments going from last year's coaching staff to this year the new coaching staff from a player perspective they're going great I think it's given us a great opportunity to kind of just have a fresh new start um with the new coaches with a ton of new players kind of install and you know create our own culture our own um team and we're excited to be able to kind of take that culture and apply it onto the field and every week back to the excitement level for you specifically you missed some time last year due to injury I mean you're going to have friends and family coming into town to watch you what's that going to be like yeah yeah I have a lot of people here watching and you know I'm just excited to get out there I'm excited to kind of get some get back at these guys they put a good thumping on us last year so yeah I'm just excited to kind of get get back to that that was in Boseman yeah they hung 6320 the final score in that game did you guys go back and watch that film or have you kind of scrapped that for the most part or have you spent some time on last year yeah we we haven't spent too much time just because it's a whole new defense we running and that was their first game as well so um yeah I think we're super excited just to be able to go out there from a linebacker you know standpoint just to stop the run they're a run heavy team so yeah stoked talk to me a little bit about those two running backs and they even have a third that didn't play but they got a big off offensive line how important is the front seven going to be if you guys are going to win oh it's going to be crucial you know their whole offensive scheme runs with I mean starts with you know running the ball and if they can do that successfully they can you know open up the Play action successfully so stopping the run is big time I think it's top of our list right now obviously they put some pressure on Tommy mot the Bobcats quarterback do you guys feel like you can get after them a little bit they forced two fumbles recovered them and scored on them yeah and I think that played pivotal in in the swing of that first half and you know we'll try to do the same Jared fo to everybody thanks for stopping by and good luck against the Bobcats thank you I appreciate it all right tailgate Central presented by the city of St George Chamber of Commerce the whole city getting involved cheerleaders out here with bands out here and of course get on down here kickoff 8:00 Bobcats Trailblazers season opener for your Utah Tech Blazers and first year head coach Lance Anderson all right we do have to take a timeout when we come back we're going to break down the running backs quarterbacks a little bit later in our pregame show Chris faton hour is going to sto by lot still coming up pregame well underway here at the tailgate stay with us on the fan Sports Network and Trailblazer Sports Vision need an appliance or two awps got you check out the remodeled expansive showroom highlighting the Cafe series with colors like matte black matte white and Modern Glass make your kitchen Stand Out come see the local boys at awp across the freeway from the Bloomington Walmart huge News sport court has a brand new showroom and Design Center and it's next level see why so many are choosing Sport Court here in southern Utah for top quality basketball pickle ball and multi-purpose courts learn more at sport court of Southern utah.com oh hello Italian nightclub from Jimmy Johns ciao freshly baked bread piled with Italian style Meats hey hand sliced veggies am I obsessed with this sandwich yeah so what if I am Jimmy Johns order online on the app create your own relaxing comfortable space Boulevard home offers the guaranteed best prices on furniture appliances mattresses and more and bu with no interest financing shop Boulevard home because home is who we are you want to sit for this you want do we want to sit or do we want to stand I want to go hang out with the band baby I'm all fired up Deon Dixon Kaden for master here CD St George Chamber of Commerce tailgate party underway glad you're watching glad you're listening and we've got lots to talk about let's get to the quarterbacks Kaden because this was a heck of a battle in the spring and then they had a newcomer join after Spring football and Deacon Hill who transfers from the University of Iowa started six games out there there's a shot of Deacon Hill right here um and and really we expect two or three quarterbacks I'm guessing right now this is just Devin Dixon you know in my analysis I have no inide information I think we're going to see Luke mcfa I think we're going to see Deacon Hill and I think we're going to see at some point in time Reggie graph as well the local kid out of Dixie High School tonight yeah those are the three names that have been floated around right now in the uh at least from the mouth of Coach Anderson he's been he's been talking heavily about those three guys and uh you're seeing some great plays here from from some training and pre-season stuff and yeah there's some good talent here on this roster at the quarterback position we see Reggie graph right here running one in for for a touchdown and a scrimmage and that's why I think they really like Reggie because he gives you that dual threat ability you know they can do some RPO stuff with him he's the most mobile I would say mcfa is is just a kind of a pure pocket he's a little bit more mobile than than maybe Deacon Hill Deacon Hill is a big quarterback he's very big very strong uh and for his size he's pretty Nimble too um and he want to get closer to some family that's why he decided to go into the portal and come out here to Utah Tech so fans don't be surprised if all three played tonight yeah I wouldn't be surprised by that at all and you know this is what these early games are for you see that all across college football you're going to see multiple quarterbacks come out and and some times you see him because hey you already know who your number one is but let's see what number two can offer this is a situation where you kind of don't know who your number one is so let's try a few guys out and see who sticks you know you want to eventually probably name a starter but you're seeing more and more colleges give a lot of guys opportunity we've seen some two quarterback systems last year Montana State it was a true two quarterback system all year now we know it's just Tommy mot and I'll tell you what against New Mexico I remember him last year as just being a running quarterback he showed me some Poise some really good throws some accuracy he's really worked hard to improve that aspect of Being qb1 for the Bobcats he has and he looked really good doing that against New Mexico and and we knew that that was going to be a game that Montana State could win and and him being a big part of that and sure enough he wasn't a lot of it was through the air a lot of it was through the ground he's become a true dual threat quarterback let's take a look at the running backs for just a second seven running backs coming out of fall Camp four are back from last year uh Chris Street is kind of the leader of the the pack but Nigel Osborne is a true freshman got a lot of reps last year in games they're really excited about the transfer he's a red shirt senior Shamar Garrett we'll see him in the return game a little bit tonight too he is a burner and he's going to turn some heads I think yeah I think so too and the big story around Chris Street is that he gets the uh the number three jersey which has become a big honor uh here at utat Tech so so seeing him get that just proves the kind of work ethic that he has as well so that's one of the exciting things to see at this running back position two familiar names for local fans you might recognize here in St George Bretton Stone who played at Snow Canyon and also Kona crell who played at crimson and then transferred in a senior had played for Desert Hills so you got a couple local guys that are also rounding out this running back room all right when we come back Utah Tech baseball coach going to stop by the tailgate Chris faten hour will join us and we'll get you closer and closer to Rod zundel Max Christensen who will have joined the pregame show take it here in about eight or nine minutes or so so lots more coming up leading up to kickoff 8:00 local time if you're listening get on down here season opener Utah Tech taking on Montana State hey it's Marco from Coral Cy Golf Course inviting you to play the course with the best backdrop in southern Utah make sure you get out and experience great golf for a great price at Coral Canyon visit Coral Canyon golf course.com or call us at 435688 1700 for your tea times House of jump is Southern Utah's only indoor trampoline park and your only place to jump dunk and [Music] Dodge head on over to our house the house of jump you could wander around a warehouse store forever and never find the one thing that could make all the difference a helpful face now that's something to consider everything your local Buck a stands for is written on our faces welcoming neighborly know ible when you're in need of a helpful face visit one of our three Southern Utah locations at Inter Mountain Sports Performance we've been training athletes for over 20 years and we guarantee your athlete will improve speed agility explosive power and reduce the risk of injury while working with the most qualified and experienced team in southern Utah find us on Instagram at sports performance uncore IH to learn more after this one and we're tossing at what time all right we're trying to coordinate tossing here in just a few minutes we're going to be going upstairs inside greater Zion Stadium to Rod zundel but now joining us outside of the tailgate area brought to you by the city of St George Chamber the baseball coach Utah Tech Chris fate now what's up fate fired up to be here man thanks guys oh you got the whole team out here tonight right yeah this is what we do man we support each other and you know we've done that for my 13 years here and if there's not a football game we're going to soccer we're going to volleyball and we're trying to give back and be a part of the campus community and hopefully that comes back around to US every year which it usually does but super excited about the opener and and the tailgate is always awesome yeah it was going to be fun I mean I the tacos too man how did you slave over those those were delicious Costco baby free plug for uh the wholesale leader in the US and the greater proper uh Co coach give us just a kind of a quick Glimpse at fall baseball firing up for you guys I know you guys are getting in for some early workouts getting in the waai room and take the field with the limited time you have coming up yeah we started in the weight room this last week so four days of lifting awesome um some guys weren't quite ready you know for for what was coming but um they were good by the end of the week we get on the field next week not necessarily you know directly on the field CU we are limited in our hours it's more like small group stuff cage work but and we've got 26 new faces you know we got 26 new guys our biggest turnover we've ever had um but we're excited we got the right guys um we'll be full goal on the field around October 1st but yeah we're excited to get it going yeah coach uh Anderson you guys have met is is the faculty and the coaching fraternity pretty tight it here at Utah Tech coach it is it is it it it and I'm not saying this in a bad way it's gotten different as we've gotten bigger right like everybody's kind of got their own areas now and everybody's so busy you know when I got here 13 years ago as a division 2 we we were around each other all the time you know um we did a lot of things together and we still try to but I have gotten to know coach Anderson love obviously the reputation where he's come from what he's about listen to him speak in our coaches meetings and then in some Media stuff I've really been impressed with his energy I mean he's bringing energy every single day when he's talking the game and talking about the perspective and everybody's excited but but Lexi with you know women's soccer you know what she's doing in the short time she's been here undefeated this year right now yeah and and like the best recruiting class in the state this last year I mean um really you know the newer people we're bringing in are super excited great energy and some of us that have been here for a while we and trying and keep up with them from a coach's perspective tell me what it's like to step in as a uh as a brand new head coach in the system here at Utah Tech Lance Anderson he's doing that this year tell me what it was like from your perspective it was hard for me I was following coach littlewood you know and uh and he was here 16 years they' won a national championship the year before I got here they were two runs away from going to the World Series and I inherited a team of mostly returners so I I just kind of stayed out of the way the first year right but it's it was different I mean that was our D2 you know we were like 5 years into D2 we were kind of all paddling we were doggy paddling man we were just budgets and schedules and just trying to figure it out driving our own Vans things like that it's a little different now but I can't imagine doing it in football you know with the number of kids you're talking about calling and and recruiting and things like that but um and I came in under a different regime you know Dr Booth was our ad then and and Ken's here now and I think Ken has a lot more experience no offense Jason he's one of my close friends but you know Ken's been at this level a lot he's dealt with football a lot so I think he probably eased that transition for for Coach Anderson quite a bit and uh but yeah I think we all get into something and we're we're doggy padding a little bit trying to find our way for sure got a pick on the game tonight do you you can't make picks can you no I don't think that would yeah I thought you could be the Lee Coro of the pregame tailgate party I'm going to stay away from that we're going to cheer man you know obviously we want football to be successful uh I loved Coach Peterson you know we were we were close as well and Coach McClure before that that and Brum all the way back going you know all those guys have been great guys and they've gotten after it everybody here we're fighting with limited resources you know and that's nobody's fault that's just the the battle we're in and everybody else is kind of creating separation and we're trying to catch up but um I certainly hope we compete at a high level all year it's great for the community um it's great for our guys to see that and see success and um yeah I hope we get after tonight well thanks for stopping by than you Chris F now Utah Tech baseball coach joining us here all right quick 30 second timeout we'll come back we'll put a bow on it then we're going inside the stadium for more pregame coverage with Rod zundel and Max Christensen stick around Red Rock real estate has over 200 professional realtors in the St George area that specialize in the local market whether you're buying your dream home looking for an investment property or want to sell your home for the highest amount the Red Rock real estate team is here to assist you get started now by visiting Redrock real estate.com Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in canab is open daily for free family fund take a tour volunteer hike a trail or bring home a new best friend visit best friends today for Magical memories that'll last forever welcome to the Back N we bring the world's best horses to you elevate your game at any time with 24/7 access to top tier golf technology and expert PGA instructors available Back N golf is a place to improve your swing for all ages join us today all right baby this is fun we're getting closer and closer to kickoff Deon Dixon Kaden for master had a blast bringing you the pregame coverage brought to you by San Hollow Resort Swinson and Shelly attorneys at law and our friends at Ernie's stores Ernie's Sinclair station stop on by for your pregame postgame snacks kayen uh let's get let's get it up to Rod zundel Max Christian and final thoughts real quick final thoughts I'm just I'm ready for a new season of Utah Tech football so let's get on to it Greater Zion Stadium here we come all right you guys thanks for hanging with us and we're going to go inside the stadium and again tailgate brought to you by the City St George Chamber of Commerce as well here's rod zundel and Max Christensen hey let's go let's get it baby 1 2 3 here at funing ball on the ground and F recovery by makes the DI cat Trailblazer welcome to Trailblazer kickoff presented by Camping World of St George your next Great Outdoor Adventure begins under the big American flag let's go it's a new era of Utah Tech football new head coach Lance Anderson officially division one New Era new season New Hope and it all kicks off in 30 [Music] minutes and welcome inside greater Zion Stadium we are about ready to kick off the 2024 college football season for Utah Tech as they get ready to take on the Montana State Bobcats hi there everybody Rod zundel along with my partner Mighty Max Christensen I thiri you recognize him number 48 the last couple years defensive line for the Trailblazers and now you're up here in the bo you don't get hit as much up here I don't know we'll see this is my first broadcast we see we'll see how many Haymakers you swing at me great to have you here Montana State comes in ranked fourth in the country in FCS they're good uh last year you guys went up to Boseman and kind of got dump by 43 I think yeah don't want to say anything about that where they ran for 362 yards on you Montana State comes in they played last week against New Mexico got the win there 21 points in the fourth quarter coming back from 17 points points down but you saw why they are ranked fourth and what kind of team they are didn't give up didn't lose their composure and they had great guys that came to play and and their Stars showed up when they had to and one of their stars is Tommy mot right touchdown Tommy what they call him up there in Boseman okay dual threat quarterback great rushing attack along with a couple great running backs behind him in humph and Jones who both had great weeks last week as well so we know what Montana State's all about for Utah Tech though we have no clue because they only have one coach returning that's Jameson Clark in the running backs but Lance Anderson making his debut head coaching uh job today uh never had a head coaching job before at any level Max yeah it's going to be interesting to see how he adjusts right he's he's been he's had a tutelage under a lot of different guys Jim har the uh excitement level the energy level now execution wise we're going to find out in about 25 30 minutes or so and it'll be interesting to watch this game because as you mentioned Montana State's already played a game they got those out kind of this is going to be you you taught TCH a brand new look brand new system brand new coaching staff and a lot of these guys are going to be them playing for the first time this a young football team okay yeah so all right so they've had a month of basically fall camp and we are going to uh check it out now and all the sights and sounds you know what fall Camp is with 100 degree days here are the sights and sounds of fall camp and the sounds of the game [Music] [Music] [Applause] we be hitting every day ain't nothing new we'll keep working every day this [Music] like I said we H for show get [Applause] down oh [Music] [Applause] yeah 2 that's too easy that's too easy that's like too easy that's like too easy that's like too easy that's like too easy come away come on come on man come on man come on man come on man you know you could hear and feel the excitement level now if that can just translate into game day but the last month really just kind of getting acquainted with each other and and trying to get into Rhythm and timing with each other and one of the biggest things is trying to find a quarterback they had three guys buying for that starting job tonight [Music] and get a lot of time special packages to use his athleticism in this new look offense with Lance Anderson they're going to run the ball a lot more than they did the in the spread and Shred the last couple seasons he's going to be very important in the quarterback run game so I think that Deacon Hill is going to be your starter the transfer from Iowa and Deacon and the rest of the guys down on the field right now warming up uh and there you see the offensive unit there uh Deacon Hill number 10 his grandpa one of the reasons he moved because they brought in a transfer quarterback they changed coordinators and his grandparents live in Las Vegas you know who they are I do not Sam bone you know who Sam bone is I do not he's the guy that brought the Utah Jazz from New Orleans to Utah in 1979 he owned the Utah this New Orleans Jazz he brought him here to Utah because of his grandpa the Jazz are in Salt Lake how about that now you know that's fantastic now you know okay quarterback running backs a little bit better they're pretty deep uh and it all starts with a couple of returners first of all Nigel Osborne he's a load when he gets running downhill he's tough to stop and he's back again really good freshman last season going to get what did last season e neither one of those caught passes the last couple years because they didn't have a tight end position but now they've got those two guys another guy by the name of Burton and then a newcomer the transfer from UMass Annie fi this guy is something spectacular 64 about 23 [Music] [Applause] [Music] score score score score score good job very good out of way a good drive right he is going to be a big part of this offense and I think coaches won't tell you this but if they could get the ball to him on every play they would he's one of those guys and I'm excited to see how he performs tonight so all right Montana State fourth in the nation uh in FCS they got a win over FBS New Mexico last Saturday and this week Zero game they're good we know what they do they put up 362 yards rushing against you guys last year over 600 yards total offense over 300 yards rushing against New Mexico sorry i' bring that up Max but uh over 300 yards rushing against the Lobos um last week of course it all starts with a quarterback Tommy mot then they got Jones and Humphrey their two running backs they had uh each of those guys had over 140 yards a piece last time uh so they were one of the top rushing teams in the country last year so we know what we're going to get out of them and you've got to be prepared for their run offense and their ground and pound every time you play a Montana team whether it's Montana Montana State I say these guys they they like to have an intelligent bar fight okay you you you you picture a bar fight and you be these all these sloppy drunks getting after it no these guys will beat the crap out of you but do it in an intelligent and determined manner okay and so so so you have to be able to you know what you're going to get but they but they do it strategically okay they want they want to pound you in the trenches they want to do that and then they're going to take their shots over the top when you're starting to really suck up and uh and try and stop the run huh I've never heard of a football team describ quite that like that that's that's something I'm impressed thank you so that's how he described Montana State let's see what coach land Anderson has to say about the Montana State Bobcats in his scattering report film session Montana state does a great job of running the football so we know to have success on Saturday night one of the things we've got to do is be able to slow down their run game so I've got a couple of their top run plays that I want to show you that we are going to have to stop on uh Saturday night this first one is what we call a stretch play where the offensive line is really trying to get the defense to move laterally the running back is going to turn his shoulders to the sideline and really try to get everyone to flow towards the sideline and then he's going to put his foot in the ground and he's going to cut make that north south cut and try to pick up some big yards there so let's let's take a look at this and again Focus particularly on the offensive line and look at the lateral movement that they try to create in the defense this has been a very effective run for them this has been their top run this is something we've definitely got to stop the next run play I want to show you is what we call a plunge play the reason we call it a plunge play is because the offense is going to bring someone back someone plunging back to the opposite side and as you watch this as you see the tight end plunge back you get the receiver to plunge back one of the things you're going to notice is the defense flowing this way and really this is designed to cut back just as it does here they want to get the defense flowing want to get some knockback and then cut that ball back and uh try to create some big plays big plays are the result of blocks on the perimeter and uh after this motion you'll see this receiver come and either crack or dig out this safety you'll see the effect of how that clears out the corner he's able to get the safety block blocked so really one man here is able to take two that's what we've got to eliminate on Saturday but you can see now he's blocked the safety he's taking the corner out and there's a lot of space for the running back and those are two things that we're going to have to slow down in order to have success on Saturday night well coach Anderson knows exactly what they're going to do now the question is can they stop what Montana State wants to do that's the question nobody's been able to really the last five years under Brent vegan uh they've had eight plus wins the last five seasons and they've made the playoffs each of the last five years and they've competed for national championships the last five years not just making the playoffs they're pushing as again they're a top five team in the FCS coming into this this season after having a very good season last year as well all right we're going to take a break when we come back we are going to uh have a very special presentation and very special honor for one of the Trailblazer running backs and also we're going to go under the helmet give you a perspective point of view through the face mask of one of the players so as we uh send you a break we take a look at the new bleachers in the North End Zone Max that's where the students are going to be right down in the grill of Montana State huh that's a good idea right there they're going to be loud and proud in the North End Zone that's going to be fun to watch see how that goes so we'll be right back Trailblazer Sports Vision Trailblazer kickoff come on back DR Horton is America's largest homebuilder but with a local heart nestled just west of the San Hollow Recreation Area is a 600 acre master plan Community with beautifully designed single family homes cottages and town homes called Long Valley visit us at drhorton.com and join us in continuing the American dream of home ownership and build your next home with Dr Horton America's [Music] Builder experience the magic of Southern Utah from the sky and the ground at confetti Pebbles hot air balloons they take you on breathtaking Journeys across the stunning Landscapes of St George Hurrican and Beyond but why just visit when you can live here Priority First real estate is dedicated to helping you find your dream home together they bring you closer to the community Closer To Nature closer to home confetti Pebbles hot air balloons and Priority First real estate where Adventure meets home hey there sports fans ready to take a timeout from the sidelines and jump into the action St George Regional Airport has you covered score big with convenient flights that take you from our Red Rocks to destinations around the globe whether it's the bright lights of LA or an exotic getaway across the Pacific your adventure starts right here at home when you're planning that epic getaway St George Regional Airport is your home field advantage and welcome back to Greater Zion Stadium Trailblazer kickoff we are about 16 minutes away from the season opening kickoff Utah Tech and Montana State Rod zundel here along with my partner former Trailblazer defensive lineman Max Christensen the third now uh in a very special honor they give the number three jersey to one of the players on the Trailblazer team and is this is to honor Abe Reinhardt back in 2019 Abe was a linebacker for the Trailblazers and after practice one day um AB e uh it's really a big honor um there's a lot of qualities involved in being picked for this number and all I can do is appreciate the coaches and the staff um for believing me to be a representation of You Know Abe I mean those are those are some big shoes to fill I've been impressed with Chris you know since I got here just his outgoing personality his positive outlook and I really feel like he also represents the other traits that we talk talked about that this jersey represents toughness hard work accountability trust leadership um he he demonstrates all those qualities and uh I think uh he'll do a great job uh you wearing that Jersey I have a tattoo on my arm and this say is bigger than me um it's just an honor to be able to represent something bigger than myself I mean this ties to all facets of my life I mean I I do this for my family and you know enjoyment and my brother's on the football team so and Max you know about it you uh last year you played with Cyrus Webster who worn the number three the year before that it was Maly Malley who was actually a teammate with a Reinhardt so it's a very special honor you guys take it pretty seriously and take it to hard yeah that number means hard work toughness perseverance dedication right and I never got to know a but I but I played with guys who did and they had nothing but glowing reviews and and how he was a great teammate like you talked about it's and this number is very important to this program and it's framed down in the new locker room you know and so it's immortalized forever in this program and it's part of for a long time all right so take particular attention to number three Chris Street as he wears the number three jersey in honor of the Fallen Trailblazer Abe Reinhardt all right new this year we are going inside the helmet we're going to give you a point of view perspective a bird's eyye view through the face mask of what it's like to be a Trailblazer player at practice and that gets right up in the snot bubbles too man you're getting right in the action so uh we begin this feature with BYU transfer fiser Jackson the outside linebacker he takes us along for a ride through the face mask at one of the practices e e e e all right well apparently uh we're having a little problem with our audio so we are going to take a break when we come back hopefully we'll hear from coach Lance Anderson as he gives us the final word before game time Trailblazers and the Montana State Bobcats getting ready from greater Z Stadium come on back yesco is a proud partner of Trailblazer Sports vision and Utah Tech Athletics yesco specializes in manufacturer of custom electric signs and displays from the smallest to the largest yesco can design manufacture install and maintain an identification package that is tailored to your specific needs yesco has been serving Utah businesses for well over 100 years with quality signage and exceptional service to see how yesco can serve you go to esco.com on judement day I won't fade away I've be help me pushing love [Applause] I've been ping DR Horton is America's largest home builder but with a local heart nestled just west of the San Hollow Recreation Area is a 600 acre master plan Community with beautifully designed single family homes cottages and town homes called Long Valley visit us at drhorton.com and join us in continuing the American dream of home ownership and build your next home with Dr Horton America's [Music] Builder experience the magic of Southern Utah from the sky and the ground at confetti Pebbles hot air balloons they take you on breathtaking Journeys across the stunning Landscapes of St George hurricane and Beyond but why just visit when you can live here Priority First real estate is dedicated to helping you find your dream home together they bring you closer to the community Closer To Nature closer to home confetti Pebbles hot air balloons and Priority First real estate where Adventure meets home hey there sports fans ready to take a timeout from the sidelines and jump into the action St George Regional Airport has you covered score big with convenient flights that take you from our Red Rocks to destinations around the globe whether it's the bright lights of LA or an exotic getaway across the Pacific your Adventure Starts right here at home when you're planning that epic getaway St George Regional Airport is your home field advantage and welcome back inside greater Z Stadium getting ready for kickoff Utah Tech in Montana State rod zundel and Max Christianson back here time now for the final word hopefully the audio works if not hopefully you can read lips no I'm just kidding uh here's coach Lance Anderson the final word getting ready for Montana State think about all the work you put in I mean going all the way back till January off seon Spring ball summer fall Camp you put in a lot of great work finally the opportunity to play football I feel like we're as prepared as we're going to be I mean we have worked hard we have competed I've seen Improvement on almost every area of the team you never know exactly what to expect we're playing a great opponent but I think we're ready to play football on a personal note your first head coaching game as a head coach your just thoughts about going into that you know it's uh there's just so many things you got to think about make sure you got all your tees crossed all your eyes dotted um but I'm excited about the opportunity what are you most excited to see what happens I just really want to see how our guys compete I want to see how hard they play how physical they play I want to see him strain and just that no matter what happens whatever adversity we might face that they never give up we just keep fighting and if we do that there are good things in the future for us your quarterback position you got three guys battling all fall um you're going to have to decide on one obviously we'll find that out at game time but you're planning on using more than one you think well I I feel pretty strongly at this point that you're going to see all three guys I think as the year goes on I'd really like to settle on one guy and make him the guy but uh you're probably going to see all three right now is there an aspect of this team that you're most comfortable with and most excited to see you know I'm I'm happy about a lot of things I like our depth at a a lot of positions um I like our playmaking ability um yeah I just I love the attitude the way the guys have worked so I think you never really truly know when you just practice against each other you know until you start going against other teams and see you know what truly are your strengths what are areas that need to be addressed but I I'm excited to see where we are well what a way to open things up against fourth ranked team in FCS and they're good they got a lot of hogs and they're physical it is a good football team so it's going to be good match up we're going to know right away where we are and what do you have to do to give yourself a chance to pull off the upset you know I think in this game we've got to be very solid on special teams on defense we've got to be able to stop the run or at least slow them down from running the football take away big plays on offense we've got to have balance um you know in the Run game as well as in the throwing game got to utilize different Personnel groups try to keep them off balance a little bit not getting a lot of respect and of course because everything new here in uh first official division one football game are using that as a little bit of a motivational factor with these guys I I think all the guys have a little bit of a chip on their shoulder they know that uh you know we've got a lot to prove and uh you know we've got to change people's perception of us and our program but you only do that with the product you put on the field so we've got to go out and show it you know starting this Saturday night enjoy your debut thank you all right Max quick final thoughts you T to C to stop the run and c and capitalize on their offensive opportunities all right that'll do it you can hear this game on the fan Sports Radio Network watch it on ESPN plus we'll be back here with the Trailblazer post game Utah Tech Montana State coming up thanks for watching see you