On Saturday, Nov. 1, the Southern Utah University football team will face the No. 22-ranked Austin Peay State University in a United Athletic Conference face-off at the Eccles Coliseum in Cedar City at 6:30 p.m.
The game can also be streamed live on ESPN+.
Southern Utah
After winning their first game of the season against Idaho State, the Thunderbirds went on a five-game losing streak. They have now entered a two-game winning streak, coming off two big conference wins at Utah Tech University and Abilene Christian University.
They now have an overall record of 3-5 and a conference record of 2-2 and rank sixth in the UAC.
Southern Utah’s main strength this year has been its offense, more specifically, the run game. Redshirt sophomore running back Joshua Dye, a transfer from the University of Texas at El Paso, has been on fire for the T-Birds in eight games.
Dye has racked up 1166 yards on 166 carries, ranking first in the conference. Dye also averages seven yards a carry, and leads the UAC in touchdowns with 18, double the second-place person.
The Thunderbirds have relied mainly on Barron Bronson at quarterback despite the one game he missed with injury. Barron is fourth in passer rating in the UAC, far ahead of the quarterbacks below him.
In seven games this season on 200 passing attempts, he has completed 126 passes for a total of 1560 yards and only three interceptions.
SUU has faced struggles on the defensive side of the ball, ranking No. 7 overall in the UAC. They are giving up an average of 33.3 points a game and have allowed 35 total touchdowns.
SUU’s defense is allowing 228 passing yards a game, sixth in the conference. Austin Peay is averaging around 265 yards a game through the air, which could be an issue for the Thunderbirds if they can’t put pressure on the quarterback.
However, the T-Birds have some stars on the defense that can be game changers. Defensive end Lando Brown and linebacker Sabastian Adamski have combined for a total of 11 sacks as well as a combined 18 tackles for loss totaling 87 lost yards.
Austin Peay
Austin Peay comes into this game holding an overall record of 5-3 and a conference record of 3-2. The Governors have the No. 2-ranked offense and No. 3-ranked defense in the division. This game feels like a must-win for the Governors with the risk of moving down in the conference as well as potentially being knocked out of the top 25.
The Governors are coming off a big win against the University of North Alabama Lions, winning 56-28. Out of the three division games, they have outscored their opponents 142-68. In their most recent game, Austin Peay’s quarterback Chris Parson threw three touchdowns and rushed for another three, and completed 19 of 24 passes for 311 yards. `
Austin Peay’s offense has played well, scoring an average of 36 points a game. Parson has completed 135 passes on 207 attempts and has a total of 1966 passing yards, ranking first in the conference. He also leads the UAC, averaging 245 passing yards per game.
SUU has faced Austin Peay only twice in the football program’s history, splitting the series 1-1, with Austin Peay winning in 2023 and SUU winning a more recent matchup in 2024.
Author: Andrew Streeter
Photographer: SUU Athletics
Editor: Jack Paul
