Rocky Mountain College Athletics

Rocky Football Opens Their Season at Southern Oregon

8/25/2022 11:08:00 AM

Brandon Stinson | Sports Information & Media Coordinator

BILLINGS, Mont., Aug 25, 2022- Battlin' Bears football kicks off their 2022 season traveling to Ashland, Oregon to take on the Southern Oregon Raiders Saturday, August 27th at 12:30 p.m (MST).

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Preseason Accolades: The Battlin' Bears look to build on the success of a 2021 season in which Rocky clinched a share of the Frontier Conference Championship. Rocky was picked to finish second in the Frontier Conference in the 2022 Preseason Coaches Poll, and 19th in the NAIA preseason top-25 poll. Rocky returns a handful of 2021 All-Conference and All-American performers, including All-Conference Second Team members Nathan Dick, Andrew Simon, Wes Moeai, Nolan McCafferty, and Ty Reynolds. Nathan Dick was also a Honorable Mention All-American. "I am excited for this veteran group to step on the field and I believe they are going to play well." 2021 Frontier Conference Coach of the Year Chris Stutzriem said. "We have great leaders and this is a player led team with a bunch of good dudes."

Scouting the Raiders: The Southern Oregon Raiders finished with a 3-7 in the 2021 season. The Raiders traveled to Billings to play Rocky in the first game of the 2021 season, in a game where Rocky won 42-28. Southern Oregon had a dominant performance over MSU-Northern 42-7, a 20 point comeback victory over Carroll College 34-33, and a smothering 24-3 upset victory over No. 18 Eastern Oregon. 

Southern Oregon returns all but four starters from the 2021 campaign, most notably quarterback Matt Struck, who missed the second half of the 2021 season with an injury, but threw for 259 yards as a reserve in the Raider's matchup with Rocky in 2021. Struck will have the benefit of three senior receivers leading the depth chart, including All-Conference first team member Bryce Goggin. Senior Christian Quirarte will line up as the starting running back, who rushed for 220 yards on 83 attempts. The offensive line was a glaring weakness of the Raider's offense last season and will look to build into a formidable group behind senior guard Anthony Morales. 

The Raider's defense proved to be a strength of the 2021, which plays to their advantage as they return eight of eleven starters. Southern Oregon will look to senior defensive lineman Alejandro Sanchez, and sixth year senior corner Stokes Botelho to anchor a defense under new defensive coordinator Neil Fendall. 

Southern Oregon will be motivated to prove themselves after they were picked to finish seventh out of eight teams in the Frontier Conference preseason coaches poll. "Southern Oregon is always a tough opponent." Coach Stutzriem said. "They are fast, physical and coached well, it should be a great matchup. Looking forward to the opportunity to step on the field again and lead this Battlin' Bear football team."


Checking in with Coach Stutzriem: There's a lot to be excited about going into this weekend for Coach Stutzriem, entering his fourth season as head coach of the Battlin' Bears. "Really excited to watch our guys take the field Saturday." Coach Stutzriem said. "Should be a great way for us to travel on a charter flight. First class all the way by our administration, and our guys deserve that. They work hard, they are great students, great athletes, and great people." 


Battlin' Bears to Watch:

• Nathan Dick: The senior looks to build on a successful 2021 season where he was named to the Frontier All-Conference second team and Honorable Mention All-American. Dick threw for 2,432 yards and 21 touchdowns, as well as added 711 yards and 6 touchdowns rushing. The Battlin' Bears will look to their QB1 and captain for leadership on the road to begin the season.
• Nolan McCafferty: The Battlin' Bears leading tackler during the 2021 season returns to lead the defensive unit. McCafferty totaled 79 total tackles in 2021 along with 8.5 tackles for loss. Named a team captain, McCafferty will be the heartbeat of Rocky's defense looking to clinch another conference championship. 

History: Rocky will look to earn their first win in Ashland, as Southern Oregon is 5-0 all time at home against the Battlin' Bears. SOU holds a 9-3 record all time against Rocky. Rocky began their 2021 season with a win over the Raiders, in which quarterback Nathan Dick threw for 190 yards and 3 touchdowns, as well as added 65 yards on the ground in the victory. Defensive back Ty Reynolds also had an interception in the victory. 

Social Media: Follow @BattlinBears on twitter for live updates as the game goes on.