2023 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team

Last updated

2023 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football
Northern Arizona Athletics logo.svg
Conference Big Sky Conference
Record5–6 (5–3 Big Sky)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorAaron Pflugrad (6th season)
Defensive coordinatorKevin Clune (1st season)
Home stadium Walkup Skydome
Seasons
  2022
2024  
2023 Big Sky Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 2 Montana $^  7 1   13 2  
No. 8 Idaho ^  6 2   9 4  
No. 9 Montana State ^  6 2   8 4  
Northern Arizona  5 3   5 6  
No. 24 UC Davis  5 3   7 4  
No. 13 Sacramento State ^  4 4   8 5  
Portland State  4 4   5 6  
Weber State  4 4   6 5  
Eastern Washington  3 5   4 7  
Idaho State  3 5   3 8  
Cal Poly  1 7   3 8  
Northern Colorado  0 8   0 11  
  • $ Conference champion
  • ^ FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2023 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks football team represented Northern Arizona University as a member of the Big Sky Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Lumberjacks were led by fifth-year head coach Chris Ball and played home games at the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Contents

Preseason

Polls

On July 23, 2023, during the virtual Big Sky Kickoff, the Lumberjacks were predicted to finish ninth in the Big Sky by the coaches and eight by the media. [1]

Coaches poll
Predicted finishTeamVotes (1st place)
1Montana State120 (10)
2UC Davis96 (1)
3Sacramento State94 (1)
4Weber State91
5Idaho89
6Montana84
7Eastern Washington52
8Portland State45
9Northern Arizona44
10Northern Colorado37
11Cal Poly25
12Idaho State15
Media poll
Predicted finishTeamVotes (1st place)
1Montana State447 (26)
2Idaho410 (8)
3Montana359 (2)
4Sacramento State334 (3)
5UC Davis330
6Weber State320
7Eastern Washington216
8Northern Arizona178
9Portland State167
10Northern Colorado109
11Cal Poly103
12Idaho State69

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 27:00 p.m.at Arizona * P12N L 3–3848,159
September 91:00 p.m.at No. 17 North Dakota * ESPN+ L 22–3710,009
September 161:00 p.m. Utah Tech *ESPN+L 36–507,102
September 231:00 p.m.No. 13 Montana
  • Walkup Skydome
  • Flagstaff, AZ
ESPN+W 28–146,428
September 306:00 p.m.at No. 8 Sacramento State ESPN+L 30–3112,549
October 76:00 p.m.at No. 13 Weber State ESPN+W 27–107,694
October 141:00 p.m. Portland State
  • Walkup Skydome
  • Flagstaff, AZ
ESPN+L 21–459,713
October 281:00 p.m.No. 25 UC Davis Dagger-14-plain.png
  • Walkup Skydome
  • Flagstaff, AZ
ESPN+W 38–216,931
November 412:00 p.m.at No. 6 Montana State ESPN+L 21–4521,297
November 111:00 p.m. Northern Colorado
  • Walkup, Skydome
  • Flagstaff, AZ
ESPN+W 28–76,003
November 182:00 p.m.at Eastern Washington ESPN+W 49–424,078

[2]

Game summaries

at Arizona

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (0–0) vs Arizona Wildcats (0–0) – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Lumberjacks03003
Wildcats7721338

at Arizona StadiumTucson, AZ

  • Date: September 2, 2023
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m.
  • Game weather: Sunny, 88 °F (31 °C)
  • Game attendance: 48,159
  • Referee: Cravonne Barrett
  • TV announcers (Pac-12 Network): J. B. Long (play-by-play), Max Browne (analyst)
Game information
First quarter
  • (11:13) ARIZ – Jacob Cowing 4-yard pass from Jayden de Laura, Tyler Loop kick (Drive: 7 plays, 65 yards, 3:47; Arizona 7–0)
Second quarter
  • (13:24) ARIZ – Jonah Coleman 7-yard pass from Jayden de Laura, Tyler Loop kick (Drive: 7 plays, 78 yards, 3:04; Arizona 14–0)
  • (0:00) NAU – Marcus Lye 49-yard field goal (Drive: 16 plays, 49 yards, 7:43; Arizona 14–3)
Third quarter
  • (11:26) ARIZ – Tacario Davis 85-yard blocked field goal return, Tyler Loop kick (Drive: 9 plays, 66 yards, 3:34; Arizona 21–3)
  • (4:34) ARIZ – Tetairoa McMillan 5-yard pass from Jayden de Laura, Tyler Loop kick (Drive: 4 plays, 37 yards, 2:04; Arizona 28–3)
  • (2:02) ARIZ – Jayden de Laura 53-yard run, Tyler Loop kick (Drive: 3 plays, 63 yards, 1:07; Arizona 35–3)
Fourth quarter
  • (10:46) ARIZ – Tyler Loop 35-yard field goal (Drive: 7 plays, 64 yards, 2:32; Arizona 38–3)
StatisticsNAUARIZ
First downs1722
Total yards264478
Rushing yards41–7827–186
Passing yards186292
Passing: Comp–Att–Int18–29–020–26–1
Time of possession35:0424:56
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Northern ArizonaPassingKai Millner14/22, 166 yards
RushingT. J. McDaniel14 carries, 56 yards
ReceivingColeman Owen5 receptions, 90 yards
ArizonaPassing Jayden de Laura 18/24, 285 yards, 3 TD, INT
Rushing Michael Wiley 10 carries, 54 yards
ReceivingMichael Wiley6 receptions, 57 yards

at No. 8 Sacramento State

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (1–3) at No. 8 Sacramento State Hornets (3–1) – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Lumberjacks7147230
No. 8 Hornets14100731

at Hornet Stadium, Sacramento, CA

  • Date: September 30, 2023
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 67 °F (19 °C) • 0 mph • Cloudy
  • Game attendance: 12,549
  • Referee: Gregg Wilson
  • TV announcers (KMAX-TV/ESPN+): Play-by-Play: Jason Ross, Jr. • Analysis: Darren Arbet
Game information
StatisticsNAUSAC
First downs2125
Total yards450418
Rushing yards195161
Passing yards255257
Passing: Comp–Att–Int24–34–118–27–0
Time of possession30:1329:47
TeamCategoryPlayerStatistics
Northern ArizonaPassingAdam Damante23/33, 196 yards, TD, INT
RushingDevon Starling21 carries, 117 yards, 2 TD
ReceivingElijah Taylor2 receptions, 73 yards
Sacramento StatePassingKaiden Bennett18/27, 257 yards, TD
Rushing22 carries, 76 yards
ReceivingJared Gipson5 receptions, 108 yards

References

  1. "Montana State Tabbed Preseason Football Favorites". July 25, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  2. "2023 Northern Arizona Football Schedule". FBSchedules. Retrieved March 7, 2023.