GOVS-TRAILBLAZERS POSTGAME NOTES

Notes following Austin Peay's 13-7 United Athletic Conference win over Utah Tech at Greater Zion Stadium in St. George, Utah.

FROM THE TOP

• Austin Peay has won back-to-back games – both on the road – for the first time under head coach Jeff Faris.
• The Governors improved to 3-0 all-time in games played west of the Continental Divide.
• The Govs rushed for 218 yards and have topped the 200-yard mark on the ground in four-straight contests.
• Dating back to the 2023 season, Austin Peay has won five-straight games in the month of October.
• Austin Peay's 13-7 victory is its lowest scoring output in a win since beating No. 7 Jacksonville State, 13-10, on March 28, 2021.

CAPTAINS/COIN TOSS

• Captains Garrett Hawkins and Chandler Kirton took the coin toss for the Governors.
• Utah Tech won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff.
• Austin Peay falls to 4-3 at the opening kickoff this season.
• The Governors improved to 2-1 when they lose the opening coin toss this season.
• Weather in St. George at kickoff: 61 degrees, partly cloudy, winds north at 3 mph.

SERIES UPDATE            

• Austin Peay picked up its second-straight win against Utah Tech and improved to 2-0 in the all-time series.
• Austin Peay won in its first-ever game at Greater Zion Stadium in St. George, Utah.
• Austin Peay is 2-0 all-time in the State of Utah and 3-1 all-time against teams from Utah.

UAC WINS

• Austin Peay improved to 8-2 all-time in United Athletic Conference contests.
• The Governors are 5-1 all-time on the road in UAC action.

THOSE ARE THE BREAKS

• Austin Peay improved to 3-0 this season when leading at the half.
• The Governors improved to 3-1 when leading at the end of the third quarter.
• Austin Peay won for the second time while never trailing in the contest.

OFFENSIVE SPARKS

• The Governors rushed for 218 yards, their third-best single-game mark this season.
• Quarterback Austin Smith rushed for a season-best 83 yards, which is the most rushing yards by a Governors quarterback since Mike DiLiello rushed for 96 against Jacksonville State (10/29/2022).
• Smith led the Governors in rushing yards for the first time this season.
• Wide receiver Romon Copeland Jr. lined up as a wildcat quarterback and scored his first career rushing touchdown on a 52-yard carry.
• Copeland Jr. is the seventh Governor to rush for a touchdown this season.
• Copeland Jr.'s 52-yard rushing touchdown is the fourth-longest offensive touchdown by a Gov this season.
• Copeland Jr. rushed for a season-best 56 yards.
• Smith completed a 64-yard pass to Jaden Barnes, which is the longest passing play by the Govs this season, and the first 50-plus-yard pass this season.
• Barnes had three receptions for a season-best 80 yards.

DEFENSIVE STANDS      

• Austin Peay's defense limited Utah Tech to 104 rushing yards, which is the third-best single-game performance by the defense this season.
• The Governors' defense held the Trailblazers to just 82 yards of total offense in the second half, including just 24 yards in the fourth quarter.
• The Governors limited Utah Tech to 7-of-17 on third-down attempts and 0-of-1 on fourth-down attempts.
• Dion Hunter recorded a team-best eight tackles and led the Governors in tackles for the fourth-straight game.
• Hunter also had a season-best 2.0 tackles for loss.
• Jakari Patterson also had a team-leading 2.0 tackles for loss, and Hosea Knifeley Jr. had 1.5 tackles for loss with a sack.
• Freshman Antori Hamilton recorded his first collegiate sack on his lone tackle of the contest.
• Freshman Stephen Ellison II had a career-best seven tackles and a pass breakup.
• Keith Gallmon Jr. had a season-best seven tackles and recorded his first interception as a Governor in the fourth quarter.
• Jaden Lyles added six tackles and a pass breakup.

SPECIAL TEAMS SYNOPSIS

• Carson Smith went 2-of-3 on field goal attempts, connecting from 39 and 51 yards, to improve to 6-of-10 this season.
• Smith's career-long 51-yard field goal is the longest by a Governors since Maddux Trujillo's program-record 55-yard field goal against Jacksonville State (10/29/22).
• Smith's 51-yard field goal is tied for fifth-longest in Austin Peay history.
• Domink Stadlman punted seven times for a 44.4-yard average with two kicks downed inside the 20-yard line.
• Stadlman had two 50-plus yard punts with a long of 52 yards.
• Romon Copeland Jr. returned two kicks for 48 yards and four punts for 28 yards to finish the game with a team-leading 134 all-purpose yards.

GOVS-TRAILBLAZERS POSTGAME QUOTES

Austin Peay head coach Jeff Faris

Opening Statement…  "It was an unbelievable effort by our defense today. I am so proud of our whole team and how we fought. It was not going to be a pretty game, but we have done a great job in getting better every single week. When adversity hit in the fourth quarter, our guys stepped up. It was an unbelievable job by the defense and a great job by the Govs for going on the road and getting back-to-back conference wins."

On the travel and other adversities… "It definitely presents challenges, but at the end of the day, we have to be strong enough and have the mental toughness to overcome those things. It wasn't pretty, but our guys found a way to do it and find a way to win. I was most impressed with the energy on the sidelines when things were not going right. Those guys believe, fight, and love one another and I am proud of them for pulling this one out."

On not overlooking Utah Tech… "If you study our season, we have shown we can play with anybody. When we are at our best we can beat anybody. And if we shoot ourselves in the foot, we could also lose to anybody, and the guys understand that. We called last week the 'get better week' because we learned from the first two chapters of the season and our goal was to get better. We are a better team than we were earlier in the season and showed that a lot today." 

Austin Peay defensive back Stephen Ellison II  

On his career day… "We just wanted to come out and execute the game plan, believe in it, believe in myself, and my coaches and teammates and just go out there and play hard every play."

On being an experienced freshman... "The biggest thing is having my teammates being there to help me and understand the game plan. It also helps by letting the game come to me and not try to force anything."