Opening conference play this weekend, two Utah teams renewed a rivalry while another kept its perfect record intact.

Southern Utah vs. Utah Tech

In the first ‘Battle of the Ax’ matchup in nearly 60 years, it was SUU who continued its great start to the season as they beat Utah Tech at home.

Also serving as the WAC opener for both teams, the game was even early on.

The T-birds took an early 7-0 lead just under six minutes into the game courtesy of a 1-yard run by Elijah Burns.

Utah Tech battled back to even the score just about four minutes later, when Kobe Tracy found Rickie Johnson for an 18-yard strike.

While the game was tied 7-7 heading into the second quarter, it didn’t stay that way for long.

After forcing a Trailblazer punt, SUU looked to regain the lead on its first drive of the frame. On the first play, quarterback Justin Miller unloaded a 65-yard dime to Isaiah Wooden for the touchdown and a 14-7 lead.

Utah Tech responded with a field goal, but SUU countered with one of its own to make the score 17-10 at the six-minute mark of the second quarter.

With the game still very much in reach, the Trailblazers went three-and-out and punted the ball back to the T-birds with five minutes still left in the half.

SUU took full advantage, with Miller finding Ethan Bolingbroke from three yards out for the 24-10 advantage with just 19 seconds left on the clock.

Utah Tech wasn’t about to throw in the towel, however. While it was the only score of the third quarter, Tracy delivered a touchdown throw of 15 yards to Joey Hobert with  37 seconds left to cut the deficit to 24-17.

The Trailblazers defense held strong on multiple occasions against the SUU offense, but three fourth-quarter turnovers proved too much to overcome on the road.

SUU added another touchdown for good measure via a Bobby Cole 9-yard run to make the final score 31-17 as the T-birds improved to 3-1 on the season.

Justin Miller led the SUU offense, completing 29-of-37 passes for 352 yards and two touchdowns while Isaiah Miller hauled in five receptions for 129 yards and a score.

Kobe Tracy threw for 277 yards and two touchdowns for Utah Tech but also threw a pair of costly interceptions. Quali Conley led the Trailblazers’ rushing attack, tallying 113 yards on 13 carries. Joey Hobert added 105 yards and a score on six catches in the receiving game.

Up next: Southern Utah

The T-birds (3-1, 1-0 WAC) now hit the road for a non-conference matchup next. They’ll face Eastern Kentucky on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 4 p.m. MT.

Up next: Utah Tech

The Trailblazers (1-3, 0-1 WAC) will look to end a two-game skid when they return home next week. They’ll face Abilene Christian on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. The game can be seen on ESPN+.

No. 12 Weber State

Opening Big Sky Conference play on the road, Weber State continued its perfect start to the 2022 campaign.

Falling behind 3-0, the Wildcats responded by taking the lead for good with just under four minutes to go in the opening frame. Bronson Barron delivered a 16-yard scoring throw to Josh Davis for the 7-3 advantage.

Weber State extended the lead to 14-3 just moments into the second quarter. This time Dontae McMillian capped an 8-play, 80-yard drive with a six-yard rushing touchdown.

The two teams then traded field goals before a UC Davis touchdown cut the lead to 17-12, but the Aggies failed to convert the two-point attempt.

After Weber State failed to score in the fourth quarter, UC Davis had one last shot to win the game, but the Wildcats stopped them on a long fourth down to seal the win.

Up next

Weber State (4-0, 1-0 Big Sky) now looks forward to a bye week before facing Eastern Washington at home on Saturday, Oct. 8.

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Spencer Rodak
Spencer has always been passionate about sports, growing up playing and following various sports. He ran cross country in high school and began his journey in sports media in 2017 as a journalism intern at The Spectrum & Daily News. Since then, his work has been published in numerous outlets including Deseret News, Standard-Examiner, St. George News, Southern Utah Now, SUU's Thunderground, SB Nation's RSL Soapbox, FanSided's Venom Strikes, fan-insider.com, The Spurs Web, and Iron County Today. Spencer is the founder of Stadium Sportzz and both the Sportzz with Spencer and Mountain States Sports Report podcasts. His experience extends to public address announcing, having first served as the PA announcer for Southern Utah University soccer in 2017 and as a high school sports PA announcer. He is now entering his fourth year as a PA announcer at Utah Tech University, where he also occasionally takes on the role of in-game emcee. Spencer's versatility also extends to radio, where at The Fan Sports Network he produced high school and Utah Tech athletics broadcasts, hosted the weekly Region 9 Football Tailgate Show, and appeared daily on The Drive. Now working towards completing his Bachelor's degree in Media Studies, Spencer was recently named the Sports Director at Utah Tech University's 91.3 The Blaze for the 2024-25 year. He will host a weekly show and serve as a play-by-play broadcaster, continuing his dedication to sports journalism and broadcasting. When he isn’t talking, writing about, or watching sports, Spencer enjoys traveling and spending time with his amazing wife.

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