With five games left in their season — all against conference opponents — NAU football needs to make a statement to secure a playoff spot.
NAU football is at the halfway point of the fall 2021 season. Since dropping the first two games of the year, the Lumberjacks won three of their last four competitions. Their 3-3 record overall, and 2-1 conference record, have them sitting at fifth place in the Big Sky standings with five games left.
Coming off a 59-35 Grand Canyon Rivalry win vs Southern Utah, the Lumberjacks have their sights set on another familiar opponent: The Sacramento State Hornets. NAU last faced off against Sacramento State during the 2019 season, falling 38-34 in the final game of the year and finishing with a 4-8 record — ninth place in the Big Sky.
Sacramento State comes into the game 4-2 overall with a 3-0 conference record, good for third among Big Sky teams.
Entering a vital stretch in their season — during which the Lumberjacks face conference opponents for the five remaining games — head coach Chris Ball said he wishes some things could be changed, but knows there is plenty to look forward to.
“I feel okay [about the first half],” Ball said. “There are some things that we’d like to have back, [and] there’s a game we’d definitely like to have back, but we’re getting better,” Ball said. “I like our leadership, I like our culture and I love this team. I think this team is growing; they come out here every day and get better. I love the direction we’re headed, [and] now we’ve just got six weeks to finish it.”
With offense leading the way, NAU’s last two games were blowout wins. The Lumberjacks took care of conference opponent Idaho State 48-17 on Oct. 2, before hanging 59 points on a Southern Utah defense that seemed incapable of stopping NAU after the bye week on Oct. 16.
Despite these victories in front of the home crowd, Ball explained his team is focused on the task at hand instead of reminiscing on the past.
“It’s the work you’re doing through the week that’s going to help you win on Saturday,” Ball said. “We just had our bye, so we got some rest, and now it’s game week. Every day we come out here and worry about ourselves. It’s not really about who we’re playing; it’s about making ourselves better every day.”
Thus far, a 21-19 upset of in-state rival UArizona was the season highlight. This historic win was the Lumberjacks’ first against the Wildcats since 1932, as well as their first victory of the season.
The win over UArizona was big for the Lumberjacks, but since then, Ball has not given it much thought — and treated it the same as any other win.
“It was a great win for us, [and] a great win for our university, but it’s not going to make or break our season,” Ball said. “It’s nice, [and] it’s great to talk about, but if we go 1-10, just because we beat Arizona isn’t going to make us feel any better. It was a great win for us, but we didn’t have much time to celebrate because we had to line up and play again the next week.”
The Lumberjacks’ win over UArizona also marked the debut of freshman quarterback RJ Martinez, who eventually won the starting job over redshirt freshman Jeff Widener. Martinez has been solid since taking over, throwing for 1,082 yards, nine touchdowns and only one interception. The young passer is set to make his fourth career start against Sacramento State this Saturday.
Martinez has learned a lot as NAU’s signal-caller, but is taking it all in stride.
“It’s been a great learning experience coming in as a young guy,” Martinez said. Having played a lot in high school has really helped me prepare for this level of football. It’s still been a learning experience from being a leader on the offense and as a team leader. It’s a lot different since it’s college football now, so the preparation obviously is amped up. Everything has been a great learning experience, I’ve got great teammates and coaches and trainers who help me along the way.”
The Lumberjacks utilized four quarterbacks over their first six games, including three different starters. Ball confirmed Martinez has the starting position for now, but added that nobody’s job is safe: “We compete every week at every position.”
Redshirt freshman receiver Coleman Owen has kept his production up, despite NAU’s revolving door of quarterbacks, accumulating 25 receptions, 434 yards and four touchdowns, the longest being an 80-yard bomb from Martinez against Southern Utah. Owen leads the Lumberjacks in receptions and receiving yards through six games, and is also tied for the lead in touchdowns caught. His catch against Southern Utah was NAU’s longest receiving touchdown of the season.
Since the freshman quarterback took over the Lumberjack offense, Owen and Martinez have built a strong connection, and the former referenced his enjoyment with the young gun under center.
“It’s been awesome. He’s a really talented kid, and even though he’s young, he’s one of the biggest leaders on the team,” Owen said. “It’s awesome being a receiver and being able to trust the quarterback. He really puts it on us wherever we are on the field, [and] it’s awesome to see the plays he makes.”
The two have established a formidable rapport in recent weeks, combining for 300 yards and four touchdowns over their last two games. Owen surpassed 130 yards receiving and caught two touchdowns for the second straight week, and his previous high was 69 yards in the season opener against Sam Houston State. He did not find the end zone, however, until two weeks ago against Idaho State.
Down the stretch, Owen said he wants fans to look forward to more of NAU’s offensive production.
“[Expect] nothing but better than you’ve already seen,” Owen said. “This last game [against Idaho State], we finally picked it up as an offense, and we finally got to see what we can do. Now we know what we’re capable of, and we’re just going to keep moving forward from there.”
The Lumberjacks have also improved on the defensive side of the ball over their first five games. After allowing 42 and 34 points in their first two matches, respectively, the Jacks’ defense stepped up and surrendered less than 20 points in three of their last four games. However, the exception was Southern Utah’s 35 points on Oct. 16.
Redshirt junior defensive back Morgan Vest said he is proud of the way his team’s defense has performed in recent weeks, and hopes they can find another gear heading into the second half of the schedule. Vest thinks the defense’s improvement speaks for itself, but added that now is no time to take it easy.
“Energy and effort, we’re going to play hard every snap of every game,” Vest said. “That’s really become our MO, and that’s what we hang our hat on. We’re going to play harder than everyone, and we’re going to play for each other. You can clearly see [the improvement] in the way we’re playing and the wins that we’re starting to put up. The thing is, you can’t get complacent. You’ve got to keep getting better every day.”
Of the Lumberjacks’ remaining games, two opponents currently lead them in the Big Sky standings. If NAU can take care of business, it could find itself with a playoff berth.
With a crucial stretch of their season looming and a potential playoff spot hanging in the balance, Ball emphasized the importance of the Lumberjacks’ remaining schedule.
“It’s really important,” Ball said. “We’re trying to win the Big Sky, we’re going to take it one day at a time [and] we’ve got a six-game schedule to get in the mix,” Ball said.
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