Starting the season with perhaps the toughest opponent they'll face this year, the Humboldt State football team travels to Grand Forks, N.D. for Thursday's game against the University of North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux, ranked among the top 10 in all of the preseason Division II polls released thus far, host the Jacks at 5 p.m. PST in the Alerus Center, a 12,283-seat stadium. …The game marks the beginning of the Jacks' second season as an NCAA Division II independent. HSU will return to conference play next year in the revived Great Northwest Athletic Conference football alliance.

On the Air
As a former Humboldt State football standout and broadcast journalism graduate,  J.B. Mathers brings both his fine-tuned on-air skills and knowledge of the game to all Lumberjack radio broadcasts. He'll handle the play-by-play duties again throughout the fall, with each game aired on Bicoastal Media's ESPN Radio affiliate, KATA, located at 1340 on the AM dial. Joining Mathers in the booth is HSU Hall of Famer Burt Nordstrom, who starred in both football and baseball during his undergraduate career.  …All games are also simulcast on the internet, and can be accessed through a link on the football page of the hsujacks.com web site.  Broadcasts begin 15 minutes prior to scheduled game time with the pregame show, featuring interviews and analysis.

Live Stats
Back again this year to Humboldt State Athletics' web services is the Live Stats feature that allows fans to track the action from their home computers as it happens. Complete team and individual statistics, along with a play-by-play, are available in real time for all of HSU's home games. A link to the feature is found on the football section of hsujacks.com.

Injury Report
Knocking on wood and any other available surface, Humboldt State head athletic trainer Shannon Childs reports that the Jacks enter the season with only minor bumps and bruises. Wide receiver Anthony Fletcher is the only potential starter limited by injury, continuing his recovery from knee problems.

Head-to-Head
This week's meeting marks the first matchup between the Lumberjacks and Sioux in program history.

Lumberjacks Notes
Following last Thursday's Green & Gold Scrimmage, the Humboldt State coaching staff has busied itself with the final details in preparation for this week's opener. But with so many new players on this year's roster, Head Coach Doug Adkins and his staff are still experiencing familiarity issues. “We feel like we've been preparing for a long time, but this is a different football team than last year's on many counts,” Adkins said. “We're searching for an identity and for an attitude.” …Showcasing his skills under center last week was newcomer Brian Hildebrand, who has the credentials  that bode well for great results. The former Nebraska recruit threw the ball well, but according to Adkins, is “still getting back in the playing mode” after sitting out last season. …Running back is an expected position of depth this season, with transfer Cornell Canidate earning starting duties thus far. Returners Marcus Cox, Joevany Cueva and Bobby Thomas all have flashed their skills during training camp, as did newcomer Corey Stollmeyer before being limited recently by an injury. …Senior Nick Nelson will start the season as the Jacks' placekicker and sophomore Shea Lemos will handle the punting chores. Junior Enrique Leyva, a junior transfer who previously attended the University of Utah, is still awaiting eligibility clearance after sitting out the past two years. …Adding adversity to this week's challenge is the start of school, and the academic issues arising from a first-week roadtrip. “(Traveling) is a huge distraction from their academics,” Adkins said. …Traveling from Arcata to the Northern Great Plains for a football game takes some creative planning. The Lumberjacks will depart Tuesday morning at 4:30 a.m., making their way to San Francisco via bus in time for a flight to Minneapolis, Minn. After a good night's sleep, they'll grab another bus ride, this time arriving in Grand Forks, N.D. for another quick overnight prior to their game. As usual, the pleasure of the return trip depends on the game result.

Sioux Notes
North Dakota finished 11-2 overall in 2006 and captured a share of its second straight North Central Conference title. The Sioux are  entering their final season of Division II competition, and will be moving up to the NCAA Division IAA ranks in 2008. …Two UND players have been selected to the D2Football.com preseason All-America team. Senior wide receiver Weston Dressler and sophomore running back Ryan Chappell were both honored. Junior center Mitch Braegelmann joined Chappell and Dressler on the Football Gazette preseason All-American team. …North Dakota competes in the North Central Conference along with former Lumberjack GNAC rivals Central Washington and Central Washington. The departure of UND from the NCC for the DIAA level is one of the reasons that CWU and WWU will be return to a GNAC alliance along with the Lumberjacks next fall.

Adkins Assessment: “North Dakota is a very solid program. Year in and year out, they're one of the best in the nation at the Division II level. I think the only weakness in the program might be that the lady selling popcorn isn't very quick.” … “I expect this game to set some precedents for what we can expect out of our team this year. It's a big game for us in many ways.”