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ARCATA, Calif. -- The No. 24-ranked Humboldt State football program travels to Azusa, Calif., Thursday for a rematch with Great Northwest Athletic Conference rival Azusa Pacific. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Forever Humboldt is hosting a pregame tailgate beginning at 4 p.m. at Parking Lot S6 outside of Citrus Stadium. Please click HERE for more information.



SHUTOUT A FIRST FOR SMITH
Saturday's shutout of South Dakota School of Mines & Technology represents a first for Lumberjack Head Coach Rob Smith. The win was his first shutout victory for the Green and Gold leader since arriving on the North Coast in 2008. The Jacks last shutout was 10 years ago under the leadership of then-Head Coach Doug Adkins.

JACKS LEAD GNAC IN DEFENSE
The Lumberjacks continue to have the Great Northwest Athletic Conference's most dominant defense after five weeks of action. HSU ranks first in almost all the major defensive categories: scoring defense, total defense, rushing defense, passing defense efficiency, sacks, opponent first downs, opponent third down conversions, opponent fourth down conversions and turnover margin. The Jacks also boast the conference's top red zone defense, two of the top three sack leaders and two of the top three in passes defended. Defensive backs Nick Sharpe and Jamal Jones are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the GNAC with nine and eight passes defended, respectively. Senior defensive lineman Alex Markarian is the conference leader in sacks with 7.5 and fellow senior Silas Sarvinski ranks third with 5.5.

HSU's defense has surrendered an average of 8.6 points per game (a conference high) and, in contrast, Thursday's opponent Azusa Pacific is second in the conference and have allowed 24 points per game.

HSU RANKS AMONGST TOP 10 DEFENSE IN NATION
Humboldt State has the top defense in the GNAC and also ranks amongst the country's to defensive units. The Jacks are second in red zone defense (.400) and third down conversion defense (.203), fourth in scoring defense (8.6 ppg) and sixth in rushing defense (70.4 ypg) and total defense (243 ypg). HSU is also the No. 1 team in the nation amongst all 167 ranked in team sacks (5.2 per game).

CAMPBELL TABBED GNAC SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Senior punter Chris Campbell was named the GNAC Special Teams Player of the Week Monday afternoon. The Granite Bay, Calif., native averaged 48.4 yards on five punts, three times pinning South Dakota Mines inside its 20-yard line. He had a season-long of 61 yards. Campbell leads the GNAC in punting, averaging 42.3 yards.

LET'S GET IT STARTED
The Lumberjack offense has wasted no time and has struck first in every game in 2014. In the first half of games this season, HSU has outscored opponents 125-16. HSU built a season-high 46-point advantage heading into halftime of Saturday's homecoming win over South Dakota School of Mines & Technology.

TURNOVER MARGIN IN THE JACKS' FAVOR
With a 7 turnover margin, the HSU defense ranks amongst the best not only in the GNAC, but also in the nation. The Jacks success this season can be attributed to their success compiling takeaways. HSU had a conference-worst -15 turnover margin during last year's 0-11 season. The Green and Gold rank second in the GNAC in interceptions with seven and Travis Hansen leads the Jacks with two picks.

BRUDER BOOTS INTO RECORD BOOKS
Senior kicker Matt Bruder broke the program record for career points scored during Saturday's blowout victory. He passed Lumberjack Hall of Famer Dustin Creager's mark of 210 points with a total 215. He was 1-for-1 in field goal attempts with a 36-yard kick in the second quarter and 6-for-6 on PATs. The Jamul, Calif., native ranks fourth in the GNAC in scoring with an average of 8.9 points per game and leads the conference with six made field goals this season.

JACKS DOMINATE ON THE GROUND
The ground game once again played a major role in the Lumberjacks' 53-0 route of conference opponent SD Mines Saturday. HSU compiled six rushing touchdowns and accumulated a season-high 393 rushing yards. Every running back played in Saturday's game, including Jamarie Sanders who carried the ball for a depleted running back unit last season. Senior Nick Ricciardulli accounted for three of HSU's rushing scores, but it was an unheralded freshman that scored the final three. Richard Doctor carried the ball 10 times for 79 yards and three scores against the Hardrockers, both totals were single-game highs for the back out of Lemoore, Calif.

Freshman Ja'Quan Gardner, who leads the GNAC in total offense average per play with 8.2 yards, finished with seven carries for 114 yards. Gardner may have broken the 100-yard plateau for the first time in three games against Mines, but it was his pass catching that dazzled. The Ceres, Calif., native caught the game's only touchdown pass, a 59-yard toss from freshman quarterback Robert Webber. The catch was a career long for Gardner and his first touchdown catch of 2014.

JACKS EARN VOTES IN WEEKLY TOP 25 POLLS
For the first time this season, the Lumberjacks open the week ranked in the American Football Coaches Association Top 25. Tuesday's D2Football.com Top 25 ranking listed the Lumberjacks at the No. 22 spot. HSU was ranked No. 25 last week in the same poll. HSU earned 61 votes and holds the No. 24 spot in the weekly rankings. ]The Jacks were previously unranked. HSU moved up one spot in Beyond Sports Network's weekly D2 Football Power Rankings and is ranked 19th. The Green and Gold also moved up one spot in the Beyond Sports Network weekly Division II Power Rankings and are now 18th in the nation.

WEBBER LEADS BALANCED LUMBERJACK OFFENSE
Webber continues to improve at the quarterback position and is one of the top GNAC offensive playmakers. The Corona, Calif., native leads the conference in pass efficiency (146.6) and averages 193.6 passing yards per game, good for fourth. Webber tossed his second interception of the season in Saturday's win, but rebounded with a touchdown pass to Gardner on the next drive. He finished the game 5-for-10 passing for 85 yards, a touchdown and interception.

Despite Webber's youth, Head Coach Rob Smith has handed the reigns to the Lumberjacks' high-powered offense to the first-year signal caller. Prior to Saturday's game, Webber completed at least 70 percent of his passes in each of the previous two wins. The Mines game marked the shortest playing time for Webber this season. He appeared in the first two quarters and was replaced by Mason Dossey and Casey Mintz with the Jacks ahead 46-0.

TERRELL WATSON LOOKS TO AVENGE LOSS
Azusa Pacific running back Terrell Watson likely has one thing on his mind heading into this week's game versus HSU -- to avenge a road loss and his worst rushing game of the season on Sept. 13. Watson, DII football's leading rusher with 881 rushing yards, will present the biggest offensive challenge for the Jacks.

Watson carried the ball 18 times for a season-low 51 rushing yards and was held out of the end zone in the 30-10 drubbing at the Redwood Bowl in the teams' first meeting. Since that performance, Watson has rushed for 185 yards against Simon Fraser, 187 yards versus Dixie State and a season-high 256 yards in last week's win over Central Washington. He also carried the football for a school-record 199 yards in the first half against the Wildcats.

AZUSA PACIFIC OFFENSE PRESENTS ONE-DIMENSIONAL OFFENSE
Azusa Pacific may have one of the top offenses in the GNAC, but it is also one of the most predictable. The Cougars run the football 72 percent of all offensive plays, but stopping Watson may be easier said than done. Chad Jeffries leads Azusa Pacific's passing attack and it ranks 159th out of 162 teams in the nation in passing offense. Jeffries completed 13-of-24 passes for a touchdown and an interception in the first meeting with HSU. He ranks second on the Cougars with 317 rushing yards.

HENRY EMERGING AS RECEIVING THREAT
The Cougars' 6-foot-3 junior wide receiver Tanner Henry is emerging as one of Jeffries' favorite targets. Henry has surpassed last season's total of three receiving touchdowns with four in the last three games. He leads all APU receivers with 200 yards, 16 receptions and five touchdowns. He caught a pair of touchdown passes in the Cougars' win against Central Washington.