GAME 1 – SOU at Simpson (Calif.)
7 p.m. Saturday | Shasta Lake, California | Central Valley HS
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ASHLAND – The Southern Oregon University football team will face four nationally-ranked opponents in the span of a month following this week's opener, which makes the opportunity to get off on the right foot against Simpson (Calif.) more of an imperative.

The 92nd season of Raider football begins at 7 p.m. Saturday in Shasta Lake, Calif., at Central Valley High School, which the Redding-based Red Hawks will call home for their third season of action. It'll be a non-divisional counter between the two Frontier Conference West Division opponents before they meet again Oct. 10 in Ashland.

SOU collected two of its three wins in 2025 against Simpson, 59-0 at home and 48-17 on the road, in their first-ever meetings. The Red Hawks, operating under first-year head coach Trevor Utter, enter the matchup with an all-time record of 0-19.

THE BROWN ERA: Saturday's game marks the start of Berk Brown's fourth season as head coach. The Raider alum, who was the defensive coordinator when SOU won the 2014 NAIA championship and returned to the final in '15, owns a 17-14 overall record. In his 2023 debut season, the Raiders turned in their first winning record in five years at 6-4, and his second squad was No. 14 in the NAIA rankings before a season-ending loss dropped them to 8-3 and out of the national playoff picture. Last year's team opened at No. 22 in the preseason poll but was doomed by some key early injuries, finishing 3-7 overall and 2-4 in the Frontier West. Two coordinators will begin their first full seasons under Brown: Tim Souza with the offense and Zak Sauve with the defense. The former took over play-calling duties for the final three games of last fall, while the latter joined the Raiders this summer after most recently serving as defensive analyst at University of Texas San Antonio.

ON OPENERS: The Raiders will go for their third consecutive season-opening win and first on the road since 2018, when they were the No. 4-ranked team in the NAIA and drubbed Eastern Oregon. They're 4-6 in their last 10 openers and 10-10 in their last 20. In last season's debut against Simpson at Raider Stadium, the Raiders completed their first shutout in seven years.

AROUND THE WEST: This season is the second with the Frontier Conference split into East and West divisions, giving the winner of each seven-team circuit getting an automatic spot in the 20-team NAIA Championship Series. SOU was picked to finish fourth in the West preseason coaches' poll, which was topped by defending champion College of Idaho, Carroll (Mont.) and Montana Western. College of Idaho reached last year's national semifinal round and came in at No. 4 in the NAIA preseason poll, while Carroll was No. 11 and Montana Western was No. 18. Montana Tech was picked to repeat in the East Division and is ranked No. 5, awaiting a date with the Raiders in Butte on Sept. 19.

QUICK HITS:
The long-awaited return of 2024 Frontier Offensive MVP Gunner Yates is the most obvious storyline entering Saturday. Yates ultimately redshirted last season, going out with an injury after rushing just nine times over two games, and is back on the field and looking to build on what was a historic sophomore campaign. He averaged 135.3 rushing yards per game and 6.7 per carry as a first-team NAIA All-American, leading the country in total rushing yards and breaking SOU's single-season records for rushing touchdowns (27) and total touchdowns (29).
Graduate running back Fresh Ison and senior quarterback Dom Montiel complete what looks to be a dynamic offensive backfield. Ison was an All-FC West first-team performer in his first season at SOU, registering a division-best 5.6 yards per rush with six touchdowns. Montiel ranked 11th nationally in passing yards per game (261.4) while completing 62% of his attempts with 19 touchdowns compared to 11 interceptions in his debut season. Both will benefit from a more seasoned offensive line, which returns four starters after bringing only one back last year. Junior slot Dawson Douglas (18 receptions, 253) is the top receiver back.
The Raiders have two all-conference performers on defense in second-team linebacker Raiden House (74 tackles, 3 sacks) and honorable mention recipient Bryson Kievit (28 tackles, 9 ½ TFL). They're among six starters back overall for a unit that limited opponents to 23 points per game.
Berk Brown's teams have won 17 of 19 games when scoring at least 25 points. One of the exceptions was the penultimate game of 2025, which SOU dropped a 41-40 to then-No. 8 Carroll on a last-minute touchdown. In their next (and final) outing, the Raiders gave up a lead in the last minute to then-No. 13 College of Idaho and lost 24-21.

ABOUT SIMPSON: The Red Hawks are seeking a third-year bump after being outscored by an average of 32 points during a 0-10 2025 season. An offense that produced just 11.7 per game will have a new look with quarterback Ya'j Vance, a Fresno City College (Calif.) transfer who completed 59% of his passes for 17 touchdowns and only four interceptions last season. Eli Cortina (4.4 yards/rush) returns at running back along with top receivers Talan Ramirez (20 receptions, 375 yards) and Nathan Monticelli (17 receptions, 174 yards). Their top returners on defense are junior linebacker Caleb Utter (67 tackles) and sophomore safety Charlie Walden (56 tackles, 2 interceptions).

COMING UP: SOU is home next Saturday, Sept. 5, for a matchup with old rival Western Oregon. The Wolves will be making their first visit to Raider Stadium since 2010 and are No. 14 in the D2football.com and No. 22 in the AFCA preseason NCAA Division II rankings. Following a bye week, SOU will face three more Top 25 teams consecutively: No. 5 Montana Tech on Sept. 19 in Butte, No. 25 Dakota State (S.D.) on Sept. 26 in Ashland, and No. 18 Montana Western on Oct. 3 in Dillon for the opening week of FC West play.