Kearney, Neb. – The Nebraska-Kearney football team kicks off its 118th season tonight when the Lopers travel to longtime rival Chadron State. Head coach Ryan Held talks with KRVN’s Jayson Jorgensen about the start of the season and his second season in Kearney. Kickoff is set for 7pm central time and can be heard on 93.1 KRVN FM, 106.9 FM, and the River App and the UNK athletic App.
In a series that dates to 1921, UNK has won the last four meetings. Four years ago at Ron & Carol Cope Stadium at Foster Field, quarterback T.J. Davis ran for 252 yards and three touchdowns to help the Blue & Gold post a 45-35 victory. The Eagles, behind UCLA transfer running back Jalen Starks (125 yards and two TD’s), got within 10 points in the fourth quarter before Davis scored again to put things on ice.
The Lopers lead the all-time series 50-21-1 and haven’t visited Chadron since the 2010 season when a 10-win squad recorded a 35-21 victory. This year and in the future, the teams will battle for the “Good Life” Trophy. Reagan Jones
Both squads will have graduate transfer QB’s in UNK’s Reagan Jones (Missouri Western) and CSC’s DJ Ralph (San Diego State). This marks the first time since Sept. 2019 someone other than Davis will be the starting QB for the Lopers (50 games). Jones is 8-6 as a starter and totaled nearly 4,500 yards in his time at St. Joseph while Ralph, a lefty, threw for 746 yards and nine scores at Saddleback (Calif.) College in 2021. He then spent time at hometown SDSU.
In 2023, each team played four games decided by 10 points or less. CSC went 3-1 in those tight affairs with UNK posting a 1-3 mark. Eleven of the last 17 meetings between the Eagles and Lopers have come down to the wire.
Up front, Chadron features All-American defensive end Hunter O’Connor (28 career sacks) while UNK welcomes back left tackle Kooper Reece (Valentine). Reece was a 2.5-year starter and a 2022 preseason All-American before sustaining a serious injury in Oct. 2022. This will be his first game action since the injury with the other tackle be another grad transfer in Jordan Allen (Oklahoma Baptist). Reece and Allen are two of the nine college grads playing on this year’s UNK team.
Defensively, UNK welcomes back All-MIAA end Quillan Felton (Lithonia, Ga.) and several other veterans. Felton is the returning leader in tackles (44), tackles for loss (10.5) and sacks (4.0). In 2023, the Lopers were among the MIAA leaders in the red zone, allowing opponents to reach the end zone just 55% of the time.
The Lopers next foe is 22nd-ranked Northwest Missouri State (Sept. 7/7 p.m.) while the Eagles host Jamestown (N.D.) on Sept. 5. The Jimmies are making the move from NAIA to Division II.
