Colorado School of Mines Football Reaches DII Championship Again, Eyes Redemption

The Colorado School of Mines football team is headed to the NCAA Division II championship for the second straight year, and this time it has its sights set on a win.

“Last year we felt like just by arriving, just by winning this game, we felt like we’d done it all,” quarterback John Matocha told media after the team’s 35-7 semifinal win over Kutztown University on Saturday, December 9. “But this year, even in the locker room, it’s on to the next. We’ll definitely celebrate and enjoy this…but the job’s not done. We do not feel like we’ve made it.”

It’s been a years-long build to get to this point after trips to the semifinals of the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs in 2021 and a loss in the 2022 championship game. This season, the Orediggers are undefeated and have absolutely crushed opponents on their quest to finally hoist that championship banner.

It’s win or bust for many of the athletes, who have dedicated their college years not only to passing the school’s notoriously difficult engineering classes, but also to playing on the gridiron. There are over fifteen sixth-year players on this 2023 Mines squad, with the COVID-19 pandemic granting NCAA athletes on rosters in 2020 the chance for an extra year of eligibility to make up for the missed season. There are 33 seniors on the team, including Matocha, who will not return for a sixth year next year.

The quarterback smashed NCAA records in the semifinal match against Kutztown. It took the Orediggers just one minute and sixteen seconds to score their first touchdown – a pass from Matocha to receiver Flynn Schiele. That play tied Bears backup quarterback Tyson Bagent for the most touchdowns in college football history.

Matocha’s second score of the day went to Noah Roper halfway through the first quarter, which set the new NCAA record at 160 touchdowns thrown. He finished the game with three passing TDs, setting the new mark at 161 passing touchdowns. He became college football’s all-time leader in total touchdowns earlier this season.

“It’s incredibly special,” Matocha said of his record-setting tosses. “It’s also extremely special because it’s not only this year – it’s four or five years in the making. Four different teams, a lot of different seniors that have rolled through, so it’s incredibly special to share with all those guys.”

Schiele also had a huge day, ending it with two TDs and 181 receiving yards. The Mines defense stepped up, too – recovering a fumble and snagging a key interception – marking turnovers number 32 and 33 for the team, which is the most in FBS, FCS and Division II football this season.

“Just having all the guys around playing together is really what makes us special,” said fifth-year senior Zach Hester, who recovered the fumble. “We have a ton of seniors who have been here together for so long, and being able to have those connections and bring the younger guys, it’s kind of surreal, for sure.”

After the game, Kutztown head coach Jim Clements said that he anticipates the Orediggers will do well against Harding University in the finals on December 16 in McKinney, Texas. “Colorado Mines has a heck of a football team,” Clements said. “They’re going to be hard to beat.”

Harding is a team notorious for constantly running the ball; Hester said the Mines defense is excited for the chance to get physical and push back their ground attack.

“It’s a bit more exciting as a D-line because they’re going to the ball the whole game, and we’ll get to make some plays,” he told media.

Sure, McKinney ISD Stadium is where Mines lost in the finals last year. But head coach Pete Sterbick said he sees that as an advantage, because the team will be used to everything. It will travel there on Wednesday and practice on Thursday at a local high school.

“Mentally, I think our guys are a lot more ready,” Sterbick said. “We know what to expect. … Obviously we’re playing a different opponent, but we’re going to be in the same locker room. Just having been at that stadium, all those things are going to be familiar to us.”

The 5,294-person crowd at Mary Kay stadium in Golden was loud and into Saturday’s semifinal game the whole way through, holding signs that read “Nerds Rule” and “Drill, Blast, Kick.”

“It’s extremely hard to beat the atmosphere that has been built around here at Marv Kay,” Matocha said. “The support that we get from alumni, the community, the school administration, it’s something special. We’ll have a five-yard completion, and it sounds like we won the Super Bowl every time.”

The Texas native expects the atmosphere at McKinney ISD to feel similar to a home game, despite the distance between the Dallas-adjacent city and Colorado. Like the team, the fans are ready for a championship, and they’ll travel to see it.

“Shout out to the alumni,” Matocha said. “They show up big, and so it’s really exciting. I heard last year was a great tailgate. Sadly, I didn’t get to make it, but we’ll go down there and give them something to cheer about, for sure.”

Tune in to the game at 11 a.m. on ESPNU on December 16.