Takeaways as CSU Pueblo football holds off Black Hills State in RMAC opener for first win of season

They hadn't lost to the opponent in eight previous games.

They hadn't scored less than 42 points in those victories.

And the margin of victory was 30 points or more each time.

The expectations for a win were obvious for the Colorado State University Pueblo football team

While it wasn't quite the dominating performance of previous seasons, the Pack picked up a much-needed victory on Saturday.

CSU Pueblo defeated Black HIlls (S.D.) State 19-16 on Saturday at the ThunderBowl, capturing its first win of the season following two nonleague losses. It was the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

Redshirt freshman Jared Zoulek kicked a 33-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter in what proved to be the difference in the game..

"We're 1 and 0 this week," CSU Pueblo head coach John Wristen said. "It was a great opportunity."

Here are four takeaways from Saturday's game:

Redshirt freshman to the rescue

CSU Pueblo starting quarterback Gunnar Lamphere returned to the lineup following a shoulder injury in the season opener but exited again.

This time, Lamphere injured a foot on a sack and was left on the sidelines in crutches.

Enter redshirt freshman Steven Croell, who engineered two touchdown drives and made two huge plays in the waning minutes to salt the victory away.

"We were a little slow to come out the gate but we needed to get something on the board to get a little bit of confidence," Croell said. "We're still shooting ourselves in the foot at time but once we get rid of that we'll do all right."

Croell replaced Lamphere late in the second quarter and found Max Fine for 25 yards and connected with Dionte Sykes for a 17-yard touchdown, giving CSU Pueblo a 10-0 halftime advantage.

Then on the first series of the third quarter, Croell led a seven-play, 75-yard touchdown march, hitting Nigel Mitchell on a 14-yard score to put the ThunderWolves up 16-0.

Croell finished off his work by connecting with Fine on a crucial third-down-and-13 situation late in the fourth quarter after the Yellow Jackets had cut the lead to 19-16. He also had a critical third down scramble for a first down later in the drive.

"During the week those two-minute situations," Croell said. "Coach trusted me to make those plays and I have to deliver. 

"Getting that losing feeling out of our mouth was big especially starting 0-2. We have to keep moving forward."

"He didn't get a lot of reps in practice because we had to get Gunnar ready," Wristen said of Croell. "(Croell) had to come in and perform and he did."

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Rediscovering the offense

The Pack had scored only 20 points in its first two games, both losses to nationally ranked teams Texas A&M-Commerce and Grand Valley (Mich.) State and had averaged just 190 total yards per game.

Saturday, it produced nearly 190 yards (180) by halftime, holding a 10-0 lead. Most of that came through the airwaves (150) as the ThunderWolves used three quarterbacks.

The lone touchdown drive came late in the first half when CSU Pueblo marched 79 yards on eight plays. Lamphere found Nick Williams on a 34-yard connection that put the ThunderWolves at the Yellow Jackets' 33 and Croell came in later and completed the scoring drive.

The Pack finished with 370 yards of offense, getting 22 through the air and another 118 on the ground. Croell was 10-of-16 for 134 yards and two scores and Lamphere was 7-of-8 for 104 yards before leaving the game.

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Defense making strides

It wasn't a shutout like the previous three meetings against Black Hills State but the defense for the ThunderWolves did enough to get a win.

"Like we always say, everybody can play," CSU Pueblo linebacker Trevor Philio said. "(Black Hills players) are  on scholarship, too. It's grown men vs. grown men. We are grateful to come out on top."

The Pack did give up 339 yards of offense to an team that had been averaging 30 points a game. But it got off the field on third down when it needed to and had a goal-line stand in the third quarter that turned the ball back to the offense.

Philio feels the defense is making strides to where it needs to get.

"It's a long way from where we want to be but it's further from where we started," he said. "It's all about progressing every day. Time will tell where we end up.

"We're just focusing on enjoying the time, getting better with every chance we get and enjoying each other." 

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Perfect vs. Yellow Jackets

For the ninth consecutive time, CSU Pueblo took down Black Hills State, moving to 9-0 all-time in the series.

How dominant has the Pack been over the years? The Yellow Jackets hadn't scored on the ThunderWolves since 2016, having been shut out three consecutive seasons 49-0, 59-0 and 58-0. In fact, Black Hills has scored a collective 77 points in nine games against CSU Pueblo.

The Yellow Jackets did break their scoreless streak with a pair of touchdowns, finishing with 339 yards of total offense, 204 through the air and 135 on the ground.

Chieftain senior sports reporter Jeff Letofsky can be reached by email at jletofsky@chieftain.com or on Twitter @jeffletofsky