Cowboys in South Dakota For Finale

Las Vegas, New Mexico - New Mexico Highlands will play their season finale this weekend as they take on the Black Hills State Yellow Jackets in Spearfish, South Dakota.

COACH KURT TAUFA'ASAU: 2025 marks the second season at the helm of the NMHU football program for Coach Taufa'asau after being named head coach on May 29, 2024. Taufa'asau earned his first career win at NMHU when he led the Cowboys to a thrilling 33-30 victory on October 12th of last season in front of a raucous Homecoming Crowd in historic Las Vegas. NMHU scored two touchdowns in the last 6:54 of that game to earn the win. Before coming to New Mexico Highlands, Taufa'asau was the head coach at New Mexico Military Institute, where he led the Broncos to the 2021 NJCAA Division I National Championship.

STANDINGS: New Mexico Highlands University, at 6-4 overall, 4-4 in conference, sits in 6th place in the RMAC. Black Hills State is in 7th at 2-8 overall and 2-6 in conference.

CSU Pueblo 9-1 (8-0 RMAC)
Chadron State 8-2 (8-0 RMAC)
Western Colorado 8-2 (6-2 RMAC)
Colorado Mesa 6-4 (5-3 RMAC)
Colorado School of Mines 6-4 (4-4 RMAC)
New Mexico Highlands 6-4 (4-4 RMAC)
Black Hills State 2-8 (2-6 RMAC)
South Dakota Mines 2-8 (2-6 RMAC)
Fort Lewis 2-8 (1-7 RMAC)
Adams State 0-10 (0-8 RMAC)

LAST TIME OUT: The Cowboys took care of Fort Lewis on Saturday on Senior Day, 31-14, in their final home game of the season at Sanchez Family Stadium.
NMHU rushed the ball 53 times for 304 yards in Saturday's victory.

Per usual, Tevita Valeti and Jeffery Jones carried the load. The offensive line was dominant in the trenches, controlling the line of scrimmage all game.

The Cowboys never trailed in the victory, taking a 10-7 lead at halftime.

Jeffery Jones had 192 yards on 20 carries and a pair of touchdowns, while Tevita Valeti scored the first Cowboys touchdown of the day with 72 yards and a pair of touchdowns as well.

Freshman quarterback Collin Stucki had 10 completions with 79 yards through the air. The Cowboys' run game was so dominant that Stucki only dropped back to pass 15 times.

The Cowboys' defense came to play, forcing four Skyhawk turnovers, including two interceptions by senior Trevor Romaldo and two strip sacks.

NEW MEXICO!: For the first time since the 2012 season, the Cowboys defeated Western New Mexico and Eastern New Mexico in the same season. Once again this season, Coach Taufa'asau and his staff diligently recruited their home state as the 2025 New Mexico Highlands football roster features 45 players who played high school football in the state of New Mexico.

SCOUTING THE YELLOW JACKETS: Saturday marks the 13th all-time meeting between the two schools. Black Hills State is in 7th at 2-8 overall and 2-6 in conference. Josh Breske is the head coach at Black Hill State in his 5th year at the helm of the program. Break returns to Black Hills State, where he played from 2005-09. He was a standout member of the BHSU offensive line, starting all four years, and garnering three DAC All-Conference awards and two NAIA All-American honors. The two-time captain led his team to two DAC championships and two NAIA playoff appearances. For three years, he served as the offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator at Lindenwood University. He capped his three-year stint with the Lions with a second-round NCAA DII playoff berth and a 9-4 record in his final year. Before Lindenwood, Breske was at the University of Sioux Falls, serving as Tight Ends Coach in 2014 and 2015 before transitioning to Offensive Line Coach in 2016. The Cougars were 32-5 while Breske was with the program, and the team finished 12-1 in his final year, making a second-round appearance in the DII NCAA playoffs.

BLACK HILLS STATE /NEW MEXICO HIGHLANDS SERIES NOTES:
Black Hills State leads the series 7-5
Last Yellow Jackets win November 16, 2024, 48-31 in Las Vegas
Last Cowboys win October 23, 2022, 30-28 in Las Vegas
New Mexico Highlands won the first meeting on October 27th, 2012, 46-31

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: Through ten games, the Cowboys are fourth in the RMAC in scoring at 31.6 points per game and third in the conference in Total Offense at 433.6 yards per game. Freshman Jeffery Jones is second in the nation in All Purpose Yards Per Game (184.22/game), and in Rushing Yards Per Game (172.1/game).

RMAC NETWORK: The final game on the schedule will be broadcast on the RMAC Network.

Visit RMACNetwork.com to purchase a single game.

CLEAR BAG POLICY: NMHU has implemented a Clear Bag Policy for all on-campus events.