ST. GEORGE — Dixie State University and Southern Utah University both unveiled six-game schedules in the spring season.
For DSU, it is the school’s first competition in NCAA’s Division I athletics. However, with its new conference, the Western Athletic Conference, not sponsoring football, Dixie State will compete as a Football Championship Subdivision independent team. Two of its six games come against fellow WAC newcomer Tarleton State University out of Stephenville, Texas, which will also be competing as an FCS independent. Tarleton accounts for two major firsts: first game of the season on Feb. 27 and first home game on March 13.
Three of the first four games on the schedule are on the road, going as far as Kennesaw, Georgia on March 20. The Trailblazers also travel to Las Cruces, New Mexico on March 6 to take on the New Mexico State Aggies, also a member of the WAC and therefore competing independently.
But the final two games will be familiar, both in confines and in opponent. The Trailblazers will host Fort Lewis at the revamped Greater Zion Stadium on March 27 and New Mexico Highlands on April 3. Both are members of the Division II Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, DSU’s previous league, and both have been favorable matchups historically for Dixie. It won last year’s game at Fort Lewis 23-14 and has a 4-1 all-time record in the matchup, and blew out Highlands 55-0 to go to 3-1 all time.
Noticeably, there is no bye week in the six-game slate.
The full Dixie State spring schedule is as follows:
Feb. 27 at Tarleton State University
March 6 at New Mexico State University
March 13 vs. Tarleton State University
March 20 at Kennesaw State University
March 27 vs. Fort Lewis College
April 3 vs. New Mexico Highlands University
Thunderbirds are go for spring schedule
Southern Utah University also had its schedule released on Wednesday in conjunction with the rest of the Big Sky Conference.
It is a polar opposite from Dixie’s in that while the Trailblazers have no conference to compete in, the Thunderbirds will only compete against conference foes in their six games.
SUU also starts on the road for two games before returning to Cedar City to take on Idaho State on March 13. The Thunderbirds and the rest of the Big Sky Conference take a bye week for March 20 before resuming play on the 27th.
The Thunderbirds play two of their final three games at home, first against Weber State on March 27 and against Idaho on April 10.
The full Southern Utah spring schedule is as follows:
Feb. 27 at California Polytechnic State University
March 6 at University of Northern Colorado
March 13 vs. Idaho State University
March 27 vs. Weber State University
April 3 at Northern Arizona University
April 10 vs. University of Idaho
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