OPENING KICKOFF: The Snow College football team will embark on its 2025 campaign Saturday against the Utah Islanders. The Badgers will make the short trip north to Herriman for a matchup with the Salt Lake County-based prep team, as kickoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. inside Zions Bank Stadium.
 
The Islanders are a new after-education development football program based in Herriman, Utah. They were established as a program in June of last year and will play a total of seven games during their second season.
 
The Badgers and the Islanders met in the first game of the season last year in Ephraim. The Badgers earned a 56-0 victory in front of a sold-out Terry Foote Stadium while surrendering just 123 yards of total offense to the Islanders.
 
Snow College is coming off a 9-win season for the second consecutive season. The Badgers won each of their first five games of the season before going on to finish with a 9-2 overall record. They earned two victories over ranked teams, including a 43-40 win against No. 13 Lackawanna College and a 21-14 victory against No. 12 Butler Community College.
 
The two losses the Badgers suffered during the 2024 season came against No. 2 Iowa Western Community College and No. 3 Georgia Military College, both of which went on to secure a spot in the NJCAA Division I Football Playoffs. IWCC and GMC were both defeated by Hutchinson Community College in the playoff, as the Blue Dragons claimed the national title.
 
2024 BY THE NUMBERS: The Badgers were one of the best teams on both sides of the ball during the 2024 season. Among qualifying NJCAA teams, Snow College ranked as the No. 1 offense and the No. 2 defense last year.
 
Snow College put up nearly 50 points while averaging 455 yards of total offense per game during 2024. They scored a total of 74 touchdowns, 39 of which came from the arm of All-American quarterback Donnie Smith.
 
The Badgers paced the nation in 4^th-down conversions, going 20-35 last year. They were also third overall in total first downs with 265.
 
Defensively, Snow College allowed just 14.7 points per game to opponents last season, which was the second-best mark in the country. The Badgers recorded four shutouts throughout the season and surrendered 14 points or fewer on two other occasions.
 
BREAKING DOWN THE SCHEDULE: A home matchup with the 2024 National Runner-Up and a road bout against the Army West Point JV squad highlight the 2024 Snow College football schedule, which was released Monday.
 
The Badgers finished the 2024 season with a 9-2 overall record, including a 5-1 mark at home. They played four matchups against ranked teams and went 2-2 in those games, including victories against No. 13 Lackawanna College and No. 12 Butler Community College.
 
The Badgers will begin their 2025 campaign as they did last season against the Utah Islanders. They will travel to Herriman, Utah, and kick off their season Aug. 23 at 7:00 p.m.
 
Snow College will travel to Kansas and take on Highland Community College for the first time Aug. 30. The Scotties finished the 2024 regular season with a 5-6 overall record and were just 2-3 in home games during the year.
 
The Badgers' home opener will be against Tyler Junior College Thursday, Sept. 9. The Apaches, who ended the season ranked seventh in the NJCAA Division I Football Poll, were 7-4 in 2024 and suffered a 31-28 loss to Navarro College in the Southwest Junior College Football Championship.
 
Snow College will head to West Point to take on the Army junior varsity team Sept. 14 before returning to Ephraim for a pair of home games against Lackawanna College and Iowa Western Community College, both of which finished the season ranked in the top 15.
 
One of the Badgers' two losses during the 2024 campaign was to Georgia Military College. They will have a chance to take revenge against the Bulldogs Oct. 25 in Milledgeville, Georgia.
 
The Badgers' final home game of the season will take place Nov. 1 against Community Christian College. They will wrap up their regular season on the east coast as they take on Monroe University Nov. 8 before traveling to Newton, New Jersey to take on Sussex County Community College Nov. 13.
 
In total, the Badgers will play six road games and four home games. They will take on five opponents who were ranked at one point during the 2024 season. The Badgers were 4-2 in 2024 against opponents they will face in 2025. Snow College will travel over 20,000 miles across four different states and three different time zones.
 
All home games will be played inside Terry Foote Stadium in Ephraim. For game start times and other information regarding the 2025 football schedule, visit snowbadgers.com.
 
BADGERS IN THE POLLS: The Snow College football team has landed sixth in the NJCAA Division I Football Preseason Poll. The Badgers were also ranked sixth in the final football poll from the 2024 season.
 
Snow College, which finished the 2024 season with s 9-2 overall record, faced four ranked opponents throughout the year, going 2-2 in those matchups. The Badgers earned victories against No. 13 Lackawanna College and No. 12 Butler Community College.
 
The reigning national champion Blue Dragons from Hutchinson Community College claimed the top spot in the poll following their victory over Iowa Western Community College in the national title game. The Reivers begin the season ranked second in the poll.
 
Northwest Mississippi Community College and Navarro College come in at three and four, respectively, while Georgia Military College, which handed the Badgers one of their two losses last season, rounds out the top five.
 
Snow College will play four games against teams ranked in the preseason poll during the 2025 season, beginning with a matchup against No. 9 Tyler Junior College in the Badgers' home opener.
 
The Badgers will also play home games against No. 12 Lackawanna College Sept. 27 before hosting No. 2 IWCC Oct. 11. Their lone road matchup against a preseason-ranked opponent will take place Oct. 25 against GMC.
 
Snow College is 10-10 against ranked opponents under head coach Zac Erekson since he took over the program in 2020. The Badgers a 9-12 all time in matchups against Tyler, Lackawanna, IWCC, and GMC.
 
ON THE SIDELINE: Zac Erekson returns for his sixth season at the helm for the Badgers. He is 41-10 all time as head coach for the team and has won nine games in each of the previous two seasons.
 
The Badgers have been ranked inside the top 15 every week during his five seasons and have won 10 games against ranked opponents under Erekson. Additionally, Erekson has not lost a game to an unranked opponent over his first five seasons, going a perfect 30-0 in such matchups.
 
Snow College went 5-1 in home games last year while sporting a 4-1 road record. Erekson is 23-3 all time within the friendly confines of Terry Foote Stadium. His teams have also amassed an impressive 18-4 mark in road games since 2020.
 
Three coaches from the 2024 staff will return to the program for the 2025 season, including Trever McFalls (Southern Utah University), who will serve as the offensive coordinator and the offensive line coach in his fourth season with the program. Michael O'Neal (Norwich University) will serve as the defensive backs coach/special teams coordinator and JV head coach in his second season. Matt Beecher (Brigham Young University), also in his second season with the team, will serve as the running backs coach.
 
Erekson will welcome four new coaches to the staff, including Mark Wilson (Abilene Christian University), who will take over the defensive coordinator responsibilities. Michael Dixon (Doane University) will serve as the wide receivers coach, while Colby Hyder (Southern Virginia University) will coach the linebackers, and Stevie Tu'ikolovatu (University of Southern California) will serve as the defensive line coach.
 
UP NEXT: The Badgers will head to Kansas and take on Highland Community College Saturday, Aug. 30. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:00 pm MDT at Kessinger Field.
 
The Scotties went 5-6 overall during the 2024 season but finished the year losing six of their last eight games. They earned a 14-13 victory against Iowa Central Community College in their second game of the season. Saturday's meeting with the Scotties will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams in program history. For video streaming and live stats information, visit snowbadgers.com.