CHADRON – What shapes up as one of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's most important games of the season will be played Saturday when the Chadron State Eagles host Colorado School of Mines.  The Family Day game will kick off at noon.
 
The long-time rivals (they initially played in 1938) tied for second place in the RMAC last year with 7-2 records and they nearly tied for that spot again in the 2014 coaches' preseason poll. The Eagles had 69 points and the Orediggers 67 in the voting.
 
The Eagles, who are 1-1 for the season, may have something to prove.  Mines toppled them 23-0 in last season's finale in Golden. The outcome allowed the Orediggers to gain a share of second place in the conference and also dashed CSC's hopes of advancing to the NCAA Division II playoffs.
 
"We're expecting a tough game," said CSC head coach Jay Long. "This is a really important game.  We know they're a good team.  It's been a while since we've had this big a game so early on our conference schedule."
 
The Orediggers are 2-0.  They opened with a 43-19 win over South Dakota Mines and then blanked William Jewell College from Missouri 46-0 on Saturday.
 
Both teams' quarterbacks have completed more than 68 percent of their passes this season, but Mines has thrown more often.  Chadron State's Jonn McLain has completed 46 of 67 passes for 483 yards while Mines' Justin Dvorak has connected on 67 of 98 for 770 yards.
 
McLain, who is a senior, has thrown for three touchdowns this fall to become the Eagles' career leader with 75 TD passes.  Dvorak, a sophomore, has five touchdown passes this season.
 
Both have been throwing frequently to a tall teammate.  Kyle Vinich, who is 6-foot-6, leads the Eagles with 18 receptions for 230 yards.  Mines' leading receiver is 6-5 Ty Young, who has 16 catches for 211 yards.
 
CSC defensive coordinator Jeff Larson notes that Dvorak is also a capable runner who has carried 28 times for 105 yards.
 
"He's quick and elusive, giving us some extra concerns," Larson said.  "They have some draw read plays for him that can be tricky."
 
Mines' starting running back, senior Tevin Champagne, has 29 rushes for 151 yards to lead his team. Chadron State's busiest ball carrier has been senior Michael Madkins, who has carried 33 times for 176 yards.
 
Another Orediggers' weapon is Avery Llewellyn, a junior who does both the punting and the placekicking.  He averaged 44.2 yards per punt and kicked for 86 points last season, when he was named the RMAC's Special Teams Player of the Year.  He also received that honor during the coaches' preseason balloting in August.
 
Other Orediggers who were placed on the preseason all-conference teams are receiver Jimmy Ellis, offensive tackle Kyle Gilbert and linebacker Kole Kadavy.
 
Kadavy has opened the season with two quarterback sacks and a fumble recovery. He has 15 tackles while fellow linebackers Chris Pinson and Billy Sprague have 16 apiece.
 
The Eagles' busiest tacklers have been Isaac Holscher with 22 stops and Dylan Furrier and Lane Haller with 21 apiece.  Holscher and Furrier are linebackers.  Haller plays safety.
 
Chadron State leads the all-time series with the Orediggers by a 23-13 margin.  The home team has won each of the last six contests, most of them nail-biters.
 
The Eagles won 34-17 in 2008, Mines won 30-27 in overtime the next year, CSC prevailed 38-31 in 2010 with the help of an 88-yard kickoff return by Glen Clinton with 63 seconds remaining, Mines won 31-24 in 2011 and CSC was a 20-14 winner during a snow storm in Chadron in 2012.