Football 10/20/2026 1:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

UCO Travels To Pitt State

Bronchos Take On Gorillas Saturday In Pittsburg, Kansas

PITTSBURG, Kan. – Central Oklahoma visits Pittsburg State in Week 8 MIAA play. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. from Carnie Smith Stadium.

This week's game is also the MIAA Game of the Week and will air live on The Spot in Kansas City, KOCB in Oklahoma City, My 41 in Tulsa, as well as The MIAA Network.

UCO is 3-4 on the season overall and 2-3 in the MIAA. The Gorillas of Pittsburg, Kansas are 2-5 overall and also have a 2-3 record in league play.

Central Oklahoma heads to Pittsburg leaning on the stellar play of its defense. The Bronchos hold opponents to 22.8 points per game on 333.9 yards of offense per game. Teams put up 174.1 passing yards and 159.7 rushing yards per game.

UCO has the No. 1 pass defense in the MIAA and the No. 3 total defense. The Bronchos also rank No. 1 in the MIAA in third-down defense, holding opponents to just 31.5 percent conversions. UCO has pulled down seven interceptions in seven games this season and has also forced and recovered eight fumbles.

Senior linebacker Reese Roller, who has played in all 42 games since arriving on campus in 2023, leads the Bronchos with 66 tackles this season. He has nine behind the line of scrimmage including one sack. Roller adds one forced fumble, two fumble recoveries, two QB hurries, three passes broken up, and two interceptions. He scored a 75-yard touchdown on a fumble recovery two weeks ago in Edmond.

Linebacker Chris Fitzpatrick was named MIAA Defensive Athlete of the Week after his performance against Northwest Missouri in September. The Edmond native had nine tackles, two sacks, one strip sack forced fumble that the Bronchos recovered, and one QB hurry. Fitzpatrick is second on the team with 38 tackles and leads UCO with three sacks this season.

Christian Cooper (29), David Williams (28), Antwan Gilbreath (26), Marcus Works (26), and Bryant Coley (25) all are among the top seven defenders in tackles this season. Coley has two interceptions, four pass breakups, and a 39-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown. Gilbreath and Williams both have four pass breakups as well. Williams adds one interception. Marcus Works has one pass broken up and one interception.

Cameron Done has 25 tackles to lead all UCO defensive lineman. The senior defensive end has four tackles behind the line of scrimmage and is tied with Fitzpatrick for the team lead with three QB sacks. Done also has three QB hurries, and he adds one forced fumble and one fumble recovery to his credit this season.

Central Oklahoma's defensive special teams has made a name of itself this fall. Matthew Ciers recovered a blocked punt in the end zone for a touchdown in Week 1 against Central Arkansas. The block was credited to Cannon Wood, who shoved a UCA player into the kick. It was the first special teams touchdown for the Bronchos since 2024. UCO also has a blocked field-goal attempt in Week Zero, and last week, blocked both a PAT and another punt at Emporia State.

Offensively, Central Oklahoma is averaging 26.5 points per game this season and the Bronchos put up 351.9 yards of total offense per contest. UCO splits that 261.8 passing and 90.0 rushing yards per game.

Jett Huff is 139-for-222 passing this season with 1,515 yards and eight touchdowns. The senior quarterback continues to inch closer to the all-time passing yards record at UCO. He has 7,323 yards and is just 88 yards shy of the record set by Chas Stallard (7,411) from 2014-18.

Huff already owns the UCO record for touchdown passes (60), 300-yard games (10), and 400-yard games (three). Huff's 7,323 career passing yards also ranks No. 2 among all active players in Division II.

Junior Makel Paiva and freshman Tahkari Bethel are leading the way in the pass game for the Bronchos. Paiva has a team-high 46 receptions with 461 yards and three touchdowns. He tied the UCO single game record with 15 receptions three weeks ago at Central Missouri. Bethel has a team-high 522 yards on 32 receptions and has two touchdowns – both in the season-opening win at Texas Wesleayn. Zayden Martinez has 168 yards on 13 catches. C.J. Williams has 13 catches for 171 yards. Both have one touchdown. Javohn Thomas has three touchdowns, tied for the team lead with Paiva. Thomas has seven catches for 51 yards.

Central Oklahoma averages 90.0 rushing yards per game. Juniors Dev Mathews and Ja'Daniel Nettles lead the way. Nettles has 274 rushing yards on 68 carries, an average of 4.0 yards per carry. He has a long rush of 31 yards but hasn't found the end zone yet. Mathews has 234 yards on 48 carries with three touchdowns. He missed one game due to injury and is averaging 4.9 yards per carry.

Saturday's game features two of the winningest programs in Division II history. Pittsburg State's 770 all-time wins are the most of any program and UCO ranks fifth with 673. Tuskegee (726), Hillsdale (681), and Carson Newman (678) rank ahead of the Bronchos.

Pittsburg State is averaging 21.1 points per game through seven games played. The Gorillas average 326.3 yards of total offense, with 224.7 coming through the air and 101.6 on the ground. Defensively, PSU allows 30.5 points per game and 420.9 yards per game on the season. Teams put up 222.0 passing yards and 198.9 rushing yards per game against the Gorillas.

Pitt State leads the all-time series with UCO. The programs played for the first time in 1915. Pittsburg owns a 16-5-1 record in the series. Central Oklahoma won 27-24 last year in Edmond. UCO's last win in Pittsburg, Kansas came in 2015, 49-31.

Following Saturday's game in southeast Kansas, Central Oklahoma will return home. After playing 6 of 8 on the road, the Bronchos will play 2 of 3 at home to finish the year. UCO hosts Nebraska Kearney in the annual Hall of Fame Game next Saturday, Oct. 31. After a trip to Missouri Southern on Nov. 7, Central Oklahoma hosts Missouri Western on Nov. 14 to wrap up the 2026 season.

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Players Mentioned

#31 Matthew Ciers: DB; 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman

#5 Bryant Coley: DB; 6' 1"; Senior

#0 Cameron Done: DL; 6' 5"; Senior

#40 Chris Fitzpatrick: LB; 6' 0"; Senior

#14 Antwan Gilbreath: DB; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#3 Jett Huff: QB; 5' 8"; Senior

#7 Zayden Martinez: WR; 6' 4"; Sophomore

#6 Dev Mathews: RB; 6' 0"; Junior

#33 Reese Roller: LB; 5' 11"; Senior

#1 Javohn Thomas: WR; 6' 3"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#31 Matthew Ciers
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman
: DB

#5 Bryant Coley
: 6' 1"; Senior
: DB

#0 Cameron Done
: 6' 5"; Senior
: DL

#40 Chris Fitzpatrick
: 6' 0"; Senior
: LB

#14 Antwan Gilbreath
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: DB

#3 Jett Huff
: 5' 8"; Senior
: QB

#7 Zayden Martinez
: 6' 4"; Sophomore
: WR

#6 Dev Mathews
: 6' 0"; Junior
: RB

#33 Reese Roller
: 5' 11"; Senior
: LB

#1 Javohn Thomas
: 6' 3"; Senior
: WR