{"id":865089,"date":"2026-04-12T21:33:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T21:33:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/865089\/"},"modified":"2026-04-12T21:33:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T21:33:35","slug":"mines-football-showcases-major-strides-at-spring-game-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/865089\/","title":{"rendered":"Mines football showcases major strides at spring game | News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Redshirt<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Redshirt freshman running back Josh Snyder (21) runs past a defender during Colorado School of Mines football team\u2019s annual spring game on April 11.<\/p>\n

Corinne Westeman<\/a><\/p>\n

Much like Pok\u00e9mon, a key aspect of college football is evolution.<\/p>\n

And the only way for either Pok\u00e9mon or college football players to evolve is to train and compete.<\/p>\n

\"Defensive<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Defensive back Bryce Bailey, in gray, stops wide receiver Nick Stone from catching a touchdown pass during Colorado School of Mines\u2019 April 11 spring game.<\/p>\n

Corinne Westeman<\/a><\/p>\n

During its April 11 spring game, the Colorado School of Mines football team showcased how much they\u2019ve evolved over the winter offseason and spring practices. Thanks to a unique scoring system, the offense beat the defense 34-29 after a successful fourth-down conversion that ultimately set up a last-second field goal.<\/p>\n

Based on what the Orediggers said afterward, they felt confident they\u2019d improved significantly since their last game on Nov. 15. Now, their goal is to reach their \u201cfinal evolution,\u201d so to speak, before their Aug. 29 season opener against Western Oregon.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a great year,\u201d defensive lineman Jacob Sanders said. \u201cWe have a couple of big games early on. More than ever, we\u2019ll be prepared for those big games this year. \u2026 More than just trending in the right direction, we\u2019ve actually taken steps, and we\u2019re a completely better team than we were last year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reaching their second evolution<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A Colorado School of Mines defender, in gray, faces off with one of his teammates during the April 11 spring game.<\/p>\n

Corinne Westeman<\/a><\/p>\n

Among those steps is a new strength and conditioning regimen under new head coach of sports performance Jordan Simmons.<\/p>\n

The Orediggers said they\u2019re getting up and starting training much earlier than in previous years. They also have a different mentality, as Sanders described, by not settling for \u201cjust doing enough\u201d but \u201cattacking everything with max effort.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanders, a redshirt sophomore, said the spring game seemed to be a perfect demonstration of that.<\/p>\n

The offense got out to an explosive start, taking a 22-8 lead, but the defense was \u201cable to come back and chip away\u201d and eventually took a slight lead late in the fourth quarter. And, likewise, the offense showed its resolve and scored on the final drive to win the game.<\/p>\n

Being able to play longer and, crucially, stay healthier throughout the season is key to a better Mines football team, Sanders said.<\/p>\n

\"Redshirt<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Joseph Capra, in green, throws the ball downfield during the Colorado School of Mines football team\u2019s annual spring game on April 11.<\/p>\n

Corinne Westeman<\/a><\/p>\n

Joseph Capra, a redshirt sophomore who was starting quarterback last year, said both he individually and his team faced \u201cups and downs\u201d last year. Star wide receiver Flynn Schiele was injured in the season opener, and Mines struggled to close out games.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, Mines ended its 2025 season 7-4 overall and 5-4 in RMAC play. It was fourth place in the RMAC standings and missed the NCAA Division II playoffs for the second year in a row.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were a couple games I wish we got back,\u201d Capra said, \u201cand there were a couple plays in those games that I wish we would\u2019ve hit (so) we would\u2019ve won.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut we were a good team last year,\u201d he continued, \u201cand I think we\u2019re going to be even better this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Training for their final evolution<\/p>\n

Capra specifically praised the defensive line\u2019s improvement over the offseason, saying, \u201cThey\u2019re getting after it. There\u2019s times when we (quarterbacks) don\u2019t have more than a couple of seconds to throw the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once Aug. 29 rolls around, Capra and Sanders expected the Mines defenders would be even better. Sanders said a lot of younger players on the defense are talented and ready to step up.<\/p>\n

\"Redshirt<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Redshirt sophomore running back Max Barnes, in white, runs toward a group of defenders during Colorado School of Mines football team\u2019s annual spring game April 11.<\/p>\n

Corinne Westeman<\/a><\/p>\n

Sanders also said the offensive line will have a lot of talented first-year starters as well.<\/p>\n

On the whole, Sanders believed the Mines offense would \u201csoar to new heights this season,\u201d based on the chemistry and hard work he\u2019s seen them develop over the offseason.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a defensive player, you kind of have a little animosity toward them,\u201d he continued, \u201cbut it\u2019s actually been really cool to see how much they\u2019ve grown and how much work they\u2019ve put in to be successful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like Sanders, Capra also said the Mines offense is going to play fast and well-coordinated this season. Aside from Schiele, all the major playmakers are back this season, and Capra said they\u2019re continuing to build on their already solid chemistry.<\/p>\n

Both Capra and Sanders expected that, this fall, the Mines offense would be racking up touchdowns while the defense would be forcing major stops and turnovers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a rowdy atmosphere, Week 1 against Western Oregon,\u201d Capra said.<\/p>\n

Sanders agreed, saying, \u201cI think our future\u2019s looking very bright.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Redshirt freshman running back Josh Snyder (21) runs past a defender during Colorado School of Mines football team\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":865090,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2026],"tags":[93627,13197,7,117488,117487,6536,24939],"class_list":{"0":"post-865089","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-2026-season","9":"tag-colorado-school-of-mines","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-mines-football","12":"tag-orediggers","13":"tag-spring-game","14":"tag-spring-season"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116393884266120174","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865089","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=865089"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865089\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/865090"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=865089"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=865089"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=865089"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}