Getty Colorado School of Mines and Shepherd vie for a spot in the NCAA Division II title game.
Colorado School of Mines and Shepherd meet in the NCAA Division II semifinals on Saturday, December 10.
Note: Heavy may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up via a link on this page
The game (3:30 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on TV, but anyone in the US can watch Colorado School of Mines vs Shepherd live on ESPN+ right here:
ESPN+ includes the FCS, DII and DIII national semifinals and national championship games, plus dozens of other live sports, every 30-for-30 documentary and additional original content (both video and written) for $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year (or $13.99 per month for a bundle of all three of ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu).
Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch Colorado School of Mines vs Shepherd live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com.
Compatible devices for the ESPN app include Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4 or 5, Xbox One or Series X/S, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), Samsung Smart TV, Oculus Go, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
Colorado School of Mines vs Shepherd Preview
Colorado School of Mines (12-2) and Shepherd (13-1) collide in the Division II semifinals on Saturday.
CSM stunned No. 2 Angelo State 42-24 on December 3. Mines built a 21-10 first half lead and held on in the second half to win in Texas and handed ASU its only loss of the season. Orediggers quarterback John Matocha threw for 162 yards and four touchdowns versus no interceptions in the win. Matocha gave ASU trouble on the ground, too, with 102 yards rushing and two scores.
Shepherd advanced by knocking out Indiana (Pennsylvania) 48-13 on December 3. Quarterback Tyson Bagent led Shepherd with 231 yards passing and four touchdowns. Shepherd running back Ronnie Brown ran for 141 yards and two touchdowns.
Matocha has been stellar all season with 4,200 yards passing, 45 touchdowns, and a 68.5% completion rate. He only has six interceptions amid 433 passing attempts. On the ground, he has 444 yards rushing, a 3.8-yard average, and five touchdowns this year.
CSM gets its main rushing yards from Michael Zeman, who has 1,200 yards and 21 touchdowns. Zeman also factors into the passing game where he has 26 catches for 235 yards and four touchdowns.
Two 1,000-yard receivers in Max McLeod and Josh Johnston lead the passing attack. McLeod has 63 catches for 1,248 yards and 15 touchdowns. Johnstron has 1,215 yards for 11 touchdowns.
The Orediggers pile on offense with 46.8 points and 485.1 total yards per game. Defensively, CSM allows 18.6 points and 303.3 yards per contest.
Shepherd poses another big challenge for CSM. Shepherd scores 41.07 points and tallies 502.8 yards per game. Defensively, Shepherd allows 16 points and 295.3 yards per contest.
Quarterback Tyson Bagent leads an explosive Shepherd offense with 4,415 yards passing and 41 touchdowns versus six interceptions amid 538 passing attempts. Bagent completes 70.8% of his passes.
Bagent can also make plays with his legs. He has 119 yards and five touchdowns this season.
Shepherd running back Ronnie Brown shoulders the rushing load with 1,690 yards and 18 touchdowns this season. Brown also makes plays in the passing game, and he has 52 receptions for 554 yards and five touchdowns.
Marlon Cook leads the Shepherd wide receivers with 67 catches for 1,016 yards and eight touchdowns. Tight end Brian Walker is also a force in the passing game, and he has 58 catches for 762 yards and five touchdowns.
The semifinal winner will take on the winner between Ferris State and West Florida on December 17 in McKinney, Texas.