With the Colorado Collegiate Chronicle being a subscriber to Wayne Cavadi’s “The DII Report Newsletter,” here is an article on CSU Pueblo’s football outlook for the 2026 season as the ThunderWolves chase their third-straight NCAA Division II playoff berth.

Fun fact: CSU Pueblo is the last Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference program to win a DII football national championship, and the only one this millennium. The ThunderWolves did so back in 2014, and have remained competitive ever since, with playoff appearances in 2017, 18, 19, 22, 24, and again last year. However, this year will see a pretty much new-look ThunderWolves – and a new-look ThunderBowl that is getting major upgrades for the coming 2026 DII football season.

TEAM REPORTS: Ferris State | Harding | Kutztown | Grand Valley State | Slippery Rock | Western Colorado

Before we get into what CSU Pueblo has in store for 2026, please take a moment to click HERE and subscribe to the new The DII Report Instagram page!

CSU Pueblo FAQ

Head coach: Philip Vigil, 4th season. Vigil took over for CSU Pueblo legend John Wristen entering the 2023 season and has reeled off 28 wins in three seasons, including DII football championship appearances in each of the last two tournaments. Vigil was a quarterback for Colorado Mesa in his playing years and coached various parts of the offense at several stops as an assistant, including Fort Hays State, Stephen F. Austin, Colorado Mesa, Colorado School of Mines, and a stint as head coach at Western New Mexico.

His offenses typically fare well, and that was the case the past two seasons with the ThunderWolves as they were in the top 20 of several DII categories. In fact, the ThunderWolves had the second-best RMAC scoring defense in Vigil’s debut, while finishing first in each of the past two seasons. However, with just three regular starters back on offense from a year ago, this may be Vigil’s biggest challenge to date, but several transfers could mesh quickly and help keep the ThunderWolves in contention.

CSU Pueblo, 2025 by the numbers

• Record: 10-2
• Scoring offense: 38.3 points per game; 8th in DII, 1st in RMAC
• Scoring defense: 20.8 points allowed per game; 39th in DII, 3rd in RMAC
• Total offense: 443.3 yards per game; 18th in DII, 2nd in RMAC
• Total defense: 323.3 yards allowed per game; 36th in DII, 2nd in RMAC
• Sacks by: 33; Sacks against: 19; Interceptions: 17 (1st in RMAC); Fumbles recovered: 9

Players to watch

Offense

• RB Russell Patton: 590 rushing yards, seven touchdowns
• RB/KR Moosah Alsaffar: 198 rushing yards, two TDs
• WR Marcellus Honeycutt Jr.: 29 receptions, 564 receiving yards, six touchdowns, 28.75 kickoff return average
• WR Dedrek Taylor-Akins: 35 receptions, 514 receiving yards, seven touchdowns

Defense

• DL A.J. Jordan: 15 tackles, 2.0 sacks, 4.5 tackles for loss, one fumble recovery
• DL Micah Lutu: 22 tackles, 1.0 sack, 3.0 TFL, two fumble recoveries
• LB Miles Sprague: 49 tackles, 2.0 TFL
• DB Johnathan Gonzales: 32 tackles, 2.0 TFL, one interception
• DB Kaden Rullo: 60 tackles, 2.0 sacks, six TFL, seven pass breakups, three forced fumbles

Transfers

• RB Jaedon Matthews: 5-foot-11, 185 pounds; played sparingly at Division I Cal Poly.
• RB AJ Merrida: Rushed for 198 yards and a touchdown for Adams State last year.
• WR RJ Jackson: 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, comes over from UNLV.
• DL DJ Moore: Earned honorable mention All-LSC at Eastern New Mexico last year.
• DB Jason Thome: The 6-foot safety has several RMAC player of the week awards after playing a couple seasons at Colorado Mesa.

Assessment

Well, this will be a tough season, but the ThunderWolves are looking to restructure on the fly, as opposed to a complete rebuild. That said, CSU Pueblo had seven First Team All-RMAC selections in 2025 (four on offense, three on defense) and all seven are gone. Losing players on your roster is part of being a college football coach. Losing that much star power is almost unfair. Luckily, if the offense falters early, kicker Jackson Smith is back after going 2-for-2 from 40-49 yards last season and 3-for-4 from 50-plus, earning Second Team All-RMAC honors.

The ThunderWolves have a challenging schedule, but not an impossible start. They open against some MIAA foes in Central Missouri (5-6 in 2025) and Fort Hays State (6-5 last year) before opening RMAC play against playoff heavyweight Colorado School of Mines and 2025 playoff team Chadron State. That is a good test for these new-look ThunderWolves.

CSU Pueblo’s 2026 schedule

Quarterback will be the big question mark. There are six on the roster this summer who are either redshirt-freshmen or sophomores. Sophomore Cam McGuire is the only one of the six to throw a pass for the ThunderWolves, going 11-for-18 for 103 yards last year. To say that the QB competition is wide open seems like an understatement. There is good news and bad news for whoever wins: They have some nice receiving weapons; however, the entire starting O-line is gone.

The cupboard is not bare, and a lot will depend on incoming transfers and maybe an impact freshman or two (like redshirts Caleb Llamas, RB, and Kemon Jackson, DB). This is a program that has not posted a losing record since it reinstated the football program after its 1984 banishment. That is 16-straight winning seasons, and you have to think Vigil will extend that streak, no matter the circumstance.