SAN DIEGO — USD Football returns home for the first time in three weeks to take on the Dayton Flyers on Saturday as the Toreros look to move a tick above .500 both overall and in Pioneer Football League play. 

Kick-off for the rivalry matchup at Torero Stadium is set for 1 p.m. while the game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Jack Cronin and George Whitfiled Jr. calling the action. 

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST THE WILDCATS

• The Toreros are 13-16 against the Flyers all-time while having won each of the last six matchups, nine of the last 11, including a 16-10 win last season in Ohio

• The two teams are a split 7-7 in matchups at Torero Stadium, the first meeting in America's Finest City dating back to 1994

LAST TIME OUT

- San Diego Football utilized a bye to get right ahead of a 40-28 road win at Davidson on Saturday, Oct. 25

- The Toreros got the job done for their first win of October through a balanced offensive attack with three touchdowns on the ground and two through the air ... San Diego closed out the game with a clutch field goal, touchdown and safety each in the fourth quarter

- The rest during the week eight bye was much for the Toreros as their top two running backs returned to the field and rushed for nearly 200 yards ... Quarterback Dom Nankil also took the gridiron again and passed for 288 yards at a 25-36 clip

-  After entering the fourth quarter tied, the USD defense scored two more points than it allowed to see through the Toreros' 12-point road victory with its second shutout quarter of the game

NOTABLE

- Monach led the way with 113 receiving yards on six catches, two of which were for touchdowns, his fourth straight game with a score

- Criter rushed for 73 yards on 10 attempts, two of which broke through into the endzone

- Senior linebacker Tre Moore, son of head coach Brandon Moore, led the defense with seven total tackles, one for a loss

- Grad lineman Malachi Cooper had two of the Toreros' four sacks on the day, his second multi-sack game of the season

- In addition to a 23-yard field goal and being a perfect 5-5 on extra points, Salazar also punted twice for an average of 51 yards a long of 58

- An interception thrown in the second quarter before was the first all season by the Torero offense, seven games and almost two full quarters in

SMOOTH-E EARNS SECOND SPECIAL TEAMS POTW

• Sophomore kicker/punter Emiliano Salazar, nicknamed "Smooth-E" was responsible for eight points in San Diego's 40-28 PFL victory at Davidson ... He split the uprights for a 23-yard field goal and five PATs ... Salazar also averaged 51.0 yards on his two punts, with one of 58 yards and one downed at the Davidson five-yard line ... He also handled kickoff duties, with three of his seven kicks going for touchbacks and a net of 40.4 yards per kickoff.

POLLING 

• On back-to-back weeks (9/21, 9/28) the Toreros received votes in the AFCA FCS Coaches Poll ... The Sept. 21 vote was the Toreros' first time in the poll since head coach Brandon Moore took over at the helm before the 2023 season ...  USD was last ranked in both the FCS coaches and Opta Stats poll on Nov. 19, 2018

• While USD held the record in the FCS' non-scholarship league, the PFL, for highest ranking at No. 18 in the AFCA coaches poll and No. 19 in the stats poll (both Nov. 19, 2018), conference foe Presbyterian broke the league's seven-year drought from the Opta Stats poll and broke the coaches poll record at No. 16, tying the Toreros'  stats poll record at No. 19 before a week nine loss to Dayton

FCS NATIONAL SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK

•  A perfect field goal as time expired to see through a 30-27 come-from-behind victory encapsulated a perfect day for USD sophomore kicker/punter Emiliano Salazar on Sept. 27, whose performance was recognized nationally as the Stats Perform FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 29

• In addition to the three clutch field goals, the Orange, Calif. native also went 3-for-3 on extra points on the day and punted twice for 99 yards, an average of 49.5 yards and long of 57 ... Salazar was named the Pioneer Football League's Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 28, and Fred Mitchell Award Kicker of the Week on Sept. 29 

• It's the third times a charm for the first year starter as he's the first Torero to earn a national honor this season after running back teammates Matt Colombo and Adam Criter finished as Stats Perform National Offensive Player of the Week honorable mentions in weeks two and four respectively after their performances on the ground against FCS heavyweights that merited PFL Offensive Player of the Week

SECOND USD RUNNING BACK GARNERS PFL OPOTW

• Senior running back Adam Criter was named Pioneer Football League Offensive Player of the Week, the league announced on Sunday, Sept. 21, also being one of five players nationally to be named Opta Stats FCS National OPOTW honorable mention

• In his first career start, Criter totaled 173 yards with three touchdowns in the Toreros' last three series of the game to complete USD's 21-point comeback on the road at Princeton Saturday ... Criter was untouched on all three fourth quarter touchdowns, from four yards, 24 yards and eight yards respectively ... After the Toreros went through the air in the first half, Criter logged 76 of his 105 rushing yards in the fourth quarter comeback alone ... He also totaled 68 receiving yards on 10 catches 

•  Not only is Criter the second Torero to win PFL Offensive Player of the Week this season, but the second USD running back to win the honor and earn FCS national OPOTW HM after grad captain Matt Colombo also did so week two (Sept. 7) following San Diego's win over No. 24 Southern Utah

•  Colombo had a 202-yard rushing day and two touchdowns, including the walk off winner in overtime ... The El Segundo, Calif. native posted the PFL's first 200-yard rushing performance of 2025 and just the second in all of FCS ... Colombo was responsible for 10 of San Diego's 18 first downs ... He was one of two players nationally named Opta Stats Perform FCS Offensive National Player of the Week Honorable Mention

NEW COACHES ON OFFENSE

•  Head Coach Brandon Moore added two new faces to his staff on the offensive side of the ball, bringing on Nick Fulton as Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach while Ryan Diedrick joins the program as Wide Receivers Coach and Passing Game Coordinator

About Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach Nick Fulton:

•  Fulton has more than 20 years of college football coaching and administrative experience, as he joins USD from the University of Wyoming, where he had served as the Cowboys' Associate Athletics Director for Football Operations since January, 2022.

•  He was responsible for a variety of administrative duties at UW, including planning team travel, monitoring the football budget, serving as a liaison with the athletics academic counseling staff, helping oversee and coordinate roster management and player personnel activities and assisting with the launch of the Cowboys' Name, Image and Likeness program before serving as the football program's liaison to Wyoming's NIL collective.

•  Fulton served as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Colorado Mesa University in 2020 and served in the same role at Northern Colorado in 2019.   

•  He enjoyed a successful four-year run at Colorado School of Mines alongside Brandon Moore from 2015-18 ... The Orediggers advanced to the NCAA DII Playoffs in 2016 and 2018 and captured the RMAC Conference Championship both seasons, aiding in team records of 8-3 ('15), 10-3 ('16), 7-4 ('17) & 10-2 ('18).

•  Prior to coaching at Colorado School of Mines, Fulton spent three seasons (2012-14) as the offensive coordinator, recruiting coordinator and football academic coordinator at Black Hills State University in Spearfish, S.D. ... While at Black Hills State, Fulton's offense set a school record for total offense in the 2014 season ... Fulton coached the Yellow Jackets offensive linemen in 2012 and '13 and coached the quarterbacks in 2014 ... Fulton was a graduate assistant coach at Wyoming for the 2010 and 2011 seasons, worked as an assistant coach at Doane College in Crete, Nebraska from 2006 to 2009 and began his collegiate coaching career at his alma mater, the University of Sioux Falls, in 2005.

About Wide Receivers Coach Passing Game Coordinator Ryan Diedrick:

•  A native of Sammamish, Wash., Diedrick came to San Diego from the Colorado School of Mines, where he worked as a wide receivers coach and pass game coordinator from 2017-24, including crossover under Head Coach Brandon Moore.

•  Diedrick first arrived at Mines from Indiana State, where he served as an offensive analyst, video coordinator and in an offensive quality control position in 2016 ... A 2016 graduate of Willamette University, Diedrick served as a student assistant as a senior after retiring during his junior year from playing as a quarterback and wide receiver.

USD PICKED TO WIN PFL IN PRESEASON POLL

•  For the first time since 2019, San Diego football was tabbed as the Pioneer Football League's preseason favorite in the league's 2025 Preseason Coaches Poll, released Monday, July 28

•  San Diego picked up five first-place votes and was not ranked lower than third by any of the league's head coaches to earn the poll's top spot with 94 points, 16 points ahead of 2024 PFL champs Drake.

•  The poll reflects the vastly different landscape in the PFL entering the 2025 season with five programs helmed by new head coaches: Kevin Lynch at Butler, Saj Thakkar at Davidson, Joe Woodley at Drake, Mike Jasper at Stetson and Andy Waddle at Valparaiso.

•  The 2025 season marks the 33rd year of the Pioneer Football League ... The league features 11 teams, each playing an eight-game schedule to determine the league champion and recipient of the automatic bid to the NCAA FCS Championship ... USD will not face Morehead State and Presbytarian in 2025.

FIVE TOREROS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE

•  Five Toreros were named to the Pioneer Football League Preseason All-Conference Team: Evans Bowling, Malachi Cooper, Aydan Corrales, Ruben Lopez and Maicah Talavou

• Two USD offensive linemen make the cut, grad Evans Bowling, who was Second Team All-PFL in 2024 and senior Maicah Talavou, who was an honorable mention last season

•  On the defensive line, grad Malachi Cooper is honored as one of the best at his position in the league after earning second team honors in 2024 ... Senior defensive back and team captain Ruben Lopez was also picked after being a second-teamer last season

•  The Toreros are also represented on the special teams all-PFL list by junior Ayden Corrales who is picked as the leagues top punter to start the season ... he was an All-PFL honorable mention in 2025

2024 IN REVIEW

• The Toreros returned to winning ways in Head Coach Brandon Moore's second year at the helm, finishing with an 8-3 overall record, 6-0 at home, and 6-2 in conference action.

• It was the first time with six home wins in the same season since going a perfect 6-0 across the 2015 season and the first time USD had won six straight at home since winning the last four at home in 2021 and first two of the 2022 season.

• USD finished alone in second in the Pioneer Football League, falling just behind Drake (7-1), who clinched the PFL outright title and a spot in the FCS playoffs ... The Bulldogs topped USD 30-28 on a walk-off field goal on Sept. 28 in Des Moines, Iowa, proving the difference for San Diego's postseason hopes. 

• Despite having two bye weeks and ten games played, the Toreros'  six total defensive touchdowns entered the season finale as the: 

          - Tied-most defensive touchdowns in FCS, and across all of DI (FCS/FBS)

          - Tied-most pick-sixes (4) in FCS

• In the Toreros' first 2-0 start in a non-shortened season in 13 years, Co-defensive coordinators Mike McGlinchey and Isaac Carter's unit has scored as many touchdowns as it had surrendered in the first two games in 2024; Two week one vs. Cal Poly and one week two vs. Central Washington

•   Toreros swept the PFL Offensive and Defensive player of the Year awards as DB Eric Haney and WR Ja'Seem Reed were pinned as the conference's best ... LB Giovanni Iovino was also picked as first team all-conference five Toreros on the second team and 11 USD players as All-PFL Honorable Mentions.