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Quarterback Miles Richardson capped the game’s first drive by firing a 36-yard touchdown pass to freshman receiver Gavin Cobb for a 7-0 lead. They didn’t score again until the fourth quarter when Richardson hit Justin Buren with a 36-yard scoring strike.

But the difference between hanging in and giving yourself a chance, versus allowing nine straight majors and having the game go sideways is a very fine line for the Clan (0-4, 0-2 GNAC).

“We played mistake free for the first 10 minutes, but as soon as we had a turnover on a punt with a mishandled snap, for us, it’s a game changer. It’s the stuff that we have to learn to overcome.”

The GNAC’s best teams don’t exist in a vacuum, but by anyone’s measure, Humboldt State and Azusa Pacific are two of the best, if not very best teams, in the conference. They are very similarly talented.

And that brings Bates’ point to light.

Last week, SFU finished with 408 yards of offence against the Lumberjacks. On Saturday, Azusa Pacific held SFU to 182, including minus-44 yards rushing. When Azusa played Humboldt, the Cougars won 38-27.

Thus far, over its first four games, SFU has played a Div. 1 FCS team in Idaho State which went on to play both Colorado and Oregon State, a Div. 2 team in Texas A&M Kingsville which has beaten a Div. 1 FCS team (Incarnate Word), and then played the GNAC’s preseason No, 1 team in Humboldt State, and then the team that beat them in Azusa Pacific.

It is likely the most demanding start that any Clan team has had in its program history and it has magnified the team’s current state of development.

Which brings us to this coming Saturday’s Homecoming Game, a contest against Central Washington being played atop Burnaby Mountain.

“Football is a very emotional game and I have addressed it,” said Bates, acknowledging his team’s return to game day on its own university campus for the first time since 2013. “There are some added motivational intricacies that can definitely help point us in the right direction.”