THIS WEEK: Southwest Minnesota State University (3-1 NSIC) opens NSIC South Division play this Saturday, Oct. 1, hosting Upper Iowa University (1-3 NSIC) for SMSU's annual homecoming game. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Mattke Field at the Schwan Regional Event Center. SMSU is seeking its third straight victory and looking to begin division play 1-0 for the first time since 2009. UIU captured its first victory of the season last Saturday with a 35-7 win at home versus Minot State.

    A VICTORY FOR SMSU ON SATURDAY WOULD...:
    •Be its ninth straight win over Upper Iowa.
    •Be its first to begin NSIC South Division play since beating Upper Iowa in 2009. SMSU has lost six straight South Division opening games since 2010.
    •Give SMSU a 4-1 overall record for the second straight season.  
    •Lift SMSU's all-time record to 191-304-5, including 129-210-5 in conference play.

    MUSTANGS ON HOMECOMING: Southwest Minnesota State is 21-25 all-time on homecoming, including winning two straight and three of the last four homecoming games. SMSU is 5-11 on homecoming since 2000.

    1990 TEAM HONORED ON SATURDAY: As part of the newly formed "Legacy Club", the SMSU football program will be honoring the 1990 team at halftime of Saturday's game. Under the direction of head coach Gary Buer, the team captured the program's first and only conference championship and advanced to the NAIA playoffs for just the second time in team history. The squad finished 8-3 overall and won the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (NIC) championship with a 5-1 record. SMSU, which was ranked fifth in the final NAIA Division I national poll, lost to Carson-Newman (Tenn.) in the quarterfinals of the NAIA playoffs.

    SMSU IN THE SOUTH: The NSIC adapted divisional play prior to the 2008 season. SMSU is a combined 20-32 all-time in South Division games and has finished in the top half of the division just once in eight seasons. SMSU had its highest finish in 2013 at second place, but has finished fourth three times, fifth once and sixth three times.

    THE HEAD COACH: Cory Sauter is in his seventh season as head coach at Southwest Minnesota State and has an overall record of 32-39, including 31-37 in conference games. The 32 victories ranks second all-time among 10 head coaches in program history. Gary Buer (1979-92) is the program leader with 70 victories. Sauter was named head coach on March 29, 2010, after serving two seasons as an assistant coach at SMSU. In 2009, Sauter served as the team's offensive coordinator, while in 2008 he served as quarterbacks coach. A complete bio on coach Sauter can be found on page 23.

    MUSTANGS IN THE NCAA/NSIC STATS: Southwest Minnesota State enters Saturday's game ranked fourth in Division II in third-down conversion pct., 12th in both passing offense and scoring offense and 14th in total offense. Blake Gimbel ranks eighth in the nation in passing touchdowns, 16th in passing yards and 17th in completion percentage. Max Simmons ranks 10th in scoring and 16th in rushing touchdowns. Nate Huot currently ranks 21st nationally in all purpose yards and 32nd in receiving yards. In the NSIC stats, Gimbel ranks second in passing yards (297.8), Simmons ranks second in scoring (12.0), while Huot ranks fifth in all purpose yards (145.0), sixth in receptions per game (6.0) and sixth in receiving yards per game (94.0). Gene Germain begins the week ranked seventh in tackles with 9.5 per game. SMSU ranks second in the NSIC in passing yards (323.0), third in scoring offense (42.8), third in total offense (506.2), third in total defense (373.8) and fifth in pass defense (179.2). A complete look of the NSIC and NCAA stats are located on pages 19-22.

    TURNOVERS HELP KEY TO ROAD WIN VERSUS UMC: Max Simmons rushed for a 112 yards and tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns to help lead Southwest Minnesota State to a 47-13 victory over Minnesota Crookston last Saturday. SMSU piled up a season-high 594 yards of offense and also racked up a season-high 31 first downs. UMC was limited to 307 yards—a season low by an SMSU opponent this season. The Mustang defense recorded three interceptions, including returning one for a touchdown. SMSU's Blake Gimbel completed 20 of 28 passes for 283 yards and one touchdown to help the Mustang offense, while Nate Huot finished with a team-high five receptions for 79 yards. Tyler Flud paced the SMSU defense with six tackles, including returning an interception 48 yards for a third quarter touchdown. Caleb Leichtnam and Gene Germain also added six tackles for the Mustangs.

    SIMMONS TIES SCHOOL RECORD: Southwest Minnesota State freshman running back Max Simmons tied a school single-game record in the win at Minnesota Crookston last Saturday recording four rushing touchdowns. He is the fourth player in team history to reach the mark, joining Rich Froemling (1974), Robert Lipsey (1990) and Thomas Durham (2004).

    SMSU HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE: Since being shutout on Nov. 5, 2011, Southwest Minnesota State has scored 30 or more points in 30 of its last 50 games dating back to the final game of the 2011 season. SMSU has reached 40 points 17 times, 50 points seven times and 60 points once, since Nov. 12, 2011.

    BIG PLAYS TWO WEEKS AGO: Two of SMSU's longest three offensive plays of the season occurred two weeks ago in the victory over U-Mary. The season's longest play came in the fourth quarter as Connor Wilkie connected on a 58-yard touchdown pass to Quadri Busari, while earlier in the quarter Max Simmons ripped off the season's second longest rush with a 55-yard touchdown.

    NO TIME OF POSSESSION? NO PROBLEM: Southwest Minnesota State begins the week ranked 167th out of 169 teams in Division II in time of possession. Despite averaging the ball just 24 minutes and 50 seconds through four games, SMSU ranks 11th nationally in first downs, 12th in scoring and 14th in total offense. SMSU ran just 67 plays two weeks ago versus U-Mary, but picked up 28 first downs and 514 yards of offense. In its week one versus Minnesota Duluth, SMSU had the ball for less than 20 minutes, but finished with 441 yards and 42 points.

    PERFECT NO MORE: Southwest Minnesota State was a perfect 13 for 13 in the red zone heading into last week's game at Minnesota Crookston, but the perfect streak came to end on Saturday. SMSU failed to score on two of six trips in the red zone and is now 17 of 19 with nine passing and eight rushing touchdowns.  

    U-MARY PASSING HELD IN CHECK: The SMSU defense limited U-Mary to just 85 passing yards on 19 attempts in a week three victory. It was the first time since Oct. 4, 2014, (Minnesota State, 66 yards) that SMSU held a team to less than 100 yards passing in a game.

    FRESHMAN REACHES CENTURY MARK AGAIN: Freshman Max Simmons--one of three true freshman to play this season for SMSU--has rushed for more than 100 yards in the last two games with a combined six touchdowns. He made his first career start versus U-Mary in week three and rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns, while he gained 112 yards and four touchdowns at Minnesota Crookston in week four.

    DUO REACH 100-YARDS RUSHING: Senior Divonte Beale and freshman Max Simmons both reached 100 yards rushing in the victory over U-Mary in week three. Beale amassed 164 yards on 27 carries, while Simmons finished with 101 on 13 attempts. It's the first time SMSU had a pair of players reach 100 yards in a single-game since last season's finale versus Winona State.

    DEFENSIVE SCORES: The Southwest Minnesota State defense has recorded a pair of touchdowns through four weeks. Sophomore Chance Steward returned a fumble 50 yards for a touchdown at Northern State in week two, while senior Tyler Flud had a 48-yard interception return for a score in week four at Minnesota Crookston. Flud's interception return for a touchdown was SMSU's first since Daryl Thomas had a 27-yard touchdown return at Minnesota State in 2014.

    GERMAIN ALL GAME AGAIN: Senior linebacker Gene Germain has led the team in tackles in all four games this season and has amassed a team-high 39 for the season. He set a career-high with 12 tackles, including five solo stops in SMSU's win over Minnesota Duluth in week one.  

    ROOKIE GALAMUE MAKES PLAYS: Redshirt freshman wide receiver Gabriel Galamue had an outstanding start to his collegiate career in the week one win over Minnesota Duluth catching six passes for 102 yards. He then caught eight passes for 96 yards and also had one rush for 10 yards in the loss at Northern State in week two.

    2016 TEAM CAPTAINS: Four players, two on offense and two on defense, have been named team captains for the 2016 season. The team captains were selected by a vote of the Mustang players. The offensive team captains selected were senior tackle Grant Greenfield and junior quarterback Blake Gimbel. The defensive team captains named were senior linebacker Tyler Flud and senior cornerback Dallin Finley. It's the second straight season Gimbel and Flud have been selected a team captain.

    HUOT CONTINUES TREND: Junior wide receiver Nate Huot, who led the team in receptions, yards and touchdowns in 2015, has continued his fine play into the 2016 season. He recorded five catches for a career-high 160 yards and one touchdown versus Minnesota Duluth and then caught a career-high 12 passes for 117 yards and two touchdowns in the loss at Northern State. He currently leads the team in receptions (24) and yards (376) and has seven career 100-yard receiving games ranking ninth in team history.

    GIMBEL IN THE RECORD BOOK: Junior quarterback Blake Gimbel holds the school single-game record for completions in a game (42, vs. Upper Iowa, 2015) and also holds the school single-season record for completion percentage (66.4) set last season. He begins this week ranked first in completion pct. (65.8), tied for 10th in touchdown passes (39), 12th in completions (403), 12th in yards (4,576) and 12th in total offense (4,445).

    GIMBEL CAREER STARTS GAME-BY-GAME:
    2015    Opponent    Comp.    Att.    Int    TD    Yards    Long    Result
    S3    at Minot State    23    42    0    2    210    26    W, 21-10
    S12    Bemidji State    31    42    1    2    264    22    W,34-30
    S19    at St. Cloud State    16    24    0    1    182    33    W, 21-20
    S26    MSU Moorhead    18    28    0    5    299    44    W, 48-9
    O3    at Augustana    24    37    1    1    332    70    L, 23-48
    O10    at Wayne State    16    26    0    3    247    46    W, 61-3
    O17    Sioux Falls    38    52    0    3    384    24    L, 26-34
    O24    at Upper Iowa    42    56    0    4    454    82    W, 34-19
    O31    Minnesota State    24    40    3    1    253    39    L, 17-55
    N7    at Concordia-St. Paul    25    35    1    3    243    24    W, 48-24
    N14    Winona State    16    29    1    1    185    33    W, 33-38            
    2016    Opponent    Comp.    Att.    Int    TD    Yards    Long    Result
    S1    Minnesota Duluth    25    42    1    5    397    50    W, 42-38
    S10    at Northern State    34    49    2    2    336    41    L, 35-51
    S17    University of Mary    15    19    1    4    175    25    W, 47-23
    S24    at Minnesota Crookston    20    28    0    1    283    45    W, 47-13
    GIMBEL NAMED NSIC PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Junior quarterback Blake Gimbel was named the NSIC Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 6, earing the award for the third time in his career. Gimbel helped SMSU rally from a 10-point deficit to defeat Minnesota Duluth and earn the program's first-ever win over a Division II Top 25 team. He finished the game completing 25 of 42 pass attempts for 397 yards and tying a career-high with five touchdown passes, including the game-winner with 23 seconds remaining. He was 14 of 20 passing for 232 yards and three touchdowns with zero interceptions in the second half as SMSU rallied from a 23-14 halftime deficit.

    GIMBEL IN SOPHOMORE RECORDS: Blake Gimbel set three school sophomore class passing records last season, including completions (273), touchdown passes (26) and passing yards (3,053). Jeff Loots held the previous record, completing 215 passes for 2,967 yards and 25 touchdowns during the 1990 regular season.

    HUOT TOUCHDOWN RECEPTIONS: Junior wide receiver Nate Huot has moved to eighth place on the school's all-time touchdown receptions list with 21. He needs one touchdown reception to move into a tie for seventh place and two to move into sixth place.
        SMSU career pass reception TDs
    59    Alvin Ashley    1990-93
    35    James Ashley    1986-88
    29    Anthony Dean    2010-13
    28    Wayne Hawkins    1989-91
    25    Ray Denson    2002-05
    23    Blake Wilson    2006-09
    22    Preston Cunningham    1991-95
    21    Nate Huot    2014-16

    SMSU EARNS FIRST-EVER WIN OVER TOP 25 TEAM: Southwest Minnesota State earned its first-ever victory over a Division II Top 25 team on Sept. 1, defeating No. 19 Minnesota Duluth, 42-38, in Marshall.  

    MUSTANG AND THE AFCA TOP 25: Southwest Minnesota State received 20 points in the Sept. 5 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top 25 poll, the most points the program has ever received in the weekly poll. SMSU's 20 points ranked 33rd overall. Last season, for the first time since 2008, SMSU received votes in the AFCA poll, receiving two votes in each of the polls on Oct. 12, 19 and 26.

    GET IN THE "ZONE": Southwest Minnesota State has scored on 17 of its 19 (89.5) possessions inside the "red zone" with 17 touchdowns this season. In 2015, SMSU scored on 39 of its 50 (78.0) possessions inside the "red zone" with 36 touchdowns and three field goals. SMSU opponents are 13 of 16 (81.2) inside "red zone" this season with 10 touchdowns and three field goals. The following is SMSU in the "red zone" since 2010.
    Year    Red-Zone    TD    FG
    2010    22 of 30 (73.3)    22    0
    2011    35 of 41 (85.4)    29    6
    2012    30 of 37 (81.1)    25    5
    2013    49 of 57 (86.0)    40    9
    2014    35 of 43 (81.4)    26    8
    2015    39 of 50 (78.0)    36    3
    2016    17 of 19 (89.5)    17    0

    BIG PLAY MUSTANGS: SMSU has recorded 41 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards in 2016, including 25 by the Mustang offense (5 run, 20 pass). For a complete look at the "long" plays and SMSU's "money" plays for this season, go to pages 16-17. The following is SMSU's "long plays" since 2010.
"Long" plays (20 yards or more) since 2010
    Year    No.    TD    Run    Pass    KR    PR    IR    FR
    2010    61    14    10    32    18    0    0    1
    2011    60    8    13    22    23    1    1    0
    2012    66    20    18    28    19    1    0    0
    2013    125    30    28    51    41    1    2    2
    2014    71    12    15    27    21    3    5    0
    2015    78    18    13    39    18    5    3    0
    2016    41    8    5    20    13    0    2    1

    SPECIAL TEAMS LEADERS: Southwest Minnesota State redshirt freshman Tyshonn Woodard leads the Mustang special teams with a four tackles this season with all four coming on kickoffs.

    SMSU VERSUS THE NORTH: Since 2012, when the NSIC schedule required each team to play four inter-divisional games, SMSU has a record of 11-9 versus NSIC North Division teams. For the first time in program history, SMSU went a perfect 4-0 versus North Division squads in 2015 and this season finished with a 3-1 record. Since divisional play was started in 2009, SMSU is a combined 20-32 all-time in South Division games.

    GREENFIELD NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN: Senior offensive tackle Grant Greenfield was named a second team NCAA Division II preseason All-American by Lindy's magazine, a noted college football preview publication. Greenfield helped the SMSU offense last season lead the NSIC in total offense with 486 yards per game, including ranking fourth in rushing (196.8) and fourth in passing (288.6). Greenfield is one of just five players from the NSIC to earn either first or second team preseason honors by Lindy's.

    CAA ALL-REGION: Senior offensive tackle Grant Greenfield was named to the 2015 Conference Commissioners Association All-Super Region 3 second team. Super Region 3 consists of schools from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC), the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA), the Great American Conference (GAC) and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC).

    ALL-NSIC RETURNERS: SMSU returns six players who earned All-NSIC South Division honors in 2015. Senior offensive tackle Grant Greenfield and senior linebacker Tyler Flud were named both named first team All-NSIC South, senior safety Caleb Leichtnam was named second team, while junior wide receiver Nate Huot, junior quarterback Blake Gimbel and junior center Austin Hilgert were named honorable mention.
    EIGHT VICTORIES THE HIGHEST AT DIVISION II LEVEL: Southwest Minnesota State finished the 2015 season with eight victories setting a school record for wins at the Division II level (since 1995). SMSU finished 8-3 overall and 4-3 in the NSIC South Division, tying for fourth overall in the NSIC and placing fourth in the South Division. It's just the third time ever an SMSU team has won eight or more games in a season. The 1991 team finished 9-1, while the 1990 squad was 8-3.

    THREE-YEAR RUN: Southwest Minnesota State put together one of the best three-year runs in school history entering this season (2013-15). SMSU recorded a combined 18 victories from 2013 to 2015, marking its highest three-year victory total since winning 19 games from 1991-93.

    SMSU IN THE 2015 NCAA REGION RANKINGS: For the first time in program history, SMSU was ranked in the NCAA Super Region 3 rankings during the 2015 season. SMSU was ranked No. 8 in the first region poll released on Oct. 26 and after falling out of the Nov. 2 ranking, SMSU moved back into the poll at No. 9 on Nov. 9.

    THE 2015 MUSTANGS AND RECORD BOOK: The 2015 team ranks high in several categories in program single-season record book. SMSU rushed for 2,165 yards on 520 attempts and 23 touchdowns, with all three ranking second in team history. SMSU's 196.8 rushing yards per game also ranks second in school history. SMSU finished with 3,175 yards passing, ranking sixth highest in team history, while the 28 touchdown passes ranks eighth. The SMSU offense closed the season with 5,340 total yards, ranking second all-time.  

    WORKING OVERTIME: SMSU has played in 11 overtime games since the NCAA added the extra session in 1998. SMSU is 4-7 all-time in overtime games, including 1-3 in multi-overtime contests. SMSU's last overtime game was a home loss to Wayne State (48-45) on Oct. 25, 2014, while its last overtime win came on Nov. 2, 2013, (51-44) over Winona State. The program's last multi-overtime game was a 34-31 double overtime loss at Minnesota State on Oct. 13, 2012.

    TURNOVER MARGIN: Southwest Minnesota State is "minus-1" in turnover margin this season following four games. Since the start of the 2004 season (137 games), SMSU has been a "plus" in turnover margin in just 41 games (three in 2004, two in 2005, one in 2006, two in 2007, three in 2008, three in 2009, two in 2010, three in 2011, seven in 2012, six in 2013, twice in 2014, five times in 2015 and twice in 2016). In SMSU's last 114 conference games, which spans from late in the 2004 season through this season, SMSU is minus-44 in turnover margin. The Mustangs have been "even" or "minus" in turnover margin in 77 of their last 114 conference games.

    THE 2016 ROSTER: The 2016 SMSU roster features 113 players (as of Sept. 29) with 21 seniors, 19 juniors, 18 sophomores, 26 redshirt freshmen and 29 freshmen. The roster includes players from 15 different states and Canada. Minnesota leads the way with 51 players, followed by Iowa (12), Illinois (10), Wisconsin (8), South Dakota (6), California (4), Florida (4), Michigan (3), Oregon (3), Colorado (3), Arizona (3), Nebraska (2), Nevada (1), Georgia (1), Virginia (1) and Ontario (1).

    NSIC PRESEASON POLL: SMSU was picked to finish seventh overall and fourth in the South Division in the annual 16-team Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. SMSU received one first place vote in both the overall and South Division poll. Junior quarterback Blake Gimbel and senior linebacker Tyler Flud were named "Players to Watch" in the NSIC this season.

    MUSTANGS AT HOME: The 2016 season marks the ninth year that Mattke Field at the Schwan Regional Event Center serves as the home for SMSU football. SMSU, which is 1-1 this season, is 22-25 all-time at the stadium, including finishing 3-2 in 2015. It was the first winning season in team history at the stadium. The $16 million facility opened in the fall of 2008 with the first college football game played on Aug. 30 versus Minnesota Crookston.  

    RECORD ON THE ROAD: SMSU is 1-1 on the road in 2016 following a 41-13 win over Minnesota Crookston. SMSU finished 5-1 in road games last season setting a school record for road wins in a season. Prior to last season, the 1991 and 2013 teams held the record of four wins. SMSU is a combined 30-51 in road games since 2000.

    FOR OPENERS: Southwest Minnesota State is now 22-27 all-time in season openers following this year's 42-38 win versus Minnesota Duluth on Sept. 1. SMSU is 3-4 in season openers under head coach Cory Sauter.

    MUSTANG HISTORY: The 2016 season marks the 49th year of college football at Southwest Minnesota State dating back to 1968. SMSU owns an all-time record of 190-304-5, including 128-210-5 in conference play. SMSU has recorded 10 winning seasons, made two NAIA playoff appearances (1987 and 1991) and one Mineral Water Bowl appearance (2013). The program earned its lone conference championship in 1990.

    ABOUT UPPER IOWA: Tom Shea is in his eighth season as head coach at Upper Iowa and has compiled a record of 29-52. He has also been a head coach at Dakota State, Peru State, U-Mary and William Penn. Quarterback Dimitri Morales, who missed one game with an injury, has completed 72 of 127 passes for 755 yards with six interceptions and four touchdowns. Running back Ryan Parmely leads the team with 295 yards rushing and one touchdown on 64 attempts, while Derrick Portis has 253 yards and five touchdowns on 40 carries. Wide receiver Jarred Edmonds has caught a team-high 24 passes for 330 yards and three touchdowns. The Peacocks defense is led by linebacker Zach Gardner, who has amassed 39 tackles with 4.5 for loss.

    UP NEXT: Southwest Minnesota State travels to Sioux Falls, S.D., to face No. 12 University of Sioux Falls with kickoff set for 6 p.m.

    MUSTANGS ON RADIO: All SMSU football games during the 2016 season are broadcast on Marshall Radio, 105.1 FM KARL. Ryan Rohlik is in his fourth season as the play-by-play voice of SMSU football, while Anthony Rohlik will provide analysis.