THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (3-1, 0-0 NSIC South), off to its best start since 2016, plays its second straight home game this Saturday, Oct. 1, facing Upper Iowa University (0-4, 0-0 NSIC South) for homecoming with kickoff slated for 5 p.m. at The Schwan Regional Event Center.
•The last time SMSU opened a season 4-1 occurred during the 2016 season.
•SMSU has won three straight games for the first time since 2018 and will be looking for its first four-game winning streak since starting the 2015 season 4-0.   
•Scott Underwood is the first SMSU head coach in team history (11 head coaches) to begin his SMSU coaching career with a 3-1 record.
•SMSU begins the game ninth in Division II in rushing offense (250) and 15th in fewest penalty yards per game (40.7).   
•Upper Iowa, which finished 1-10 a season ago, is coming off a 48-22 home loss to Bemidji State last Saturday. BSU blocked three UIU punts in the game and scored 28 straight points after UIU held a 14-10 lead midway through the second quarter.  
•A preview of UIU is located on page 4.

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 10th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik.
•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. UIU Series Notes
Southwest Minnesota State and Upper Iowa meet for the 18th time with SMSU leading 14-3 in a series that started on Sept. 18, 2004 ... 10 of the 17 games have been decided by seven or less points, including lat season's SMSU win (20-14) in Fayette ... SMSU has won 12 of the last 13 meetings since 2008 ... UIU's lone win since 2007 came in Fayette on Oct. 28, 2017 ... SMSU is 7-1 all-time in games played in Marshall ... SMSU leads the series 13-2 since UIU joined the NSIC in 2006 ... the two teams have played two overtime games with SMSU winning in both 2006 and 2010.
 
The Last Time - SMSU vs. UIU
SMSU rallied from a 14-0 first half deficit scoring the final 20 points, including a 51-yard touchdown pass by Andrew Haidet to Zeke Robinson with 1:09 left in the game to earn a 20-14 victory over Upper Iowa in Fayette on Oct. 2, 2021. SMSU started the game-winning drive at its own 23-yard line with 2:23 on the clock before Haidet found Robinson open for the go-ahead score to make the score 20-14. SMSU's Kenny Truit sealed the victory with an interception near the 10-yard line on the enusing UIU drive. SMSU closed the game with 257 yards and 13 first downs. UIU finished the game with 339 yards but was held to just 192 yards in the final three quarters and turned the ball over twice. Haidet finished the game 15 for 25 for 204 yards and two touchdowns, while teammate Steven Nava completed 5 of 7 passes for 45 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The SMSU rushing offense, which averaged 180 yards through the first four games, was limited to eight yards. Jesse Sherwood had 17 yards on seven carries. The Peacock defense recorded six sacks for minus-34 yards. Adihia Bell led the Mustang defense with 11 tackles, while Onte Burns chipped in with eight tackles. UIU's Marcus Orr completed 26 of 39 pass attempts for 270 yards and two touchdowns but was intercepted twice.
 
SMSU vs. UIU Series Information
Overall:    SMSU leads 14-3
In Marshall:    SMSU leads 7-1
In Fayette:    SMSU leads 7-2
Last SMSU win:    Oct. 2, 2021 (20-14)
Last UIU win:    Oct. 28, 2017 (31-20)
Largest win for SMSU:    28 (52-24, 2009)
Largest win for UIU:    12 (28-16, 2004 & 39-27, 2007)
Longest win streak for SMSU:    9 (2008-16)
Longest win streak for UIU:    1 (2004, 2007, 2017)
Current win streak:    SMSU, 3
Underwood vs. UIU:    5-1
Hoskins vs. SMSU:    0-1

SMSU ON HOMECOMING
•SMSU has a record of 24-28 all-time on homecoming and has lost the past two homecoming games.
•Despite losing the past two games, SMSU has won four of its last seven homecoming games with its last homecoming victory coming in 2018.
•SMSU is 7-14 on homecoming since 2000.
SMSU homecoming games since 2010
2010    Wayne State  L, 20-38
2011     Augustana  L, 24-37
2012    Wayne State  W, 40-24
2013    Sioux Falls  L, 48-55
2014    Upper Iowa  W, 28-25
2015    MSU Moorhead  W, 48-9
2016    Upper Iowa  W, 59-41
2017    Sioux Falls  L, 10-24
2018    Minnesota Crookston  W,55-6
2019    Bemidji State, L 24-25
2021    Sioux Falls, L 7-35

OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•Jesse Sherwood leads the NSIC in rushing at 176 yards per game which ranks second in Division II. He is also fifth nationally in all-purpose yards (189.2) and is ninth with six rushing touchdowns.
•Sherwood has rushed for more than 140 yards in his last five games dating back to last season. Sherwood is also the first SMSU player to reach 100-yards rushing or more in five straight games since Tyler Tonderum in 2016.  
•Senior linebacker Onte Burns, a two-time All-NSIC South honoree, has led the NSIC in tackles the past two seasons (2019 and 2021). Burns, who has started all 37 games of his career, has amassed 180 career solo tackles ranking second in team history. Nate Rudolph (1996-99) holds the school record with 199 solo tackles. Burns also ranks fifth in team history in total tackles with 308. The school record (since 1978) is 358 tackles held by Mike Roggenbuck (1982-85).  
•Burns has notched double-digit tackles in all four games this season and ranks first in the NSIC and fourth in Division II with 46 tackles (11.5).
•The SMSU defense ranks 24th in Division II in third-down conversion pct. (27.5).
•The SMSU defense has forced eight turnovers during its three-game winning streak.
•Thomas Mergen recorded his first career interception and tied a career-high with nine tackles in last week's win over Minot State.
•Justus McComb is the first SMSU redshirt freshman or true freshman to start at quarterback since Tony Rislov started all 11 games in 2005.
•SMSU limited Concordia-St. Paul to six points in a week two victory. It was the first time SMSU held an opponent to less than 10 points in a game since Oct. 20, 2018, versus Northern State. SMSU also limited CSP to a pair of field goals which marked the first time since the 2015 season at Wayne State, that SMSU held an opponent to zero touchdowns.

BURNS EARNS NSIC WEEKLY HONOR
•SMSU senior linebacker Onte Burns was honored Monday as the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week after leading SMSU to a 27-20 overtime win over Minot State.
•Burns recorded a game-high 11 tackles, with four solo, along with two sacks and a pass break-up in the win. Both of Burns' sacks came during Minot State's overtime drive to help seal the SMSU victory.
•It's the first time Burns has earned the award in his career. He is also the first Mustang to receive the NSIC weekly defensive award since the 2017 season.

SMSU HEAD COACH SCOTT UNDERWOOD
•Scott Underwood is in his first season as SMSU head coach with a record of 3-1. He was named the program's 11th head coach on Jan. 7, 2022.
•Underwood compiled an overall record of 86-61 in 12 seasons as head coach at St. Cloud State (2008-19).
•SCSU recorded 10 winning seasons with three NCAA playoff appearances during his tenure. SCSU won seven or more games seven times, including a school record 12 victories in 2013.
•SCSU made NCAA playoff appearances in 2010, 2011 and 2013 and won a share of both the NSIC North Division and NSIC overall championship in 2011.
•He was also an assistant coach at SCSU (2001-07), North Dakota (1997-2000), Sioux Falls (1993-96) and Augustana (1988-92).

SMSU LAST TIME OUT
•SMSU earned its third straight victory last Saturday night with a thrilling 27-20 overtime win over Minot State University at Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center.
•SMSU held a 20-10 advantage with less than two minutes remaining in regulation, but MSU sent the game into overtime with 10 straight points, including a field goal with six seconds left in regulation play.
•SMSU started with the ball in overtime and quickly scored in just three plays as Justus McComb connected on a 13-yard touchdown pass to Adrian Tolbert. Carter Dicker, who made a pair of field goals in the game, booted the PAT to give the Mustangs a 27-20 lead.
•The SMSU defense held MSU scoreless in the overtime with a pair of sacks to seal the win.
•SMSU racked up 280 yards rushing on 42 attempts with Jesse Sherwood finishing the night rushing for a game-high 147 yards on 22 carries.
•Donald Austin also had a strong game for SMSU as the finished with a career-high 84 yards on 13 attempts.
•McComb closed the game completing 10 of 16 pass attempts for 79 yards and one touchdown with one interception.
•Dustin Pampel had a team-high three receptions for 26 yards, while Tolbert had two receptions for 32 yards and the game-winning score.
•Onte Burns paced the Mustang defense with a game-high 11 tackles, including 1.5 sacks in the overtime frame.
•Thomas Mergen added nine tackles, while Josiah Hedensten, Jizreel Jeudy, Carter Schmitz and Jordan Ellis all collected six tackles.

SHERWOOD TWICE HONORED BY NSIC
•SMSU senior running back Jesse Sherwood has twice been named the NSIC Offensive Player of the Week this season. He earned the first honor on Sept. 12 after rushing for 196 yards and one touchdown in a win versus Concordia-St. Paul.
•He earned the award again on Sept. 19 after rushing for a career-high 205 yards and three touchdowns on a career-high 36 carries in a win at UMary. The 205-yard game is the 13th highest single-game total in program history.
•Sherwood is the first SMSU player since Blake Gimbel in 2015 to earn the NSIC weekly award twice in a season.

TEAM CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2022
•Four players will serve as team captains for the 2022 season with seniors Onte Burns, Alan Giron, Dylan Lauer, and Jesse Sherwood selected by the Mustang players. It's the third straight season Burns has been named a captain.

THE 2022 SMSU ROSTER
•The 2022 SMSU roster (as of Sept. 27) features eight seniors, nine juniors, 23 sophomores, 23 redshirt freshmen and 16 freshmen.

SMSU / UIU IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and UIU rank in this week's NCAA statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 17-18.
         (162 teams ranked)     SMSU     UIU
             Scoring Offense    100th     150th
             Rushing Offense    9th      154th
             Passing Offense    147th     123rd
             Total Offense    64th     152nd
             Scoring Defense    58th     133rd
             Rushing Defense    103rd     118th
             Pass Defense    102nd     81st
             Pass Efficiency Defense    101st     105th
             Total Defense    108th     109th
             Net Punting     116th     128th
             Punt Returns     131st     139th
             Kickoff Returns     117th     121st
             Turnover Margin     72nd     72nd
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     15th     50th   
             Time of Possession     65th     140th
             3rd Down Conversions     30th    143rd
             3rd Down Conv. Defense    24th     143rd

SMSU VERSUS THE NSIC NORTH
•Since 2012, when the NSIC schedule had each team playing four inter-divisional games, SMSU has a record of 22-19 versus NSIC North Division teams, including 3-1 this season. SMSU has one more game (Bemidji State) versus an NSIC North team this season.
•With the departure of St. Cloud State and Minnesota Crookston, SMSU now plays five games versus NSIC North teams the past two seasons.
•SMSU finished 1-4 versus North teams a season ago, finished 2-2 in 2019, went 3-1 in 2018, was 2-2 in 2017, 3-1 in 2016 and was a perfect 4-0 in 2015.

SMSU IN NSIC SOUTH DIVISION PLAY
•Since the NSIC adapted divisional play prior to the 2008 season, SMSU is 25-61 all-time in South Division games, while finishing in the top half of the division three times in 13 seasons.
•SMSU had its highest finish of second place in 2013 and has placed fourth three times, fifth once, sixth six times, seventh once and eighth once.  

GET IN THE 'ZONE'
•SMSU is 9 of 14 inside the 'red zone' this season with seven touchdowns and two field goals.
•SMSU opponents are 12 of 14 inside the 'red zone' with eight touchdowns and four field goals.
•The following is SMSU in the 'red zone' since the 2010 season.
    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    38 of 45 (84.4)    37    1
    2017    24 of 37 (64.9)    18    6
    2018    28 of 37 (75.7)    23    5
    2019     22 of 29 (75.9)    19    3
    2021    20 of 29 (69.0)    16    4
    2022    9 of 14 (64.3)    7    2

BIG PLAY MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 18 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards in 2022 with 14 coming from the offense (7 run, 7 pass).
•The following are 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    93    21    15    40    33    1    3    1
    2017    68    10    12    28    25    1    1    1
    2018    70    15    8    51    7    2    2    0
    2019    56    12    4    37    12    1    2    0
    2021    42    6    8    18    10    1    2    3
    2022    18    6    7    7    4    0    0    0

TURNOVER MARGIN BY THE NUMBERS
•SMSU is 'even' in turnover margin following the first four games of the season.
•SMSU finished the 2021 season 'minus-15' in turnover margin.
•Since the start of the 2004 season (192 games), SMSU has been a 'plus' in turnover margin in just 64 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, five times in 2016, six times in 2017, twice in 2018, six times in 2019, four times in 2021 and twice in 2022).
•The Mustangs have been 'even' or 'minus' in turnover margin in 109 of their last 169 conference games.

MUSTANGS AT HOME
•The 2022 season marks the 14th year that Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center has served as the home for SMSU football.
•SMSU is 30-44 all-time at the stadium, including 2-0 this season.
•New turf was installed at the stadium in the summer of 2022.
•SMSU lost 12 straight home games from late in the 2018 season through 2021. SMSU was winless at home in both 2019 and 2021 (2020 season was canceled).  
•The $16 million facility opened in the fall of 2008 with the first college football game played on Aug. 30 versus Minnesota Crookston.  

MUSTANGS ON THE ROAD
•After recording its last winning road record in a season in 2015 (5-1), SMSU is 9-21 in road games since the 2016 season, including 1-1 this season.

WORKING OVERTIME
•SMSU is 5-8 all-time in overtime games since the NCAA added overtime in 1998, including 1-0 this season after defeating Minot State, 27-20, on Sept. 24.
•SMSU is 1-3 in multi-overtime contests.
•SMSU's previous overtime home win came on Nov. 2, 2015, versus Winona State.
•The program's last multi-overtime game was a 34-31 double overtime loss at Minnesota State on Oct. 13, 2012.

2022 NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish 13th overall and seventh in the South Division in the annual 14-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•Senior running back Jesse Sherwood and senior linebacker Onte Burns were named 'Players to Watch'.

SMSU VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS
•SMSU is 1-25 versus Division II Top 25 teams since the 2008 season.
•SMSU's lone victory versus a ranked team came in the 2016 season opener versus No. 19 Minnesota Duluth (42-38) in Marshall.

MUSTANG HISTORY
•The 2022 season is the 54th year of college football at SMSU dating to 1968.
•SMSU owns an all-time record of 206-343-5, including 144-249-5 in conference play.
•SMSU has recorded 10 winning seasons, two NAIA playoff appearances (1987 and 1991) and one Mineral Water Bowl appearance (2013).
•The program earned its lone conference championship in 1990.

FOR OPENERS
•SMSU is 22-31 all-time in season openers after losing to Minnesota Duluth in the 2022 season-opener. SMSU has lost its last five season lid-lifters.
•SMSU's last season-opening victory came on Sept. 1, 2016, versus No. 19 Minnesota Duluth (42-38) in Marshall.
•SMSU has lost its last four home openers with the last victory coming on Sept. 1, 2016, versus Minnesota Duluth.  SMSU opens the 2022 home season on Saturday, Sept. 10, versus Concordia-St. Paul.

SCOUTING UPPER IOWA
•Jason Hoskins is in his third season after being named head coach following the 2019 season. He was an assistant coach at UIU, Northern State, Southern Illinois, Minnesota Duluth, Loras and Rockford.
•UIU trailed 10-0 after one quarter last Saturday, but rallied to take the lead on a pair of Marcus Orr touchdown passes. BSU answered with 28 points, including returning a blocked punt for a touchdown in building a 38-14 advantage after three quarters.
•Sophomore quarterback Marcus Orr has completed 53 of 93 passes for 606 yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions. In the loss to BSU, Orr completed 17 of 27 for 156 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
•Junior running back Desean Phillips has rushed for a team-high 139 yards and one touchdown on 51 carries.
•Sophomore  running back Aboubacar Barry led the Peacocks with 53 yards on 11 carries in the loss on Saturday.
•Sophomore wide receiver Cole Ewald has caught 18 passes for 232 yards and one touchdown.
•Senior wide receiver Jahani Wright had seven receptions for 49 yards in the loss to BSU and ranks second on the team with 11 receptions through four games.
•Senior defensive back Cejai Parrish has racked up a team-high 25 tackles with one for loss.
•Sophomore defensive lineman Baxter Bohr has recorded 4.5 tackles with for loss and 3.5 sacks.