THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (1-6, 1-5 NSIC) continues its two-game homestand this Saturday afternoon to battle Minnesota State University Moorhead (4-3, 3-3 NSIC) at Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center with kickoff slated for 1 p.m.
•SMSU is looking to snap a six-game losing skid since winning the season opener at Minot State and also earn its first victory at home this season.
•MSUM has the second most prolific passing offense in Division II, averaging 388 yards per game while scoring an average of 38 points per game, ranking 21st nationally. Sophomore quarterback Jack Strand leads the country in passing yards and is second in passing touchdown. MSUM's three losses have been by a combined 15 points with two of the losses coming against undefeated Augustana and Minnesota State.
•A preview of MSUM is located on page 4.

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 11th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik.
•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. MSUM Series Notes
Southwest Minnesota State and MSU Moorhead meet for the 49th time on Saturday with MSUM leading 29-19 ... the first meeting was on Oct. 24, 1970 ... MSUM has won the last two meetings, including earning a 33-21 victory in Marshall in the 2021 season opener ... prior to MSUM's current two-game win streak, SMSU had racked up a seven-game winning streak from 2008-17 ... the series is tied 12-12 in games played in Marshall ... MSUM won the first 16 meetings in the series from 1970 to 1985, before SMSU earned its first victory on Oct. 4, 1986 ... since 1986, SMSU leads the series 19-13.  
 
The Last Time - SMSU vs. MSUM
MSU Moorhead pulled away in the second half to earn a 33-21 victory over SMSU in the 2021 season opener on Sept. 2. MSUM led 21-14 late in the third quarter before scoring two straight touchdowns to pull away. The game was the first for both teams since the 2019 season and was played with a strong south wind and rain throughout the evening MSUM amassed 404 yards of offense with Grady Bresnahan leading the way with eight receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns. Tommy Falk completed 19 of 21 pass attempts for 285 yards and three touchdowns. SMSU running back Jesse Sherwood had a strong game with 87 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 14 carries. Duce Reynolds added 41 yards rushing and one touchdown on 11 attempts. SMSU's Andrew Haidet, making his Mustang debut, completed 13 of 31 passes for 119 yards and was intercepted three times. Gage Roberson led the Mustang defense with 11 tackles with 1.5 for loss and one sack. Onte Burns added 10 tackles, while Adihia Bell registered five tackles, forced one fumble and recovered a fumble.

SMSU vs. MSUM Series Information
Overall:     MSUM leads 29-19
In Marshall:    tied 12-12
In Moorhead:    MSUM leads 15-6
Neutral:     MSUM leads 2-1
Last SMSU win:    Sept. 7, 2017 (51-35)
Last MSUM win:     Sept. 2, 2021 (33-21)
Largest win for SMSU:    42 (52-10, 2009)
Largest win for MSUM:    44 (51-7, 1977)
Longest win streak for SMSU:    7 (2008-17)
Longest win streak for MSUM:    16 (1970-1985)
Current win streak:    MSUM, 2
Underwood vs. MSUM:    10-2
Laqua vs. SMSU:     2-4

OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•SMSU ranks 31st in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (47.7).
•Sophomore cornerback Jalani Jefferson ranks 46th in the country in solo tackles per game (4.7).
•SMSU had three players, junior Evan Oetter (LB), junior Bailey Cowell (WR), sophomore Jake Schetinski (OL) and freshman Greg Schafer (WR) all make their first career starts last week versus Northern State.
•Sophomore linebacker Gideon Ervasti registered a career-high 12 tackles in last week's loss to Northern State.
•Junior linebacker Thomas Mergen reached a career-high with 11 tackles in the loss to Northern State.
•Junior running back Donald Austin, who ranks 50th in Division II and fifth in the NSIC (overall games) with 74 rushing yards per game, reached the career 1,000-yard rushing mark earlier this season. He has amassed 1,168 yards, ranking 17th in team history, on 242 carries. Austin recorded his fourth career 100-yard rushing game with 115 yards on 24 carries at Wayne State in week three.
•For the season, Austin has rushed for a team-high 518 yards and three touchdowns on 126 carries. He also has 11 receptions for 115 yards and one touchdown.
•Sophomore quarterback Marcus Martin has completed 100 of 182 pass attempts for 1,298 yards with seven touchdowns and eight interceptions.
•Senior wide receiver Peter Osman has caught a team-high 29 passes for 335 yards and two touchdowns. Junior wide out Rashaan Palmer has nine receptions for 226 yards and two touchdowns, while sophomore Eric Lira has 20 receptions for 235 yards and one touchdown.
•Sophomore linebacker Josiah Hedensten leads the club with 52 tackles, three sacks and six tackles for loss, while ranking fourth in the NSIC (league games only) in tacklers per game (7.3)
•Sophomore linebacker Gideon Ervasti has recorded 43 tackles, including six for loss. Sophomore Jalani Jefferson has 41 tackles with one interception, while junior linebacker Thomas Mergen has 39 tackles with three for loss
•SMSU is 'minus-10' in turnover margin and has been 'plus' in just one of seven games.
•SMSU's six sacks at Valparaiso three weeks ago was its highest total in a game since the 2018 season.  
•Junior defensive lineman Mark Person recorded SMSU's first safety since the 2014 season with a quarterback sack at Valpo.
•Jefferson returned an interception 17 yards for a touchdown at Valpo. It was SMSU's first pick-six since Hunter Bohannon on Sept. 25, 2021, at Concordia-St. Paul.
•Junior Tate Gaul has blocked two punts this season, including one last week versus Northern State. He blocked and recovered a Wayne State punt in week three for a touchdown. It's the program's first blocked punt for a touchdown since 2019 when Chris Bain blocked a punt and Nathan Hill recovered in a loss to Augustana.  

SMSU HEAD COACH SCOTT UNDERWOOD
•Scott Underwood is in his second season as SMSU head coach with a record of 5-13. He was named the program's 11th head coach on Jan. 7, 2022.
•Underwood was the first SMSU head coach in team history (11 head coaches) to begin his SMSU coaching career with a 4-1 record.
•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).
•A complete bio on Underwood can be found on page 19.

SMSU LAST TIME OUT
•Northern State rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit using outstanding defense in the second half to earn a 24-17 victory over SMSU last Saturday night.  
•SMSU held a 17-10 halftime advantage and racked up 234 yards of offense on 28 plays in the opening half. However, the NSU defense limited SMSU to just 32 yards on 18 plays in the final 30 minutes. NSU out gained SMSU 304 to 32 in the second half to earn its second straight victory in the series.
•SMSU quarterback Marcus Martin closed the game completing 12 of 23 passes for 201 yards and one touchdown. Eric Lira led the Mustangs with four receptions for 89 yards and one touchdown. Donald Austin paced the SMSU rushing attack with 39 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries.
•NSU finished the game with 483 yards on offense with 23 first downs on 68 plays and held a 36:07 to 23:53 time of possession advantage.
•SMSU closed with 266 yards on 46 total plays with 11 first downs.
•Josiah Hedensten and Gideon Ervasti each recorded a game-high 12 tackles with Hedensten racking up 2.5 tackles for loss. Thomas Mergen added 11 tackles, while Jalani Jefferson chipped in with 10 tackles.

BOHANNON EARNS NSIC WEEKLY HONOR
•Junior safety Hunter Bohannon was named the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 5 following his performance in SMSU's 28-23 season opening victory at Minot State on Aug. 31.
•Bohannon forced two fumbles, recovering one, recorded three solo tackles and one pass break-up.
•It's the second time Bohannon has earned the award in his career. He also earned the award on Sept. 27, 2021.  

THE 2023 SMSU ROSTER
•The SMSU roster (as of Oct. 17) features eight seniors, 19 juniors, 28 sophomores, 11 redshirt freshmen and 41 freshmen.

TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2023
•Four players serve as team captains for the 2023 season with seniors Cam Irvin and Peter Osman and junior Donald Austin and Thomas Mergen selected by the Mustang players.

SMSU / MSUM IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and MSUM rank in the latest NCAA Division II statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 17-18.
             (161 teams ranked)     SMSU     MSUM
             Scoring Offense    151st     19th
             Rushing Offense    145th      158th
             Passing Offense    93rd     2nd
             Total Offense    139th     21st
             Scoring Defense    122nd     87th
             Rushing Defense    111th     67th
             Pass Defense    126th     147th
             Pass Efficiency Defense    139th     92nd
             Total Defense    124th     121st
             Net Punting     110th     43rd
             Punt Returns     46th     114th
             Kickoff Returns     107th     26th
             Turnover Margin     153rd     72nd
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     31st     5th   
             Time of Possession     61st     154th
             3rd Down Conversions     76th    14th
             3rd Down Conv. Defense    106th     116th

TURNOVERS MARGIN BY THE NUMBERS
•SMSU is 'minus-10' in turnover margin this season after finishing the 2022 season 'minus-1' in turnover margin.
•SMSU has forced a turnover in just two of seven games this season after forcing at least one turnover in each game and two or more in six games in 2022.

GET IN THE 'ZONE'
•SMSU is 5 of 10 inside the 'red zone' this season with four touchdowns and one field goal
•SMSU opponents are 26 of 29 inside the 'red zone' with 16 touchdowns and 10 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    20 of 33 (60.6)    17    3
    2023    5 of 10 (50.0)    4    1

BIG PLAY MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 30 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards with 20 coming from the offense (1 run, 19 pass).
•Marcus Martin's 65-yard touchdown pass to Rashaan Palmer at Valparaiso is the longest play from scrimmage this season.
•Donald Austin's 37-yard touchdown run versus Minot State is the longest rush from scrimmage this season.
•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    51    14    14    23    13    0    1    0
    2023    30    7    1    19    9    1    0    0

SMSU WITH FIRST NON-LEAGUE GAME SINCE 2013
•With the departure of Upper Iowa University to the Great Lakes Valley Conference, SMSU had its first regular season non-conference game since the 2011 season on Sept. 29 suffering a 16-15 loss at FCS foe Valparaiso.  
•The game was SMSU's first versus an FCS opponent since losing at Northern Iowa in the final game of the 1999 season. SMSU also played at Illinois State in 1992 and twice at Weber State in 1983 and 1989.
•SMSU's last non-conference game prior to Valpo was the 2013 Mineral Water Bowl versus Pittsburg State, while the last regular season non-conference game occurred in the 2011 season opener at Northern State.

2022 RUSHING ONE OF THE BEST IN TEAM HISTORY
•SMSU finished the 2022 season rushing for 1,901 yards ranking fourth in team single-season history.
•SMSU's 172.8 rushing yards per game also ranked fourth in team single-season history.

2023 NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish ninth overall in the annual 13-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•Senior wide receiver Peter Osman and junior linebacker Thomas Mergen were named 'Players to Watch'.

MUSTANGS AT HOME
•The 2023 season marks the 15th year that Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center has served as the home for SMSU football.
•SMSU is 31-50 all-time at the stadium, including 0-3 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 10-27 in road games since the 2016 season, including 1-3 this season.

SMSU VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS
•SMSU is 1-29 versus Division II Top 25 teams all-time, including 0-2 this season following a week four home loss to No. 23 Minnesota Duluth.
•SMSU's lone victory versus a ranked team came in the 2016 season opener versus No. 19 Minnesota Duluth (42-38) in Marshall.

WORKING OVERTIME
•SMSU is 5-8 all-time in overtime games since the NCAA added overtime in 1998, including 1-0 last 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.

SEASON OPENERS
•SMSU is 23-31 all-time in season openers after beginning the 2023 season with a victory at Minot State on Aug. 31. The win snapped a five-game losing skid in season opening games.

MUSTANG HISTORY
•The 2023 season is the 55th year of college football at SMSU (including the 2020 season that was canceled) dating to 1968.
•SMSU owns an all-time record of 208-355-5, including 146-260-5 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.

SCOUTING MSU MOORHEAD
•Steve Laqua, the 2018 NSIC Coach of the Year, is in his 13th season (2020 canceled) as head coach with a record of 56-73.
•MSUM is coming off a 53-40 home victory over Sioux Falls last Saturday despite USF recording 38 first downs and 635 yards of total offense. MSUM finished with 13 first downs and 446 yards of offense, including 428 through the air.
•USF ran 105 plays compared to just 48 by MSUM.  
•MSUM senior wide receiver Ryan Bieberdorf was named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday after had six receptions for 137 yards and four touchdowns. The four touchdown receptions tied a school single-game record.
•Junior linebacker Josiah Behm was named the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season on Monday after registering eight tackles and returning an interception 98 yards for a touchdown.
•Sophomore quarterback Jack Strand completed 20 of 30 passes for 428 yards and six touchdowns with one interception.
•Sophomore wide receiver Gage Florence caught six passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns in the victory. Florence leads the Dragons with 71 receptions for 715 yards and seven touchdowns. His 10.1 receptions per game ranks first in Division II.
•For the season, Strand has completed 237 of 356 pass attempts for 2,663 yards (first in Division II) with 28 touchdowns (second in country) and five interceptions.
•Junior running back Luke Imdieke has rushed for 165 yards to lead the Dragons with senior Tyson Powell adding 127 yards and four touchdowns on 24 attempts. Imdieke has also caught 42 passes for 242 yards and one touchdown.
•Sophomore linebacker Tate Gustafson leads the club with 54 tackles, while Behm has racked up 53 tackles with 6.5 for loss.
•Junior linebacker Jack Bungarden has a team-leading eight tackles for loss.