THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (0-6, 0-5 NSIC) continues Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action on Saturday night with the first of two consecutive road games. SMSU will take on Northern State University (3-4, 3-3 NSIC) with kickoff slated for 6 p.m. at Dacotah Bank Stadium in Aberdeen, S.D.
•SMSU is coming off a 41-7 home loss to Wayne State last Saturday night, while NSU won its third straight game with a dramatic 24-21 final second road victory versus Minnesota Duluth.  
•The game features two of the lowest penalized teams in the country with NSU ranking eighth in fewest penalty yards per game (42.8), while SMSU ranks ninth (43.1).
•Saturday's game is the final night game for SMSU this season.
•A preview of NSU is located on page 3.

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 12th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik.
•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. NSU Series Notes
SMSU and NSU meet for the 39th time on Saturday night with NSU leading 25-11-2 in a series that started on Sept. 20, 1980 ... this is just the sixth game between the two teams since playing in the 2012 season ... NSU leads, 14-3-1, in games played in Aberdeen ... SMSU's last win in Aberdeen came on Sept. 8, 2012 ... NSU has won the last two meetings and four of the last five since 2014 ... NSU won last season in Marshall, 24-17 ... NSU won 16 straight games (1992-2007) in the series, but the series is tied 5-5 since the 2008 season.     
 
The Last Time - SMSU vs. NSU
Northern State rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit using outstanding defense in the second half to earn a 24-17 victory over Southwest Minnesota State on Oct. 14, 2023. SMSU held a 17-10 halftime advantage and racked up 234 yards of offense on 28 plays. 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. NSU quarterback Colton Hackel came on in relief late in the first half and finished the game completing 9 of 15 pass attempts for 215 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 63 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries. 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 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.

SMSU vs. NSU Series Information
Overall:    NSU leads 25-11-2
In Marshall:    NSU leads 9-8-1
In Aberdeen:    NSU leads 14-3-1
Neutral Record:    NSU lead 2-0
Last SMSU win:    Oct. 20, 2018 (35-7)
Last NSU win:    Oct. 14, 2023 (24-17)
Largest win for SMSU:    37 (49-12, 1991)
Largest win for NSU:    39 (56-17, 2000)
Longest win streak for SMSU:    3 (1989-91 & 2008-10)
Longest win streak for NSU:    16 (1992-2007)
Current win streak:    NSU, 2
Underwood vs. NSU:    6-7
Schmidt vs. SMSU:     2-0

SMSU HEAD COACH SCOTT UNDERWOOD
•Scott Underwood is in his third season as SMSU head coach with a record of 6-22. 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. SMSU's four victories in 2022 was its highest victory total since 2018.
•Underwood compiled a record of 86-51 in 12 seasons as head coach at St. Cloud State (2008-19) and is now 92-73 overall in 15 seasons as a head coach.
•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
•Wayne State used a big second half to pull away from a seven-point halftime advantage to earn a 41-7 victory over SMSU last Saturday night at The Schwan Regional Event Center.
•WSC led 14-7 at halftime before limiting SMSU to 44 yards of offense and one first down in the second half.
•SMSU finished the night with 158 yards of offense and 10 first downs, while WSC closed the game with 408 yards of offense and 19 first downs.
•SMSU quarterback Kendon Krogman completed 12 of 17 passes for 96 yards and one touchdown.
•Zander Wolf, Tryg Auten, Omar Abdi, Jake Anderson and Colin Maher each had two receptions.
•WSC finished the game converting 8 of 13 on third-down, while SMSU was limited to 1 of 11 on third-down conversions.
•Josiah Hedensten recorded a team-high nine tackles with one sack to pace the Mustang defense.
•Marquise Ogletree had seven tackles and one pass break-up, while Keshaun Reynolds added six tackles with one for loss.

OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•Redshirt freshman safety Parker Knutson ranks third in the country in passes defended with 1.8 per game.
•SMSU ranks ninth in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (42.8).
•Senior cornerback Marquise Ogletree racked up a career-high seven tackles in last week's loss to Wayne State.
•Ogletree begins the week ranked 23rd nationally in punt returns at 8.4 yards per return.  
•Sophomore punter Mason Carver recorded three punts of 56 or more yards last week versus Wayne State with two 56-yard punts downed at the 1-yard line. Carver had two punts of 50-plus yards two weeks ago versus Nebraska Kearney, including a season-high 60-yarder.   
•Junior running back Jacob Honstetter has rushed for a team-high 227 yards on 72 carries on the season.
•Junior wide receiver Colin Maher, who missed the UMD game with an injury, has nine receptions for 154 yards and two touchdown.
•Redshirt freshman Tryg Auten has a team-high 11 receptions for 126 yards and one touchdown.
•Junior wide receiver Jake Anderson has caught nine passes for 49 yards
•Junior linebacker Josiah Hedensten has a team-high 47 tackles with two sacks, 5.5 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles. He ranks 58th in Division II in tackles per game (7.8).
•Junior linebacker Gideon Ervasti has 37 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss.
•Senior linebacker Thomas Mergen has registered 34 tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss.
•Junior defensive end Avery Johnson leads the club with 3.5 sacks.
•Redshirt freshman safety Parker Knutson has both of the team's interceptions on the season.
•Redshirt freshman Connor Shelton booted his first career field goal, a 33-yarder, in week three versus Concordia-St. Paul.
•For the second straight season, the NSIC will not have a divisional format in football. Each team will play 10 NSIC games with five at home and five on the road.

THE 2024 SMSU ROSTER
•The SMSU roster (as of Oct. 15) features 10 seniors, 25 juniors, 10 sophomores, 25 redshirt freshmen and 35 freshmen.

SMSU / NSU IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and NSU rank in the latest NCAA Division II statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 16-17.
             (159 teams ranked)     SMSU     NSU
             Scoring Offense    159th     144th
             Rushing Offense    141st      82nd
             Passing Offense    153rd     149th
             Total Offense    158th     140th
             Scoring Defense    148th     100th
             Rushing Defense    136th     115th
             Pass Defense    73rd     27th
             Pass Efficiency Defense    150th     127th
             Total Defense    118th     66th
             Net Punting     88th     76th
             Punt Returns     76th     81st
             Kickoff Returns     78th     106th
             Turnover Margin     156th     117th
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     9th     8th   
             Time of Possession     145th     77th
             3rd Down Conversions     159th    87th
             3rd Down Conv. Defense    142nd     134th

TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2024
•Four players serve as team captains for the 2024 season with senior Thomas Mergen and juniors Avery Johnson, Colin Maher and Tyler Nebelung selected by the Mustang players.

NEW QUARTERBACKS IN 2024
•With sophomore Wyatt Oak starting at quarterback in the season opener, it marked the sixth straight season SMSU had a different quarterback starting week one.
•Redshirt freshman Kendon Krogman has started three games this season, while true freshman Drew Kluender started versus Nebraska Kearney.
•Blake Gimbel was the last Mustang to start back-to-back season openers in 2017 and 2018.
•Steven Nava started the season in 2019, with Andrew Haidet in 2021, followed by Justus McComb in 2022 and Marcus Martin in 2023.

TURNOVERS MARGIN BY THE NUMBERS
•SMSU is 'minus-11' in turnover margin following six games this season.
•SMSU finished 'minus-10' in turnover margin all of last season and was 'minus' in turnover margin in nine of 11 games.
•SMSU forced a turnover in five of 11 games in 2023 and twice (vs. MSU Moorhead and Sioux Falls) forced four turnovers.  

LOOKING FOR TIME IN THE 'ZONE'
•SMSU is 3 of 8 (37.5) in the red zone this season with one touchdown and two field goals. SMSU has failed to score five times in the red zone registering two interceptions, a fumble, a missed field goal and a turnover on downs.
•SMSU finished 17 of 30 inside the 'red zone' last season with 14 touchdowns and three field goals.
•SMSU opponents are 18 of 21 in the red zone this season with 16 touchdowns and two 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    17 of 30 (56.6)    14    3
    2024    3 of 8 (37.5)    1    2

LONG PLAYS FOR THE MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 25 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards with 11 coming from the offense (5 run, 6 pass).
•Wyatt Oak's 55-yard touchdown pass to Colin Maher  versus Minot State is the longest pass play this season.
•Jacob Honstetter's 55-yard run versus Minot State is the longest rush from scrimmage this season.
•Tryg Auten's 52-yard return versus Concordia-St. Paul is the team's longest kick return 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    50    9    8    29    11    1    1    0
    2024    25    3    5    6    11    1    2    0

MUSTANGS WITH FIRST NON-LEAGUE HOME GAME
•With the departure of Upper Iowa University to the Great Lakes Valley Conference following the 2022 season, SMSU played a non-conference game for the second straight season and hosted its first non-league game since 2010.  
•SMSU's game versus Nebraska-Kearney in week five, a member of the MIAA, was SMSU's first home non-conference game since facing Northern State in 2010.
•In last season's lone non-league game, SMSU suffered a 16-15 loss at FCS foe, Valparaiso.

2024 NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish 11th overall in the annual 13-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•Junior offensive tackle Tyler Nebelung and junior linebacker Josiah Hedensten were named 'Players to Watch'.

MUSTANGS AT HOME
•The 2024 season marks the 16th year that Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center has served as the home for SMSU football.
•SMSU is 32-55 all-time at the stadium, including 0-4 this season.
•New turf was installed at the stadium in the summer of 2022.
•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
•Since the 2016 season, SMSU is 10-31 in road games, including 0-2 this season.
•SMSU's last season with a winning road record occurred in 2015 (5-1).

SMSU VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS
•SMSU is 1-31 all-time versus Division II Top 25 teams, including 0-1 this season after losing at Bemidji State.
•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.
•SMSU's last overtime game occurred on Sept. 24, 2022, with a 27-20 home victory over Minot State.
•SMSU is 1-3 in multi-overtime contests.
•The program's last multi-overtime game was a 34-31 double overtime loss at Minnesota State on Oct. 13, 2012.

SEASON & HOME OPENER INFORMATION
•SMSU is 23-32 all-time in season openers after losing at home to Minot State this season. SMSU is 1-6 in its last seven home openers with the lone victory coming over Concordia-St. Paul in 2022.

MUSTANG HISTORY
•The 2024 season is the 56th year of college football at SMSU (including the 2020 season that was canceled) dating to 1968.
•SMSU owns an all-time record of 209-364-5, including 147-265-5 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 NORTHERN STATE
•Mike Schmidt is in his fifth season as head coach (2020 canceled) and has a record of 21-19. He has a career record of 48-32 as a head coach after spending four seasons at Wisconsin-LaCrosse with a record of 27-13.
•The Wolves are 3-4 overall, 3-3 NSIC, and have won three straight games, including a last-season 24-21 road win over Minnesota Duluth last Saturday.
•NSU ranks 27th in Division II in passing yards allowed (162.6).
•NSU has played two quarterbacks this season with junior Daniel Britt completing 62 of 96 passes for 580 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions. Sophomore Colton Hackel has completed 24 of 49 passes for 222 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
•Sophomore running back Hank Kraft leads the team with 350 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 79 carries.
•Senior running back Wyatt Block has rushed for 302 yards and three touchdowns on 64 attempts.
•Senior wide receiver Ty Wiley leads the Wolves with 23 receptions for 202 yards and three touchdowns.
•Sophomore linebacker Jake Adams leads the squad with 95 tackles, including 5.5 for loss. He ranks second in Division II with 13.6 tackles per game.
•Junior punter Tom Ellard ranks 18th at 42.9 yards per punt.