THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (0-10, 0-9 NSIC) concludes the 2024 season on Saturday afternoon with a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference road game versus the University of Sioux Falls (7-3, 6-3 NSIC) with kickoff set for 1 p.m. at Bob Young Field in Sioux Falls, S.D.
•SMSU is searching for its first win of the season and its first since defeating Sioux Falls in the last game of the 2023 season in Marshall.
•SMSU will also be looking to spoil USF's postseason playoff hopes. The Cougars are ranked No. 8 in this week's NCAA Super Region Four rankings. The top seven teams advance to the NCAA playoffs starting on Nov. 23.
•The NSIC, the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), and the Lone Star Conference (LSC) make up the 33-team NCAA Super Region Four.

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with Anthony Rohlik expected to handle the play-by-play duties, filling in for his brother, Ryan Rohlik.  
•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. USF Series Notes
SMSU and USF meet for the 16th time with USF leading 11-4 ... the two teams first met on Sept. 21, 1968, in Marshall ... the first game between the two schools was also the first-ever game in SMSU history with USF earning a 13-6 victory at Legion Field in Marshall ... SMSU defeated USF 36-12 in 1969 in Sioux Falls and also won in both 1978 and 1979 ... SMSU's victory last season in Marshall snapped a 10-game USF winning streak since joining the NSIC in 2012 ... USF has scored 34 or more points in nine of the 11 meetings since joining the NSIC ... USF leads 5-2 in games played in Sioux Falls, S.D.    
   
The Last Time - SMSU vs. USF
SMSU closed the 2023 season earning a 28-10 victory over the Sioux Falls in Marshall on Nov. 11, 2023. SMSU, which halted a nine-game losing streak with the victory, finished the game with 427 yards of offense, while the defense recorded four interceptions and the special teams blocked a USF punt. SMSU dominated time of possession, closing the game with a 38-22 minute advantage. The Mustang defense limited the Cougars to 1 of 9 on third-down conversions and 1 of 3 on fourth-down tries. The victory was also SMSU's first over USF since the Cougars moved to the Division II level, snapping a 10-game losing streak. USF closed the game with 351 yards and 15 first downs. SMSU quarterback Tomele Staples made his first career start and finished the game completing 11 of 21 passes for 152 yards, while rushing for 72 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries. Donald Austin led the SMSU rushing attack with a season-high 184 yards and three touchdowns on 31 carries. Jalani Jefferson paced the SMSU defense with a pair of interceptions, while Amarion Meshack also had an interception.

SMSU vs. USF Series Information
Overall:    USF leads 11-4
In Marshall:    USF leads 6-2
In Sioux Falls:    USF leads 5-2
Last SMSU win:    Nov. 11, 2023 (28-10)
Last USF win:    Oct. 8, 2022 (35-14)
Largest win for SMSU:    24 (36-12, 1969)
Largest win for USF:    44 (51-7, 2019)
Longest win streak for SMSU:    3 (1969-79)
Longest win streak for USF:    10 (2012-22)
Current win streak:    SMSU, 1
Underwood vs. USF:    2-4
Glogowski vs. SMSU:    0-1

SMSU HEAD COACH SCOTT UNDERWOOD
•Scott Underwood is in his third season as SMSU head coach with a record of 6-26. 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 92-77 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 20.

SMSU LAST TIME OUT
•Winona State scored a pair of third quarter touchdowns to pull away from an eight-point lead and earn a 37-15 victory over SMSU last Saturday in Marshall.
•WSU finished the game recording 474 yards and 21 first downs on 70 plays and held a 38:48-21:12 time of possession advantage.
•SMSU ended the game with 183 total yards and 11 first downs.
•SMSU starting quarterback, Josh Oehm, making his collegiate debut, closed the game throwing for 151 yards and two touchdowns while completing 9 of 26 pass attempts. He also rushed for 23 yards on 13 carries.
•Tryg Auten caught a team-leading three passes for 51 yards, including a 31-yard touchdown pass for the Mustangs in the third quarter.
•Shaun Walrath caught a 42-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter.
•Gideon Ervasti paced the Mustang defense with nine tackles, while Thomas Mergen added eight stops with one for loss.
•Amarion Meshack collected seven tackles and his first interception of the season.
 
OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•With quarterback Josh Oehm starting last week versus Winona State, the Mustangs have started four different players at quarterback this season. It's the first time since 1997 (and maybe in team history) SMSU has had more than three players start at quarterback. Most recently, SMSU had three different starting quarterbacks in 2022, 2019 and 2017.
•Redshirt freshman safety Parker Knutson ranks sixth in the country in passes defended with 1.5 per game and leads SMSU with four interceptions and 11 pass break-ups.
•Junior linebacker Josiah Hedensten has a team-high 79 tackles with three sacks, 9.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbles. He ranks 55th in Division II in tackles per game (7.9) and 57th in solo tackles (4.4).
•Sophomore defensive back Amarion Meshack recorded a career-high seven tackles in last week's game  vs. Winona State.
•Freshman Shaun Walrath caught his first career touchdown pass last week versus Winona State.
•SMSU ranks 14th in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (42.1).
•Junior running back Jacob Honstetter scored his first career touchdown two weeks ago versus UMary.
•Senior punt returner / cornerback Marquise Ogletree begins the week ranked 49th in Division II in punt return yardage (6.3 per return).  
•Sophomore punter Mason Carver booted a career-long 70-yard punt at Northern State.
•Honstetter has rushed for a team-high 306 yards on 104 carries. He missed the MSU Moorhead game with an injury.
•Junior wide receiver Colin Maher, who missed the UMD game with an injury, has 16 receptions for 277 yards and three touchdowns.
•Redshirt freshman Tryg Auten, who missed the Northern State game with an injury, has 16 receptions for 190 yards and two touchdowns.
•Junior wide receiver Jake Anderson has caught 17 passes for 127 yards.
•Junior linebacker Gideon Ervasti has 63 tackles with 3.5 tackles for loss.
•Senior linebacker Thomas Mergen has registered 51 tackles, including 6.5 tackles for loss.
•Junior defensive end Avery Johnson leads the club with 4.5 sacks.
•SMSU opponents have scored 10 defensive touchdowns this season.

THE 2024 SMSU ROSTER
•The SMSU roster (as of Nov. 11) features 13 seniors, 22 juniors, 10 sophomores, 24 redshirt freshmen and 35 freshmen.

SMSU / USF IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and USF rank in the latest NCAA Division II statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 17-18.
             (159 teams ranked)     SMSU     USF
             Scoring Offense    159th     51st
             Rushing Offense    146th      55th
             Passing Offense    152nd     73rd
             Total Offense    156th     63rd
             Scoring Defense    141st     64th
             Rushing Defense    111th     83rd
             Pass Defense    83rd     106th
             Pass Efficiency Defense    144th     65th
             Total Defense    109th     92nd
             Net Punting     95th     120th
             Punt Returns     115th     133rd
             Kickoff Returns     68th     86th
             Turnover Margin     159th     43rd
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     14th     15th   
             Time of Possession     138th     70th
             3rd Down Conversions     154th    23rd
             3rd Down Conv. Defense    118th     69th

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 to begin a season.
•Oak and redshirt freshman Kendon Krogman have both started four games this season, while true freshman Drew Kluender started versus Nebraska Kearney before suffering a season-ending injury. Junior Josh Oehm started week 10 versus Winona State.
•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-15' in turnover margin this season and has not been 'plus' in turnover margin in a game this season.
•SMSU finished 'minus-10' in turnover margin 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 5 of 11 (45.4) in the red zone this season with three touchdowns and two field goals. SMSU has failed to score six times in the red zone registering two interceptions, two fumbles, a missed field goal and a turnover on downs.
•SMSU closed the 2023 season 17 of 30 inside the 'red zone' with 14 touchdowns and three field goals.
•SMSU opponents are 34 of 41 in the red zone this season with 25 touchdowns and nine 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    5 of 11 (45.4)    3    2

LONG PLAYS FOR THE MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 46 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards with 22 coming from the offense (7 run, 15 pass).
•Wyatt Oak's 55-yard touchdown pass to Colin Maher  in week one 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    47    6    7    15    18    1    5    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 32-57 all-time at the stadium, including 0-6 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 10-33 in road games, including 0-4 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 209-368-5, including 147-269-5 in conference play.
•SMSU has recorded 10 winning seasons with two NAIA playoff appearances (1987 and 1991) and one Mineral Water Bowl appearance (2013).
•The program earned its lone conference championship in 1990.

SCOUTING SIOUX FALLS
•Jim Glogowski is in his second season as head coach with a record of 10-11. He came to USF after seven seasons as an assistant coach at Minnesota State. He was also head coach at Simpson College (Iowa) from 2008-15.
•USF had its four-game winning streak snapped last Saturday with a 27-21 road loss to Augustana.  
•USF ranks 15th in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (42.8) and 11th in red zone defense (.647).
•Junior quarterback Camden Dean leads the Cougars completing 158 of 244 pass attempts for 2,071 yards with 21 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He has also rushed for a team-leading 571 yards and seven touchdowns on 117 carries.
•Dean ranks 15th nationally in touchdown passes.
•Senior running back Dylan Rudningen has rushed for 509 yards rushing and six touchdowns on 126 attempts.
•Junior wide receiver Carter Slykhuis has caught 61 passes for a team-high 829 yards and nine touchdowns. He ranks 20th in the country in touchdown receptions and 21st in receiving yards per game.
•Senior tight end Mark Leonard has added 21 receptions for 376 yards and three touchdowns.
•Redshirt freshman defensive back Andy Henson has amassed a team-leading 62 tackles with 6.5 for loss
•Sophomore linebacker Matt Goehring has 55 tackles along with four interceptions.