THIS SATURDAY
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (1-9, 1-8 NSIC, 0-5 NSIC South) concludes the 2025 season on Saturday afternoon with a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference match up versus Winona State University (5-5, 5-4 NSIC, 2-3 NSIC South) with kickoff set for 12 p.m. at Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium in Winona, Minn. 
•Saturday's match-up is a 'trophy game' as SMSU and WSU meet for the ninth 'Battle for the Sledge' game presented by Game One and Adidas.
•SMSU, which has lost its last eight games since defeating Jamestown in week two, is coming off a 19-14 home loss to Concordia-St. Paul last Saturday.   
•SMSU enters this week's game ranked fourth in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (35.0) and 50th in passing yards (234.5).  
•WSU has alternated wins and losses throughout the season and is coming off a come-from-behind 36-29 win at UMary last Saturday in Bismarck, N.D. WSU trailed 19-0 in the first half and later scored 22 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to earn the victory.   

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 13th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik. 
•Live stats, radio broadcast and video can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. WSU Series Notes
SMSU and Winona State meet for the 54th time on Saturday with WSU leading 33-20 ... the teams first met on Oct. 10, 1970 ... WSU leads 7-1 since the 'Battle for the Sledge' trophy game was started in 2015 ... WSU has won the last seven games after SMSU won three straight from 2013-15 ... WSU leads 19-8 in games played in Winona with WSU winning the last three ... SMSU's last win in Winona came in 2014 ... WSU won last season in Marshall, 37-15 ... WSU has won 24 of the last 29 since 1994 ... WSU has scored 30 or more points in 19 of the last 22 games ... SMSU won seven straight in the series from 1987-93 ... WSU won 13 of 14 games from 1994 to 2007.      
  
The Last Time - SMSU vs. WSU
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 on Nov. 9, 2024, in Marshall. WSU's Cole Stenstrom, who was named the Warriors' game MVP, completed 18 of 28 pass attempts for 344 yards and two touchdowns with one interception Stenstrom's top target was Sylvere Campbell, who caught a game-high seven passes for 142 yards—all in the first half. Josh Buri rushed for a game-high 54 yards on eight carries to pace the Warriors. Joe Sikma also had a strong game for WSU recording five receptions for 67 yards and one touchdown. 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. Tryg Auten caught a team-leading three passes for 51 yards, including a 31-yard touchdown pass for the Mustangs. 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.

SMSU vs. WSU Series Information
Overall:    WSU leads 33-20
In Marshall:    WSU leads 14-12
In Winona:    WSU leads 19-8
Last SMSU win:    Nov. 14, 2015 (33-28)
Last WSU win:    Nov. 9, 2024 (37-15)
Largest win for SMSU:    33 (47-14, 1991)
Largest win for WSU:    56 (56-0, 1975)
Longest win streak for SMSU:    7 (1987-93)
Longest win streak for WSU:    7 (2001-07, 2016-24)
Current win streak:    WSU, 7
Underwood vs. WSU:    3-5
Curtin vs. SMSU:    0-0

NINTH MEETING FOR THE 'BATTLE FOR THE SLEDGE'
•Saturday will be the ninth annual 'Battle for the Sledge' trophy game, presented by Game One and Adidas. WSU has won the previous seven games since SMSU won the first game after the traveling trophy was established in 2015. 
•The trophy is a seven-foot tall sledgehammer. In addition to the sledge trophy, Game One will also provide two MVP trophies to a player on each team.
•Here is the history behind the naming of the trophy game, 'Battle for the Sledge': During the 2008 season, during warm-ups of the WSU/SMSU game on Oct. 4, a WSU player brought a sledgehammer to mid-field while SMSU players looked on. SMSU went on to earn a 35-28 victory over WSU, snapping the Warriors' seven-game winning streak in the series. Following the game, SMSU players ran over to the WSU sideline and grabbed the sledgehammer, celebrating the victory at midfield. With emotions running high for both teams, a WSU player went over to the SMSU sideline to get its sledgehammer back. SMSU eventually gave the sledgehammer back and a rivalry was born.

SMSU HEAD COACH SCOTT UNDERWOOD
•Scott Underwood is in his fourth season as head coach with a record of 7-36. 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 93-87 overall in his 16th season 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. 

PARKER TIES A PAIR OF SCHOOL INTERCEPTION RECORDS; LEADS ALL NCAA IN INTS
•Sophomore Parker Knutson tied both the school single-season and career interception record on Nov. 1 at Minnesota State. Knutson racked up his eighth interception of the season tying the school single-season mark established by Carl Douglas in 1988. 
•The interception was also the 13th of his career tying the program career record set by Douglas and Blaine Schnaible (1986-88). 
•In this week's NCAA stats, Knutson leads all four divisions of NCAA football with eight interceptions. He ranks first in interceptions per game (0.80) and sixth in passes defended (1.4). 

SMSU OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•Josiah Hedensten ranks second in team history with 200 solo tackles and fifth with 349 total tackles. He is seven total tackles shy of tying Nate Rudolph (1996-99) for fourth all-time (356) and nine away from Mike Roggenbuck (1982-85) for third (358) all-time. 
•In this week's NCAA statistics, Hedensten ranks ninth in solo tackles (5.6) and 17th in total tackles (9.7). 
•In the NSIC stats, he ranks second in tackles per game (9.3). He has recorded double digit tackles in each of the past five games, including a career-high 18 tackles two weeks ago at Minnesota State. 
•Linebacker Gideon Ervasti ranks fifth in the NSIC in tackles per game (7.4). 
•Both Hedensten and offensive tackle Tyler Nebelung will be making their 44th straight start on Saturday, with both having started every game of their four-year careers. 
•Mason Carver tied his season-high with a 67-yard punt last week versus Concordia-St. Paul. He also had a 67-yard punt at Jamestown in week 2. Carver also tied a season-high with four punts inside the 20-yard line. 
•Treverran Mack had a career-high two sacks and finished with four tackles versus Concordia-St. Paul. 
•Three weeks ago versus Augustana, SMSU finished racking up a season-high 464 yards on offense with Macloud Crowton passing for 453 yards and three touchdowns. He is the first Mustang since Blake Gimbel in 2018 to pass for more than 400 yards in a game. Macloud begins the week ranked 33rd in Division II in passing yards (1,813). 
•Wide receiver Colin Maher caught six passes for a career-high 159 yards and one touchdown three weeks ago versus Augustana for his third 100-yard receiving game of the season. He is the first SMSU player with more than 150 yards receiving in a game since Daniel Davis in 2019. 
•Maher ranks 38th nationally in receiving yards (697) and 81st in receptions per game (4.2). He ranks sixth in the NSIC in receiving yards per game (74.8). 
•SMSU started a new quarterback in week one for the seventh straight season. Blake Gimbel was the last Mustang to start back-to-back season openers in 2017 and 2018. Steven Nava started week one in 2019, with Andrew Haidet in 2021, followed by Justus McComb in 2022, Marcus Martin in 2023 and Wyatt Oak in 2024.

RECAPPING CONCORDIA-ST. PAUL
•Concordia-St. Paul scored the go-ahead touchdown midway through the fourth quarter to rally and earn a 19-14 victory over SMSU last Saturday afternoon in Marshall.
• On a cold and windy day, both offensive units struggled with CSP closing with 296 yards of offense and 13 first downs. CSP gained 99 yards on a two-play drive, which included a 91-yard rushing touchdown.
•SMSU finished with 220 yards and 12 first downs in suffering its second straight setback to CSP.
•Mustang starting quarterback Macloud Crowton completed 6 of 8 passes for 76 yards but left the game with an injury following an interception late in the first quarter. Drew Kluender came in relief and completed 11 of 29 pass attempts for 107 yards and one touchdown. He also led the SMSU rushing attack with 30 yards on six carries. 
•Jacob Honstetter added 25 yards and one touchdown on 10 carries and also caught five passes for 22 yards. 
•Tryg Auten caught four passes for 80 yards and one touchdown for the Mustangs.
•Josiah Hedensten racked up a game-high 13 tackles with Gideon Ervasti adding 10 tackles. SaMaury Alexander and Kaden Lunsford each added seven tackles, while Jack Meier chipped in with a career-high six stops.

SMSU / WSU IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and WSU ranks in the latest NCAA Division statistics. 
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 16-17. 
             (157 teams ranked)     SMSU     WSU
             Scoring Offense    147th     106th
             Rushing Offense    157th      98th
             Passing Offense    50th     104th 
             Total Offense    141st     120th 
             Scoring Defense    151st     112th
             Rushing Defense    139th     76th
             Pass Defense    146th     137th 
             Pass Efficiency Defense    153rd     143rd 
             Total Defense    150th     117th 
             Net Punting     72nd     97th 
             Punt Returns     150th     111th 
             Kickoff Returns     134th     95th
             Turnover Margin     138th     138th 
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     4th     18th   
             Time of Possession     136th     117th 
             3rd Down Conversions     155th    128th
             3rd Down Conv. Defense    149th     101st

THE 2025 SMSU ROSTER
•The SMSU roster (as of Nov. 11) features 19 seniors, 14 juniors, 20 sophomores, 25 redshirt freshmen and 32 freshmen. 

TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2025
•The SMSU football leadership council and team members will select four game captains each week for the 2025 season.

TURNOVER MARGIN BY THE NUMBERS
•SMSU is 'minus-9' in turnover margin this season.
•The SMSU defense has forced a least one turnover in every game this season.
•SMSU was 'plus-4' in the win at Jamestown on Sept. 13. It was the first time SMSU was 'plus' in turnover margin since the final game of the 2023 season when the team finished 'plus-4' in a victory over Sioux Falls.
•SMSU is 'minus' in six of its nine losses this season. 
•SMSU finished 'minus-16' in turnover margin last season and was not 'plus' in turnover margin in any game.  

LOOKING TO SCORE IN THE 'ZONE'
•SMSU is 18 of 22 (81.8) in the red zone this season with 14 touchdowns and four field goals. SMSU has four red zone trips stopped with two interceptions, a fumble and end of half. 
•SMSU opponents are 32 of 38 (84.2) in the red zone this season with 29 touchdowns and three field goals. The SMSU defense has stopped six red zone drives with an interception, two fumbles, two missed field goals and downs. 
•SMSU opponents finished last season 40 of 48 in the red zone with 29 touchdowns and 11 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    7 of 14 (50.0)    5    2
    2025    18 of 22 (81.8)    14    4

LONG PLAYS FOR THE MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 52 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards this season with 33 coming from the offense (2 run, 31 pass).
•Macloud Crowton's 65-yard pass to Tryg Auten versus Augustana is the longest pass play of the season.
•Jacob Honstetter's 75-yard touchdown run at Minnesota Duluth is the longest rush from scrimmage. 
•Auten's 37-yard return at Northern State 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    48    6    7    15    18    1    6    1
    2025    52    5    2    31    19    0    0    0

MUSTANGS AT HOME
•The 2025 season marked the 17th year that Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center has served as the home for SMSU football. 
•SMSU is 32-62 all-time at the stadium, including 0-5 this season. SMSU has lost its last 11 games the past two seasons. 
•SMSU's last home victory came during the final game of the 2023 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 11-38 in road games, including 1-4 this season.
•SMSU's last season with a winning road record occurred in 2015 (5-1). 

2025 NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish 13th overall and seventh in the NSIC South Division in the annual 14-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. 
•Senior offensive tackle Tyler Nebelung and sophomore safety Parker Knutson were tabbed a 'Player to Watch' in the NSIC for the Mustangs.

SMSU VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS
•SMSU is 1-34 all-time versus Division II Top 25 teams, including 0-3 this season after losing at Minnesota Duluth on Oct. 4 at home to Augustana on Oct. 25 and at Minnesota State on Nov. 1. 
•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 22-35 all-time in season openers after losing at home to MSU Moorhead this season. 
•SMSU is 1-7 in its last eight home openers with the lone victory coming over Concordia-St. Paul in 2022. 

MUSTANG HISTORY
•The 2025 season is the 58th year of college football at SMSU and 57th season of competition (2020 was canceled) dating to 1968.
•SMSU owns an all-time record of 210-378-5, including 148-278-5 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 WINONA STATE
•Brian Curtin is in his first season as head coach after serving as an assistant coach at WSU for more than 20 years. He joined the WSU staff in 1997 and has served in a variety of roles, mostly as the defensive coordinator.
•Sophomore quarterback Jackson Flottmeyer has completed 166 of 289 passes for 1,852 yards with 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. 
•Freshman running back Jahmani Muhammad has rushed for a team-high 466 yards on 82 carries with three touchdowns. 
•Flottmeyer and Muhammad both rushed for two touchdowns in last week's victory with Muhammad closing with 95 yards on 25 carries. 
•Senior wide receiver Joe Sikma has a team-high 43 receptions for 454 yards and four touchdowns.
•Sophomore linebacker Blake Schraufnagel has 69 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss to pace the defense.