THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (1-5, 0-5 NSIC, 0-1 NSIC South) returns to Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division action this Saturday, Oct. 10, with a road match-up versus the University of Sioux Falls (3-3, 3-2 NSIC, 0-2 NSIC South) at Bob Young Field with kickoff set for 1 p.m.
•SMSU will be looking to snap a five-game losing skid since opening the season with a non-conference home victory over Valley City State (N.D.). 
•Saturday's game will be the third for SMSU interim head coach, Levi Bullerman, who was named to the position on Sept. 20 following the retirement of head coach, Scott Underwood.   
•SMSU will have its bye week on Oct. 17 before returning to play at Augustana on Oct. 24. 
•USF has dropped two straight games, including last Saturday afternoon at Augustana, 37-20. The Cougars have won 12 of 13 meetings versus the Mustangs since joining the NSIC in 2012.    

BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday's game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 14th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik. 
•Live stats, radio broadcast (free) and video ($) can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.

SMSU vs. USF Series Notes
SMSU and USF meet for the 18th time with USF leading 13-4 ... 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 in 2023 snapped a 10-game USF winning streak since joining the NSIC in 2012 ... USF, which is 12-1 in the series since joining the NSIC, has scored 34 or more points in 11 of the 13 games ... USF leads 6-2 in games played in Sioux Falls ... USF won last season, 35-14, in Marshall.     
  
The Last Time - SMSU vs. USF
Sioux Falls opened a 21-6 halftime lead with a pair of third quarter touchdowns to pull away and earn a 35-14 victory over SMSU on Oct. 11, 2025, in Marshall. USF's Tate Schafer, who came in relief of starting quarterback Bennett Brueck, who was injured on the game's first play, completed 21 of 34 pass attempts for 384 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. His top target was Adonis Hutchinson, who finished with seven receptions for 167 yards and two touchdowns. The Cougars closed the game with 618 yards of offense on 82 plays and finished with a 40-20 time of possession advantage. SMSU was limited to 245 yards, including minus-7 yards rushing, and 12 first downs. The USF defense limited SMSU to 1 for 13 on third-down conversion attempts. SMSU quarterback Macloud Crowton, who was sacked four times, completed 18 of 37 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns. Colin Maher had a strong game for the Mustangs catching six passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns, while Tryg Auten added four receptions for 38 yards. 

SMSU vs. USF Series Information
Overall:    USF leads 13-4
In Marshall:    USF leads 7-2
In Sioux Falls:    USF leads 6-2
Last SMSU win:    Nov. 11, 2023 (28-10)
Last USF win:    Oct. 11, 2025 (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:    USF, 2
Bullerman vs. USF:    0-0
Glogowski vs. SMSU:    2-1

SMSU INTERIM HEAD COACH LEVI BULLERMAN
•Levi Bullerman was named interim head coach on Sept. 20 and is 0-2 during his tenure. He is in his ninth season on the SMSU coaching staff and fifth as defensive coordinator. He also coaches the team's linebackers.
•He played linebacker at SMSU from 2005-09, where he was a four-year letter winner and three-year starter, playing in 44 games with 154 tackles and three interceptions. He served as team captain in 2009.
•Bullerman took over for Scott Underwood, who retired as head coach on Sept. 20. Underwood was in his fifth season as head coach with a record of 8-40. He was named the program's 11th head coach on Jan. 7, 2022. 

SMSU OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•SMSU ranks third in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (30.6).
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf ranks 12th in the country in tackles for loss (1.5). 
•SMSU is coming off 28-6 home loss to Minnesota Duluth last Saturday. SMSU held a 19-12 advantage in first downs and closed with 312 yards of offense, while limiting UMD to 296 yards. The 28 points scored by UMD was the fewest in the series (15 games) since 1999 when SMSU earned a 14-9 victory. 
•SMSU rushed for a season-high 141 yards in the setback to UMD.
•Sophomore quarterback Tommy Hoffman entered late in the first half and finished the game completing 13 of 20 passes for 138 yards and one touchdown. He tossed his first career touchdown in the third quarter to David Ola-Kazeem, who recorded his first career touchdown reception.  
•Sophomore running back Emmanuel Diers rushed for a career-high 61 yards on just six carries in last week's loss.
•Senior cornerback Connor Shelton made his first career start last Saturday and recorded his first career interception. Junior safety Brent Green made his first career start in last week's game versus UMD.  
•Junior quarterback Drew Kluender, who completed 26 of 43 passes for a career-high 314 yards and three touchdown passes in a home loss to Wayne State on Sept. 26, missed last week's game with an injury. 
•Freshman wide receiver Cooper Murphy caught a career-high six passes for a career-best 144 yards and two touchdowns to Wayne State on Sept. 26. Murphy is the first SMSU player to have more than 100 yards receiving in a game since Colin Maher on Oct. 25, 2025.  
•SMSU had seven players on defense and three on offense make their first career collegiate starts in the victory over Valley City State on Aug. 27. 
•The SMSU defense, which recorded a pair of interceptions in the win over Valley City State, limited VCSU to 26 yards rushing. It was the first time SMSU held an opponent to less than 50 yards rushing since the final game of the 2009 season. 
•Crowton started at quarterback in the season-opening victory versus VCSU. It was the first time since 2018 that SMSU had the same quarterback start the first game of the season in back-to-back seasons. Blake Gimbel was the last Mustang to start back-to-back season openers in 2017 and 2018. 

SMSU SEASON NUMBERS
•Sophomore running back Josh Lancifort leads SMSU in rushing with 203 yards on 64 carries.
•Senior wide receiver Tryg Auten has caught a team-high 28 passes for 262 yards.
•Senior wide receiver David Ola-Kazeem and freshman wide receiver Cooper Murphy both have 16 receptions. 
•Fifth year quarterback Macloud Crowton, who has started five games, has completed 63 of 124 passes for 559 yards with five interceptions. 
•Junior quarterback Drew Kluender has completed 33 of 62 passes for 412 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions. 
•Junior safety Keegan Patterson leads the team with three interceptions.
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf has racked up a team-high 51 tackles with nine for loss. 
•Senior linebacker Aiden Planer and sophomore linebacker Jake Meier both second on the squad with 34 tackles, with Planer record six for loss. 
•Fifth year defensive end Avery Johnson ranks tied for third on the team with four tackles for loss. 

SMSU & USF IN THE 2026 NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and USF rank in this week's NCAA statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 16-17. 
             (159 teams ranked)     SMSU    USF     
             Scoring Offense    158th    90th
             Rushing Offense    154th    117th    
             Passing Offense    106th    80th    
             Total Offense    145th    119th     
             Scoring Defense    127th    66th
             Rushing Defense    140th    55th 
             Pass Defense    108th    85th 
             Pass Efficiency Defense    106th     32nd
             Total Defense    138th    59th     
             Net Punting     75th    104th 
             Punt Returns     54th     8th
             Kickoff Returns     93rd    49th    
             Turnover Margin     154th     33rd
             Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm.     3rd      24th     
             Time of Possession     137th    124th 
             3rd Down Conversions     156th    94th
             3rd Down Conversion Defense    89th    125th

TEAM CAPTAINS FOR 2026
•The SMSU football leadership council and team will select four game captains each week for the 2026 season.

THE 2026 SMSU ROSTER
•The SMSU roster (as of Oct. 6) features 112 players with nine fifth-year players, 11 seniors, 28 juniors, 30 sophomores and 34 freshmen. 

TURNOVER MARGIN BY THE NUMBERS
•SMSU is 'minus-9' in turnover margin following six games, ranking 154th in Division II. 
•SMSU was 'plus-1' in the win over Valley City State, but have been 'minus' or 'even' in each of the next five games, including 'minus-3' at Bemidji State, 'minus-1' versus Northern State, 'minus-5' at Minot State 'minus-1' versus Wayne State and 'even' versus Minnesota Duluth. 
•SMSU finished 'minus-9' in turnover margin last season.
•The SMSU defense forced a least one turnover in every game last season and forced two or more in six games.

MUSTANGS IN THE 'ZONE'
•SMSU has scored on 6 of 13 trips (50.0) inside the red zone this season with three touchdowns and three field goals. 
•SMSU has failed to score in seven red zone trips with four missed field goals and three turnover on downs. 
•SMSU opponents are 19 of 21 in the red zone with 14 touchdowns and five 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    19 of 25 (76.0)    15    4
    2026    6 of 13 (46.1)    3    3

LONG PLAYS FOR THE MUSTANGS
•SMSU has recorded 24 offensive/defensive plays or kick/punt returns of 20 or more yards this season with 13 coming from the offense (2 run, 11 pass).
•Drew Kluender's 53-yard pass to Cooper Murphy versus Wayne State is the longest play of the season.
•Emmanuel Diers has the longest rush from scrimmage, 26 yards, versus Minnesota Duluth. 
•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    55    5    2    34    19    0    0    0
    2026    24    3    2    11    10    0    1    0

2026 NSIC PRESEASON POLL
•SMSU was picked to finish 14th overall and seventh in the NSIC South Division in the annual 14-team NSIC Preseason Coaches' Poll. 
•Mustang senior quarterback Macloud Crowton and senior defensive lineman Avery Johnson were tabbed a 'Player to Watch' in the NSIC.

MUSTANGS AT HOME
•The 2026 season is the 18th year that Mattke Field at The Schwan Regional Event Center has served as the home for SMSU football. 
•SMSU is 33-65 all-time at the stadium, including 1-3 this season. SMSU's season opening win over Valley City State snapped an 11-game home losing streak. 
•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 11-41 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 1-35 all-time versus Division II Top 25 teams, including 0-1 this season after losing at home to No. 19 Minnesota Duluth on Oct. 3.
•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 now 23-35 all-time in season openers after defeating Valley City State to open the 2026 campaign. 
•SMSU is 2-7 in its last nine home openers defeating VCSU this season and Concordia-St. Paul in 2022. 

MUSTANG HISTORY
•The 2026 season is the 59th year of college football at SMSU and 58th season of competition (2020 was canceled) dating to 1968.
•SMSU owns an all-time record of 211-384-5, including 148-284-5 in conference play. 
•SMSU has recorded 10 winning seasons with two NAIA playoff appearances (1987 and 1991) and one Mineral Water Bowl appearance (2013). SMSU's last winning season came in 2015. 
•The program earned its lone conference championship in 1990.

SCOUTING SIOUX FALLS
•Jim Glogowski is in his fourth season as head coach with a record of 21-18. He came to USF after seven seasons as an assistant coach at Minnesota State. He was head coach at Simpson College (Iowa) from 2008-15, compiling a record of 37-43.
•USF is coming off a 37-20 road loss to rival Augustana last Saturday. The Cougars held a 20-17 halftime lead but were shutout in the second half.
•Senior quarterback Bennett Brueck has completed 77 of 136 passes for 1,003 yards and 11 touchdowns with four interceptions. He also leads the club with 256 yards rushing and three touchdowns on a team-high 59 carries.
•Senior running back Bubba Tann III has amassed 224 yards rushing and three touchdowns on five carries.
•Senior wide receiver Adonis Hutchinson has caught a team-high 30 passes for 470 yards and three touchdowns. 
•Senior linebacker Owen McCloud has racked up a team-leading 40 tackles with one interception.