DULUTH, Minn. - Northern State sophomore Jared Jacobson threw for two touchdowns and racked up 103 yards on the ground, but the Wolves were unable to overcome a strong Minnesota-Duluth ground attack, falling to the tenth-ranked Bulldogs 49-31 Saturday afternoon in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football action. 

The two teams entered the contest battling for a North Division title.  NSU ends its season at 6-5 overall and 5-2 in the North.  UMD, which needed a win to keep its post-season hopes alive, moves to 10-1 overall and 6-1 in divisional play.

As both teams battled winter-like conditions, the Bulldogs had three players tally 100+ rushing yards.  That tally included senior quarterback Chase Vogler, who ran for 224 yards and five touchdowns.  Vogler attempted just 11 passes, completing four of them, as the Bulldogs called running plays for 66 of their plays from scrimmage.

In addition to Jacobson's 100-yard day - his first since the season opener - NSU's John Hughes ran for 38 yards and the Wolves' lone rushing touchdown of the day.  Hughes scored from two yards out in the second quarter that cut UMD's lead to seven at 21-14.

The BUlldogs scored with just 14 seconds left in the half to stretch the lead to 14, but NSU again slashed it to a one-possession advantage on sophomore Ben Jastram's first career TD reception.  Jastram caught a five yard ball from Jacobson that made it 28-21 with 11:08 left in the third quarter.

UMD answered with a 64-yard TD scamper by Vogler.  The Wolves would not get closer than 11 the rest of the way.  Felipe Alfaia booted a 22 yard field goal in the third, while Mark Hanley caught a 3-yard TD pass from Jacobson in the waning moments of the game, but two fourth-quarter TD runs by the Bulldogs put the game out of reach.

NSU sophomore Paul Woodward put the Wolves on the board early after recovering a blocked punt and returning it 32 yards for NSU's first score of the day.  Senior John McDowell was credited with the block.

Defensively, Logan Dosch and Jayson Geditz led the Wolves with 14 tackles apiece.  That mark matches Fahnhorst's 14-tackle effort earlier in the season and is just one shy of tying an NSU single-game record.