Aberdeen, S.D. – The Northern State University football team will travel to No. 8 Minnesota State this Saturday for the final cross-divisional game of the 2017 season. The Wolves and Mavericks will kickoff at 4 p.m. from Mankato.
The Wolves hit the road after a tough loss to Upper Iowa, where NSU was unable to put points on the board in the second half. Through the first three games, NSU is averaging 14.7 points, 68.3 yards rushing, 156.7 yards passing, and 225.0 yards of total offense per game. Northern has been nearly perfect in the redzone, scoring on 5-of-6 attempts this season, however has struggled on third downs with just a 27% conversion rate.
Nicholas Truen leads the NSU rushing attack with 138 total yards, averaging 46.0 per game. The NSU receiving front is spread between four guys with 50-plus yards, led by
Cody Kraft and
Zachery Barber with 85 and 74 respectively.
Etienne Ezeff and
Alex Gray led the defense with 19 tackles each, while
Joe Gorghuber and
Cody Braeger hold a team leading 4.5 and 3.5 tackles for a loss.
Jacob Wiedrich and
Nathan Shaw have been a solid tag team on special teams with Wiedrich averaging a league fifth best 39.0 yards per punt, and Shaw on the hunt for his 27th career field goal which would make him the all-time leader at NSU.
About the Mavericks
• Minnesota State enters the weekend with a 3-0 record including a 38-23 win over #20 Minnesota Duluth last Saturday.
• The Mavericks are averaging 43.0 points, 319.0 yards rushing, 207.0 yards passing, and 526.0 total yards per game this season.
• Ryan Schlichte has thrown for 420 yards and five touchdowns, while Nate Gunn totals 496 yards rushing and Shane Zylstra tallies 282 yards receiving.
• Michael Palme leads three Mavericks with 15-plus tackles this season, notching 21 including two tackles for a loss.
• Casey Bednarski and Zylstra have both earned NSIC Player of the Week nods.
• MSU is led by head coach Todd Hoffner in his eighth season at the helm.
Last Match-Up
• The Wolves and Mavericks last faced off in 2015, with NSU falling 27-10.
• Of the returners,
Cody Braeger led the team with four tackles,
Nicholas Truen tallied 31 rushing yards, while
Zachery Barber notched 47 receiving yards.
• NSU is 1-7 all-time against MSU with the lone victory coming in 1971.
A Season Ago
• The Wolves went 6-5 overall and 4-3 in the NSIC North Division in 2016. The Mavericks went 8-3 overall and 5-2 in the NSIC South last season.
Weather Forecast
• Saturday calls for scattered thunderstorms with a high of 79 degrees and SSW winds at 10 to 20 mph.
#DayByDay
•
Mitch Sharer (OL) and
Kale Stieg (LB) were named the week two scout team players of the week for the Wolves.
