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Marshall, Minn. – Three is the charm for the (RV) Northern State University football team in 2026, defeating Southwest Minnesota State 30-3 in their first road contest of the season. The Wolves remain undefeated on the season, while holding the Mustangs scoreless through the opening three quarters.
THE QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: NSU 30, SMSU 3
Records: NSU 3-0 (2-0 NSIC), SMSU 1-2, (0-2 NSIC)
Attendance: 2884
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Northern tallied two touchdowns in the first quarter via the air assault; Ty Englehart connected with Jacoby Boykins for an 8-yard pass at 11:16 on the clock and Joey Dube-Garrett hit Jessie Campbell for a 10-yard pass with 7:17 on the clock
- Dube-Garrett extended the Wolves lead in the second with a 57-yard heave to Cooper Eisenbeisz as the quarter opened and Jeremy Caruso closed out the scoring in half with a 32-yard field goal at 4:52
- Hank Kraft scored the lone points in the third on a 1-yard carry, his seventh rushing touchdown of 2026
- Southwest Minnesota State added three points in the fourth on a 38-yard field goal by Landon Hubbard, the only points of the quarter for either team
- Northern tallied 476 yards of total offense in the win, recording 159 yards rushing and 317 yards passing with 21 first downs
- The Wolves scored four of the five times they entered the red-zone and averaged 15.9 yards per reception and 5.0 yards per rush
- The NSU defense held SMSU to 250 yards of total offense, shutting down 11-of-14 third down attempts and 4-of-6 fourth down attempts with one interception and one sack
- Dube-Garrett threw for a team leading 179 yards and two touchdowns, completing 9-of-12 attempts, while Englehart passed for 138 yards with one touchdown, completing 11-of-18 attempts
- Hank Kraft kept things rolling on the ground with 107 yards rushing and one touchdown, averaging 5.1 yards per carry with a 48-yard long
- Three Wolves tallied over 70 yards receiving on the day, led by Eisenbeisz with 76 yards, DJ Smith with 74 yards, and Campbell with 72 yards
- Jake Adams put together his second straight double-figure game with 15 tackles, including nine solo stops and 2.0 tackles for a loss
- Cashton LaPlante was second on the team with six tackles, followed by Elijah Jopp, Javonnee Szymanski, Joshua Brown, and K'vaughn Landers with five apiece; Brown led the secondary with two pass break-ups
- Gabe Gutierrez and Kaydn Turnbow teamed up for the sack on the day, while Darion Nundley notched the first interception of his career
- Caruso went 1-for-2 in field goal attempts and tallied 362 yards on kickoffs with one touchback
- Keaton Docken made his first punting appearance for NSU, notching 100 total yards punting with a 55-yard long
NORTHERN STATE STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Joey Dube-Garrett: 179 yards passing, 2 touchdowns, 75.0 pass completion %
- Hank Kraft: 107 yards rushing, 1 touchdown
- Cooper Eisenbeisz: 76 yards receiving, 38.0 yards per reception, 1 touchdown, 57-yard long, 32 kick return yards
- DJ Smith: 74 yards receiving, 14.8 yards per reception
- Jessie Campbell: 72 yards receiving, 10.3 yards per reception, 1 touchdown
- Jake Adams: 15 tackles, 9 solo tackles, 2.0 tackles for a loss of 3 yards
UP NEXT
Northern continues their road trip next Saturday, September 19 at nationally ranked Minnesota State. Kick-off is set for 1 p.m. from Mankato in the match-up with the Mavericks.
