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MOORHEAD, Minn. --  Year 4 of the Steve Laqua era officially begins on Saturday for the Minnesota State University Moorhead football team when the Dragons play at Upper Iowa. Game time is 3 p.m. Harms-Eischeid Stadium in Fayette, Iowa.

Live audio, with Dragon broadcasters Steve d'Eustachio and Larry Scott on the call, can be heard at msumdragons.com. Live video can be accessed as well.

Series history
The Dragons and Peacocks will meet for a sixth time with Upper Iowa holding a slim 3-2 series lead. Upper Iowa won the last meeting, 51-33 on Sept, 15, 2012 in Moorhead. The Dragons' last win, by a 28-24 score, came in 2010.

Last five meetings
2012-Upper Iowa 51, MSUM 33
2011-Upper Iowa 45, MSUM 31
2010-MSUM 28, Upper Iowa 24
2007-MSU 31, Upper Iowa 28
2006-Upper Iowa 36, MSUM 13

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his fourth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 7-26 at the school, while Tom Shea is in his sixth season as Upper Iowa's head coach with a record of 16-39 at the school.

About MSUM
The Dragons are coming off of a season where they went 4-7 overall, including 4-3 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division. MSUM finished third in the division race and went 4-2 in its last six games.

While the Dragons only have 10 seniors, they do return experience, with 10 starters returning on offense and nine on defense. Leading the offense is junior wide receiver, Adam Jiskra, who had 67 catches for 1,014 yards and 12 touchdowns (all team highs) as he earned All-NSIC North Division first-team honors. Junior quarterback Jake Hodge returns after throwing for 2,518 yards and 24 touchdowns. Hodge was second-team All-NSIC North Division last season.

Sophomore wide receiver Cory Ambrose was second-team All-NSIC North Division after catching 56 passes for 916 yards and six scores last season. Junior running back, Zayne Medhaug, also a second-team All-NSIC North Division selection, rushed for 431 yards and three scores while catching 42 passes last season. MSUM also returns a trio of three-year starters on the offensive line:  senior Kasey Groettum and juniors Bennen Bierman and Troy Peterson.  MSUM also returns junior tight end Myles Montplaisir.

MSUM averaged 31.8 points per game a year ago and rushed for 174.2 yards per game. The Dragons threw for 285.5 yards per game and averaged 459.7 total yards of offense per contest.

The Dragon defense is led by a pair of all-conference honorable mention performers from last season in junior linebacker Chris Lee and sophomore defensive lineman Ryan Dahleen. Lee led MSUM with 80 tackles and shared the team lead with Dahleen with 10.5 tackles for loss. Dahleen led MSUM with six sacks to go with 36 tackles.

MSUM also returns junior cornerback Chris Binford, who had 74 tackles and 12 pass breakups last season, and sophomore defensive back Jesse Beilke, who had 73 tackles. Sophomore linebacker Aaron Bohl also is back after recording 66 tackles a year ago.

The Dragons allowed 41.5 points per game a year ago. Teams rushed for 255.7 yards per game against MSUM and threw for 241.4. Teams compiled 497.1 yards per game a year ago against MSUM.

Sophomore Michael Schwichtenberg is back after averaging 35.3 yards per punt last season.  He placed 10 punts inside the 20-yard line. Schwichtenberg also will handle the kicking duties for the Dragons this season.

About Upper Iowa
The Peacocks are coming off of a season where they went 6-5, with four of the wins coming from a combined 16 points. They concluded the 2013 campaign with a 73-7 home loss to Minnesota State, Mankato.

The Peacocks return two outstanding offensive weapons in senior quarterback Cole Jaeschke and senior running back Chris Smith. Jaeschke threw for 2,935 yards and 23 touchdowns a year ago, while Smith, who was a first-team All-NSIC South Division selection, rushed for 1,706 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 5.6 yards per carry.  Also returning for Upper Iowa is tight end Lucas Hefty, who was a first-team All-NSIC South Division selection after catching 65 passes for 846 yards and 10 touchdowns. Derek Giesking is also back after catching 65 passes a year ago.

Upper Iowa's offense scored 27.4 points per game last season. The Peacocks ran for 192.5 yards per game and threw for 268.8.  The Peacocks compiled 461.3 total yards per game.

On defense, Upper Iowa lost its top three tacklers from a year ago, including all-conference linebacker Ethan Douglas. The top returner is junior linebacker Alex Wahl, who had 68 tackles, including 11.5 for loss, to go with five sacks and three fumble recoveries. Junior Tyler Fisher also returns after recording 64 tackles last season.

Upper Iowa allowed 31.2 points per game last season. Teams threw for 209.2 yards per game against the Peacocks last season while rushing for 163.5. The Peacocks allowed 372.7 yards of total offense last season.

Veteran Group
MSUM enters the 2014 season with the most experienced team it has had under Head Coach Steve Laqua. The team returns 10 starters on offense and nine on defense – and only two are seniors.

All-NSIC returners
The Dragons had seven players who earned All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference honors a year ago, and all seven return.

That includes junior wide receiver Adam Jiskra, who was a first-team selection a year ago. Also returning for the Dragons are junior quarterback Jake Hodge (All-NSIC second team), junior running back Zayne Medhaug (All-NSIC second team),  sophomore wide receiver Cory Ambrose (All-NSIC second team), junior linebacker Chris Lee (honorable mention), junior offensive lineman Troy Peterson (honorable mention) and defensive lineman Ryan Dahleen (honorable mention).

Opening act
MSUM is 1-2 in season openers under Head Coach Steve Laqua. In 2011, the Dragons beat Robert Morris, 28-17. They have lost their past two openers, falling to Wayne State, 49-6 in 2012 and Augustana, 41-28 in 2013.

Record-Setting Year
MSUM's prolific offense set several records in 2013. That includes total offense in a season (5,057 yards) and first downs in a season (265). The team set single-game records for total yards (685), passing yards (472), individual passing yards (Jake Hodge, 472) and individual receiving yards (Cory Ambrose, 237). The team also set a record for the longest player from scrimmage in school history when Hodge connected with Ambrose for a 92-yard touchdown in a win over Minot State. That offense returns 10 starters plus has the healthy return of junior Preston Prince, who missed the last half of the 2013 campaign with an injury.

2014 Captains
MSUM's senior linebacker Lomumba Ismail and sophomore linebacker Aaron Bohl are the Dragons' 2014 team captains.

No Place Like Home
Nearly half of the Dragons' 2014 roster is from Minnesota, as 43 players hail from the Land of 10,000 Lakes.  The next state is neighboring North Dakota with 18 players.

Hodge Earns Preseason Honors
MSUM quarterback Jake Hodge has been named to the USA College Football Preseason All-American second team, it was announced in July. He set a single-game MSUM record with 472 passing yards against Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 12, 2013) and finished season 181-of-311 passing for 2,518 yards and 24 touchdowns. The Kasson, Minn., native also rushed for 615 yards and 11 touchdowns on 116 carries.