Football | 10/7/2015 3:37:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team will look to rebound from back-to back losses when it plays at Northern State. Kickoff is 1 p.m. at Swisher Field in Aberdeen, S.D.

Dragon broadcasters Steve d'Eustachio and Larry Scott will have the call, which can be heard at msumdragons.com.  Live online audio, video and live stats can be accessed there as well.  

MSUM is 3-2 on the year, while Northern State is 1-4

A win over Northern would…
—give the Dragons wins in two of the last three meetings with Northern State
—would match the MSUM win total from 2014
—would make MSUM 1-1 in NSIC North Division
—snap a two-game season losing streak

Series History
MSUM and Northern State will meet for a 53rd time with the Wolves holding a 29-22-1 series lead. The last two meetings have been decided by a combined three points.

Last five meetings:
2014: Northern State 40, MSUM 38 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2013: MSUM 47, Northern State 46 (in Aberdeen, S.D.)
2012: Northern State 45, MSUM 7 (in Moorhead.)
2011: Northern State 42, MSUM 21 (in Moorhead.)
2010: Northern State 16, MSUM 7 (in Aberdeen)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his fifth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 14-35, while Tom Dosch is in his sixth season at Northern State with a record of 26-34.

About MSUM
MSUM faced its first ranked opponent of the 2015 season on Oct. 3 and fell against No. 25 Minnesota Duluth, dropping a 47-14 decision to the Bulldogs at Scheels Field at Nemzek Stadium. Sophomore quarterback Demetrius Carr threw for a touchdown and rushed for a touchdown while junior safety Jesse Beilke led the defense with a career-high 14 tackles.

Senior quarterback Jake Hodge, who has missed two games with injury and played only a few plays against UMD, has thrown for 547 yards and seven touchdowns in two starts while rushing for 124 yards.  Carr, who has made three straight starts and has thrown for 685 yards and five touchdowns. . Medhaug has rushed for 204 yards and four scores. Senior receiver Adam Jiskra leads the receiving corps with 19 catches for 255 yards and five scores, while sophomore Damon Gibson has 16 catches for 344 yards and three scores.  MSUM averages 26.0 points per game on offense and posts 398.0 yards per game in total offense. The Dragons rush for 151.6 yards per game and throw for 246.4 yards per game.

On defense, redshirt freshman safety Michael Strand has 33 tackles and shares the team lead with two interceptions. Junior linebacker Aaron Bohl is next with 32 tackles. Sophomore defensive tackle Jake Busse leads with 2.5 sacks and a total of 6.0 tackles for loss.  Senior cornerback Chris Binford has two interceptions and leads with four pass breakups. MSUM allows 34.8 points per game and allows 215.4 yards per game on the ground. Teams are throwing for 251.4 yards per game against the Dragons this season and are compiling 466.8 total yards per game.

About Northern State
Northern State is 1-4 overall and 1-0 in the NSIC North. The Wolves earned their first win of the season last week with a 45-14 rout of Minot State.  Six different Wolves players scored touchdowns in the win.

The Wolves are led in rushing by Nicholas Truen, who has 269 yards and two touchdowns this season. Freshman quarterback Kyle Lavand is 91-of-147 passing for 835 yards and six touchdowns.  Connor Doherty has 24 catches for 290 yards and a score to lead the receiving corps. The Wolves score 19.6 points per game and have managed 293.8 yards per game in total offense.

Devin Olson leads the NSU defense with 37 tackles, including five for a loss, while Channing Barber has 22.5 tackles and two interceptions.  Northern State allows 24.0 points per game and teams are recording 385.6 yards of total offense per game against them.

More about the Dragons
Beilke's Big Day
Junior safety Jesse Beilke had one of the best days of his Dragon career in the loss to Minnesota Duluth. The Buffalo, N.D., native had a career-high 14 tackles and a sack against the Bulldogs.  The 14 tackles were the most by a Dragon player this season. Beilke is tied for third on the Dragon defense with 28 tackles. He also has a sack and an interception this season.

Schutz Blocks Another
Senior defensive lineman Steve Schutz has shown a knack for blocking extra points and field goals during his career. The Kimball, Minn., native blocked a field goal against Minnesota Duluth for his third blocked kick of the season. In 2013 Schutz also blocked two field goals, giving him five blocks for his career with six regular-season games remaining this year. Schutz is tied for fifth in the nation in blocked kicks.

Jiskra Surpasses 200
Senior receiver Adam Jiskra had two catches for 14 yards against SMSU before leaving the game with an injury that has left him out indefinitely. Those two catches put him at 201 for his career, making him just the second Dragon receiver to surpass 200 receptions for his career. Jiskra is also one of three players in NSIC history with 200 receptions or more. The Grafton, N.D., native already holds MSUM records for receiving yards (2,925) and receiving touchdowns (31).

Medhaug Moves Into the Top Five
Senior running back Zayne Medhaug has been very familiar with the end zone during the past two seasons. He scored on a five-yard rushing touchdown in the game at SMSU last week. Medhaug now has 222 career points, putting him fifth all-time in MSUM school history.

Starting on the Right Foot
MSUM's 3-0 start was the Dragons' first since 1987. Those three wins — all coming against NSIC South Opponents — came against teams picked to finish ahead of the Dragons in the preseason poll - Augustana (4th), Winona State (6th) and Concordia-St. Paul (eighth).

Week 6 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 0-4 in Week 6 games under Head Coach Steve Laqua. In 2011, the Dragons lost to Southwest Minnesota State, 45-13 and in 2012, they lost at Minnesota-Duluth 45-14. MSUM lost to UMD, 69-45 in 2013 in Moorhead and was edged by Northern State, 40-38 in 2014.

NSIC Rankings
The Dragons rank in the top five individually and team-wise in the NSIC statistics:
Team
—Red Zone Offense (80.0, 5th)
—Pass efficiency (153.4, 3rd)
Individual
—Total Offense -Jake Hodge (332.5, 1st)
—Passing Offense - Jake Hodge, (273.5, 3rd)
—Pass efficiency - Hodge (165.16, 2nd); Carr (148.2, 5th)
—Scoring (TDs) -Adam Jiskra (7.5 ppg, 4th)
—Interceptions - Michael Strand/Chris Binford, 2 (tied for second)

Stalwarts Up Front
Seniors Bennen Bierman (left tackle) and Troy Peterson (right tackle) have each started all 38 games over the past three seasons on the offensive line -- combining for 76 starts in their careers.. The offensive line play is among the keys to the Dragon offense's growth over the past two seasons.

Team captains
Junior linebacker Aaron Bohl and senior running back Zayne Medhaug were selected as MSUM's 2015 team captains. It is the third straight year Bohl has served as team captain.

NSIC Player of the Week — x 2 QB
MSUM has had two NSIC Offensive Players of the Week so far in 2015 — and both players are quarterbacks. Senior Jake Hodge was named the NSIC Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 7 after throwing for five touchdowns in the win over Winona State.  Sophomore quarterback Demetrius Carr earned the honors on Sept. 21 after throwing for 446 yards and four touchdowns.

Strand Steps Up Big
Redshirt freshman safety Michael Strand had a big game in the 35-34 win over Augustana on Sept. 19. The Barnesville, Minn., native intercepted two passes — including the game-clincher in the final minute — to help MSUM secure the win. For his efforts, Strand was named the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 21. Strand is second on the Dragon defense with 33 tackles and is tied for second in the NSIC lead with two interceptions.

That's a Top 10 play…
The dramatic finish of the Dragons' 30-28 win over Concordia-St. Paul on Sept. 12 brought national attention for the MSUM program.  Junior Cory Ambrose hauled in a tipped pass in the end zone to give the Dragons a dramatic 30-28 win. The play made ESPN's Sportscenter Top 10 plays for Saturday, coming in at No. 2 on the rankings.