Football | 10/12/2016 3:37:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team will play back-to-back home games for the first time this season when it hosts St. Cloud State on Saturday at 2 p.m. The game will be at Scheels Field at Nemzek Stadium.

The game will be broadcast on WDAY'Z Xtra and also online with Dragon broadcasters Steve d'Eustachio and Larry Scott on the call. Live video, stats and audio can be heard at msumdragons.com.  

A win over St. Cloud State would…
—be the Dragons' first win over St. Cloud State since 1983
—give MSUM a 4-0 record at home this season and a five-game home winning streak overall
—improve MSUM to 2-1 in the NSIC North
—give MSUM back-to-back wins for the first time this season

Series History
MSUM and St. Cloud State will meet for a 61st time with the Huskies holding a 35-23-2 lead in a series which dates back to 1920. The Huskies have won nine straight in the series, including a 59-21 win a year ago in St. Cloud, Minn.

Last five meetings
2015: St. Cloud State 59, MSU Moorhead 21 (in St. Cloud, Minn.)
2014: St. Cloud State 55, MSU Moorhead 27 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2013: St. Cloud State 64, MSU Moorhead 27 (in St. Cloud, Minn.)
2012: St. Cloud State 39, MSU Moorhead 37 (in Moorhead)
2011: St. Cloud State 47, MSU Moorhead 14 (in St. Cloud)
Last MSUM win: 1983- MSUM 22, St. Cloud State 21

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his sixth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 20-41 at the school, while Scott Underwood is in his ninth season as the SCSU head coach with a record of 67-33 at the school.

About MSUM
MSUM evened its mark at 3-3 with a 41-12 rout of Minnesota Crookston during the Dragons' homecoming on Oct. 8. Junior receiver Damon Gibson tied an MSUM single-game record with four touchdown receptions, all coming from quarterback Demetrius Carr. On defense, senior defensive lineman Ryan Dahleen led with eight tackles and two sacks.

Sophomore Austin Stone has rushed for 503 yards and four touchdowns for MSUM while Carr has thrown for 1,007 yards and 13 touchdowns.  Gibson has caught 44 passes for 752 yards and nine touchdowns while senior Cory Ambrose has caught 23 passes for 264 yards and five touchdowns. MSUM scores 29.0 points per game and records 403 yards of total offense per game.

On defense junior linebacker Abe Roehrich has a team-best 49 tackles to go with two sacks and two interceptions.  Sophomore safety Michael Strand has 47 tackles, while senior Aaron Bohl has 40 tackles and 3.5 sacks while Dahleen also has 3.5 sacks.  MSUM has allowed 28.2 points per game and is allowing 392.3 yards per game of total offense.

About St. Cloud State
The Huskies improved to 3-3 overall and 2-0 in the NSIC North with a 41-7 rout of Mary on Oct. 8. Quarterback Nate Meyer threw for 256 yards and two scores while rushing for two more. St. Cloud State led 34-0 at halftime and rolled to the win, which was the Huskies' second straight.

Meyer has thrown for 1,651 yards and 12 touchdowns through six games. He is completing 61.1 percent of his passes and has been intercepted seven times. Jameson Parsons has caught 43 passes for 747 yards and six scores to lead the receiving corps while Jaden Huff has rushed for 282 yards and four touchdowns to lead the ground game. SCSU is averaging 23.8 points per game and is posting 366.3 yards per game of total offense.

On defense Gary Koehring has 34 tackles to lead the way while Jack Horter has 32 and Adam Josephson has 31. Carvel Graham has three interceptions while Brady Westart leads with 2.5 sacks. St. Cloud State is allowing 25.2 points per game and is surrendering 371.0 yards per game of total offense.

More about the Dragons
Sack Attack
MSUM recorded a season-high eight sacks in the win over Minnesota Crookston. That tied Minnesota Duluth for most by an NSIC team this season. The Dragons are tied for second in the NSIC with 20 sacks, trailing only Minnesota Duluth which has 27. The eight sacks are the most recorded in a game in the six years Steve Laqua has been the MSUM head coach. Eight different Dragons have recorded at least one sack. Seniors Aaron Bohl and Ryan Dahleen are tied for ninth in the league with 3.5 sacks apiece. Dahleen and freshman Matthew Domek each had two sacks in the win over UMC.

Cory Climbing the Charts
Senior receiver Cory Ambrose has been one of MSUM's most productive receivers since breaking into the lineup in 2013. With his two catches against UMC, Ambrose is now tied for third in MSUM history with 146 receptions. His next reception will break the tie with Bruce Green on the all-time list. Ambrose has 24 career touchdown receptions.

Defense Delivers
An improving defense has been key for MSUM through six games. The Dragons lead the NSIC with 16 turnovers forced (eight forced fumbles, eight interceptions). The biggest improvement is in pass defense, where MSUM is allowing 196.3 yards per game this season (third-best in the NSIC), compared to 248.8 last season.

Carr Climbs Career Ladder
Carr has moved into the top five in a pair of categories for MSUM. He is third all-time in passing yards at 4,127 and is fourth all-time in total offense at 4,990. With 10 more total offense yards, Carr will become the fourth player in school history to surpass 5,000 yards of total offense for his career.

Gibson Ties Record, Leads NSIC
Junior receiver Damon Gibson hauled in four touchdown passes in the rout of Minnesota Crookston. That tied a record set three times previously by Rick Manke (1972), Chad Davison (2003) and Bruce Green (2006).  Gibson shares the NSIC lead at 7.33 receptions per game and is third at 125.3 receiving yards per game. He picked up the fifth 100-yard receiving game of the season in the win over UMC, hauling in four passes for 140 yards.  Gibson is tied for the NSIC lead with 60 points scored this season (nine receiving TD, one blocked punt return).

Week 7 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 1-4 in Week 7 games under Laqua. They lost to Bemidji State, 35-10 in 2011, beat Minnesota Crookston, 35-13 in 2012 and lost to Minnesota Crookston on the road, 20-14. In 2014, the Dragons fell to St. Cloud State, 55-27 and in 2015, lost to Bemidji State 42-28.

Hodge Adds to Records
Senior quarterback Jake Hodge made his first start of the season against UMD and threw for 314 yards and two touchdowns. Hodge is the all-time leader in career passing yards and total offense at MSUM. Hodge has thrown for 6,854 career yards and also compiled 8,542 yards of total offense.

Home Grown
With a heavy emphasis on recruiting in the Minnesota-North Dakota area, it's not a surprise the Dragons' 2016 roster features so many players from those two states. A total of 67 players -- or two-thirds total --  hail from either Minnesota (42) or North Dakota (25).

Back to Back?
MSUM's 6-5 record in 2015 marked the Dragons' first winning season since 2006 and the first in Laqua's coaching tenure. The Dragons will aim for back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since the 1995 (6-3-1) and 1996 (7-3) campaigns.

Team captains
Senior linebacker Aaron Bohl, senior offensive lineman Jack Bixler, senior wide receiver Cory Ambrose and junior linebacker Abe Roehrich will serve as MSUM's captains in 2016. Bohl is a captain for a third straight year.