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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team hits the road to face Bemidji State in the Battle for the Axe on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Bemidji, Minn.

The Axe is the second-oldest traveling trophy in Division II, dating back to 1929. Bemidji State currently holds the Axe after beating the Dragons 42-28 in 2015.

The game will be broadcast 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 Bemidji State would…
—be the Dragons' third straight win, which would tie the longest winning streak in Steve Laqua coaching era
—give the Dragons their best 10-game start since 1999
—give MSUM the Axe for the first time since 2014
—ensure back-to-back winning seasons for MSUM for the first time since 1995 and 1996

Series History
MSUM and Bemidji State will meet for the 83rd time with the Dragons holding a 45-34-3 series lead.
 
Previous meetings:
2015: Bemidji State 42, MSUM 28 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2014: MSUM 27, Bemidji State 21 (in Bemidji)
2013: MSUM 35, Bemidji State 17 (in Moorhead)
2012: Bemidji State 35, MSU Moorhead 25 (in Bemidji)
2011: Bemidji State 35, MSU Moorhead 10 (in Bemidji)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his sixth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 22-42 at the school, Brent Bolte is in his first season as Bemidji State's interim head coach with a record of 7-2.

About MSUM
MSUM picked up its second straight win on Oct. 29 with a 42-24 rout of Minot State. The Dragons outgained the Beavers 457-307, including 277-146 through the air.  Junior quarterback Demetrius Carr threw for 277 yards and five touchdowns while junior receiver Damon Gibson has seven catches for 129 yards. Junior receiver Hunter Braaten caught four passes for 114 yards and two scores. Sophomore running back Austin Stone rushed for 97 yards and a score for MSUM.

Stone leads the ground game with 788 yards and eight touchdowns. Carr has rushed for four scores and 288 yards. Carr is 140-of-231 passing for 1,837 yards and 22 touchdowns, along with just five interceptions. Gibson leads the receiving group with 69 catches for 1,184 yards and 12 touchdowns. Braaten has 44 catches for 463 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Cory Ambrose has 31 catches for 448 yards and seven touchdowns. MSUM scores 33.4 points per game and records 443.3 yards of total offense.

The Dragon defense is led by sophomore safety Michael Strand, who has 66 tackles and three interceptions. Junior linebacker Abe Roehrich had 63 tackles and two interceptions. Senior defensive end Ryan Dahleen leads with 5.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss. Sophomore cornerback Jerry Raye has two interceptions as well while junior defensive lineman Jake Busse has 4.5 sacks. The Dragon defense surrenders 27.8 points per game and 382.8 yards of total offense.

About Bemidji State
The Beavers (7-2, 5-1 NSIC North), who are ranked eighth in the latest regional rankings and are receiving votes in the AFCA Division II poll, are 7-2 overall and 4-1 in the NSIC North. The Beavers recorded a 48-7 rout of St. Cloud State last week in St. Cloud, Minn. Quarterback Jordan Hein threw for 381 yards and four touchdowns while also rushing for a touchdown. Blake Holder caught five passes for 149 yards and a score.

Gena Adams leads Bemidji State with 841 rushing yards and six touchdowns. Tahi Nomane has rushed for nine touchdowns. Hein has thrown for 2,137 yards and 20 touchdowns this season while completing 59.1 percent of his passes. Juwaan Richard leads the receiving corps with 28 catches for 401 yards and six touchdowns while Holder has 24 catches for 480 yards and four touchdowns. Bemidji State scores 43.8 points per game, which is best in the NSIC. The Beavers record 518 yards per game of total offense.

Trysten Ross leads Bemidji State with 69 tackles, including eight for loss. Alex Burgess has 7.5 sacks while Damon Benham has four interceptions. The Beavers allow 23.9 points per game and 403 yards per game of total offense.

More about the Dragons
Gibson Sets a Record
Junior receiver Damon Gibson is ranked among the top receivers, statistically, in Division II. He also put his name in the MSUM record books, as he is now the Dragons' all-time leader in single-season receiving yards. Gibson now has 1,184 yards receiving this season, breaking the old record 1,147 set by Jabari Taylor in 2007. Gibson ranks second in Division II in receiving yards (1,184) and receiving yards per game (131.6), both of which lead the NSIC. He is fourth in the nation in receptions per game (7.7) and seven in receiving touchdowns (12).  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).  

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 4,956 and is now third all-time in total offense at 6,010.  Carr is the third player in school history to surpass 6,000 yards of total offense for his career, joining Jake Hodge (8,608) and Dustin Long (6,030). Carr threw for a season-high 387 yards against St. Cloud State and has fired 22 touchdowns compared to five interceptions this season.

Carr Ranked Nationally
Carr is having a strong season as the Dragons' quarterback. He has thrown for 1,837 yards and 22 touchdowns this season.  Carr is 12th in the nation in points responsible per game (19.5) and 19th in points responsible for (156).
His 22 pass touchdowns are 19th in the nation, while is pass efficiency of 154.5 is 22nd.

All-Around Game
MSUM played a solid all-around game in the win over Minot State. MSUM outgained the Beavers 457-307, committed a season-low three penalties for 25 yards and also committed a season-low zero turnovers. The Dragons scored six touchdowns on their 10 offensive possessions.

Stone Closing in on 1,000
After not playing for the past two seasons, sophomore running back Austin Stone has made a big return to the field in 2016, having rushed for 788 yards and eight touchdowns. Stone rushed for a career-high 145 yards and two scores in the loss to St. Cloud State. Stone ranks seventh in the NSIC at 87.6 rushing yards per game and is 212 yards away from becoming  MSUM's first 1,000-yard rusher since Zayne Medhaug rushed for 1,127 yards in 2014.

Defense Makes Progress
MSUM's defense has been an improved unit in 2016, as the statistics indicate. MSUM is ranked fourth in the NSIC in total defense (392.2), third in pass defense efficiency (118.9), fifth in sacks (26), and tied for fourth in overall turnovers forced (19). Ten different Dragon players have forced fumbles this year while seven different players have intercepted at least one pass.

Ambrose Ascends
Senior receiver Cory Ambrose has been one of MSUM's most productive receivers since breaking into the lineup in 2013. Ambrose has moved into third in MSUM history with 154 receptions, trailing only Jabari Taylor (214) and Adam Jiskra (201). He also has 26 career touchdown receptions.

Week 10 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 3-2 in Week 10 games under Head Coach Steve Laqua.  The Dragons lost to Northern State, 42-21 in 2011 and lost at Bemidji State, 35-25 in 2012 before beating Bemidji State 35-17 in 2013.  In 2014, the Dragons beat Bemidji State, 27-21 and in 2015, MSUM blanked Mary, 37-0.

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.