Football | 9/28/2016 2:56:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team opens Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division play on Saturday at Minnesota Duluth. Game time is 1:05 p.m. at James S. Malosky Stadium in Duluth, Minn.

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 Minnesota Duluth would…
—would be the Dragons' first win over the Bulldogs since 1999
—would make MSUM 1-0 in NSIC North Division
—be the first win over a nationally-ranked team in the Steve Laqua era
—be the Dragons' first road win of 2016

Series History
MSUM and Minnesota Duluth will meet for a 58th time with the Bulldogs holding a 33-20-4 lead in the series. UMD has won 14 straight meetings, including a 47-14 win in Moorhead in 2015. MSUM's last win in the series came in 1999 in Duluth when the Dragons prevailed 20-14.

Last five meetings
2015: UMD 47, MSUM 14 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2014: UMD 63, MSUM 28 (in Duluth, Minn.)
2013: UMD 69, MSUM 45 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2012: UMD 45, MSUM 14 (in Duluth, Minn.)
2011: UMD 49, MSUM 21 (in Moorhead, Minn.)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his sixth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 19-40 at the school, while Curt Wiese is in his fourth year as UMD's head coach with a record of 36-7 at the school.

About MSUM
MSUM is 2-2 overall after losing to No. 21 Minnesota State, 28-14 on Sept. 24. The Dragons were within 14-7 going into the final quarter before MSUM pulled away late. Sophomore running back Austin Stone rushed for 102 yards and a score in the win while junior quarterback Demetrius Carr was 20-of-40 passing for 165 yards and a touchdown. Junior receiver Damon Gibson caught seven passes for 67 yards in the losing effort. On defense, senior linebacker Aaron Bohl had a season-high 13 tackles to go with a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Junior linebacker Abe Roehrich had seven tackles, a forced fumble and a sack.

Carr has thrown for 845 yards and nine touchdowns in four games. Stone has rushed for 367 yards and three touchdowns. Gibson has 35 catches for 478 yards and five touchdowns to lead the receiving corps, while junior receiver Hunter Braaten has 28 catches for 206 yards. The Dragons average 24.8 points per game and record 382.2 yards per game of total offense.

Sophomore safety Michael Strand leads the defense with 34 tackles and an interception. Roehrich has 32 tackles, a sack, an interception and two pass breakups. Bohl has 30 tackles and two forced fumbles. Sophomore defensive back Grant Reuer leads the team with three forced fumbles to go with 24 tackles. Sophomore defensive lineman Jeff Stith leads with two sacks while sophomore cornerback Jerry Raye has a team-best six pass breakups.

MSUM allows 28.8 points per game and 429.0 yards of total offense.

About Minnesota Duluth
The Bulldogs are coming off of a 41-38 home win over Augustana on Sept. 24. UMD trailed 31-17 in the third quarter and rallied to win with a late touchdown on a 46-yard pass from Drew Bauer to Nate Ricci with 2:19 left. UMD has won 18 straight games at home.

Bauer is having an outstanding season at quarterback. He has rushed for 412 yards and three scores and has thrown for 1,155 yards and nine scores. Bauer leads the NSIC at 391.8 yards of total offense per game. Darren Walker has rushed for 433 yards and five scores for UMD. Ricci is the top receiver for UMD with 19 catches for 400 yards and three scores.  On offense UMD averaged 41.2 points per game and 551.2 yards of total offense.

The Bulldog defense allows 40.0 points per game and 460.5 yards of total offense. Beau Bates leads UMD with 28 tackles and four sacks. Zach Bassuener has 3.5 sacks while Sam Lynch has two interceptions. Taylor Streiff has two forced fumbles, which is tied for second in the NSIC.

More about the Dragons
Defense Delivers
An improving defense has been key for MSUM through four games. The Dragons lead the NSIC with 12 turnovers forced (six forced fumbles, six interceptions). MSUM is allowing 28.8 points per game this season, down from 33.1 in 2015.  The biggest improvement is in pass defense, where MSUM is allowing 200.5 yards per game this season, compared to 248.8 last season.

Stone Hits 100
Sophomore running back Austin Stone rushed for the first 100-yard game of his collegiate career last week in the loss at Minnesota State. Stone rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown in that game. He is sixth in the NSIC in rushing yards per game at 91.8.

Carr's Climb
Junior quarterback Demetrius Carr has climbed into the top five in a pair of career statistical categories at MSUM. Carr is now fourth in career passing yards (3,965) and fourth in total offense (4,793). He is less than 100 yards behind third-place Mark Reed on the passing yards list.

Forcing the Issue
Sophomore defensive back Grant Reuer is making the most of his first year as a starter on the Dragon defense. Reuer leads the NSIC with three forced fumbles through four games. Reuer's teammate Jerry Raye has two forced fumbles which is tied for second.

Gibson Leads the Way
Junior receiver Damon Gibson is having an outstanding season at the wide receiver position. He leads the NSIC at 8.75 receptions per game and is fourth at 119.5 receiving yards per game. He had a streak of four straight 100-yard receiving games snapped at Mankato. Gibson is 10th in the NSIC in all-purpose yardage per game at 119.5 per game.

Week 5 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 1-4 in Week 5 games under Head Coach Steve Laqua. In 2011, the Dragons lost to Minnesota-Duluth, 49-21 and in 2012, lost their homecoming game to Northern State, 45-7. In 2013, MSUM edged Northern State, 47-46 in Aberdeen, S.D. before losing to nationally-ranked UMD, 63-28 in 2014 and 47-14 in 2015.

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.