Football | 10/4/2017 2:43:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team hosts Minnesota Duluth for its homecoming game at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Scheels Field at Nemzek Stadium in Moorhead.

The contest will be broadcast on WDAY'Z Xtra. Check local listings for availability in your area.

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 found at msumdragons.com.  

An MSUM win over UMD would be…
—the first Dragon win over the Bulldogs since 1999
—the second straight homecoming win for MSUM
—the second home win in three games for MSUM

Series History
MSUM and Minnesota Duluth will meet for a 59th time with the Bulldogs holding a 34-20-4 lead in the series. UMD has won 15 straight meetings. MSUM's last win in the series came in 1999 in Duluth when the Dragons prevailed 20-14.
 
Previous 5 meetings:
2016: UMD 42, MSUM 34 (in Duluth, Minn.)
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.)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his seventh season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 26-45 at the school. Curt Wiese is in his fifth season as UMD's head coach with a record of 46-10.

About MSUM
The Dragons dropped a 28-20 contest to Northern State on Sept. 30. The Dragons twice had the ball inside the Wolves' 10-yard line in the fourth quarter but came away with zero points. Senior receiver Damon Gibson tied an MSUM single-game with 16 receptions while senior running back Austin Stone rushed for 131 yards and a score.

For the season, senior quarterback Demetrius Carr has thrown for 1,338 yards and seven touchdowns.  Senior receiver Damon Gibson has caught 48 passes for 554 yards and three scores while senior receiver Hunter Braaten has 29 catches for 312 yards and a score. Stone has 378 rushing yards and five scores through five games while sophomore Jonathan Kabambi has 263 yards rushing.

MSUM scores 25.6 points a game and records 443.4 yards of total offense per game.

Senior linebacker Abe Roehrich leads the defense with 33 tackles and two fumble recoveries. Junior Aaron Doan has 27 tackles while junior linebacker Carter Thiel has 25 tackles.  Junior Michael Strand has 23 tackles and five pass breakups. Sophomore defensive end Miles Baggett leads with 8.5 tackles for loss and four sacks. Junior cornerback Jerry Raye has an interception and forced a key fumble in the win over Concordia-St. Paul.

The Dragons allow 29.6 points per game and 368.6 yards of total offense.

About Minnesota Duluth
The Bulldogs are 3-2 after recording a 34-21 home win over St. Cloud State on Sept. 28. The Bulldogs led 20-0 at halftime and held a 471-283 edge in total offense.

UMD scores 26.2 points per game and averages 396.0 yards a contest in total offense. Anthony Wood leads the ground game with 290 yards and three touchdowns on 50 carries.  Sophomore quarterback Ben Eberhart has thrown for 988 yards and seven touchdowns.  Jason Balts leads UMD with 31 catches for 519 yards and three scores while Dominic Bonner has 21 catches for 267 yards and three scores.

On defense the Bulldogs allow 27.4 points per game and 344.2 yards of total offense.  Gus Wedig leads with 31 tackles while Bishop McDonald has 30. AJ Naatz has three sacks while Zach Bassuener has recorded two fumbles.

More about the Dragons
Carr Sets Record
Senior quarterback Demetrius Carr became MSUM's all-time leader in passing yards during the Dragons' contest at Northern State. Carr needed 12 yards to set the new record and threw for 249 yards vs. the Wolves.  Carr now has 7,167 yards passing, with Jake Hodge in second at 6,929. Carr is second in MSUM history in total offense with 8,247 yards, trailing only Hodge, who has 8,608.

First Things First
MSUM leads the NSIC with 126 first downs through five games. That is tied for the sixth-best total in Division II this season. The Dragons have 51 rushing first downs, 64 passing first downs and 11 as a result of opponents' penalties.

Century Mark x 2
After not having a 100-yard rusher during the first three weeks, MSUM has had two over the past two games.  Sophomore running back Jonathan Kabambi recorded the first 100-yard rushing game of his career on Sept. 23 in the win over CSP. Kabambi had 23 carries for a career-high 120 yards in the win and ran for two key first downs on the final drive to help preserve the Dragon win. Last week in the loss to Northern, MSUM senior running back Austin Stone rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown for the fourth 100-yard rushing game of his career.

Gibson Nearing 200
All-American wide receiver Damon Gibson continues to climb the career receiving charts at MSUM. Entering this week Gibson has 185 career receptions, which is third-most in MSUM history. He trails second-place Adam Jiskra by 16 and all-time leader Jabari Taylor by 29. Gibson leads the NSIC in receptions (48) and receptions per game (9.3) and receiving yards per game (110.8). The Beardsley, Minn., native is eighth in the nation in receptions per game. Gibson has 17 100-yard receiving games in his Dragon career and tied a single-game record with 16 receptions at Northern State.

Week 6 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 1-5 in Week 6 games under Head Coach Steve Laqua. MSUM picked up a 41-12 win over Minnesota Crookston in 2016, ending a streak of five straight losses in that week during Laqua's tenure. n 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. In 2015, MSUM lost to Northern State 48-26 in Aberdeen, S.D.

Homecoming in the Laqua era
MSUM is 2-4 in homecoming games under Laqua, with both wins coming over Minnesota Crookston. The Dragons beat the Golden Eagles, 29-22 in 2011 and 41-12 in 2016. From 2012-15 MSUM lost four straight homecoming games.

Miles Makes His Mark
Sophomore defensive end Miles Baggett is making a big impact from his defensive line position. He is second in the NSIC at 1.70 tackles for loss per game and with 8.5 tackles for loss. Baggett has eightsolo stops for loss. Baggett is second in the NSIC at four sacks, and he also has a forced fumble and fumble recovery.

Braaten Nears Top 5
Senior receiver Hunter Braaten has become a reliable receiving target for Carr. He is tied for fifth in the NSIC with 29 receptions and 5.8 receptions per game. He also has a receiving touchdown. In his four-year Dragon career, Braaten has 138 receptions and nine touchdowns. Braaten trails Bruce Green (146 receptions) by eight catches for fifth on the MSUM all-time list.

Bresnahan All-Purpose Threat
Redshirt freshman Grady Bresnahan is tied for fifth with teammate Damon Gibson in the NSIC in all-purpose yards at 110.8. He has a total of 554 all-purpose yards — 270 receiving yards, 122 punt return yards and 162 kick returns. Bresnahan is second in the NSIC at 13.6 yards per punt return, an average that puts him 18th in the nation.