Football | 9/5/2018 3:51:00 PM

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The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team plays its first road game of 2018 when it travels to Duluth, Minn., to take on No. 24-ranked Minnesota Duluth on Saturday. Game time is 6 p.m. at Malosky Stadium in Duluth.

Both teams are off to 1-0 starts on the season.

The game will be broadcast online (audio only) with Dragon broadcaster Steve d'Eustachio the call. Live video, stats and audio can be found at msumdragons.com.  

An MSUM win over Minnesota Duluth would...
—give the Dragons their first 2-0 start since 2015
—give the Dragons their first win over UMD since 1999
—give the Dragons their first win over a ranked opponent in the Steve Laqua era.
—give the Dragons their third straight road win dating back to last season

Series History
MSUM and Minnesota Duluth will meet for a 60th time with UMD leading the series 35-20-4. The Bulldogs won 23-14 a year ago to extend the winning streak over the Dragons to 15 straight games.

Previous five meetings:
2017: UMD 23, MSUM 14 (in Moorhead, Minn.)
2016: UMD 42, MSUM 34 (in Duluth, Minn.)
2015: UMD 47, MSUM 14 (in Moorhead)
2014: UMD 63, MSUM 28 (in Duluth)
2013: UMD 69, MSUM 45 (in Moorhead)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his eighth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 30-48 at the school. Curt Wiese is in his sixth season as UMD's head coach with a record of 53-11.

About MSUM
MSUM opened the season with a 34-10 win over Minnesota Crookston on Aug. 30. The Dragons have now won four straight season openers, three of which have come at home.

Sophomore receiver Jake Richter caught five passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns, all career highs. Junior quarterback Bryce Meehl threw for 215 yards and two scores. Junior running back Herman Gray rushed for 117 yards and a score while sophomore running back Zach Simons rushed for 89 yards and a score. Junior receiver Zach Sweep hauled in three passes for 54 yards. Senior kicker Joe Tjosvold connected on two field goals while freshman punter Blake Ochsendorf averaged 39 yards per punt and pinned two inside the 20.

Senior linebacker Casey Paskey led the defense with 12 tackles while junior cornerback Deiondre Taylor had nine tackles, a forced fumble and an interception. Sophomore defensive end Darius Woods-Steichen had a team-best two sacks and is tied for the NSIC lead in that category. Senior linebacker Michael Strand recovered a fumble.

MSUM recorded 434 yards of total offense, including 219 on the ground and 215 through the air. The Dragons held UMC to 204 total yards.  MSUM also did not commit a turnover while forcing two.

About Minnesota Duluth
No. 24-ranked Minnesota Duluth opened with a 49-3 rout of Minot State on Aug. 30 in Minot. The Bulldogs built a 35-3 lead at halftime and were never threatened. The Bulldogs outgained the Beavers 583-137.

John Larson completed 9-of-15 passes for 133 yards while rushing for a touchdown. Alex Lasinski rushed for 87 yards and two scores. Wade Sullivan rushed for 71 yards and a score.  Johnny McCormick caught four passes for 67 yards.

Tareq Abulebbeh had an interception and a fumble recovery while Isaac Erdmann led with six tackles. Alex Helmer had a sack.

UMD was picked to finish fourth in the NSIC preseason coaches poll.

More about the Dragons
Meehl A Winner in First Start
Junior Bryce Meehl made his first start at quarterback of his collegiate career a winning one on Thursday vs. Minnesota Crookston. The junior from Oakes, N.D., completed 15-of-30 passes for 215 yards and two scores in the win. He didn't turn the ball over and also was only sacked once.

Gray Surpasses Century Mark
Junior running back Herman Gray picked up his second career 100-yard rushing game in the win over UMC. Gray rushed 14 times for 117 yards and a score in the win. He opened the scoring in the game with a 53-yard touchdown. His last 100-yard game came in 2015 against Minnesota Crookston.

Richter A Career Night in Opener
Sophomore receiver Jake Richter had the best game of his Dragon career during the win over UMC. He caught five passes for a career-high 123 yards and two scores in the win. He had a long reception of 66 yards. It was Richter's first 100-yard receiving game of his career.

Double-Digits for Paskey
Casey Paskey had a career-high 12 tackles in the Dragons' win over Minnesota Crookston. He had four solo stops and eight assists while also recording one tackle for loss. He also had a half-sack.

Sack Party
Darius Woods-Steichen had a career-high two sacks in the win over UMC. The performance was part of five sacks by the Dragon defense, which held UMC to 10 points and 204 yards of total offense.

Good Start on D
It is only one game into the season but the Dragon defense is off to a good start. MSUM is second in the NSIC in fewest points allowed (10.0), second in pass defense (72.0), second in turnover margin (+2) and second in total defense (204.0).

Youth Movement
Nearly half of MSUM's roster is freshmen, as 48 are on the roster this year. That does not include nine redshirt freshmen from a year ago.

Home Grown
A total of 69 players on MSUM's roster are from Minnesota and North Dakota as the Dragon coaching staff continues to emphasize recruiting locally. A total of 38 players are from Minnesota.  There are 16 players from Wisconsin and 12 from Illinois.

Week 2 Under Laqua
MSUM is 1-6 in Week 2 games under Laqua.  In 2011, MSUM lost to Winona State, 48-10 and lost to Sioux Falls, 45-10 in 2012. In 2013, at Nemzek Stadium, in a game-long downpour, the Dragons lost to Southwest Minnesota State, 27-20. In 2014 MSUM lost to No. 4-ranked Minnesota State, 69-13 at home. MSUM got its first Week 2 win under Laqua with a thrilling 30-28 last-second win over Concordia-St. Paul in 2015. In 2016 MSUM lost at nationally-ranked Sioux Falls, 42-21 and last year fell to SMSU 51-35.