Football | 10/23/2019 2:09:00 PM

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Game Notes (pdf)
The Minnesota State University Moorhead football team begins a stretch of back-to-back road games this Saturday at Southwest Minnesota State.  Kickoff is at 1 p.m. at the Schwan Regional Event Center in Marshall, Minn.

Both teams enter the game with 3-4 records.

Live stats, video and live audio broadcast with Steve d'Eustachio and Donn Groth can be found at msumdragons.com

An MSUM win over SMSU would...
—give the Dragons their first win over the Mustangs since 2007, ending a seven-game losing streak in the series
--give the Dragons their first win in the month of October
--end a three-game MSUM losing streak.

Series History
MSUM and SMSU will meet for a 47th time with the Dragons leading the series at 27-19.  The Mustangs have won seven straight in the series dating back to 2008. The Dragons' last win over SMSU came in 2007 at the Metrodome by a 41-27 score.
Previous five meetings:
2017: SMSU 51, MSUM 35 (in Moorhead)
2015: SMSU 48, MSUM 9 (in Marshall)
2013: SMSU 27, MSUM 20 (in Moorhead)
2011: SMSU 45, MSUM 13 (in Moorhead)
2010: SMSU 49, MSUM 14 (in Marshall)
Last MSUM win: 2007 (41-27 at Dome)

The Head Coaches
Steve Laqua is in his ninth season as MSUM's head coach with a record of 40-56 at the school. Cory Sauter is in his 10th year as the SMSU head coach with a record of 43-64.

About MSUM
MSUM dropped its third straight game with a 48-3 home loss to Augustana last week. Junior kicker Hobet Diaz kicked a field goal to account for the Dragon points. Junior running back Ty Jochim rushed for 101 yards. Darius Woods-Steichen had 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble for the defense.

MSUM averages 25.9 points per game and 299.7 yards per game of total offense. Jochim leads the ground game with 260 yards and three scores while freshman quarterback Matthew Plasterer has completed 58.2 percent of his passes for 1,142 yards and six touchdowns; he's been intercepted seven times.  Junior receiver Grady Bresnahan has 45 catches for 577 yards and four scores to lead the receiving corps.

On defense junior safety Shad Vedaa leads with 48 tackles, including four for loss. Woods-Steichen leads with 5.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss. Sophomore defensive back Deontre Wade and freshman defensive back Parker Syverson each have two interceptions. Vedaa and Woods-Steichen have two forced fumbles apiece.

MSUM is allowing 31.0 points per game and 370.0 yards per game of total offense.

About SMSU
The Mustangs are 3-4 after beating St. Cloud State, 42-38 on the road last week. Boyer Bouman connected with Daniel Davis for a 13-yard touchdown in the final minute to provide the winning score.

SMSU is scoring 23.6 points per game and 318.9 yards per game of total offense.

Max Simmons leads the ground game with 382 yards and two scores. Bouman has thrown for 954 yards and nine touchdowns in five starts. Davis leads the NSIC in receiving and has 48 catches for 639 yards and eight scores.

Onte Burns has 69 tackles to lead the defense while Davaeon Johnson has 57 along with two interceptions. Marshawn Reese has two interceptions as well. SMSU allows 30.9 points per game and 478.7 yards per game of total offense.

More about the Dragons
100-Yard Club
Junior Ty Jochim rushed for 101 yards in the loss to Augustana. Jochim became MSUM's first 100-yard rusher of the 2019 season and first since Herman Gray rushed for 117 yards vs. Minnesota Crookston on Aug. 30, 2008.

Interceptions Up
Through seven games, MSUM's defense has recorded seven interceptions. That number shows an improvement from 2018 when the team recorded six in 12 games. Freshman Parker Syverson and sophomore Deontre Wade lead the way for MSUM with two picks apiece. Syverson returned an interception 30 yards for a touchdown in the first half of MSUM's 47-32 win over UMary on Sept. 28. That is the first time MSUM has returned an interception for a score since Sheldon Jones did so vs. Minnesota Crookston in 2012. Syverson finished with two interceptions in the game, becoming the first Dragon to have two in one game since Michael Strand did so against Augustana in 2015.

Grady's Grabs
Junior receiver Grady Bresnahan is second in the NSIC at 6.43 receptions per game which is 16th-best in the nation. Bresnahan leads the Dragons with 45 catches for 577 yards and four scores.

Week 8 Under Laqua
The Dragons are 4-4 in Week 8 games under Laqua after losing to Sioux Falls 55-21 in 2018. That includes a 49-7 win over Minnesota Crookston in 2017 and a 47-16 win over U-Mary in 2016. In 2011, they lost at Augustana, 35-3 and in 2012, they lost at Mary, 23-7. In 2013 they beat Mary, 48-41 and in 2014, they lost at Mary, 52-45. MSUM got a win in 2015 with a 30-20 victory at Minot State.

National Rankings
In addition to Bresnahan's receiving numbers, three Dragons are ranked in the top 35 nationally in the following categories:
--Carter Blackwell is tied for fourth in the national with two blocked punts
--Hobet Diaz is ranked 30th in field-goal percentage at 75 percent
--Darius Woods-Steichen is 31st at 0.79 sacks per game.
Team-wise, MSUM is ranked
--seventh nationally with five blocked kicks
--seventh in the nation with fewest lost fumbles (two)
--eighth in fewest penalty yards per game (40.0)
--22nd in third-down conversion defense (28.7)

Home Grown
MSUM has placed an emphasis on recruiting local talent, and this year's roster has 38 players from Minnesota and 38 from North Dakota.