The University of Minnesota Duluth will continue on its diet of North Central Conference competition Saturday (Oct. 13) when the Bulldogs play host to Minnesota State University-Mankato. Opening kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Malosky Stadium (4,000 capacity/artificial turf) on the UMD campus.

The Bulldogs, who are riding a season-best two-game winning streak, are an even 3-3 overall and 2-2 in NCC play (fifth place) while the Mavericks also own a 3-3 record in all games, including a 1-2 NCC mark (sixth place).

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UMD-MSU Football Notes




HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and MSU-Mankato stack up in this week's American Football Coaches Association Division II and d2football.com polls:



AFCA d2football

UMD NR NR

MSU RV NR

In the first NCAA Division II poll released this week, the Bulldogs held down the No. 12 spot in the Northwest Region rankings while MSU was rated 10th.

THE BROADCAST: Saturday afternoon's Bulldog-Maverick clash will be carried locally on KDAL-Radio (610 AM) with Ray Schow handling the play-by-play responsibilities. All UMD games during the entire 2007 season can be heard via the internet as well at: umdbulldogs.com.

Saturday's game will also be video streamed live on cstv.com. as part of their regional NCAA II football package. The broadcast can be accessed at: www.cstv.com/ncaa/divii.

THE COACHES: The 2005 NCC Coach of the Year, Kyle \"Bubba\" Schweigert (Jamestown College, 1985) is in his fourth season at UMD and has an 21-18 overall record to show for it, including a 2-1 mark against MSU. Two years ago, Schweigert directed his troops to an 8-4 finish (defeating three AFCA Top 20 teams along the way), a share of the school’s initial NCC title, and its second NCAA Division II playoff berth in four years. For his efforts, he was named the d2football.com Northwest Region Coach of the Year and the American Football Coaches Association Division II Coach of the Year for Region 5. Prior to officially being named the school's fifth head coach on Dec. 23, 2003, Schweigert spent 15 seasons at North Dakota where he helped guide the Fighting Sioux to six NCC titles. During his tenure, North Dakota also secured an NCAA II playoff berth on eight occasions, making it to the semifinal round four times and the title game twice (including in 2001 when it won the national championship). Schweigert began his Fighting Sioux coaching career as the team’s defensive secondary coach before taking over the defensive coordinator duties in 1998. Three years later, he added the title of assistant head coach.

Jeff Jamrog (University of Nebraska, 1987) is also in his fourth year of head coaching duty at MSU where he has generated a 15-24 overall record (1-2 vs. UMD). In his Maverick debut seasons three years ago, Jamrog helped orchestrate the greatest single-season turnaround in school history, leading MSU to a 6-5 finish (and its first winning record in a decade) after the Mavericks had gone 0-11 the previous year.

THE RIVALRY: The Bulldogs and Mavericks will collide for the 32nd time ever Saturday. UMD hold a commanding 18-12-1 lead in the series, which began back on Sept. 30, 1932 in Duluth. After a 12-year layoff from 1985 to 1996, the two clubs have squared off in each of the past 11 seasons.

LAST WEEK: UMD, in perhaps its best start-to-finish performance of 2007, got touchdowns from four different players and held an substantial advantage in nearly every statistical category while cruising to a 34-7 North Central Conference road victory over Augustana College. Junior quarterback Ted Schlafke completed 33 of 45 passes for 241 yards and a pair of scores and also rushed for a team-high 55 yards (on 16 carries). Senior Brandan Anson paced the Bulldogs with seven catches while rookie wide out Dennis Carter was on the receiving end of six catches. The Bulldogs owned the upper hand in first downs (22-12), passing yards (256-121), rushing yards (100-76) and total offense (356-197). They also forced two turnovers and did not turn the football over once themselves the entire afternoon.

MSU gave No. 2 North Dakota all it could handle and held a 10-point lead with less than seven minutes to play in regulation before finally falling 38-34 Saturday in Mankato. Maverick quarterback Ben King threw for 458 yards (the second highest single-game total in club history) while connecting on 30 of 55 passes in the setback. He hit sophomore Chris Nowlin with a 29-yard scoring strike -- King's only touchdown pass of the game -- 5:13 into the fourth quarter which gave the Mavericks a 34-24 lead. Nowlin had nine receptions for 152 yards on the day.

THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING: A pair of senior linebackers -- Nate Fears and Jon Rufledt -- along with junior quarterback Ted Schlafke are serving as the Bulldogs' team captains this fall. Schlafke also held that role one year ago and was believed to be the first sophomore to ever do so.

THEY'VE HAD THEIR NUMBER: UMD has won six of its last seven confrontations with MSU, including a 16-13 overtime decision one year ago (Oct. 14) in Mankato. The only Maverick victory during that stretch came on their last visit to Duluth on Oct. 2, 2004 (34-13).

LEADER OF THE SACK: Senior outside linebacker Cody Ahmann, who has started 28 consecutive games, currently ranks fourth on UMD's defensive charts with 32 total tackles. That includes a team-leading 3.0 quarterback sacks which gives him 17.5 for his career -- the fourth highest figure ever turned in by a Bulldog. Only Russ Rabe (29.0 sacks from 2001-04), Sean Callahan (22.5 from 1988-91) and Geoff Fischer (21.5 from 2001-04) have had more.

SEE TED, SEE TED RUN: Ted Schlafke, who currently ranks eighth on the NCAA II total offense charts (309.9 yards per outing), has also paced the Bulldogs in rushing in five of the six games to date and has ran for a team-best 313 yards this fall. That's 115 yards more than Keith Bizzle rolled up all of last year when he finished as the Bulldogs' top ground gainer.

SEE TED, SEE TED PASS: In his last three appearances, Ted Schlafke has connected on 73.1 percent of his passes, completing 95 of 130 tosses for 773 yards and seven touchdowns while being intercepted only twice. Schlafke, who tops all NCC quarterbacks this fall in both pass completions (172) and touchdowns (17), has now thrown at least one touchdown pass in 27 of his 28 games as a collegian.The only time he's been blanked in that department was when UMD butted heads with MSU-Mankato (Oct. 14, 2005). The Stevens Point, Wis., native already holds down the No. 1 spot on the Bulldogs' all-time charts for pass completions (729) and pass attempts (1,175) and is second in passing yards (7,410) and touchdown throws (66). Ricky Fritz (1998-2002) is the tam's all-time leader in those two departments (8,711 yards and 90 touchdowns). His .620 career completion percentage is also well above the current school record of .548 by Darrell McKibbon from 1970-73. In 2005, Schlafke, a two-time NCC All-Academic team pick, established single-season marks for pass completions (305), pass attempts (490), passing yardage (3,335), total offense (3,591 yards) and total plays (625) and surpassed the team single-game records in those same five categories as well. Schlafke, who was named the D2football.com National Offensive Player of the Week twice as a freshman (Oct. 31 and Nov. 7), also paced the NCC in passing yardage (308.0 yards per game in league play) and per game pass completion percentage (an NCC-record 26.16).

PUTTING HIS BEST FOOT FORWARD: Senior Luke Radke has certainly saved some of his best punting for last. The four-year regular heads into Saturday afternoon's game averaging a career-high 42.6 yards per kick this season -- a figure which is currently surpassed by only five other NCAA II punters (and no one in the NCC).

LEAD 'DOGS: The Bulldogs are 40-1 in the last 41 games in which they have been up after three quarters and 34-1 when they've led at halftime going back to November 2001. UMD has also gotten on the scoreboard first in 19 of its last 20 victories. On the flip side, since defeating South Dakota 23-21 on the road on Sept. 22, 2002, UMD has lost 20 straight games when trailing at the half and is 0-21 when it's been behind heading into the final quarter (The Bulldogs last posted a win in that situation on Sept. 8, 2001 by rallying from a 10-7 deficit to nip the University of South Dakota 14-10).

HITTING PAY DIRT: The NCC-leading nine touchdown receptions Dennis Carter has been credited with this fall are the most ever by a Bulldog rookie in one season.

WHY WAIT?: A total of six first-year freshmen (more than UMD has used in the past two seasons combined) have been called into action this fall. That sextet includes wide outs Dennis Carter, Bryan Gambuzza, Noah Pauley, and D.J. Winfield, running back Rob Casasnovas and long snapper John Rautio.

INJURY UPDATE: A trio of sophomores -- wide receiver Baylor Radtke (shoulder), cornerback Brandon Wood (shoulder) and defensive end Kevin Pexa (knee) will all be sidelined for Saturday's game. In addition, sophomore linebackers Robbie Aurich (wrist) and Korey Horn (foot) freshmen running back Rob Casasnovas (shoulder) and rookie wide out D. J. Winfield (ankle) are all out for the season.

BULLDOG BITS: Last Saturday's 34-7 win over Augustana College was the second most lopsided NCC triumph for the Bulldogs since they joined the league in 2004 (the same year they blasted Augustana College 47-16 in Duluth) ... Junior free safety Tyler Yelk's 72-yard interception return for a touchdown at Augustana College Saturday marked the first time a Bulldog brought a pass theft back for a score since Aug. 28, 2004 (Luke Jipson at Chadron State College). Yelk, who has topped the Bulldogs in tackles in each of the past two seasons, continues his assent up UMD's all-time defensive charts. The 2006 All-NCC second team pick has had a hand in 217 stops (130 solos and 87 assists) which is the 10th highest total in team history ... MSU-Mankato (293) and UMD (270) have put the ball in the air more times in the air than any other NCC club this season ... UMD has now gone 22 games without producing a 100-yard rusher (Ted Schlafke has flirted with that milestone twice this season with 91- and 84-yard nights against Missouri Western State University and South Dakota, respectively). The last Bulldog to reach that milestone was current junior Marek Seta, who ran 25 times for a career-high 112 yards and one touchdown at MSU-Mankato on Oct. 1, 2005. That also remains the only time in the past 28 outings a UMD player has rushed for 100 or more yards ... Senior inside linebacker Nate Fears, who three weeks ago became the 12th Bulldog to eclipse the 200-tackle plateau for a career, has started all but one of the UMD's 39 games over the past four seasons (he was sidelined for the 2004 finale against St. Cloud State University while nursing an injured knee) ... Senior placekicker Britt Baumann has converted 68 of his last 69 extra point attempts going back to September 19, 2005. His lone miss during that stretch came earlier this year against the South Dakota (Sept. 15) ... Sophomore cornerback Cole Strilzuk returned to the Bulldog lineup last Saturday after being shelved the previous four weeks with an injured finger and wound up being involved in three total tackles in the 34-7 win at Augustana ... Freshman Forest Clements is expected to make his first collegiate start Saturday in place of injured right cornerback Brandon Wood ... Dan Ragsdale, who served as UMD's offensive coordinator during the 2005 season, will be paying his first visit to Malosky Stadium since being appointed to that same position at MSU in 2006.

ON DECK: UMD will hit the road for an Oct. 20 NCC engagement with the University of Nebraska Omaha.

COACHES SHOW: The UMD Coach's Show, featuring \"Bubba\" Schweigert, airs each Thursday during the 2007 season at 6 p.m. on KDAL-Radio (610 AM). Ray Schow hosts the one-hour program, which can also be heard via the internet at: umdbulldogs.com.