With a potential NCAA Division II playoff bid, an outright Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division championship, and a seven-game winning streak on the line, the Bulldogs will put the finishing touches on the 2013 regular season Saturday (Nov. 16) when they pay a visit to Aberdeen, S.D., to take on Northern State University. Opening kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at the Swisher Field (6,000 capacity/artificial turf).



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THE RECORDS: UMD is 9-1 both overall and in NSIC play (tied for second place with St. Cloud State University) while Northern sports a 4-6 mark in all games and shares ninth place with Augustana College, Concordia UnIversity-St. Paul, and Minnesota State University-Moorhead in the NSIC standings.



HOW THEY RANK: Here is how the Bulldogs and Wolves stacked up in this week's American Football Coaches Association Division II and the D2Football.com polls and the latest NCAA Division II Super Region Three Rankings.



    AFCA    D2Football    Region Three    

UMD    No. 5    No. 4    No. 4

NSU    NR    NR    NR

        

THE BROADCAST: The UMD-Northern State clash will be carried live on 1490 The Fan (KQDS-AM) with Jeff Papas handling the play-by-play responsibilities. The broadcast can also be heard on KQ 105.5 FM in Grand Rapids/Hibbing , KQ 106.7 FM in Ely/Virginia as part of the Bulldog Sports Radio Network and at: fan1490.com.



In addition, Saturday's game will be videostreammed and can be accessed for free at: client.stretchinternet.com/client/umd.portal#.



THE COACH: After spending the previous five years overseeing UMD offensive units which moved the football with as much proficiency as any NCAA II team in the country, Curt Wiese received a much-deserved promotion on Dec. 21, 2012 when he became the sixth head coach in the Bulldogs' storied 81-year history.



During his successful half-decade run as the team's offensive coordinator, the Bulldogs finished near the top of the NCAA II leader board four times in scoring (third last fall with a school-record 46.5 points per game average, fifth in 2008, sixth in 2010 and ninth four years ago) and in 2012 possessed the nation's seventh best rushing attack (after ranking seventh, fourth, and third, respectively, in that department the previous three seasons). The 2012 Bulldogs were also the nation's leader in third down conversions (54.8 percent). In addition, no less than 15 of his pupils landed some kind of All-American recognition, including a pair of Harlon Hill Award finalists -- quarterback Ted Schlafke (2008), the school's career passing and total offense leader, and running back Isaac Odim (2009), UMD's all-time top ground gainer and scorer and the holder of 17 school records. Wiese's starting offensive guard from 2009--12, Garth Heikkinen, became the school's first recipient of the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year of Award and earned a playing spot in the annual East-West Shrine Game last January while offensive tackle Jake Bscherer participated in the Seattle Seahawks Training Camp this past summer.



Since Wiese's arrival at UMD in 2008, the Bulldogs have gone a remarkable 71-8 (a record unmatched by any NCAA II school), captured two NCAA II national championships (2008 and 2010), four overall NSIC titles and five NSIC North Division crowns, made five NCAA II playoff appearances and produced two perfect 15-0 seasons.



Wiese, 37, came to UMD following two years of employment as the head coach at NCAA Division III member Marietta College (Ohio). He compiled a 9-11 career overall record with the Pioneers, including a 6-4 mark in 2006. The Stoughton, Wis., native signed on with the Marietta football program in 2003 when he became the team's offensive coordinator -- a duty he continued to maintain after he was elevated to head coach. In five years of directing the Marietta offense, Wiese helped churn out two All-Americans, 12 All-Ohio Athletic Conference selections and five Academic All-OAC honorees and was a finalist for the American Football Coaches Association Division III Assistant Coach of the Year Award in 2004.



Prior to his move to Marietta, Wiese worked as a graduate assistant at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, tutoring the tight ends for two years and the offensive line for one season. He entered the coaching arena a little over a dozen years ago on the heels of a four-year collegiate playing career. After three seasons at Minnesota State University-Mankato (1995-97), Wiese transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, where as a senior in 1998, he quarterbacked the Pointers to a share of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title.



    WIESE BY THE NUMBERS

Record at UMD (Year)    9-1 (1st)

Overall Coaching Record (Year)    18-12 (3rd)

Career NSIC Record    9-1

Career UMD Home Record    4-1

Career UMD Road Record    5-0

vs. Northern State     0-0



THE SERIES: UMD and Northern State will collide for the 31st time ever Saturday. The Bulldogs hold a 20-10-0 lead in the all-time series, which began on Nov. 8, 1980 in Duluth, and have reeled off five straight games at the Wolves' expense. That includes a 49-31 triumph one year ago (Nov. 10) at James S. Malosky Stadium where UMD, on a wet and blustery afternoon, ran the football on 66 of its 77 plays from scrimmage.



LAST WEEK: The Bulldogs overcame a first-half scare at the University of Mary by scoring 15 unanswered points in the final 30 minutes of play to best the Maruaders 32-14 Saturday. UMD, which took a 17-14 lead into halftime, got touchdowns from four different players, including a pair of third-quarter scoring runs from junior running back Austin Sikorski and sophomore running back Logan Lauters, and an 83-yard punt return from junior Aaron Roth in the victory, its seventh over Mary in seven lifetime meetings. Sikorski wound up with 113 yards on 21 rushes for the Bulldogs, held the Maruader to just 51 yards of total offense in the second half and 226 yards on the day. They also held a sizeable 321-37 advantage in rushing yards.



Northern State rolled past the University of Minnesota Crookston 28-0 Saturday for its second shut out victory of 2013. Quarterback Jared Jacobson threw for 254 yards and a pair of touchdowns -- both to Conner Doherty -- and also ran for another score while the Northern State defense surrendered a scant 105 overall yards to the host Golden Eagles.



THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING: The Bulldogs' team captaincy responsibilities this fall are being shared by a quartet of seniors -- strong safety Travis Nordhus, offensive tackle Tom Olson, inside linebacker Colby Ring and outside linebacker Nate Zuk -- along with junior wide receiver/return specialist Aaron Roth.



ANOTHER FAVORABLE NSIC FORECAST: For the first time since 2007 (when UMD was a member of the now defunct North Central Conference), the NSIC coaches chose someone other than the Bulldogs as the team to beat in 2013. In their annual preseason poll, the league coaches picked the defending NSIC kingpin Minnesota State-Mankato to finish first in both the South Division and in the overall standings while the Bulldogs were slotted to capture the North Division crown (for a sixth straight year) and place second to the Mavericks overall (like they did one year ago after a four-season run as league champs). UMD had been chosen as the overall NSIC preseason favorite during each of its previous six years of league membership (2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008 and 2003.



FANTASTIC FINISHES: The last time UMD dropped a regular season finale was in 2004 when St. Cloud State exited Malosky Stadium with a 28-0 North Central Conference triumph in tow.



ON A ROLL: UMD's current seven-game winning streak is its longest since the Bulldogs went a perfect 15-0 en route to winning their second NCAA II national title in 2010.



DIVISION DOMINATION: Since the NSIC instituted divisional play in 2008, the Bulldogs are a sizzling 35-2 against NSIC North Division opponents (19-0 at home) with both of those two losses being inflicted by St. Cloud State (51-49 in 2012 and 35-7 in 2011). UMD is the reigning five-time defending NSIC North Division champion.



THEY'RE CATCHING ON FAST: Senor wide out Joe Reichert needs just nine more receptions to become the 13th member of UMD's 100-career catch club. A pair of his teammates -- juniors Zach Zweifel and Aaron Roth -- both reached that milestone earlier this fall and now have 109 and 100 receptions, respectively, as Bulldogs.



A WELL-GROUNDED ATTACK: The Bulldogs are first in the NSIC and rank eighth among all NCAA II schools in rushing offense with a 290.1 yards per game average. The only time UMD has failed to crack the 200-yard ground plateau this season was on Sept. 21 when Minnesota State-Mankato held the Bulldogs to 158 yards in a 21-17 victory. The Bulldogs, who as a team are averaging a nifty 5.7 yards a carry this fall, have produced a 100-yard rusher in four of their 10 games to date including:



Date    Player    Att.    Yds.    TD

Nov. 9    Austin Sikorski    21    113    1

Oct. 12    Austin Sikorski    21    212*    3

Oct. 12    Logan Lauters    17    153*    3

Oct. 5    Austin Sikorski    17    177    2

Oct. 5    Logan Lauters    12    107    2

Sept. 28    Logan Lauters    11    103    3



*career highs



A WELL-GROUNDED ATTACK II: The last time the Bulldogs and Northern State locked horns (Nov. 10, 2012), UMD amassed a season-high 496 yards on the ground. In addition, three Bulldogs -- senior quarterback Chase Vogler (224), Logan Lauters (149) and Austin Sikorski (102) -- all surpassed the 100-yard rushing mark. Sikorski, incidentally, went down with a season-ending injury in that 49-31 UMD victory over the Wolves.

 Sikorski now has nine 100-yard career rushing days -- tops among all active Bulldogs -- while Lauters is next with five. Sikorski has run for a UMD-best 988 yards this season and 2,464 yards (on 414 carries) as a collegian.



IT'S GOT A NICE RING TO IT: Senior Colby Ring continues his climb up the Bulldogs' career defensive charts and now occupies the No. 6 spot on that list with 268 total tackles. He is only eight stops behind the No. 5 occupant, strong safety Jim Johnson (2005-06), and nine shy of strong safety Kevin Westbrock (1998-2001), at No. 4. Ring paces all 2013 Bulldogs in tackles (51) and is followed by senior defensive end Chris Vandervest, who is seeking to become the first lineman to finish as UMD's leading tackler since that statistic began officially being kept in 1982. Vandervest, a third-year starter and two-time All-NSIC honoree, has been credited with 44 stops thus far, including 10.5 for a loss and 3.0 quarterback sacks (both team-bests).



MANY HAPPY RETURNS: Aaron Roth, whose punt return for a touchdown proved to be the game-winning score at Mary, was chosen the NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week and also received a NCAA Division II Special Teams Player of the Week citation from Beyond Sports Network for his efforts. Roth, the only Bulldog to be bestowed with a NSIC weekly honor of any kind thus far in 2013, became the first UMD player to parlay a punt return into six points since he accomplished that feat as a true freshman against Minnesota Crookston on Nov. 5, 2011. His return was also the longest by a Bulldog in 38 years (Terry Egerdahl brought one back 94 yards for a score at St. Cloud State on Sept. 27, 1975). Another UMD return specialist -- sophomore Justin Fowlkes -- is averaging 33.4 yards per kickoff return this season (a figure bettered by only four NCAA II combatants at the moment) and 29.7 yards for his career.



QUITE A RUN: Since the 2008 season opener, UMD owns both the highest victory total (71) and best winning percentage (.899 off a 71-8 record) of any NCAA II program.



    Wins (2008-present)

1.    UMD            71

2.    Northwest Missouri State    70

3.     Grand Valley State        60

4.    California U. (Pa.)        57

    Bloomsburg             57

    Minnesota State-Mankato    57

7.    West Texas A&M        54

8.    CSU-Pueblo            53

9.    Missouri Western        52

10.    Pittsburg State        51

                

    Winning Percentage (2008-present)

1.    UMD    (71-8)    .899

2.    Northwest Missouri State    (70-11)    .864

3.    Grand Valley State    (60-13)    .822

4.    Bloomsburg     (57-13)    .814

5.    Minnesota State-Mankato    (57-14)    .803

6.    CSU-Pueblo    (53-14)     .791

7.     California U. (Pa.)    (57-18) .760

8.    Shepherd    (49-16) .754

9.    West Texas A&M    (54-19) .740

10.    Pittsburg State    (51-19)    .729



AT THE HEAD OF HIS CLASS: Junior offensive lineman Andrew Pattock, who maintains a 3.98 cumulative grade point average as a biochemical and molecular biology major, earned a spot on the 26-member Capital One Academic All-District 3 Division II team, which was announced this week. Pattock will now try to become the school's sixth football Capital One Academic All-American. Then-senior free safety Cameron Harper attained that distinction one year ago.



NATIONALLY SPEAKING: UMD ranks among the NCAA II leaders in a number of statistical categories including:



Category    Rank    Avg/Percent

Fumbles Recovered    2nd    1.6 fpg

Possession Time    3rd    34:57

Kickoff Returns    5th    26.93 ypr

3rd Down Conv. Defense    6th    26.7%

1st Down Defense    7th    15.3 fdpg

Rushing Offense    8th    290.1 ypg

Total Defense    8th    288.9 ypg

Rushing Defense    9th    89.6 ypg

Kickoff Return Defense    9th    15.78 ypr

Punt Returns    10th    15.9 ypr

Red Zone Defense    10th    63.2%

Scoring Defense    11th    15.8 ppg



START ME UP: Senior offensive tackle Tom Olson is expected to make his 52nd consecutive start (which covers every game over the past four seasons) this Saturday in Aberdeen. That will tie the Coon Rapids, Minn., product with quarterback Chase Vogler (2009-12) for the second longest ironman streak in program history. The leader in that department is three-time All-American offensive guard and current Bulldog graduate assistant coach Garth Heikkinen (54 games between 2009-12), In terms of special teams players, three-time All-NSIC placekicker David Nadeau made 56 consecutive starts between 2008-11.



BULLDOG BITS: The first of senior strong safety Travis Nordhus's three collegiate picks was registered last year against Northern State. Senior Alex Miller's longest punt as a collegian was a 62-yarder against those same Wolves in 2011 at Malosky Stadium. He punted seven times for 313 yards and a 44.7 yard average -- all career highs that afternonn.



•UMD has given up only 13 points in the fourth quarter this year (one touchdown each at Upper Iowa University on Sept. 14 and Minnesota State-Moorhead on Oct. 19) and has outscored its competition 131-17 in the opening 15 minutes of play. Those 17 points have come on a pair of touchdowns by Wayne Sate four weeks into the season and a field goal by Minnesota State-Moorhead .



•The Bulldogs have cracked the Top 25 in every AFCA II poll since Aug. 12, 2008, and haven't fallen out of the Top 15 in over five years (the last time being Sept. 8, 2008). UMD's No. 5 ranking this week is its highest since it enjoyed a five-week stay at No. 2 from Aug. 27 to Sept. 24, 2012



• UMD has returned three interceptions for touchdowns this season -- senior inside linebacker Colby Ring at Wayne State College, and junior nose tackle Buma Foncham and sophomore outside linebacker Nathan Zibolski both at Upper Iowa University. That's one pick-six shy of the program single-season record set in both 2010 and 1986.



•The Bulldogs have held the upper hand in time of possession in all 10 games to date and the last 12 outings in a row going back to last season.



ON TAP: UMD's 2013 postseason fate will be determined this Sunday (Nov. 17) when the NCAA II playoff field is officially announced at 4 p.m. CT on ncaa.com. The Bulldogs have qualified for the NCAA II playoffs five straight seasons, a active run unequaled by all but one NCAA II club (Northwest Missouri State with nine).