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The University of Minnesota Duluth will put its 17-game regular season home winning streak on the line this Saturday (Nov. 3) when the Bulldogs play host to the University of Mary in a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference North Division clash. Opening kickoff is set for 1:05 p.m. at James S. Malosky Stadium (4,500) on the UMD campus.

THE RECORDS: The 10-time defending NSIC North Division champion Bulldogs are 9-0 on the year (and 5-0 in the NSIC North) while Mary is 0-9 overall l and 0-5 in NSIC North play.

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how the Bulldogs and Marauders stacked up in this week's American Football Coaches Association Division II and the D2Football.com polls and the latest NCAA II Super Region 4 Rankings:
 

	AFCA	D2Football	Region 4
UMD	No. 5	No. 6	No. 3
UM	NR	NR	NR

 
THE BROADCAST: The Bulldog-Marauder clash will be carried live locally on KDAL-Radio (610 AM and 103.9 FM) with Jeff Papas handling the play-by-play responsibilities and ex-University of North Dakota offensive lineman Gregg Swartwoudt providing color commentary. The broadcast can also be heard at: kdal610.com.

For the 11th consecutive year, My9 (KBJR DT 6.2/KRII DT 11.9) is televising all UMD home games, including Saturday's matchup with Mary. KBJR-TV sports director David Coy and former long-time UMD defensive coordinator Vince Repesh will serve as the on-air talent. The telecast will be videostreammed as well and can be accessed for free at: portal.stretchinternet.com/umd

THE RIVALRY: UMD and Mary will meet for the 12th time ever this Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs have won all 11 of the previous confrontations, outscoring the Marauders 529-168 (or by an average score of 48-15) in the process. That included a 62-27 triumph in the 2017 regular season finale (Nov. 11) in Bismarck, N.D. UMD is 6-0-0 lifetime versus Mary at James S. Malosky Stadium.
 
LAST WEEK: UMD closed out its 2018 regular season road schedule by trouncing the University of Minnesota Crookston 63-7 on Saturday afternoon on the Golden Eagles' home turf. The Bulldogs rolled up a school-record 56 points in the first half, scoring four touchdowns in each of the first two quarters. Junior quarterback Ben Everhart came off the bench to complete 13 of 22 passes for 232 yards and three touchdowns -- all to junior wide out Obi Ibeneme. That included an 80-yard strike on the first play of the second quarter. Ibeneme and redshirt freshman wide out Dain Hudson both finished with a game-high six receptions. Reserve junior running back Tory Adams led all ground gainers with 101 yards on 18 carries. The Bulldogs held overwhelming advantages in total yards (509 to 109), first downs (28 to 3) passing yards (336 to 41) and total plays (a season-high 84 to 47) in the victory -- their 13th straight over the Golden Eagles. Backup sophomore free safety Braden Jorenby (seven total tackles) and redshirt freshman linebacker Bryce Harder (five stops and a fumble recovery for a touchdown) topped the UMD defensive charts. Minnesota Crookston broke UMD's shutout bid by scoring with 2:34 to go in regulation when it recovered a loose ball in the Bulldog endzone following an errant punt snap by the Bulldogs.

Mary squandered a 23-16 lead with less than 11 minutes to go in regulation and fell 28-23 to Northern State University on Saturday in Bismarck, N.D. Luke Little caught eight passes for 162 yards and two touchdowns in the setback while quarterback Jason Hoekstra was 15-for-30 for 281 passing yards and three touchdowns with one interception.

SOME NORTHERN EXPOSURE: A win this Saturday would give UMD at least a share of its 11th consecutive NSIC North Division title.

SOME NORTHERN EXPOSURE II: Since the NSIC instituted divisional play in 2008, the Bulldogs are a sizzling 67-3 in North Division assignments. Two of those losses came at the hands of St. Cloud State -- on consecutive years (35-7 in 2011 and 51-49 in 2012) at Husky Stadium. UMD is a perfect 36-0 all-time at home against North Division foes.

THE BEAT GOES ON: The Bulldogs are now guaranteed of finishing with a winning record for the 11th consecutive year. That's the longest such run by a UMD club since it went 19 seasons in a row above the .500 mark between 1970 and 1988.

THE BEAT GOES ON II: UMD will take a 17-game NSIC winning streak into Saturday's bout with Mary. That is still well off the program record of 31 consecutive league victories set between Sept. 30, 2008 and Sept. 22, 2012

RIGHT ON TRACK: In its 86-year history, UMD has started a season 9-0 six times (2018, 2014, 2010, 2008, 2002 and 1980) and in all five of those previous occasions the Bulldogs have gone on to run the table during the regular season.

NOT IN OUR HOUSE II: Since the 2008 opener, the Bulldogs are 53-6 at Malosky Stadium (with two of the losses coming to Minnesota State-Mankato in 2013 and 2017 and two in the NCAA II playoffs).

NOT IN OUR HOUSE II: The Bulldogs haven't been blanked by a NSIC foe at Malosky Stadium since MSU-Moorhead turned the trick (29-0) back on Oct. 31, 1981. The last visiting team of to hold UMD scoreless was St. Cloud State (28-0 in a North Central Conference clash on Nov. 6, 2004). Here are few of the home streaks the Bulldogs will put on the line this Saturday afternoon:

Consecutive NSIC North Division Home Wins: 36
Consecutive Home Games Without Being Shut Out: 84
Consecutive NSIC Home Games Without Being Shut Out: 126

ON THE RUN: Last Saturday at Minnesota Crookston, junior running back Tory Adams, became the third different Bulldog in four weeks (and this season) to crack the 100-yard rushing plateau. Adams, who reenlisted with the UMD program this fall after playing one season at the University of St. Thomas, ran for 101 yards on 18 carries to join junior quarterback Mike Rybarczyk (111 yards vs. Southwest Minnesota State on Oct. 13) and sophomore quarterback John Larson (104 yards at Augustana University on Oct. 6) in that circle. Larson's career-high 111-yard effort was the largest ground harvest by a Bulldog since Sept. 28, 2017 (Anthony Wood with 128 yards).

ON THE RUN II: UMD has outgained the opposition on the ground in 39 of the past 42 games with the 2017 opener against Sioux Falls (when UMD managed negative-16 yards of rushing offense), the ensuing weekend (59 yards versus Minnesota State-Mankato) and the 2017 finale (79 yards vs. the University of Central Missouri) being the exceptions.

ON THE RUN III: The Bulldogs have surrendered just one rushing touchdown all season -- at St. Cloud State on Sept. 13.

HE'S QUITE THE CATCH: Nate Ricci, UMD's current pass reception leader (29), now has 137 catches to his collegiate credit. That's good for the No. 8 spot on the program's all-time charts and puts him 12 receptions short of supplanting Tony Doherty (2005-08) at No. 7. Fellow senior wide out and 2018 NSIC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Jason Balts (who incurred a season-ending lower body injury against Bemidji State University in Week Four.) sits at No. 9 with 126 catches.

Ricci, a sixth-year senior, is an inaugural nominee for the first-ever Mayo Clinic Comeback Player of the Year Award. In 2017, he was on the doorstep of an All-American-caliber season before injuring his clavicle three weeks in and missing the remainder of the year.

SCORE EARLY, SCORE OFTEN: The Bulldogs, one of 12 remaining unbeaten NCAA II teams in the country, have outscored the opposition 111-3 in the first quarter this fall (with that lone field goal coming in the season opener at Minot State) and 238-29 in the first half.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: Some 18 different Bulldogs have recorded a pass reception so far in 2018 and eight of those have a scoring strike to their credit.

MOVING ON UP: The Bulldogs, who were unranked in the 2018 AFCA II Preseason Poll, moved up at least one spot in each of the six regular season rankings before checking in at No. 5 the past three weeks. That represents their highest position in the AFCA II Poll since being slotted third in the 2015 preseason.

GETTING A BIT DEFENSIVE, AREN'T WE?: UMD is giving up just 219.8 total yards per outing this season, a figure unmatched by any NCAA II outfit. Here is how the Bulldogs rank nationally and in the NSIC in various defensive categories:

                                             NCAA/NSIC
Category                                   Rank          Avg./Total
Total Defense                            1st/1st        207.4 ypg
3rd Down Conv. Def.                 1st/1st        .217
Scoring Defense                        2nd/1st      11.4 ppg
Rushing Defense                       2nd/1st      70.1 ypg
Passing Eff. Defense                 2nd/1st       90.13
Passing Defense                       4th/1st        137.3 ypg
First Downs Allowed                  5th/1st        111
Kickoff Return Def.                     5th/3rd       13.33 ypr
Team Sacks                               18th/2nd     3.00 spg
Fumbles Recovered                  18th/3rd      10
Punt Return Def.                        25th/1st      4.14 ypr

NO OFFENSE TAKEN: UMD also currently sits among the NCAA II and NSIC offensive leaders as well:

                                             NCAA/NSIC
Category                                   Rank           Avg./Total
Time of Possession                   2nd/1st       34:43
Scoring Offense                        10th/2nd      42.0 ppg
Tackles for Loss Allowed           12th/3rd      4.00 tpg
First Downs                               14th/4th      209
3rd Down Conv. Off.                  15th/2nd     .475
Fewest Fumbles Lost                 17th/1st      4
Net Punting                                20th/1st     37.44 ypp
Punt Returns                             21st/3rd    14.63 ypr

START ME UP: Senior offensive tackle Matt Juneau, a three-time All-NSIC North Division honoree, has started 41 consecutive games -- the longest ironman streak of any 2018 Bulldog.

GET AHEAD, STAY AHEAD: UMD has trailed for only 3:49 all season -- and that was all in one stretch during the second half of the Bulldogs' 26-19 double overtime triumph over Bemidji State on Sept. 22 at Malosky Stadium.

SACK IT TO ME: The Bulldogs have been credited with 27 sacks this fall, the second highest total in the NSIC, while allowing less than half of that (13). Senor linebacker Alex Helmer paces UMD with 6.5 sacks, the fifth most in the NSIC.

IT TAKES A THIEF: Senior cornerback Tareq Abulebbeh, a transfer from Southern Illinois University who has sat out the past three Saturdays with an injury, already has five interceptions this season, and his 0.83 picks per game average ties puts him in second place on NCAA II leaderboard (and first on the NSIC charts). The last Bulldog to rack up more than five interceptions in one season was Cole Strilzuk in 2008 (6 thefts in 15 games).

IT TAKES A THIEF II: Seven current Bulldogs have an interception to their UMD credit and four of those have multiple thefts -- senior strong safety Sam Lynch (seven), senior cornerback Tareq Abulebbeh (five), sophomore strong safety Bill Atkins (three), and sophomore cornerback Justic'e King (two). Senior outside linebacker Alex Helmer, sophomore cornerback Michael Kirkendoll (a 2018 transfer from North Dakota State School of Science) and senior cornerback Mitchell Johnson-Martin have the one interception each.

WE'LL SECOND THAT: UMD has outscored the opposition 256-68 in the second quarter since the 2017 season opener and has given up a just two second-quarter touchdowns (to St. Cloud State on Sept. 13, 2018 and to Winona State on Oct. 20, 2018) in any of their last 17 games.

BIG PLAYS: The Bulldog offense has generated 45 offensive plays that have resulted in gains of 20 or more yards this season compared to 21 for the opposition. Nearly one quarter (five) of those were registered by Winona State two weeks ago.

BONUS FOOTBALL HAS BEEN A BONUS: UMD is 7-1 in its last eight overtime games.

IN GOOD HANDS: The Bulldogs have held the upper hand in time of possession in 34 of the past 36 games (one of the outliers occurred tin their last home games against Southwest Minnesota State). This fall UMD ranks second among all NCAA II schools in that department (34:43) after finishing 3rd and 1st, respectively in 2017 and 2016.

ISN'T THAT SPECIAL: Junior transfer defensive back Tyrik Carmickle paces the 2018 Bulldogs in special teams tackles with eight (all on kickoffs) while redshirt freshman Javien Versey lis next with seven (all on kick returns as well).

QUITE THE RUN: Since taking over the Bulldog program five years ago, Curt Wiese has won 61 of 72 games. Only one other NCAA II head coach -- Colorado State University-Pueblo's John Wristen (62) -- has accumulated more victories during that the time period. Of Wiese's 11 lifetime losses, seven have come against NSIC South Division members (including four at the hands of Minnesota State-Mankato) and one against a NSIC North Division foe (at Northern State on Oct. 31, 2015). The other three setbacks have occurred in postseason play (besides Minnesota State-Mankato).

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs will remain at Malosky Stadium on Nov. 10 for a regular season finale confrontation with Northern State University.