Behind 191 rushing yards from
Cazz Martin, No. 23 Minnesota Duluth defeated Northern State by a score of 49-35 on Saturday afternoon in Duluth. With the win, the Bulldogs capture a share of the 2021 NSIC Championship. For UMD football, it's their 21st all-time NSIC Championship. The NCAA D2 Selection show will take place tomorrow, in-which UMD will find out if they've qualified for the national tournament.
"It was fun to see a team that has battled quite a bit of adversity this year, win a share of the conference title on senior day," said head coach
Curt Wiese. "We look forward to watching the selection show tomorrow with our fingers crossed, hoping we get another opportunity."
In addition to his near 200-yard performance on Saturday, Martin surpassed 1,000 rushing yards on the season. After posting 184 receiving yards against the Wolves,
Armani Carmickle broke the all-time UMD record for receiving yards in a single season. Carmickle broke the previous record of 1,201 yards, which was held by former Bulldogs wide-out D.J. Windfield.
On the day, quarterback
Garrett Olson went 11-16 with 226 yards and four touchdowns, while fellow quarterback
John Larson went 6-10 for 60 yards and one touchdown. In addition to his 184 yards, Carmickle tallied two receiving touchdowns, while tight end
Sam Pitz brought in two touchdowns as well.
On the defensive side of the ball,
Austin Kurylo noted a team-high seven tackles on Saturday against the Wolves. The senior also added 1.0 tackle for loss and one pass break-up in the win. Fellow senior
Nate Pearson contributed four solo tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, and one sack for a loss of 11 yards. The lone interception on the day came from linebacker
Brad Dati, who also notched six tackles.
In the first half, two
Curtis Cox field goals from 30 and 27 yards out kept the Bulldogs in the game. With just 19 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Larson hit Pitz on a beautiful loft pass over the middle to give UMD a 13-7 advantage. Following three touchdowns from Northern State, Olson notched back-to-back touchdown passes to Carmickle and Pitz to tie the game at 28-28 heading into halftime.
Olson and Carmickle connected on a 27-yard touchdown pass early in the third quarter to give Minnesota Duluth the lead for good. On their next possession, the Bulldogs put together a nine-play, 70-yard drive to extend their lead to 42-28. On the scoring play,
Wade Sullivan used his speed to turn the corner and barrel his way into the endzone from 7 yards out. With just 5:42 remaining in the fourth quarter, UMD pieced together another impressive drive, this time a nine-play, 85-yard drive that ate up 5:31 of game time. While on the one-yard line, Olson used a QB sneak to punch the ball across the line and extend UMD's lead to 49-35. Olson would run out the clock in victory formation to secure the win and a share of the conference championship.
Up Next
The Bulldogs will tune-in to the NCAA D2 Selection Show on Sunday to find out whether they've qualified for the national tournament.
