The RV (AFCA) and No. 19 (D2Football.com) ranked University of Minnesota Duluth football team are taking to the road to face the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs in Week 5 of the 2026 Season. The game will be at Mattke Field on Saturday with kickoff set for 3:00 p.m.

BULLDOG NOTES:

SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE: UMD takes on SMSU for the 39th matchup between the two sides. In their last contest, the Bulldogs had a dominant performance at home, taking a 62-0 win over the Mustangs.

In SMSU's Week 4 game, the Mustangs held a halftime lead against the Wayne State Wildcats, but a second-half rally from Wayne State handed SMSU their fourth loss of the year. In the match, SMSU had their strongest offensive showing of the season, with 24 points. Mustangs quarterback Drew Kluender threw for 314 yards in the loss.

Southwest Minnesota State is looking to correct from the current downward cycle the program has been through, having last had a winning season in the 2015 campaign. Things have continued to be rough for the Mustangs this season, as they are currently winless in NSIC play.

Levi Bullerman heads the SMSU Football program in the stead of Scott Underwood, who recently resigned as head coach. Bullerman has been with the Mustangs for nine seasons and has coached four All-NSIC Lineman, including an All-American. During his time as a defensive coordinator, SMSU has improved their defensive numbers to the best the program has had in nearly 20 years.

No. 13 UMD Bulldogs Football Fall to Dragons in Overtime: The No. 13 University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs had more offensive troubles in their game against the Minnesota State Moorhead Dragons on the road, and lost in overtime 20-23. UMD Falls to 3-2 on the season and 3-1 in the NSIC, while MSU-Moorhead improves to 3-2 and 2-2 in the NSIC.

The Bulldogs defense got going quickly with a midfield stop, but UMD found themselves in a hole quickly after, with an untimely fumble on a promising drive leading to a scoop-and-score for the Dragons Micah Runion, putting UMD down 7-0 early.

The next two drives didn't work in the Bulldogs favor either, with a quick three and out from UMD, followed by a methodical drive from MSU-Moorhead, ending in a Kelly Johnson touchdown to put UMD down 14-0. The Bulldogs went three and out on the following drive as well.

The Bulldogs stopped the bleeding in the second quarter with a stop of the Dragons offense. Then, UMD found the endzone for the first time in seven quarters on a drive featuring an 18-yard reception by Adam Poncelet and key runs from Derrick Johnson including the touchdown run to cut the lead to seven.

Both the Bulldogs and Dragons would stall on their following drives, and the game stayed at 14-7 MSU-Moorhead entering the second half.

The Bulldogs came out hot in the third quarter, looking to tie the game on their second half opening drive. Ryder Patterson received a 24-yard pass from Jacob Eggert, and the Bulldogs were within striking distance. But another fumble kept UMD from moving the score closer. 

The defense would continue to give trouble to the Dragons, with a Matt Marusich interception setting up the Bulldogs offense with a strong starting position. Alex Riley and Francis O'Malley delivered a one-two punch with back-to-back 17 and 11-yard runs, followed by a Cameron Begalle 14-yard reception. However, the Bulldogs failed to find the endzone, and settled with a field goal to make it 14-10 Dragons.

MSU-Moorhead followed with their most promising offensive drive since the first quarter with a Reggie Bruner 24-yard reception and Tyson Brandt 11-yard run, but the Bulldogs hunkered down and stopped the Dragons on downs to end the third quarter.

UMD started off with the ball in the fourth quarter, and attempted to keep their drive going with some trickery on fourth down. However, the Dragons blew it up and gave themselves great position in the process, starting at UMD's 39-yard line. The Bulldog defense kept UMD in the game again, with a big sack from Michael Bruggers playing a big role in the stop. 

UMD's offense continued to struggle, and a bad punt gave the Dragons another prime starting position at UMD's 30-yard line, but a big stop from the defense forced MSU-Moorhead to kick a field goal to restore the lead to seven.

The next drive was crucial for the Bulldogs, they needed a touchdown to tie the game. Catcher Langeness came up with a big 22-yard reception to bring the Bulldogs down the field. But soon after, the Bulldogs found themselves on the brink with fourth down, but a great play set up for a Cameron Begalle 35-yard reception gave UMD the touchdown, and the tie, 17-17.

MSU-Moorhead still had a chance to finish the Bulldogs in regulation, but a bad snap led to a big fumble recovery by Mark Rendl, and now it was the Bulldogs looking to finish off the Dragons. However, UMD's final offensive drive went nowhere, and both the Bulldogs and Dragons found themselves in overtime for the second time this season.

UMD started overtime with the first possession, which wound up pushing the Bulldogs back a fair distance. However, the Bulldogs managed to salvage points off of a massive 53-yard field goal from Jadon Apgar, giving the Bulldogs their first lead of the game, 20-17. 

On the following drive, it only took three plays for Drew Huebner to find Kelly Johnson in the endzone for his second touchdown of the game, and the Bulldogs lost 20-23.

NOTES FROM WEEK 4 vs. MSU-MOORHEAD:

The Bulldogs slightly outgained the Dragons, 313-291.

The Bulldogs and Dragons had two turnovers each.

UMD was sacked five times, vs. three for-MSU Moorhead.

Joey Krouse, Gavin Schmidt, and Michael Bruggers had sacks.

Matt Marusich had UMD's second interception of the season.

Cameron Begalle led the Bulldogs with 74 receiving yards.

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES FROM WEEK 4: Jacob Eggert went 19-33 for 205 yards and a touchdown pass. Cameron Begalle led the way for the Bulldogs with 74 yards on six receptions and a touchdown. 

Ean Ackley led the way in tackles with seven, while Matt Marusich and Mark Rendl secured an interception and a fumble from MSU-Moorhead.

LAST TIME VS. SMSU: Behind one of the best offensive outings in five seasons, including touchdowns by seven different players, the University of Minnesota Duluth football team handily defeated Southwest Minnesota State University 62-0 at James S. Malosky Stadium.

Head Coach Curt Wiese earned his 100th win as the Bulldog bench boss. Wiese's squad was led by a pair of first half touchdowns from redshirt junior wide receiver DaShaun Ames and a smothering defense that held the Mustangs to just 77 total yards of offense all day, which included just 36 rushing yards.

IN THE RANKINGS: The Bulldogs received votes in the Week 4 AFCA Poll, and are No. 19 in D2Football.com's Week 4 poll. The Bulldogs were 13th in the AFCA Week 3 Poll and 12th in the D2Football.com Week 3 poll.

BULLDOG CAPTAINS: UMD has six captains this season, Carter Geerts, Preston McQueen, Nick Ojile, Ryder Patterson, Ross Rivord, and Jonathan Shrum.

NSIC LAST WEEK RESULTS:

Winona State 42, Augustana 41

Northern State 21, UMary 14

S.W. Minnesota State 24, Wayne State 38

MSU Moorhead 23, Minnesota Duluth 20

Concordia-St. Paul 31, Jamestown 23

Sioux Falls 14, Minnesota State 28

Bemidji State 37, Minot State 19