CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston football team will take on No. 20 University of Minnesota Duluth Sat., Oct. 24 at 1 p.m. at Griggs Field at Malosky Stadium in Duluth, Minn. The Golden Eagles enter Saturday with an 0-7 (0-3 Div.) mark, while the Bulldogs are 5-2 (3-0 Div.).
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Minnesota Crookston at No. 20 Minnesota Duluth
1 p.m., Malosky Field, Oct. 24, Duluth, Minn.
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM (Matt Bishop, Play by Play)
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Players To Watch
-Tidbits
-The Golden Eagles are looking to get on a winning track as they face a tough test against No. 20 Minnesota Duluth. UMC put together a strong game last weekend against Northern State University. The Golden Eagles put up 517 yards of offense, which is one of the best offensive performances UMC has put up recently. UMC will look to have the same kind of performance against UMD
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-One big thing UMC has get rid of are the penalties. UMC had 11 costly penalties for 95 yards against Northern State last weekend and had 13 penalties for 117 yards against Bemidji State. The Golden Eagles previously had been in the lower half of the conference for penalties and will look to get back there by limiting their mistakes.
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- The Golden Eagles have had to have players step up at defensive end with the absence of
Drew Selvestra in recent games.
Casey Kraska was the man last week that came through with a solid game. Kraska finished with six tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.
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- Minnesota Duluth has a potent running attack led by quarterback Drew Bauer, who has 112 carries for 505 yards and six touchdowns. The Bulldogs have been missing starter Logan Lauters at running back during recent games. Lauters has 64 carries for 321 yards and one touchdown. In Lauters' absence, Jamiah Newell has 43 carries for 297 yards and four touchdowns, while Beau Bofferding has 20 carries for 220 yards and three touchdowns. Darren Walker comes in with 35 carries for 130 yards and one touchdown.
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- At quarterback, Bauer has also been efficient passing the football. He is 88-of-155 for 1,472 yards with 15 touchdown passes and six interceptions. His top target has been Bofferding, who has 19 receptions for 379 yards and six touchdowns. Dominic Bonner comes in with 18 catches for 355 yards and one touchdown, while Nate Ricci has 13 carries for 211 yards and a touchdown. Justin Fowlkes comes in with 13 receptions for 201 yards and three touchdowns.
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- The UMD defense is limiting opponents to 350 yards a game. The defense is led by Beau Bates with 44 tackles with five tackles for loss and two sacks. Brent Stiglich has 41 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, a sack and an interception. Darion Fletcher has 33 tackles, two tackles for loss and two interceptions. The top pass-rusher has been Karl Finkel with 10.5 tackles for loss with three sacks.
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- Key Notes
#OneOfAKind
- UMC Wide Receiver
Adam Connette has been a one-of-a-kind player for the Golden Eagles, doing a bit of everything. He had his second-consecutive 100-yard receiving game last weekend against Northern State. Connette leads the way for UMC with 34 catches for 410 yards with two touchdowns. He has also been a factor on the ground, coming off a six carry for 60 yard performance against the Wolves. Connette has 17 carries for 107 yards and a touchdown. Connette has a receiving, rushing and passing touchdown this season.
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Connette is already ranked third all-time in receiving yards with 1,038 yards. Last week he became the third player in school history joining legendary UMC players Mark Olsonawski and Carl Aho in the 1,000 yard receiving club. Connette is on track to break most of UMC's career receiving records.
#LeaveItToDre
- UMC running back
Dre Person is coming off one of his best performances of his career as he had 18 carries for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Person had a 52-yard touchdown run and a six-yard touchdown that he finished by diving over two Northern State defenders. Person also had a rush of 54 yards. Person has 80 carries for 383 yards and two touchdowns on the season.
#FindingTheQuarterback
- UMC has rotated quarterbacks this season, trying to find the right guy for the job. They have utilized both
Nathan Cole and
Tra Hearns this season. Both have been effective at times. Cole leads the team with 912 passing yards, while Hearns has 395 yards passsing. Cole also has 10 interceptions thrown on the season, though. Hearns in slated for the start Saturday, but both players could see time for the Golden Eagles.
#AtCorner
- UMC redshirt freshman corner
Dion Wallisch had a strong game against Northern State with eight tackles, an interception and a half tackle for loss. Wallisch has 40 tackles with three tackles for loss and an interception in his first year of competition for the Golden Eagles.
#ManyOptions
- The Golden Eagles have had several options in the passing game this season. Connette leads the way, while several other players have had solid years. Senior
Constant Jackson comes in with 26 receptions for 269 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman
Rodney Stewart has had a big impact for the Golden Eagles. He has 16 receptions for 143 yards.
Triston Richert has been injured recently, but has 15 receptions for 198 yards and one touchdown.
