CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston football team will take on Concordia University, St. Paul Sat., Sept. 10 at 1 p.m. at Ed Widseth Field. The Golden Eagles enter the weekend with an 0-1 mark after a loss to Winona State University in week one. They take on the Golden Bears, who are 1-0 after a 17-0 win over University of Mary last Saturday.

Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Mike Fritze
Record at UMC: 3-31 Season at UMC: Fourth Season

Concordia-St. Paul Golden Bears
Head Coach: Shannon Currier
Record at CSP: 32-12 Season at CSP: 5th Season Overall (1st Since 2003)

Sept. 10, 2016 • Crookston, Minn. • Ed Widseth Field • 1 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/crk/#liveEventsTab
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/umcrookston/football/
Live Audio: www.kroxam.com
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM (Chris Fee, PXP, Matt Bishop, Color) 

#5StoryLines
1. Can the Golden Eagles get more touches for Andre Person and Adam Connette?

2. Will a young UMC secondary mature in week two?

3. Who will make the big plays for UMC?

4. Can the Golden Eagle defense slow down a potent Concordia-St. Paul running attack

5. Can the Golden Eagle defense improve on third down?

#TheOtherRodStewart
This might not be the Rod Stewart that has popular hits such as "Maggie May" and "Reason To Believe", but UMC's Rod Stewart is off to a strong start to a young career. Stewart was the top target of Nathan Cole in week one with four catches for 32 yards. Stewart has 36 catches for 327 yards in just 10 career games.

#TakeTwo
UMC quarterback Nathan Cole struggled to get much going in week one offensively, going 12-of-21 for 77 yards. Cole will look to use his senior leadership to look to get the Golden Eagles on track as he heads into the second game of his senior year. Cole split duty at quarterback last season but came into the season as "The Guy" behind center. Cole threw for 1,091 yards last season. He will look to get back on track as the Golden Eagles take on Concordia-St. Paul.

#LocalKid
UMC junior defensive end Casey Kraska did a good job of putting pressure on the quarterback in week one with two tackles for loss and one sack. Kraska is a Stephen-Argyle product and came to UMC after one year at Valley City State University. Kraska has seen the field before but is in a starting role in 2016. He will look to have a good second round as UMC takes on Concordia-St. Paul.

#FloatLikeAButterfly
So this might not be that Ali, but Ali Alkhatib had a strong week one for the Golden Eagles. The sophomore linebacker led the Golden Eagles with seven tackles. He also had two tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Alkhatib had 59 tackles, which was good enough for second on the team, in 2015. The Rosemount native originally came to UMC as a running back, but he has moved to safety and now linebacker for the Golden Eagles. He became familiar with Coach Mike Fritze while playing across the sideline from Fritze for Rosemount High School while Coach was at Apple Valley High School.


#Tidbits
- The Golden Eagles struggled to get much going offensively in game one. UMC would have just 91 yards of offense with just six yards on the ground. UMC will hope to get more going, especially in the running game, in week two. Minnesota Crookston returned Andre Person, who was an All-NSIC North Second Team pick in 2015. However Person wasn't able to do much against the Warriors. The Golden Eagles are hopeful that the addition of Jarrad Lewis to the offensive line at left tackle will help. The big Division I transfer from Mississippi Valley State University wasn't able to play in week one, but he will add size to the line in week two. 

- Last season Adam Connette was a little bit of everything for UMC as he ran, caught passes and even threw them. In week one, Connette was neutralized to just two catches for six yards. The Golden Eagles will hope to Connette more involved in the offense in week two as they look to have more production overall. 

- The UMC defense gave up 513 yards in week one, including 304 yards on the ground. The Golden Eagle defense will have to be strong, especially against the run, against the Golden Bears. The Golden Eagles have some experience returning up front, but not a ton of depth. UMC will look to get more experience in a hurry as they look to stop the run against Concordia-St. Paul. They also have to be able to defend the pass, especially 6-5 freshman Marcus Gustaveson, who was the top target for Ron Johnson in week one against U-Mary.

- One of the lone bright spots in week one for UMC was punter Stephen Day. Day averaged 39.6 yards per punt with a long of 53. However, UMC would hope that it doesn't need to use Day as much as they did in week one.

- Minnesota Crookston is luckily able to redshirt many freshman this season, but they do have several players who played against Winona State. Look for Omar Porte, Logan Huso, Matt Haire, Sean Perry, Ryan Ratcliff, Riley Schreader and Cody Kowalenko to see time for the Golden Eagles. Several other players might also potentially see time in 2016. 

- Concordia-St. Paul is in their first year back under the leadership of Shannon Currier, who was head coach from 2000-03. The Golden Bears went 1-0 with a win over University of Mary. Concordia-St. Paul featured a run-oriented offense in week one. CSP had 222 yards on the ground, led by running back Darius Chapes' 113 yards. Dual-threat quarterback Ron Johnson threw for 116 yards and rushed for 50 against the Marauders. His top aerial threat was 6-5 Marcus Gustaveson, who had five grabs for 51 yards.

- Defensively, the Golden Bears gave up 208 yards last week to the Marauders. They are led by linebacker Antonio Zepeda, who had 14 tackles last week. On the defensive line, Ryan McKee had seven tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, while Kelly Pierce had four tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks. 

- The Golden Bears have a rare opportunity with the return of Head Coach Shannon Currier. Currier left CSP in 2003 to go to Truman State University, where he was until 2008. Currier returns for his first season since 2003 but technically his fifth with the Golden Bears.