CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston will head to Sioux Falls, S.D. to face No. 18 Augustana University Sat., Sept. 17 at Kirkeby-Over Stadium at 1 p.m. The Golden Eagles comes in with an 0-2 mark, while Augustana is 2-0 on the season. 

Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Mike Fritze
Record at UMC: 3-32 Season at UMC: Fourth Season

Augustana Vikings
Head Coach: Jerry Olszewski
Record at Augie: 19-15 Season at Augie: Fourth Season

Sept. 17, 2016 • Sioux Falls, S.D. • Kirkeby-Over Stadium • 1 p.m.
Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/augie/
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/augie/football/
Live Audio: www.kroxam.com
Radio: 1260 KROX AM/105.7 FM (Chris Fee, PXP, Matt Bishop, Color) 

#5StoryLines
1. Can Rod Stewart have another big game as a receiver and kick returner?

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

3. Can the Golden Eagle defensive front continue to get pressure as they face Trey Heid and the Augustana Vikings?

4. Can the 1-2 punch of Andre Person and Harold Halcomb, III have another big week?

5. Will Adam Connette have a strong follow-up performance?

#Clogging Up The Middle
UMC sophomore defensive tackle Bubba Cook has had a strong start to his career in just over a year with the Golden Eagles. Cook had a strong week against Concordia- St. Paul with four tackles and a sack. He will look to continue to plug up the middle of the defense and also get pressure on the Vikings Saturday. 

#ChasingRecords
UMC wide receiver Adam Connette had a bounce back game against Concordia-St. Paul after seeing limited touches in week one. Connette had 10 grabs for 96 yards. He showed why he earned All-NSIC North Second Team honors as a junior. Connette is chasing several receiving records at UMC. The Corona, Calif. native needs 18 receptions to move past Carl Aho for second in receptions all-time. In addition, he needs just 362 yards to pass Aho for the all-time lead for receiving yards in a career. Connette will look to continue to etch his name in the record books as his junior season continues.

#TheOtherRodStewart
UMC sophomore wide receiver Rod Stewart had a big week against Concordia-St. Paul with 230 all-purpose yards. Stewart was huge in the return game with five returns for an average of 31.4 yards per return. He had a long return of 54 yards on the game. In addition, Stewart caught five passes for 67 yards and rushed the ball twice for six yards. This might not be the Rod Stewart known for hits such as "Maggie May" but UMC's Rod Stewart is good at making music on the football field with his offensive talent. Stewart will look to be an integral cog for the Golden Eagles against No. 18 Augustana.

#HaveADayYoungMan
UMC punter Stephen Day punted just twice last weekend but he made the most of it. The redshirt sophomore averaged 55.5 yards per punt and had a long of 60 on the day. Both of his punts were over 50 yards. Day will look to continue his strong start to the season as he looks to pin the Vikings deep in their half of the field on Satuday. Day is averaging 42.5 yards per punt on 11 punts this season.

#Tidbits
- Minnesota Crookston enters the weekend with a 0-2 mark on the season. The Golden Eagles were able to find success moving the football against Concordia-St. Paul but they were unable to come away with much to show for it. Of UMC's 12 drives, the Golden Eagles scored just three times. This was with the Golden Eagles sustaining three other drives where they moved the ball within the Concordia-St. Paul 35 but were unable to come away with points. Minnesota Crookston will have to do a better job of limiting penalties and mistakes against a very strong Augustana team, currently ranked No. 18 nationally.

- The Golden Eagles did a much better job of getting the ball to their key offensive players in week two against Concordia-St. Paul. Andre Person, Adam Connette and Rod Stewart accounted for 271 of the team's 386 offensive yards. UMC will look to get the ball in their trio's hands as they face-off with the Vikings. 

- Minnesota Crookston was able to develop a successful 1-2 punch at running back in week two with Andre Person and Harold Halcomb, III. The Golden Eagles finished with 147 yards rushing on the day. Person would account for 81 yards for an average of 3.9 yards per carry, while Halcomb had 59 yards for an average of 5.9 yards per carry. UMC will look to further develop their run game against the Vikings.

- UMC has had as strong of a pass rush as they have had in recent years. Through two games, the Golden Eagles have four sacks. Minnesota Crookston has been led by sacks from Bubba Cook and Casey Kraska, while Logan Huso also has a sack. The Golden Eagles will look to get to Trey Heid this weekend against Augustana. 

- Augustana has had a strong offense through two games, averaging 504.5 yards of offense. The Vikings have been balanced with 320.5 yards per game passing and 184.0 yards per game rushing. The Vikings are led by quarterback Trey Heid, who has 580 yards passing for seven touchdowns and just two interceptions. His top target has been Matt Heller with 13 catches for 219 yards for two touchdowns. After that, Augie has had a big drop-off in receptions with running back Caden Quintanilla as their next biggest receiving threat with eight catches for 75 yards. Quintanilla has had a strong year running the ball with 23 rushes for 132 yards. He is part of a 1-2 punch with Jackie Davis. Davis had 18 rushes for 102 yards. Both running backs are averaging 5.7 yards per carry. 

- The Vikings defense has been big in their first two weeks, limiting opponents to just 269.5 yards per game. Their pass defense has been extraordinary with just 107.5 yards per game so far.  Augustana is led by Kirby Hora, who has 22 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss. Matt Wagner adds in 15 tackles with one tackle for loss. Their top pass rusher has been Bryson Hamilton with 2.5 tackles for loss with one sack, while Zac Johnson has 4.5 tackles for loss.