CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston football team will play host to No. 3 Minnesota State University-Mankato Sat., Oct. 26 at 6 p.m., at Alerus Center in Grand Forks, N.D. The Golden Eagles come in with an 0-7 mark, seeking their first win of the year, while the Mavericks are 7-0 on the season.

MINNESOTA STATE (7-0, 7-0 NSIC)
AT MINNESOTA CROOKSTON (0-7, 0-7 NSIC)
SAT., OCT. 26 | 6 P.M. C.T. | GRAND FORKS, N.D.
ALERUS CENTER

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GOLDEN EAGLE TIDBITS

1. Minnesota Crookston had their best passing game of the 2019 season last weekend against Upper Iowa. The Golden Eagles had 247 yards through the air with three touchdown passes from Jalin Scott. Scott had one of his best games at Minnesota Crookston, as he went 15-of-21 for 247 yards with the three touchdown passes. The Golden Eagles will look to a strong aerial attack as they head into this week against Minnesota State. Minnesota Crookston is fifth in pass efficiency in the conference at 126.1 as they are completing 43.8 percent of their passes.

2. The Golden Eagles are the fifth ranked pass defense in the conference coming into the
weekend, as they are allowing just 179.4 yards per game through the air this season. Minnesota Crookston will rely on cornerbacks Terrance Nicholson and Osayi Onaghinor, along with safeties Anfernee Cooper, Johnson Fallah, Tysen White, and Free Borsey this weekend especially as they come up against one of the best receivers in the conference in Shane Zylstra.

3. Minnesota Crookston has a strong receiving core in 2019 led by Jonattan Mudd with 31 catches for 435 yards and four touchdown receptions. Nathan Coy is coming off a great week, as he had four catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns against Upper Iowa. Coy has 22 catches for 349 yards and two touchdowns, while Andy Groebner has 12 catches for 174 yards on the season.

4. Minnesota Crookston ranks 10th in the NSIC for sacks with 16. The Golden Eagles have already surpassed their total for sacks in a season from last year, as they ended with 14. Minnesota Crookston is on pace to set the school record for sacks in the Division II era. The best season for sacks in recent history came with 18 in 2016. Austin Steele and Joe Warner are the co-leaders on the team with three apiece. Tysen White has added two as a freshman for the Golden Eagles. Ben Branscom also has two on the season.

5. Alex Folz had a great weekend as a return specialist for Minnesota Crookston. Folz was close to home in Fayette, Iowa, as many family members came down from Spring Grove, Minn., just over the Minnesota-Iowa border. Folz had four returns for an average of 34.8 yards per return. In addition, he had a long return of 58 yards against the Peacocks. Folz also punted for Minnesota Crookston, averaging 39.0 yards per punt with a long of 56 in the game.

6. Shonte Smith had one of his best games as a Golden Eagle with three catches for 49 yards, including a great grab among several defenders in the end zone last weekend against Upper Iowa. Smith picked up his second career touchdown in the game.

7. Senior LaDerek McCray has been strong of late for Minnesota Crookston. McCray, a native of McComb, Miss., has had eight tackles in the last two games for the Golden Eagles. In addition, he had a 36-yard interception return for a touchdown against Sioux Falls. McCray will look to have a day against Minnesota State.

8. Will Cross and Trevor Long, Jr. have continued to rise on the charts for tackles for the Golden Eagles. Long has 234 career tackles, while Cross has 213 career tackles. Both players have been integral to the defense throughout their career, and will look to etch their names in the record books for Minnesota Crookston.

8. Austin Steele has been one of the leaders of the defense for the 2019 season. The redshirt sophomore linebacker has been a defensive playmaker for the Golden Eagles. Steele is tied for the team-lead with 47 tackles. He leads the way with 6.5 tackles for loss, and is tied for the lead with three sacks. He also has two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries on the season. Steele should be instrumental against Minnesota State.

10. Freshman Tysen White has been the biggest impact freshman for the Golden Eagle. White has continued to show improvement and make plays for the Golden Eagles. White has two sacks on the 2019 season from his safety position. In addition, he is tied for the team-lead in tackles with 47. He also has 2.5 tackles for loss on the year.

11. Minnesota Crookston is looking to recapture the magic of the Alerus Center. The Golden Eagles lost earlier this season against Sioux Falls, but had a 37-36 last-second win over UMary Nov. 10, 2012 to close out that season.


12. Jared McLemore has made a difference in the kicking game for the Golden Eagles. McLemore is already fifth all-time in field goals with seven in not-even two full seasons.
McLemore is 3-of-5 on the season with a long of 34 yards.

13. The Golden Eagles are averaging 279.3 yards per game on offense and allowing 413.6 yards per tilt to the opponents. Minnesota Crookston has less penalties than their opponents with just 46.1 yards per game of penalties compared to 63.3 yards of penalties per game for their foes.

14. Minnesota Crookston has stayed in games throughout the 2019 season. Now the key is getting over the hump and getting in the win column. The Golden Eagles have improved their margin of defeat from 32.5 to just 24.1 this season, showing great gains this year.

MINNESOTA STATE NOTES

1. Minnesota State is currently ranked No. 3 in the nation with an unblemished 7-0 mark. The Mavericks are scoring 39.9 points per game, while allowing just 10.0 points per game to their foes. Minnesota State is averaging 508.0 yards per game offensively, while giving up just 229.3 yards per game to their foes. The Mavericks are averaging 299.0 yards per game on the ground and 209.0 yards per tilt through the air.

2. The Mavericks have two of the most potent offensive players in the league this season in Nate Gunn and Shane Zylstra. Nate Gunn has 133 rushes for 923 yards with 10 touchdowns this season. Zylstra has 35 catches for 787 yards with nine touchdowns on the year. Both will be keys for the Golden Eagles to limit on the weekend.

3. Minnesota State utilizes two quarterbacks as Ryan Schlicte and J.D. Ekowa have each played in all seven game. Schlichte is 37-of-81 for 668 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions. Ekowa is 41-of-73 for 638 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. Both can run as well, Ekowa has rushed for 214 yards, while Schliche has rushed for 171 yards.

4. Minnesota State's defense is guided by Zach Robertson's 38 tackles with eight tackles for loss and four sacks. Jack Leius has added 32 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss and one sack. Cole Schroedermeier leads the team with three interceptions, while Leius and Cade Johnson have each added two apiece. The Mavericks have 50 tackles for loss on the season, 26 sacks, and 12 interceptions.

#5StoryLines

1. Can the Golden Eagles limit Gunn and Zylstra?

2. Can the defense get to the MSU quarterbacks?

3. Can the Golden Eagles get strong play from special teams?

4. Can Minnesota Crookston's offensive line slowdown their pass rush?

5. Can the Golden Eagles get a strong run game?