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RECORDS: Minot State will enter their NSIC North opener with a 1-3 overall record. The University of Mary will bring in a 2-2 overall record.

COACHES CORNER: Minot State's head coach is Paul Rudolph, who is in his seventh season at the helm of the Beaver football program. Rudolph sports  a 32-34 record while at MISU and a career record of 75-81. The Marauders are coached by Myron Schulz. Schulz will be in search of career victory 100 as he enters the game against the Beavers with a 99-57 record in his 15th season as head coach.

FOLLOW THE BEAVERS: The game is broadcast locally on KCJB 910-AM with Scott Kittell calling the play-by-play. Live audio can be accessed online at kcjb.com. MISU provides live video and live stats as well as links to the live audio at MSUBeavers.com. Minot State Athletics also is active on Facebook, Twitter and You Tube with all feeds accessible through the home page.

RANKINGS: Neither team received any votes in the Sept. 30 American Football Coaches Association Poll. In the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Maruaders were picked No. 11 while the Beavers were tabbed No. 14 out of the 16 teams in the league.

RECENT HISTORY: The Beavers struggled with a  slow start and turnovers in their 49-14 Homecoming loss to Winona State. Minot State turned the ball over five times, helping the Warriors jump out to a 28-0 lead. Three of the MISU turnovers came in the red zone, taking points off the board and shifting momentum towards Winona State. The Beaver defense allowed a season-worst 558 yards on 55 plays, however, the Minot State offense showed progress as they notched a season-high 417 yards. University of Mary fell victim to one of the better defenses in the NCAA Division II as Upper Iowa University submerged the Marauders 36-7 in Fayette, Iowa. U-Mary allowed 573 total yards to the Peacocks and while the Marauder offense didn't score for the last 47 minutes of the game.

OVERALL SERIES: Minot State and University of Mary hold a strong rivalry dating back to 1988 and many battles in the Dakota Athletic Conference. With a 32-21 win last season, the Beavers hold a 11-10 all-time advantage against the Marauders.

NOTING THE MARAUDERS: University of Mary has played inconsistent football to start the 2013 season. The Marauders have two wins and two losses, but have been outscored by their opponents 107-79 through four games. The pass happy U-Mary offense is led by quarterback Craig Bagnell who has thrown for 1,103 yards including eight touchdowns and five interceptions. Bagnell's main target is receiver Nick Jolliffe, as he has 26 catches for 288 yards and an NSIC-leading six touchdown catches. The U-Mary defense ranks No. 12 in the Northern Sun, giving up 410 yards per game and 5.6 yards per play. Linebacker Grant Singer has been critical for the Marauder defense as he leads the team with 43 tackles. Singer also has five tackles for a loss, two sacks, and one interception on year.

PASSING ATTACK IMPROVES: After a stagnant start to the 2013 season where the Beavers had just 137 passing yards in a season opening loss to Concordia-St. Paul, the Minot State passing game has come alive. MISU has steadily increased their passing yards each week, resulting in 309 yards through the air in a Homecoming loss to Winona State. Zac Cunha (So., QB, Rocklin, Calif.) has had a variety of weapons to throw to six different receivers. Porter Sturm (So., WR, Roy, Mont.) and Kwajo Bonsu (Jr., TE, Chino Hills, Calif.) each caught touchdown passes from Cunha against WSU. For Bonsu, it was his first touchdown of the season.

MARSHALL TACKLES 250: Chad Marshall (Sr., LB, Hazen, N.D.) has been one of the most consistent defensive players in Minot State football history. With a team-high six tackles against Winona State, Marshall now has 254 career tackles. If he continues the pace of 8.5 tackles per game, Marshall will reach the 300 career tackle mark before his Minot State career is finished.

SUPER COOPER: Cooper Helm (So., DB, Wenetachee, Wash.) gave the Beaver defense a lift against Winona State as he collected two interceptions in the loss. Helm now has three interceptions in four games in 2013, ranking him tied for No. 8 in all of NCAA Division II. Helm now has five career interceptions in 15 games with the Beavers.

MUSTIPHER BREAKS OUT: Over the past two seasons, the Minot State rushing offense has averaged just 87.7 yards per game. Jarvis Mustipher (R-Fr., RB, Melbourne, Fla.) provided a spark for the Beaver attack as he rushed for 114 yards on 16 attempts against Winona State. Mustipher is the first Beaver to rush for more than 100 yards since Blake Eggl rushed for 109 yards in a win against Minnesota Crookston in 2012. Mustipher now leads MISU in rushing with 240 yards on the year.

PROTECTING THE QUARTERBACK: A constant problem for the Minot State offense has been keeping Zac Cunha (So., QB, Rocklin, Calif.) off the turf. The Beavers have allowed an NSIC-worst 23 sacks so far in 2013, including eight sacks against Winona State. The University of Mary defense is no slouch, as they rank No. 4 in the NSIC with 11 sacks on the year.

LEADING THE LEAGUE: Wayne Peters (Sr., WR, Carson, Calif.) continues his stellar senior season as he remains the main target in the MISU offense. Peters leads the Northern Sun in receptions with 32. Peters also has 302 yards receiving and three touchdowns on the year. The ball will likely be thrown Peters' way against the Marauders, as last season, he led the Beavers with six catches for 77 yards and a touchdown in the 32-21 win.

BY THE NUMBERS
52: Zac Cunha (So., QB, Rocklin, Calif.) dropped back to pass a career-high 52 times in the 49-14 loss to Winona State. Cunha completed 28 of those passes, also marking a career-high for the Beaver signal caller. During his time as a Beaver, Cunha has completed 52.6% of his passes.

278: The University of Mary ranks No. 3 in the Northern Sun and No. 46 in all of NCAA Division II with 278 passing yards per game. The Minot State defense ranks No. 70 in NCAA Division II in defending the pass, allowing 222.8 yards per game.

9: The Minot State offense put the ball on the ground nine times during the 49-14 loss to Winona State. The Beavers lost four of those fumbles. MISU has now lost nine fumbles through four games on the season while in 2012 the Beavers lost just 13 fumbles in 11 games.