2-Deep for Minot State                        2-Deep for Bemidji State

MINOT, N.D. – The Beavers find themselves back on the road this week for the third time as Minot State opens NSIC North Division play at Bemidji State in the "Battle of the Beavers" on Saturday, Oct. 2.

The weekend will be a homecoming for Minot State offensive coordinator Derek Edholm who was a former team MVP and a two-time NSIC perform at quarterback for Bemidji State from 2006-10.

Along with being a homecoming for Edholm, the two Beavers teams have played an identical schedule through their first four games with each playing Augustana, Sioux Falls, Wayne State, and Minnesota State, Mankato, though Bemidji State (2-2 overall) has enjoyed more success than Minot State (0-4) with wins over Sioux Falls and Wayne State.

Overall, the head-to-head series has been dominated by Bemidji State, which holds a 20-1 record against Minot State, with the lone win for the Beavers from North Dakota a 35-28 victory in 2002.

Saturday's contest also will be an emotional one for the host Beavers, who will honor 13 seniors before kick-off for Senior Day.

Here is a quick look at this weekend's matchup:
LAST TIME OUT (BSU): Bemidji State saw a 10-game Homecoming win streak snapped last weekend as No. 22 Augustana posted a 52-24 win over the Beavers, who fell behind 21-3 in the first half and never recovered.

Redshirt-sophomore quarterback Brandon Alt (6-foot-2, 200 lbs.), a fifth-year player who a week earlier broke the school record held by Minot State's Derek Edholm with 61 pass attempts in a game, threw for 298 yards and two touchdowns in the loss. Brendan Beaulieu (6-3, 201, Jr.) proved to be his favorite target, catching 10 passes for 158 yards and touchdown.

Turnovers proved key as Augustana picked off three passes in the win, and the Vikings' Preseason All-NSIC quarterback Kyle Saddler also threw for 316 yards and six TDs.

LAST TIME OUT (MSU): Back at home against 20^th-ranked Minnesota State, Mankato, the Minot State Beavers also fell behind 21-3 in the first half and saw the game slip away against a Top-25 foe as the Mavericks grabbed a 68-10 victory.

"Mankato did a good job of taking advantage of some opportunities, and hats off to them," Minot State head coach Mike Aldrich said. "Some of the things that they did to really grab momentum were kind of throw some balls up there, some we would call 50-50 balls, and they came down with all of them. So, they were able to gain that momentum, and then once they had that they just sort of started leaning on their big offensive line and their run game to really just take control of the game."

The game was the first collegiate start for redshirt-freshman quarterback Dawson Macleary (6-1, 190) for a youthful and battered Beavers squad, and he completed 10 passes for 62 yards.

"He was able to show off his arm a number of times down the field, which I think is also a positive as well for what we need to do to increase our offensive production," Aldrich said of Macleary. "To be able to throw the ball more we need to be able to stretch the defenses, and to open up that run game."

As for the run game, redshirt-sophomore running back Ali Mohamed (5-10, 185), who one week earlier rushed for a career-best 142 yards, nearly topped that mark as he led the way offensively for Minot State with 139 yards on the ground and a touchdown, a 69-yard race to the end zone that was his second 69-yard touchdown play of the fall.

"Good to see Ali Mohamed have a good day of running the ball; it takes a while," Aldrich said, adding, "… we're going to keep chipping away, keep chipping away and eventually he's going to pop something."

Nathan Young (6-2, 175), a redshirt-freshman receiver, led the way with five catches for 39 yards in his first collegiate start, and redshirt-freshman linebacker Kyle VanBerkom (6-3, 170) led the defense with eight tackles, and redshirt-freshman defensive lineman DJ Scheibel (6-2, 260) added a sack for Minot State.

"Our guys are up, they showed fight all the way thru the game Saturday regardless of outcome or scoreboard," Minot State's coach said. "That's the biggest thing we've been focused on when playing these good football teams is not allowing your team to get down, not allowing them to second guess themselves. … For a young team, that's sometimes difficult to do, so that's been good to see that they've responded well and come out fighting."

SCOUTING BEMIDJI STATE: The Beavers have thrown the ball much more than any of the opponents Minot State has seen, to date, as Alt is 95-of-189 passing for 1,318 yards and 12 TDs on the second, while backup Sam McGath (6-0, 215, Fr) has completed 4-of-8 passes for 64 yards and another TD.

Those 197 pass attempts are nearly double the 110 rushing attempts by the Beavers backfield, which is led by the running back duo of Makaio Harn (5-7, 195, So), who has 204 yards on 50 carries, and Sage Booker (6-0, 190, So), who was 151 yards on 48 carries.

Beaulieu has been the top target for Alt, hauling in 29 passes for 479 yards, while Brice Peters (5-10, 190, Fr) has been the touchdown maker with five TDs on just 10 receptions for 114 yards.

"I think part of their MO of throwing the ball so much has been, in some of their last couple of games they've been in I think they felt like that was their best opportunity to be successful," Aldrich said. "They will still run the football, there's no doubt about that, so we have to shore up our run defense and get very good at that.

"Our goal is be able to take away one aspect and force them into only having one option, then being able to defend on the backside."

Defensively, Bemidji State likes pressure as they have six quarterback sacks on the season, have forced five fumbles, and picked off two passes. Linebacker Gabe Ames (6-0, 240, Sr) and defensive back Hameed Oyedele (5-10, 190, Sr) lead the team with 24 tackles each, while defensive lineman Josh Wleh (5-10, 290, Sr) has 23 tackles, a sack, and a fumble recovery for a defense that relies on everyone as six players have a sack each, and six different players have a takeaway.

"We'll see a pretty high-pressure package I'm sure from their defense," Aldrich said. "That's the one thing we've noticed in their first four games is quite a bit of pressure, they try to disrupt offenses. … And with a young quarterback (Macleary) I would expect we would see more of the same."

COACH ALDRICH'S KEYS TO THE GAME: "Not so much that we're worried about who we're playing right now but can we do the things that we're supposed to do: Not play panicked, play confidently, establish our run game, be able to eliminate their run game. Then, when there are balls in the air that would be 50-50 balls, can we make sure that percentage stays that way.

"I think Dawson made some really good passes on Saturday, what we kind of call the robbery passes where if the corner is off just take what they're giving you and get 5 yards, and Nate Young had a really good game for us, he had to step up with Cory (Carignan) being out. … There's a lot of good things there for us, now we just need a lot more of them."

LOOKING AHEAD: Minot State makes its return home to host Homecoming nest weekend at to the friendly confines of Herb Parker Stadium as Minnesota State University Moorhead heads to town. CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS Kickoff against the Dragons on Saturday, Oct. 9, is scheduled for 2 p.m., and there will be plenty of extra activities that are part of the Homecoming celebration, including a "Meet the Beavers" lunch-time social on Friday, Oct. 8, at noon in the MSU Dome, along with the induction ceremony Friday evening, and at halftime Saturday, honoring the Minot State Athletic Hall of Fame Classes of 2020 and 2021.