MINOT, N.D.- The Minot State football team (0-3) will head on the road this week as they travel to Marshall, Minn. to square off against the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs (2-1). Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. on Saturday Sept. 24th at Mattke Field on the campus of SMSU. 

Last Outing: The Beavers had all the electricity going into energy day against the Wayne State Wildcats. Unfortunately, the potent QB duo and deathhold defense of WSC was just too much for the Beavers to overcome as they fell by a 49-10 score. The Beavers mustered six first downs on the day while gaining 23 rushing yards and 161 passing yards to combine for 184 yards. Sophomore Dawson Macleary didn't seem to lose a step after being taken out of the game against USF as he went 9/18 with 161 yards on the day. Macleary had a 56 yard pass to favorite target senior Peyton Lamoureux who finished with five catches and 100 yards. Junior Ali Mohamed led the rushing attack for the Beavers racking up 21 yards on the day. Sophomore Erik Palmquist was the receiver who caught the lone Beaver touchdown on the day while finishing with 29 yards. Sophomore Evan Lovett had the longest rush on the day for MSU as he was able to gain 19 yards in a singular rush. Senior Caleb Ness and sophomore Jonathan Leon each had a sack on the day while freshman Sean Pugh-Sykora added another tackle for loss and junior Kylen Miller-Levi and senior Pat Hardy each combined for a tackle for loss. Sophomore DJ Schneibel also forced a fumble from the Wildcat offense. Sophomore Dillon Fedor added a 43 yard field goal on the day. 

Series: The Mustangs have the upper hand when it comes to squaring off against MSU as the 'Stangs are riding a five game winning streak to put their record over MSU at 7-1. The last Beaver victory over SMSU came back in the NAIA days when the Beavers marched into Marshall and snuck a 36-12 victory out back on Sept. 7th, 1996. Since the Beavers joined the NSIC the matchups have gone the way of the Mustangs, though just barely through four matches. However the last three meetings have been within eight points or less including a one point loss back in 2015 in Minot. 

The Opponent: The SMSU Mustangs are riding their first win streak of the young season as they have won two consecutive games. After a narrow setback to Minnesota-Duluth to start the season the Mustangs have roared back in a 14-6 win at home against Concordia-St. Paul and backing it up with a tough fought 31-28 road win down in Bismarck over rival UMary. SMSU is scoring 22 points per game to start the season while gaining 716 yards rushing and 442 yards passing on the season already. SMSU has relied on the hand of redshirt freshman Justus McComb to guide the offense, and has delivered playing every offensive snap for the Mustangs while accumulating 442 yards passing and one passing touchdown. Senior Jesse Sherwood has shown how he's a veteran of the game by leading the team in offensive yards with 553 yards rushing while piling in six touchdowns. When the ball isn't run McComb seems to have found junior Peter Osman to be quite favorable as he leads the receiver corps with seven targets and 132 yards. The defense is led by senior Onte Burns who has accumulated 35 total tackles through three games. Burns along with senior Alan Giron and sophomore Avery Johnson each lead the defense with two tackles for loss, however senior Austin Moore is the lone Mustang with a sack on the year. Giron and redshirt freshman Jalani Jefferson each have an interception for the Mustangs while four different 'Stangs have forced a fumble. 

The Beavers: The Beavers have been led by their passing attack this year compiling 458 yards on the year while the rushing attack has only accumulated 193 yards. Mohamed has led the rushing attack gaining 118 yards on the year with Lovett far behind with 24 yards. Macleary has been the go to starter this season as he's started all three games while throwing for 418 yards at a 53 percent completion. The Beavers have two receivers over the 100 yard mark on the year in Lamoureux who leads MSU with 160 yards and sophomore Nathan Young who has caught 100 yards, both with 10 completions on the year. The defense has been a bright spot in the early year for MSU as sophomore Isaiah Bigby has 21 tackles to lead the Beaver defense followed closely behind by sophomores Carson Cayko with 19 and Kyle VanBerkom with 17. Ness is in the lead for the Beavers in tackles for loss with two, however, eight different Beavers have a tackle for loss and two more have combined for a tackle for loss. Ness and Leon have provided the lone sacks for MSU with one apiece, while Bigby and Miller-Levi each have the lone interceptions for MSU with one apiece. Three different beavers have forced a fumble and Bigby has forced a safety for the Beaver defense. Fedor is 1-1 on the year as his 43 yard field goal is the only one taken by MSU so far. 

Looking Ahead: The Beavers will head back to Minot to prepare for the annual rivalry of the Battle of the Beavers as Bemidji State (1-2) comes to town Saturday Oct. 1st. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.