Beaver Football Hosts SMSU for Homecoming Game

(MINOT, N.D.) – Minot State football is set to host the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs in a cross-divisional matchup for their 2019 Homecoming game.

The Beavers have an opportunity to eclipse the .500 mark with a win as they are currently 2-2 overall and in NSIC play. Minot State picked up their second win of the year at Minnesota-Crookston last weekend.

Minot State and Southwest Minnesota State will kick-off the Homecoming game tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 5 at 3 p.m. in Herb Parker Stadium.

Series History

vs. Southwest Minnesota State

SMSU leads the all-time series 3-0 dating back to 2013.
The Mustangs won the first game between the two teams 37-21. (9/20/13)
SW Minnesota also won the most recent contest two seasons ago by a score of 28-20. (9/16/17)

Beaver Tracks

As a team, the Beavers are averaging almost 19 points per game on offense and are surrendering roughly 28 points per game on defense.
Minot State's offense is fifth in the NSIC in rushing yards per game with 170.8 per contest.
The Beaver offense is also sixth in the league in 3^rd-down conversion rate at 37.1%.
Freshman back Ali Mohamed leads Minot State in rushing yards and is fourth in the conference in yards per game with 353 total rushing yards and an per game average of 88.3.
Lavante Bushnell is the go-to receiver for the Beavers with 246 yards, which is good for tenth-best in the conference.
Freshman returner Cory Carignan is a dangerous threat in the return game with 271 return yards and one score so far in 2019.
Senior kicker/punter JoseLuis Moreno ranks towards the top of the NSIC and the NCAA in punting yards (1,122), punting average (44.9), and longest punt (74). Moreno has also recorded 11 total touchbacks between punts and kickoffs.
Matthew Ackerman and Derek Wax have been the leaders for the Beavers' defense with 22 total tackles each and a combined 5.5 tackles-for-loss.
The Beaver defense has also picked off five passes this season with two from sophomore safety Justin Coleman.
As a team, Minot State is one of the more disciplined team in the conference with only 16 penalties on the season for an average of four per game and roughly 40 penalty yards per game.

Scouting Report

Southwest Minnesota State University

The Mustangs are currently 1-3 overall and in NSIC play.
SMSU's only win came last weekend in a 35-28 victory at Upper Iowa University.
The Mustangs rank last in the conference in both total offense (247.3 yards/game) and total defense (545.3 yards/game)
SMSU has also struggled in the rush game on both sides of ball with 53.3 rushing yards per game on offense and giving up 312 rushing yards per game on defense.
As a team, Southwest is leading the NSIC in punt return average with 23.5 yards per game.
The Mustangs are also the only team in the Northern Sun with a perfect conversion percentage on fourth downs.
Senior receiver Daniel Davis is a player to watch on offense as he is third in the NSIC in total receiving yards with 341 and has also caught two touchdowns.
Defensive back Garrett Chapman leads the Mustangs in tackles and in second in the league with 42 total stops.