Football | 9.19.14

ST. PAUL, Minn. - This Saturday at 2:30 p.m., the Concordia football team (0-2) seeks its first victory with a road game at the University of Mary (1-1) at 2:30 p.m. at MDU Resources Community Bowl in Birsmarck, N.D.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Saturday's game will feature a live video webcast, live statistics and a live radio feed online courtesy of KFYR 550 AM while fans can follow along all NSIC scores with the live scoreboard page.

SETTING THE SCENE
The game is U-Mary's Military Appreciation Day and Take a Kid to a Game day, and as a result the Marauders will be wearing camouflage jerseys instead of the traditional blue and orange.

INSIDE THE RECORDS: SERIES HISTORY & MORE

• Concordia is 2-3 all-time against the Marauders since the series began in 2006
• Concordia is 2-0 on the road at U-Mary with wins in 2006 (22-19) and 2008 (17-7)
• The Marauders have won the last two meetings, 2009 and 2012, both in St. Paul
• Head coach Ryan Williams (4th year) is 0-1 against U-Mary, 6-8 against the NSIC North and 3-4 on the road against the NSIC North

LAST MEETING: U-Mary 32, Concordia 26 (2012)
In the 2012 season opener, Concordia racked up 588 yards of total offense, had 30 first downs and a 38:41 to 21:19 time of possession advantage. But five turnovers, over 100 penalty yards and losing the field position battle by an average of 15 yards led to a 32-26 loss to the Marauders.

Making his fourth career start at quarterback in the game, James Peterson produced his third 300-yard passing performance, completing 30-48 for 431 yards and two touchdowns but was intercepted four times. He added a rushing touchdown on seven attempts for 26 yards. A pair of receivers had 100-yard games as Cordell Smith had 147 yards and a touchdown while Nate Thienes had 116 yards from the tight end position. Tre Spears added 117 yards on 26 carries on the ground as Concordia dominated the run game with a 157-to-1 advantage in rushing yards.

Concordia's defense had 12 tackles for a loss of 32 yards, a sack and 11 quarterback hurries as it put pressure on the Marauders all game. Jordan Halverson led the group with 10 tackles and 3.0 for loss while Josh Trifunov made his debut with seven tackles and 3.0 for loss.

U-Mary was led by quarterback Craig Bagnell, completing 24-40 for 359 yards and four touchdowns. He spread out at least four completions to five different targets led by Tyler Steffan with four catches for 101 yards and Elby Pope with four catches for 73 yards and a touchdown.

Scott Maldonado led the U-Mary defense with 19 tackles and an interception while Grant Singer had 10 tackles and four quarterback hurries.

LAST WEEK: Northern State 28, Concordia 21
The Golden Bears held decisive advantages in total offense (431-233), rushing (223-76), passing (208-157), first downs (26-18), time of possession (35:35 to 24:25) and third down conversions (10-17 to 4-13), winning the game on both sides of the ball.

But four turnovers led to a pair of Northern State touchdowns and stopped three Concordia drives in NSU territory as the Wolves pulled out the 28-21 win. Not only did the Golden Bears lose the game, but quarterback Corey Cole was injured early in the second quarter and did not return. He completed 6-9 for 44 yards and had 11 rushing yards on four attempts before leaving.

Backup Jared Russo filled in with a solid effort, completing 16-29 for 164 yards and a pair of touchdowns including a six yard touchdown to himself to put Concordia ahead 21-17 in the third quarter. While the pair spread around passes to seven different targets, Cordell Smith was the go-to option with seven catches for 97 yards and a touchdown.

On the ground, Tre Spears led the Golden Bears with 150 rushing yards and with seven catches for 44 yards posted a career high 194 all-purpose yards. Darius Chapes supplemented the ground game with seven carries for 51 yards and a touchdown, averaging 7.3 per carry to spell Spears.

For the second straight week, Concordia's defense was led by Josh Trifunov with 11 tackles and an interception while Jordan Halverson had 10 tackles. Jordan Nieuwsma added four tackles, two for loss and a sack.

LAST WEEK: Winona State 42, U-Mary 34
Battling from behind all day, the University of Mary lost 42-34 at Winona State. The Marauders matched the Warriors score for score early as R-FR QB Ben Jolliffe, making an emergency start, tossed scoring passes to Nick Jolliffe, his brother, and Myron Baldoz-McArn. The Warriors continued to score and led 28-14 at intermission. Two big plays by the Marauders in the third would even the game; Elby Pope returned a punt a school-record 89 yards and Austin Bolton returned a fumble 57 yards for the score. WSU responded with two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including an interception return for a score, to build a 42-28 lead. Jolliffe would hit Pope in the end zone with five seconds left in the game to make the final margin 42-34.

Ben Jolliffe finished 18-of-30 for 187 yards, three scores and two interceptions and ran for 37 yards. Nick Jolliffe cuaght nine passes for 98 yards and one TD. Pope caught three passes for 32 yards and a score. Grant Singer made a career-high 19 tackles and Troy Guptill posted 2.5 sacks. Jack Nelson of WSU was named NSIC Offensive Player of the Week after completing 30-of-45 passes for 422 yards and three scores. Josh Mikes caught seven passes for 121 yards and a score and Dylan Ulferts made nine catches for 118 yards for the Warriors.

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS
The Marauders picked up a strong 19-18 week one home win over last year's Mineral Water Bowl participant, Southwest Minnesota State before falling 42-34 last week at Winona State. The Marauders will host Concordia in week three and travel to Augustana in week four to complete its South Division slate.

Expect U-Mary to be pass-heavy with 276.5 passing yards per game to just 88.0 on the ground while attempting 87 passes to just 71 rushes. The Marauders have put the ball in the end zone five times through the air and have yet to punch one in the ground, as well. U-Mary has used two different quarterback as Zach Roberson threw for 366 yards and two touchdowns on 32-57 passing in the opener while Ben Jolliffe completed 18-30 for 187 and three touchdowns last week at WSU. Two players have already topped 100 yards receiving for the Marauders, Nick Jolliffe (14-145, 2) and Elby Pope (10-123, 1) while 11 different targets have hauled in receptions and four different players have caught touchdowns.

But the run game has struggled as Vince Ferrante leads the team with 24 carries for 72 yards (3.0 avg). Five different players have at least 10 rushing attempts but none of them average more than Ben Jolliffe's 3.1 per carry (12-37).

While U-Mary has been airing the ball out early on this year, opponents have also been moving the ball on the Marauders averaging 455.5 yards of total offense including 344.5 through the air.

U-Mary's defense is led by Grant Singer with 29 tackles in two games, adding 2.5 for loss and an interception. Troy Guptill has a team-high 2.5 sacks while Austin Bolton has a 57 yard fumble recovery for touchdown.

CONCORDIA TEAM INSIDE THE RANKINGS (pct. or averages)
3rd Down Conversions: 50% - 19th NCAA & 3rd NSIC
First Down Defense: 16.5 - 36th NCAA & 3rd NSIC
Kickoff Returns: 23.44 - 46th NCAA & 3rd NSIC 
Passing Yards Allowed: 119.5 - 10th NCAA & 2nd NSIC
Punt Returns: 12.00 - 45th NCAA & 5th NSIC
Rushing Offense: 227.5 - 34th NCAA & 4th NSIC
Sacks Allowed: 0.0 - 1st NCAA & 1st NSIC (14 tied)
Tackles for Loss Allowed: 4.50 - 23rd NCAA & 1st NSIC
Time of Possession: 33:52 - 22nd NCAA & 1st NSIC
Total Defense: 308.5 - 39th NCAA & 4th NSIC
* - top-5 in NSIC rankings to be listed

2014 CAPTAINS
Concordia's captains for the 2014 season are seniors Tre Spears and Cordell Smith on offense, and senior Abdullah Asad and junior Jordan Halverson on defense.

OFFENSIVE LINE DOMINATING EARLY
Concordia's offensive front, consisting of four returning starters has paved the way to a ground game that is averaging 227.5 yards per game to rank 34th in the country and fourth in the Northern Sun. The run game is going for 5.5 per carry, as well. Additionally, the group has yet to allow a sack (one of 14 teams in the country) and are ranked 23rd nationally and first in the league by allowing only 4.50 tackles for loss per game.

STRONG DEFENSE KEEPING GAMES WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE
Although 0-2 on the year, both losses have been by a touchdown and have come down to the game's final drives in the fourth quarter. A big reason is the strong play of the team defense. Concordia is limiting opponents to just 119.5 passing yards per game, ranking 10th in the country and second in the conference. Additionally, the team is allowing just 16.5 first downs per contest, ranking third in the league and 36th nationally.

TIME OF POSSESSION
Concordia has dominated the time of possession battle each week, accumuling 32:09 at #3 UMD and 35:35 against Northern State for an average of 33:52 minutes per game. A big reason has been third down play, as the offense has executed at an efficient 50% clip (15-30) while the defense is holding opponents to 35.7% on third downs (10-28).

TURNOVERS PROVING COSTLY
Concordia's big downfall this year has been turnovers, going 0-for-2 in the turnover margin through two weeks for a season margin of 5-1 in the give-take or a -4 total net on turnovers. With a pair of one touchdown losses and the team stats otherwise in Concordia's favor in several key areas, taking care of the football could lead to a winning streak for the club.

RUSHING FOR 100
In two games, Concordia has already had a pair of 100-yard rushers as junior quarterback Corey Cole rushed for 177 yards on 18 attempts with a touchdown in week one at UMD before Tre Spears ran for 150 on 29 carries in week two against Northern State. Spears leads the team with 197 yards on 44 attempts while Cole is second on the team with 188 yards on 22 carries.

QUARTERBACK NOTES
Junior quarterback Corey Cole won the starting job out of fall camp and impressed in a hard fought loss at #3 Minnesota Duluth in the season opener, accounting for 307 yards of total offense including 177 rushing on 18 attempts. But he was injured in the second quarter of week two and did not return. For week three at U-Mary, he has been removed from the team's official two deep and his status for the rest of the season is in doubt.

Meanwhile, senior Jared Russo has played in 26 career games including as a starter in all 11 games last year with a handful of starts as a redshirt freshman in 2011. He's passed for 2,912 career yards, just 88 shy of 3,000 with 26 touchdowns and 24 interceptions. In two and a half quarters last week against Northern State, Russo was effective as he completed 16-29 for 164 yards and two touchdown strikes including one to himself from six yards out on a batted ball at the line of scrimmage.

Ben Schramski, a redshirt freshman from Lake City, Minn. assumed the backup role while transfer Ryan Sample, a sophomore from Olivet Nazarene University will be the emergency third quarterback.

SPEARS LEADS THE RUN GAME
Tre Spears eclipsed 2,000 career rushing yards last week to become the eighth rusher in team history to reach the milestone. He now has 2,116 career rushing yards in 35 games, averaging 4.6 yards per carry over his career. His 194 combined rushing/receiving yards in week two set a new career high, and his 150 yard rushing game was his fourth career 150-plus rushing effort and his eighth career 100-yard rushing game.

Providing a nice boost to the run game in week two was sophomore transfer Darius Chapes with seven carries for 51 yards and a 13-yard touchdown run. With the injury to Corey Cole, expect Spears and Chapes to shoulder the rushing load, with others chipping in as the season progresses.

CORDELL SMITH LEADS THE WIDE RECEIVERS
Senior Cordell Smith is off to a fantastic start with 13 catches for 172 yards and a touchdown in two games, averaging 86 yards per game and 13.2 per catch. In his fourth year as a key receiver, Smith has 117 receptions for 1,822 yards and 21 receiving touchdowns. He's also the team's punt returner with one return for 12 yards so far this year while last year he had a 62 yard punt return for touchdown.

UZZIAH DAVIS A VERSATILE FRESHMAN THREAT
Freshman Uzziah Davis has made a big impact in his first taste of college action, with nine kickoff returns for 211 yards (23.4), three carries for eight yards and an 18 yard reception to give him 118.5 all-purpose yards per game. Through two games, the team has looked for multiple ways to put the ball in his hands, lining him up in the slot, in the backfield and as a returner. He's currently ranked 17th in the nation and second in the conference with 211 combined kick return yards.

OBARSKI LEADS THE KICKING GAME
Senior Tom Obarski has been arguably the best kicker and best punter in team history, having earned All-NSIC honors at both spots throughout his time as a Golden Bear. He holds the school record for most field goals made in a career (28) while converting at a solid rate (28-45, 62.2%) including the top range in the Northern Sun and potentially the nation. He's converted four field goals of 50-plus yards including a Concordia and NSIC record 59-yarder as a sophomore. While he has the four longest field goals in team history, he also has the fourth longest punt (68 yards, last year) and the second best career punting average (38.6), and the second and third best single season punting averages as a sophomore and junior.

This year, Obarski is 2-3 on field goals, 4-4 on point after attempts, has a long of 47 yards and averages 36.2 on eight punts with two fair catchews, two inside the 20 and one of 50-plus (54). On kickoffs, opponents have an average start at the 24 yard line, as well, as he averages 62.0 yards on eight kickoffs with one touchback.

TRIFUNOV LEADS THE TEAM IN TACKLES
Junior linebacker Josh Trifunov leads the team with 23 tackles and has been consistent with 12 and 11 tackles in the first two games. He also has an intercpetion, pass breakup, quarterback hurry and a half tackle for loss. He's 23rd in the country and second in the conference in tackles, trailing only U-Mary's Grant Singer (29) in the league. In 23 career games, Trifunov has made 140 tackles, 8.5 for loss with five pass breakups and four sacks. Last year he led the team with 99 tackles.

HALVERSON RETURNS TO PROVIDE IMPACT ILB
Jordan Halverson missed most of 2013 due to a season-ending injury, getting a medical redshirt to allow him two more years of eligibility. The redshirt junior is second on the team with 19 tackles and has 1.5 tackles for loss. With 209 career tackles, Havlerson has cracked the top-15 in Concordia history and is the only active player among the career leaders.

JAUCH DISRUPTING THE BACKFIELD
Senior linebacker Nick Jauch has been an impact defender throughout his career and is off to a strong start again this year. He leads the team with 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks along with 11 tackles. In his career, Jauch has 119 tackles, 18 for loss and 6.5 sacks in 29 games.

ROCHE GETTING AFTER THE QUARTERBACK
Concordia has had a dominant defensive end wearing #90 for the last four years, but when Zach Moore was drafted by the New England Patriots last May it appeared to leave a void in Concordia's pass rush from the defensive line. Insert Dion Roche, a junior transfer to wear #90. So far, he's lived up to the jersey number with four quarterback hurries (three in the opener at UMD) along with 12 tackles and a half sack. Roche appears to display power and speed up front for Concordia, assets that former #90 also excelled with.

While he doesn't have loud statistics, senior Hank Goff is also a difference maker up front. The former South Dakota State freshman starter, Goff served four years as a machine gunner in the U.S. Marine Corps and was deployed to Afghanistan. He transferred to Concordia last year and is now a maintstay up front. He has four tackles including a batted down ball and a quarterback hurry.

ASAD LEADS THE SECONDARY
Senior Abdullah Asad leads the secondary from the strong safety position, with 202 career tackles over 35 games as a four year starter. His tackles have increased each year (56-63-75) and he has eight in two games to start the year. He also has 13 tackles for loss, 10 breakups and a pair of interceptions.

MIRERI A BLANKET CORNER
Junior Jimmy Mireri has been an outstanding cover cornerback over his career for the Golden Bears and is one pass breakup away from tying the school record. He's currently batted down 21 passes in his career including last year's career high 13. He has one so far this season, along with 11 total tackles.