ST. PAUL, Minn. - This Saturday, Concordia-St. Paul football (5-3 NSIC, 3-1 South) returns to NSIC South Division play with its final road game of 2019, heading to Kirkeby-Over Stadium in Sioux Falls, South Dakota to face Augustana (6-2 NSIC, 3-1 South).

The Golden Bears' 24-23 win last week in overtime over Bemidji State propelled the program to five wins for the second year in a row, and with three games remaining the squad seeks a sixth win and its first winning season since the 2011 campaign.

Early indications suggest a cool, fall afternoon in Sioux Falls with a high of 45, winds W at 10-to-15 miles per hour and partly cloudy sky.

GOLDEN BEARS HIT THE RADIO!
[ listen online ] This week's game will be broadcast locally in the Twin Cities area on the radio. Tune to AM 1440 KYCR, the same station that carries The Coaches Show following the Minnesota High School Football Game of the Week.

The game will be called by veteran play-by-play announcer Wally Langfellow of Minnesota Score with Blake Sorem handling the color commentator role. Langfellow has been broadcasting high school football in the Twin Cities for 25 years including Prep Bowl broadcasts on FOX-9 and the Fox Sports Prep Zone. Sorem is a former offensive coordinator at Edina High School and played his prep football for famed coach Mike Grant of Eden Prairie  HS and has worked alongside Langfellow several times in the booth.

WATCH ONLINE OR ON MIDCO SN
All Concordia football games, home and away, will be streamed online as part of the NSIC's league-wide agreement with Presto Sports (formerly Stretch Internet). All CSP football games can be viewed in Concordia's online video portal.
 
This Saturday's game is a Midco Sports Net production with play-by-play by David Brown, a regular on-air talent covering Northern Sun action across the calendar and league footprint. The game will be televised on Midco SN, where available, although the Twin Cities market does not offer Midco SN as part of its channel lineup (check your listings). The Midco SN feed will be used for the webcast production.

Watch the games in HD on your home TV as well through NSIC app widely available on Apple TV, Roku, Amazon streaming devices and more! Simply search "NSIC" on your streaming device, games are available for all Northern Sun members including all sports that are streamed live on each campus.
 
Games can also be followed with live stats and by keeping track of the NSIC live scoreboard.
 
COACH CURRIER SHOW ON CSP BEARS PODCAST
[ listen online ] The Coaches Show with Shannon Currier hosted by Wally Langfellow of Minnesota Score returns for a second season in 2019. The show airs in the MSP radio market on 1440 AM KYCR following the Minnesota high school football game of the week, typically on Friday night in the 9 p.m. hour of each week. The show is also distributed via the CSP Bears Podcast and is available on most podcast subscription services such as Apple iTunes, Spotify, Google Play Music, Stitcher, Tune-In and more.
 
This week's guests include sophomore safety Dez Bassett and redshirt freshman tackle Adam Cook.
 
Subscribe to the CSP Bears Podcast, which will also return for a second year this fall. This year, the podcast will be co-hosted by CSP baseball alumni Andrew Shotwell and Alex LaPorte and will continue to tell the story of CSP athletics in an interesting and engaging way to help people get behind the scenes of various people associated with Concordia – including Comets and Golden Bears!

The first podcast guest of the year was first year athletics director Regan McAthie, with the second episode now available and featuring head esports coach Logan Hermes.

CSP MAKES FROGTOWN RADIO DEBUT IN ST PAUL
[ listen online ] Concordia continues to make a positive impression in the St. Paul community with local radio station WFNU (94.1 FM) starting a regular segment to air on Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m. The first air time is set for September 21, but the station has started recording interviews for a podcast titled "Concordia-St. Paul Scoreboard" which is available on Spotify and Anchor. Follow WFNU Frogtown Radio's CSP connections at @ScoreboardCSP and @651SportsUpdate. 
 
DOWNLOAD THE CSP BEARS FAN APP
Also back for a second year is the CSP Bears fan app, provided by From Now On. The app features a customizable experience, users can select their favorite sports teams and select their affiliation (fan, student, alumni, etc) to receive tailored notifications. The app provides easy to follow live stats along with links to watch games live on their device. Keep up with the latest with the new 'news' feature which combines stories from cspbears.com with the social streams from CSP athletics.

2019 TEAM CAPTAINS
CSP head coach Shannon Currier will have rotating team captains each week for the second year in a row in 2019. Captains are selected by the coaching staff based on performance on the field and as a leader in practice, meetings and day-to-day activities.

This week's game captains: senior quarterback Maxon Hutton (9x) and senior guard Rich Kelly (8x) on offense and junior defensive end Chris Garrett (7x) and sophomore safety Dez Bassett  (2x) on defense.

SERIES HISTORY: AUGUSTANA 11, CONCORDIA 4
After winning three of the first four meetings between the programs between 2004 and 2007, Concordia has dropped 10 of the last 11 meetings.

On a current four game slide against Augustana, Concordia has dropped each of the four games during the losing streak by at least 15 points, allowing 50-plus in three of the four losses.

Concordia has also lost five in a row on the road in Sioux Falls coinciding with Augie's opening of Kirkeby-Over Stadium.

After the series started with five of the first seven contests decided by seven points or less, only one of the past eight games has been decided by a single score, including Concordia's last win, a 17-7 victory for CSP at Sea Foam Stadium in 2014 to snap a six game losing streak to the Vikings. CSP's last road win at Augie came in 2007 (20-19).

Head coach Shannon Currier holds an 0-3 career record against Augie, dropping the only road trip 28-13 in 2017. Currier did not face Augustana in his first four years with CSP in 2000-03.

LAST MEETING, 2018: AUGUSTANA 52, CONCORDIA 24
Concordia's senior day opened with the teams trading scores: Augie scored on its opening drive and Concordia countered a few possessions later with a Dom McKinzy to John Damrow touchdown pass set-up by a Marcus Haskins interception and long return into the Augie red zone.

Late in the first quarter, Augustana converted a field goal after CSP's defense held in the red zone, with Jonas Schenderlein answering with a 55-yard field goal in the second quarter. It was Schenderlein's seventh career 50-plus yard field goal.

After the Vikings countered with a TD for a 17-10 lead, CSP's defense registered a stop and seemingly forced a 50-yard field goal attempt by Luis Guarita late in the half.

Instead, the Vikings snapped directly to Guarita, who pinned CSP at its own 1-yard line with 40 seconds to play. Able to successfully run the ball three times and avoid a safety, the Vikings' use of timeouts forced a Danny Laudet punt from his own end zone.

Laudet answered the call with a soaring 48-yard punt, but Augie returner Avram Tynes executed a 54-yard touchdown with nine seconds to play before the break for a 24-10 Augie lead.

In the third quarter, CSP's opening drive stalled, and the Vikings struck quickly with a 3-play drive to take a 31-10 lead, and forced a strip sack returned for touchdown on the ensuing Concordia drive to take control, 38-10 in the third quarter.

The turn was devastating as Augie scored four straight touchdowns in a span of 15 minutes of football to break a 10-10 into a 38-10 game early in the third quarter.

With Maxon Hutton under center in the second half, the Golden Bears picked up a big play as Hutton connected deep with receiver Jake Shepley for a 76-yard TD and a second INT by Haskins set up an 8-yard keeper TD by Hutton to make it 38-24 with 3:25 left in the third.

With Augie facing a 3rd and 10 from the CSP 43 yard line late in the third quarter, quarterback Kyle Saddler was intercepted by Jake Portz, but a penalty wiped out the INT and moved Augie to the CSP 14 yard line to start the fourth quarter.

Three plays later, Augustana found the end zone to extend its lead back to three touchdowns: 45-24 with 14:11 to play.

It was the second critical and decisive moment of the contest, with Augsutana capitalizing on both opportunities.

Hutton had a strong second half, completing 9-of-18 for 155 yards and a TD while adding 10-48 on the ground with a score. Joining Shepley in the receiving corps, MJ Williams had 4-48 and Jake Tanner had 4-40.

The QB duo of McKinzy and Hutton combined to connect with eight different targets while completing 18-of-37 for 229 yards and each had a TD strike.

Saddler finished 19-of-36 for 238 yards, two TDs and two INTs while adding a rushing TD. Augie had a pair of 100-yard rushers: Rudolph Sinflorant (18-100) and Braiden Petersen (7-100, 2 TDs).

Haskins led the CSP defense with 2 INTs, two pass breakups, a forced fumble and five tackles. The performance pushed his season totals to 19 pass breakups and seven INTs, and he helped the secondary limit Augie leading WR Nickel Meyers to just 2-22 and a TD after entering play averaging over 100 yards per game to rank third in the NSIC.

LAST WEEK: CONCORDIA 24, BEMIDJI STATE 23 - OT
Junior defensive end Chris Garrett had a hand in three turnovers with a pair of strip sacks, recovering one of his own forced fumbles and deflecting a pass that was intercepted by teammate Gabe Nkumu. That was all part of a massive first half as Garrett also set the CSP career sack record with 33.5 in just 25 games.

It helped Concordia establish a 17-7 lead at the break with Bemidji State rallying to tie the score at 17 with under two minutes to play in the fourth quarter.

In overtime, it was Garrett's brother, freshman Darios Crawley-Reid who scored first on a 1-yard TD run for a 24-17 lead. Bemidji State answered with a 4th-and-9 conversion for a 24-yard TD but the two-point try was intercepted by Preston Piltoff to end the game.

While Garrett broke a career record, Crawley-Reid is just establishing the foundation for his college career. He had his first 100-yard rushing game (15-106) and had two rushing TDs in a game for the first time in the win. He now leads CSP with seven total TDs and has scored five in the last three contests.

Garrett finished the game matching a career-high with 11 tackles, adding 3.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks, two FF, one FR, a breakup and a hurry.

Nkumu had one of the team's two interceptions, the other also coming from the linebacker position by Opi Aghenu while Jake Portz (11 tackles) and Dalton Smerchek (8 tackles) added strong performances from the position as well.

Piltoff's interception doesn't count statistically, coming on a two-point try, but he also had six solo tackles and a pair of breakups.

Crawley-Reid was aided in the running game by sophomore Shaq Johnson with 21 carries for 68 yards and he went over 100 combined yards, adding 4-35 receiving.
Under center, senior Maxon Hutton completed 18-of-35 for 156 yards and a 17-yard TD to senior Jabril Clewis (4-47 rec).

NOTES ABOUT THE VIKINGS (by Ben Diers, CSP sports information intern)
Since the start of the 2018 season, the Vikings have found their way back to their winning ways. In the 2018 season, Augie finished 7-4 and placed 4th in the NSIC South. This season, the Vikings have picked up right where they left off in 2018 with a record of 6-2 through their first eight.

Coming into this game, the Vikings have won three in a row and five of their last six including a dominant 51-6 win over Minot State. The Vikings are also 4-0 at home this season with a point differential of +113 in home contests.

On the offensive side of the ball, it has been Augie's passing game that has shined so far. The Vikings currently rank second in the NSIC with 235.2 passing yards/game. Leaning heavily on the strong air attack, Augustana ranks third in the NSIC in scoring offense (30ppg). The ground attack hasn't been as potent, with the Vikings ranking ninth in the NSIC averaging 136.8 rushing yards per game.

Quarterback Kyle Saddler leads the NSIC with an average of 215.4 passing yards per game, also throwing 11 touchdowns on the year so far. Sean Engel has been the top target for the Vikings, catching 26 passes for 312 yards. Jarod Epperson leads Augie's rushing attack with 73.9 rushing yards per game, good for fifth in the NSIC while ranking ninth in the country with 7.2 yards per carry.

The Vikings defense has been equally impressive, allowing opponents to score an average of just 12 points per game (5th in the country) and rank eighth in the country with a 26.8% third down conversion defense. A big part of Augie's success on defense has been their ability to create turnovers. The Vikings lead the country in defensive turnovers (24) and are second in the nation in turnover margin (+13). Cornerback Kenneth Griffin has 4 interceptions this season, putting him in a tie for second in the NSIC while Jake Polson and Eli Weber each have 3 INTs. Augie ranks ninth in DII in interceptions (13) and has three defensive TDs.

Augie kicker Luis Guarita is among the nation's best, ranking third nationally in FG pct (92.9) and seventh in FG made (13, or 1.63/game).