ST. PAUL, Minn. - Concordia-St. Paul football (2-3, 2-2 NSIC) seeks its third-straight road win this Saturday, heading to Sioux Falls (4-2, 3-2 NSIC) for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Bob Young Field.

WEATHER OUTLOOK
Saturday appears to feature a fall-like afternoon with a high temperature of 71 degrees, light SE winds at 5-10mph with cloudy conditions early shifting to partly cloudy in the afternoon.

WATCH ONLINE – NSIC NETWORK
All Golden Bear NSIC football games will be available to watch online, free of charge, powered by the NSIC Network, and supported by BlueFrame Technology.
 
Visit nsicnetwork.com/cspbears on a laptop or desktop computer, download the NSIC Network app on your mobile device or watch on your supported OTT provider such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Android TV. Search "NSIC Network" and download the app for the league's full sport and team lineups. NSIC NETWORK FAQ

DOWNLOAD THE APP
Fans can download the CSP Bears fan app, free of charge and available in the App Store or on Google Play. The app contains rosters, schedules, scores, stats, news, social media and more! Customize your options to get notifications to your favorite teams, as well. Search "CSP Bears" in the app store to stay up-to-date on Golden Bear athletics.

LISTEN TO THE COACHES SHOW
The Coaches Show with Shannon Currier is back on the Twin Cities airwaves for a fifth season, once again hosted by Wally Langfellow of Minnesota Score. The show airs following the Minnesota high school football game of the week, typically on Friday evenings in the 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. hour on KYCR 1440 AM radio, available in the Twin Cities metro area.
 
The show typically features two segments with Coach Currier along with a segment with Langfellow joined by a pair of student-athletes. This week's radio interview guests are the team selections for offensive and defensive player of the week: senior offensive guard Taylon Hensley and redshirt freshmen defensive end Isaiah Wray.
 
For fans who miss the show or are outside of the radio station's Twin Cities reach, the entire show is accessible via the CSP Bears Podcast, available in Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Google Play Music. It will typically be uploaded late Friday night (after the initial air time) or Saturday morning prior to the game. Search 'CSP Bears' into your favorite podcast provider!

2024 TEAM CAPTAINS
CSP head coach Shannon Currier features rotating team captains each week for the sixth year in a row in 2024. 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 are seniors Jaylin Richardson and Taylon Hensley on offense, joined by linebacker Carter Otto and safety Hudson Jean on defense.

WAUER SELECTED TO WEAR BILLY BROWN JR's #26
Junior linebacker Richard Wauer was selected to represent the football program's cherished jersey number 26 to honor the memory of Billy Brown, Jr., a linebacker who graduated from CSP in May of 2018. Billy passed away in 2018 shortly after graduating while working out near his home in the Twin Cities that summer. Head coach Shannon Currier has opted to honor Brown by selecting a player who fits Billy's work ethic and commitment to the program to wear the number each season.

Wauer, formerly #9, is athletically a junior and originally from Muskego, Wisconsin. He will be in his fifth year as a Golden Bear, with his debut season canceled due to COVID-19 in 2020, and was redshirted in 2021. He's now a three-year starting linebacker and a CSC Academic All-District Team student-athlete.

An eight-time team captain in 2023, Wauer played in 10 games with three starts while working through injuries last year. He had his breakout season in 2022, starting nine times and playing all 11 games with 54 tackles to finish third on the team.

In 26 career games, he's made 125 tackles, 6.5 for loss and added a fumble recovery.
Wauer was named NSIC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts in a week three road win at Southwest Minnesota State, collecting a career-high 13 tackles (10 solo) in a 27-17 win in which CSP held SMSU to 105 rushing yards at 3.0 per carry and 2-12 on third down conversions.

On the season, Wauer ranks sixth in the NSIC with 7.2 tackles per game.

He has earned his degree in biochemistry and now is pursuing an MBA in healthcare management, and intends to pursue further education in medical school after his football playing career with a goal of becoming a surgeon or anesthesiologist.

"As we mature as people and recognize what's most important in our life, in the end it's about the relationships you have and the impact that you've made," reflected Coach Currier. "After Billy's passing, I learned of his tremendous impact on other people through conversations with players and coaches and sometimes we don't always know that in the moment, but players made it apparent that Billy invested in their lives."

He continued, "After his passing, we recognize a special person in our program to honor Billy and keep his legacy alive. We select a player who has impact here to continue the tradition of what Billy started. I'm optimistic, but I feel like Richard Wauer is one of the best leaders I've ever been around. His commitment to his teammates, the team, overall growth, and his academics are all really remarkable. Reflecting back, when we recruited him in talking with Richard and his mom at a booth at GameWorks in Mall of America, I knew he was a special leader right away and that's a big reason we offered him. He brings a leadership component to our program."

"We are blessed to have Richard come back for another year after considering med school. He's picked up right where he left off with his leadership and overall impact. So many have benefited from Richard's actions and speaking. When people recognize their true purpose, there is a higher level of motivation, and when it's bigger than themselves it's powerful. We want our players to experience those same callings, to gain that desire to impact others in a positive way, and it all comes full circle to what Billy did in his time here at CSP."

Past players selected to wear Brown's #26:
2018: Brandon Russell (23 to 26)
2019: Jackson Dobbs (98 to 26)
2020: season cancelation
2021: Dalton Smerchek (32 to 26)
2022: Davaris Cheeks (14 to 26)
2023: Davaris Cheeks
2024: Richard Wauer (9 to 26)

NSIC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Concordia secured its second NSIC Player of the Week in a three-week span when Jeff Isotalo-McGuire earned NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week honors in a week 5 road win at UMary, just two weeks after Richard Wauer was named the NSIC Defensive Player of the Week for a week 3 road win at SMSU.

Week 5: #30 Jeff Isotalo-McGuire (K, 6-2, 195, Sr., Phoenix, Ariz.)
- Set CSP record with a 60-yard FG for 3-0 lead in a 19-13 2OT win at UMary in week 5
- Battled intense wind conditions, making 2-of-4 FG including a game-tying 23-yarder in OT
- The 60-yarder is the longest FG in NCAA Division II in 2024
- Accounted for seven points in the win
- All three kickoffs were touchbacks
- Has buried 11-of-18 kickoffs for touchbacks on the season
- Also has the 12th-longest FG in DII (51, vs Minnesota State)

Week 3: #26 Richard Wauer (LB, 6-1, 230, Jr., Muskego, Wis. / HS)
- Had a career-high 13 tackles in Wk3 27-17 road win at SMSU
- Of his 13 tackles, 10 were solo stops
- Helped hold SMSU to 106 rushing yards at 3.0 per attempt
- Part of a defense that held SMSU to 2-12 on third downs
- Ranks 2nd in the NSIC and 51st DII with 8.3 tackles/game
- Ranks 3rd in the NSIC and 31st DII with 5.3 solo tackles/game
 

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FULL CSP PREVIEW: VIEW THIS WEEK'S GAME NOTES

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