ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul (1-0) football team enters Northern Sun play this week in its first road game of the season, heading to MSU Moorhead (1-0) for a Thursday night game at SCHEELS Field at Nemzek Stadium for a 6 p.m. kickoff. 

WEATHER OUTLOOK
Thursday's kickoff has a forecast of 81 degrees with an 11 mph ESE wind. Temperatures will drop to 74 by 9 p.m. with wind falling to single digits. There is a chance of rain, hovering between 17-20 percent during game time hours and dropping to six percent by 9 p.m.

WATCH LIVE ON MIDCO SPORTS PLUS
Starting with the 2026-27 season, Concordia and the NSIC will call Midco Sports Plus the streaming home for the NSIC Network. Midco Sports Plus, a regional cable provider primarily based in North Dakota, South Dakota and parts of Minnesota, features an expanded variety of online sports coverage.
 
The NSIC Network will be part of a subscription service with annual access plans starting at under $7 per month for the full year ($79/year) or monthly service for $15 which includes NSIC coverage as well as Summit League.
 
Longtime MSUM broadcast voice Steve d'Eustachio will call the game, flanked by color commentator Chase Montplaisir.

An audio-only stream will be available courtesy of MSUM, with the local Moorhead radio call on AM 1100 & FM 92.3 in the Fargo-Moorhead community, and streamed online. 
 
For more information, view the NSIC's press release announcing the Midco Sports Plus partnership: https://cspbears.com/news/2026/7/16/athletics-midco-sports-launches-nsics-new-streaming-home.aspx
 
For streaming support and troubleshooting, visit Midco's support page: https://sports.midco.com/support

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 live in-game updates, close game alerts, 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.
 
COACHES SHOW RETURNS TO TWIN CITIES RADIO
The Coaches Show with Joshua Schumacher is back on the Twin Cities airwaves for an eighth 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.
 
In this week's episode, the players return to the show with sophomore quarterback Lincoln Graf and junior linebacker Clarence Chaney joining Langfellow. 
 
For fans who miss the live show over the air 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 YouTube podcasts. 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!

2026 TEAM CAPTAINS
CSP head coach Joshua Schumacher and the coaching staff have announced the captains for the 2026 season. Captains were selected through a collaboration with student-athlete voting and coach input. 

Representing the Golden Bears will be fifth-years Carter Zezulka (WR), Manny Harris (RB), Ben Rehl (LB), Percy Robertson (DL) and sophomores Lincoln Graf (QB) and Logan Bockman (OL).

SERIES HISTORY: CSP 10, MSUM 6
Entering the 17th meeting between the two programs, Concordia holds a 10-6 lead in the series, going 5-3 both at home and on the road. While Concordia hasn't won in Moorhead since 2013, CSP has also only made two trips to Nemzek Stadium since then, falling by the same score, 21-20 in both 2017 and 2022. 

The Golden Bears and Dragons started playing in 2001, CSP's third year of NCAA Division II football and NSIC membership and CSP controlled the early series by winning the first five contests and nine of the first 10. 

But MSU Moorhead has turned the series by winning five of the last six since 2015, with CSP's last win in 2019 at Sea Foam Stadium, a 24-17 CSP win. Although CSP has dropped five of the last six, four of the five losses have been by three points or less. 

LAST MEETING: 2024, MSUM 34, CSP 31
The Golden Bears took a 31-28 lead with 1:51 to play on Jeff Isotalo-McGuire's go-ahead 25-yard field goal. But the Dragons had a future NFL quarterback to run the 2-minute offense, and Jack Strand delivered, converting a 4th-and-3 from the MSUM 32, 4th-and-10 from the CSP 49 and a 3rd-and-1 from the CSP 24 that moved the ball into the red zone with 20 seconds left. The Dragons scored on the next play, despite CSP's defensive pressure forcing Strand out of the pocket, delivering a strike on the run to his right near the sideline to the back of the end zone for a game-winning 15-yard touchdown to Brady Perryman with 12 seconds left. 

Strand was 35-55 for 357 yards and five touchdowns, with four of his five touchdown passes in the final 18-plus minutes of play with three going to Perryman who had 10-113 receiving. Strand is now a rookie for the Atlanta Falcons, making the team's opening day roster out of training game as an undrafted rookie free agent. 

Concordia led by two scores on two different occasions, 14-0 on Jaylin Richardson's 22-yard TD run with 9:32 in the second quarter, and 21-7 after Jackson Compton found Drew Enke for a 4-yard TD pass with 6:12 to play in the third quarter.

Compton found Enke again early in the fourth quarter from 39 yards out to give CSP a 28-21 lead. Compton finished 17-29 for 213 yards and two touchdowns and added 9-30 rushing. Enke had seven catches for 111 yards and two touchdowns. Richardson pounded the ball, rushing 36 times for 198 yards and two touchdowns and also had a 30-yard reception in a 228 combined yardage performance. 

CSP held MSUM's run game to 11 carries for 13 yards and sacked Strand three times with Isaiah Wray leading the charge with three tackles, 1.5 TFLs and 1.5 sacks while Marquis Coleman also had three tackles with 1.0 TFL, 1.0 sack and a forced fumble. 

LAST WEEK: CSP 38, QUINCY 21
Concordia-St. Paul had three interceptions, blocked a punt and recovered an onside kick while playing turnover-free offense in a 38-21 win in the home opener in a non-conference game at Sea Foam Stadium. Concordia was also 3-3 on fourth down, held Quincy to 0-2 on fourth down, and dominated time of possession (34:38 to 25:22). Concordia's defense also tallied five sacks and nine tackles for loss compared to Quincy's one sack and five TFLs. 

Joel Lacy paced the offense with 118 all-purpose yards, getting the job done on the ground (9-65), through the air (5-47) and on special teams with a blocked punt and six punt return yards. He scored twice, one receiving and one rushing. Lincoln Graf engineered a turnover-free game, completing 23-35 for 210 yards and two touchdowns, and added 7-20 rushing. He connected with eight different targets, including four players with four-plus catches. The run game had three ball carriers with nine rushing attempts along with Graf's seven. BJ Davis (9-54) and Manny Harris (9-24) added to a 36-164 team rushing performance, with Harris leading the team with six receptions out of the backfield for 23 yards. 

Concordia picked up its first of three interceptions in the game on the second play of the evening as newcomer TJ Easley-Jones intercepted a second-down pass to set the offense up with field position in Quincy territory, leading to a James Graves 24-yard field goal.

Quincy scored on its next play from scrimmage as Collin Parsons broke loose for a 72-yard touchdown run and the teams traded touchdowns from there. Lincoln Graf connected with Carter Zezulka for an 8-yard score late in the first quarter, and Parsons answered with his second rushing touchdown of the game midway through the second quarter. Concordia went back on top 17-14 as Joel Lacy scored on a catch out of the backfield for a 17-yard TD from Graf late in the half. 

Armed with a 17-14 lead in the final minute, it appeared CSP had gained momentum heading into the locker room. But they doubled down as Clarence Chaney intercepted a pass and returned it 32 yards for a touchdown and a 10-point halftime lead (24-14).

In the second half, Concordia's defense made an adjustment after allowing 116 rushing yards in the first half, allowing 6-11 rushing in the third quarter and 11-33 on the ground in the second half. CSP's defense opened the second half with back-to-back three-and-outs, and secured an interception by CJ Jackson on Quincy's third drive of the second half. 

While the defense clamped down in the third quarter, CSP extended its lead to a 3-score margin on BJ Davis' 22-yard TD run for a 31-14 lead with 9:07 to play in the third quarter, a string of three-straight CSP touchdowns in just under seven minutes of game clock to close out the first half and open the second half. 

Quincy scored early in the fourth quarter, cutting the margin back to 10 (31-21) with 13:19 to play, but the Golden Bears had a methodical response with runs of 7, 6, 13 and 5 yards with the six-yard run by Graf picking up a 3rd-and-3 from the Quincy 46. On 4th-and-2, it was Lacy again, this time on a run up the middle for a 19-yard touchdown to extend the lead back to 17, 38-21 with 10:08 remaining. 

CSP's defense allowed 301 yards of total offense, limiting opposing QB Bradyn Little to 17-33 for 152 yards, one TD, three INTs and five sacks. Parsons finished the game with 11 carries for 119 yards and two touchdowns. 

Ben Rehl paced CSP's defense with eight tackles, 2.0 TFLs, a breakup and a hurry and Jonas Barros had seven tackles. Hudson Jean added five tackles, 1.0 TFL and 1.0 sack with a breakup. Defensive linemen Arrion Bradley and Percey Robertson each had two quarterback hurries with Robertson also securing a sack for a 13-yard TFL. 

MAKING GAINS
What a difference a year makes, as CSP fell 38-7 on the road to open last season at Quincy before reversing it for a 38-21 win at home to open the 2026 season under first-year head coach Joshua Schumacher. 

In last year's game in 2025, Quincy QB Bradyn Little completed 22-28 for 256 yards, three passing TDs and two rushing TDs. This year, CSP bottled him up as Little completed 17-33 for 152 yards, one TD and three INTs while sacking him five times. 

On the flip side, last year Quincy held CSP to 10 first downs, 23-39 rushing and 17-27 passing for 138 yards with an interception. This year, CSP opened with 20 first downs, 36-164 rushing, 23-35 passing for 210 yards and no turnovers. 

TURNOVER CITY
Concordia opened the 2026 season by forcing three turnovers against Quincy, all interceptions (TJ Easley-Jones & CJ Jackson) including one for a 32-yard touchdown by Clarence Chaney. 

The last time CSP forced more than three turnovers in a game was a 27-21 road win at Minot State in 2025 and the last time CSP had three interceptions in a game was in 2016 against Wayne State, a 45-10 loss to the Wildcats as the offense committed six turnovers in the game despite the defense picking off three interceptions. 

Since 2002, nearly all of CSP's Division II-era (1999-present), CSP has had three or more interceptions in a game 12 times and holds a 9-3 record when picking off three-plus passes and is 6-1 when doing so at home.

Three INTs in a game, 2002-present:
8/27/26 - 3, vs Quincy (38-21 win)
10/1/16 - 3, vs Wayne State (10-45 loss)
11/8/14 - 3, vs Augustana (17-7 win)
9/17/11 - 3, vs Northern State (27-22 win)
10/30/10 - 3, at UM Crookston (41-7 win)
10/27/07 - 3, at Wayne State (44-48 loss)
10/20/07 - 4, vs Upper Iowa (20-17 win)
10/22/05 - 5, vs Wayne State (46-20 win)
11/15/03 - 3, at North Dakota State (24-58 loss)
11/7/03 - 4, vs UM Crookston at Metrodome (28-10 win)
11/16/02 - 3, vs Southwest Minnesota State at Metrodome (48-13 win)
11/9/02 - 4, vs UM Crookston (48-7 win)

HOME OPENER SUCCESS
The Golden Bears are 16-11 in home openers since making the move to Division II in 1999 and are 7-3 in the last 10 years in home openers. Since moving to Sea Foam Stadium in 2009, the Golden Bears are 10-7.

GRAF RETURNS UNDER CENTER
Sophomore quarterback Lincoln Graf returned to the field after missing the second half of his freshman campaign with an injury. As a sophomore opening day starting quarterback in 2026, Graf opened the year 23-35 for 210 yards and two TDs while adding 7-20 rushing and leading a turnover-free offense.

As a freshman, Graf made his debut in week two as the fourth player to take a snap under center in just two games when he took the field late in the third quarter against Minnesota Duluth, completing 10-17 for 182 yards and a TD in just over a quarter of action. He then assumed the starting role the following week, becoming the team's third starting QB in three games and the 10th freshman to start at the position since CSP became a Division II program in 1999. He's the first to start a game at QB as a true freshman in his first season.

In his debut start, Graf guided the Golden Bears to a 27-21 road win at Minot State, firing the game-winning TD pass with 3:24 to play to break a 21-21 tie. He completed 18-24 for 275 yards and three TDs while adding 3-17 rushing in his first career start, also adding 13-straight completions after starting the day 0-1. 

In four games as a freshman, Graf completed 63.4 percent (52-82) for 671 yards and four touchdowns while guiding a turnover-free offense in his snaps while starting three games and playing two full games and two-plus quarters of action.

In his career, Graf has completed 64.1 percent (75-117) for 881 yards and seven TDs while adding 18-43 rushing. He's yet to throw an INT and the offense hasn't committed a turnover with him on the field in five games. He holds a 147.1 efficiency rating.

ABOUT THE DRAGONS
MSU Moorhead became an NCAA Playoff bubble team in 2025, concluding the season with a 31-23 road win at #14 Minnesota State Mankato as quarterback Jack Strand became the NSIC's all-time passing leader, finishing his career with 12,134 yards. Strand finished the year with 3,546 yards and 42 touchdowns (14 INTs) while adding five more touchdowns on the ground while the Dragons finished second in the NSIC North Division (4-2) and third overall in the NSIC (7-3) while concluding the season at 8-3. 

Entering 2026, MSUM was slotted fourth in the NSIC North Division and eighth in the NSIC overall preseason poll, faced with the daunting task of replacing Strand, who made the Atlanta Falcons 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent rookie quarterback. 

The Dragons didn't disappointed in their season opener at home against Northern Michigan, picking up a 41-19 win at Nemzek Stadium last Thursday night. MSUM opened up a 21-3 lead at the half and carried a 35-5 lead into the fourth quarter. 

Drew Huebner replaces Strand at QB, and he completed 21-31 for 265 yards and four touchdowns, adding 9-104 rushing with a 73-yard rushing score as the Dragon offense featured more balance with 197 yards on the ground at a 7.6 average with Tyson Brandt adding 6-54 rushing and 4-36 receiving out of the backfield. Huebner connected with Kalen Lucas for 9-116 and a touchdown and Kelly Johnson had two receiving scores on 6-49 receiving, and Owen Wiersma had a 44-yard TD catch.

MSUM allowed 272 passing and 40-115 rushing to the Wildcats, a GLIAC opponent. 

The Dragons defense had four sacks and seven tackles for loss, secured two interceptions and blocked a kick.