Week Nine Tale of the Tape · Radio Coverage: AM 1230 KYSM The Fan Mankato · Television Coverage: CBS Sports Network
At Minnesota State		Augustana
Not Ranked	National Ranking (AFCA)	Not Ranked
Not Ranked	National Ranking (D2football.com)	Not Ranked
Northern Sun Intercollegiate	Conference	Northern Sun Intercollegiate
6-2 (6-1 NSIC)	2011 Record (Conf.)	5-3 (5-2 NSIC)
Todd Hoffner (31-12)	Head Coach (Record at School)	Mike Aldrich (16-5)
1-2	Head Coaches’ Record Against Opponent	1-0
www.msumavericks.com	Home Page	www.goaugie.com
defeated Wayne State, 45-23	Last Week	defeated MSU Moorhead, 35-3
384.6	Total Offense Per Game	367.5
334.1	Total Defense Per Game	328.9
33.6	Points Per Game	24.8
19.6	Points Allowed Per Game	17.4

What Lies Ahead:  The Minnesota State football team is set to play its final regular-season home game Thursday evening as it entertains Augustana at 7 p.m.  The game will air live on CBS Sports Network.

Where to Find It:  Fans who can not make it to Blakeslee Stadium can follow the broadcast on CBS Sports Network on the following channels:  Charter Mankato Channel 412, DirectTV Channel 613, Dish Network channel 152, MediaComm channel 171, Comcast channel 854.  The game will also stream live and for free on NCAAsports.com and will re-air on Fox Sports North Friday evening following the completion of Gopher Hockey at roughly 9:30 p.m.

Saying Goodbye:  Prior to Thursday's game the Minnesota State football team will honor its seven seniors.  Those playing their final regular-season home game in Blakeslee Stadium include: cornerback Andre LaGrone, cornerback Tory Garrett, wide receiver LaMark Brown, quarterback Jon Daniels, offensive lineman Cordell Bell, defensive tackle Brad Kemnitz and wide receiver Ryan DeLoach.

A Little History Lesson: The 2011 season marks the school's 85th season playing football.  The Mavericks are 379-374-28 (.503) in 781 games since their inception as a varsity sport in 1922.  Minnesota State is in its fourth season in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and owns a 29-7 record in league action.  Over the course of its history, MSU has claimed 17 conference championships, including 15 NIC titles.

What's in a Win:  A win would give MSU its 380th win in school history...A victory would be the 32nd victory for head coach Todd Hoffner at MSU and the 78th victory of his career...A win would give MSU its 30th victory in the Northern Sun Conference...A win would tighten Augustana's all-time edge in the series to 23-19...A victory would give MSU its 15th all-time victory against Augustana in the city of Mankato against eight losses...It would also knot the all-time series under head coach Todd Hoffner to 2-2...Finally, a win would give MSU its seventh-straight home victory and would mark the 13th seven-win season in program history.

On the Tube:  The last time Minnesota State appeared on national television was on Sept. 27, 2008 when it downed Winona State, 35-32, in its annual homecoming game on Fox Sports North.
 
The last time these two teams played on national television was Nov. 1, 2003 when Augustana downed MSU,34-27.  That game was played in Blakeslee Stadium and was broadcast on the now defunct Victory Sports Channel.

Calling the Action:  Todd Harris will handle the play-by-play duties for CBS Sports Network while Doug Chapman will fill the analyst role.  Chapman is no stranger to Minnesota State and Blakeslee Stadium as he spent 2001-03 as a running back for the Minnesota Vikings after being drafted in the third round (88th overall) out of Marshall University where he played with former Viking wideout Randy Moss.  The Vikings make their summer home for training camp in Mankato.
    
Krista Blunk will serve as the broadcast's sideline reporter.

The Last Time:  The last time Minnesota State recorded four consecutive winning seasons came from the 1991-94 seasons under then head coach Dan Runkle...MSU's longest streak of consecutive winning seasons came from 1967 to 1974 when Bob Otto and John Coatta combined to coach seven straight winning programs.

Scouting Augustana:  Augustana enters Thursday night's game with a 5-3 record and are 5-2 in the NSIC and 3-0 in the NSIC South.  The Vikings, winners of their last five games, earned a 35-3 victory against MSU Moorhead last weekend.

For the season, Augustana is averaging 367.5 yards per game while giving up 328.9.  On the ground, AC is averaging 141.1 ypg, while it is throwing for 226.4.

Redshirt freshman Dajon Newel leads the team with 104 carries for 596 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 5.7 yards per carry and 99.3 yards per game.  Junior quarterback Josh Hanson has completed 152-of-596 passes (59.4 percent) for 1,811 yards and 13 touchdowns compared to just four interceptions while averaging 226.4 yards per game.  Senior wideout Sam Holsen has caught a team-high 41 passes for 649 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 81.1 yards per agme and 15.8 yards per catch.
  
Defensively, junior linebacker Austin Luecke leads the team with 83 tackles, including 7.5 for a loss.  He also has one interception, three pass break-ups, four passes defended and two forced fumbles.  Mike Aldrich is in his second year with the program and owns a 16-5 record at Augustana.

Series Notes:  Augustana leads the all-time series with a 23-18 record...The Mavericks have lost two of the three games against Augustana under head coach Todd Hoffner...MSU is 1-0 in Mankato under Hoffner against Augustana...Offensively, junior wideout Dennis Carter has rushed four times for 22 times in his career against AC while catching five passes for 36 yards and a score...Carter has also returned one kick for 15 yards against the Vikings...Junior wideout Adam Thielen has caught three passes for 76 yards in his career against Augustana while returning two punts for 36 yards...Sophomore wideout/quarterback Jon Wolf has rushed eight times for 32 yards and is 0-of-1 as a quarterback against Augustana...He has also caught one pass for 18 yards against the Vikings...Defensively junior linebacker Ross Jirgl and sophomore defensive end Chris Schaudt each have three career tackles against Augustana while senior defensive back Andre LaGrone and junior defensive end Austin Schachtner each have two stops.

Weather Report:  According to weather.com, Thurdsay's high in Mankato is calling for a high of 50 degrees with a low of 30.  

Radio Show and Weekly Luncheons: The Todd Hoffner Radio Show will air live on AM 1230 KYSM, the Fan Mankato from 7-7:30 every Monday night at the downtown Buffalo Wild Wings location.  The show will be hosted by Mike Sullivan and/or Casey Lloyd, the voices of the Maverick football program and will feature head coach Todd Hoffner as the Mavericks will recap the previous week's contest and look ahead at their next opponent.  Each week a special guest will also make an appearance during the show.

For fans who cannot make it to Buffalo Wild Wings or cannot tune in live, they can listen to the show each week on www3.mnsu.edu/athletics.
    
Additionally, the Loose Moose will host the Maverick Football Luncheon on Tuesday. Each luncheon will feature comments from Coach Hoffner as well as players and are open to everyone.  The Loose Moose will have lunch menu items available to order during this time.

To view the complete version of the game notes, click HERE

To listen to the game live, click HERE

To watch the game online, click HERE

To view the livestats, click HERE

To listen to the game over the air in Mankato, tune into AM 1230 KYSM The Fan Mankato

To watch the game from the comfort of your living room, tune into CBS Sports Network