What Happened & What's Ahead: Minnesota State – fresh off a 44-10 season-opening victory over the Beavers of Minot State – look to complete the season sweep against the nickname as it entertains Bemidji State Saturday evening at 6 p.m., in historic Blakeslee Stadium.
A Little History Lesson: The 2012 season marked the school's 86th season playing football. The Mavericks are 383-375-28 (.505) in 786 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 32-7 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 mark the sixth straight time that MSU has won its home opener...Additionally it would mark MSU's 384th victory in school history and would be the second for acting head coach Aaron Keen who is 24th in his career as a head coach.
Next of Keen: Saturday's game may be Aaron Keen's second as acting head coach for Minnesota State, but it is not the first time that he has been the "Big Man" for a football team. From 2003-07 Keen served as the head coach for Illinois College. During that time, the BlueBoys went 23-27 while 51 players earned all-conference accolades.
All In the Family: With the expansion of the NSIC, the league will play a 11-game unbalanced schedule. No one in the league will have a nonconference game this season.
More Changes: The NCAA has shifted regions this season as well. The Mavericks will still play in the Central Region but are now paired with the Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletic Association and the Great American Conference.
A Little Bit About Our Opponent: Bemidji State opened the 2012 portion of its season with a 25-23 victory over Upper Iowa last Friday evening.
The Beavers opened a 12-7 halftime edge and came from behind to secure the victory as junior running back Brent Kondziolka caught a five-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Lance Rongstad to secure the win with 40 seconds remaining.
As a team, BSU finished with 358 yards of total offense on 79 plays, 130 of which came on the ground. Rongstad led all Beaver rushers with 18 carries for 58 yards while completing 24-of-38 passes for 228 yards. Senior wideout Justin Lee caught a team-high six passes for 78 yards to leave the receiving corps.
Defensively, junior linebacker Jason Bromm finished with 13 tackles, 2.5 of which were for a loss to lead the squad while senior linebacker Cory Crosby added 11 tackles, including 1.5 for a loss.
The Beavers are coached by Jeff Tesch who is in 17th year with the program and owns a 107-67 record with the program.
Monday Night Coaches Show: Join the Minnesota State coaching staff each Monday night for the Maverick Coaches Show live from the downtown Buffalo Wild Wing location. The show, hosted by the voice Mike Sullivan, of the airs on AM 1230 KYSM the Fan Mankato and run from 7-7:30.
On the Air: Radio Mankato will air all 11 of Minnesota State games this season. Saturday's game airs on AM 1230 KYSM The Fan Mankato with the pregame shot beginning at 5:35. Mike Sullivan will handle play-by-play duties while former Maverick defensive lineman Jason Westerlund (1996-97) will provide color commentary. Minnesota State Hall-of-Famer Casey Lloyd will roam the sidelines and provide updates as the game progresses.
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Team Comparison (League Rank)
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MSU
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Category
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BSU
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241.0 (3rd)
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Rushing Offense
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130.0 (10th)
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160.0 (12th)
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Passing Offense
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228.0 (8th)
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401.0 (7th)
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Total Offense
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358.0 (11th)
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44.0 (4th)
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Scoring Offense
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25.0 (9th)
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-43.0 (1st)
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Rushing Defense
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144.0 (8th)
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76.0 (1st)
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Passing Defense
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179.0 (6th)
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33.0 (1st)
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Total Defense
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323.0 (5th)
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10.0 (3rd)
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Scoring Defense
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23.0 (7th)
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35.7 (9th)
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3rd Down Conversions %
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73.7 (1st)
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38.25 (1st)
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Time of Possession
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33:17 (4th)
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Follow the Action
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Live Stats
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http://www.sidearmstats.com/mnsu/football/scoreboard.aspx
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Live Video
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http://msumavericks.nmtvsports.-
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Live Audio
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http://www3.mnsu.edu/athletics
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In Mankato
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AM 1230 KYSM The Fan Mankato
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Twitter
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@msufblive
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