GAME SEVEN || SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2015 || 1:00 PMWINONA, MINN.|| ALTRA FEDERAL CREDIT UNION STADIUM UPPER IOWA UNIVERSITY AT WINONA STATE UNIVERSITY
LIVE OPTIONS
LIVE STATS || LIVE WEBCAST || AM 950 KOEL || NSICSCORES.COM
WEEKLY NOTES
UPPER IOWA || WINONA STATE || NORTHERN SUN || TWO DEEPS
THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK FOOTBALL... Upper Iowa will head out on their shortest trip of the season this Saturday when they visit Winona State University to line up against the Warriors. UIU snapped a two-game slide against national powerhouses #25 Minnesota Duluth and #1 Minnesota State last Saturday with a dominating 52-20 win over Concordia-St. Paul on UIU's 99th Homecoming. The Peacock defense gave the Golden Bears fits holding their guests to just 120 yards of total offense including just 28 yards in the second half. UIU's
Brady Beuschel was named the NSIC's Special Teams Player of the Week for his 48-yard field goal and seven additional extra points. UIU's passing game went for 460 yards and 5 touchdowns, while three receivers posted yardage totals greater than 100. Winona State defeated the Golden Bears by a similar 51-7 score just two weeks ago so the match up looks to be even with both teams relying heavily on their quarterbacks and air attacks.
THE SERIES... Winona State has claimed all eleven meetings with Upper Iowa including nine victories since Upper Iowa moved up to NCAA Division II and joined the NSIC. The Warriors and Peacocks locked up in a shootout on UIU's homecoming three seasons ago with WSU edging the home team, 45-42. Two Octobers ago in Winona, the Warriors scored 21 points in the second quarter to take a 28-10 halftime lead and held off Upper Iowa in the second half to post a 49-32 victory despite allowing UIU to gain 607 yards of total offense. Winona State scored three touchdowns on plays of 30 yards or more and added defensive and special team scores as well. Last season, the Peacocks turned the ball over five times in the game including three fumbles in the first half as the Warriors took a 21-13 lead at the break en route to a 38-19 win on UIU's Military Day.
NSIC ARMS RACE... The Peacocks and Warriors feature the top two passing quarterbacks in the Northern Sun Conference. WSU's Jack Nelson and UIU's
Dimitri Morales have thrown for the top two totals in passing yards in the conference with 1,890 and 1,866, respectively. Nelson's 14 touchdown passes rank 23rd in the country and 2nd in the NSIC, while Morales' 13 scoring passes are 30th most in the nation and 4th in the conference. The Peacock quarterback is completing 64.7% of his passes, which is the 3rd best mark in the NSIC, while Winona's signal caller is connecting on 59% of his throws for the 9th best mark in the NSIC.
PICKING UP THE LOOSE CHANGE... Upper Iowa's defense has created 13 turnovers through the first six games of the season including 9 interceptions and four fumble recoveries to rank as the 4th highest total in the Northern Sun. Despite seven turnovers in their last two games, the team is ranked 32nd in the nation and tied for 2nd in the NSIC in turnover margin. Winona State is the team tied with UIU in turnover margin having gained 16 and lost 11.
MIC CHECK... Referees at Upper Iowa and Winona State games this fall haven't had to turn on their mics to relay a penalty to the crowd very often. The Peacocks have only been called for 37 penalties which ranks as the 6th lowest total in the conference resulting in an average of just over 6 penalties per game, the 46th best average in NCAA Division II. Winona State has been even cleaner with only 33 penalties for the 2nd lowest mark in the NSIC and 29th best total in the country.
HEAVY HITTERS... Upper Iowa's black shirts on defense have been flying to the ball all season and delivering hard hits. The defense is led by the trio up the middle of linebackers
Alex Wahl and
Cole Stephen and defensive lineman
Jevell Rollins. The Peacocks have recorded the third most tackles for loss in the Northern Sun and 29th most in the country with 8.0 per game. Wahl and Rollins are 3rd and 4th in the NSIC with 1.8 and 1.5 per game, respectively. Wahl and Stephen lead UIU in total tackles with 50 apiece, which puts them both eighth among defensive players in the Northern Sun with 8.3 tackles per game.
PEACOCKS IN THE RANKINGS... DIMITRI MORALES - 29.0 Completions per game (1st NCAA DII, 1st NSIC), 64.7% Completion Percentage (17th NCAA, 3rd NSIC), 13 Passing TD's (30th NCAA, 4th NSIC), 1,866 Passing Yards (10th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 104 Points Responsible For (18th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 334.5 Total Offense/game (14th NCAA, 2nd NSIC)... ALEX WAHL - 50 Tackles (8th NSIC), 26 Solo Tackles (13th NSIC), 8.0 Tackles for Loss (25th NCAA, 3rd NSIC)... TATE THOMPSON - 1 Punt Return TD (4th NCAA, T-1st NSIC), 2 Interceptions (T-5th NSIC)... DARIUS COHEN - 2 Interceptions (T-5th NSIC)... MARCUS MCCOY - 2 Interceptions (T-5th NSIC)... JARRED EDMONDS - 6 Rec. TD's (19th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 467 Receiving Yards (6th NSIC), 5.7 Receptions/game (5th NSIC)... TREY MACTAGGART - 438 Receiving Yards (9th NSIC), 5.3 Receptions/game (8th NSIC)... JALEN AMIS - 425 Receiving Yards (11th NSIC), 9 Receptions/game (2nd NCAA, 1st NSIC)... NATE SKARE - 38.6 yard Punt Average (4th NSIC)... BRADY BEUSCHEL - 70.0% Field Goal Percentage (48th NCAA, 4th NSIC), 1.2 Field Goals Made/Game (28th NCAA, 4th NSIC), 7.0 Points/Game (19th NSIC).
RADIO... Upper Iowa Peacock football can be heard throughout the remainder of the 2015 season courtesy of AM 950 KOEL.
THE BROADCAST TEAM... Play-by-play announcer, and Upper Iowa alum, Joe Stasi is in his 13th consecutive season as the "Voice of the Peacocks" and 15th overall. For the fourth consecutive year he is joined on the broadcast by Zach Carlyle, a recent graduate (2015) of Upper Iowa. The pre-game show is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
