GAME EIGHT || SATURDAY, OCT. 24, 2015 || 6:00 PM || SALUTE TO SERVICEFAYETTE, IOWA || HARMS-EISCHEID STADIUMSOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE UNIVERSITY AT UPPER IOWA UNIVERSITY
LIVE OPTIONS
LIVE STATS || LIVE WEBCAST || AM 950 KOEL || NSICSCORES.COM
WEEKLY NOTES
UPPER IOWA || SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA STATE || NORTHERN SUN || TWO DEEPS
THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK FOOTBALL... The Peacocks and Mustangs will get together for the 12th installment of their series history on Saturday in Fayette. The two teams are both enjoying solid starts to their 2015 campaigns with 5-2 records. UIU is 2-1 in the division with wins against Winona State and Concordia-St. Paul, while SMSU is 1-2 in the division with their win coming in a 61-3 blowout win at Wayne State. Both teams are averaging over 30 points per game with the Mustangs registering 493 offensive yards per game and the Peacocks are racking up 435.9 yards per game. While Upper Iowa gets most of their yards through the air (320.7 ypg), Southwest Minnesota State's offense is more balanced between passing (290.9 ypg) and rushing (202.1 ypg).
THE SERIES... Southwest Minnesota State leads the series 9-2 having won the last seven match ups. The last four games, three played in Marshall, Minn., were decided by just twelve points combined. The Mustangs won 28-24 in 2011 and 38-37 in 2012 before holding off a first and goal for UIU with under a minute to play in 2013 to claim a 52-48 win in Fayette. Last season, the Mustangs scored 14 fourth quarter points to claim a come-from-behind 28-25 win over UIU; the loss marked UIU's first last season after opening 5-0. The Peacock wins in the series came in 2004 (28-16) and in 2007 (39-27).
SALUTE TO SERVICE... Upper Iowa Athletics is proud to welcome all military service men and women, as well as police, fire and paramedic personnel to Salute to Service Day this afternoon. Thank you for all you do for our country and our communities.
THIRD DOWN FOR WHAT... The Peacock defense has been at their strongest on third down this season. After limiting the Winona State Warriors to just 3 of 15 conversions on third down, Upper Iowa is ranked 6th nationally and 2nd in the Northern Sun allowing their opponents to convert on third down just 25.9% of the time. On the other side of the ball, the Mustangs feature an offense that has been excellent on third down converting at a rate of 53.2%, which ranks 8th in the country.
TRIPLE THREAT... Upper Iowa's receiving corps is led by three young men that all lead the team in at least one major category.
Jarred Edmonds has 7 touchdown receptions which ranks 20th in the country and 2nd in the NSIC, while he has pulled in 39 balls (8th NSIC) for 521 yards (8th NSIC).
Trey MacTaggart has racked up 532 yards of receiving, good for 7th in the NSIC, thanks to his 41 catches (5th NSIC); the redshirt junior has scored twice.
Jalen Amis is leading the team and Northern Sun, and is 2nd in the nation, in receptions with 65 through the first seven games; he has reached double figure catches three times including a high of 14 against Concordia University, St. Paul. The junior now has 511 yards and 4 touchdowns.
NSIC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK... Dimitri Morales earned the NSIC's Offensive Player of the Week on Monday after leading the Peacock offense to 35 points on Saturday with a pair of touchdown runs and three touchdown passes. The junior quarterback threw for 378 yards on 32 completions as Upper Iowa (5-2) claimed their first win over Winona State University in schools' 12th meeting. Morales has thrown for 838 yards and eight touchdowns on 70 completions with 71 yards rushing and three more rushing scores over the last two Saturday's to lead UIU's offense to 87 points.
PEACOCKS IN THE RANKINGS... DIMITRI MORALES - 29.4 Completions per game (1st NCAA DII, 1st NSIC), 66.2% Completion Percentage (10th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 16 Passing TD's (26th NCAA, 4th NSIC), 2,244 Passing Yards (9th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 134 Points Responsible For (12th NCAA, 2nd NSIC), 346.3 Total Offense/game (12th NCAA, 1st NSIC)... ALEX WAHL - 62 Tackles (6th NSIC), 33 Solo Tackles (7th NSIC), 13.5 Tackles for Loss (10th NCAA, 2nd NSIC)... COLE STEPHEN - 58 Tackles (10th NSIC)... JEVELL ROLLINS - 11.5 Tackles for Loss (35th NCAA, 4th NSIC) ... DARIUS COHEN - 3 Interceptions (T-43rd, T-2nd NSIC)... MARCUS MCCOY - 3 Interceptions (T-43rd, T-2nd 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 5:30 p.m.
