THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK FOOTBALL... Upper Iowa football is back on the road looking for their first win of the 2022 season in Duluth, Minn. this weekend. The Peacocks will line up across from the Bulldogs of the University of Minnesota Duluth on Saturday, Sept. 17 with kickoff slated for 6 p.m. Both teams dropped one-score decisions last Saturday with UIU falling to Minnesota State University Moorhead, 24-21, and UMD losing at Minnesota State University, Mankato, 17-10.
LIVE OPTIONS... Fans that can't be in Duluth for the game have several options to follow along in real time. Live stats and a webcast are available through links at UIUPeacocks.com/Live. In addition, the game can be streamed through most mobile devices at NSICNetwork.com/UIUPeacocks or through the NSIC Network app on Roku and Amazon Fire devices, as well as Apple and Android televisions. The game will also be broadcast live on KCRG-TV 9.2 thanks to KCRG's sister station in Duluth, Minn.
THE SERIES... The Bulldogs own an 8-1 record against the Peacocks following Upper Iowa's move up to NCAA Division II prior to the 2006 season. In their 2019 meeting, Upper Iowa earned an upset win in Duluth over the Bulldogs, who were receiving votes in the AFCA Division II Top 25 at the time and carrying a 12-game winning streak at home. The Peacock defense lived by the adage "bend don't break" in the 23-13 win allowing 359 yards of total offense to the Bulldogs, who pushed the ball into Peacock territory seven times in the game. UIU forced six turnovers including a pair of fumbles and four interceptions to end six Bulldog possessions including three on Upper Iowa's half of the field. Prior to UIU's win in 2019, the Peacocks played the Bulldogs close in 2017 at home losing 33-21 and on the road in 2015 in a 28-24 loss. In 2015, the squads had to fight through the fury of Lake Superior, which unleashed a thick fog prior to the game making visibility a major issue throughout the whole contest. The fog was constant from mid-afternoon through the end of the game and made it hard on players and fans alike. After falling behind 18-0 at halftime, Upper Iowa rallied with 24 points in the second half taking a 24-21 lead midway through the fourth quarter. UMD scored the go-ahead touchdown with less than four minutes to play and UIU's final drive stalled at midfield as the team fell despite a great effort.
LAST TIME THEY MET… Last season, Upper Iowa hosted the No. 23 Bulldogs in the teams' season opener in Fayette. The nationally-ranked Bulldogs amassed over 500 yards of total offense on the way to a 41-14 season-opening victory over the Peacocks. UMD's quarterback John Larson stole the show early on with 321 passing yards and five touchdowns in the first half; he finished the game with 447 yards and six touchdown throws on 22 completions. Armani Carmickle hauled in five passes for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns including an 84-yard bomb from Larson that put a cap on the night's scoring.
Willy Camacho was a bright spot for Upper Iowa in the game ending the night with an impressive 101 yards on just 16 carries for an average of 6.3 yards per carry. The young back also returned four kicks for 115 yards including a long run back of 71 yards.
MAKING AN IMPACT ON DEFENSE…Eight Peacock defenders have shared the load and have recorded between six and 16 tackles apiece including eight for loss and a pair of sacks. Linebacker
RJ Knaack leads the team with 16 tackles thanks to 11 stops against the Dragons last Saturday.
Cejai Parrish is second on the team with 14 tackles from his safety spot, while
Zacarius Murray has 13 tackles at cornerback.
Trevor Thompson, also a linebacker, is also in double figures with 12 tackles, while defensive end
Baxter Bohr, linebacker
Collin Jones and safety
Tyler Owens all have eight tackles to their name.
Demetrius Walker has six tackles and a big fumble recovery that set UIU up for their second score against MSU Moorhead.
FINDING BALANCE ON OFFENSE… The Peacocks were able to find balance in their offense on Saturday against the Dragons thanks to a productive rushing game by both
Desean Phillips (74 yards, 1 TD) and
Willy Camacho (35 yards). The hard running allowed more time to quarterback
Marcus Orr, who threw for 217 yards and a pair of touchdowns to
Cole Ewald (7 receptions, 98 yards) and
Jahani Wright (2 receptions, 22 yards). Camacho also pulled in four catches for 51 yards in the passing game.
CHECKING THE REARVIEW MIRROR... The Peacock football team got the start they wanted on Saturday at Harms-Eischeid Stadium. Upper Iowa took a 14-0 lead scoring touchdowns on two of their first three possessions, but MSU Moorhead took advantage of two massive plays and added two more scoring drives in the second quarter to take a 24-14 lead into the locker room at halftime. UIU was the only team to put points on the scoreboard in the second half, but the Peacocks came up three points shy as a game-tying, 34-yard field goal try sailed wide left with 19 seconds to play as UIU fell 24-21. The teams battled through tough conditions as rain fell throughout the 60 minutes of action. Upper Iowa outgained their guests 299 to 271 in total yards including a 213 to 180 advantage in passing yards. The Peacock offense ran 75 plays including 45 rushes. MSU Moorhead scratched the scoreboard for the first time near the end of the first quarter when Tommy Falk found Gage Florence, who caught the pass just over midfield and then raced to the pylon for the Dragons' first touchdown. The Dragons tied the game thanks to their special teams a few possessions later. The visitors took advantage of a bouncing snap on an Upper Iowa punt attempt. Kolby Vander Wal scooped up the ball at the 12-yard line and scampered into the endzone to tie the game at 14-all. After a Dragon field goal, MSUM grew their advantage to 10 points prior to halftime with a touchdown pass from Falk to Carter Birrenkott from the eight-yard line. Orr found Ewald streaking to the post to cut the margin to 24-21 in the fourth quarter. With six minutes to play in the fourth quarter, the Peacocks got the ball back at their own 44-yard line after Owen's forced fumble and Jones' subsequent recovery. UIU's offense didn't move the ball, but a roughing the kicker personal foul on a Peacock punt gave the home team a second chance for one final scoring drive. On fourth and 12, Orr found Wright over the middle for 17 yards and a first down to the Dragons' 27-yard line. After a pair of short runs, Orr hit Camacho for 10 yards and another first down at the 14-yard line. The Peacocks took two shots into the endzone, but with 19 seconds on the clock turned to their field goal unit and
Kyle Seefeldt to tie the game from 34 yards out. The Dragons used two of their three second-half timeouts before the teams lined up for the big field goal attempt. The kick sailed just to the left of the upright and MSU Moorhead took a knee to leave Fayette with a win.
BULLDOG BITES… (Courtesy of Minnesota Duluth Sports Communication) Minnesota Duluth comes into the weekend with a 1-1 record thanks to a 31-21 victory in the season opener against Southwest Minnesota State University. Last Saturday, the Bulldogs fell to Minnesota State, 17-10. MSU took the lead early on after an 85-yard punt return for a touchdown. After an eight-play drive the Bulldogs kicked for a good field goal for their first score. The Bulldog defense notched three sacks for a loss of 26 yards and six tackles with a loss of 35 yards. Mac Strand contributed one of those sacks for a 10-yard loss. Brad Dati and Marcus Glowdowski both had nine total tackles in the game. Running back Wade Sullivan currently sits sixth in the NSIC for total rushing yards with 165 through the first two games. Dati has 18 tackles, which ranks seventh in the conference, while defensive back Dayvia Gbor is fourth in the NSIC in interceptions with two.
WHO'S NEXT… The Peacocks return to Fayette and Harms-Eischeid Stadium on Sept. 24 for their Football Alumni Day Game. Upper Iowa welcomes the Beavers of Bemidji State University for a fourth NSIC cross-division battle with the opening kick scheduled for 3:05 p.m.
