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DSU visits Midland in season football opener Saturday night
August 25, 2011
THIS WEEK: Dakota State (0-0 overall record) and Midland (0-0, 0-0 Great Plains Athletic Conference) meet in both teams' season opener on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Trojans will travel to Memorial Field in Fremont, Neb.
THE SERIES: Saturday's game marks the second meeting between Dakota State and Midland in a series that began last year. Midland defeated the Trojans 38-7 on Aug. 28, 2010 at Trojan Field in Madison, S.D.
DSU MAKES TRANSITION TO A.I.I.: Starting this fall, Dakota State makes their transition to Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.). The Trojans competed in their final year of the Dakota Athletic Conference (DAC) last spring.
THEY'RE BACK: The Trojans return a total of 36 players from last year's squad.
TROJANS IN OPENERS: Dakota State's last season opener win was on Aug. 26, 2006. The Trojans defeated Waldorf (Iowa) 31-23 in Madison, S.D. DSU suffered four straight season opener losses - at Hastings in 2007 (9-13), vs. Bacone (Okla.) (27-34) in 2008, vs. University of Minnesota-Morris in 2009 (20-21) and vs. Midland in 2010 (7-38).
FOOTBALL FORECAST: Saturday looks to be a perfect night for the Trojans to open the 2011 season. The forecast in Fremont calls for a high of 80 degrees and a low of 61 degrees with a sunny afternoon, becoming partly cloudy skies during the evening hours.
NAIA FOOTBALL NATIONAL PRESEASON RANKINGS: Midland ranks No. 17 in the NAIA Football National Preseason rankings, released on Aug. 8, 2011. The Warriors received 118 points to the poll. Dakota State is not ranked.
DSU FOOTBALL HISTORY LESSON: Dakota State is in its 92nd year of competition. The Trojans own an all-time record of 267-441-17. DSU opened their first year of competition in 1908 with an overall record of 4-1-1.
STAY CONNECTED: Follow Dakota State all season long on its official online home, www.dsuathletics.com.
UP NEXT: Dakota State plays their first home game of the season on Sept. 3 at Trojan Field. The Trojans welcome their in-state rival Dakota Wesleyan of the Great Plains Athletic Conference. Kick-off is set for 6 p.m.
Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director
