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Dakota State hosts in-state rival DWU in Trojans' football home opener
August 30, 2011
THIS WEEK: Dakota Wesleyan (0-0 overall record) of the Great Plains Athletic Conference visits Trojan Field Saturday night to face in-state rival Dakota State (0-1). It's the first game of the two-game home stand for the Trojans. Kickoff from Madison is set for 6 p.m.
THE SERIES: Saturday's game marks the 64th meeting between Dakota State and Dakota Wesleyan in a series that began in 1908, DSU's first year of football competition. The Trojans won the last meeting with the Tigers 21-20 in Mitchell, S.D. on Sept. 4, 2004. DWU won the last meeting at Trojan Field in both teams' season opener in 2003 by the score of 28-26. Dakota Wesleyan owns a 32-30-1 series record.
LAST WEEK: Dakota State kicked off their 2011 season on the road at No. 17 Midland. The Trojans suffered a 47-20 loss to the Warriors. Midland outgained the Trojans 519-220 in total yards.
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 last spring.
FAMILIAR CONFERENCE FOES: Dakota State's 2011 schedule includes all the former conference foes from the South Dakota-Iowa Conference and Dakota Athletic Conference. The Trojans face three schools each from the former SDIC and DAC conferences. Dakota State plays a total of eight schools from the members of the Great Plains Atheltic Conference.
THEY'RE BACK: The Trojans return a total of 36 players from last year's squad.
TROJANS IN HOME OPENERS: Dakota State last season home opener win was on Aug. 26, 2006. The Trojans defeated Waldorf (Iowa) 31-23 in Madison, S.D.
FOOTBALL FORECAST: Saturday looks to be a perfect night for the Trojans' first home game in Madison. The forecast calls for a high of 71 degrees with an isolated chance of storms, becoming clear during the evening hours with a low of 51 degrees.
NAIA FOOTBALL NATIONAL PRESEASON RANKINGS: Dakota Wesleyan received a vote to the NAIA Football National Coaches' Preseason rankings, released on Aug. 6, 2001. The first national ranking will be released on Sept. 12. 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 267-442-17. DSU opened their first competition in 1908 with an overall record of 4-1-1.
FOLLOW LIVE COVERAGES: Follow Dakota Wesleyan-Dakota State live on http://streaming.dsu.edu/Athletics-Live. There will be a live stats of the game, check on www.dsuathletics.com under 'Upcoming Events' for all live coverages.
STAY CONNECTED: Follow Dakota State all season long on its official online home, www.dsuathletics.com.
UP NEXT: Dakota State continues their two-game home stand next Saturday, Sept. 10 as they host Doane (Neb.) Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Trojan Field in Madison.
Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director
