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Dakota State hosts Red Raiders in annual homecoming game Saturday
September 19, 2011
THIS WEEK: Dakota State (0-4 overall) returns home Saturday afternoon as they host Northwestern (IA) of the Great Plains Athletic Conference. The annual Trojan homecoming football game is set to kickoff at 4 p.m. at Trojan Field.
THE SERIES: Dakota State and Northwestern used to be members of the former South Dakota-Iowa Conference (SDIC) for numerous years. The series began in 1962 where Dakota State won 19-12. The Red Raiders lead the series 20-8, winning the last nine meetings with the Trojans. Northwestern defeated DSU 44-7 in both teams' last meeting in Orange City, Iowa in 2006. The last time both teams met at Trojan Field was in 2005, where the Red Raiders held on to win 29-21.
LAST TIME OUT: Dakota State fell short to their former Dakota Athletic Conference rival Valley City State on the road on Sept. 17. The Trojans set a new school record for most first-downs with 31, but lost to the Vikings 44-27. Northwestern suffered a 20-8 defeat at Doane in Crete, Neb.
1971 BOOTHILL BOWL TEAM HONORED: The 1971 Dakota State's Boothill Bowl Team will be celebrating their 40th anniversary reunion this weekend. They will be recognized during halftime of the Northwestern-Dakota State game. The Trojans erased a 20-3 halftime deficit to defeat Northwestern Oklahoma State 23-20, where the Trojans became the first South Dakota college football team to win a post-season game.
NAIA DAKSTATS STATISTICAL RANKINGS: Robert Ortiz ranks first in the nation in kickoff return yards with 632 and all-purpose yards with 793. Ortiz is second in the nation in all-purpose yards per game with an average of 198.3 yards. Craig Hertz ranks second in the nation in tackles (all positions) per game with 13.3 tackles. Wes Dauz is second in the nation in total receptions with 23. Josh Licht ranks sixth in the nation in total tackles for loss (6.5). As a team, Dakota State is 15th in the nation in total pass offense (831) and 24th in the nation in kickoff return yards per attempt with an average of 21.9 yards.
DSU QUICK LEADERS: Jeb Olsen leads the team in rushing with a total of 309 yards, an average of 77.3 yards per game. Brandon Large averages 207.3 passing yards with a completion percentage of 56.0. Wes Dauz leads the team with 23 receptions. Craig Hertz records 53 tackles for the Trojans. Josh Licht records two quarterback sacks this season for DSU.
FOOTBALL FORECAST: Saturday's forecast calls for a high of 80 degrees and a sunny sky.
DSU FOOTBALL HISTORY LESSON: Dakota State is in its 92nd year of competition. The Trojans own an all-time record of 267-442-12. DSU opened their first year of competition in 1908 with an overall record of 4-1-1.
FOLLOW LIVE COVERAGE: Follow Trojans-Red Raiders on live free video webcasting through http://www.streaming.dsu.edu/Athletics-Live. There will be a live stats of the game, check under www.dsuathletics.com under 'Upcoming Events' for all live coverage.
STAY CONNECTED: Follow Dakota State all season long on its official online home, www.dsuathletics.com
UP NEXT: Dakota State begins a stretch of two games on the road, starting on Oct. 1. The Trojans head to Seward, Neb. to take on Concordia (NE). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director
