Saint John's Game Notes

DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica football team will face No. 13 Saint John's University in the First Round of the NCAA Division III playoffs on Saturday at Clemens Stadium.
                                                                    
Where:
Clemens Stadium – Collegeville, Minn.
 
When:
Saturday at Noon
 
Live Video: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/csbsju/
 
Live Audio: http://www.csssaints.com/ssn
                                                         
Live Stats: http://www.ncaa.com/game/football/d3/2014/11/22/st-scholastica-st-johns-mn
 
Social Media:
Twitter: www.twitter.com/CSSFB   
Instagram: www.instagram.com/csssaints
Facebook: www.facebook.com/css.saints
 
St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 10-0, 9-0 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
 
The Saints defeated Greenville College (Ill.) two weeks ago in the winner-take-all UMAC regular season finale to capture the program's fourth straight UMAC Championship … Andrew Smith (Rogers, Minn./Rogers HS) had a career day for the Saints setting program records with 12 receptions and 265 yards receiving, while also scoring three touchdowns. Tyler Harper (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle HS) also had a career-high 363 yards passing and set a program record with 422 yards of total offense.
 
UMAC Success: The Saints will carry a 21-game UMAC winning streak into next season; a streak dating back to October 20, 2012 … CSS has lost only one UMAC game in the last three seasons … That 2012 loss came against Northwestern at Ordean Stadium.
 
Road Warriors: CSS has won 19 straight conference road games, dating back to the 2010 season … The last conference road loss came to Martin Luther on Sept. 25, 2010 (21-7) … However, CSS has lost its last three non-conference road games.
 
vs. the MIAC: The Saints are 0-2 against the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) all-time with both losses coming in postseason games … CSS lost to St. Thomas in 2011 48-2 and against Bethel last season 70-13.
 
A Look at the Polls: The Saints are receiving 34 votes in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division III poll, which is the fourth-most of those teams ranked outside the top 25 … The Johnnies are ranked 13^th in both the AFCA and D3football.com polls.
 
Welcome Home: First Year Saints Head Coach Kurt Ramler will face his Alma Mater in Saint John's on Saturday … Ramler was the offensive coordinator last season for the Johnnies and was a finalist for the head coach job when the legendary John Gagliardi stepped down in 2012 … While playing quarterback for the Johnnies he was named the MIAC MVP and Gagliardi Award finalist in 1996 … He holds the top three Johnnie records for passing yards in a game and is second in career passing yards and career touchdown passes.
 
Milestone on the Line: The Saints are one win shy of its 50^th victory as a program, while Saint John's can become the second college football program in Minnesota to record 600 wins as a program with a victory.
 
Always in Front: The Saints have not trailed in a game since the October 4^th Homecoming game against the University of Northwestern when it scored two touchdowns in the final 6:17 to rally to victory … CSS has only trailed in two games this season – at Westminster College (Mo.) on 9/27 and vs. Northwestern (10/4) … Both times, the Saints trailed by 14 points.
 
20 is the Magic Number: The Saints are 42-0 since 2010 when they score at least 20 points.
 
Red Zone Success: The Saints are 46-of-47 in converting red zone opportunities this season, which leads NCAA Division III … 44 of the 47 opportunities have resulted in touchdowns … The Johnnies are ranked sixth in the nation in the red zone converting 36-of-39 opportunities
 
Harper's Season: Tyler Harper (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle HS) became the second quarterback in program history to throw for over 2,000 yards in a season … He is still over 500 yards shy of the single-season program record held by 2011 Gagliardi Finalist Alex Thiry.
 
Successful Special Teams: The Saints have returned four punt returns and one kickoff return for touchdowns this season … CSS is averaging a program-best 21.3 yards per punt return and 23.5 yards per kick return.
 
Peeking Ahead: St. Scholastica and Saint John's are scheduled to open the 2016 and 2017 seasons against one another.
 
Series History: This will be the first-ever meeting between the Saints and Johnnies.
 
#13 Saint John's University Johnnies
After posting a 7-3 overall record, including a 5-3 MIAC mark, which was good enough for fourth in 2013, the Johnnies captured its 32^nd MIAC regular season title with a 9-1 record (7-1 MIAC) this season … The ground game has been the story for Saint John's this season as junior running back Sam Sura has recorded 1,605 yards on the ground this season, which is a single-season program record … He will come into Saturday's game with seven consecutive 100-yard games … Junior quarterback Nick Martin has thrown 11 touchdown passes, compared to three interceptions and has thrown the ball well in wins over St. Thomas and Bethel … Junior wideout Josh Bungum has been his top target with 26 receptions, including six last week vs. St. Olaf … The defense is one of the top units in the MIAC, holding opponents to 12.3 points per game and 328.1 yards per contest … The Johnnies have recorded a league-high 14 interceptions and 14 fumble recoveries … Sophomore linebacker Carter Hanson leads the team with 75 tackles.
 
Head Coach Gary Fasching: Coach Fasching became the 16^th head coach in the 102-year history of Saint John's following the 2012 season … Fasching had been an assistant for 17 seasons with the program … The Johnnies posted a 164-39 record (120-22 MIAC) with 10 conference titles and 12 postseason appearances (22-11 playoff record), including the 2003 national championship, 2000 national runner-up performance and four national semifinal games during his tenure as an assistant coach … Prior to joining the Johnnies' coaching staff, Fasching served as the head football coach at St. Cloud Cathedral High School from 1986-95, where he led the Crusaders to the State Class B title in 1992 and 1993 … Fasching was a three-year starter at linebacker for the Johnnies from 1977-81.

Tickets: There are no advance ticket sales for playoff games. All tickets are to be purchased at the ticket gates on game day. Gates open at 10 a.m. Ticket prices are $8 for adults, $4 for college students (with ID) and $4 for youth, ages 3-17. Young children that do not require a seat may gain free admittance.