DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica football team begins its eighth season on Saturday when it travels to face Ripon College (Wis.).
 



Where:
Ingalls Field – Ripon, Wis.
 
When:
Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
Watch: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/
 
Live Stats: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/ripon/
 
Social Media:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CSSSAINTSFB
Instagram: www.instagram.com/csssaintsfb   
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StScholasticaFootball
 
St. Scholastica Saints
2014 Stats
2014 Record: 10-1, 9-0 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
 
Key Returners on Offense:
-Preston Robinson (Northfield, Minn./Northfield HS) – Running Back – A second team All-UMAC choice last season … Led the team with 933 yards rushing … Finished third in the UMAC with 13 rushing touchdowns.
-Chris Gassert (Moose Lake, Minn./Moose Lake HS) – Running Back– Missed the middle portion of last season due to injury … Currently holds the program record for average yards per attempt (6.96) in his career.
-Andrew Smith (Rogers, Minn./Rogers HS) – Wide Receiver – First Team All-UMAC selection as a wide receiver and a punt returner … Tied for the team lead with seven receiving touchdowns.
-Shane Finnegan (Woodbury, Minn./Hill-Murray HS) – Tight End– A D3football.com All-West Region Third Team selection … First Team All-UMAC choice … Also recorded seven receiving touchdowns.
-Mitch O'Neil (Otsego, Minn./Rogers HS) – Fullback – Led the team with 42 receptions last season.
 
Key Returners on Defense:
-Alex Mangan (Eagan, Minn./Eagan HS) – Linebacker – First Team All-UMAC selection … Led the team in tackles (94), including recording double-figure tackle numbers in five games.
-Joe Geiselman (Virginia, Minn./Virginia HS) – Defensive End – Second team All-UMAC choice … Led the team with 4.5 sacks a season ago, while tying for a team-high in tackles for a loss (10) as a sophomore.
-Secondary – Cornerbacks Jack Miller (Mendota Heights, Minn./St. Thomas Academy ) and John Mike (South St. Paul, Minn./South St. Paul HS) return for the second straight season as starters … Miller was a First Team All-UMAC choice last season, while Mike led the team with nine pass breakups last season … Brady Fish (Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee HS ) and Xavier Rhodes (South St. Paul, Minn./South St. Paul HS) also return to secondary … Fish was a First Team All-UMAC choice in 2014, while Rhodes was a second team selection … Both led the team with three interceptions … Mitch Ejnik (New London, Minn./New London-Spicer HS ) also returns, but will be shifted to linebacker this season.
 
Key Losses:
-Tyler Harper (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle HS) – Quarterback – A three-year starter, who did not miss a game during that span … The 2014 UMAC Offensive Player of the Year … Only lost three regular season games in his career.
-Pete Stanley (Rogers, Minn./Rogers HS) – Center– The 2014 UMAC Lineman of the Year … A three-time First Team All-UMAC choice … Started the final 42 games of his collegiate career.
-Mike Theismann (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Apollo HS) – Kicker – A 2014 honorable mention All-American by D3football.com … A three-time UMAC Special Teams Player of the Year … Holds nine of the top 10 longest field goals in program history.
-Blake Cedarleaf (Mahtomedi, Minn./Mahtomedi HS) – Defensive End – Broke the program record for sacks in career (14.5) … A three-time First Team All-UMAC selection. 
 
Coach Ramler: Head Coach Kurt Ramler guided the Saints to their second undefeated regular season in program history in 2014 … Ramler was also named the UMAC Coach of the Year … He was also named the MIAC Coach of the Year in 2008 when at Carleton.
 
Winning Streak: The Saints will enter Saturday's game on a 19-game regular season win streak … The last regular season loss came on the road at Whitworth College (Wash.) to start the 2013 season.
 
Season Openers: The Saints are 3-4 all-time in season openers … CSS has not won a non-conference road game since defeating Lawrence University (Wis.) to open the 2011 season.
 
vs. Midwest Conference: The Saints are 3-0 all-time against the Midwest Conference … CSS swept Lawrence University in 2010 (31-24) and 2011 (34-21) and defeated the Red Hawks last season (28-27).
 
20 is the Magic Number: The Saints are 42-0 since 2010 when they score at least 20 points.
 
New Signal Caller: Since 2008, the program's first year, the Saints have been steady at quarterback … Jake Olson started 16 of 18 games in 2008 and 2009 … Then Alex Thiry started 19 of 21 games from 2010-11 and Tyler Harper (Minneapolis, Minn./DeLaSalle HS) started all 33 games the past three seasons … Junior Dakota Paulson (Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie HS) won the competition in camp and will look to keep the tradition going of steady QB play … Paulson has attempted just one pass in his first two seasons.
 
New Uniforms: The Saints will be in Under Armour garb this season … The Saints will feature new black helmets and helmet decals … CSS will wear blue tops and blue pants at home and white tops and blue pants on the road.
 
Did You Know: The Saints scored at least four touchdowns in all 10 of their victories last season and have scored at least four touchdowns in 45 games since its inception.

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Top 5 Games to Watch
9/4 – at Ripon
The Saints held on to defeat the Red Hawks 28-27 in the season opener last season.
10/3 – vs. Martin Luther
The CSS Homecoming game returns to UMD's Malosky Stadium.
10/17 – at Northwestern
In a battle of unbeaten last year, the Saints scored 14 points in the final 6:17 to rally past the Eagles
10/31 – vs. Westminster
The Saints rallied from a 17-10 deficit and made two big interceptions to hold on and defeat the Blue Jays in 2014.
11/7 – at Greenville
This matchup has determined the UMAC champion the past two seasons.

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UMAC Preseason Poll
1. 80 Points – College of St. Scholastica (8 First Place Votes)
2. 70 Points - University of Northwestern (1)
3. 69 Points – Greenville College (1)
4. 54 Points – Westminster College
5. 44 Points – Iowa Wesleyan College
6. 36 Points – Crown College
7. 35 Points – Eureka College
8. 27 Points – MacMurray College
9. 21 Points – University of Minnesota Morris
10. 14 Points – Martin Luther College

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Upcoming Opponent
Ripon Red Hawks
The Red Hawks went 3-7 last season, including 2-3 in the North Division of the Midwest Conference … Ripon returns 16 starters from a team that lost four games by a combined 15 points … The Red Hawks finished last season by averaging 35 points per game during their final three contests … Senior quarterback Stephen Covalt is back and has thrown from nearly 1,500 yards, while also rushing for more than 1,400 yards … Another senior, fullback Connor Greenwald, is also back … Greenwald led the team in rushing last season and was a second team All-Midwest Conference choice … However, Ripon, a run-heavy team, has lost four of its top six rushers from last season … The defense sees just one starter lost between the defensive line and linebacker positions … The Red Hawks return leading tackler, senior linebacker Austin Schleisner, as well as, second-leading tackler Jordan Remsza to the secondary.
 
Series History: CSS leads 1-0
 
Last Meeting: The Saints scored 21 second quarter points and then held off Ripon in the second half to win 28-27 … It was the first win in program history where the Saints were outgained on offense.
 
Looking Ahead: The Saints will have their home opener on September 12 against MacMurray College (Ill.) at Public Schools Stadium.