DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – For the second straight week the St. Scholastica football team will be at Public Schools Stadium where it will take on the University of Minnesota Morris on Saturday.
Where:
Public Schools Stadium – Duluth, Minn.
When:
Saturday at 3 p.m.
Watch: http://www.csssaints.com/watch/?Live=2
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MINNESOTA MORRIS GAME NOTES
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 2-1, 2-0 UMAC
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: Standings | Stats
Last Action: The Saints used big plays to win their home opener over Westminster College (Mo.) 48-18 on Saturday at Public Schools Stadium …
Zach Edwards (West St. Paul, Minn./Henry Sibley HS) threw for 325 yards on only 11 completions …
Hunter Thompson (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) had a team-high five receptions for 156 yards and two scores …
Aaron Olson (Esko, Minn./Esko HS) only had two catches, but accumulated 105 yards and a touchdown …
Jack Peru (Phoenix, Ariz./Trevor G. Browne HS (Phoenix College)) rushed for 81 yards on 16 carries …
Jonathan Senger (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) had a team-high 10 tackles, while
Cal Germain (Star Prairie, Wis./Osceola HS) had nine tackles, including two for a loss and sack.
Big Chunk Plays Thru the Air: In last week's win over Westminster, the Saints set program records for the two longest passing plays from scrimmage … The Edwards-Thompson connection for 81 yards was the initial record … However, that was trumped at the end of the first half when Edwards found Olson for a 90-yard score … Overall, they were the second and third longest plays from scrimmage in program history … Jake Jensen's 93-yard run vs. Minnesota Morris in 2013 remains the program record.
Edwards Leading the Nation: Related to the note above, quarterback
Zach Edwards (West St. Paul, Minn./Henry Sibley HS) currently leads NCAA Division III averaging 23.5 yards per completion … He ranks fourth in yards per pass attempt (12.2) … Edwards has also been efficient, ranking 13
th in the country with a 185.7 passer efficiency rating.
Against the UMAC: The Saints are 59-11 in conference games all-time, including 52-3 since 2011 … In home games against league opponents, the Saints are 18-1 since 2013 … At Public Schools Stadium, CSS is 120-6 all-time overall.
Kickoff Coverage: The Saints rank second in the conference with a net average on kickoffs being 37.2 … Kicker
Donovan Blatz (Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View HS), who was named the UMAC Special Teams Player of the Week leads the league with two touchbacks … Blatz also ranks second in the conference, averaging 37.8 yards per punt.
Thompson Goes Over 1500: Hunter Thompson (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) became the fourth receiver in program history to eclipse 1,500 receiving yards in a career … He is 53 yards shy of catching Jonny Bennett for the second-most in program history … The program record is 1,925 held by Keegan O'Neill.
Block Party: The Saints had another blocked kick last Saturday, blocking a Westminster punt … CSS also blocked an extra point, but the play was called back … The Saints currently rank fifth in the nation with three blocked kicks thus far … In 2016, CSS finished third in NCAA Division III with eight blocked kicks.
UMAC Preseason Poll
1. St. Scholastica – 73 points (3 First Place Votes)
2. Northwestern – 72 points (5 First Place Votes)
3. MacMurray – 61 points
4. Eureka – 54 points (2 First Place Votes)
5. Westminster – 49 points
6. Greenville – 41 points
7. Crown – 35 points
8. Minnesota Morris – 30 points
9. Iowa Wesleyan – 21 points
10. Martin Luther – 14 points
Upcoming Opponent
Minnesota Morris Cougars
Record: 0-3, 0-2 UMAC
The Cougars are still in search of their first victory of the season after falling to Eureka College (Ill.) 48-20 at home last weekend … Morris was limited to one touchdown in its season-opening non-conference loss to Martin Luther College and then the following week at Westminster … Morris had a shake up just five days before camp started when coach Rob Cushman left to take another position … That left assistant coaches Marty Hoffmann and Matthew Johnson as co-Head Coaches for this season … As mentioned, the Cougar offense has struggled in the first three weeks, ranking last in the conference in total offense, passing and points per game … Justin Masloski is the quarterback and is averaging 104.3 yards through the air thus far … He has also been the team's leading rusher, averaging 20 yards per game and has the team's two rushing TDs … Taylor Holleman and Nathan Sheridan each have recorded a team-high 12 receptions … The Morris defense has played well to keep them in games … The Cougars rank second in the conference in total defense and lead the league in passing defense and turnover margin … Morris ranks 15
th in NCAA Division III allowing only 119.3 yards through the air … Drew Shipley has paced the defense with 34 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery … Shipley also leads the conference averaging 38.0 yards per punt with eight attempts landing inside the 20-yard-line … Taylor Snow ranks second in the conference with 6.5 tackles for a loss … Another player to watch is place kicker John Hoff … Hoff made a pair of field goals last year against the Saints, including a 46-yard attempt … Hoff is 2-for-2 thus far this season with a long of 34 … Hoff was named a preseason All-American by D3football.com.
Series Record: CSS leads 7-2
(Last Meeting: 34-24 UMM – 10/22/2016)
Series History: The Saints had a seven-game win streak snapped last season at Morris with a 34-24 defeat … The loss ended St. Scholastica's 26-game UMAC road winning streak … The last three meetings in Duluth have been decided by an average margin of 32.7 points.
Looking Ahead: The Saints will square off against another team it lost to last season when it travels to Roseville to face rival University of Northwestern. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.
