WELCOME
The Gustavus Adolphus College football team continues Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play Saturday with its Homecoming game at 1 p.m. against Concordia College. The Gusties enter the game with a 3-1 overall record and 1-1 mark in the MIAC after losing 42-40 at Hamline last Saturday, while the Cobbers at 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the league after defeating Bethel 21-13 on Sept. 17. Concordia was idle last week.
LIVE ACTION
KNUJ AM 860 out of New Ulm, Minn. is broadcasting every Gustavus regular season game. The voice of the Golden Gusties, Tom Wheeler, handles the play-by-play duties for the 11th consecutive season. Fans can listen to the KNUJ broadcasts on the Internet through the Gustavus Athletics website.
Live coverage of Saturday’s game begins at 12:30 p.m.
LIVE STATS | WATCH LIVE | GUSTAVUS GAME NOTES
CELEBRATING 100 SEASONS
Immediately following Saturday’s game, the Gustavus football team will host a 100th season of Gustavus football celebration at Alumni Hall. Former coaches and prominent figures of Gustavus football will share their memories of championship teams, great players, iconic plays, and much more during the celebration. Former players and coaches attending the celebration are asked to meet at the goal post at the north end of the field immediately after the game for a group photo, and then to walk over to Alumni Hall for the celebration.
SCOUTING THE GUSTIES
The Gustavus and Hamline football teams battled to the bitter end last Saturday afternoon at Klas Field in St. Paul, but a touchdown late in the fourth quarter by the host Pipers proved to be the difference in a 42-40 loss for the Gusties. The defeat snapped a 10-game winning streak against the Pipers and marked the first time since 1975 Gustavus lost a game after scoring at least 40 points. In a battle of previously unbeaten teams, Gustavus dropped to 3-1 overall and 1-1 in the MIAC.
The Gustie run stoppers were stout, allowing just 17 rushing yards on 29 attempts, marking the fewest rushing yards allowed since Oct. 9, 2010 against Hamline when the Gusties allowed only 11 yards on 26 carries. But the Piper aerial attack proved to be the deciding factor as Hamline quarterback Justice Spriggs threw for 475 yards and six touchdowns. The Gusties were led offensively by Karim Ortiz (Jr., Cancun, Mexico) for the second straight week as he rushed a career-high 34 carries for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
Christian Haffner (Fy., Lebanon, Tenn.) connected with Jamison Beulke (So., Montgomery, Minn.) for an 82-yard touchdown with 4:13 remaining in the game, giving the Gusties a 38-35 lead, but that left plenty of time foe Hamline to respond. The Pipers found the endzone with 1:35 on the clock, taking a 42-38 advantage. Gustavus was intercepted on the ensuing drive and was unable to mount a comeback in the final minute of the game.
After four games this season, the Gusties are still establishing an identity on offense with many replacements playing starting roles. Haffner started the season as the No. 3 quarterback and is now the starter, while Ortiz has been the starting running back ever since Luke Martinez (Sr., Lenexa, Kan.) went down with an injury in Week 2. Ortiz has been a formidable replacement, though, as he leads the league with 103.2 yards per game. The offensive line has also seen a few shifts throughout the beginning of the season.
The Gustie defense has established an identity of stout run stoppers at the point of attack. Through four games this season, the Gusties rank second in the MIAC in rushing yards allowed with an average of 79.8 yards allowed per game. Gustavus has tallied 29 tackles for loss, including eight sacks. The secondary has recorded six interceptions, already matching last season’s total, but will try to limit big plays after allowing seven passing plays of more than 25 yards last week.
GUSTAVUS ROSTER | SCHEDULE | STATS
SCOUTING THE COBBERS
Concordia was idle last week and its most recent game was a 21-13 victory at Bethel on Sept. 17. In a tightly-contested matchup against two prominent programs in the MIAC, the Cobbers scored the game’s first touchdown and never trailed the rest of the way. Bethel was able to tie the score at 7-7, but a pair of rushing touchdowns in the second half proved to be the difference in the outcome.
Concordia outgained the Royals 309-293 in total yards of offense, with the bulk of the load coming on the ground. The Cobbers rushed 54 times for 232 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback Michael Herzog led the ground attack with a game-high 23 carries for 93 yards and a score. Herzog also added 72 yards through the air, completing 7-of-11 attempts.
After three games this season, the Cobber offense makes it perfectly clear that it likes to run the ball. Concordia has four players with more than 100 yards, led by its quarterback, Herzog, with 45 carries for 202 yards and two touchdowns. Dane Ringquist has 173 yards on 21 carries, Jason Montonye has 151 yards on 21 carries, and Chad Johnson had 100 yards on 28 carries. The Cobbers have amassed 704 rushing yards compared to 248 passing yards. Concordia’s 82.7 passing yards per game ranks last in the league, nearly 100 yards less per game than the next team.
The Cobber defense averages 323.0 yards allowed per game, which ranks third in the MIAC. Concordia has yet to intercept a pass – the only MIAC team without one – and has just two sacks this season. Although the Cobbers don’t sport great numbers in impact plays, they do a good job of keeping opponents out of the endzone having allowed 50 points in three games for an average of 16.7 points allowed per game, which ranks third in the league. Dallas Raftevold and Hank Van Liew lead the defense with 24 and 23 tackles, respectively.