Gustavus at Concordia
Date: Saturday, Sept. 30
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Moorhead, Minn. | Jake Christiansen Stadium
Live Coverage: Live Stats | Watch | Audio
ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus football team heads north to face Concordia College for a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference matchup at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30. The Gusties (3-1, 2-0 MIAC) come off their largest offensive output since 2015 to face the Cobbers (3-0, 1-0 MIAC), who opened conference play two weekends ago with a 31-7 victory over Bethel University.
MEET THE HEAD COACHES
Head Coach Peter Haugen is in his ninth season at the helm of the Gustavus football program. Haugen has a combined record of 40-44 after going 5-5 overall and 3-5 in the MIAC last season. A graduate of Bethel University, Haugen was the head coach at Washburn High School in Minneapolis prior to coming to Gustavus.
Terry Horan enters his 17th season at the helm of the Concordia football program, owning a 114-53 all-time record. In his first 16 seasons of leading Concordia back to the top of the MIAC, Horan has been named MIAC Coach of the Year twice (2002 and 2004) and was named the American Football Coaches Association Region Coach of the Year in 2004. A 1989 graduate of Concordia, Horan began his coaching career in 1991 as an assistant coach at Breckenridge.
THE SERIES
Saturday’s game marks the 86th all-time meeting between the Gustavus and Concordia football programs, with the Gusties holding a 45- 38-2 series advantage. The Cobbers own a 7-3 advantage over the past 10 seasons, including a 46-21 victory over Gustavus at Hollingsworth Field last season.
BOCHE CLAIMS ANOTHER KICKING RECORD
Gustavus kicker Brendan Boche (Sr., Lakeville, Minn.) needed just two extra points coming into the Hamline matchup to pass former kicker Ryan Boutwell’s (1995-98) career record of 98 extra points. Boche tallied six extra points against the Pipers and now owns the all-time lead with 103 career extra points.
SCOUTING THE GUSTIES
Gustavus most recently earned its second Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory last Saturday with a 51-7 homecoming win over Hamline University at Hollingsworth Field, improving its overall record to 3-1 on the season. The Gusties totaled 566 yards of offense, compiling over 400 passing yards for the second consecutive game to post its first game with at least 50 points for the first time since the 2015 season.
Quarterback Michael Veldman (Jr., Becker, Minn.) finished with 392 passing yards, completing 26 passes on 42 attempts to go with his second consecutive four-touchdown performance. The receiving trio of Hunter Johnson (Sr., Cannon Falls, Minn.), Brayton Finch (So., Mount Morris, Ill.), and Josh Kirk (So., Garvin, Minn.) combined for 340 receiving yards off 21 receptions.
Through two weeks of conference competition, Gustavus ranks among the MIAC leaders on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the Black and Gold has accumulated a league-leading 1,997 yards of total offense, averaging 499.3 per game, guided by the passing offense and quarterback Michael Veldman. Veldman owns a MIAC-leading 107 completions on 168 attempts for a 63.7% completion percentage, while ranking second with 1,446 passing yards and 12 touchdowns.
Wide Receiver Josh Kirk totaled at least 100 all-purpose yards for the third game in a row versus Hamline, while posting his first career rushing touchdown to go along with his fourth receiving touchdown in as many games. Compiling 401 receiving yards to rank third in the conference, Kirk leads the MIAC with a 19.1 yards per catch average. Kirk and Brice Panning (So., Hamburg, Minn.) also rank second in the conference with four receiving touchdowns each. Dual threat Jamison Beulke (Jr., Montgomery, Minn.) helps carry the Gustie ground and aerial attack, leading the team with 627 all-purpose yards. Beulke also ranks second in the MIAC with 111.0 receiving yards per game and 5.2 yards per rush.
Defensively, the Gusties have surrendered the third least yards per game within the MIAC, averaging 294.3 yards of total offense to their opponents. Gustavus leads the conference with 16 sacks, led by linebacker Casey Decker (Sr., Mapleton, Minn.), who leads the MIAC with five sacks and nine tackles for loss, going along with his two pass breakups and one forced fumble.
SCOUTING THE COBBERS
Ranked No. 16 in the latest AFCA Coaches’ Poll, Concordia enters Saturday’s game with a 3-0 overall record after enjoying a bye last Saturday, previously opening conference play with a 31-7 victory over Bethel University. In their conference opener, the Cobbers posted 31 unanswered points after giving up the opening score to the Royals. Senior running back Chad Johnson led the offense with 191 rushing yards on 25 attempts, totaling three touchdowns.
Defensively, Concordia limited the Royals to just 60 net rushing yards and allowed just one third down conversion. Junior linebacker Andrew Thompson led the defense with 10 tackles, along with 1.5 sacks and 1.5 tackles for loss.
Through three games, the Cobber offense has registered an average of 30.0 points per game and 1,095 yards of total offense. Relying on its ground game, Concordia has totaled more than 200 rushing yards in all three games, led by the MIAC’s leading rusher, Chad Johnson. Johnson has rushed 59 times for 471 yards with an average 157.0 per game and seven touchdowns.
The Concordia defense has allowed an average of 351.3 yards of total offense per game, particularly with a strong rushing defense. The Pipers have allowed 322 total rushing yards, while opponents have averaged just 3.7 yards per rush. Dallas Raftevold, Andrew Thompson, Aaron Ahrndt, and Alex Berg lead the Cobber defense, as each owns at least 20 tackles. Raftevold ranks third in the MIAC with an average of 9.3 tackles per game, while leading the team with 28 tackles, one interception, and two pass breakups.