Jackrabbits play for title Saturday at UNI

Saturday, November 19

Cedar Falls, Iowa

4 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Northern Iowa

Photo by: Inertia Sports Media/Dave Eggen

11/15/2016 3:47:00 PM | Football

SDSU Football Notes, 11-15-16

The South Dakota State University football team will play for at least a share of the Missouri Valley Football Conference title Saturday as it travels to Northern Iowa for the regular season finale.
Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The game will be available for viewing on ESPN3.com, with radio coverage along the Jackrabbit Sports Network.
The Jackrabbits, 7-3 overall and 6-1 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, enter Saturday's contest tied atop the league standings with North Dakota State and one game ahead of Youngstown State. SDSU holds tiebreakers over both NDSU and Youngstown State, meaning the Jackrabbits would receive the MVFC's automatic bid to the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs should they end up in a two-way tie with NDSU or three-way tie with NDSU and YSU.
SDSU is ranked eighth in this week's STATS media poll and 10th by the FCS coaches after defeating in-state rival South Dakota, 28-21, in the Jackrabbits' home finale last week.
UNI, which is receiving votes in both polls this week, is clinging to a possible playoff berth with another late-season charge. The Panthers have won three of their last four games to even their overall record to 5-5 overall and improve to 4-3 in league play.

THE SERIES: Saturday's game will mark the 51st meeting on the gridiron between South Dakota State and Northern Iowa. The two squads met regularly from the time the series started in 1935 until UNI (formerly Iowa Teachers College) left the North Central Conference in the late 1970s to join the Division I ranks.
UNI holds a 29-19-2 advantage in the series, including a 7-3 advantage since SDSU joined the Football Championship Subdivision in 2004. Each of the last three meetings have been decided by a field goal; SDSU earned a 37-34 double-overtime home victory during the 2013 season, followed by a 31-28 victory in Cedar Falls during the 2014 campaign.
Northern Iowa claimed a 10-7 victory at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium on Oct. 24, 2015, in the most recent matchup between the two squads. Panther quarterback Aaron Bailey rushed 23 times for 169 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown in the third quarter that proved to be the winning score.
SDSU drove deep into Panther territory in the closing minutes, but was stopped on fourth-and-1 from the UNI 10. UNI's defense recorded 12 tackles for loss on the day, including five sacks. Karter Schult led the way with 4.5 tackles for loss, three of which were sacks.
Connor Landberg scored the lone touchdown for SDSU, hauling in a 6-yard pass from Taryn Christion midway through the third quarter to give the Jackrabbits a momentary 7-3 lead.

TITLE RUN: South Dakota State will attempt to earn at least a share of a Missouri Valley Football Conference title for the first time in program history on Saturday. The Jackrabbits also will be trying to match their best record in league play of 7-1, which was first accomplished in 2009.
SDSU's last conference title in football came in 2007, when it won the Great West Football Conference championship.

NOVEMBERS TO REMEMBER: South Dakota State has a history of finishing the league schedule strong since becoming a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Since joining the MVFC in 2008, the Jackrabbits have compiled a 19-6 record against league foes in the month of November, including a 2-0 mark in 2011 and 3-0 record in 2013.

ELITE COMPANY: South Dakota State is one of five Football Championship Subdivision programs to reach the playoffs each of the last four seasons.
The four other programs to play in the postseason each year since 2012 include:
• Coastal Carolina (S.C.)
• Sam Houston State (Texas)
• New Hampshire
• North Dakota State

CAPTAINS: Leading the Jackrabbit football team on the field and in the locker room are six captains:
• Jesse Bobbit, Sr., linebacker, Palatine, Ill.;
• Shayne Gottlob, Sr., defensive tackle, Salem, S.D.;
• Zach Lujan, Sr., quarterback, Anchorage, Alaska;
• Nick Mears, Sr., safety, Milbank, S.D.;
• Brady Mengarelli, Jr., running back, Prescott, Ariz.;
• Jacob Ohnesorge, Jr., offensive lineman, Waunakee, Wis.
Lujan and Ohnesorge have each been selected as a team captain for the second season. Ohnesorge has started all 36 games at center over the past three seasons.

RABBITS RANKED: For the third time in four years, the South Dakota State University football team entered a season with a top-10 national ranking.
The Jackrabbits checked in at No. 8 in the preseason STATS FCS Poll. SDSU, which posted an 8-4 overall record in 2015 and made its fourth consecutive appearance in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs, returns 15 starters. SDSU also was recognized in the FCS Coaches' Preseason Poll with a 14th-place showing.
In this week's rankings, the Jackrabbits moved up in all three major FCS polls, gaining three spots to eighth in both the STATS and HERO Sports media polls, while moving up two spots to 10th in the FCS coaches' rankings.

JACKS PICKED THIRD IN VALLEY: The South Dakota State University football team was picked to finish third in the Missouri Valley Football Conference during the 2016 season, according to a preseason poll released on Aug. 2.
Five-time defending national champion North Dakota State again was tabbed as the conference favorite in the poll, which was conducted among the league's coaches, sports information directors and select media representatives. The Bison earned 37 of a possible 39 first-place votes and 388 total points.
Northern Iowa received the other two first-place votes to finish second in the preseason poll with 343 points.
Completing the upper half of the 10-team poll were South Dakota State, Illinois State and Youngstown State. North Dakota State, UNI, SDSU, Illinois State and Western Illinois all reached the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs last season.
Western Illinois checked in at a distant sixth spot in the preseason poll, followed by South Dakota and Southern Illinois. Indiana State and Missouri State filled out the poll.
In addition, five SDSU players were named to the MVFC Preseason Team. Leading the Jackrabbit contingent was junior wide receiver Jake Wieneke, who has been a two-time first-team all-league pick (2014, 2015). Wieneke set a single-season league record in 2015 with 1,472 receiving yards. He ended the year with 72 receptions and 11 touchdowns en route to earning All-America honors for the second year in a row.
Fellow 2015 first-team all-MVFC performer Dallas Goedert joined Wieneke on the preseason honor squad at the tight end spot. A junior from Britton, Goedert hauled in 26 receptions for 484 yards and three touchdowns last season to rank second on the team in all receiving categories.
Completing the Jackrabbit offense's preseason honorees was junior center Jacob Ohnesorge. The native of Waunakee, Wisconsin, has started all 36 games since the start of the 2014 seson and was a second-team all-MVFC selection a year ago.
On defense, senior defensive tackle Cole Langer received preseason accolades. The Dell Rapids native tallied 43 total tackles, including team bests of 10 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks to earn second-team all-league honors.
Rounding out the Jackrabbit preseason individual honorees was senior linebacker Jesse Bobbit, who was an honorable mention selection. Bobbit ranked second on the team last season with 97 tackles.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Two South Dakota State offensive players were honored as Missouri Valley Football Conference Players of the Week for their efforts in the Jackrabbits' 28-21 victory over South Dakota on Nov. 12.
Running back Brady Mengarelli was selected as MVFC Offensive Player of the Week after tallying a career-high 284 all-purpose yards. A junior from Prescott, Arizona, Mengarelli averaged 7.7 yards per carry, gaining a season-high 161 yards on 21 attempts and added three receptions for 55 yards. He completed his day with four kickoff returns for 68 yards.
Senior right tackle Nick Carr was tabbed as MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week in helping the Jackrabbits set team and league season highs with 415 rushing yards and 620 yards of total offense. He graded out at 94 percent with nine knockdowns and zero sacks allowed.

THREE ON PAYTON LIST: An unprecedented three Jackrabbits are included in the most recent watch list for the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award, which is presented to the top offensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision.
Last week, junior tight end Dallas Goedert was added to the official watch list, joining junior wide receiver Jake Wieneke and sophomore quarterback.
Dallas Goedert
A preseason second-team All-America selection by STATS, Goedert currently leads the Jackrabbits with 71 receptions and 1,072 receiving yards, becoming the first SDSU tight end to reach 1,000 yards in a season. He ranks sixth among FCS?players for receiving yards and his 10 receiving touchdowns rank 10th. The Britton native tallied 100 or more receiving yards in seven consecutive games before his streak was broken last week, and has tallied double figures for catches three times in a game this season.
Jake Wieneke
A two-time All-American, Wieneke has reached the 1,000-yard mark for receiving for the third straight season, becoming the only Jackrabbit to ever accomplish that feat. Wieneke currently shares the lead among FCS players with 14 receiving touchdowns, while his 1,068 yards on 63 receptions rank seventh. Also during the 2016 season, Wieneke has set Missouri Valley Football Conference career records with 41 touchdown receptions and 3,944 receiving yards.
Taryn Christion
Christion was added to the Payton watch list on Oct. 19 and currently ranks in the top 10 of seven different categories among FCS quarterbacks. The Sioux Falls native ranks fourth in total offense with an average of 345.7 yards per game and has established the top three single-game performances in school history during the 2016 season. His 3,097 passing yards rank sixth in the subdivision and his 27 passing touchdowns stand sixth.
A national panel of over 150 sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers and other dignitaries will select the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award following the regular season. Also this season, STATS will present the Buck Buchanan Award (FCS defensive player of the year), the Jerry Rice Award (FCS freshman player of the year), the Eddie Robinson Award (FCS coach of the year) and the Doris Robinson FCS Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

ROZEBOOM AMONG TOP FCS FRESHMEN: South Dakota State middle linebacker Christian Rozeboom was named on Oct. 25 to the initial watch list for the Jerry Rice Award for the top freshman in the Football Championship Subdivision.
A redshirt freshman from Sioux Center, Iowa, Rozeboom currently leads the team with 98 tackles and two forced fumbles, while sharing the team lead with a pair of interceptions. He has recorded double figures in tackles in five of the Jackrabbits' 10 games so far this season, including 20 in an Oct. 8 game at Southern Illinois.
Rozeboom has been honored twice this season as the Missouri Valley Football Conference Newcomer of the Week, earning the award for the first time after registering 10 stops and returning an interception 37 yards for a touchdown Oct. 1 against Western Illinois. He was honored again for his efforts in SDSU's Oct. 15 win at top-ranked North Dakota State, where he recorded a team-high 12 tackles, including a key sack.
Rozeboom was the lone MVFC player named to the initial 17-member watch list.

CHRISTION RACKING UP YARDS: SDSU quarterback Taryn Christion completed a memorable month of October with three games of 400-plus yards of total offense. A sophomore from Sioux Falls, Christion set a new Jackrabbit now holds the top three single-game total offense outputs in program history — all of which have come in the Jackrabbits' last three road games. Those performances include:
• 475 yards (school-record 466 passing, 9 rushing) at Southern Illinois, 10-8-16
• 456 yards (430 passing, 26 rushing) at Illinois State, 10-29-16
• 444 yards (303 passing, career-high 141 rushing) at North Dakota State, 10-15-16
Christion set a new Jackrabbit single-season record for total offense in the Nov. 5 game against Missouri State and has now tallied 3,457 yards (3,097 passing, 360 rushing). He enters Saturday's game against Northern Iowa needing 45 yards to break Brad Nelson's single-season passing record of 3,141 yards in 2003. With 27 touchdown passes so far, Christion also is poised to surpass Ryan Berry's single-season school record of 30 set in 2008.

TWO FOR 1,000: The Jackrabbit receiving duo of Dallas Goedert and Jake Wieneke each reached the 1,000-yard mark for receiving in the Jackrabbits' victory over Missouri State on Nov. 5, becoming the first pair of teammates to reach the plateau in the same season in program history.
Goedert and Wieneke each recorded 100-plus yards receiving in the same game for the sixth time this season in the Nov. 5 win over Missouri State.

ONE FOR THE RECORD BOOKS: Junior tight end Dallas Goedert tied a 67-year-old single-game school record with his four touchdown receptions Oct. 1 against Western Illinois. Don Bartlett had held the record all by himself since catching four touchdown passes against North Dakota State in 1949.
Goedert had his streak of seven consecutive games with a touchdown reception dating back to a 2015 FCS playoff game at Montana end in the Oct. 22 game against Youngstown State. He ranks eighth in the FCS with 10 touchdown receptions so far this season and added his first career rushing touchdown in the Oct. 8 win at Southern Illinois.
In addition, Goedert currently leads all Division I tight ends in receiving yards in 2016, with 1,072 yards on 71 catches.

CHRISTION'S STRING ENDS: South Dakota State quarterback Taryn Christion had his streak of consecutive passes thrown without an interception end on his final attempt of the Jackrabbits' game against Cal Poly on Sept. 17. Christion did not throw an interception in his first 90 attempts of the 2016 season and had his streak grow to 133 attempts dating back to the 2015 campaign.
The longest streak on record for consecutive attempts without an interception by a Jackrabbit quarterback is 155 by Brad Nelson between the 2003 (last 143 passes) and 2004 (first 12 passes) seasons.

SOULEK RACKS UP SACKS: Junior defensive tackle Kellen Soulek recorded the third two-sack game of the season Nov. 12 against South Dakota. The Yankton native upped his team-leading sack total to seven — all of which have come against Missouri Valley Football Conference opponents.
Soulek also notched two sacks in wins at Southern Illinois and against Youngstown State.

GROUND GAME COMES ALIVE: Since the calendar flipped to November, the South Dakota State offense has been powered by a strong running game. Ten of the 11 touchdowns the Jackrabbits have scored over the last two games have been rushing touchdowns, including three by Isaac Wallace.
SDSU tallied a combined 628 rushing yards in wins over Missouri State and South Dakota, including a season-best 415 yards against its in-state rivals. That rushing output was the most by a Jackrabbit team since racking up 434 yards against Eastern Illinois in a Football Championship Subdivision playoff game in 2012. The 2012 playoff game also marked the last time before last Saturday that the Jackrabbits had two backs go over 100 yards in the same game as Brady Mengarelli (161 yards) and Wallace (102) accomplished the feat against South Dakota.
The Jackrabbits recorded 12 rushes of 10 yards or more against USD, including seven that went for 20-plus yards.

HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS: South Dakota State has dominated the third quarter of games this season, outscoring the opposition by a 115-49 margin through 10 games. The Jackrabbits have scored a touchdown in the third quarter of every game this season, while blanking their opponents six times, including a 24-0 advantage Oct. 1 against Western Illinois and a 21-0 spread Nov. 5 versus Missouri State.

TURNOVER MARGIN: Since the start of the 2015 season, South Dakota State has been one of the top teams in the Football Championship Subdivision when it comes to hanging on to the football. The Jackrabbits ranked second in the FCS with only 11 turnovers last season (9 interceptions, 2 fumbles) and are 14th in the FCS for the fewest in the subdivision so far in 2016 with 11 turnovers (8 interceptions, 3 fumbles).
Conversely, SDSU forced 16 turnovers last season (10 interceptions and 6 fumbles) and has 18 takeaways (12 interceptions, 6 fumble recoveries) so far this season.

MANY HAPPY RETURNS: South Dakota State scored in all three phases of the game in its 56-28 victory over Drake on Sept. 10. The Jackrabbit defense posted a touchdown late in the third quarter as defensive end Jared Blum intercepted a screen pass at the Drake 3-yard line and scored.
In the fourth quarter, reserve linebacker Cody Hazelett blocked a punt, which Jake Harms picked up at the Drake 2-yard line and ran in for a touchdown. It was the first time SDSU scored on a blocked punt in any game since 2009, and in a home game for the first time since 1993.
The Jackrabbits' three interceptions marked their most in a game since picking off three passes in a 31-28 win at Northern Iowa on Oct. 18, 2014.

PICK-SIX TIMES THREE: South Dakota State defenders have returned three interceptions for touchdowns through the first four games of the 2016 season. Two of those pick-six returns came in a 52-14 victory over Western Illinois on Oct. 1, marking the first time the Jackrabbits returned two interceptions for scores in the same game since a Nov. 10, 2007, contest against Southern Utah. Both of the interception returns this past week came in the third quarter — 37 yards by Christian Rozeboom and 19 yards by Dallas Brown.
The Jackrabbits' nine interceptions as a team so far this season have come from seven different players. Jordan Brown and Christian Rozeboom share the team lead with two.

FAMILY TRADITION: Redshirt freshman kicker Chase Vinatieri turned in an impressive collegiate debut against TCU on Sept. 3 to lead the Jackrabbits' special teams unit.
The nephew of former Jackrabbit and current Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri, Chase Vinatieri connected on field goals of 25 and 37 yards, and made all five of his extra-point tries, for 11 points.
For the season, Chase Vinatieri has made 8-of-13 field goal tries and all 48 extra-point attempts to rank second on the team with 72 points. Vinatieri is two extra points away from tying Justin Syrovatka's single-season school record of 50 PATs (in 50 attempts) during the 2014 season
During his career at SDSU from 1991-94, Adam Vinatieri made a then-school-record 27 field goals and was a NCAA Division II All-American as a punter his senior season.

JACKRABBIT BLOODLINES: Senior defensive tackle Cole Langer leads a group of South Dakota State football players with Jackrabbit bloodlines.
Langer, a native of Dell Rapids, South Dakota, is a third-generation Jackrabbit student-athlete. His grandfather, Jim Langer, is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame after a standout career with the Miami Dolphins and Minnesota Vikings. The starting center for the undefeated Dolphins team in 1972, Jim Langer earned all-conference honors in football at South Dakota State as a linebacker in 1969 and was an All-America selection in baseball as an outfielder that same year.
In addition, Cole Langer's father, Tracy, was an all-conference catcher in baseball for the Jackrabbits from 1989-92. Tracy's brothers, Craig and Russ, also played baseball at South Dakota State.
Several other Jackrabbits have extensive Jackrabbit bloodlines, including senior offensive lineman Seth Lansman, whose parents are both former SDSU student-athletes. Lansman's father, Howard, lettered in football from 1984-85, while his mother, Tara (Tessier) was a standout women's basketball player from 1985-88. Tara Lansman was inducted into the Jackrabbit Sports Hall of Fame in the fall of 2014.
Another returning Jackrabbit with family ties to Jackrabbit Athletics are brothers Mason and Tristan Leiseth, whose father, David, lettered in football for SDSU from 1989-91 and also was a three-time All-American in the shot put.
Two other sets of brothers are on the 2016 Jackrabbit roster: Jake and Clark Wieneke, along with Jacob and Jordan Brown.
Two other members of the Jackrabbits also have family ties to South Dakota State Athletics. Quarterback Taryn Christion's mother, Heather, played volleyball at SDSU and fullback Turner Blasius' father, Justin, was an NCAA?Division II national wrestling champion.

ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT: Repeat selections Nick Mears and Jake Wieneke, along with running back Brady Mengarelli, were named Nov. 3 as South Dakota State's representatives on the CoSIDA Academic All-District 6 Football Team.
All three players will advance to the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration later this month. SDSU and North Dakota State led the district with three selections each.
A senior from Milbank, Mears earned a spot on the honor squad for the third consecutive year with a perfect 4.0 grade-point average while majoring in economics. In 2015, Mears was also selected a member of the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team.
Wieneke, a junior from Maple Grove, Minnesota, was voted to the team for the second year in a row with a 3.60 GPA as a physical education/teacher education major. He was a member of the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team in 2015.
A junior from Prescott, Arizona, Mengarelli received his first selection to the academic all-district squad with a 3.52 GPA while majoring in exercise science. He led the team with 742 rushing yards a season ago and again leads the squad with 479 yards in 2016.
Selections to the Academic All-District 6 Football Team were based upon a vote of sports information directors in Arkansas, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Candidates must be at least a sophomore in athletic and academic standing, a starter or key reserve on his team and carry at least a 3.3 GPA. Team members are selected by position with a total of 25 players from 15 different institutions named to the honor squad.

TEAM ACADEMIC HONORS: For the eighth season in a row, South Dakota State claimed the Missouri Valley Football Conference Team Academic Award, compiling a 3.084 team grade-point average during the 2015 season. The Jackrabbits have received the award every year they have been a member of the MVFC.
Also during the 2015 season, three Jackrabbit football student-athletes were named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Team. Nick Mears was a first-team selection, while Shayne Gottlob and Jake Wieneke were second-team honorees.
The Jacks were presented the Team Academic Award by MVFC Commissioner Patty Viverito during the Sept. 17 game against Cal Poly.

FAREWELL TO COUGHLIN: The 2015 campaign marked the 54th — and final — season of Jackrabbit football at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium. Since opening on Sept. 22, 1962, SDSU compiled a 181-108 record (.626 winning percentage) on its home field.
Since moving to the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision in 2004, the Jackrabbits posted a 50-16 mark at CAS.

NEW FACILITIES: The South Dakota State University football program is expected to benefit greatly from the addition of two new facilities.
The Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex, which opened in the fall of 2014, serves as the indoor practice facility for the Jackrabbit football team and a number of other Jackrabbit squads. The complex, which features 100 yards of soy-based AstroTurf, also houses a 300-meter competition indoor track and expanded areas for strength and conditioning, sports medicine and coaches' offices.
In October 2013, SDSU officials announced lead gifts totaling $12.5 million from Sioux Falls banker Dana Dykhouse and philanthropist T. Denny Sanford toward the construction of a new football stadium. The announcement was made in conjunction with the 100th Hobo Day game at SDSU.
Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 19,340 replaces Coughlin-Alumni Stadium, which served as the home of Jackrabbit football since 1962. The new stadium was built in phases on the current Coughlin-Alumni Stadium site, with completion scheduled in time for the Sept. 10 season opener against Drake.
The first phase of the stadium project, which included new seating on the east side and south end zone, along with installation of the largest scoreboard in the Football Championship Subdivision, was completed in September 2015.
The $65 million project was approved by the South Dakota Legislature in March 2014 and signed into law by Gov. Dennis Daugaard. The new west tower includes premium seating — club seats, loge boxes and suites — as well as a spacious press box and other amenities.
The stadium is being funded through private gifts and long-term revenue streams, including concessions and suite, loge box and ticket sales. Bonds are being secured to finance nearly half of the project's construction, with the remaining amount coming from private support.

JACKRABBIT INSIDER: Throughout the 2016 football season, head coach John Stiegelmeier will be a guest on the "Jackrabbit Insider," a weekly behind-the-scenes look at South Dakota State University athletics.
The half-hour television show, which features interviews with Jackrabbit coaches and student-athletes, airs Sundays at 10 p.m. on Sioux Falls-based MyUTV. The show is also broadcast on KELO-TV at 11 p.m. Central Sunday and at 10 p.m. Mountain Time Sunday on KDLO-TV. Online, the show can be viewed on demand at GoJacks.com.

STIG SHOW: The John Stiegelmeier Radio Show airs each Monday throughout the 2016 football season.
The show airs at 6 p.m. (Central Time) on the Jackrabbit Sports Network, originating with WNAX 570 AM in Yankton. In addition, the weekly show also will be streamed online free of charge at GoJacks.com.
Hosted by Tyler Merriam, the John Stiegelmeier Radio Show also features interviews with Jackrabbit student-athletes and assistant coaches. Jackrabbit fans are encouraged to attend the show in person at Cubby's Sports Bar and Grill, 307 Main Ave., in downtown Brookings.

A LOOK AHEAD: Saturday's game marks the end of the regular season. The 24-team field for the FCS playoffs will be announced at 10 a.m. Sunday (Nov. 20) on ESPNU and through the Watch ESPN app.
First-round playoff games will be played Nov. 26 at campus sites.