Jacks look to regroup in Missouri

Saturday, October 21

Springfield, Mo.

2 p.m.

South Dakota State University

Missouri State

Photo by: Dave Eggen/Inertia Sports Media

10/17/2017 4:55:00 PM | Football

By: Jason Hove

GAME 7: #13/13 South Dakota State (4-2, 1-2 MVFC) at Missouri State (1-5, 0-3 MVFC)

When	Saturday, Oct. 21 \| 2 p.m. Central Time
Where	Robert W. Plaster Stadium \| Springfield, Mo.
TV	ESPN3.com
Radio	Jackrabbits All-Access (free audio) \| Jackrabbit Sports Network
Live Stats	MissouriStateBears.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| Missouri State \| Missouri Valley Football Conference
Social Media	Twitter \| Facebook \| #LastPlay

BROOKINGS, S.D. — The South Dakota State University football team begins a stretch of two consecutive road games against Missouri Valley Football Conference opponents by traveling Saturday to Missouri State.
Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Missouri. The game will be aired exclusively on ESPN3.com.
The Jackrabbits, who are ranked 13th in both the STATS FCS media poll and the FCS coaches' rankings this week, enter Saturday's game with a 4-2 overall record, including a 1-2 mark in league play. SDSU dropped a 38-18 decision to Northern Iowa last week to end an eight-game home winning streak.
Missouri State, meanwhile, comes into Saturday's matchup with a 1-5 overall mark and an 0-3 record in the MVFC. The Bears fell, 49-30, in a weather-delayed contest last week at Western Illinois.

THE SERIES: Saturday's game will mark the 10th meeting between SDSU and Missouri State, a series that began when the Jackrabbits joined the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2008. The Jackrabbits have held the upper hand in the series, winning eight of the first nine games.
In last season's matchup, Nov. 5 at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium, the Jackrabbits rushed for a season-best six touchdowns in a 49-24 victory. Brady Mengarelli and Isaac Wallace each scored twice on the ground for SDSU, which pulled away for the win by outscoring Missouri State by a 21-0 margin in the third quarter.
The Bears' lone victory in the series was a 35-21 triumph in Springfield during the 2013 campaign.

SEEKING WIN NO. 100: South Dakota State will give a second effort for recording its 100th win as a Football Championship Subdivision program when it travels to Missouri State this weekend. Since moving to the FCS ranks at the start of the 2004 season, the Jackrabbits have posted a 99-63 overall record (.611 winning percentage). SDSU has turned in a winning record in 11 of 13 full seasons and has compiled a 50-25 mark (.667 winning percentage) in Missouri Valley Football Conference games.

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

RABBITS RANKED: For the fourth time in five years, the South Dakota State University football team entered a season with a top-10 national ranking. The Jackrabbits attained their highest-ever ranking in a Football Championship Subdivision poll, checking in at No. 4 in the 2017 STATS FCS Preseason Poll, which was released in early August. SDSU also was ranked sixth in the preseason FCS Coaches' Poll.
Following their loss last week to Northern Iowa, the Jackrabbits dropped out of the top 10 for the first time this season and are now ranked 13th in both polls. SDSU had spent four weeks ranked fourth in both major polls prior to their 19-7 loss at Youngstown State on Sept. 30.
Defending national champion James Madison holds the top spot in both national polls, followed by North Dakota State and Jacksonville State.
Four other MVFC squads are included in this week's top 25 of the STATS media poll: South Dakota (fourth), Youngstown State (ninth), Western Illinois (10th) and Illinois State (24th). Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois are receiving votes.
SDSU's previous highest ranking was a fifth-place showing over three weeks during the 2015 season. The Jackrabbits' previous high ranking in a preseason poll was sixth in 2013.
SDSU has now appeared in the top 25 of 72 consecutive media polls dating back to October 2012.

VALLEY PREVIEW: Last year's Missouri Valley Football Conference co-champions were picked to be on a collision course again in 2017. A single vote separated top pick North Dakota State from second-place South Dakota State in the MVFC pre-season poll, which was released July 25. It marked the tightest vote for a pre-season favorite in league history.
NDSU picked up 21 of 40 first-place votes and a total of 380 points, while the Jackrabbits earned the other 19 first-place votes and 379 points. Youngstown State was tabbed third with 290 points.
In nine previous seasons as a league member, SDSU has finished at or higher than its preseason selection seven times. In 2016, the Jackrabbits were picked to finish third before winning a share of their first-ever MVFC title.
Northern Iowa (255 points) and Illinois State (246) completed the upper half of the poll, which was conducted among league coaches and sports information directors, as well as select media.
Rounding out the poll were Western Illinois (188), South Dakota (182), Southern Illinois (132), Missouri State (81) and Indiana State (67).
The league is coming off a season in which four teams — NDSU, SDSU, Youngstown State and Illinois State — represented the conference in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. The MVFC has had four or more playoff teams in three straight seasons.
Additionally, 10 South Dakota State University players, including a league-best nine first-team selections, were named to the 2017 Missouri Valley Football Conference Preseason Team.
Seven of the Jackrabbits' selections came on the offensive side of the ball, highlighted by returning MVFC Offensive Player of the Year Taryn Christion. A junior quarterback from Sioux Falls, Christion set a school record with 3,714 passing yards and tied a program mark with 30 touchdown passes in 2016. He also ran for 335 yards and six scores.
Two of Christion's primary targets from a year ago and fellow first-team all-MVFC honors, senior tight end Dallas Goedert and senior wide receiver Jake Wieneke, also return. A Britton native, Goedert established a new Jackrabbit single-season record with 92 receptions, while tallying 1,293 receiving yards and 11 scores in 2016 en route to being named a unanimous All-America selection.
Wieneke earned All-America honors for the third season in a row after catching 78 passes for 1,316 yards and matching his own school record with 16 touchdowns in 2016.
Another leader from the Jackrabbits' potent offensive attack, senior running back Brady Mengarelli, also was named to the MVFC Preseason Team. Mengarelli has led the team in rushing each of the past two seasons, including 754 yards in 2016. He also contributed 34 receptions for 333 yards last season.
Completing the Jackrabbits selections on offense were fullback Kane Louscher, center Jacob Ohnesorge and tackle Charlie Harmon. Ohnesorge was a first-team all-conference selection in 2016 and later received All-America recognition from HERO Sports.
The defensive contingent for the Jackrabbits is comprised of senior defensive tackle Kellen Soulek and sophomore linebacker Christian Rozeboom. A Yankton native, Soulek led the team in 2016 with 10 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks en route to second-team all-MVFC honors.
Rozeboom, a native of Sioux Center, Iowa, was named MVFC Freshman of the Year in 2016 and finished second in the voting for the STATS FCS Jerry Rice Award as the top freshman in the Football Championship Subdivision after racking up a team-best 132 tackles and adding three sacks and a pair of interceptions.
Rounding out the Jackrabbits' preseason all-MVFC selections was junior punter Brady Hale, who earned honorable mention recognition. Hale averaged 42.6 yards per attempt on 47 punts a season ago.

NATIONAL AWARD WATCH LISTS: Four Jackrabbit football players have been included in preseason watch lists for top awards within the Football Championship Subdivision.
An unprecedented three SDSU football players who were finalists for the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award last season are again included in the initial watch list for the 2017 award. Representing the Jackrabbits on the list for the top offensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision are junior quarterback Taryn Christion, senior wide receiver Jake Wieneke and senior tight end Dallas Goedert.
Christion was the highest finisher among the Jackrabbit trio in the 2016 balloting with a seventh-place finish. Wieneke finished 10th, with Goedert placing 14th.
On the other side of the ball, linebacker Christian Rozeboom was included in the preseason watch list for the STATS FCS Buck Buchanan Award for the top defensive player in the FCS.
The watch lists for the STATS FCS Walter Payton Award and STATS FCS Buck Buchanan Award will be updated periodically throughout the 2017 season. The awards will be presented Jan. 5 in Frisco, Texas, on the eve of the FCS national title game.
All four players were also named to the STATS FCS Preseason All-America Team. Goedert, Wieneke and senior center Jacob Ohnesorge were honored on the first-team offense, with Rozeboom earning first-team distinction on the defensive side of the ball.
Christion and senior fullback Kane Louscher were both third-team selections on offense.

CAPTAINS: Leading the Jackrabbit football team on the field and in the locker room are six captains:
• Taryn Christion, Jr., quarterback, Sioux Falls, S.D.;
• Dallas Goedert, Sr., tight end, Britton, S.D.;
• Brady Mengarelli, Sr., running back, Prescott, Ariz.;
• Jacob Ohnesorge, Sr., offensive lineman, Waunakee, Wis.;
• Christian Rozeboom, So., linebacker, Sioux Center, Iowa, and
• Jake Wieneke, Sr., wide receiver, Maple Grove, Minn.
Ohnesorge, who is a two-time MVFC Offensive Lineman of the Week this season, is in his third season as a team captain, joining former quarterback Austin Sumner (2010-13) as the only three-time captain in program history. Mengarelli is in his second season as a captain, while the four other captains are all in their first years.

FAST STARTS: Up until spotting Northern Iowa a 17-0 lead on Oct. 14, South Dakota State had dominated the first quarter of games so far this season. Despite recently faltering, the Jackrabbits have outscored opponents by a 56-24 margin in the first quarter. Through six games, the Jackrabbits have scored on nine of their 15 first-quarter possessions, kicking one field goal and scoring eight touchdowns.
The Jackrabbits scored on all five of their offensive possessions in the first half of their Oct. 7 game versus Southern Illinois in building a 35-0 halftime lead.

THIRD-DOWN SUCCESS: Through six games, the South Dakota State offense ranks second in the Football Championship Subdivision in third-down conversion percentage. The Jackrabbits have converted 39-of-70 third-down attempts for a success rate of 55.7 percent so far this season, including 11-of-15 attempts versus Southern Illinois on Oct. 7.
SDSU also is 4-for-6 on fourth-down attempts in 2017.

PENALTY-FREE ZONE: The Jackrabbits committed only one penalty for 15 yards in their Sept. 30 matchup at Youngstown State. It marked the fifth time in the Division I era (since 2004) that SDSU committed only one penalty in a game.
For the season, the Jackrabbits rank 12th among FCS teams in fewest penalties committed with 28 and stand 12th in fewest penalty yards with 245.

JACKRABBITS HONORED: SDSU picked up a pair of Missouri Valley Football Conference awards following the Jackrabbits' 49-14 win over Southern Illinois Oct. 7 as tight end Skyler Cavanaugh was named Newcomer of the Week and Jacob Ohnesorge earned Offensive Lineman of the Week recognition.
A true freshman from Vail, Arizona, Cavanaugh caught a season-high four passes for 53 yards and his first career touchdown. Cavanaugh's touchdown in the first quarter covered 16 yards and he added a season-long 20-yard reception later in the game.
A senior center from Waunakee, Wisconsin, Ohnesorge graded at 97 percent with 12 knockdown blocks. He did not allow a sack or a hit on the quarterback in a penalty-free game.
Ohnesorge anchored a Jackrabbit offensive unit that racked up 584 yards of total offense, including a season-high 368 rushing yards. Ohnesorge also received the weekly offensive lineman award for his efforts against Drake on Sept. 16.

CHRISTION MOVING ON UP: Junior quarterback Taryn Christion has moved into the top three of three different career categories in recent weeks. Christion has moved into the No. 2 spot for career passing yards at SDSU with 6,345, overtaking both Ted Wahl (6,016 yards from 1985-88) and Ryan Berry (6,023 yards from 2005-08) in the Oct. 7 contest against Southern Illinois. Austin Sumner holds the SDSU career passing record with 9,458 yards from 2011-14.
Christion also has moved into third place in career total offense with 7,235 yards, and needs only 11 yards to surpass Wahl for second place..
In addition, Christion took over the No. 3 spot in career touchdown passes in the Oct. 7 game and enters Saturday's contest with 51 after a two-touchdown performance against Northern Iowa. He passed Brad Nelson (47 touchdowns from 2001-04).

MENGARELLI MAKES TOP-10 RUN: Senior running back Brady Mengarelli moved into the Jackrabbit career top 10 for rushing in the Oct. 14 game against Northern Iowa. A native of Prescott, Arizona, Mengarelli has tallied 2,196 rushing yards in career, overtaking Gary Maffett (2,167 yards from 1977-79) last week.
Mengarelli moved into position with a career-high 220 yards in a win over Southern Illinois on Oct. 7. He led the Jackrabbits in rushing during both the 2015 and 2016 seasons and again leads the team this year with 368 yards. He is averaging 6.8 yards per carry.

GOEDERT BACK OVER 100: Jackrabbit tight end Dallas Goedert went over the 100-yard mark for receiving for the second time this season with a four-catch, 120-yard performance against Northern Iowa on Oct. 14. Goedert, who moved into fifth place on the SDSU career receiving yards list with 2,294, has topped the 100-yard mark nine times in his career.

WIENEKE REACHES MORE MILESTONES: Jackrabbit wide receiver Jake Wieneke took over sole possession of fourth place in Football Championship Subdivision history for touchdown receptions with an 11-yard score Oct. 14 against Northern Iowa. A senior from Maple Grove, Minnesota, Wieneke recorded his 51st career touchdown catch, breaking a four-way tie with Jerry Rice (Mississippi Valley State, 1981-84), John Matthews (San Diego, 2005-08) and Ramses Barden (Cal Poly, 2005-08). His 51 career touchdown receptions are both SDSU and MVFC career marks.
A three-time All-American, Wieneke has caught a touchdown pass in 31 of 45 career games, including five of six this season. He has recorded two or more scores in a game 14 times.
Coupled with a four-reception, 60-yard outing versus Northern Iowa, Wieneke now ranks fifth in FCS?history with a school- and league-record 4,513 receiving yards. He established a new Jackrabbit career mark for receptions in the 2017 season opener and enters Saturday's game with 249 — a mark that is tied with Eddie Berlin (Northern Iowa, 1997-2000) for third in MVFC history. Tyrone Walker (Illinois State, 2009-12) is second in league history with 250 receptions.
Wieneke also is second among active FCS?players in career receptions, trailing Lehigh's Troy Pelletier with 284.

BALL-HAWKING BACKHAUS: Linebacker Logan Backhaus had his hand in his team-leading third takeaway of the season when he forced a fumble in the Jackrabbits' Oct. 15 game against Northern Iowa. A redshirt freshman, Backhaus shares the team lead with two interceptions and ranks fourth on the squad with 27 tackles. He tied a career high with seven tackles and recorded his first career sack in the game against UNI.

LOWERING THE BOOM: South Dakota State linebacker Christian Rozeboom turned in the 10th double-digit tackling performance of his career in a losing effort Oct. 14 against Northern Iowa. Rozeboom's game-high 14 tackles tied a season high and marked the second-highest single-game total in his two-year career.
Rozeboom currently leads the Jackrabbits in tackles this season with 49, after posting a team-high 132 tackles in 2016.

BLOCK THAT KICK: The Jackrabbits have been strong on special teams throughout the 2017 season and currently rank third in the Football Championship Subdivision with four blocked kicks. SDSU recorded a blocked kick — two extra points and a punt — in each of its first three games, than ran its total to four with a blocked punt by Alex Romenesko on the opening possession of the Oct. 7 game against Southern Illinois.
SDSU blocked a total of three kicks in 2016.

MOVE THOSE CHAINS: The Jackrabbits established a Division I-era record with 35 first downs in their Oct. 7 game against Southern Illinois. SDSU ran for 17 first downs, while 13 of Taryn Christion's 16 completions went for first downs in the passing game. SDSU also picked up five first downs on SIU penalties.
Previously, the most Jackrabbit first downs in a game since moving to the Football Championship Subdivision was 31 in a losing effort last season at Illinois State.
The single-game school record for first downs is 37, a mark first set in 1984 in a game at Wyoming, and matched a year later versus North Dakota.

YOUTH MOVEMENT: Eight different true freshmen saw action for the Jackrabbits in the Aug. 31 season opener against Duquesne. Most of the newcomers to make their collegiate debuts were linemen as Jack Domandle, Eagan Lickiss and Edward Miller played on the offensive line and Xavier Ward and Daniel Callender played on the defensive line. Linebackers Noah Urbanek and Seven Wilson also made their collegiate debuts, as did tight end Skyler Cavanaugh.
In addition, redshirt freshmen Austin Barrett (defensive tackle) and Logan Backhaus (linebacker) drew starting assignments in their first action as Jackrabbits.

JACKRABBIT BLOODLINES: Several South Dakota State football players have extensive Jackrabbit bloodlines.
Brothers Mason and Tristan Leiseth are both second-generation defensive ends from nearby Hayti. Their father, David, lettered in football for SDSU from 1989-91 and also was a three-time All-American in the shot put.
Three other members of the Jackrabbit freshman class also have strong 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.
Sophomore kicker Chase Vinatieri is the nephew of former Jackrabbit and current Indianapolis Colts standout kicker Adam Vinatieri.
Two other sets of brothers are on the 2017 Jackrabbit roster: Jake and Clark Wieneke, along with Jacob and Jordan Brown.
In addition, Jacob and Pete Menage are first cousins. Jacob's late father, Jeff, served as offensive coordinator for the Jackrabbits during Coach Stiegelmeier's first two seasons as head coach (1997-98).

ACADEMIC HONORS: For the ninth season in a row, South Dakota State has claimed the Missouri Valley Football Conference Team Academic Award. The Jackrabbits have received the award every year they have been a member of the MVFC. Commissioner Patty Viverito presented the Jackrabbits with their latest academic award during the Oct. 7 game versus Southern Illinois.

WIENEKE NAMED TO GOOD WORKS TEAM: South Dakota State University wide receiver Jake Wieneke is one of 22 college football players named to the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®. The award, which was announced in late September, shines a spotlight on the selflessness and community service displayed by these student-athletes and honors their dedication to volunteerism and enriching the lives of others.
A senior from Maple Grove, Minnesota, Wieneke has continually worked with several community service initiatives since arriving at SDSU in the fall of 2013. He is in his fifth year as serving as a mentor to a student through the Brookings County Youth Mentoring Program and has worked with ESL students at a local elementary school He also has served as a youth group leader at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Brookings and has been active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes by serving as a flag football coach and sports/youth camp counselor.
In addition, Wieneke has taken his devotion to service both regionally and abroad. He has participated in two mission trips to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and also has been a part of a mission trip to Kenya in which he taught in schools, as well as four mission trips to Jamaica — three times to build houses and one to serve people with disabilities who have been abandoned.
The 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® will be invited to New Orleans to participate in a special community service project ahead of the 2018 Allstate® Sugar Bowl®, where the entire team will also be recognized on the field at halftime.
Fans are encouraged to visit ESPN.com/Allstate to vote for the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team® Captain now through Nov. 23. The Team Captain will be honored at this season's The Home Depot College Football Awards on ESPN. Throughout the season, fans can also follow along and join in on the conversation by searching and using #GoodWorksTeam on their social media channels.
The 22-member squad, along with an honorary coach, was pared from a list of 146 nominees across all four-year divisions of college football. The team is divided into 11 members from Football Bowl Subdivision schools, with the other half from the Football Championship Subdivision, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA programs. Wieneke was the lone FCS student-athlete honored on this year's team.
Wieneke is the third Jackrabbit football player to be selected to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team in the last five years, joining Winston Wright (2013) and Zach Zenner (2014).

STIG SHOW: The John Stiegelmeier Radio Show airs each Monday throughout the 2017 football season.
The show is scheduled to air at 6 p.m. on the Jackrabbit Sports Network, originating with flagship station 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 will also feature 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.

DANA J. DYKHOUSE STADIUM: Jackrabbit football moved into a new home in September of 2016 with the completion of Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium.
The stadium, which was constructed in phases on the site of SDSU's previous home field, Coughlin-Alumni Stadium, seats 19,340 spectators and cost $65 million to build. The stadium is being funded through private gifts and long-term revenue streams, including concessions and suite, loge box and ticket sales. Bonds are financing nearly two-thirds of the project's construction, with the remaining dollars coming from private support. Lead gifts totaling $12.5 million from Sioux Falls banker Dana Dykhouse and philanthropist T. Denny Sanford were announced in October 2013.
The stadium officially opened Sept. 8, 2016, featuring a concert by country music superstars Luke Bryan, Little Big Town and Lee Brice as part of the Jacks Bash opening weekend. The first football game was two days later, on Sept. 10, when the Jackrabbits defeated Drake, 56-28. SDSU went on to post a 6-1 record at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium during the 2016 season and has won eight consecutive home games entering Hobo Day.
Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium was designed by Kansas City-based Crawford Architects, with the construction firm JE Dunn serving as the project manager at risk and Henry Carlson Company of Sioux Falls serving as general contractor. The stadium recently won the 2017 Alliant Build America Award from the Associated General Contractors of America South Dakota Building Chapter. As a result of winning the state award, the
stadium advances to a national competition, which will announce the winners in 2018.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits continue road action Oct. 28 at Western Illinois. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. at Hanson Field in Macomb, Illinois.
Next home action for SDSU is Nov. 4, when the Jackrabbits take on North Dakota State for the Dakota Marker.

-GoJacks.com-