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All notes courtesy of SMSU athletics communications.
THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (1-6, 0-6 NSIC, 0-2 NSIC South), following a bye week, returns to Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference action this Saturday, Oct. 24, with a road match-up versus the Augustana University (5-2, 4-2 NSIC, 2-1 NSIC South) at Kirkeby-Over Stadium with kickoff set for 1 p.m.
•SMSU will be looking to snap a six-game losing skid since opening the season with a non-conference home victory over Valley City State (N.D.).
•Augustana has won the past 10 games in the series with SMSU’s last victory coming in 2013.
•Saturday’s game will be the fourth for SMSU interim head coach, Levi Bullerman, who was named to the position on Sept. 20 following the retirement of head coach, Scott Underwood.
•After three weeks without a home game, SMSU returns home on Oct. 31 and will play two of its final three games at home.
•SMSU begins the week ranked No. 1 in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game.
•AU, which is receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25, has won two straight games following an overtime loss at Winona State on Oct. 3. The Vikings are ranked No. 8 in this week’s Super Region 3 NPI rankings.
•AU enters the game ranked No. 2 in passing offense, No. 2 in total first downs and No. 6 in total offense in Division II.
BROADCAST INFO
•Saturday’s game will be broadcast on 105.1 FM KARL with 14th-year SMSU play-by-play voice Ryan Rohlik.
•Live stats, radio broadcast (free) and video ($) can be found at SMSUmustangs.com.
SMSU INTERIM HEAD COACH LEVI BULLERMAN
•Levi Bullerman was named interim head coach on Sept. 20 and is 0-3 during his tenure. He is in his ninth season on the SMSU coaching staff and fifth as defensive coordinator. He also coaches the team’s linebackers.
•He played linebacker at SMSU from 2005-09, where he was a four-year letter winner and three-year starter, playing in 44 games with 154 tackles and three interceptions. He served as team captain in 2009.
•Bullerman took over for Scott Underwood, who retired as head coach on Sept. 20. Underwood was in his fifth season as head coach with a record of 8-40. He was named the program’s 11th head coach on Jan. 7, 2022.
SMSU OPENING DRIVE TIDBITS
•SMSU ranks first in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (28.4).
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf ranks fifth in the country in tackles for loss (1.8) and 43rd in tackles (8.9).
•SMSU rushed for a season-high 141 yards on Oct. 3 in a loss at home to Minnesota Duluth.
•Sophomore quarterback Tommy Hoffman made his first career start on Oct. 10 at Sioux Falls and completed 17 of 36 passes for 233 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He also rushed for 36 yards and one touchdown.
•Junior wide receiver Zoan Robinson finished with a career-high six receptions for a career-high 90 yards, including a 37-yard touchdown reception at Sioux Falls.
•Senior cornerback Connor Shelton had his second interception of the season versus Sioux Falls. He had his first career interception the week prior versus Minnesota Duluth.
•Hanegraaf led SMSU with 11 tackles, including a career-high four for loss in the setback at USF.
•Junior quarterback Drew Kluender, who completed 26 of 43 passes for a career-high 314 yards and three touchdown passes in a home loss to Wayne State on Sept. 26, missed the Minnesota Duluth game with an injury.
•Freshman wide receiver Cooper Murphy caught a career-high six passes for a career-best 144 yards and two touchdowns to Wayne State on Sept. 26. Murphy is the first SMSU player to have more than 100 yards receiving in a game since Colin Maher on Oct. 25, 2025.
•SMSU had seven players on defense and three on offense make their first career collegiate starts in the victory over Valley City State on Aug. 27.
•The SMSU defense, which recorded a pair of interceptions in the season-opening win over Valley City State, limited VCSU to 26 yards rushing. It was the first time SMSU held an opponent to less than 50 yards rushing since the final game of the 2009 season.
•Crowton started at quarterback in the season-opening victory versus VCSU. It was the first time since 2018 that SMSU had the same quarterback start the first game of the season in back-to-back seasons. Blake Gimbel was the last Mustang to start back-to-back season openers in 2017 and 2018.
SMSU SEASON NUMBERS
•Sophomore running back Josh Lancifort leads SMSU in rushing with 200 yards on 70 carries.
•Senior wide receiver Tryg Auten has caught a team-high 30 passes for 287 yards.
•Freshman wide receiver Cooper Murphy ranks second with 18 receptions for 245 yards and two touchdowns.
•Senior wide receiver David Ola-Kazeem has amassed 17 catches for 165 yards.
•Junior quarterback Drew Kluender, has made one start, and has completed 33 of 62 passes for 412 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
•Fifth year quarterback Macloud Crowton, who has started five games, has completed 63 of 124 passes for 559 yards with five interceptions.
•Junior safety Keegan Patterson leads the team with three interceptions.
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf has racked up a team-high 62 tackles with 13 for loss.
•Senior linebacker Aiden Planer ranks second on the squad with 42 tackles, including seven for loss. Sophomore linebacker Jake Meier is third on the team with 35 tackles.
•Fifth year defensive end Avery Johnson ranks tied for third on the team with four tackles for loss.
SCOUTING AUGUSTANA
•Jerry Olszewski is in his 14th season as head coach and has a record of 96-48. He has a career record of 128-67 in 19 seasons as a head coach after spending five seasons as head coach at St. Olaf College.
•The Vikings have two straight and are receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25 poll. AU has suffered a seven-point loss at Minnesota Duluth and a one-point overtime setback at Winona State
•Senior quarterback Gunnar Hensley has completed 173 of 265 passes for 2,524 yards with 23 touchdowns and four interceptions.
•Junior running back Breylon Blount has rushed for 674 yards and five touchdowns, while junior wide receiver Max Carlson has added 169 yards and eight touchdowns.
•Sophomore wide receiver DJ Page leads the Vikings with 56 receptions for 746 yards and two touchdowns. Senior tight end Klayton Sattler has caught 40 passes for 556 yards and a team-leading nine touchdowns.
•The Vikings defense is paced by junior linebacker Camron Maciejewski, who has amassed a team-high 56 tackles with two for loss.