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All notes courtesy of SMSU athletics communications.
THIS WEEK
•The Southwest Minnesota State University football team (1-5, 0-5 NSIC, 0-1 NSIC South) returns to Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division action this Saturday, Oct. 10, with a road match-up versus the University of Sioux Falls (3-3, 3-2 NSIC, 0-2 NSIC South) at Bob Young Field with kickoff set for 1 p.m.
•SMSU will be looking to snap a five-game losing skid since opening the season with a non-conference home victory over Valley City State (N.D.).
•Saturday’s game will be the third for SMSU interim head coach, Levi Bullerman, who was named to the position on Sept. 20 following the retirement of head coach, Scott Underwood.
•SMSU will have its bye week on Oct. 17 before returning to play at Augustana on Oct. 24.
•USF has dropped two straight games, including last Saturday afternoon at Augustana, 37-20. The Cougars have won 12 of 13 meetings versus the Mustangs since joining the NSIC in 2012.
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 vs. USF Series Notes
SMSU and USF meet for the 18th time with USF leading 13-4 … the two teams first met on Sept. 21, 1968, in Marshall … the first game between the two schools was also the first-ever game in SMSU history with USF earning a 13-6 victory at Legion Field in Marshall … SMSU defeated USF 36-12 in 1969 in Sioux Falls and also won in both 1978 and 1979 … SMSU’s victory in 2023 snapped a 10-game USF winning streak since joining the NSIC in 2012 … USF, which is 12-1 in the series since joining the NSIC, has scored 34 or more points in 11 of the 13 games … USF leads 6-2 in games played in Sioux Falls … USF won last season, 35-14, in Marshall.
The Last Time – SMSU vs. USF
Sioux Falls opened a 21-6 halftime lead with a pair of third quarter touchdowns to pull away and earn a 35-14 victory over SMSU on Oct. 11, 2025, in Marshall. USF’s Tate Schafer, who came in relief of starting quarterback Bennett Brueck, who was injured on the game’s first play, completed 21 of 34 pass attempts for 384 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. His top target was Adonis Hutchinson, who finished with seven receptions for 167 yards and two touchdowns. The Cougars closed the game with 618 yards of offense on 82 plays and finished with a 40-20 time of possession advantage. SMSU was limited to 245 yards, including minus-7 yards rushing, and 12 first downs. The USF defense limited SMSU to 1 for 13 on third-down conversion attempts. SMSU quarterback Macloud Crowton, who was sacked four times, completed 18 of 37 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns. Colin Maher had a strong game for the Mustangs catching six passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns, while Tryg Auten added four receptions for 38 yards.
SMSU vs. USF Series Information
Overall: USF leads 13-4
In Marshall: USF leads 7-2
In Sioux Falls: USF leads 6-2
Last SMSU win: Nov. 11, 2023 (28-10)
Last USF win: Oct. 11, 2025 (35-14)
Largest win for SMSU: 24 (36-12, 1969)
Largest win for USF: 44 (51-7, 2019)
Longest win streak for SMSU: 3 (1969-79)
Longest win streak for USF: 10 (2012-22)
Current win streak: USF, 2
Bullerman vs. USF: 0-0
Glogowski vs. SMSU: 2-1
SMSU INTERIM HEAD COACH LEVI BULLERMAN
•Levi Bullerman was named interim head coach on Sept. 20 and is 0-2 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 third in Division II in fewest penalty yards per game (30.6).
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf ranks 12th in the country in tackles for loss (1.5).
•SMSU is coming off 28-6 home loss to Minnesota Duluth last Saturday. SMSU held a 19-12 advantage in first downs and closed with 312 yards of offense, while limiting UMD to 296 yards. The 28 points scored by UMD was the fewest in the series (15 games) since 1999 when SMSU earned a 14-9 victory.
•SMSU rushed for a season-high 141 yards in the setback to UMD.
•Sophomore quarterback Tommy Hoffman entered late in the first half and finished the game completing 13 of 20 passes for 138 yards and one touchdown. He tossed his first career touchdown in the third quarter to David Ola-Kazeem, who recorded his first career touchdown reception.
•Sophomore running back Emmanuel Diers rushed for a career-high 61 yards on just six carries in last week’s loss.
•Senior cornerback Connor Shelton made his first career start last Saturday and recorded his first career interception. Junior safety Brent Green made his first career start in last week’s game versus UMD.
•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 last week’s 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 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 203 yards on 64 carries.
•Senior wide receiver Tryg Auten has caught a team-high 28 passes for 262 yards.
•Senior wide receiver David Ola-Kazeem and freshman wide receiver Cooper Murphy both have 16 receptions.
•Fifth year quarterback Macloud Crowton, who has started five games, has completed 63 of 124 passes for 559 yards with five interceptions.
•Junior quarterback Drew Kluender has completed 33 of 62 passes for 412 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
•Junior safety Keegan Patterson leads the team with three interceptions.
•Sophomore linebacker Hunter Hanegraaf has racked up a team-high 51 tackles with nine for loss.
•Senior linebacker Aiden Planer and sophomore linebacker Jake Meier both second on the squad with 34 tackles, with Planer record six for loss.
•Fifth year defensive end Avery Johnson ranks tied for third on the team with four tackles for loss.
SMSU & USF IN THE 2026 NCAA RANKINGS
•The following is where SMSU and USF rank in this week’s NCAA statistics.
•A full listing of SMSU in the NCAA statistics can be found on pages 16-17.
(159 teams ranked) SMSU USF
Scoring Offense 158th 90th
Rushing Offense 154th 117th
Passing Offense 106th 80th
Total Offense 145th 119th
Scoring Defense 127th 66th
Rushing Defense 140th 55th
Pass Defense 108th 85th
Pass Efficiency Defense 106th 32nd
Total Defense 138th 59th
Net Punting 75th 104th
Punt Returns 54th 8th
Kickoff Returns 93rd 49th
Turnover Margin 154th 33rd
Fewest Penalty Yards/Gm. 3rd 24th
Time of Possession 137th 124th
3rd Down Conversions 156th 94th
3rd Down Conversion Defense 89th 125th
SCOUTING SIOUX FALLS
•Jim Glogowski is in his fourth season as head coach with a record of 21-18. He came to USF after seven seasons as an assistant coach at Minnesota State. He was head coach at Simpson College (Iowa) from 2008-15, compiling a record of 37-43.
•USF is coming off a 37-20 road loss to rival Augustana last Saturday. The Cougars held a 20-17 halftime lead but were shutout in the second half.
•Senior quarterback Bennett Brueck has completed 77 of 136 passes for 1,003 yards and 11 touchdowns with four interceptions. He also leads the club with 256 yards rushing and three touchdowns on a team-high 59 carries.
•Senior running back Bubba Tann III has amassed 224 yards rushing and three touchdowns on five carries.
•Senior wide receiver Adonis Hutchinson has caught a team-high 30 passes for 470 yards and three touchdowns.
•Senior linebacker Owen McCloud has racked up a team-leading 40 tackles with one interception.