Game 3 Preview: Concordia at Bethel

GAME 3: Concordia (1-1/0-0 MIAC) at Bethel (0-2/0-0 MIAC) 

DATE: September 17, 2016
LOCATION: Arden Hills, Minn. (Royal Stadium)
GAME TIME: 1 p.m.
RADIO: WDAY 970-AM in the F-M area

Live Video: Bethel GameDay

Live Stats: Bethel GameDay

Live Audio: WDAY 970-AM

Cobbers vs. Bethel Series History:
Series started: 1978
Cobbers lead overall series: 23-15-0
Series Synopsis: Concordia snapped a string of six straight losses to Bethel with last year's 23-21 Homecoming win over the Royals. BU had also posted eight wins in the last nine games between the team...the only win for the Cobbers before last year came in 2008 in Moorhead. Before those eight games, Concordia had claimed three of the previous four. The Royals hold a 9-5 advantage in the last 14 games in the series...the most points scored in a single game in the series came in 2007 when Bethel won 48-45 in triple overtime in one of the most exciting games ever played at "The Jake"...Concordia is 1-9 against BU in the last 10 games played in Arden Hills. The Cobbers are 7-10 lifetime in games played at Bethel. CC won the first five games in the series played in Arden Hills...Cobber head coach Terry Horan is 7-8 vs. Bethel.

Cobber vs. Royal Complete Series History (pdf)

Cobber Football in the Fargo-Moorhead Media:
Fargo Forum
- Cobbers Bounce Back Before Looming MIAC Opener vs. Bethel  

Last Year: Bethel 21 at Concordia 23
Last year Concordia raced out to a 10-0 lead, took a 16-7 edge into the break and then held on for a 23-21 win in Moorhead. The victory snapped a six-game losing streak at the hands of the Royals for the Cobbers.

Concordia set the tone for the streak-breaking win by scoring on its very first possession. Michael Herzog capped off a 90-yard, 9-play drive by plowing over from 1-yard out. Dominic Neameyer added a 26-yard field goal at the start of the second quarter to give CC a 10-0 lead. The Cobbers would finish off the scoring in the first half when senior Brandon Zylstra scored on a 12-yard TD run with only 42-seconds remaining in the second quarter. That score came after Bethel fumbled on a 1st-and-10 play from their own 25-yard line.

Neither team scored in the third quarter and then the Royals got to within two points at 16-14 on a 10-play, 87-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter. The Cobbers then won the game on the next possession when they went 86 yards in nine plays and scored on a 38-yard Conor Gessell run. The drive lasted 4:00 and took the clock to 3:58 to play which didn't leave enough time for BU to rally from a 23-14 deficit.

Concordia outgained Bethel 372-275 in total offensive yards with CC earning 270 yards on the ground. The Cobbers also dominated the time of possession as they held the ball for 37:04. BU fumbled the ball three times as compared to only two for CC. Concordia had five different players gain at least 40 rushing yards. 

Stat Central:

- 2016 Concordia Statistics

- 2016 Bethel Statistics

- 2016 MIAC Statistics

- 2016 Concordia NCAA Team/Individual Rankings

- 2016 Bethel NCAA Team/Individual Rankings

Pick 6 - 6 Items To Help You Take It To The House:
1. Back-to-Back? Concordia squeaked out a 23-21 victory over Bethel last season on homecoming and with a win on Saturday would make it consecutive wins over the Royals for the first time since 2004-05. With a win, Terry Horan would even his career overall record against Bethel to .500 (8-8).
2. Three-Headed Monster. The tandem of Michael Herzog, Jason Montonye and Dane Ringquist is racking up yards on the ground. The trio has helped the Cobbers to an average of 236.0 yards rushing per game. The three's average yards per game equal 75% of the team's rushing attack through the first two games. Herzog currently sits at fifth in the conference at yards per carry at 5.0 yards per attempt. Not to be forgotten is Chad Johnson. The team's leading rusher from a year ago is not racking up the yards yet but has found the end zone a team-high two times.
3. Polar Opposites. Concordia outgains their opponents on the ground 236 yards per game to 117.5 but through the air is a different story. The Cobbers average 85.5 yards through the air but give up 220.5 yards per game.
4. Roll the Dice. Concordia was 18-of-22 (81.8%) on fourth down last season and is has converted on three of four attempts thus far in 2016 which is tied for 29th in the nation.
5. Little of this, Little of That. Montonye is currently fourth in the MIAC in all-purpose yards. The speedster averages 133.5 all-purpose yards per game between rushing (56.0 yards per game), receiving (21.5 yards per game) and kick returns (56.0 yards per game).
6. Offensive Juggernaut. Don't let the Royals 0-2 record fool you. Bethel can put up points in a hurry. BU has averaged 43.5 points per contest through the first two weeks and gained an average of 528.0 yards per game.

Scouting the Royals:  
Bethel is in an unfamiliar place as they are 0-2 for the first time since 2002 when they opened the season with losses to Whitworth (27-26) and St. Thomas (49-25). 

The Royals have averaged 43.5 points per game but all those points don't matter if you can't keep the opposition out of the end zone – something the Royals have struggled with mightily the first two weeks. Between Dubuque University (IA) and Carthage (WI), Bethel has surrendered 110 points (55.0 points per game) and 1,267 yards of total offense (633.5 yards per game). 

Opposing teams have torched the Royals secondary as BU has allowed 458.0 yards passing per game compared to 175.5 rushing yards per game. The 458.0 passing yards per game is ranked 233rd out of 234 teams in the country.

When looking at the statistics the Royals have the conference's leading tackler in cornerback Allen Wollenberg. His 13.0 tackles per game is first in the MIAC and 20th in the nation but having your cornerback be your leading tackler is not a good thing in this instance.

Though the defensive unit as a whole is struggling – sophomore outside linebacker Dawson Brown is a star for the Royals. The Becker, Minn. product earned MIAC Special Teams Player-of-the-Week honors and was placed on the D3football.com Team of the Week for his stellar game last week against Carthage. Brown totaled 15 tackles, six of them solo, 3 ½ tackles for loss, a pass break-up, a QB hurry, a blocked punt that he recovered inside the 10-yard line and an interception that he housed 55 yards for the score. 

The offense is led by Division-I transfer signal caller Andrew Dzurik. The former Lafayette Leopard has stepped in to lead a dynamic offense that leads the MIAC in total yards per game. Dzurik, a Pennsylvania native, has tossed for 631 yards (315.5 yards per game average) through the first two games, which is good for 26th in the nation and second in the MIAC. He has also thrown for five touchdowns.

Dzurik's favorite target is senior Bryce Marquardt. The Champlin Park product caught nine balls for 210 yards and three touchdowns in week one and had 10 catches for 93 yards last week.

Bridgeport Tusler is the main threat for the Royals in the backfield. Tusler, who plays both football and basketball for the BU, ran for 486 yards and two scores last season. Tusler ran for 105 yards and found the end zone a ridiculous five times in week one – then followed that up with 46 yards on 11 carries with a touchdown last week. His six total rushing touchdowns leads the nation through the first two weeks.

Cobber SID Picks To Click:
Once again we will choose one offensive player and one defensive player who we think will have a chance to have a big game on Saturday. It will give the fans a chance to watch the "key" players on either side of the ball. It will hopefully give an insight into what the keys to success might be.

Offense – WR #6 Kevin Marzolf – The Cobbers have been somewhat one-dimensional in their offensive approach the first two weeks but statistically they are facing the second worst secondary in Division-III. Marzolf is tied for the team lead in yards as he has snagged five balls for 43 yards (Montonye has caught six passes for 43 yards) this season. Look for Herzog to find Marzolf early and often on Saturday in Arden Hills.

Defense – S #7 Dallas Raftevold – Simply put, he is all over the field. Raftevold has recorded a team-high 18 tackles, 10 of them solo, to go along with two pass breakups and a tackle for loss thus far. His 9.0 tackles per game is tied for eighth in the MIAC.

Coach Horan Weekly Coaches' Show: