WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University football team will honor their seniors on Saturday, Nov. 11, hosting Minot State for a 1 p.m. kickoff against the Beavers in Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium.
Winona State (4-6, 4-5 NSIC) and head coach
Brian Bergstrom will be looking to secure a .500 NSIC record and and send their seniors out in style in the final contest of the 2023 season. Minot State (1-9, 1-8 NSIC) will be wrapping up the 2023 campaign taking on the Warriors while searching for the their second NSIC win of the year.
Winona State Senior Day Notables
- Heading into Saturday's contest, Winona State is 5-0 versus Minot State in the last five meetings, dating back to Sep. 28, 2013
- The WSU - Minot State series has been highlighted by stellar Winona State defensive efforts; the Beavers have not tallied more than two scores against WSU in the past five games.
- WSU will honor 15 seniors players prior to the contest on Saturday.
- Winona State will also recognize film coordinator Will Leskovar, a key part of the behind-the-scenes weekly Warrior work in terms of gameday preparation.
- Senior offensive players are: Noah Carlson, Josh Giese, Jordan Haddad, Tanner Johnson, Dakota Matthees, Cooper Nelson, Trevor Paulsen, Jake Van Hulzen, Tyler Zirpoli.
- Senior players on defense and special teams are: Kyle Borske, Darius Manuel, Zach Myhre, John Schmidt, Clay Schueffner, Morgan White.
- Clay Schueffner heads into the Minot State contest with 351 career tackles, including 204 solo stops.
- Longsnapper Morgan White and holder Jake Van Hulzen have been the backbone of a WSU PAT unit that has been perfect on the year. The Warriors are 33-of-33, the only perfect PAT squad in the league.
- Noah Carlson notched a kickoff return touchdown, going 93 yards for a score against Augustana in week seven. Carlson has four career touchdowns at Winona State.
- Darius Manuel has racked up 84 career tackles over the past five seasons and has 13 career sacks so far.
- Zach Myhre has notched 38 career tackles, including 32 solo stops over the past three years and has two career sacks, both coming in the 2023 campaign.
- Kyle Borske played four seasons at University of Indianapolis and one year at WSU. This season for the Warriors, Borske has 14 tackles, including four sacks, third-best on the squad.
- Cooper Nelson transferred to WSU from the University of Wisconsin; while at WSU, Nelson has appeared in 21 Warrior contests, racked up 39 catches and three touchdowns.
- Trevor Paulsen has 17 career appearances for Winona State, and as QB, racked up a 117-for-221 passing mark. Paulsen has seven passing touchdowns and four rushing TD's.
- Center Jordan Haddad has been a rock on the Winona State offensive line, playing in 31 games over his WSU career.
- John Schmidt competed for Kent State prior to transferring to WSU. In his career, Schmidt has 35 total tackles, including 23 solo stops.
- Fullback Tyler Zirpoli was named a Winona State captain by his Warrior teammates prior to the 2023 season. Zirpoli has 32 career appearances for WSU.
- Dakota Matthees has notched 27 career appearances for Winona State, racking up 294 receiving yards on 18 catches. The Winona Senior High School product has four TD receptions.
- Tanner Johnson transferred from Minnesota State to Winona State. Over his six NCAA seasons, Johnson has played in 37 games with 14 receptions and one touchdown grab.
That's a Stat!
Winona State's
Tristan Root has dropped a league-best 19 punts inside the opponent 20-yard line, and has the third-best average per attempt (41.3) while also racking up 83 tackles.
That's a stat, too!
At 33-for-33, Winona State's
Jacob Scott has the longest perfect PAT streak of any kicker in the NSIC with 10 or more attempts. Scott leads WSU in scoring with 66 points overall, connecting on 11 field goals this season.
That's a stat, three!
Winona State has conceded two touchdowns to Minot State just once in the past five games and has held the Beavers to one TD or less three times.
Minot State Mentionables
Minot State lost at Michigan Tech 37-3 in their non-NSIC week last Saturday.
Saturday's game will be the third straight road game played by the Beavers.
The Minot State defense concedes 35.30 points per game while scoring 14.30 points per outing.
Minot State defensive back Isaiah Bigby became the new all-time leader in tackles at Minot State last week. Bigby bolsters the Beaver's defense, ranking fourth in tackles in the NSIC with 80 tackles.
Minot State has scored a total of 143 points this season. Last week, Winona State and Minnesota State combined for 91 points in one game.
MSU has gained 2,086 yards on the ground this year, outpacing their opponents so far with 2,021.
The Beavers have scored 14 rushing touchdowns and conceded 24 TDs on the ground.
Minot State's aerial attack has been 51-for-124 with five interceptions. Opponents have gone 173-for-276 against the Beavers.
Head coach Ian Shields took over the Minot State program in January of 2023.
Location, Location, Location: Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium, Synthetic Turf., capacity 4,500. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. in Winona, Minn.
For the most up-to-date news in Warrior Athletics, please visit:
www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and
@WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words:
Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics.
