BSU football to face Mayville

I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.

Sept. 19, 1998

By Devlyn Brooks

The temptation for the Beavers football team to overlook the Mayville State University Comets might be great. However, head coach Jeff Tesch isn't letting his team think ahead to the upcoming conference schedule beginning next week with Moorhead State.

The Beavers (1-1) travel to Mayville -- located about 20 miles west of Fargo, N.D. -- today to face the Comets (0-2), who have not had the ideal beginning to a season.

MSU has given up 97 points in its two losses to Winona State and Augsburg College, while only producing 13 of their own.

However, Tesch says the Comets are better than what their record shows, meaning the scores of their first two games could be deceiving.

For instance, versus Augsburg, the Comets turned the ball over nine times, throwing six interceptions and losing three fumbles. But when they did hang on to the ball, MSU's offense still racked up 342 total yards with almost two-thirds of it through the air.

The Comets have used two quarterbacks this year, a sophomore who leads the team, and a freshman who comes off the bench when needed.

But it is the freshman, Kevin Clausen of Glendive, Mont., who threw for 204 yards and two touchdowns after coming off the bench in relief last week.

According to Tesch, Mayville tends to blend its passing and rushing well in an offense that sports many bootleg plays.

"They mix up their passes well," he said.

And the Beavers success may depend upon how well their banged up defensive line plays. Sophomores Wes Ehlers and Andy Kulas and freshman Tyler Burke all are hurt going into the game.

That means the Beavers' defensive starters -- senior Ben McAninch and juniors Jay Hanson at ends, and senior Jeff Dudziak and junior Paul Bartlette -- won't have much backup.

However, Tesch quickly pointed out that the injured lineman played sparingly in the second half of the St. Thomas game, and the Beavers shut them out that half.

But he said he didn't know what the significance of that was.

Offensively, the Beavers are running on all pistons. They have scored 55 points in their first two games this season ... a mark it took them five games to reach in 1997.

Tesch credits the offensive explosiveness to the new run-and-shoot strategy he has employed.

With receivers such as freshman Jason Leden (10 receptions for 144 yards) and sophomore Ben Woodford (six catches for 139 yards), junior college transfer quarterback Ben Morie has had no shortage of targets.

In addition, junior tailback Chris Meyer, a 1,000-yard rusher last year, is averaging 141.5 yards a game. That puts him at 12th in the nation among all Division II rushers.

If the Beavers' offense is again on fire today, it will bode well for them against the Comets' young defensive unit. Half of MSU's starting cast are either sophomores or freshman.

"The difference between our first two games is that we decreased our turnovers and our penalities," Tesch said. "Our key is to show we can make big strides from game to game.

"We need to take this step in our program, going on the road and learn how to win on the road."

The contest is scheduled for a 2 p.m. kickoff in what Mayville is calling the Farm Bowl.