Beavers and Golden Eagles to battle for Hubcap Trophy Saturday in Crookston

Bemidji State University football continues its hot start to 2019 with a road trip to face University of Minnesota Crookston at 12 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21 in Crookston, Minn. The Beavers and Golden Eagles play in the 16th annual Hubcap Trophy, led all-time by BSU, 14-1.

Bemidji State leads the all-time series against Minnesota Crookston, 24-2. BSU is 14-1 during the first 15 seasons of the Hubcap Rivalry. The Beavers have won five straight in the series while its only two losses have come on the road. BSU has outscored UMC, 125-0, in the last two meetings and hasn’t allowed more than 14 points since 2008.

The series first began Oct. 29, 1927 with a 6-0 BSU win in Crookston.

BSU moved to 2-0 for the second straight season after a 52-7 win in its home opener against University of Mary.

In the spotlight of Thursday Night Football on Midco Sports Network and battling rainy conditions, the Beavers didn’t miss a step while taking a 35-0 lead into halftime and finishing with more total yards than the Marauders, 496-197.

BSU opened its game with another 10+-play drive for the second straight week and scored touchdowns on its first two drives.

The Beavers scored a total of five touchdowns before halftime and two in the third quarter.

Junior kicker Mason Hoffer ended the game with a 19-yard field goal to finish with 10 of BSU’s 52 points.

Senior quarterback Jared Henning stepped under center and replicated the position’s results from a week ago, recording a career-high 191 passing yards, 17 completions and four touchdown passes. Henning threw two touchdown passes to sophomore tight end Bryce Duffy, who finished with three catches for 56 yards, before finding senior wide receiver Jake Anderson and sophomore wide receiver Brendan Beaulieu for scores.

BSU’s top two running backs came up 14 yards shy of a pair of 100-yard rushers as sophomore backs Jalen Frye and Sherrod Kpahn each finished with 93 yards on the ground.

The Beavers have now scored at least 50 points in nine games under Bolte and at least 30 points in 26 of 36 games since 2016.

The “Gang Green” defense became the leaders of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and rank fourth nationally in turnover margin after gaining three takeaways from UMary.

Senior defensive back Michael Junker returned the unit’s lone interception 38 yards for a touchdown, placing him in a tie for sixth all-time at BSU in interceptions.

Sophomore defensive back Gunnar Feldhege scooped up on fumble recovery while adding three tackles and one pass breakup.

Senior full back Matt Gross also gathered a fumble recovery on special teams, setting up a 30-yard touchdown on the next play.

Senior defensive lineman Seth Zins led the defense with a career-high six tackles, including 1.0 sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss.

The Beavers finished the game with four sacks as sophomore linebacker Colbey Wadsworth added one, junior defensive lineman Lucas Garbe added one, and senior linebacker Lukas Ruoss and junior linebacker Matt Brennan added 0.5 each.

BSU ranks among the top half of nearly every offensive and defensive stat category in the NSIC, including leading red zone defense (0%) and passing efficiency (197.2).

Bemidji State has now won four straight home openers by an average margin on nearly 30 points. BSU has scored at least 38 points in those games.