Game 3 Preview: #8 St. John's At Concordia

GAME 3: #8 St. John's (2-0) at Concordia (2-0)

DATE: September 19, 2015
LOCATION: Moorhead, Minn. (Jake Christiansen Stadium)
GAME TIME: 1 p.m.
RADIO: 1660-AM in the F-M area

Live Video: Cobber Primetime GameDay

Live Stats: Cobber Primetime GameDay

Live Audio: MN Sports Network

Cobbers vs. Johnnies Series History:
Series started: 1923
Johnnies lead overall series: 42-33-6
Cobbers lead series in Moorhead/Fargo: 18-16-1
Series Synopsis: Concordia has won three straight games against the Johnnies which is the longest win streak for the Cobbers since 1960. CC won five straight vs. SJU from 1956 to 1960. Concordia is 18-16-1 at home vs. St. John's. The Cobbers won the last time the team met at Jake Christiansen Stadium back in 2012. Before that game the Johnnies had won 10 straight in Moorhead or Fargo. The last victory for CC at home over SJU before 2012 came in 1986 when the Cobbers prevailed 17-14. The largest margin of victory for the Cobbers in the series is 41 which came in 1929 while the largest margin of victory for the Johnnies is 49 which occurred in 1976. The last four games have all been low scoring affairs with an average of 44 combined points. 

Cobber vs. Johnnie Complete Series History (pdf)

Cobber Football in the Fargo-Moorhead Media:

- Fargo Forum Feature: 
Cobbers face rival St. John's with head coach nearing milestone

- Cobber Sports Information 
Siblings Make Family Weekend Special

- WDAY-TV
Cobbers prepare for St. John's

Last Year: Concordia 23 at St. John's 14

Last year the Cobbers held the ball for over 40 minutes and beat the Johnnies 23-14 in Collegeville. Concordia was 11-for-18 on third down conversions and had the ball for 22:56 of the first half as they built up a 16-0 lead at the break. Concordia finished the day with 448 yards of total offense as compared to 248 for St. John's.

Cobber QB Griffin Neal passed for 248 yards and one score and Alex McLean ran for 64 yards. Sam Sura rushed for 93 yards and Johnny Benson went 15-for-25 for 153 yards and two scoring strikes. 

Pick 6 - 6 Items To Help You Take It To The House:

1. Magic Number to 100. Down to just ONE. Terry Horan holds a 99-47 career mark as coach in 14-plus years at the helm of the Cobbers. 
2. First MIAC Start for Grove. The talk surrounding the season has been swirling around how Alex Grove will replace a three-year starter in Griffin Neal. Grove makes his first start against a MIAC foe this week when the Johnnies come to town. 
3. The Big Play. Concordia has big-play threats at nearly every skill position. Standout receivers Brandon Zylstra and Jon Baune have plays of 87 and 63, respectively, from scrimmage. Michael Herzog has a reception of 50+ yards and four players have rushes of 24 yards or more. 
4. Go for Four. The Cobbers were the only team to beat the MIAC champions last season. Going into last season the Cobbers had never beaten St. John's three times in a row since 1960 and they went down to Collegeville and defeated the Johnnies 23-14. A win on Saturday would make the seniors on the Cobber roster only the second class in program history to beat SJU in all four seasons.  
5. Men of many weapons. Saturday's game features three of the top 4 players in the MIAC in all-purpose yards this season. Concordia senior Brandon Zylstra leads the MIAC by averaging 181.0 yards per game. He has 177 receiving yards, 46 rushing yards and 139 kick return yards. Johnnie running back Sam Sura is fourth at 152.0 yards per game and wide receiver Josh Bungum is eighth at 120.0 yards per game.  
6. 4th and Long. The marquee matchup for the conference's opening weekend resides in Moorhead. What is sure to be a close game may come down to gutsy calls by the quarterbacks in the fourth quarter. On fourth down attempts, Concordia is 4-for-4 this season. However, the Johnnies are a perfect 8-for-8 this season on fourth down. That marks is tops in the nation by a DIII team without a failed attempt.

Scouting the Johnnies
St. John's claimed the 2014 MIAC Conference Championship with a 7-1 conference record with their only loss being a 23-14 game at the hands of the Cobbers. The team is highly touted as they checked in at No. 8 on this week's D3football.com national poll. 

The Johnnies are coming off back-to-back home games in which they defeated a pair of Iowa schools. SJU opened the year with a 45-9 win over Dubuque and then dusted off former Cobber none-conference opponent Buena Vista 56-7. 

Cobber fans might not recognize St. John's quarterback Nick Martin who has started in 26 games. The Wayzata native has only faced Concordia once. As a freshman Martin entered the game as the third-string quarterback and had himself a day, gong 6-of-8 passing for 153 yards and a pair of touchdown strikes as Concordia defeated the Johnnies 31-21. Martin's performance earned him the starting job for the next five games. He was forced to sit out the 2013 and 2014 contests vs. Concordia due to a series of injuries.

Sura is a man among boys in the backfield. Last Saturday against Buena Vista the senior topped the century mark for the 12th time in his career as he rushed for 132 yards on 18 carries. Currently leading the conference with 142 rushing yards per game, Sura was named an All-American in 2014 and is currently climbing the ladder on SJU's all-time rushing list. He currently has 2,701 career rushing yards, fourth in school history.

Junior wide receiver Evan Clark is a dynamic target on the perimeter for Martin. Though Clark averages just 36.5 yards receiving per game, his quarterback finds him on scoring plays as they have connected for three touchdowns in the first two games.

On defense St. John's returns All-American standout linebacker Carter Hanson. The senior was named the MIAC defensive player of the week for his performance last Saturday against Buena Vista. Hanson recorded nine tackles, two of them being for a loss and a sack, as well as a fumble recovery brought back for a touchdown. The Blue Earth, Minnesota native lead the conference in tackles last season with 100. Hanson is currently fourth in the conference in tackles per game (8.5).

Cobber SID Picks To Click:
This year we are adding a new feature to the Gameday preview. 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 – The Hogs Up Front
St. John's boasts one of the top defenses in the conference, giving up just eight points per game. In what is sure to be a game won in the trenches, the experienced offensive line that features Dave Brown, Clay Bachmeier, Josh Berg, Jon Asprey and Ethan Feil will have to control the line of scrimmage.

Defense - #16 Matt Ahrndt
Ahrndt often flies under the radar with the Cobber Black Shirt linebacking corps getting all the attention. The rover safety came to Concordia initially slotted in as a quarterback on the depth chart but made the transition to defense as a sophomore and has been a mainstay in the lineup since. Ahrndt leads the team in tackles with 12 on the season, including two for a loss.

Coach Horan Preview Interview: