SATURDAY
The 2015 University of Mary football season kicks off with a Northern Sun contest on the road against longtime foe and 10th ranked University of Sioux Falls, an opponent the Marauders first faced in their inaugural 1988 season and five times in the NAIA playoffs. Kickoff is set for noon on Saturday, Sept. 5, at Bob Young Stadium in Sioux Falls, S.D.

THE RECORDS
This is the season opener for both teams. The Marauders finished 2014 at 5-6 overall and in the Northern Sun (tie-8th). U-Mary was 3-4 in the NSIC North Division (tie-4th)... The Cougars finished 11-1 overall, 10-1 in the NSIC (3rd) and 6-1 in the NSIC South (2nd).

LAST TIME OUT
A second half rally still left the Marauders short in a 55-44 loss at St. Cloud State in the 2014 season finale. Zach Roberson threw for a school-record 505 yards with five touchdowns in the game... After just missing the NCAA Division II playoffs, Sioux Falls defeated Central Oklahoma 42-10 in the Mineral Water Bowl.

HEAD COACHES
Josh Kotelnicki enters his second season as the head coach of the University of Mary. He is just the fifth varsity head coach in school history as the team begins its 28th season. Kotelnicki directed the Marauders to a 5-6 record in his first season in 2014. Kotelnicki joined U-Mary after serving as the associate head coach at NCAA FCS University of North Dakota for two seasons (2012-13) and as UND's defensive coordinator in 2013. A native of Litchfield, Minn., Kotelnicki won an NCAA Division II title as a player at North Dakota and has been on winning teams as a coach at the NCAA FBS, FCS, and Division II levels. After starting his coaching career at UND, he has also worked at Murray State, Truman State, and NCAA FBS Kansas State before returning to UND...  Beginning his sixth season directing the University of Sioux Falls football program, Jed Stugart has guided the Cougars to five straight winning seasons and a mark of 44-13. In eight years as a collegiate head coach he has a mark of 70-20. Stugart led USF to a runner-up finish in the NAIA in his first season with the Cougars (2010). A native of Greeley, Colo., Stugart served as head coach at MidAmerica Nazarene for three years (2006-08) and went 26-7, earning AFCA Region 3 Coach of the Year honors and twoce advancing to postseason play. Between head coaching gigs at MidAmerica and USF he wad an assistant coach at the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

THE MARAUDERS-COUGARS SERIES HISTORY (USF leads the series 4-6)
A series filled with important meetings on a national scale, the University of Sioux Falls has won six of the ten meetings between the two former NAIA powerhouses.
The Marauders and the Cougars first met in 1988, U-Mary's inaugural football season, and USF left Bismarck with a 37-13 win. The Cougars would also win the following year. U-Mary turned the tables in 1990 with a 17-6 win, followed by a 35-21 win in 1991 at Sioux Falls. After a four year break, the two schools found themselves pitted against one another in the second round of the 1995 NAIA playoffs, with U-Mary claiming a 42-17 win. USF captured the next four games, all in the NAIA playoffs. The last three meetings were all close with USF outscoring the Marauders by just 13 total points. The last NAIA meeting between the two teams was in the second round of the 2002 NAIA playoffs. On Nov. 30 in Bismarck, the Cougars nudged the Marauders 13-10. Down 7-0, the Marauders scored the next 10 points on a field goal from Justin Lang and a Jake Pfau touchdown reception of 13 yards from Tim Garcia. TC Fraser would win the game for USF with two third quarter field goals. On a day dominated by defense, the Marauders were held to -6 yards rushing while U-Mary's defense made 21 tackles behind the line. A U-Mary Hall of Famer, Pfau set a school record with 13 catches in the game, covering 167 yards... In the first and only meeting between the two schools as NCAA Division II competitors, the Marauders gained a 17-10 home win in the third game of the 2013 season. The Cougars opened the scoring in the first quarter with a 5-yard scoring run by Luke Pappilion. Immediately the Marauders tied the score when Craig Bagnell found Nick Jolliffe in the end zone from 9 yards out. The two teams exchanged field goals in the third before the Marauders defense gained control. U-Mary allowed USF just three first downs on its last five possessions and the Cougars never advanced beyond the Marauders 45 yard line. The Marauders captured the win on a Vince Ferrante 1 yard run with 4:41 left in the game. Bagnell completed 26-of-49 passes for 323 yards, one TD and one interception. Jolliffe had six catches for 72 yards and a score. Ferrante ran for 57 yards. Grant Singer led the Marauders with nine tackles, including a sack and two tackles for loss, and also forced a fumble. For USF, Papillion completed just 10-of-29 passes for 95 yards and two interceptions. He ran for 83 yards and Nephi Garcia added 111.  

PAST MARAUDERS-COUGARS MEETINGS (USF leads Marauders series 4-6)
1988     USF 37         U-Mary 13                                          Bismarck, ND
1989     USF 28         U-Mary 17                                          Sioux Falls, SD
1990     U-Mary 17     USF 6                                                Bismarck, ND
1991     U-Mary 35     USF 21                                              Sioux Falls, SD
1995     U-Mary 42     USF 17 (NAIA playoffs 2nd round)    Bismarck, ND
1996     USF 56         U-Mary 19 (NAIA 1st rd)                    Bismarck, ND
1998     USF 29         U-Mary 25 (NAIA 1st rd)                   Sioux Falls, SD
2001    USF 27         U-Mary 21 (NAIA 1st rd)                    Bismarck, ND
2002     USF 13         U-Mary 10 (NAIA 2nd rd)                  Bismarck, ND
2013    U-Mary 17    USF 10                                               Bismarck, ND

QUICK LOOK AT UNIVERSITY OF SIOUX FALLS
One of the newest members to the Northern Sun and NCAA DIvision II, the University of Sioux Falls just missed a playoff berth last season. The Cougars finished 10-1 in the regular season and placed third in the NSIC. Claiming a spot in the Mineral Water Bowl, the Cougars defeated Central Oklahoma 42-10 and finished ranked nationally. The lone loss was to Minnesota State, the national runner-up. This season a veteran Sioux Falls squad ranks 10th in the D2Football.com preseason poll and 17th in the AFCA poll. The Cougars return nine starters on offense, seven on defense and two on special teams. Leading the squad is junior QB Luke Papillion, the 2014 NSIC Offensive player of the Year. He ran for 804 yards and six scores and passed for 2,779 yards and 26 touchdowns. Additionally he was the Mineral Bowl MVP and one of the final 36 Harlon Hill candidates in 2014. The defense is led by senior cornerback Solomon St. Pierre, who was named to six All-American teams in 2014. St. Pierre intercepted 10 passes to tie for the nation's lead in picks. Two interceptions were returned for touchdowns and he finished with 63 tackles, 44 solo stops, and 23 passes defended.   

OPENING MOVE
Including last year's win, the Marauders are 16-10-1 overall... Since jumping to NCAA Division II in 2006, the opening day record is 3-6, weighed down by a 1-4 record against Chadron State College... When opening the season at home U-Mary is 7-4. In season openers on the road the Marauders are 9-6-1... In the NCAA era, the Marauders are 2-4 at home in season openers and 1-2 on the road.

NSIC OPENING MOVE
Not only is this weekend's game at SIoux Falls the season opener, it is also the Northern Sun kickoff. Since the conference moved to 16 schools in 2012, teams play a full slate of NSIC games with no non-conference opponents. The Marauders are 2-1 in combined NSIC season openers (1-1 at home, 1-0 on the road)... Since beginning NSIC play in 2007, the Marauders are 4-4 (2-2 at home, 2-2 on the road) in NSIC openers.

WELCOME BACK
University of Mary football players provided a little extra excitement to the first day of school for thousands of elementary school students throughout Bismarck. Players handed out high fives at 14 different elementary schools throughout the community. Despite the size difference, few children hesitated to approach the smiling giants in Orange & Blue as the Marauders worked to provided a warm greeting to as many of the students as possible. This is the fifth straight year the Marauders have greeted students at their schools.

NBC NORTH DAKOTA SPORTS NETWORK TELEVISING TWO MARAUDERS GAMES IN 2015
The first two U-Mary home football games in 2015 will air live on television across the central and western portions of the state. The North Dakota NBC Sports Network will televise the U-Mary vs. Upper Iowa home opener on Sept. 12 and the Marauders homecoming contest against Wayne State College on Sept. 26 on KFYR-TV in Bismarck, KMOT-TV in Minot, KUMV-TV in Williston and KQCD-TV in Dickinson. KFYR-TV sports director Lee Timmerman handles the play by play duties. Working the sidelines is Marisa DeCandido, the KFYR-TV weekend anchor and host of "Marauders Weekly."

SCHEDULING THE BEST
The Marauders face one of their toughest schedules ever this season as three foes are ranked in D2Football.com's top ten list. U-Mary opens the regular season at 10th ranked Sioux Falls. In week three the Marauders visit national runner-up and preseason #1 Minnesota State. On Oct. 17 the Marauders host #7 Minnesota Duluth. In the AFCA preseason poll, MSU is #1, UMD is #3 and USF is #17. Additionally St. Cloud State is received votes in the AFCA poll.

PRESEASON ACCOLADES
Four University of Mary seniors earned spots on the 26th annual USA College Football D-II Preseason All-American team. Safety Preston Tescher and linebacker Seth Walton claimed first team recognition. Quarterback Zach Roberson was placed on the second team and offensive lineman Deon Paulson was an honorable mention selection. USA College Football recognized just four percent of NCAA Division II football players – 750 student-athletes total – with pre-season All-American status.

CLOSING RUSH
Senior quarterback Zach Roberson may have played just five games last season but they were all memorable. Playing through injury, the Sonora, Calif., native threw the game-winning touchdown with 23 seconds left in the 2014 season opener. After missing the next six games, Roberson returned and captured NSIC Offensive Player of the Week honors in a 52-45 win over MSU Moorhead in the Battle for the Paddle. He threw for 460 yards, tied the school record with six scoring passes and ran for a score. His seven touchdowns he accounted for in the game is a Northern Sun record. In the final contest of the season at St. Cloud State, Roberson set school records for attempts (64), completions (40) and yards passing (505). He also threw five scoring passes and ran for a score. In five games last year he completed 159-of-268 pass attempts for 2,148 yards, 19 touchdowns and one interception. He also ran for three scores and earned All-NSIC North honorable mention honors.

MOVING NEXT DOOR
Two starters return on the offensive line for the Marauders but both will play new positions. Senior Deon Paulson slides one slot over from left guard to left tackle after earning All-NSIC honorable mention honors last year. After two seasons starting at right tackle, Nolan LaValley moves inside to right guard. Rounding out the offensive line is redshirt freshman Jared Taylor at left guard, junior Michael Ryan at center and senior Peter Bopp at right tackle.

NEW COACHES
Four new coaches have joined the Marauders staff since last season and a fifth has a new role. Three new graduate assistants joined the staff in the offseason. Kyle Stein (Minot State) will coach tight ends, Luke Peterson (Concordia-Moorhead) will work with cornerbacks and Quinn Perry (Southeast Missouri State) has the defensive line. Chad Smith (Rocky Mountain) will handle the running backs. Additionally, Ben Davis moved up from graduate assistant to a full-time slot as offensive line coach.

NEW LOOK OFFENSE
The Marauders have numerous new faces on offense as just four starters return; QB Zach Roberson, TE Zach Podoll, RG Nolan LaValley and LT Deon Paulson. Senior Adam Woroniecki provides experience in the backfield after being part of the running back rotation the past two seasons. Podoll, who caught 14 passes for 160 yards and three scores last year, is the team's leading returning receiver. Wide receiver was the position hardest hit by graduation for U-Mary. None of the wide receivers have caught a pass in a game for the Marauders.  

FRESHMEN
Typically it has been rare for the Marauders to play true freshman. Over the past three years, defensive backs Preston Tescher and Maceo Brown were pressed into duty their first seasons. This year it is possible a handful may see the gridiron. Currently true freshmen on the 2-deep include OL Nick Benshetler, QB Nick McCann, WR Sam Mackedanz, and DL Jackson Grad.

SMILE!
Senior running back and team captain Adam Woroniecki has been accepted to dental school and will start next fall.

EXPERIENCE
The defensive side of the ball contains most of the returning experience for the Marauders. Senior 2x All-NSIC safety Preston Tescher, junior DE Landon Smith and junior CB Danielle Whitaker are entering their third year as starters. Senior LB Seth Walton is also in his third season at the top of the depth chart but had his first season at U-Mary cut short by injury. Other returning starters are junior LB Shawn Fulwider and sophomore CB Jacob Parker. Additionally, three other seniors will make their presence felt in the starting lineup: DE Anthony Eggleston, DT Nick Nelson and LB Patrick Ryan.

POSITIVE RETURNS
The Marauders return 37 players who saw action for the Blue & Orange last season, including 26 who were on the 2-deep depth chart at the end of the season. Still a young squad, U-Mary has 13 seniors, 19 juniors and 68 underclassmen.