SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The No. 12/9 Bemidji State University Football team suffered their first loss since the end of September coming up short at No. 20/14 Augustana by a score of 38-19 on Saturday afternoon in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play.
Augustana will win the NSIC title outright as Minnesota State lost at home to Minnesota Duluth (33-21).
Bemidji State (8-2, 8-2 NSIC) piled up 429 yards of total offense, including 372 through the air.
Augustana (10-1, 9-1 NSIC) scored what turned out to be the only points of the first half on their opening drive. Beginning at their own 25, the Vikings went down the field in 12 plays to cover the 75 yards that finished with a 10-yard TD pass for the 7-0 lead. Augustana converted a pair of third down to prolong the drive.
Bemidji State looked to answer right back getting a big 20-yard gain when Brandon Alt found Sage Booker down to the AU 37. The drive stalled there and on fourth-and-four, the pass fell incomplete for a turnover on downs.
The teams then traded possessions to run out the rest of the opening quarter.
The Beavers looked to be in prime field position midway through the second quarter. With the Vikings forced to punt, Jacob Drietz blocked the punt and Spencer Shaver recovered right at midfield. It's the fifth blocked punt of the season for Bemidji State.
BSU moved to the AU 20 but were faced with a fourth-and-five. Alt's pass attempt again fell incomplete turning the ball over on downs.
That was the only real threat of the half with Augustana taking the 7-0 lead into halftime.
Bemidji State came out on fire to start the second half and used a big play to get on the board. On the first snap of the quarter, Alt hit Dhel Duncan-Busby for the 75-yard TD strike. The extra point failed to leave AU with the 7-6 lead.
Augustana kept the offensive fireworks going as they responded scoring on just two plays when Casey Bauman threw his second TD pass for 48 yards to Devon Jones for the 14-6 lead. That came after the Vikings had a big 35-yard kickoff return to put the ball at midfield.
Augustana then forced a Beaver punt and were able to get to the BSU 30 when the drive stalled. The Vikings elected to try a field goal and after a false start moved the ball back, Jake Pecina drilled the 52-yard try to push the lead to 17-6.
The track meet of a third quarter continued on the ensuing Beaver drive. After an incomplete pass, Alt hit Mike Wandmaker for a 49-yard gain to the AU 26. Faced with a third-and-four at the AU 20, Alt hit Jayden Washington for a big 14-yard gain to the six. On the next play, it was Alt to Brice Peters for the six-yard touchdown pass. BSU tried for two, but the conversion failed leaving Augustana with the 17-12 lead with seven minutes to play in the third quarter.
On the next Augustana drive, the Beavers had the drive stopped when a big penalty kept the drive alive. On fourth-and-10, the Vikings were set to punt, but a roughing the punter penalty moved the ball to midfield and a fresh set of downs. Another 15-yard penalty moved the ball just outside the red zone at the 23. Two plays later, Harod Epperson broke free for the 20-yard TD run to push the AU lead out to 24-12 late in the third.
Bemidji State then carried their drive over to the fourth quarter and looked poised to tighten things up once again. After getting to the AU 2 following a pass interference penalty, a bad snap turned into a fumble that was recovered by Augustana to end the drive.
The defense forced a quick three-and-out to get the ball out near midfield. The offense cashed in. After marching down to the AU 5, the Beavers had a fourth-and-goal. Alt found Peters for the five-yard touchdown pass to trim the deficit to five at 24-19 as the extra point was good by Landon Arends.
With still 7:11 to play, there was still plenty of time to comeback. Augustana was faced with a third-and-five but converted with an 18-yard run. Then on third-and-12 out near midfield, Epperson went 54 yards for the touchdown to stretch the lead to 31-19 with 3:29 to play.
The comeback was cut short when Alt's pass was intercepted by JayVian Farr and returned 61 yards for the touchdown to provide the final margin of 38-19.
BSU held Augustana to 294 yards of total offense, with 188 coming on the ground. Alt went 26-51 for 356 yards and three touchdowns. Duncan-Busby had five receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown. The 130 receiving yards is a season-high for Duncan-Busby. Wandmaker had one catch for 49 yards. Joey Baron grabbed five for 44 yards and Booker had four for 43 yards. Peters had four receptions for 28 yards and two scores. On the ground, Booker rushed for 37 yards and 15 carries. Elliott Lowney had a 26-yard run on a fake punt.
On defense, Cole Sorby posted seven tackles, five solo. Marco Cavallaro added six tackles. Stephen Hoffman had two tackles for loss and a sack. Marcus Hansen added a sack.
Here's a look at the results for the teams in Super Region 4.
No. 1 Colorado Mines won 82-0 at Fort Lewis.
No. 2 Western Colorado won 45-24 at Adams State
No. 3 Central Washington lost to No. 4 Texas-Permian Basin 42-14
No. 4 Texas-Permian Basin won 42-14 vs. No. 3 Central Washington
No. 5 Bemidji State lost 38-19 at No. 6 Augustana
No. 6 Augustana won 38-19 vs. No. 5 Bemidji State
No. 7 Minnesota State lost 33-21 to Minnesota Duluth
No. 8 Angelo State home (later) vs. Western Oregon
No. 9 Wayne State won 56-21 at Concordia-St. Paul
No. 10 Texas A&M-Kingsville won 27-21 at Midwestern State
The Beavers will now wait for the NCAA Selection Show. The top seven teams from Super Region 4 will be selected tomorrow (Sunday) night during the NCAA Selection Show that will be live at 5 p.m. Central Time on NCAA.com
For more information on the Bemidji State Football program, follow the Beavers on X (@BSUBeaversFB). Like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) and follow them on Instagram (@BSUBeaversFB).
Nestled in Northern Minnesota's wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, BSU sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and women's hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
