THIS WEEK'S GAME: The Blue Devils (3-4, 1-3 WIAC) will face UW-River Falls (1-6, 1-3 WIAC) for the second time during the 2012 season when the Falcons come to town, Saturday, Oct. 27 at 1 p.m. at Don & Nona Williams Stadium. The teams met in a non-conference contest Sept. 22 with the Blue Devils taking a 20-9 decision at River Falls. The game is designated as Military Appreciation Day.
ON THE AIR: WMEQ 880 AM Radio will provide broadcast coverage for the season.
WMEQ will also audio stream the games. At home games, WMEQ will provide the audio portion for
Live Video streaming of all home football games, network providing.
Live Stats will be available for all home games.
AT THE WATER COOLER: Hang out with UW-Stout coach
Clayt Birmingham at the
Water Cooler, on Sports Radio 1400 in Eau Claire. Birmingham will speak with Water Cooler host Jimmie Kaska weekly about the upcoming game and the previous week's game. Birmingham's segment will air Wednesdays during the season at approximately 5:15 p.m. A link to the weekly broadcast is available here.
This week's interview. |
Weekly Interviews
LAST TIME OUT: UW-Stout: UW-Stout scored 10 first quarter points, but UW-La Crosse scored the next 26 points on their way to a 33-18 win at Veterans Memorial Stadium, Oct. 20. Stout got on the board with five minutes left in the first quarter on an Eric Brown four-yard run. The Stout defense stopped the Eagles on the next drive when, on fourth down, when it looked like the Blue Devils were going to block the punt, Eagles' punter Chris Hallingstad tried to run but was stopped. Three plays later, Ricky Marteney booted a 40-yard field goal to give Stout a 10-0 lead. It was all Eagles after that. Eagles' quarterback Andy Sires tossed a pair of TD passes in the second quarter, a 1-yard pass to Brock McMullen at 12:21 and a 9-yard pass to Jacke Welch with 12 seconds remaining in the half. The Eagles got a 1-yard run from Jared Stan midway through the third and a 23-yard run from Alex Lepp at 13:51 of the fourth. Stout got on the board again with 1:41 remaining in the game when Michael Blizel found Zak Snell for an 11-yard scoring pass play. The Eagles closed the scoring when Stan ripped off a 47 yard run on the ensuing drive. Both quarterbacks had good days, but Blizel was sacked eight times throughout the game. He completed 18-of-42 passes for 264 yards. Eagles' quarterback Andy Sires was 22-of-32 for 261 yards. He was sacked once. | Complete Story | Box Score
LAST TIME OUT: UW-River Falls: The Falcons were shutout for the second time in three games as they were blanked, 31-0, by UW-Platteville, Stout's opponent next Saturday, Nov. 3. In the contest, River Falls punted on their first eight drives after covering just 83 yards in those possessions. The Falcons were out-gained, 504-157 in total offense, in what was never really a contest. | Complete Story | Box Score
LAST TIME THEY MET: The old adage "bend, but don't break" proved true for the UW-Stout defense as the Blue Devils shut down every UW-River Falls drive in the fourth quarter as Stout went on to a 20-9 non-conference win at Ramer Field Sept. 22. The Blue Devils stopped River Falls four times in the fourth quarter on fourth down and pounced on a fumble in a fifth opportunity. Stout stopped the Falcons on the Stout 16 early in the fourth quarter. On the Falcons next drive, Stout forced a fumble on the River Falls 40. On the Falcons next two possessions, Stout stopped them on the Stout 27 and the Stout 4. On the Falcons' fifth chance in the quarter, Stout forced a four-and-out to preserve the win. As tough as the Stout defense was on fourth down, they were equally tough on third down, stopping the Falcons 11 of thier 13 attempts throughout the entire evening. | Complete story
THE SERIES: UW-River Falls leads the series, 66-32. This is the 99th meeting between the two nearby rivals. Stout has won eight of the last 10 meetings, and the last six. Since 2000, Stout leads the series, 11-2, with the Falcons two wins coming in 2004 (28-10) and 2006 (24-20). In the WIAC, there are three series that have had more meetings than Stout and River Falls – Stevens Point vs. Whitewater (110 games); Whitewater vs. Platteville (105) and Oshkosh vs. Whitewater (104). The longest running football series in the state of Wisconsin is Ripon vs. Lawrence (111).
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Offense: Trevor Morning, WR, Jr, Bloomer; Special teams: Tanner Kuehn, RB, So, Fairchild (Osseo-Fairchild); Scout players of the week: Offensive: Adam Hayes, Fr, Big Lake, Minn.; Defensive: Paul Klotz, Jr, West Bend.
WHO'S WHO: UW-Stout: For much of the season, the Blue Devils' offense has revolved around QB Michael Blizel. Saturday's contest against La Crosse was much of the same as Blizel accounted for 296 (264 passing, 32 rushing) of Stout's 373 offensive yards. In his first season at the helm for Stout, Blizel has tossed seven TD passes and has completed 111-of-221 passes for 1315 yards with an 85-yard toss to WR Trevor Morning, the longest collegiate pass play at Don & Nona Williams Stadium in the season opener against Jamestown. Blizel's top receiver in terms of receptions is TE Josh Peterson, with 29 catches for 257 yards and three scores. After a big game Saturday, Morning is gaining on Peterson, and now has 24 receptions for 490 yards and two scores. His average reception of 20.4 yards is the best in the league in that category. TE Austin Schwartz has ten grabs for 51 yards and his first career TD, but his senior season will end there, cut short by a knee injury. Stout's leading rusher, Eric Brown has carried the ball 107 times for 472 yards and an average of 4.4 yards. Kicker Ricky Marteney moved up to 12th on the Stout all-time scoring list. With four points last week, Marteney currently has 149 career points, 38 this season. After coming into this season with 22 field goals, his eight successful attempts so far this year give him the most field goals in UW-Stout history. Defensively, the Blue Devils have 17 sacks. DL Ryan Ericksen, leads the team, and the WIAC, in sacks with 5. DL Jamie Rohrig has 3.5 and DE Jake Johnson has 2.5. DB Damian Guggenbuehl and Jeremy Troupe-Masi each have two interceptions. Safety Tyler Naatz leads the team in tackles with 54, 30 solo, while DB Collin Laursen, LB Spencer Adler and Guggenbuehl have 52, 51, and 49 tackles, respectively. Ericksen and LB David Lindell sit atop the league with 9.0, and 8.5 tackles for a loss, respectively. The Stout defense has allowed only one fourth down conversion in 14 attempts. Stout is losing the turnover battle, 19-13, collectively against their opponents. As a team, Stout is averaging 312.0 yards of total offense, 110.9 rushing, 201.1 passing. The Blue Devils are giving up 336.9 yards, 125.3 rushing, 211.6 passing.
WHO'S WHO: UW-River Falls: The Falcons are led by QB Ryan Kusilek, who has thrown for 1357 yards, three touchdowns, and eight interceptions. Their leading rusher is John Schimenz, who has 244 yards on 81 carries for an average of three yards per carry. Brad Beeskow has 33 attempts on the year, and has done a little more with his limited work. His average is 4.7 yards per carry, and each running back has one touchdown. WR Nathan Brandt has been Kusilek's top receiver throughout the year. Brandt has been used as a "quick strike" receiver, as he averages just 8.4 yards per reception. His 49 receptions place him among the WIAC's best; he has 412 yards and two scores. Nate Smits leads the team with 56 tackles and 4.5 sacks. David Scaro has added 46, while Jacob Mandoza has collected 44. Mandoza has 7.0 tackles for loss, while Scaro and Smits each have 6.5. Alex Adams has been one of the WIAC's best defensive backs this season. He leads the conference in both interceptions (6) and passes defended (12).
THE MATCHUP: Comparing the numbers: If Stout is looking to get things back on the right track, statistically, this is the team to do it against. For the second week in a row, the Blue Devils will face the WIAC's lowest scoring offense entering the week. After allowing 41 points to Whitewater, and allowing a lackluster La Crosse offense to put up season highs in points (33), rushing (177) and total (443) yards, the Blue Devils will look to reverse the trend. Stout's defense conceivably should take advantage of a Falcons' ballclub that has just one win on the year, and has scored over 10 points just twice. Mirroring the team's total offense, River Falls has the worst rushing attack in the conference. They pick up two yards per carry, and average 53.7 yards per game on the ground. Compare that to conference foe La Crosse, whose average of 100.7 is second worst...As much as River Falls has struggled offensively, their defense has been equally susceptible, especially against the pass. They allow a league-high 27.7 points per game and allow 240 yards per game through the air, also a league high...Stout's Rickey Marteney is a perfect 14 of 14 on point after attempts this season, the only WIAC kicker who boasts a perfect percentage. Conversely, River Falls is five of seven on PATs...Watch for fourth down plays in this game. River Falls has allowed their opponent to convert for first downs on two-thirds of their fourth down attempts, a league low. (Stout was just 2-of-7 against then league-worst La Crosse last weekend). Stout, on the other hand, has allowed just one first down in their opponents' 14 attempts, the lowest rate in the league...One thing River Falls will look to capitalize on is the turnover battle, as they come into the game with a +5 margin, while Stout enters with a margin of -6...On kickoffs, watch for big returns as River Falls' Robbie Flom and Stout's Zak Snell are first and second in the league in kick return average, at 25.2 and 24.4 yards, respectively.
THE COACHES: UW-Stout: Clayt Birmingham (14-13) is in his third year as the UW-Stout head coach. Before coming to Stout, Birmingham coached at Western Michigan, Emporia College and UW-Stevens Point. Birmingham was the UW-Stout defensive coordinator for three years before assuming the head coaching role. Birmingham played his college football at UW-Stevens Point.
UW-River Falls: Matt Walker (23-17 overall/2-15 UW-River Falls) is in his second season at UW-River Falls.Walker was the head football coach at DePauw University from 2006-09 and compiled a 22-8 overall record. His teams finished 13-7 in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference and placed second in the final conference standings in 2007 and 2008. From 2000-05 he was an assistant coach with the Tigers and coached running backs and wide receivers. During the 2010 season he was an offensive assistant coach at Butler University and coached tight ends.
THE LEAGUES: UW-Stout and UW-River Falls are members of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). Stout finished fourth last season (5-5, 3-4) in league play, while River Falls finished eighth (1-9, 1-6).
QUICK HITS: The Blue Devils gave up eight sacks to UW-La Crosse, all coming in the fourth quarter when La Crosse led 19-10. Stout struggled mightily on third down for the second straight game. They were just 3 of 17 against La Crosse, a week after converting just one of 15 against Whitewater, their lowest conversion rate in over 10 years...
Zak Snell returned eight kickoffs for 234 yards against La Crosse, including a 72 yard return. In all five other games before that combined, Stout had 345 kick return yards...QB
Michael Blizel completed passes to nine different receivers vs. Stevens Point. The last time a Stout QB completed passes to nine difference receivers was Oct. 1, 2011, when
Ross Carey found nine different players, including offensive lineman
Tim Lau who snagged a tipped pass...TE
Josh Peterson had 10 receptions vs. Stevens Point, the most receptions by a Blue Devil in a single game since Shawn Korth pulled in 11 vs. UW-Eau Claire, Nov. 10, 2007. Peterson has caught at least two passes in each of the first six games this year. Last year, Peterson caught at least one pass in the first nine games of the season, but was blanked in the season finale at UW-Oshkosh...Stout scored all four times they were in the red zone against Stevens Point, but scored just once in three trips last week against Whitewater...Five different Blue Devil defenders recorded double digit tackles vs. Stevens Point. DB Damien Guggenbuehl, LB
Spencer Adler and LB
David Lindell had 11 total tackles and DB
Tyler Naatz and DB
Collin Laursen had 10 tackles. Out of those five, Laursen (12) and Naatz (10) were the only two to hit double digits against the Warhawks...
Trevor Morning extended his reception streak to 16 games by catching a team-high four passes against Whitewater. Last season, Morning caught at least one pass in every game. Morning caught only two passes in a game at Whitewater, but both went for TDs...TB
Eric Brown had two consecutive 100-yard games, rushing for 127 yards at River Falls, Sept. 22, and 135 yards at Eau Claire, Sept. 29...WR
Trevor Morning's 85-yard pass reception from QB
Michael Blizel against Jamestown College was the longest reception for a Stout tandem since Matt Bunyan tossed a 98-yard TD to speedster Jesse Witcraft on Nov. 16, 1997, in the Metrodome. Morning's reception is the longest collegiate reception at Don & Nona Williams Stadium. Morning's reception is the longest Stout play from scrimmage since TB
Craig Warminski rolled off an 86-yard run, Nov. 13, 2010, in the final game of the 2010 season against UW-Oshkosh...WR
Jordan Nelson scored the first touchdown of his collegiate career, falling on an offensive fumble in the end zone late in the Jamestown game...PK
Ricky Marteney matched a career-best when he booted a 43-yard field goal against Jamestown College, then matched that at UW-Eau Claire. Marteney twice last season kicked 43-yarders, in the opening game with Black Hills State and against UW-Eau Claire...WR
Zak Snell was pressed into all kinds of duty against North Central. Snell caught two passes for 15 yards, rushed once for three yards, fielded three kickoffs for 72 yards and punted twice. Snell has also completed one pass this year, a 34-yard pass to WR
Trevor Morning on the opening play of the UW-Eau Claire game...the Stout defense held Jamestown College to 16 yards rushing, but then allowed North Central to run for 164 yards...
Last season: Stout's
Eric Brown finished the 2011 season on a bit of tear, running 20 times for 105 yards against Platteville with two TDs, marking his second consecutive game with two TDs. Brown concluded the season by carrying the ball 29 times for 169 yards against Oshkosh....LB
David Lindell recovered a fumble and snagged his first collegiate interception, to go along with three solo tackles against River Falls...Punter
Mike Scherr punted the ball nine times against LaCrosse, dropping five punts inside the 20, four inside the 10 and three inside the 5...When kicker
Ricky Marteney's 38 yard field goal attempt was blocked, it was the first time in his collegiate career he had a field goal attempt blocked in 31 attempts...
Adam Smith caught a collegiate best five passes for 36 yards against Whitewater...Mike Gervanek had his longest career reception against Stevens Point, Oct. 8, a 40-yard play, topping a 30-yard play a week earlier against Eau Claire...Stout's
David Goebel scored his first collegiate TDs when he scored two early in the 20-17 win over Jamestown, one on a rush, another on a pass reception...the Blue Devils blocked a kick in the first two games of the season,
Evan Ludowese a field goal attempt against Black Hills State and
Trevor Fiege a punt attempt against Jamestown.
CLIMBING THE LADDER: Kicker
Ricky Marteney continues his climb up the Blue Devil all-time scoring list. Marteney entered the year with 107 points and now has 145, moving to 11th on the all-time scoring list, passing recent Blue Devil kicker Kyle Martin (2006-09). Marteney also holds the record for most career field goals by any UW-Stout kicker. Entering this year with 22, Marteney has added eight, giving him the record over Clay Vajgrt, who set the previous mark in 1982.
SEASON HONORS: WR
Trevor Morning was chosen as the UW-Stout athlete of the week after catching six passes against UW-La Crosse, Oct. 20…DL
Ryan Ericksen was selected to the D3football.com Team of the Week after recording three sacks and five solo tackles against UW-Eau Claire, Sept. 29...PK
Ricky Marteney was the WIAC special teams player of the week after kicking field goals of 25- and 33-yards against UW-River Falls, Sept. 22. It was the third time in his career that he received the conference honor...LB
Spencer Adler was named the WIAC defensive player of the week after recording 12 tackles in a season opening 31-0 win over Jamestown College...returners earning all-WIAC honors last year were RB
Eric Brown, second team; TE
Josh Peterson, FB David Goebl and C
Joe Gerber were honorable mention selections. PK
Ricky Marteney was a second team pick in 2010.
TOPPERS: The following are career bests for several of Stout's offensive players
Michael Blizel - Passing
20 comp, 34 att, 210 yds, 1 TD vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 6, 2012
18 comp, 42 att, 264 yds, 1 TD vs. UW-La Crosse, Oct. 20, 2012
17 comp, 29 att, 169 yds, 2 TDs vs. UW-River Falls, Sept. 22, 2012
15 comp, 29 att, 262 yds, 2 TDs vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 8, 2012
MIchael Blizel - Rushing
11 carries, 68 yards (no negative yards), 3 TDs vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 6, 2012
Paul Bernier - Rushing
17 carries, 96 yards vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 8, 2011
21 carries, 95 yards vs. UW-Oshkosh, Sept. 22, 2011
Eric Brown - Rushing
32 carries, 127 yards vs. UW-River Falls, Sept. 22, 2012
29 carries, 169 yards vs. UW-Oshkosh, Nov. 12, 2011
20 carries, 105 yards vs. UW-Platteville, Nov. 5, 2011
17 carries, 135 yards vs. UW-Eau Claire, Sept. 29, 2012
16 carries, 94 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 8, 2012
16 carries, 73 yards vs. Black Hills State, Sept. 3, 2011
15 carries, 60 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 10, 2011
Michael Gervanek - Receiving
6 receptions, 78 yards vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 8, 2011
3 receptions, 66 yards vs. UW-Eau Claire, Oct. 1, 2011
Josh Peterson - Receiving
5 receptions, 110 yards vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 8, 2011
8 receptions, 86 yards vs. UW-Oshkosh, Nov. 12, 2011
10 receptions, 80 yards vs. UW-Stevens Point, Oct. 6, 2012
5 receptions, 50 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 8, 2012
5 receptions, 47 yards vs. UW-Whitewater, Oct. 14, 2011
4 receptions, 57 yards vs. UW-Oshkosh, Sept. 22, 2011
7 receptions, 47 yards vs. UW-River Falls, Oct. 29, 2011
Trevor Morning - Receiving
4 receptions, 155 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 8, 2012
6 receptions, 113 yards vs. UW-La Crosse, Oct. 20, 2012
2 receptions, 84 yards vs. UW-Whitewater, Oct. 14, 2011 - 2TDs
4 receptions, 61 yards vs. UW-River Falls, Sept. 22, 2012
4 receptions, 58 yards vs. UW-Whitewater, Oct. 13, 2012
Adam Smith - Receiving
5 receptions, 36 yards vs. UW-Whitewater, Oct. 14, 2011
Ricky Marteney - Field Goals
43 yards vs. UW-Eau Claire, Sept. 29, 2012
43 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 8, 2012
43 yards vs. UW-Eau Claire, Oct. 1, 2011
43 yards vs. Jamestown College, Sept. 10, 2011
TEAM CAPTAINS: Quarterback Michael Blizel, center Joe Gerber and tight end Josh Peterson are team captains. All three are seniors.
NATIONAL POLLS: Neither UW-Stout nor UW-River Falls have received any votes in any national polls.
DON & NONA WILLIAMS STADIUM MARKS
Longest Pass Play
85 - Michael Blizel to Trevor Morning vs. Jamestown, Sept. 8, 2012
Longest Run from Scrimmage
86 - Craig Warminski vs. UW-Oshkosh, Nov. 13, 2010
Longest Field Goal
55 - Nick Dace (North Central College), Sept. 15, 2012
53 - Nick Dace (North Central College), Sept. 15, 2012
Longest Punt Return
80 - Craig Warminski vs. Eureka College, Sept. 18, 2010
Longest Kickoff Return
90 - Carlos Concepcion vs. UW-Eau Claire, Oct. 23, 2010
Most Rushing Yards in a Game
328 - Luke Bundgaard vs. UW-Platteville, Nov. 15, 2003
207 - Taylor Edwards (UW-River Falls), Oct. 3, 2009
207 - Justin Biever (UW-Whitewater), Nov. 5, 2005
Most Yards Passing in a Game
446 - Tom Stetzer (UW-Platteville), Sept. 29, 2001
358 - Brett Borchert (UW-Stevens Point), Oct. 16, 2004
349 - Austin Neu (UW-Eau Claire), Oct. 1, 2011
Most Yards Receiving in a Game
243 - Max Boe (Jamestown), Sept. 11, 2010
Most TDs Scored in a Game
4 - Luke Bundgaard vs. UW-Platteville, Nov. 15, 2003
SEEING DOUBLE TO END IN 2012: The WIAC instituted a cost-cutting procedure last season where, in one instance, conference teams will play each other twice, with the first meeting set up as a non-conference meeting. Stout last year played UW-Oshkosh twice and this year will face UW-River Falls twice, first a non-conference night game at River Falls, Saturday, Sept. 22, then in Menomonie, Saturday, Oct. 27. The meetings will be the 98th and 99th meetings in the two teams' long-time rivalry. Stout will be at UW-River Falls next year for the 100th meeting of the two teams. The conference's double meetings will end this year.
PROMOTIONS PLANNED FOR 2012: The Blue Devils have a full slate of promotions scheduled for 2012. The Sept. 8 game will be Dorm Days, while the Sept. 15 game will be Take a Kid to a Game Day. Oct. 6 is Homecoming and Oct. 13 is the annual Hall of Fame Game. The UW-Stout Dance Team is hosting a youth clinic that day and those youngsters will perform at halftime. The Oct. 27 game is Military Appreciation Day and the season home finale, Nov. 10 is Senior Day.
MAX SPARGER: UW-Stout dedicated the Don & Nona Williams Stadium press box in honor of former UW-Stout athletic director and coach Max Sparger September 11, 2010. Sparger led the Blue Devil football team to the 1965 WSUC championship. After leaving Stout in 1972, Sparger served as the WSUC commissioner. Sparger is a member of the UW-Stout Hall of Fame, as well as the WIAC Hall of Fame.
101 YEARS OF STOUT FOOTBALL: Stout Institute played their first game on Nov. 4, 1911, when they lost to River Falls Normal School, 13-11. Walter Anderson scored Stout's first touchdown, an 85 yard kickoff return. A week later, Stout won their first game, 30-2, against LaCrosse Business School as Harvey Tice scored four touchdowns. The predecessor to the WIAC began in 1913 and Stout has won five conference titles - 1921, 1941, 1949, 1965 and 2000. Stout became the Blue Devils during the late 1920s or early 1930s. Football was not played during the war years of 1918, 1943, and 1944. Along the way, the school has gone through a number of name changes - Stout Institute, Stout State College, Stout State University and the University of Wisconsin-Stout. Stout celebrated 100 years of football with a season-long celebration and alumni reunion. | A 10-week series on Stout football is available.
TAILGATING RETURNED IN 2009: UW-Stout has adopted a formal tailgating policy for Blue Devil football games. The south end of the parking lot by the Don and Nona Williams Stadium has been designated as a tailgating area known as the "Tailgate Zone." Fans will be able to participate in the Blue Devil Walk. Tailgating is permitted three hours before the game, and tailgating activities will cease at game time. Only propane grills are permitted, no open flame grills. Alcohol or tobacco is not permitted.
EUROPEAN FLAVOR: UW-Stout coach Clayt Birmingham has been active in raising the popularity of American football in Europe and has made several trips to Europe to participate in workshops and coaching clinics. The Blue Devils have also welcomed European coaches to their training camp and 2011 was no exception with Nico Teichert and Johannes Fiebig from Germany getting an up close look at American football. The Blue Devils also had Antti Kurenniemi, a native of Finland, on their roster last season. Kurenniemi saw action in several games. In 2012, the Blue Devils, for the first time in several years, did not host a European coach, but do have an international player, Jan Andre Millemann from Germany.
DON & NONA WILLIAMS STADIUM: The Blue Devils' home stadium - Don & Nona Williams Stadium - got a facelift during the summer of 2008 when the original Astroturf-type surface was replaced with ProGrass, a surface that more closely resembles natural grass. Don & Nona Williams Stadium was only the second artificial playing surface in the state of Wisconsin when it opened in 2001. Only the Wisconsin Badgers played their games on artificial turf. The Green Bay Packers had an artificial surface in their practice facility. Now, nearly every WIAC school either has or is planning an artificial surface, and many high schools in the state have followed suit.
UP NEXT: The Blue Devils will travel to UW-Platteville to face the nationally ranked Pioneers, Saturday, Nov. 3 at 2 p.m. The game will be the first of two games against nationally ranked teams. Stout will close the 2012 season when they host UW-Oshkosh, Saturday, Nov. 10.
