After two straight home games, Augustana technically returns to the road this week, but they don't need to travel very far, as the Vikings make the short four mile trip across town square off against No. 14 Sioux Falls on Saturday in the Key to the City game at Bob Young Field.
 
The Vikings enter the contest with a 3-5 mark after dropping a heartbreaker at home last week to Upper Iowa by a 21-20 score. Augustana led the game 17-14 at the half and 20-14 after three quarters, but the Peacocks added a touchdown in the fourth quarter, and then held off a late Vikings charge to secure the win and improve to 5-3.
 
John Waters opened the scoring with the Vikings third pick-six of the season, and Augustana got a Ryan Rubley 42-yard touchdown run to go along with a pair of Jeff Glassburner field goals, including a career-long 42-yarder to get to 20 points, but a long field goal against a brisk wind late came up short, and secure the win for UIU.
 
The Cougars enter Saturday's game with a 7-1 record, with their lone loss coming at home against Winona State in Week 5. Following the loss, USF posted a convincing 31-7 win at Wayne State in Week 6, and a 27-9 win at Concordia-St. Paul last week.
 
Next Up: Augustana wraps up its home schedule against Concordia-St. Paul on Nov. 4, and then closes the season at Winona State on Thursday, Nov. 9 in a game that can be seen live on Midco SN.
 
Augustana Quick Hits
• The 2017 season marks the ninth season with Kirkeby-Over Stadium as the Vikings home field
• In addition to all Augustana football games, Jeff Fylling also calls Vikings men's and women's basketball games
• Augustana averages nearly 45 yards more total offense per game than its opponents this season
• Of the three currently ranked teams in the NSIC, Augustana plays, or played, all three on the road
• The Vikings enter a game with a different record than their opponent for just the third time this season
• Augustana started only 13 different players on defense this season, and 19 different players on offense    
• John Waters' pick-six marked the third interception return by a Viking this season
      – Jordan Determan at Minot State on Sept. 9, Matt Wagner vs. Southwest Minnesota State on Oct. 14
• Jeff Glassburner set a career-high with his 42-yard field goal against Upper Iowa
• Glassburner also tallied his first-career rush, on a fake punt, which went for 24 yards and a first down
• Jake Welsheimer rushed the ball for the first time in his career, a 20-yard gain in the second quarter
• Ryan Rubley's 42-yard touchdown run tied a career-high; he also rushed for a career-high 99 yards vs.Upper Iowa
• Kirby Hora posted at least 10 tackles in a game for the fifth time this season, he finished with a game-high 16
• Hora leads the NSIC with 99 tackles overall, and with an average of 12.4 per game
• Matt Wagner ranks fourth in the NSIC with 82 tackles overall, and with an average of 10.2 per game
• The Vikings play a team with a feline mascot this week for the first and only time this season

Series History; 24th Meeting
Series Notes: Augustana won the first 18 meetings in the series. The teams did not play from 1940-86 and from 1986-2012. 
 
First Meeting: Nov. 4, 1922; W, 13-10
 
Last Meeting; Oct. 1, 2016, Kirkeby-Over Stadium: No. 12 Sioux Falls scored 21 straight points to start the game and held off No. 25 Augustana to reclaim the Key to the City by a score of 35-20 on Saturday in front of 7,115 fans at Kirkeby-Over Stadium.
 
The loss snapped an eight-game home winning streak by Augustana, making it the first loss at Kirkeby-Over Stadium since Oct. 25, 2014.
 
Augustana finished the game with 402 yards of offense, including 293 yards through the air. Trey Heid finished 24 of 44 passing for 293 yards and two touchdowns. Charlie Hayes, who returned to the lineup for the first time since week one, led Augustana with 99 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions.