SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – The Augustana football team hosts Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday inside Kirkeby-Over Stadium. Kickoff for the game is slated for 1 p.m.
 
The Game
Augustana is 4-0 inside its home stadium, which is celebrating its 10^th anniversary. Augustana last had an undefeated home record in 2015, the last year the Vikings qualified for the playoffs. Both Augustana and Concordia-St. Paul enter Saturday's contest with a 3-1 record in the South Division, marking both programs in second place. In the overall NSIC standings, Augustana is second while CSP is fifth.
 
The Golden Bears
Concordia-St. Paul is coming off a 24-23 overtime victory over Bemidji State. Concordia led 17-7 entering the fourth quarter but saw BSU make a comeback and tie the game to force overtime. CSP had the ball to begin overtime and used five plays to score a touchdown and make the point-after attempt. After Bemidji State scored, Preston Piltoff intercepted a two-point conversion attempt to seal the game for CSP.
 
The Golden Bears average 24.2 points per game, one point better than their opponents and are led by dual-threat quarterback Maxon Hutton. He throws for 159.6 yards per game and rushes for 43.4 yards per game. Defensively, the Vikings will have to deal with one of the best linemen in the NSIC, Chris Garrett. The junior recently set CSP's career sacks record and has already racked up 11 sacks this year, totaling 76 yards. He also has 16.5 tackles for loss and forced six fumbles.
 
The Vikings
It was all Vikings in a 51-6 win over Minot State. Augustana totaled a season-high 611 yards of offense and did not allow Minot to convert on a single third down. There were long plays, long drives and a pick-six. Freshman Jarod Epperson tallied two touchdowns, a 94-yard rushing TD and an 86-yard receiving score, while fellow freshman Jake Polson had an interception he returned for a touchdown. The Vikings also worked methodically, evidenced by a 13-play, 95-yard drive spanning five minutes. The defense was evenly distributed while Cody Kujawa led the team with six tackles. Logan Swanson added another sack to his season total.
 
Kyle Saddler has marked himself as the league's top passer once again, throwing for 215.4 yards per game. He was the NSIC's top passer in the 2018 season. His top target by receptions is Sean Engel with 26 catches while Brett Shepley owns the most yards per game at 43.6. Epperson and Rudolh Sinflorant control the running game at 73.9 and 57.0 yards per game, respectively.
 
Defensively, T.J. Liggett leads the team with 60 tackles while Logan Swanson tops the list with 11 tackles for loss. Of those, 6.5 are sacks which are 31^st in the nation. More on the defense can be found below.

Who to Watch For
Instead of just one name, the Augustana defense has become one cohesive unit this season. The Vikings lead the nation in takeaways, rank fifth in scoring defense and are ninth in interceptions. All three phases of the defense (defensive line, linebackers and defensive backs) have received an NSIC Player of the Week award this year. Augustana has totaled 24 turnovers gained and allows just 12 points per game. In all six wins, the defense has held the opponent to 13 points or less.
 
One Last Thing
Augustana checked in at No. 7 in the first NCAA Division II Super Region Four rankings announced Monday. The top seven teams in each super region qualify for the Division II playoffs. The top seed earns a bye in round one, while seeds 2-4 host a home contest.