SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – It's Viking Days as the Augustana football team hosts St. Cloud State on Saturday with a 1 p.m. kickoff inside Kirkeby-Over Stadium. Fans will be able to pick up a 10^th Anniversary of Kirkeby-Over Stadium rally towel at the game. 
 
The Game
Saturday's contest is a battle between a pair of 3-2 teams looking for their fit into the NSIC standings. Augustana is in second place behind Minnesota State while St. Cloud State is in fourth behind Minnesota Duluth, Bemidji State and MSU Moorhead.
 
It is homecoming, and it is a homecoming of sorts for St. Cloud State head coach Scott Underwood. The leader of the Huskies is a 1988 graduate of Augustana and received the Ole Odney award at this year's Augustana Athletics Hall of Fame Ceremony.
 
The Huskies
St. Cloud State enters Saturday's showdown with a 3-2 overall record and is 2-2 in the NSIC North Division. After a short two-game skid, the Huskies rebounded with an 18-15 overtime victory over Concordia-St. Paul last week. The contest featured just one touchdown, the winning score, and nine combined field goals. Quarterback Dwayne Lawhorn tossed for 149 yards on 11-of-26 passing while Joe Blando rushed for 60 yards. For the most part, the Huskies made the most of their chances in the red zone, going 3-of-4 and attempted six field goals on the day.
 
For the season, Lawhorn completes 45.6 percent of his pass attempts for an average of 168.8 per game. The rushing attack averages 161.6 yards per game led by Blando at 52.6. Lawhorn's top target is Tanner Teige with 52.6 yards receiving per game, and an average of 13.1 yards per reception. Defensively, Dev Krzanowski leads the team with 33 total tackles, including seven tackles for loss. He has notched 3.5 sacks for 22 yards. Payton Conrad leads the team and is tied with Eli Weber for the NSIC lead, with three interceptions.
 
The Vikings
Augustana looks to rebound from the heartbreaker at Bemidji State with the Vikings Days game. At BSU, Augie scored 18-straight points to take a 20-13 lead but fell 21-20 after the final drive from the Beavers. True freshman Jarod Epperson continued his progression throughout the season with a season-high 86 yards and a touchdown. Rudolh Sinflorant rejoined the Vikings after missing the game at USF with 72 yards. Defensively, Kyle Theis led the way with eight tackles while Kenneth Griffin snagged his second interception of the year.
 
The defense has been the story for Augustana this season, ranking 15^th in the nation by allowing just 14.8 points per game. The defense leads NCAA Division II with 17 turnovers gained, stemming from nine interceptions and eight fumble recoveries. Eli Weber leads the NSIC with three interceptions. T.J. Liggett leads the team with 39 tackles and has totaled three tackles for loss.
 
Offensively, Kyle Saddler averages 197.4 yards per game passing and has tossed for five touchdowns. Sinflorant controls the running game with 57.8 yards per game while Epperson averages 54.0. Sean Engel is the top receiving target with 16 receptions and an average of 37.6 yards per game.
 
Who to Watch For
If you were to ask anyone about who has made the biggest improvement from freshman-to-sophomore season, kicker Luis Guarita would come up near the top of the conversation. The sophomore ranks seventh in the nation with 1.8 field goals made per game and 10^th with his 90 percent accuracy rate. Guarita connected on a career-long 40 yards field goal at Bemidji State, while also hitting from 35 yards.
 
One Last Thing
In the 10-year history of Kirkeby-Over Stadium, the Vikings are 7-3 in Viking Days games, including last season's 48-16 win over UMary.