It's opening week for Augustana football with the season opener slated for 1 p.m. Saturday against Upper Iowa inside Kirkeby-Over Stadium.  
 
The Game
The 10^th Anniversary season of Kirkeby-Over Stadium gets underway with a celebration of the 2019 National Championship softball team, which will get recognized at halftime. 
 
Along with the celebrations taking place, South Dakota Junior Football will have four teams playing at halftime.
 
Parking lots open at 8 a.m. with Augieville activities getting underway at 11 a.m.
 
The Peacocks
Upper Iowa finished 3-8 last season after losing four-straight to conclude 2018. Gone is Brent Lammers, the starting quarterback who threw for 2,815 yards. In is Jake Schuman, who saw action in three contests, going 4-of-11 for 30 yards. Schuman's top target very well could be Alex Stevens, who caught 56 passes for 808 yards and six touchdowns last season. Defensively, linebacker Mitchel Siech returns with 74 tackles last year, 10.5 of which were tackles for loss.
 
The Peacocks were tabbed 11^th overall in the Preseason NSIC Coaches' Poll and seventh in the South Division.
 
The Vikings
Augustana is coming off a 7-4 campaign, picking up wins in four of its final five games of last season.
 
The 2019 squad boasts 15 seniors and returns 43 of its 50 touchdowns from last season along with 337 of its 374 points scored. The leader among those stats is First Team All-NSIC South Division selection Nickel Meyers. The senior led the Northern Sun with 13 receiving touchdowns in the regular season and ranked fifth in the conference with 90.4 receiving yards per game.
 
Junior Kyle Saddler marks his third season as the Viking's signal-caller after throwing for over 3,400 yards and 30 touchdowns last season. Junior running back Rudolh Sinflorant, is also back after ranking fifth in the league with 90.7 yards rushing per game.
 
Defensively, Augustana returns 10 of its top 13 tacklers led by senior linebacker Kyle Theis and his 79 tackles. Senior defensive back Michael Kloza led the team with four interceptions and ranked third on the squad with 56 tackles.
 
Augustana named six captains for the season: Alec Blonquist, Michael Kloza, Jake Lacina, Drew Reinschmidt, Rudolh Sinflorant and Kyle Theis.
 
Who to Watch For
Junior quarterback Kyle Saddler opens the 2019 season as a three-year starter for the Vikings. The native of Frisco, Texas, tossed for 3,423 yards and 30 touchdowns as a sophomore. He also tallied the third-most completions in school history. In 21 games as the Viking's quarterback, Saddler has thrown for 4,717 yards and 40 touchdowns.
 
One Last Thing
With its perfect road record last season, Augustana owns the nation's seventh-longest road winning streak at six games. That streak will be put to the test in week two at Minnesota State. The 6-0 record away from home in 2018 was a program first for the Vikings, while the six wins matched an NSIC record.

For more information on Augustana Football and 2019 events and promotions, stay tuned to GoAugie.com and follow @GoAugie on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.