The Northern State Wolves were determined to finish what they started this time.
After playing an even opening half, the Maroon and Gold dominated the final two quarters and picked up a 42-21 win over Winona State. The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference football victory came in front of more than 7,000 spectators on Gypsy Days at Dacotah Bank Stadium and snapped a brief two-game slide.
“It was just so humbling whether we were 0-5 or 5-0 or 2-3 there was going to be 7,000 people here today and what that does for a football program, what that does for a group of guys, the energy that brings, it’s really hard to measure that,” said Northern coach Mike Schmidt. “I guess you can measure it as 42 points against Winona, because that was a defense that was playing really well. That energy that our guys were able to have from that crowd and from the atmosphere today was unbelievable.”
The two teams had battled to a 14-14 halftime tie and the Warriors were slightly ahead in total yardage as the squads headed into the break.
When the Wolves returned to the field, something had changed as the hosts exploded for 28 unanswered points to start the second half and take total control.
“Our team finally said, hey we’re done with losing games in the second half,” Schmidt said.
The final half has plagued the squad throughout the first part of the season, but that was not the case on Saturday.
“I don’t know how many times you heard it out of every guy in the locker room down there saying, ‘We are finishing this game,'” Schmidt said. “Finishing a game is just a mindset.”
It was quarterback Will Madler that played out of his mind against the Warriors.
Madler passed for just shy of 400 yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for a pair of scores as he orchestrated a potent Northern offense that finished with 477 yards from scrimmage.
“I think that’s a credit to (offensive coordinator Ryan Schlichte) and the offensive staff. They put us in positions to be really successful,” Madler said. “And then those (receivers) are going up to high point the ball and making plays for me, and then those five up front, they really protect me really well. There wasn’t many plays that I was on the ground and that’s a really good defensive line.”
Madler fired touchdown passes to Kaleb Skelly, Dominick Fiscelli, Ben Noland and Jacob Van Landingham before scoring on two quarterback keepers for the final TDs.
Noland finished with 117 yards receiving and Skelly 96.
Meanwhile, the Northern defense continued its stellar play so far this season, holding a solid Winona ground game to just 64 yards on 27 carries.
“We’ve got playmakers at every position,” said defensive tackle Ian Marshall. “I don’t really believe we have a weak point.”
Marshall transferred to the Wolves from Oklahoma State and has made a huge impact from the moment he stepped on the field in his first game.
“I love this defense. This is one of the best defenses I’ve played in,” Marshall said. “Coming from Oklahoma State, I played with a top-three defense in the country at the highest level of football and I put this defense right up there with them. This is an incredible defense led by a great head coach, a great defensive coordinator (Jeff Larson). I couldn’t ask for anything more from a defensive tackle.”
Put the offense and defense together, along with special teams play and Northern had the right formula for a lopsided win against a team that had lost just one game so far this season.
The Wolves will try to maintain that level of play this Saturday when they travel to Minot State. Northern is 3-3 on the season with some memorable wins and frustrating losses in the first half of its schedule.
Schmidt said the key is to just try and be the best team possible each time out.
“We talked at the start of the week. You can’t control the circumstances that you’re in, in life, in football, it doesn’t matter,” Schmidt noted, before going on to say, “You can control your attitude, your preparation and your body language and effort. That’s all that really matters right now.”
To see complete stats from the game, click on the following link:
