MAYVILLE, N.D. (9/11/99) -- Paul Tetzloff (Jr., Faribault, Minn.) scored the game-tying touchdown on a fourth-down, second-effort dive into the end zone in the third overtime, then threw a game-winning two-point conversion pass to John Rotter (Jr., Montgomery, Minn./Montgomery-Lonsdale HS) as Augsburg College claimed a 29-27 season-opening victory over host Mayville State (N.D.) Saturday afternoon at Jerome Berg Field.

The Auggies rallied from deficits four times in the contest to win their opening game of the season, sending Mayville State, an NAIA school, to 0-2 on the season. Augsburg has played in three overtime games since college football instituted the overtime rule in 1996, the prior two (in 1997 and 1998) just going to two overtimes each. Augsburg is now 2-1 in overtime contests.

After each team failed to score in the first two overtime sessions, Mayville State took the lead, 27-21, on a four-yard run by Gary Klinetobe (Sr., Fortuna, Calif.). College football rules require that teams attempt a two-point conversion after touchdowns beginning in the third overtime, and the Comets failed to convert on a pass attempt, setting the stage for the Auggies' game-winning touchdown and two-point conversion.

Augsburg used nine plays to traverse the 25 yards in its third overtime session, utilizing a 14-yard pass from Tetzloff to Tim Murphy (So., Northfield, Minn./Lakeville HS) and a penalty against the Comets for pass interference in the end zone, putting the ball on the MSU 1-yard line. Three successive running plays to the end zone failed before Tetzloff scored on the fourth-down play.

The Auggies won despite being outgained in virtually every offensive category -- the Comets outgained Augsburg in total offense by a 304-224 margin and limited the Auggies to just 96 yards passing. The game was played in a steady rain and cold conditions that made field conditions difficult the whole game. But Augsburg took advantage of six Mayville State turnovers, including four interceptions -- three picked off by Nate Loughran (Fr., Minneapolis, Minn./Washburn HS) in his Auggie debut.

Down 6-0 on a touchdown in the first quarter, Brian Warden (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran HS) put the Auggies on the board for the first time this season with a 79-yard kickoff return. Warden also had the Auggies' next score, on a 47-yard run late in the first half. Warden led the Auggies with a career-high 132 yards on 31 rushes.

Mayville State took a 21-14 lead on a two-yard run by Klinetobe with 4:59 remaining in regulation time. But just 23 seconds later, the Auggies tied the game on a 49 yard pass from Tetzloff to wide receiver Mark Johnson (So., Hastings, Minn.), playing in his first game as an Auggie after transferring from Division II South Dakota State. After consecutive false-start penalties against Augsburg pushed the ball 10 yards back for a conversion attempt, Matt Van Alstine (Jr., Cottage Grove, Minn./Park HS) nailed the extra-point to tie the game at 21-21 and force the overtime.

Tetzloff completed just seven of 21 passes for 96 yards and was intercepted twice in the contest. Meanwhile, MSU sophomore Kevin Clausen (So., Golendive, Mont.) completed 12 of 33 passes for 176 yards and two scores, one a 24-yard pass to Steve Gerszewski (So., Mayville, N.D.) in the first quarter and a 31-yard strike to Kelly Kalina (Sr., Grand Forks, N.D.) late in the first period.

Augsburg travels to Hamline next Saturday (9/18/99) at 1 p.m. to open Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play, while Mayville State next plays on Sept. 25 at Black Hills State (S.D.).

Team Statistics

Augsburg Mayville State 29 Points 27 4 First Downs Rushing 8 3 First Downs Passing 7 1 First Downs by Penalty 2 66 Total Offensive Plays 90 224 Total Yards Gained 304 3.39 Average Yards per Play 3.38 45 Plays Rushing 57 128 Yards Rushing 128 96 Yards Passing 176 21 Passes Attempted 33 7 Passes Completed 12 2 Passes Had Intercepted 4 23.6 Net Yards per Punt 33.4 5- 2 Fumbles-Fumbles Lost 2- 1 7- 73 Penalties-Yards 10- 44 4- 17 3rd Down Conversions 10- 22 .235 3rd Down Conversion Percentage .455 1- 4 4th Down Conversions 1- 4 .250 4th Down Conversion Percentage .250

Scoring by Period

1 2 3 4 OT1 OT2 OT3 Tot ----------------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 6 8 0 7 0 0 8 29 Mayville State 14 0 0 7 0 0 6 27 -----------------------------------------------------------------

Possession Time by Period

1 2 3 4 Total ----------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 3:37 6:49 9:09 7:06 26:41 Mayville State 11:23 8:11 5:51 7:54 48:19 -----------------------------------------------------------

Attendance

500

Rushing

Yds/ Yds/ Augsburg GP-GS Car Gain Ls Net Game Car TD LP --------------------------------------------------------------- Brian Warden 1- 0 31 144 12 132 132.0 4.3 1 47 John Rotter 1- 0 4 10 1 9 9.0 2.2 0 4 Jamie Smith 1- 0 1 1 0 1 1.0 1.0 0 1 John Goodale 1- 0 3 2 3 -1 -1.0 -0.3 0 2 Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 6 10 23 -13 -13.0 -2.2 1 9 --------------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 45 167 39 128 128.0 2.8 2 47 Mayville State 1- 1 57 151 23 128 128.0 2.2 2 12

Passing

Augsburg GP-GS Cmp Att Int Pct Yds Sck TD Cnv LP ----------------------------------------------------------------- Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 7 21 2 .333 96 3 1 2 49 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 7 21 2 .333 96 3 1 2 49 Mayville State 1- 1 12 33 4 .364 176 2 2 1 41

Passing Efficiency

Yds/ TD Comp Int Rating Augsburg GP-GS Att Pct Pct Pct Pts -------------------------------------------------------------- Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 4.57 4.76 33.33 9.52 68.39 -------------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 4.57 4.76 33.33 9.52 68.39 Mayville State 1- 1 5.33 6.06 36.36 12.12 76.89

Pass Receiving

Rec/ Yds/ Augsburg GP-GS Rec Game Yds Rec TD LP ----------------------------------------------------- John Rotter 1- 0 4 4.0 20 5.0 0 9 Mark Johnson 1- 0 1 1.0 49 49.0 1 49 Tim Murphy 1- 0 1 1.0 14 14.0 0 14 Ryan Hupka 1- 0 1 1.0 13 13.0 0 13 ----------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 7 7.0 96 13.7 1 49 Mayville State 1- 1 12 12.0 176 14.7 2 41

Total Offense

Yds/ Augsburg GP-GS Rush Pass Tot Game ------------------------------------------------ Brian Warden 1- 0 132 0 132 132.0 Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 -13 96 83 83.0 John Rotter 1- 0 9 0 9 9.0 Jamie Smith 1- 0 1 0 1 1.0 John Goodale 1- 0 -1 0 -1 -1.0 ------------------------------------------------ Augsburg 1- 1 128 96 224 224.0 Mayville State 1- 1 128 176 304 304.0

All-Purpose Yards

Punt KO Tot Yds/ Augsburg GP-GS Rush Rec Ret Ret Yds Game --------------------------------------------------------- Brian Warden 1- 0 132 0 0 79 211 211.0 Mark Johnson 1- 0 0 49 0 0 49 49.0 John Rotter 1- 0 9 20 0 0 29 29.0 Jon Boeck 1- 0 0 0 0 16 16 16.0 Tim Murphy 1- 0 0 14 0 0 14 14.0 T.J. Bramwell 1- 0 0 0 0 13 13 13.0 Ryan Hupka 1- 0 0 13 0 0 13 13.0 Jamie Smith 1- 0 1 0 0 0 1 1.0 John Goodale 1- 0 -1 0 0 0 -1 -1.0 Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 -13 0 0 0 -13 -13.0 --------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 128 96 0 108 332 332.0 Mayville State 1- 1 128 176 76 73 453 453.0

Scoring

-- Conversions -- Augsburg GP-GS TD Run Pass Kick FG S DX Pts ------------------------------------------------------------ Brian Warden 1- 0 2 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 0 0 0 12 Paul Tetzloff 1- 0 1 0- 0 0- 2 0- 0 0 0 0 6 Mark Johnson 1- 0 1 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 0 0 0 6 John Rotter 1- 0 0 0- 0 2- 0 0- 0 0 0 0 4 Matt Van Alstine 1- 0 0 0- 0 0- 0 1- 2 0 0 0 1 ------------------------------------------------------------ Augsburg 1- 1 4 0- 0 2- 2 1- 2 0 0 0 29 Mayville State 1- 1 4 0- 0 1- 2 1- 2 0 0 0 27

Punting

Ins Augsburg GP-GS Att Yds Avg Bk LP 20 ------------------------------------------------- Bart Rall 1- 0 9 288 32.0 0 38 0 ------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 9 288 32.0 0 38 0 Mayville State 1- 1 7 234 33.4 0 41 3

Kickoff Returns

Augsburg GP-GS Att Yds Avg TD LP ---------------------------------------------- Brian Warden 1- 0 1 79 79.0 1 79 Jon Boeck 1- 0 1 16 16.0 0 16 T.J. Bramwell 1- 0 1 13 13.0 0 13 ---------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 3 108 36.0 1 79 Mayville State 1- 1 4 73 18.2 0 32

Punt Returns

Augsburg GP-GS Att Yds Avg TD LP ---------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 Mayville State 1- 1 7 76 10.9 0 30

Interception Returns

Augsburg GP-GS Att Yds Avg TD LP ---------------------------------------------- Nate Loughran 1- 0 3 3 1.0 0 25 Kurt Werk 1- 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 ---------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 4 3 0.8 0 25 Mayville State 1- 1 2 20 10.0 0 20

Defensive Statistics

Augsburg GP-GS T A Tot CF RF FR-Yds TD PBU Prs TFL-Yds Sack-Yds I BK BP ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dane Lund 1- 0 2 10 12 0.0 0 0- 0 0 1 1 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Matt Chappuis 1- 0 7 4 11 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 2.5- 10 1.5- 8 0 0 0 Joe Souba 1- 0 3 8 11 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.5- 7 0.5- 7 0 0 0 Kurt Werk 1- 0 5 5 10 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 1 0 0 Dave Sherry 1- 0 2 7 9 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 4 1.5- 4 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Jake Kern 1- 0 3 3 6 0.0 0 0- 0 0 1 0 1.0- 1 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Jason Van Houten 1- 0 1 4 5 1.0 1 0- 0 0 0 1 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Ben Tangert 1- 0 1 4 5 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 1.0- 1 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Brent Peroutka 1- 0 1 2 3 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Nate Loughran 1- 0 1 2 3 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 1.5- 2 0.0- 0 3 0 0 Scott Archambault 1- 0 1 1 2 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Rob Just 1- 0 1 1 2 0.0 0 0- 0 0 1 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Mitchell Theisen 1- 0 1 1 2 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 1.0- 2 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Nate Anderson 1- 0 1 1 2 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Adam Leiter 1- 0 1 1 2 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Matt Van Alstine 1- 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Chad Olson 1- 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Andy Peper 1- 0 1 0 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 John Simones 1- 0 0 1 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Josh Larsen 1- 0 0 1 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Larry Lyden 1- 0 0 1 1 0.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 Mike Hokanson 1- 0 0 0 0 1.0 0 0- 0 0 0 0 0.0- 0 0.0- 0 0 0 0 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Augsburg 1- 1 34 57 91 2.0 1 0- 0 0 3 6 9.0- 27 2.0- 15 4 0 0 Mayville State 1- 1 37 29 66 2.0 2 0- 0 0 1 1 7.5- 31 3.0- 23 2 0 0

PREGAME NOTES

THE GAME: The Augsburg College Auggies (0-0 overall, 0-0 MIAC) take on the Mayville State University Comets (0-1 overall, 0-0 NDCAC) on Saturday, Sept. 11 at 1 p.m., at Mayville State's Jerome Berg Field in Mayville, N.D. Augsburg leads the all-time series 3-0, dating back to the teams' first meeting in 1996. The Auggies topped Mayville State 34-24 in 1995 at Mayville, 14-13 in 1996 at Augsburg and 45-13 in 1998 at Augsburg.

COACHES: Augsburg coach Jack Osberg enters his ninth season with a 40-41 career mark. Mayville State coach Stan Rettew is in his fourth year and has a 3-22 overall mark.

RADIO: KYCR-AM 1570 is the home for Auggie football in 1999. This week's game will feature Tom Witschen on play-by-play with Don Stoner on analysis (Augsburg's regular color commentator, Russ Bohaty, will return next week at Hamline). KMAV radio in Mayville is also airing the game (1520 AM, 105.5 FM) with Dan Keating on play-by-play and Brian Larson on color commentary.

ABOUT THE AUGGIES: It's Augsburg's first game of the season, and some of the sights familiar to Augsburg College football fans over the past four seasons won't be there when the Auggies return to action for the 1999 season. Sights like the maroon No. 30 jersey of Scott Hvistendahl, the most proficient wide receiver (in terms of career receiving yards) in the history of college football in America, streaking down the sidelines for another touchdown. Or his receiving mate, Tim Hamer, making a clutch reception late in a game. Or running backs Thane Drier and Jim Peterson piling on the yardage behind the blocks of Andy Larson, Craig Peroutka and Doug Grauer. Or kicker Martin Hlinka putting another ball straight through the uprights. Or defensive linemen Steve Sathre and Guillaume Paek registering quarterback sack after sack. Or tenacious pass defenders Andy Zigan and Todd Hamer patrolling the secondary.

But there isn't despair on the Minneapolis campus for head coach Jack Osberg, entering his ninth season as the Auggies' mentor. Osberg has led a resurrection of Augsburg football during his tenure, and stands at the apex of a unique achievement for Auggie football -- reaching the .500 mark for his career. Osberg is 40-41 entering the 1999 season; just one other coach in the history of Augsburg football has ever won as many games as he lost -- Bill Caris, who went 19-19 from 1972-75. Osberg's 40 wins are the second-most for a coach in school history, behind Edor Nelson's 58 wins (58-118-10) from 1947-69.

What Osberg and his staff have been able to accomplish has been nothing short of amazing for Augsburg football -- building a program that proved, with last year's 6-4 finish, that the 1997 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship wasn't just a one-year wonder. The Auggies had a 90-man roster (the largest in school history) in the 1998 season, building precious depth that should help keep the Auggies on their high plateau of success for the 1999 season, despite the loss of the several key seniors from last year.

Osberg has often said that the hallmark of a consistent winning program in the MIAC is the ability to build depth at all positions. With several outstanding returners and one of the best recruiting and transfer classes in school history, Osberg's hopes for consistent depth for his Auggies may finally be realized.

"Our program is reaching the point where we're better able to replace our graduating starters than we've ever been before," Osberg said. "Our players coming back, and the players who will step in as starters, are all good, quality people. We're able to replace our starters lost with good MIAC players."

Augsburg's offensive strength will rest in the strong right arm of Paul Tetzloff (Jr., Faribault, Minn.), who earned All-MIAC second-team honors last season, his first in an Auggie uniform. Despite missing a game-and-a-half due to injury last season, Tetzloff still led the MIAC in passing yardage per game, and his 269.9 yards-per-game total-offense average was 13th-best in the nation.

"Tetzloff finished very strong last year. He was one of the leading quarterbacks in the conference," Osberg said. "We have that to build from, and hopefully he has the talented players to throw to."

Two juniors are ready to step into the shoes left by Hvistendahl and Tim Hamer to catch the balls thrown by Tetzloff -- Damien Rochon-Washington (Jr., Chicago, Ill./Kenwood Academy) and Desman Oakley (Jr., Indianola, Iowa). Rochon-Washington, the team's No. 3 receiver the past two years, is a speedster who averaged 10 yards per reception last season. Oakley is also a quick receiver, and while not seeing a lot of varsity football action the past two seasons, has made his mark on campus by breaking record after record for the Auggie track team as a sprinter and hurdler. Tim Murphy (So., Northfield, Minn./Lakeville HS) is also ready to contend for a starting spot at wide receiver. Mark Johnson (So., Hastings, Minn.), a transfer from Division II South Dakota State, could contend for a starting role, while Sam Gross (Fr., Springfield, Minn.) and Cole Bryan (Fr., Buffalo, Minn.) are quality recruits. Mac Gordon (Sr., Red Wing, Minn.) returns for his second year as the starting tight end, though Jesse Naughton (Fr., Spring Lake Park, Minn.) could challenge.

Brian Warden (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran HS) will step into the starting halfback role this season. Warden was second on the team last year in rushing, averaging 4.1 yards per carry. John Rotter (Jr., Montgomery, Minn./Montgomery-Lonsdale HS) looks ready to assume the starting fullback role. Rico Washington (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn./Roosevelt HS) has been strong at both running back positions. Other players who could contend for rushing time include Jared Lynch (So., Jordan, Minn.), Terrence Jones (Jr., Rosemount, Minn.), Wisconsin all-stater T.J. Bramwell (Fr., Tomah, Wis.), Jamie Smith (Fr., Oakdale, Minn./Tartan HS), Itasca Community College transfer Jeff Patnode (Jr., Aitkin, Minn.) and Mesabi CC transfer Barry Pederson (So., Grand Marais, Minn.).

"There will be some key competition at both running back and wide receiver," Osberg said. "Those two skill positions are both open. We expect some quality competition from our returners and our new kids."

Protecting the skill positions on the Auggie offense will be two offensive line returners who either started or saw significant playing time last year -- Todd Boerboom (Jr., St. Francis, Minn.) is a two-year veteran, while Andy Hansen (Jr., Mankato, Minn./Mankato East HS) also returns. Mike Hokanson (Jr., Maple Plain, Minn./Osseo HS), Eric Renneberg (Jr., Grand Marais, Minn./Cook County HS), Tim Scholla (Jr., Waconia, Minn.) and Max Milinkovich (Jr., Montgomery, Minn./Montgomery-Lonsdale HS) were solid backups in 1998, and newcomers Ben Mulvey (Fr., Eden Prairie, Minn.) and Rich Nelson (Fr., Eagan, Minn.) could challenge for a role on the offensive line.

On defense, the big question will be who will replace Sathre and Paek on the defensive line. Jason Van Houten (Sr., Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy HS) and Matt Chappius (So., Faribault, Minn.) are returning starters, and Dave Sherry (So., Hastings, Minn.) gained valuable experience as a backup last year. Brandon Ward (Jr., Hastings, Minn.), an honorable-mention All-MIACer on the offensive line in 1998, will move to the defensive line and could make an immediate impact this season. Another player who will move from offense to defense is Lee Sprouls (Jr., Moorhead, Minn.), who played at tight end last year after seeing JV time at defensive line as a freshman. Recruits Ben Tangert (So., Minnetonka, Minn.), a transfer from Luther (Iowa) and Kyle Koch (Fr., Austin, Minn.) may also see significant time in the front four.

The defensive strength could come in the linebacking corps. Andy Howard (Jr., Waseca, Minn.) was third on the team in tackles (53, with two sacks) last year, while Kurt Werk (Jr., Herman, Minn./West Central Area HS) and Joe Souba (Jr., Hayward, Wis.) were fifth and sixth on the team in tackles last year, with 49 and 47 respectively. Dane Lund (Sr., Burnsville, Minn.) and Scott Archambault (So., Faribault, Minn.) also return with experience at linebacker, and transfer Mitch Theisen (So., Buffalo, Minn.) from Division II St. Cloud State could also make an immediate impact.

"We have several experienced kids back at linebacker," Osberg said. "We will be thin up front, experience-wise. We'll have to find some depth quickly in our front four and our secondary. We'll have to develop some depth from our newcomers. Depth on defense will be critical for us."

In the secondary, Jake Kern (Sr., Faribault, Minn.) returns for his senior season to cap an outstanding career at free safety. A second-team All-American as a sophomore and two-time All-MIAC first-teamer, he followed that year up with another solid season in 1998, leading the team in tackles (75), while recording seven pass break-ups and three interceptions for a career total of 10. Rob Just (Sr., Lakeville, Minn.) who led the team with four pickoffs last year, returns as a starting cornerback, and 1998 backups Brent Peroutka (So., Faribault, Minn.) and Chad Olson (Sr., Farmington, Minn.) should also contend for starting roles. Kris Froyum (Sr., Cologne, Minn./Waconia HS), Chris Wahl (Sr., St. Charles, Minn.), Brian Vriesen (Sr., Elmore, Minn./Blue Earth Area HS), Josh Larsen (Jr., Morristown, Minn./Waterville-Elysian-Morristown HS), Mark Peterson (Jr., Eyota, Minn./Dover-Eyota HS) and Larry Lyden (So., New Brighton, Minn./Irondale HS) add depth in the secondary, and Nate Loughran (Fr., Minneapolis, Minn./Washburn HS) is also a quality recruit.

On special teams, Matt Van Alstine (Jr., Cottage Grove, Minn./Park HS) will be counted as the Auggies' kicker, after backing up Hlinka for two seasons. The coaching staff has also recruited freshman kicker Joe Culhane (Fr., Eagan, Minn.). Brent Peroutka may take over punting duties from Hvistendahl, though newcomers Bart Rall (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.), a transfer from Rochester Community College, and Barry Pederson are also good punters.

SCOUTING THE COMETS: Mayville State opened the 1999 season with a 27-7 loss to Minnesota-Crookston last Saturday. It was a rough start for the Comets, as they were only able to muster 131 yards of total offense (107 passing, 24 rushing) all afternoon to the NCAA Division II Golden Eagles. Mayville led early, on a 66-yard pass from Kevin Clausen to Steve Gerszewski, but the lead evaporated in the second quarter. Clausen is in his second year as the Comets' starting quarterback, and has a deep corps of receivers to throw to, including seniors Kelly Kalina and Taylor Mack. On defense, like the Auggies, the Comets are deep at linebacker, with Bobby Romander returning as the team's leader in tackles.

NEXT WEEK: Augsburg continues its road opening to the season with a game at Hamline University to open the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference campaign. Game time is 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 18, at Hamline's Norton Stadium in St. Paul.