Minnesota West football gets ready for Mesabi Range this week – The Globe

WORTHINGTON — The Minnesota West football team was plagued by mistakes in its 38-20 loss to North Dakota State College of Science last week.

The Bluejays are the No. 3 Division III NJCAA team in the country and will look to bounce back this Saturday back at Trojan Field against Minnesota North College-Mesabi Range. They are 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the Minnesota College Athletic Conference.

The Norse are also 1-1 in conference play as both they and the Bluejays are currently tied for third place in the conference standings with NDSCS at 2-0 and Rochester at 1-0.

Here is a deeper look into each team going into Saturday’s matchup.

The Bluejays’ two losses this year are against the top two teams in the nation.

They opened the season with a 37-7 loss to top-ranked and reigning champions DuPage where the Jays were outscored 16-0 in the second half.

Skyler Jackson / The Globe

But they bounced back in a big way against M State Fergus Falls on the road the following week, blowing out the Spartans 64-0. In the win, Minnesota West scored 34 points in the first quarter and forced two M State turnovers. The Bluejays totaled 484 yards of offense and held Fergus Falls to 145.

DuPage transfer quarterback Armon Vinson threw for over 300 yards and five touchdowns on 15 completions. His leading target was Tavion Johnson with four catches for 113 yards and two scores.

The Bluejay rushing attack totaled 127 yards with Brandon Coleman leading with 84 and two touchdowns.

The Minnesota West defense totaled five quarterback sacks on top of the two forced turnovers with Darron Millender getting two of them. The defense also finished with eight tackles for loss and held Fergus Falls to just 57 passing yards.

Skyler Jackson / The Globe

The Jays returned home last Saturday looking to continue the momentum and led NDSCS 20-7 midway through the second quarter. But seven Bluejay turnovers and the Wildcats rushing attack kept the game close as NDSCS took a 21-20 lead after three quarters.

The Wildcats fully took over the game in the fourth quarter, outscoring Minnesota West 17-0 in the quarter and forcing three turnovers.

The Bluejays finished with 529 yards of total offense with Vinson throwing for 429 of them with three touchdowns. But he turned the ball over four times, including three fumbles. Most of Minnesota West’s offense came through the air as the team only totaled 86 rushing yards.

Skyler Jackson / The Globe

Vinson’s top target on Saturday was all-American receiver Marlon Fluker, in his first game back after recovering from injury. Fluker caught eight passes for 102 yards and a 25-yard touchdown. Ethan Pridgen and Kaylon Bursey each caught touchdowns as well.

The Wildcats totaled 371 yards of offense with nearly all of them coming on the ground. Tellise Clark Jr. ran for 233 yards and four touchdowns. The last NDSCS turnovers was returned 91 yards for a score late in the game.

Through three games, the Bluejays are averaging a conference-beat 459 yards per game, including 353.7 passing, and 30.3 points per game. They are allowing 348.3 yards and 25 points per game.

The Norse opened their season against NDSCS and the Wildcats pulled away through the final three quarters en route to a 47-16 win. Mesabi Range only trailed 14-7 after the first quarter, but were outscored 33-9 after that.

Last week, the Norse hosted Vermilion CC and responded with a 58-0 shutout win. They totaled 466 yards of offense and held the Ironhawks to 160 yards. They also forced three Ironhawk turnovers.

The Norse are coming off a 4-4 season last year where they nearly won the MCAC championship, but were defeated 30-29 by NDSCS. Prior to that loss, they ended the regular season on a three-game win streak.

This year’s team is averaging 37 points and 318.5 yards a game and is giving up 23.5 points on defense. Quarterback Zeyshawn Martin has 202 passing yards and three touchdowns and leading running back Osten Jones has 236 yards and three scores and he is the conference leader in rushing yards per game.

The Norse defense has forced three turnovers with a fumble and two interceptions. The unit also has 8.5 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss. Middle linebacker Daniel Kokoska is the team’s leading tackler with 16.

Skyler Jackson joined the Globe in July 2023 as a reporter covering both news and sports. Born and raised in Sioux City, Iowa, Skyler attended South Dakota State University and graduated in 2023 with a degree in journalism. After graduating college, he decided on settling in Worthington for his current job at the Globe.