Game From Obscurity

Toward the end of every week, tBBC gives you a preview of a game that might be more entertaining than “The Massacre Of The EMUs”.

This week, our journey takes us to the heart of Klosterman Country as the Vikings of Valley City State University travel to play the Minot State Beavers in a rematch of last year’s turnover laden 21-17 Beaver victory.

This is a Dakota Athletic Conference match up between two NAIA powers on their way to the DAC Bowl.  Gotta’ be honest here- I’d watch it if it was the DAG Bowl. The DAC Bowl ends the season as all of the teams in the conference play each other again based on standings- #1 and #4, #2 and #5, etc.  The fear of a rematch doesn’t seem to freak them out as much as it does the folks in the Big T1e1n Conference office…

The Vikings of Valley City State look to rebound from their conference opening loss, which came a week after falling to the Cobbers of Concordia (I wish I was making that up). They are led by teammates from our 49th and 50th states; Alaskan Garrett Jackson was awarded the “Hammer” honor, while Hawaiian Taylor Carvalho was acknowledged with the “Balls Out” award following August’s training camp. I’m guessing that’s for effort and not for continual wardrobe malfunctions.

Valley City State is located in Valley City North Dakota; I’m guessing “County Province Region University” didn’t make it past the marketing team.  VCSU was founded in 1890 as a teacher’s college, and aspires for the 1500 traditional undergraduates to graduate with a series of competencies that include “Aesthetic Engagement“. They not only want students to decide to be a part of their community, they help them learn how to make any decisions. But how would someone decide to look there for help in deciding how to decide where deciding will happen for them? I need to take a nap…

The Beavers of Minot State (Seriously? They couldn’t go with the obvious choice?) were picked as the pre-season #2 team in the DAC, and are also sitting at 1-2, although they will look to build on their 42-10 win over Mayville State. Minot State WR Johnny Lester is the reigning DAC Special Teams player of the week, after a kickoff return for a TD and success in the punt return game as well. He’s from Miami Florida, so these facts shouldn’t be a surprise to Buckeye fans.

Founded in 1913, MSU’s core purpose is to help “people appreciate life and learning and contribute meaningfully to the lives of others.” So there’s that. It’s homecoming week at Minot State, so they’re hopeful that alumni Josh Duhamel will make the trip back to cheer on the Beavers. The motto for this year’s festivities is to paint the town MSU Red- you’ve got to wonder if there will be an opportunity to check the entire populace with one of the famous Minot Tours.