Wolves Down Warriors At Ag Bowl For 2-0 Start

Posted on September 4, 2026 by - Sports

Aberdeen, SD (NSUWolves.com) – For the first time in over 20 years, the Northern State University football team is starting off the season with back-to-back wins, downing Winona State in the NSIC opener from Dacotah Bank Stadium. The Wolves racked up 31 points in the win and saw Hank Kraft match his rushing total from a week ago with another 232 yards and three total touchdowns.
THE QUICK DETAILS
Final Score: NSU 31, WSU 16
Records: NSU 2-0 (1-0 NSIC), WSU 0-2 (0-1 NSIC)
Attendance: 5855
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • The Wolves started fast, scoring 14 points in the first off a pair of Hank Kraft touchdowns, including the game opening scoring rush of 92-yards; Kraft now holds the second and third longest rushing scores in program history after his 89-yard last week and 92-yarder today
  • Kraft followed that up with a 3-yard receiving touchdown via Ty Englehart with 15 seconds to play in the opening fra
  • Winona State answered back in the second, putting three points on the board via a 38-yard field goal by Evan Swanstrom
  • Swanstrom opened the second half scoring with his second field goal at 10:15 in the third, bring the Warriors within eight of the Wolves
  • Nine plays and 65 yards later, Joey Dube-Garrett threw the first touchdown of his Northern State career to Jacoby Boykins, a 29-yard receiving score, which gave NSU a 21-6 lead
  • Swanstrom upheld his scoring prowess for the Warriors adding a 26-yard field goal as the third quarter wrapped up
  • It was all Northern State in the fourth, as Kraft rushed for his third touchdown of the evening a 53-yard run and Jeremy Caruso capped off the evening with a 34-yard field goal in the final two minutes of play
  • Caruso also went a perfect 4-for-4 in PAT, scoring a total of seven points for the Wolves in the win
  • Northern tallied 404 yards of total offense with 16 first downs, averaging 8.6 yards per rush and 5.0 yards per reception
  • The Warriors recorded 351 yards of total offense with 16 first downs as well, averaging 4.9 yards per rush and 5.1 yards per reception with the Wolves defense holding them to just one touchdown in the game
  • The Wolves defense held WSU to 4-of-16 on third downs, forced one interception to close out the game, and tallied two sacks for a loss of 19 yards from Gabe Gutierrez; the two sacks move the edge to fourth all-time on the career lists with 14.5
  • Dube-Garrett and Englehart threw for a combined 146 yards with one touchdown apiece, converting 16-of-29 attempts
  • Kraft averaged 10.5 yards per carry with two rushing touchdowns, including a 92-yard long, to lead the Wolves on the ground and added a team second best 33 yards receiving with one touchdown
  • Boykins led the receivers with 54 total yards, averaging 13.5 yards per catch
  • Jake Adams was back to his double figure ways on defense, racking up 17 total tackles, including 11 solo stops, followed by Cooper Logan with eight
  • Elijah Jopp and Javonnee Szymanski were third on the team with six tackles each with Jopp notching 2.0 for a loss of nine yards
  • Landon Kelley grabbed the team’s interception on a last-ditch scoring effort by the Warriors as time expired in the fourth
  • Jackson Isakson tallied 183 yards punting, averaging 45.8 yards per punt, while Caruso averaging 59.7 yards per kick-off with four touchbacks
  • In the return game, Cooper Eisenbeisz tallied a combined 61 return yards with a 35-yard long
NORTHERN STATE STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
  • Hank Kraft: 265 total yards, 3 touchdowns, 10.5 yards per rush
  • Jacoby Boykins: 54 receiving yards, 1 touchdown
  • Jake Adams: 17 tackles, 11 solo tackles
  • Elijah Jopp: 6 tackles, 2.0 tackles for a loss
  • Gabe Gutierrez: 2.0 sacks for a loss of 19 yards
  • Jeremy Caruso: 4 PAT, 34-yd field goal
UP NEXT
Northern State hits the road for a pair of contests over the next two weeks. They travel to Southwest Minnesota State for a 5 p.m. kick-off on September 12 and Minnesota State for a 1 p.m. match-up on September 19.

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