Upper Iowa Hosts St. Cloud State In 2016 Home Opener

The Upper Iowa Peacocks look to rebound from a season-opening road loss when they host St. Cloud State on Saturday (Sept. 10, 2016).

The Peacocks open the home portion of the 2016 campaign against the Huskies. Kick-off is set for 1:07 p.m. at Harms-Eischeid Stadium in Fayette.

Saturday's game is the fifth meeting between the Northern Sun Conference (NSIC) opponents since Upper Iowa moved to Division II and joined the league prior to the 2005 season. St. Cloud State holds a 3-1 advantage in the all-time series.

Both teams lost their season openers on Sept. 1. The Peacocks suffered a 38-24 setback at Bemidji State, while St. Cloud State fell at home, 49-13, to No. 20/23 Sioux Falls.

Upper Iowa's offense threw for the second most yards in the conference (392) in week one, while the Huskies gained 284 yards through the air. The Peacocks ran for 140 yards against the Beavers, while St. Cloud State struggled on the ground, rushing for 111 yard against Sioux Falls. Both teams will look to improve on the yards allowed by their defenses during week one; the Huskies allowed the most yards in the NSIC (585), while Upper Iowa gave up the second most (547).

Expect a fast-paced style of play from the Peacocks' offense unit. Upper Iowa ran 108 plays featuring 67 passes and 41 rush attempts in its first game, possessing the ball for 34-minutes, three-seconds. The Peacocks gained 32 first downs, the second-best total in the nation during the opening week.

Upper Iowa's trouble on offense against Bemidji State came in two areas. The Peacocks converted only eight of 21 third-down conversions and they committed three fourth quarter turnovers.

Upper Iowa football can be heard throughout the 2016 season on AM-950 KOEL with play-by-play announcer Joe Stasi, who's currently in his 14th season as the "Voice of the Peacocks" and 16th overall. This week he will be joined by Chris Shaw, a two-time graduate of Upper Iowa with an undergraduate degree in sports communications and a graduate degree in higher education administration. Shaw, worked in the UIU Sports Communication Office for five years, including two as a graduate assistant for current Director of Sports Communication Howie Thompson.

The AM-950 KOEL pre-game show is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.

For more insight on Saturday's game, click on the audio below. Upper Iowa football play-by-play announcer Joe Stasi previews the game with KOEL Sports Director Elwin Huffman.