MSU football opens practice with high expectations
Aug. 6—Coming off a rare six-win season, the Minnesota State football team was an underdog in several games last season, including a region semifinal game at Colorado School of Mines.
But the Mavericks are underdogs no more.
"There should be high expectations for us," Minnesota State coach Todd Hoffner said. "We always have a target on our backs, but when you're nationally ranked, that gets magnified."
Minnesota State begins practice on Monday, coming off a 10-3 season and a near-upset at Colorado School of Mines to end 2022.
"The 2021 season was rough, with teams scoring a ton of points against us and we weren't able to keep up," Hoffner said. "The defense was better last season, and the offense was able to control the clock and moved the ball better."
The Mavericks will likely be near the top of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference coaches poll, as well as the national rankings, where they have spent much of the last 15 seasons. The Mavericks ended up 11th and 14th, respectively, in the final national polls last season.
"If you're not ready for football season, I'm not sure what gets you excited," senior cornerback Trey Vaval said. "But you need to stay level-headed, not get too high or too low. I'm excited to get started."
The Mavericks return seven starters on the offense, though most of the two-deep roster is back. Minnesota State averaged 33.6 points and 376.1 yards of total offense last season, led by quarterback Hayden Ekern. He missed three games with injury, and the Mavericks went on a five-game winning streak when he returned.
Running back Shen Butler-Lawson rushed for 996 yards and 12 touchdowns, rushing for more than 100 yards in four of the last five games. Four offensive linemen are back.
"We have a lot of 'box' players back on offense, even in our two-deep, so that's really nice," Hoffner said.
Vaval, an All-American, is one of four returning starters on the defense, which allowed 23.3 points and 358.8 yards of offense. However, the defense created 21 turnovers.
"When I was being recruited out of high school, I knew this was a dominant program," Vaval said. "But coming off a down season, we knew we had to return to dominance. I think we're on the right track, maybe better."
Punter Max Pelham and kicker Matthew Jaeger are back, and Vaval leads another dangerous group of returners.
However, Hoffner likes to say that every year is different and the results of last season don't guarantee future games.
"You can't just show up and win games," Hoffner said. "You focus on one game, and you try to build off that. We want to win championships."
The Mavericks will have four weeks of practice to prepare for the season-opener on Aug. 31 at Sioux Falls. There are only 10 conference games this season, with a nonconference game mixed in with Western Oregon, so the margin for error is reduced when it comes to NCAA tournaments.
"The potential for this team is as high as we want it to be," Vaval said. "We know we have the talent. We have a lot of young guys, but they're good football players. It's time for them to look in the mirror and realize it's a blessing for them to have the opportunity to play so early in their careers. Now we have to work together on the field.
"I think the national title is possible if we're clicking on all cylinders."
Follow Chad Courrier on Twitter @ChadCourrier.
