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INDIANAPOLIS – The Bulldogs will open the 2019 football season at Target Field in Minneapolis by taking on #1 North Dakota State. Kick-off on ESPN+ is set for 4 PM Eastern, 3 PM Central.
 
BULLDOG BITS
- Butler vs. North Dakota State is the first-ever Division I football game at Target Field.
- Mason Brunner, Luke Sennett, Brad Sznajder and John McArthur have been named team captains.
- Butler's 2019 season opener doubles as the first start of QB Sam Brown's collegiate career.
- Jeff Voris enters his 14th season on the sideline at Butler. He has recorded 74 wins since taking over in 2006.
- First-year coaches at Butler in 2019 include BJ Coad, Matthew McCarroll, Derelle Hankins, and Tucker Marty.
- Butler was the least penalized team in the PFL last year (46.1 yards per game).
- The Bulldogs ranked second in time of possession (31:38) last year among all PFL teams.
- Butler will attempt to snap North Dakota State's Division I-leading 21-game winning streak.
- NDSU returns seven of 22 starters from last year's team. Butler returns nine.
- 2019 marks the fifth-straight season for NDSU to come in at #1 in the preseason poll.
 
SCOUTING NDSU
The Bison posted a 38-24 win over Eastern Washington last year to secure their seventh Division 1 FCS national championship in the past eight years. The undefeated (15-0) 2018 team helped North Dakota State bring home their 15th national title in school history. Top returning players on the defensive side of the ball include Jabril Cox and Derrek Tuszka. The offensive line also brings back two talented tackles in Zack Johnson and Dillon Radunz. NDSU averaged 41.5 points per game last year, while limiting the opponent to just 12.6. They rushed for 286 yards per game and scored 54 TD's on the ground.
 
OL Zack Johnson and LB Jabril Cox were named to the 2019 Athlon Sports FCS Preseason All-America Team.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
This is the first meeting between Butler and North Dakota State.
 
BU and NDSU shared a common opponent in 2018. BU defeated Youngstown State 23-21 in the season opener. NDSU handed YSU a 17-7 loss on Nov. 3.
 
ITS GOOD
Drew Bevelhimer has made more field goals in his BU career than any other Bulldog. From 2016-18 Bevelhimer has split the uprights 36 times. Bevelhimer also holds the single-season record at Butler with 16 makes during the 2017 season.
 
Bevelhimer's longest made field goal at Butler was a 47-yarder (2016).
 
PHIL STEELE'S 2019 PRESEASON ALL-PIONEER LEAGUE TEAMS
Mickey Kane and Luke Sennett are first-team honorees; Mason Brunner and Drew Bevelhimer are second-team selections; Brad Sznajder and Stephen Dennis are each members of the third-team.
 
SENNETT RETURNS AT SAFETY
Luke Sennett recorded a team-best 104 tackles during the 2018 season. He was the first Bulldog to reach 100+ since 2012 (Jordan Ridley - 101).
 
Sennett recorded a career-high 17 tackles at Jacksonville last year.
 
KANE CAME ON STRONG
DE Mickey Kane was the Co-Freshman Defensive Player of the Year in the PFL. He made the 2018 Phil Steele FCS Freshman All-America Second Team and was an honorable mention selection to the All-PFL team.
 
MASON MAKIN' PLAYS
LB Mason Brunner recorded 73 tackles a year ago with two sacks. He had 8.5 tackles for loss, two QB hurries and one pass break-up.
 
BRAD SZNAJDER IS BACK
RB Brad Sznjader was an honorable mention selection for the All-PFL team a year ago. He led Butler and ranked fifth in the conference in rushing yards per game (88.4). He ended his junior year with 972 yards and five TD's on the ground.
 
Sznajder holds a 3.89 GPA and was a Second Team Academic All-American in 2018.
 
MCARTHUR ANCHORS THE O-LINE
John McArthur is the only returning starter from last year's offensive line unit that helped BU average136 rushing yards per game.
 
McArthur has started in 24 games during his BU career.
 
DENNIS SET TO DELIVER
WR Stephen Dennis is the top threat on the outside for Butler. He caught 47 passes as a junior for 586 yards and a touchdown.
 
Dennis transferred to Butler from Western Michigan. He caught at least two passes in every game last year. His longest grab was a 73-yard TD vs. Stetson.
 
UPSET SPECIAL
Butler's Week 1 win at #24 Youngstown State in 2018 was the first win by a PFL member against a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference since 2007 when Drake defeated Illinois State.
 
Drew Bevelhimer drilled a 44-yard field goal with just four seconds on the game clock to give Butler a 23-21 victory at Youngstown State. The Bulldogs stormed back to outscore the Penguins 16-0 in the fourth quarter.
 
SEASON OPENERS
Butler is 7-6 in season openers under head coach Jeff Voris.
 
UP NEXT
Butler will host Indiana Wesleyan at the Sellick Bowl on Saturday, Sept. 7. Kick-off for the home opener is set for 6 PM.