Story by
The Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.
Matt Zimmer: Jackrabbits preparing for explosive Coyote offense
- Story byThe Daily Republic, Mitchell, S.D.
- Matt Zimmer: Jackrabbits preparing for explosive Coyote offense
Oct. 27—BROOKINGS — The USD Coyotes had a pretty big question mark heading into the 2026 season. Who would replace all-time great Aidan Bouman as the starting quarterback?
A three-man battle between returning senior Nevan Cremascoli, transfer Jackson Proctor and redshirt freshman Austyn Modrzewski played out in camp, and the youngster won the job and soon became something of an immediate folk hero.
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In his first college start the two-time Colorado high school player of the year tied a school record with six touchdown passes, and two months later he's the favorite to win the Jerry Rice award as the top freshman in the FCS.
Modrzewski has completed 67 percent of his passes for 1,893 yards and an FCS-leading 24 touchdown passes, and the Coyotes have the No. 2 scoring offense in the Valley at 37.8 points per game.
Saturday in Brookings he'll make his debut in the rivalry with South Dakota State, as the Coyotes invade Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium looking for their first road win over the Jackrabbits in the Division I era, and SDSU is well aware of what's coming. The Jacks had a great deal of respect for Bouman, who got his first win in the series in his final chance in last year's 24-17 Coyotes win in the DakotaDome, and they know they've got their hands full with Modrzewski and the explosive USD offense.
"They're really good," said Jacks defensive coordinator Brian Bergstrom. "I think they're very talented and very well-coached and they're explosive. Some teams do a million different things — they don't do a lot of different things, they're just really good at what they do."
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Modrzewski's breakthrough has garnered the headlines, but he's far from a solo artist. Charles Pierre (2nd in the Valley in rushing yards) is one of the most feared running backs in the country, while wide receiver Brayden White has also been a breakout star as a redshirt freshman, leading the Valley with eight touchdown catches. They're all doing it behind an offensive line that returned just one starter but has quickly meshed into a strong unit behind first-year O-line coach James Bain.
"They're good," said Jacks defensive end Reis Kirschenman. "Their quarterbacks are good. Their running backs are good. They got a good scheme that gives them good opportunities to move the ball. They fall forward every single time they run the ball for three or four extra yards, so they don't get put in a lot of third and long situations, so give them props, they're a good team."
If anyone can slow them down, it's the Jacks. SDSU allows the fewest points of any Valley team (15.8) and are No. 1 in pass defense and third in rush defense. They'll hope to contain Pierre by playing fast, filling running lanes and tackling well.
As for containing Modrzewski, they'll hope that an assist from what is expected to be a sellout crowd of 19,000-plus can aid them in making the second-year signal-caller uncomfortable. But Bergstrom said that won't be easy, because Modrzewski isn't your typical freshman.
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"As young as he is he seems really poised," Bergstrom said. "He's fast and he can really throw, so he's got those tangibles of a good quarterback, but a lot of times with guys like that it's like, oh, well, he's immature, he'll make bad decisions or he doesn't take care of the ball. He does a good job with all of that. But this will be more challenging than playing at home against UND, playing up here, outside with our crowd. We'll definitely try to rattle him but it won't be easy."
The only offense in the Valley that's scored more points than USD is Youngstown State, and the Jacks held them to 20 points and 349 yards, corralling reigning Walter Payton Award winning quarterback Beau Brungard in the process. Even in their recent loss to UND the defense was solid, holding the Fighting Hawks to 21 points and 291 yards.
The Jacks respect Modrzewski and the rest of the Coyote offense, but they know if they play at a high level they can beat them.
"You've got to win up front to be able to create some pressure on him, and then be able to contain him because he's an awesome athlete," said head coach Dan Jackson. "You create pressure on him, you change looks, you play sound football where you put pressure on him to make plays and you try not to give them things by making mistakes. So defensively you've got to be sound, physical and aggressive."
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SDSU has an outstanding front seven and improved secondary, and much like their national championship teams, they're playing a rotation that's at least 20 men deep. They've hurt themselves with missed assignments and personal foul penalties of late, so they feel like if they can clean that up they'll have success.
"They're going to do what they do and we're going to do what we do," said linebacker Chase Van Tol. "Honestly it's just going to come down to just playing hard-nosed football."
Van Tol also said the Jacks expect Modrzewski to make mistakes. He's a freshman, after all.
Potential bulletin board material? Well, maybe, but Yotes coach Matt Vitzthum basically said the same thing.
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Dykhouse Stadium is going to be a tough environment. A national TV audience. A sellout crowd that won't feature a lot of red. And the stakes are high: The winner moves closer to at least a share of the Valley title and stays in the hunt for a top seed, while the loser is destined to do some traveling come playoff time.
Vitzthum knows that will test his quarterback. He knows there will be difficult moments. But he's confident Modrzewski can handle it.
"Saturday is not going to go perfect for Austyn," Vitzthum said. "He's probably going to make a mistake or two, as is everybody, including myself. It's all about his response. And I've seen him respond all year to some things that haven't gone his way. So (I'm) comfortable we'll get him prepared this week and confident he'll go up there with a great mindset and perform well for us."
