I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.
Oct. 3, 1998
By Devlyn Brooks
The BSU Beaver football team travels to NSIC-favorite Winona State University today in a contest which might have title implications should the Beavers pull off the upset.
Both teams are coming off wins last weekend, with the Beavers downing Moorhead State 22-10 in the BSU Homecoming game, and Winona State earning a 42-17 win while visiting Northern State University.
The Beavers (1-0 NSIC, 3-1) have wins over Mayville (N.D.) State, Moorhead State and St. Thomas University, while they dropped a close 34-30 game to the University of Minnesota-Crookston in BSU's season opener.
Winona (1-0 NSIC, 3-0) has posted wins over Ferris (Mich.) State, the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse and Northern State.
Third-year head coach Jeff Tesch's Beavers are led offensively by junior college transfer quarterback Ben Morie, junior tailback Chris Meyer and freshman wideout Jason Leden.
Morie, who led Santa Rosa (Calif.) Community College to a 7-4 record last year, has thrown for almost 800 yards passing while connecting with Leden for six TD receptions in four games.
His exploits have made him 10th in passing efficiency nationwide in NCAA Division II football.
Meyer, who rushed for BSU's first 1,000-yard year in almost a decade in 1997, is also closing in on the team's all-time rushing mark while he continues to pile up yards weekly.
He is ranked fifth in rushing nationwide with a 172.5-yards-per-game average.
Leden leads all Beaver receivers with 22 catches, 340 yards and six TDs, which ranks him 12th in scoring in the nation.
However, no matter how spectacular the Beaver offense has been, the Warriors' offense is even more potent.
Winona did lose All-American tailback Travis Walch to graduation, but they return quarterback Jake Goettl, who led the conference in passing and total offense in 1997.
Goettl has lit up defensive backfields this year with his strong arm, earning the NSIC offensive player of the week honor last week for completing 15-of-22 passes for 229 yards and three TDs. He produced 293 yards of total offense, including 64 yards rushing on 11 carries.
This will be the most difficult challenge yet for the Beavers, who are working on their best start since 1985.
It will demonstrate just how far the program has come under Tesch's command should the Beavers perform well. Winona finished with an 8-2 overall record and a perfect 6-0 conference record last year, a level of talent the Beavers have not yet faced this year.
This will be the 63rd time the two teams have met, with the Warriors holding a 34-27-1 advantage. They have also won six of the last seven meetings.
BSU's last win came in 1995 by a score of 25-14.
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