Alex Eisen/MDN Minot State junior quarterback Ben Bolinske (2) runs with the football in an NSIC game played earlier this season at Herb Parker Stadium in Minot. Bolinske has rushed for 235 yards and passed for 909 yards in six games this season.

Last week could be classified as a nightmare for the Minot State football team. Except it wasn’t just a bad dream, it really did happen.

From inconvenient travel detours to the 49-3 smackdown issued by Winona State on Sunday, the Beavers best course of action to get better this week was to not dwell on the past.

“We have to flush this last game as quickly as we can out of our system,” MSU head coach Mike Aldrich said. “And look forward to Concordia coming up here, they have been playing well. It’s going to be a good challenge for us.”

The travel adventures for Minot State last weekend included multiple stops and re-routes to reach Winona State. While the game was eventually played on Sunday, it caused a ripple effect.

The Beavers (2-4) had to play catch up this week after losing a day of preparation. But, on the bright side, they aren’t stuck on a bus as MSU hosts home game No. 3 of the season this afternoon.

“It’s good that we don’t have to travel,” Aldrich said. “But, we still have the ramifications of our travel. Getting back earlier (Monday) morning really throws a wrench into our normal schedule. We are going to have to adjust some things with our guys to make sure they have enough recovery time.”

Concordia-St. Paul comes to Minot fresh off a 24-17 homecoming victory over Minnesota State Moorhead on Saturday, Oct. 12.

The Golden Bears tied an NCAA Division II record with 14 sacks in the contest. With a single-game school record of 22 tackles for a loss, Concordia also held MSUM to -97 rushing yards — another program record.

The Beavers offensive line is going to have its hands full. But they have protected junior quarterback Ben Bolinske more than adequately so far, giving up the second-fewest sacks in the NSIC this season with only five.

Bolinske, a running quarterback, doesn’t sit in the pocket waiting to be sack either. His escape from the pressure mentality will be a valuable asset to have this week.

“We definitely don’t want to get stuck behind the chains against these guys,” Aldrich said. “They are going to come after the quarterback pretty hard, so we got to do some things to make sure we protect and try to alleviate that pressure.”

Getting freshman running back Ali Mohamed back on track would help. Mohamed was limited to nine yards on nine carries against Winona State. He entered the game with the second-most rushing yards per game (85.2) in the conference.

Concordia is averaging 135 rushing yards per game with senior quarterback Maxon Hutton being the team’s leading rusher with 46.5 yards per game. Throwing the ball, Hutton is 80-for-137 (58.4%) with four touchdowns and four interceptions.

“Just watching them on film, everything goes through their quarterback,” Aldrich said. “He is a pretty dynamic runner. With the things he can do on the ground, we have to account for that. That can be somewhat of a headache.”

MSU’s run defense is ranked 14th in the NSIC, allowing 237.5 yards per game. Winona State inflated that number with 280 yards on the ground last week and four rushing touchdowns.

The Beavers allowed 200-plus rushing yards in every game except one — the 24-16 win over Minnesota Crookston on Sept. 28.

While Winona State exposed Minot State’s flaws last week, the Beavers are pushing forward. It’s the only thing they can do.

“When we flush it, we don’t even have time to watch it with our guys,” Aldrich said. “I don’t think there is any extra motivation that we need to do. I think we will be ready to bounce back.”

MSU goes for its first home win of the season at 3 p.m. this afternoon at Herb Parker Stadium. Expect plenty of pink, as it will be the Beavers’ annual breast cancer awareness game.

Alex Eisen covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @AEisen13.