NSIC record for ex-Dodger Carver
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BEMIDJI, Minn. - Connor Carver took matters into his own hands here on Saturday.
The former Fort Dodge Senior High all-stater didn't see it that way at all, though.
Carver set a new single-game Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference record with 335 rushing yards as Bemidji State prevailed to bring a ray of sunshine to a rainy Homecoming weekend, defeating Minot State by a final of 37-19.
The junior quarterback has been known to do damage on the ground as much as through the air for the Beavers (2-3 overall). Carver took that to a whole new level on Saturday, scoring four times running while ripping off large chunks of yardage in what proved to be unprecedented fashion.
"It was just an amazing experience all around," said Carver, a 2023 FDSH graduate. "This is the 100th season of (Bemidji State) football, it was Homecoming and all the alumni were back, so it's definitely crazy how it all worked out.
"To be honest, the run game was really the only option. It was downpouring the whole game, so they just gave me the opportunity to do my thing and let it roll. I would say the biggest factor was the guys up front. (The coaches) challenged them earlier in the year to improve their physicality, and they haven't looked back. They dominated the line of scrimmage, as well as the fullbacks and running backs doing the lead blocking."
The Beavers led only 3-0 after a sloppy first quarter. Carver had 9- and 10-yard scoring runs to cap long drives in the second period, then added 20- and 47-yard jaunts to end lengthy possessions in the second half as well and allow BSU to pull away.
Carver broke the NSIC's previous single-game rushing record of 320 yards, established by Gabriel Watson of Sioux Falls in 2008. He carried the ball 36 times on Saturday.
"It might say my name in the record books, but it was a full-package deal and I wouldn't have been able to do it without my teammates," said Carver, who has struggled to stay healthy at times this year and missed the second game of the season earlier this month. "As far as injuries go, everyone deals with them. That's just how college football is. I try to think of it that way and know there are guys out there hurting a lot more than I am doing their job, so when it's my turn to do mine, I feel obligated to get it done."
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Carver now has a team-best 464 rushing yards this season and nine touchdowns on the ground with an average of 7.3 yards per carry. He is currently in a quarterback rotation with Bart McAninch at BSU.
Carver was named Fort Dodge's Schultz Award winner in 2023. He finished second to only Drake Miller on the football program's all-time charts in passing touchdowns (42), second in rushing yards by a quarterback behind only Randy Reiners (730), and third to Miller and Reiners in total passing yards (4,143).
In track, Carver was a state runner-up for the Dodgers in the 110 hurdles, while taking seventh in the discus, 10th in the 400 hurdles and 12th in the shot put. Carver was also an all-state rugby player for the Fort Dodge Stags.