This one hurt.

There is little doubt after the South Dakota School of Mines football team fell to 21st-ranked Minot State on Saturday that the players and coaches know these are the kind of games the Hardrockers have to win before they can fully turn the corner they began rounding the last couple of seasons.

The questions that need to be answered will be tackled this week in practice for Mines, but the answers may take some time to find.

"I really don't know what happened," Mines quarterback Nick Russell said of his team's inability to score after putting up 21 points in the first half. "We need to mix it up a little more because they are keying on what we are doing pretty well.

"We need to get back to work on Monday, look at film, have a good week of practice and take it to (Dickinson State) next week."

The biggest question to be answered has to be the ability of the offensive line to protect Russell, who faced near constant pressure in the game every time he dropped back.

The Hardrockers are now two full games behind Dickinson State and the Beavers, who are both undefeated in conference play. Mines fell to 2-2 in the Dakota Athletic Conference and has now suffered back-to-back losses. It was knocking on the door of the top 25 rankings just two weeks ago, but now instead of aiming high the Hardrockers first must right the ship, and do it against a Dickinson State team fresh off a big win over Black Hills State on Saturday.

Unfortunately, losing takes all the fun out of football even when you are putting together one of the best two-week spans of your football career.

Defensive end Joseph Berke had five tackles and one fumble recovery returned 65 yards for a touchdown to give Mines a 14-7 lead in the first quarter on Saturday.

This came on top of last week's DAC defensive player of the week honors after recording five tackles for a loss, including a sack, against Jamestown College.

"It was exciting at the time, it really was, but it would have been better if we would have come out on top," Berke said of his touchdown. "I would love to win the conference and I know that these last two games were very important - especially this week - but things just sometimes didn't go our way today."

Berke's disappointment was felt throughout the Hardrocker team, but the effort and impact is exactly what head coach Dan Kratzer is looking for.

"Joe Berke has really stepped a notch," he said. "We have been asking some guys to step up and be a playmaker. He did step up and that was a great momentum changer for us."

Mines did not have enough playmakers on Saturday, which was due in part to what the Beavers were able to do, but the Hardrockers' high-flying offense only works best when both the run and pass are clicking.

The run game never found its footing against Minot State, but the Mines season is far from over.

"We have half the season left so we still have the opportunity to get better and be in better position this year than we were last year," Kratzer said. "We can still put ourselves in position to play one of these teams we have lost to in the DAC Bowl. It is far from over and we are excited we are doing a lot of things right this year."