Tigers Set for Top 20 Clash

MITCHELL, S.D. – The No. 15 Dakota Wesleyan University football team is looking to start 3-0 for the fourth time in five years, but to get there the Tigers must go through No. 18 Northwestern College (Iowa) at 1 p.m. Saturday Sept. 20 at Joe Quintal Field in Mitchell, S.D.

The third straight home game to start the 2014 season is also part of the annual DWU Blue and White Days celebration. Events for homecoming this week include the groundbreaking for the new DWU Sports and Wellness Complex Thursday, the DWU cross country invitational at Wild Oak Golf Course at 9 a.m. Saturday, followed by the Blue and White Days Parade. There will be a tailgate prior to the football game, while the Tiger men's and women's soccer teams are also in action starting at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Pepsi-Cola Soccer Complex in Mitchell.

The Tiger football team comes into its matchup with the Red Raiders after opening the season with a thrilling come-from-behind win over the University of Wisconsin-Stout in the season opener and a victory over a feisty Briar Cliff University squad that kept up with the Tigers until the fourth quarter.

The 2014 season is off to a slow start for Northwestern, which fell to Bacone College at home in the season opener. The Red Raiders picked up a win over Great Plains Athletic Conference foe Doane College 17-10 in overtime last week despite having trouble moving the ball on offense for most of the contest.

In the 2013 matchup between DWU and Northwestern in Orange City, Iowa, the Tigers and Red Raiders engaged in a shootout that saw a total of more than 1,000 yards of offense. Northwestern topped DWU 49-42 as the teams went on to tie for second place in the GPAC behind defending champion Morningside College. Northwestern owns a 12-2 all-time record against DWU and has taken the last four matchups.

The Red Raiders will be charged with stopping the nation's leading rusher, DWU senior running back Francois Barnaud (Belle Fourche, S.D.), who is averaging an NAIA-best 221 yards per game through the early portion of the season. He has added four touchdowns in two games as well. Northwestern was one of the few teams to keep Barnaud under 100 yards rushing in the 2013 matchup between the schools, but he did find the end zone three times.

At the quarterback position, true freshman Dillon Turner (Salem, Ark.) will make his second start of the season against Northwestern after getting the nod last week for the first time. Turner is 25-for-39 passing for 203 yards and two interceptions. Turner has added 47 yards rushing and two scores. The Tigers have yet to find the end zone through the air this season.

Sophomore Alex Robertson (Canistota, S.D.) leads the Tiger receiving corps with 11 catches for 140 yards, while sophomore Kodi Larson (Tyndall, S.D.) has hauled in eight catches for 111 yards.

The Tiger defense has come through with big plays through the first two weeks. In the season opener, the DWU secondary came away with three interceptions, including one to secure the win late. Against Briar Cliff, senior linebacker Anthony Cervantes (Burbank, Calif.) picked off a pass in the second quarter and returned it 77 yards for a score.

Junior defensive back Tanner Munk (Dell Rapids, S.D.) added another big interception return for the Tigers in the third quarter against the Chargers, taking the ball down to the eight-yard line to set up a Barnaud score. Cervantes was named the GPAC Defensive Player of the Week for his effort. DWU has won four of the five POTW awards given by the GPAC for football this season (no special teams' award was given last week).

The Red Raiders have been led by running back Jessie Riley with 40 carries for 164 yards and one score, while Paul Hutson has carried the ball 30 times for 91 yards and two touchdowns.

At the quarterback position, the two starts this season have been split by sophomore Craig Bruinsma and sophomore Braden Miltenberger. Bruinsma came in for Miltenberger in the season opening loss and got the start in the second game. Bruinsma is listed atop the Red Raider quarterback depth chart heading into the matchup with DWU. Through two games, Bruinsma is 18-for-41 passing with one touchdown and one interception. Miltenberger tossed four interceptions in the loss to Bacone.

On defense, Greg Hagstad leads the Red Raiders with 22 tackles, including 19 solo and five tackles for loss. Justin Wohlert has two interceptions this season, including one to put away Doane in overtime last week.

The early season matchup of top-20 teams should have implications on the GPAC race and potential playoff chances for both teams. DWU and Northwestern tied at 7-2 in the GPAC last season, but the Red Raiders were invited to the postseason, while the Tigers were outside looking in.