Nebraska Wesleyan at Northwestern

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Game Time... For the second straight week, the Raiders will face a team ranked in the top 25 as they play host to 25th-ranked Nebraska Wesleyan. The Prairie Wolves are 1-1 this season and Northwestern, ranked 22nd in this week's poll, is also 1-1 this season. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m.

The Coaches... Brian Keller is in his 14th season and is the all-time winningest coach at Nebraska Wesleyan. He holds a 75-58 career record and has led the Prairie Wolves to a 7-3 record the last three years. Kyle Achterhoff is in his first season as head coach of the Raiders after spending the last 11 seasons as offensive and defensive coordinator.

All-Time Series... These two teams first met in 1987, and Northwestern holds a 16-6 all-time advantage in the season series. The Red Raiders have won the last nine match-ups but six of those wins were by five points or less. Nebraska Wesleyan last defeated Northwestern in 1999 (24-3).

Last Year... The Raiders outlasted Nebraska Wesleyan 17-15 last year in Lincoln, Neb. The Wolves scored first with 9:27 left in the first quarter on a 37-yard field goal by Zach Egger. Northwestern seized the lead right away when Taylor Malm ran the ensuing kickoff back 96 yards for a touchdown and 7-3 lead. Malm's kickoff return set a new school record for the longest return, breaking the old mark set in 1999 by Koury Kramer (75 yards) against South Dakota Tech. Nebraska Wesleyan grabbed the lead right back on their next drive as Jordan Stutzman picked up a Northwestern fumble and scampered 11 yards for a touchdown. Northwestern blocked the point-after attempt to trail 9-7. The Red Raiders took the lead again early in the second quarter on a Mike O'Brien 37-yard field goal, 10-9. Both teams failed to score again as Northwestern took its one point lead into the locker room.

Northwestern scored on its first possession of the second half off a one-yard run by Cary Overholt. The play capped an impressive 19-play, 70-yard drive that lasted over six minutes and gave NWC a 17-9 lead. With just 44 seconds left in the game, Nebraska Wesleyan scored on a 16-yard touchdown pass from Matt Hagge to Brandon Taute to cut the lead to 17-15. With Wesleyan going for two, the Red Raider defense came up big and stopped the potential game-tying pass play to seal the win. The Red Raiders recovered the on-side kick attempt to end the game.

Northwestern gained 170 total yards of offense, compared to 168 for the Prairie Wolves. Overholt completed 10-25 passes for 96 yards and one interception. Seth Moen was the top target with six catches for 75 yards. Kevin Vander Schaaf led the ground attack with 43 yards on just seven carries. Defensively, T.J. Lensch and Austin Rozeboom recorded 9.5 and 9.0 tackles, respectively. Nate Jansen totaled four tackles and 1.5 sacks. The Red Raider defense registered four sacks and forced one fumble.

Nebraska Wesleyan News and Notes... The Prairie Wolves moved into the NAIA Top 25 this week with an impressive 38-23 win over Dakota Wesleyan last weekend following a season-opening 44-3 loss to Sioux Falls. NWC trailed 16-12 at the end of three quarters but erupted for 26 points in the fourth quarter on four rushing touchdowns. Senior running back Kory Kahlandt rushed for three scores (14, 1, 55) and gained 165 yards on 27 carries for the game. Morgan Haupt scored the final touchdown on a 19-yard run and gained 33 total yards. Matt Hagge completed 7 of 14 passes for 97 yards; Jake Felton was the primary target with four receptions for 67 yards. Defensively, the Wolves forced four DWU turnovers despite giving up 434 yards of total offense, including 359 through the air. Josh Kendle and Garrett Rippen led the way with 7.5 tackles.

Coach Keller returned 30 letter winners and 12 starters off of last year's 7-3 squad. Offensively, Nebraska Wesleyan is seventh in the league in scoring (20.5), averaging 168 yards of total offense. Matt Hagge returns for his second season under center after throwing for over 1,000 yards and five touchdowns in 2008. The senior also rushed for three scores. Despite losing three running backs to  graduation, NWU features a potent rushing attack led by Kory Kahlandt, who averages 86 yards per game and has reached the end zone three times. Kahlandt earned honorable mention all-GPAC honors in 2008. Mike Millard is the lone returner at wide receiver but the position should be bolstered by the return of former all-GPAC wideout Jake Pelton, who played soccer in 2008, and Mike Colgrove, who missed all of the 2008 season due to injury. Up front, Nebraska Wesleyan returns three players who started, led by all-GPAC guard Garek Bebee. Returning kicker Zach Egger, a junior, was named GPAC and NAIA Special Teams Player of the Week after tying a school record with four field goals last week against DWU.

Defensively, NWU is giving up 33.5 points per game, ranking ninth in the league. Four starters return, led by senior defensive lineman Cameron Kolling, who earned second team all-GPAC honors in 2008. Kolling totaled 63 tackles and five sacks last season. Phil Harm, senior linebacker, made 46 tackles and scored off a fumble recovery in 2008, earning honorable mention all-GPAC honors, and ranks third on the team this season with 13 tackles. Safety Garrett Rippen boasts a team-best 20 tackles and one interception in two games this year.

Red Raider Notes... Northwestern moved up one spot in this week's NAIA ratings and is tied for 22nd with McKendree (Ill.) with a 1-1 record. The Raiders are sixth in the league in points per game (21) and boast the second-best rushing attack in the GPAC with 226.5 yards per game. Taylor Malm is fifth in the conference averaging 84.5 yards per game and gains 8.4 yards per attempt. Quarterback Ryan Morgan leads the fifth-best passing attack with 165.3 yards per game, completing 51% of his pass attempts for one touchdown. Senior Reed Van Hulzen leads the GPAC with 12 receptions and is tied for third in yards per game (72). Defensively, the Raider D ranks second in the league in points per game (11.5) and pass defense (90 yards per game). Grant Hegstad leads a balanced defense with 13.5 tackles while Steven Van Wyhe has eight.

Up Next... Northwestern travels to Blair, Neb., to play Dana next week.