Northwestern at Dakota Wesleyan

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Game Time...18th-ranked Northwestern heads to Mitchell, S.D. to play Dakota Wesleyan in the final game of the regular season for the Red Raiders. Coach Achterhoff's squad, with a 7-2 record, has their bye week next week. DWU brings a 2-6 record into Saturday's match-up. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 pm.

The Coaches... Brad Pole is in his fifth season with the DWU Tigers and holds an 18-30 record into this weekend's game. Coach Pole was named the GPAC Coach-of-the-Year in 2008 after leading the Tigers to a 7-3 record and ended the season ranked 23rd, its best finish since 1992. Kyle Achterhoff  is in his first season as head coach of the Red Raider football program after spending the last 11 years as either the offensive (2001-08) or defensive (1998-2000) coordinator. He is just the third NWC head coach since 1967, following Larry “Bub” Korver and Orv Otten.

All-Time Series... This will be the 10th meeting between the two GPAC rivals, all since the 2000 season. Northwestern holds an 8-1 lead in the all-time series but lost last year's meeting to the Tigers, 17-6, in Orange City.

Last Time Out...Both DWU and the Raiders are coming off losses to top-ranked University of Sioux Falls last time out. The Tigers were defeated by the Cougars 59-7 in Sioux Falls, S.D. on Oct. 24. DWU fell behind 56-0 at the half and scored their only touchdown with four minutes left to go on a two-yard run by John Endres. The Tigers' defense gave up over 600 yards of total offense, including 468 yards on the ground to the Cougars. Offensively, DWU gained just 75 yards of total offense and struggled with the ground game, rushing 38 times for one yard. Jon Doom completed 9-of-15 pass attempts for 49 yards while Anthony Muilenburg caught four passes for 17 yards.

A three-yard scamper by Taylor Malm cut the USF lead to 14-7 early in the second quarter but the Cougars scored 14 points to close out the half and led 28-7 at intermission. The Cougars then opened the second half with an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Adam Lopez  and scored two more touchdowns in the quarter to put the score at 49-7. Northwestern scored its final touchdown midway through the fourth quarter on a one-yard plunge by Brandon Smith.

The Red Raiders managed 17 first downs, compared to 16 for USF. NWC rushed for 191 yards on 51 carries, led by Taylor Malm with 73 yards and a score. Brad Payne, who played most of the second half after an injury to starting quarterback Ryan Morgan, carried the ball 10 times for 66 yards while Kevin VanderSchaaf added 34 yards. Brandon Smith gained 23 yards and added a one-yard touchdown run. Caleb Van Otterloo led the Raider D with six solo tackles, seven total while Austin Rozeboom added five tackles.

Scouting Report...After a promising 7-3 record last year in which the Tigers finished with their best record in over 15 years, DWU has struggled to a 2-6 record this season. They opened the year with losses to ranked teams, Morningside and Nebraska Wesleyan, but followed with a 44-14 win over Dana. Two more losses ensued (Hastings and Midland Lutheran) but then knocked off Doane, 42-32. Since that win, DWU lost to Briar Cliff (33-7) and USF (59-7) and had its bye week last weekend.

Dakota Wesleyan ranks third in the conference in total offense, averaging 387 yards per game. The Tigers, averaging 25 ppg, boast a very good passing attack that goes for 272 yards per game and has three receivers ranked in the top 10 in the conference. Senior wideout Bubba Slaba earned first team all-GPAC honors last year after he caught a school-record 76 passes for 1,046 yards and eight scores. This year, Slaba leads the GPAC with 60 catches and ranks second with 777 yards but has scored just two touchdowns. Senior Jesse Ayers ranks sixth in the GPAC with 34 catches and fourth in yards (522) with a team-best five touchdowns. Freshman Anthony Muilenburg is ninth in the GPAC with 28 catches for 281 yards and doubles as the Tigers' kick returner, averaging 29 yards per return, ranking second in the GPAC. Jon Doom and Russell Mcguire have shared the quarterback duties this season, combining for nearly 1,900 yards and 11 touchdowns. Doom, a two-time all-GPAC player, completes 58% of his pass attempts and ranks fourth in the GPAC at 174 yards per game. Mcguire, more of a dual-threat who can run as well as pass, completes 54% of his passes for 671 yards but also ranks second on the team with 205 yards rushing. He earned honorable mention All-American honors as a return specialist last year. Junior running back Raymond Blossom, a second-team all-GPAC player in 2008, leads the team with 235 yards rushing and three scores. James Hansen, an All-American in 2008, and Zach Zephier, an honorable mention player in 2008, anchor the o-line.

Defensively, the Tigers' return five starters from last year and rank 12th in the GPAC, giving up 388 yards per game. Juniors Lucas Sieve and Jordan Gau rank among the league's best with 68 and 60 tackles, respectively. A linebacker, Sieve leads the team with three sacks and eight tackles for a loss while Gau leads the secondary with  three passes defended. DWU ranks 10th in the league in scoring defense (34ppg).

Raider Notes... Northwestern dropped six spots to 18th in this week's NAIA rating after its 49-14 loss to top-ranked USF. The Raiders have their bye week next week while Hastings, a team NWC trails in the rankings, closes next week against Midland Lutheran.

The Raiders rank third in scoring offense (28) and fourth in total offense (343), relying on a run-first attack that averages 216 yards per game on the ground. Two Raiders, Taylor Malm and Brandon Smith, rank among the GPAC's top 10 in rushing yards. Malm ranks third with 791 yards and leads the team with 16 touchdowns, 14 of which are rushing scores. Smith averages a team-best 6.7 yards per carry and has 483 yards rushing with five scores. Kevin Vander Schaaf also contributes in the rushing attack with 86 carries for 369 yards and three scores. Ryan Morgan and Brad Payne have both played under center for Coach Achterhoff's squad and combined for over 1,100 yards and nine scores through the air. Reed Van Hulzen, despite playing in just four games, ranks 10th in the conference with 19 catches for 243 yards and two scores. Malm (26/187), Derrick Rensink (21/190) and Kyle DeBoer (19/220) are the other top receivers. The Raiders boast one of the best lines in the nation, giving up just six sacks all year, led by three-year starters Daniel Solis, George Barnes and John Adam. Ben Rasefske is nearly perfect in his kicking duties with 32-of-33 extra points and 1-of-3 in field goals.

Defensively, Northwestern ranks sixth in both scoring (21ppg) and total defense (294ypg). Linebackers Austin Rozeboom (46.5) and Grant Hegstad (37.5) lead the team in tackles, followed closely behind by Steve Van Wyhe and Caleb Van Otterloo with 37 tackles each. Van Otterloo leads the team with four interceptions and Joel Dykstra has two picks to go with 23.5 tackles. Rozeboom and Paden Kleinhesselink lead the team with 2.5 sacks.

Up Next... Northwestern will have its bye week next week. Postseason play begins Nov. 21 with the selection show on Sunday, Nov.15.