WAVERLY, Iowa-- The No. 10/11 Wartburg football team (9-1 overall) will host No. 7/9 UW-Platteville (9-1) in the Second Round of the NCAA Playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 30 at 12 p.m. The Knights received a first-round bye.
Tickets
$10 adults
$7 seniors/students/children (5-18)
Free: Children under 5
No presale of tickets
Ticket window will open at 10:30 a.m.
No passes accepted.
Wartburg students: Student Senate and ETK will cover the cost of tickets for Wartburg students. Please show your Wartburg ID at the east gate.
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The game will be
televised on ESPN+ (subscription required).
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live stats.
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complete bracket.
The Series
UW-Platteville (formerly Platteville Teachers and Platteville State) owns the series lead at 7-0-1, but the programs have not met since 1955.
Wartburg
This is the 17th appearance and third-straight in the NCAA Playoffs in program history for the Knights. The Orange and Black are 17-16 in the NCAA Playoffs.
Wartburg earned the automatic bid with its third-straight American Rivers Conference Championship. This is the third time that the Knights have qualified for the NCAA Playoffs for the third-straight year.
Dawson Rud leads the team on the ground with 869 yards and eight touchdowns. Six teammates join him above 100 yards with
Joey Anderson follows at 294,
Ben Bryant at 195,
Carter Markham at 188,
Leo Dodd at 159,
Bricen White at 157, and
Levi Pingel at 120.
Quarterback Markham has thrown for 1,365 yards and 13 TDs.
Carter Henry leads the receivers with 32 catches for 487 yards and six touchdowns.
Jagger Schmitt follows at 321 yards,
Drake George at 300,
Dylan Swanstrom at 275,
John McConohy at 267, and
Justis Bachman at 104.
Keenan Tyler leads the defense with 95 tackles.
Conner McDonald,
Christian Nunley, and
Jake Walker all have 6.0 TFLs and McDonald leads the team with 3.5 sacks.
Cael O'Neill is 44-47 in PATs and has seven field goals. He became the career leader in PATs in the game against Luther.
Career Record Watch
George is first in pass receptions (193), sixth in pass reception yards (2,280), and sixth in pass reception TDs (20).
Carter Henry is seventh in pass reception yards (1,963), pass receptions (128), and in receiving TDs (18).
O'Neill is first in PATs (169), second in field goals (29), and sixth in points (261).
Ben Bryant is first in punt return yards (1,005) and tied for first in punt returns (82).
Parker Rochford is tied for first in interception return TDs (4), fourth in interceptions (17), and tied for seventh in pass breakups (26).
Nate Link is tied for seventh in fumble returns (2) and
Justin Grieff is seventh in quarterback hurries (9).
Season Record Watch
O'Neill is ninth in PATs (44) and tied for ninth in field goals (7).
Grieff is tied for sixth in fumble returns (2).
National Stat Rankings
The Knights are ranked in the top 50 in 20 various national rankings. They rank fifth in rushing defense (52.4), sixth in defensive touchdowns (4), 10
th in fourth down conversion percentage defense (.250), 10
th in turnover margin (1.30), 11
th in red zone defense (.600), 15
th in winning percentage (.900), 19
th in rushing offense (212.7), 20
th in turnovers gained (23), 22
nd in punt return defense (2.60), 24
th in red zone offense (.886), 25
th in blocked punts (2) , 31
st in fumbles recovered (9), 32
nd in passes intercepted (14), 32
nd in scoring defense (15.2), 39
th in scoring offense (36.7), 39
th in team passing efficiency (162.18) 42
nd in completion percentage (.651), 43
rd in first downs offense (222), 44
th in third down conversion percentage (.459), and 50
th in punt returns (10.80).
The Knights have four individual athletes who rank in the top 50 in various national rankings.
Keenan Tyler ranks 35
th in solo tackles (5.3) and 36
th in total tackles (9.5).
Ben Bryant ranks 24
th in punt returns (10.7).
Dawson Rudd ranks 27
th in rush yards per carry (6.30).
Justin Grieff ranks 30
th in fumble recoveries (2).
Nov. 25 Media Availability
Head Coach Chris Winter
Nov. 20 Media Availability
Head Coach Chris Winter
Student-athletes
UW-Platteville
The Pioneers earned the automatic bid from the WIAC with their conference championship, which was the third outright championship in program history and first since 1970. This will be the third appearance in the NCAA Playoffs and first since 2016 for UW-Platteville.
Brandt Stare was named the WIAC Offensive Player of the Year and Ryan Munz earned George Chryst WIAC Coach of the Year honors, as well as AFCA Regional Coach of the Year.
Michael Priami has thrown for 2,649 yards and 36 touchdowns. Stare has been his top receiver with 53 receptions for 748 yards and 13 scores. Garrett Stare has been the second-leading receiver with 43 catches for 600 yards and 10 TDs.
Zackary Bothun leads the team on the ground with 833 yards for eight TDs.
Will Straka leads the defense with 69 total tackles and Riley Christensen leads the team with 11.0 TFLs.
