Pioneers travel to Eau Claire for WIAC road contest

The Game: The No. 16 ranked University of Wisconsin-Platteville football team hits the road for Carson Park on Saturday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m. against the Blugolds of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Last meeting: The Blugolds handed the Pioneers their second WIAC loss last season, 40-16 in Ralph E. Davis Pioneer Stadium.

The records:  UW-Platteville is 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the league after defeating UW-Stout 33-27 last weekend on Homecoming in Ralph E. Davis Pioneer Stadium.  UW-Eau Claire is 3-3 overall and 1-2 in the WIAC as the Blugolds come off a 31-3 defeat at UW-Oshkosh last weekend.

The coaches: Mike Emendorfer is UW-Platteville's all-time winning coach, compiling a 106-102 record in his 21 seasons. Wesley Beschorner is in the midst of his first season with the Blugolds and took over the helm of the program after serving as quarterbacks coach at the NCAA Division I University of Maryland.

The Pioneers: UW-Platteville is 39-20 in conference play over the last nine years including victories over UW-Eau Claire in eight of the last nine seasons. The Pioneers have compiled a 53-18 overall mark over the previous seven seasons, with a pair of NCAA Division III playoff appearances.

Emendorfer's Pioneers are leading the WIAC in scoring offense with 36.5 points per game while averaging 404.0 yards per game, including 295.0 in the air. Junior Colin Schuetz leads the WIAC in passing and has completed 125-of-213 (58.7%) attempts for 1,741 yards and 17 touchdowns in six games. Senior Tyler Knigge (37 receptions for 508 yards) and junior Donald Allender (28 receptions for 504 yards) are Schuetz's primary targets while Allender is tied for first in the WIAC for scoring with eight touchdowns. Senior running back Wyatt Thompson has combined 83 carries for 422 of the Pioneers' 654 rushing yards and six touchdowns. Thompson sits in second in the league for rushing yards behind UW-Eau Claire's Austin Belot who has tallied 823 yards this season. Overall, the Pioneers have been able to convert on 38-of-90 attempts (42%) on third-down and 5-of-11 attempts (45%) on fourth-down.

On defense, senior defensive back Tyler Reinhardt leads the Pioneers with 48 tackles, five tackles for a loss of 22 yards, four pass break-ups, one sack, and two interceptions with one returned for a touchdown.  Following Reinhardt is senior defensive back Walter Ollie who has totaled 40 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, five pass break-ups, and one interception for a 39 yard return and touchdown. Ollie has also stacked up 464 yards on 18 kick returns with an additional 95 yards on 13 punt returns. Senior linebacker Jordan Zilbar leads the Pioneers defense in sacks with four for a loss of 25 yards in addition to tallying three forced fumbles and 37 tackles.

Overall, the Pioneers have recorded 17 quarterback sacks and are tied for first in the league with No. 3 UW-Whitewater in red zone defense with opponents going 15-for-30 inside the 20. UW-Platteville leads the WIAC in turnovers gained with eight fumbles and 12 interceptions.

The Blugolds: UW-Eau Claire enters Saturday's game having suffered two conference losses to No. 3 UW-Whitewater and UW-Oshkosh with its lone WIAC victory two weeks ago against UW-River Falls.

The Blugolds are averaging 289.3 yards per game with just 104.3 passing yards and a hefty 185.0 rushing yards.  Junior running back Belot has combined 137 carries for 823 yards in six games.  Sophomores Jonathan Malueg and Josiah Johnson have shared the quarterback position this season with Malueg completing 31-of-67 attempts  for 368 yards and two touchdowns in five games played while Johnson has completed 33-of-49 attempts for 258 yards in six games. Look for Johnson to call the shots on Saturday after Malueg was absent in last weekend's game against UW-Oshkosh.

On defense, senior linebacker Sam Romanski leads with 49 tackles, 11 tackles for loss of 48 yards, 4.5 quarterback sacks, and three pass break-ups. Junior linebacker Victor Martinelli follows closely behind with 43 tackles, 10 tackles for loss of 46 yards, 5.5 quarterback sacks, and two blocked kicks on an extra point and 41-yard field goal attempt. On average, the Blugolds defense is totaling 129.7 yards rush defense and 192.7 yards pass defense per game and have allowed their opponents to convert on 35-of-98 (35.7%) of third-downs.

The Blugolds received attention and votes in national polls earlier in the season after their non-conference victory over No. 18 St. Thomas and when leading No. 3 UW-Whitewater 21-7 through the first half of the WIAC opener.

Odds and ends:

• The Pioneers are ranked No. 16 nationally in the D3football.com Top 25 Poll and in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll. No. 3 UW-Whitewater is the only other WIAC school ranked in both polls.
• Other WIAC programs receiving votes in the D3football.com national rankings include UW-La Crosse and UW-Oshkosh while the Eagles, Titans are also receiving votes in the AFCA poll.
• The 2019 UW-Platteville football team continues its campaign to #SetTheExpectation. A nationally recognized campaign and pledge taken by college athletes that is focused on combatting sexual and physical violence.  Founder Brenda Tracy visited was an honorary captain last season at a home game.
• Looking ahead, the Pioneers will return to Ralph E. Davis Pioneer Stadium next Saturday, Nov. 2 when the Titans of UW-Oshkosh roll into town with kickoff set for 1 p.m.