The Illinois Wesleyan University football team returns to the road with a trip down to St. Louis, Mo. for a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin battle with the Bears of Washington University in St. Louis Saturday, Oct. 8. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Francis Olympic Field.
The Titans enter the CCIW clash with a 3-1 overall record, including a 2-1 league mark, following a 38-24 home win over Millikin, Oct. 1. Meanwhile, the Bears, who are receiving votes in the AFCA and D3football.com top-25 polls, are unbeaten on the season. Most recently, WashU defeated North Park in Chicago, Oct. 1, by a score of 56-21. WashU boasts a 4-0 record on the season (3-0 in league play).
Fans can tune into a video broadcast with Eric Stock calling the action on the field alongside Joel Swanson, while live stats will also be available for the contest. Links can be found on the football schedule page of iwusports.com.
PLAYAS OF THE WEEK II: Illinois Wesleyan football senior Kevin Graham was honored as part of D3football.com's Week Five Team of the Week. The senior was the lone tight end listed on the team. Graham hauled in three catches for a career-high 97 yards receiving in IWU's win over Millikin. The St. Johns, Ind. product grabbed two touchdown passes, including a 47-yard touchdown strike.
Sophomore defensive lineman Josh Hlavacek was honored as the CCIW Defensive Player of the Week for his role in IWU's win over Millikin on Saturday. The sophomore tallied six tackles, highlighted by four tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Both his TFL and sack totals were good for career-highs, as he led an IWU front that recorded seven sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
BEHIND ENEMY LINES: The Titans are the only team in the CCIW with five players in the top-25 in the tackles for the loss category. Zach McNees ranks second in the conference with an average of 2.13 yards per game, while Josh Hlavacek ranks tied for fifth with 1.75 yards per game. Joshua Klein sits 13th, with Conor Murphy, and Fernando Chavez slotted tied for 14th and tied for 21st, respectively.
A FAMILY OF CANNONS: Sophomore quarterback Ryan Saxe showed off his arm in Saturday's win over Millikin with IWU's longest pass since the 2018 season (Jack Healy from Brandon Bauer vs. North Park - Nov. 10, 2018). Saxe aired out a 64-yard touchdown pass to Myles Kee to start the third quarter and put the Titans up 31-14.
It is no shock that quarterback Saxe has a cannon for an arm, as Saxe's father, Dave Saxe, played for the IWU baseball team in the early 90s.
WHY HAVE ONE, WHEN YOU CAN HAVE TWO?: Illinois Wesleyan is the only team in the CCIW with two receivers ranked inside the league's top-five in receiving yards. Myles Kee tops the CCIW, averaging 104.5 yards per game and leads the conference in receptions per game with 7.8. Charlie Hamilton ranks fourth in the league with 86.8 yards per game, and second in the conference with 6.8 receptions per game.
STAR QUARTER-SAXE: Sophomore QB Ryan Saxe is well on his way to having a breakout season for the Titans. Saxe ranks third in the CCIW in passing yards, averaging 262.3 yards per game, only two yards off second in the conference. He ranks second in completions with 80 on the year and third in completion percentage (69 percent). Saxe also ranks third in touchdowns with nine on the year.
Nationally, Saxe is 16th in completion percentage, 20th in completions per game, and 28th in passing yards per game.
BREAK THE STREAK: Tucci Stadium has proven to be quite the home field advantage for IWU, as the Titans have amassed a 123-49 record at home over Norm Eash's tenure. Illinois Wesleyan is 99-69-1 away from Bloomington under Eash, but has struggled on the road as of late. IWU's last road win came during the shortened "2020" season when the Green and White defeated Augustana on the Viking's turf, 12-0, March 27, 2021. The Titans look to snap their six-game road losing streak in St. Louis this weekend.
BATTLING THE BEARS: Illinois Wesleyan and WashU will battle on the gridiron for the 20th time since the series began back in 1899. The Titans and Bears are all tied up with 10 wins apiece in the series. Despite dropping the latest two chapters in the storied rivalry, IWU has won seven of the last 10 meetings. On the flip side, the Bears held the upperhand in the early years of the series as WashU won six of the first seven games between the two.
TITANS IN OCTOBER: The Titans have compiled a 100-52 (.657) record in the month of October under Norm Eash. More recently, in the past five seasons, IWU is 23-5 in October.
WITH A WIN…: With a win, the Titans will start the season 4-1 for the first time since the 2018 season. The Titans lost their non-conference opener to UW-La Crosse in 2018 before rattling off eight straight conference wins.
ON THE HORIZON: The Titans return home next Saturday, October 15, for an afternoon date with North Park. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. inside Tucci Stadium.
Original source can be found here.
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