Northwest Football Game Notes (PDF)

Game No. 1 - Missouri Western at Northwest Missouri State
Thurs., Aug. 30 | 7 p.m. | Bearcat Stadium (6,500)

Live Stream ($ - Subscription) - MIAA Network
Live Audio - KXCV
Live Stats - www.BearcatSports.com

Tickets - www.BearcatSports.com/tickets

THIS WEEK'S GAME
Northwest Missouri State will kick off the 2018 season at home against the Missouri Western State University Griffons. Kick is set for 7 p.m. Aug. 30 at Bearcat Stadium.

The first 3,000 fans entering the stadium will get Light 'Em Up t-shirts sponsored by US Bank, SAC, Rapid Elite, Hy-Vee and Student Body.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MISSOURI WESTERN
Northwest holds a 26-13 lead in the all-time series vs. Missouri Western. The Bearcats are 11-7 vs. the Griffons in Maryville.
 
BEARCATS STRONG OF LATE VS. THE GRIFFONS
The Bearcats have won five straight in the series including a 30-0 shutout victory over the Griffons in St. Joseph last season. Over the last five meetings, Northwest is averaging 37.8 points and has an average victory margin of 30.1 points per game.
            Northwest has won five of the last six matchups between the two at Bearcat Stadium.
 
THE COACHES
Northwest is led by second-year head coach Rich Wright. was named head coach at Northwest Missouri on Dec. 19, 2016. Wright posted a 9-3 mark for the Bearcats in 2017. Of the 20 head coaches in Northwest's history only Adam Dorrel posted more victories (11 in 2011) in his first season as a head coach than Wright. Wright arrived at Northwest in 2004 as the defensive line coach and coordinator of special teams. In 2011, Wright was named defensive coordinator and assistant head coach. A native of Hamilton, N.Y., Wright earned his bachelor's degree at Dana College in 1995 and his master's at Northwest in 1996. Wright resides in Maryville with his wife, Sarah, who is also a Northwest alum, and their daughters, Grace and Kate.
            Missouri Western is guided by second-year head coach Matt Williamson. The Griffons posted a 4-7 record and lost their final five games of the 2017 campaign. Williamson was a  three-time All-MIAA defensive lineman was named honorable mention Don Hansen All-American for the Griffons in 1995. 
 
FOR OPENERS
The Bearcats have won seven consecutive season openers. Northwest last lost its opening game of the season on Sept. 2, 2010, in a 16-7 setback vs. No. 14-ranked Texas A&M-Kingsville. Prior the current streak of seven season-opening victories, Northwest has lost its previous four opening games in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
 
Last 7 Season-Opening Contests
8/31/17           W, 34-0 vs. No. 4 Emporia State
9/1/16             W, 41-14 at No. 24 Emporia State
9/3/15             W, 31-0 at Nebraska-Kearney
9/14/14           W, 31-7 vs. Nebraska-Kearney
9/15/13           W, 45-24 vs. No. 22 Saginaw Valley
8/30/12           W, 33-3 vs. East Central
9/1/11             W, 65-3 at Truman State
 
IT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE
Northwest will face Missouri Western in the opening game of the season for both teams, but it won't be the first time it has happened before. The Bearcats and Griffons squared off in the opening game in both the 1989 and 1990 seasons.
            Northwest scored a 45-29 win over Missouri Western in St. Joseph, Mo., on Sept. 2, 1989. Missouri Western posted a 27-25 victory over Northwest in Maryville on Sept. 1, 1990.
 
PRESEASON FAVORITES
Northwest was picked as the preseason favorite by both the media and coaches to win the 2018 MIAA football championship. The Bearcats received 14 first-place votes and 382 points in the media poll. Northwest had four first-place votes and 103 points in the coaches poll.
 
DEFENSIVE LOCKDOWN
The Bearcat defense has not allowed a rushing touchdown since Dec. 10, 2016, in the NCAA  semifinal against Ferris State. Since then, no opponent has scored on the ground, a span of 13  games. Davontae Harrington scored with 9:51 left  in the third quarter to cut the Bearcat lead to 21-20. That would be the Bulldogs' last score of the contest as Northwest went on to win, 35-20.
Northwest was the only NCAA school to not allow a rushing touchdown all of last season - including FBS, FCS, Division II and Division III.
 
DOMINANT DEFENSE
The Northwest defense continued to be dominating in 2017. The Bearcats ranked first in the nation in scoring defense (9.3 ppg), total defense (212.8 yards/game), blocked punts (7) and third down conversion defense (19.9 percent).
 
FOUR STRAIGHT YEARS OF NO. 1-RANKED DEFENSE
Northwest has been ranked No. 1 in the nation in total defense in each of the past four seasons. The Bearcats have ranked No. 1 in scoring defense in each of last three seasons. Northwest has been ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in rushing defense since 2014.
 

NCAA National Rankings	Total Defense – Yards/Game	Rushing Defense – Yards/Game	Passing Defense – Yards/Game	Scoring Defense – Points/Game
2017	#1 – 212.8	#2 – 62.0	#8 – 150.8	#1 – 9.3
2016	#1 – 240.9	#1 – 67.7	#16 – 173.2	#1 – 12.0
2015	#1 – 224.0	#1 – 59.3	#20 – 164.7	#1 – 12.3
2014	#1 – 213.1	#2 – 70.5	#4 – 142.6	#5 – 14.8

 
MORE DEFENSIVE SUPERLATIVES
The Northwest defense has not allowed an individual runner to surpass 100 yards in the last 42 games. That came in the 2014 NCAA playoff game against Minnesota Duluth (Drew Bauer -  131). In fact, the last MIAA runner to go for more than 100 yards on the Bearcats was Missouri Southern's Chris Barnwell (104) back on Oct. 26, 2013, a span of 56 games.
            The Bearcats have not allowed more than five third-down conversions in a game since Oct. 29, 2016, against Pittsburg State.
 
FIVE CAPTAINS
Head coach Rich Wright as designated five captains for the 2018 football season. Wright has named defensive back Anthony Lane (Riviera Beach, Fla.), linebacker Nick Hess (Liberty, Mo.), defensive end Austen Askew (Lawson, Mo.), linebacker Ben Althoff (Palmyra, Mo.) and offensive lineman Zach Flott (Ralston, Neb.) as the captains for the upcoming year.
            Eskew and Althoff were named to the first-team all-MIAA squad in 2017. Lane and Flott garnered second-team all-MIAA honors, while Hess notched third-team all-MIAA accolades.
 
BANE LOOKS TO MOVE UP THE CHARTS
Senior wide receiver Shawn Bane Jr. (Sarasota, Fla.) is looking to move up the career receiving charts in 2018.
Bane ranks No. 9 in Bearcat history with 164 receptions.
He is looking to become only the eighth Northwest receiver to surpass 3,000 career yards. Bane has tallied 2,589 receiving yards, which also ranks No. 9 on the all-time Northwest receiving yards chart.
His 24 career touchdown receptions rank as the sixth-best in program history. Bane found the end zone 19 times in his first two seasons, but was limited to six scores in 2017 while still earning second-team All-MIAA honors.
 
Career Pass Receptions

1. Jamaica Rector (2001-2004)   289
2. Kendall Wright (2005-2008)   243
3. Tony Miles (1997-2000)         235
4. Jake Soy (2008-2011)             222
5. Andre Rector (2002-2005)      213
6. Dan Anderson (1982-1985)    198
7. Steve Hansley (1983-1985)    196
8. Tyler Shaw (2009-2012)         166
9. Shawn Bane Jr. (2015-pr.)      164
10. Jordan Simmons (2009-2012) 162

 
Career Receiving Yards

1. Jamaica Rector (2001-2004)   4,497
2. Tony Miles (1997-2000)         3,890
3. Jake Soy (2008-2011)             3,687
4. Kendall Wright (2005-2008)   3,253
5. Steve Hansley (1983-1985)    3,118
6. Andre Rector (2002-2005)      3,049
7. Tyler Shaw (2009-2012)         3,021
8. Dan Anderson (1982-1985)    2,651
9. Shawn Bane Jr. (2015-pr.)      2,589
10. Mike Peterson (2004-2007)    1,987

 
Career Touchdown Receptions

1. Jake Soy (2008-2011)             45
2. Jamaica Rector (2001-2004)   38
3. Tony Miles (1997-2000)         37
4. Tyler Shaw (2009-2012)         32
5. Steve Hansley (1983-1985)    26
6. Shawn Bane Jr. (2015-pr.)      24
7. Kendall Wright (2005-2008)   21
8. Wade Hanson (1994-1997)    19
9. Andre Rector (2002-2005)      18
10. Mike Peterson (2004-2007)    17

 
PROGRAM OF THE DECADE
Northwest is the winningest NCAA Div. II program of this decade from 2010-2017. Northwest is 97-13 for an .882 winning percentage since 2010. The Bearcats have been ranked No. 1 in the NCAA Div. II Top 25 poll 38 times since the start of the 2010 season.
 
By Wins (Since 2010)

1. Northwest Missouri State      97
2. Minnesota-Duluth                   88
3. Shepherd                                 84
   Colorado State-Pueblo.         84
   Minnesota State, Mankato     84

 
By Winning Percentage (Since 2010)

1. Northwest Missouri State      .882 (97-13)
2. Shepherd                                 .866 (84-13)
   Colorado State-Pueblo.           .866 (84-13)
3. Minnesota-Duluth                   .846 (88-16)
4. Minnesota State, Mankato     .832 (84-17)

 
14 STRAIGHT PLAYOFF APPEARANCES
Last season marked the 14^th straight season that Northwest had qualified for the NCAA Div. II playoffs. Northwest has made 22 overall appearances in the playoffs. Since 1996, the Bearcats have made 20 playoff appearances – only missing postseason action in 2001 and 2003.
 
HOME COOKING IN PLAYOFFS
Northwest has compiled a 29-3 all-time record at home in the NCAA Div. II playoffs. In fact heading into the 2018 season, the Bearcats have won 22 consecutive home playoff games at Bearcat Stadium.
 
SIX-TIME NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
Northwest has captured six NCAA Div. II national championship – the most national titles by any Division II program. Northwest won national championships in 1998, 1999, 2009, 2013, 2015 and 2016.
            The Bearcat have played in the NCAA Div. II national championship game 10 times in the last 21 years. Northwest has played for the crown in 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2015 and 2016.
 
28 MIAA TITLES
Northwest has captured 28 MIAA football regular season titles.
 
GPA DECALS
Every Northwest football player with a 3.0 or higher grade point average will have a special decal on their helmet with their GPA, major and advisor. Student-athletes with a 4.0 GPA will have a gold decal on their helmet.
 
HUGHES FAMILY FIELDHOUSE
Located just northwest of College Park and Bearcat Stadium on the Northwest campus, the Carl & Cheryl Hughes Fieldhouse will serve as a host site for a wide range of University and community activities. The project represents the single largest public-private partnership in Northwest's 112-year history – and one of the largest public-private partnerships ever in the region. The Hughes Fieldhouse features:

• 137,250 square-foot recreation and multipurpose facility featuring recreation and exhibition space,
• indoor flooring system,
• 100-yard practice turf,
• 300-meter indoor competition track,
• spectator seating and
• tiered meeting rooms.

The Hughes Fieldhouse is an estimated $20 million project with multiple financing sources, including commitments from the University, private support and community support. The facility is to be named for the Carl and Cheryl Hughes family, who committed a significant gift to the project through the Hughes Family Foundation.

VICIS ZERO1 HELMET
Northwest Missouri State will outfit the football team with VICIS ZERO1 Helmets.
"The VICIS ZERO1 is a game-changer and is delivering a completely new approach to player safety," head coach Rich Wright said. "We've been extremely impressed with the research we've seen on the ZERO1, and we're excited to have our players wearing the helmet this year."
"Northwest Missouri State University is a powerhouse program, winning six NCAA Division II titles in the last two decades," VICIS CEO and co-founder Dave Marver said. "We're honored to protect them in their pursuit for number seven."
Ranked as the best helmet in the National Football League and surpassing all expectations of the NFL Players Association helmet performance tests, VICIS ZERO1 Helmets are currently equipping athletes on over 400 high school teams. Additionally, more than 110 professional and collegiate teams have committed to the ZERO1 Helmet coming into the 2018 season.
"Our team has worked hard to bring the ZERO1's breakthrough protective technology to players across the country," says Marver.
VICIS designs the ZERO1 with a unique structure compared to other helmets on the market. A deformable outer shell and columnar layer slows and reduces impact forces in a similar function to the bumper of a car. The helmet is also priced to be accessible to college and high school programs.
 
BEARCATS IN THE NFL
Northwest is currently represented in the National Football League by tight end Clayton Wilson (Seattle Seahawks) and defensive lineman Matt Longacre (Los Angeles Rams).
            Wilson signed a free agent deal with the Seahawks after completing his collegiate career in 2017 for the Bearcats. Wilson caught 80 passes for 694 yards and six touchdowns in 50 career games for the Bearcats.
            Longacre was signed by the Rams as a free agent following the 2015 NFL Draft. The former two-time MIAA defensive player of the year played in 14 games last season for the Rams. Longacre tallied 23 total tackles and 5.5 sacks in helping lead the Rams to the NFC West division title. Longacre has appeared in 25 career games in three seasons with the Rams.