Northwestern hosts Midland in a match-up of unbeaten, ranked teams for the Red Raiders home opener this weekend. Kickoff on Saturday, Sept. 15 is scheduled for 1 pm. Northwestern is ranked fifth in the most recent NAIA Coaches’ poll and is off to a 2-0 start, 1-0 in conference play. Midland moved up to 24th in the latest coaches’ poll and is also 2-0 on the season.
The Red Raiders have outscored opponents 77-17 in wins over Valley City State and Jamestown, both on the road, to start the season. Tyson Kooima accounted for four touchdowns (1 rush, 3 pass), throwing scoring strikes to three different receivers, and the Raider D forced three turnovers and held Jamestown to under 200 yards of offense in last week’s 49-7 win. Bryce Van Beek intercepted the Jimmies three times, returning one for a touchdown, to tie both the GPAC and school record for interceptions for a game. Van Beek was named both the NAIA and GPAC Defensive Player of the Weeek, the second consecutive a Red Raider player earned both weekly honors (Sean Powell).
The Warriors moved up to 24th in this week’s NAIA Coaches’ poll after a 2-0 start to the 2018 season. They have routed both MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) and Mayville State (N.D.) at home in Fremont the previous two weeks, outscoring them a combined 105-48. Midland was picked third in both the GPAC Coaches’ and Media preseason polls and earned votes in the initial NAIA poll.
Now in his third season as the Midland head coach, Jamrog is 13-8 in his two years prior with the Warriors. He came to Midland with two decades of collegiate coaching experience, including time as the head coach at Minnesota State-Mankato and as the University of Nebraska – Lincoln assistant director of football operations. Jamrog returns 14 starters (8 off, 5 def, 1 ST) from a 2017 team that finished fourth in the GPAC with a 4-4 record, 6-4 overall. They opened the 2017 with four straight wins, climbing into the top 25, before losing four of their final six games.
