WINONA, Minn. – Winona State University and the University of Nebraska-Kearney will meet for just the second time ever as the teams travel to Excelsior Springs, Missouri for the 2019 Mineral Water Bowl at Tiger Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. on Saturday.
The Warriors finished the regular season 8-3, reaching the eight-win plateau for the fourth straight year, and just missed the cut for the NCAA Playoffs to earn a bid to the 54th annual Mineral Water Bowl.
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WSU PLAYOFF HISTORY: The Warriors are making their 11th overall postseason appearance – 10 of which have come under head coach Tom Sawyer. The 2019 campaign marks Winona State's third postseason stint in the past three years after qualifying for the NCAA Playoffs in 2017. WSU has played in the Mineral Water Bowl three times previously (2-1), earning the program's first-ever postseason win in 2000, and winning again in its most recent trip in 2012. In the 2000 Bowl Game, the Warriors prevailed over Missouri Western, 43-41, in a triple overtime thriller. In 2012, WSU bested Lindenwood, 42-21.
SCOUTING UNK: The Lopers (6-5) are making their 12th postseason appearance. UNK finished fifth in the MIAA this season that sent two teams to the NCAA Playoffs. Kearney handed Northwest Missouri State its lone loss of the year, while three of the Lopers' five setbacks came by a touchdown or less. In a high-scoring conference, UNK ranked eighth in scoring offense (34.6 ppg) and fifth in scoring defense (27.5). Kearney averaged 473.9 offensive yards/game while allowing 377.5. The Lopers led the MIAA in rushing offense (330.8) with a quartet of players each averaging over 50 yards/game on the ground. David Goodwin (87.5 ypg) leads the ground game while quarterback TJ Davis averages 80.5 yards/game. Darrius Webb (75.9) and Dayton Sealey (57.7) are also threats when carrying the ball. That group accounted for 35 of the Lopers' 39 rushing touchdowns this year. Through the air, Davis has thrown eight TDs and four INTs while averaging just 75.6 yards/game on 83 total attempts. Sedarius Young is UNK's top receiver, hauling in 19 passes for 564 yards and three TDs. Defensively, Sal Silvio ranked second in the MIAA with eight sacks for the Lopers who totaled 26 on the season. The senior linebacker led the team in solo tackles (43), total tackles (80), TFL (10.0) and forced fumbles (4).
UNDER CENTER: Winona State enters the final game of the 2019 campaign with a question mark at the quarterback position. Owen Burke, who started the first 10 games of the year and was injured on November 9th, has been working toward a return. In his absence, senior John Rumpza filled in admirably in a 26-25 loss to Augustana and led the Warriors to a win at CSP in the regular season finale. Rumpza threw for 172 yards and a TD against CSP in his first career start, and has thrown six touchdowns compared to three interceptions in 18 career games. Whoever starts under center will look to expose a Loper secondary that has shown vulnerably covering the deep ball, allowing six scoring plays over 49 yards this season. Tyler Anderson, Sawyer Maly, Dakota Matthees and Jaylen Schleicher have each caught passes of at least 49 yards this year. Jake Balliu leads the team in catches (45), yards (569) and TDs (7) – all career highs for the redshirt junior.
BALL HAWKS: The Warrior defense has bullied opponents and forced turnovers all season and will look to end 2019 with another dominant statement. WSU has recorded at least one takeaway in 10 of 11 games this year and has forced two or more nine times. The Warriors rank sixth in the country in INTs (20) and 14th nationally in turnovers gained (27). Redshirt freshman Clay Schueffner has a team-high four INTs while redshirt senior Nick Pridgeon has forced four total turnovers (2 INT/2 FF). Junior safety Cam Gavin has recorded three INTs while four others have at least two picks.
RETURN TO SENDER: Winona State has shown strength in all three phases this season, including the special teams unit that features one of the best return games in the country. Collectively, Winona State ranks second in the nation in kickoff returns (27.28 yards/attempt) behind Isaiah Hall (27.9) who led the NSIC and ranks 16th nationally. Jake Balliu ranked second in the conference and 17th in the country in punt return average (12.0). Hall has totaled a career-best 585 kickoff return yards and took one the distance for 98 yards at MSU Moorhead. UNK has allowed one kickoff return TD and an average of 38.8 yards/attempt.
RED ALERT: An area of significant improvement for the Warriors over the course of the season has been their red zone efficiency. WSU has put points on the board 86% of the time (36-42) when arriving in the opponent red zone, including 19 touchdowns. The Warriors will look to exploit a Loper defense that has allowed its opponent to score 90% of the time (26-29), including 18 TDs. Through the first five games this year, the Warriors had scored only four TDs on 18 trips to the red zone, but since the halfway point, have punched the ball over the goal line on 15 of 24 attempts. First Team All-NSIC kicker Paul Ortiz has been the answer when WSU stalls outside the endzone, converting 18-22 field goals attempts this season. The senior's 1.8 field goals/game rank third in the country.
