WINONA, Minn. – In a fitting season finale, the Winona State University football team will take on long-time rival Minnesota State University – Mankato on Saturday, Nov. 13 to conclude not only the 2021 season, but also the remarkable career of a veteran head coach and the seniors who end their careers with him.
Tom Saywer will be on the sideline in his 286th game for the Warriors, the only college team he has ever coached. Leading WSU in 25 seasons over 26 years, Sawyer will be remembered not only for his wins and losses, but the impact he has had on student-athletes, staff, and the greater campus community. Also participating in their final game for Winona State will be several senior student-athletes and student support staff who conclude their Warrior careers as well.
Winona State (6-4 overall, 3-2 NSIC South) and MSU-Mankato (6-4 overall, 2-3 NSIC South) make up two parts of one of the longest rivalries in the NSIC. The two programs have faced off over sixty times, with the first meeting occurring in 1923. Both schools have already secured a better-than-.500 season in 2021 for their respective teams and Saturday's festivities will be for bragging rights and program pride.
Senior quarterback
Owen Burke will be under center for WSU on Saturday having already risen in the record book over his final season. King currently ranks in the Warrior top five in career touchdown passes, career passing yards and career passes completed. In 2021, Burke has thrown for 2,484 yards and 18 touchdowns so far, averaging 248.4 yards a game.
Joining King on offense, and leading the Warriors on special teams, will be
Jake Balliu who has produced points for Winona State in almost every way imaginable short of hitting a field goal. Balliu has three touchdown catches as a wide receiver this year and is the all-time leader in kick return yards at WSU. He has scored a touchdown on both a punt return, and kickoff return this season, one of just three NCAA Division II players to earn that distinction in 2021. Balliu has also thrown for a touchdown this year.
The Warrior ground game has seen three different backs featured over the course of the season, with
Dominik London leading the team in attempts (92) and yards (489), while
Javian Roebuck leads the team in rushing touchdowns with seven.
Noah Carlson has four scores on the year and averages 5.8 yards per carry.
Winona State's receiving corps has benefited from Burke's ability to spread the wealth, with
Ethan Wittenburg leading the Warriors in receiving yards (592) and touchdowns (5). Balliu has the most catches with 35, while
Jaylen Schleicher and
Tyler Knutson each have 20 grabs on the season.
Sawyer Maly impressed on special teams early in the Warrior season and has been rewarded with increasing reps as a wideout, collecting 331 receiving yards. Maly and tight end Dakota Mathees co-own the longest catches of the year with each having a 70-yard reception. Fourteen different WSU receivers have caught a pass this year.
The Warrior defense is led by
Clay Schueffner and
Carter Duxbury, both of whom have made their impact on the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) stat rankings, with Duxbury seventh in the league in tackles for loss (12 TFL, 69 TFL yards) while Schueffner is tied for fifth in total tackles (78).
Mitch Snitker has racked up an impressive 77 stops from the secondary, also a NSIC top-10 mark, where he has picked off two passes and earned four pass break-ups on the season.
Aarion Lacy leads the Warriors in both interceptions (3) and pass breakups (7).
Corrie King has made life miserable for opposing quarterbacks to the tune of six quarterback hurries while
Darius Manuel,
Cole LaLiberty and
Devon Moore have combined for over 20 tackles for loss and seven total sacks.
When the kicking game is called upon against the Mavericks, the Warrior faithful will expect to see
Jacob Scott handling placekicking duties and
Tristan Root punting for WSU. Scott is 9-of-15 with a longest make of 35 yards; Root is averaging 34.74 yards per punt and has racked up 1,181 total punting yards.
Winona State is coming off a 40-12 victory over Upper Iowa last week and the Warriors have won three of their last four. Minnesota State – Mankato whitewashed Southwest Minnesota State in week ten, 52-0 and are 2-2 in their last four games. Kaleb Sleezer is the top Maverick running back with 419 yards on 85 carries, a 5.8 per rush average. Quarterback JD Ekowa is 107-for-195 with 16 touchdowns on the year. He has been intercepted nine times and thrown for 1,710 total yards in 2021.
In 2019, MSU-Mankato defeated Winona State, 20-6. The Warriors claimed back-to-back wins over the Mavericks in 2015 and 2016, winning 31-27 at Mankato in 2015 and 34-31 at home the following season.
Today's game is broadcast by
HBC 25 Sports; Justin Barrientos will have the call as the two long-time rivals face off in Altra Federal Credit Union Stadium. Fans can also follow the live radio broadcast by
89.5 KQAL, the radio home of Warrior athletics.
Kickoff between Winona State and Minnesota State – Mankato on Warrior Senior Day is set for 1pm.
For the most up to date news in Warrior Athletics, please
visit:
www.WINONASTATEWARRIORS.com and
@WinonaStateATH.
About Winona State University Athletics:
The Winona State University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics, as an integral part of the educational mission of the institution, is committed to offering opportunities to experience academic and athletic excellence for our student-athletes through two simple words:
Graduate Champions.
Fourteen Warrior programs compete at the NCAA Division II level within the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Winona State University competes as an affiliate member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) in the sport of women's gymnastics.
