Oct. 2, 2007

FOOTBALL: Lutes Look to Remain Undefeated Against Defending Conference Champs

THIS WEEK: Whitworth (3-1, 1-0 NWC) hosts Pacific Lutheran (4-0, 1-0 NWC) at the Whitworth Pine Bowl in Spokane, Saturday, 1 p.m.

ON THE AIR: Pacific Lutheran football games are broadcast in the Tacoma/Parkland area on KLAY 1180 AM with Steve Thomas and Karl Hoseth calling the action. You can listen online at www.klay1180.com. Whitworth provides football game live stats at http://www.whitworth.edu/Athletics/Teams/Football/Statistics/livestats/xlive.htm

MATCHUP: Saturday’s game will be the 63rd meeting between the Lutes and the Pirates. The Lutes won 32 straight games against the Pirates from 1965-2000. Whitworth snapped the streak with a 27-26 victory over PLU at Sparks Stadium in 2000. The Lutes returned the favor in the playoffs that year, defeating the Pirates by the same score in overtime in the Pine Bowl.

THE COACHES: Scott Westering, the son of legendary PLU football coach Frosty Westering, is in his fourth season as Pacific Lutheran's head coach. He has compiled a 17-14 record. John Tully is in his 13th season at Whitworth and has led the Pirates to a 64-54 record during that time.

Chase Reed

ABOUT THE PIRATES: Whitworth is 3-1 this season after shutting out Menlo 49-0 last Saturday. The Pirates held the Oaks to 157 yards of total offense and only seven first downs. It was the second shutout of the season for the Pirates’ defense, after beating La Verne 34-0 in the second week of the season. Experience is the name of this Whitworth team, as 15 seniors started the opener for the Pirates, nine on defense and six on offense. The defense continues to dominate after leading the NWC last season. Whitworth has scored 22 defensive points off of two interception returns for touchdowns, one fumble return for touchdown and two safeties. The Pirates are currently tied for the NCAA Division III lead in turnover margin with two other teams. Whitworth has taken the ball away 15 times and only turned it over on offense three times, for a turnover margin of +12. The Pirate offense has also been outstanding thus far, averaging almost 30 points per game. Running back Adam Anderson leads the Northwest Conference in rushing this season with 354 yards and three touchdowns, while wide receiver Steve Silva has 313 yards on a conference-leading 28 receptions.

UNSTOPPABLE FORCE VS. IMMOVABLE OBJECT: The Lutes lead the NWC in scoring average at 41.1 points per game. Whitworth is number one in the conference in scoring defense, giving up only 11.2 points per game. PLU averages 429 yards per contest, while Whitworth gives up only 249 yards per game. Meanwhile, Whitworth leads the league with an average of 211 rushing yards per game, while PLU has held opponents to only 73.5 yards on the ground, tops in the NWC.

Andrew Eisentrout

CONSTANT TURNOVER: The Pirates are tied with three teams for first in Division III with a +12 turnover margin. The Lutes are right behind them at +11, good for fourth in the nation.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: The Northwest Conference Offensive and Defensive players of the week are both Lutes: senior wide receiver Chase Reed and senior defensive end Andrew Eisentrout. Reed scored four touchdowns last week against UPS and gained 130 yards of total offense. He leads the league with seven touchdowns this season, averaging 10.5 points per game for the Lutes. Eisentrout had six tackles, four for a loss, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble. He leads the conference with 9.5 tackles for a loss, and his 7.5 sacks rank second in Division III this season.

LAST YEAR: Whitworth controlled every aspect of the game in a 19-7 victory over PLU at Sparks Stadium. The Pirates controlled the ball for over 43 minutes, leaving the Lutes with a time of possession of less than 17 minutes. Whitworth more than doubled PLU’s offensive production, 442 yards to 200, and forced five turnovers. Running back Kyle Havercroft finished the game with 126 rushing yards and two touchdowns and tight end Michael Allan (now playing for the Kansas City Chiefs) had eight catches for 145 yards for the Pirates. However, the game was still in doubt until late in the fourth quarter, when Whitworth scored its final touchdown with just 5:37 left in the game to turn a slim 13-7 lead into a 19-7 win.

Michael Byrne

LAST WEEK: The Lutes started the conference season by gaining over 300 yards of total offense and scoring 30 points in the first half before cruising to a 37-8 victory over the UPS Loggers at Sparks Stadium. With starting quarterback Brett Gordon out with a dislocated shoulder, junior Michael Byrne stepped in and played nearly flawlessly for the Lutes. Byrne completed 11 of his 17 attempts for 271 yards and two touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Chase Reed made Byrne’s job easier, putting up 130 yards of total offense and scoring four touchdowns to earn NWC offensive player of the week honors. Freshman wide receiver Greg Ford also played a huge role, catching three passes for 125 yards and one touchdown. PLU’s offense gained 391 yards on only 50 plays, needing only 11 first downs for the game. The Lutes’ defense was dominant against the Loggers’ offense, forcing six fumbles and recovering five of them. Senior defensive end Andrew Eisentrout earned NWC defensive player of the week honors with six tackles, four for a loss, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble.

LUTE NOTES:

• Whitworth has won the last three games against PLU.
• Chase Reed’s four touchdowns last Saturday were one short of the PLU record for individual touchdowns in a game. Three Lutes have had five: Dave Halstead in 1968 against Whitman, Peter Finstuen in 1996 against Western Oregon and Aaron Binger in 2003 against UPS.
• Kory Kemp, the starting quarterback for Whitworth, is the son of former Seattle Seahawks quarterback Jeff Kemp. Jeff played for the Hawks from 1987-1991. Kory, a junior from Bellevue, has passed for 568 yards in four games this season.
• More famous relatives: Whitworth wide receiver and kicker Andy Largent is a distant relative of Steve Largent, the former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver, Hall of Fame member and one-time Oklahoma legislator. Also, Pirates reserve wide receiver Steve Stockton is the nephew of former NBA great John Stockton.
• Both PLU and Whitworth lurk just outside the top 25 in the d3football.com national poll, in the “others receiving votes category.” Don Hansen's Football Gazette's Division III poll has the Pirates at No. 12 and the Lutes at No. 23.
• The winner of Saturday’s game could likely have the inside track to the NWC championship this season, after Willamette upset preseason favorite Linfield last weekend.
• Saturday’s game is Whitworth’s homecoming football game. Last season’s game between the two was PLU’s homecoming game.
• Whitworth head coach John Tully said this about Saturday’s match up: “This is clearly the best PLU team in the last four years and they are good in all areas of the game. Their skill people on offense are outstanding and their defensive front is a veteran and very talented group. Both teams will be pumped to play on Saturday and it should be an outstanding game.”

- PLU -