Football Plays Host to No. 2 Northwestern

Football hosted No. 2 Northwestern on Saturday afternoon in Crete. The Tigers put forth a strong effort in the opening half but the Red Raiders were able to put together three scoring drives in the second half on their way to a 31-7 win over Doane.

Northwestern scored the first points of the game on a 30-yard field goal on the opening drive. Doane answered back following a big kickoff return by Cade Wiseman to set the Tigers up near midfield. The Tigers drove 54 yards on 13 plays with James Miles III finding the end zone to give Doane a 7-3 lead. Northwestern scored just before halftime to take a 10-7 lead into the break.

In the second half, the Red Raiders scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions. Northwestern finished the game with 513 yards, including 373 through the air. Doane was held to 116 total yards.

Sam Hartman threw for 93 yards on 11 completions to five different receivers. Andrew Waido led the way with three catches for 49 yards. Two of his catches were for first downs on the Tigers' touchdown drive. Miles III rushed for 26 yards to lead the team. Kelen Meyer averaged 47.4 yards per punt in the game.

Defensively, Aaron Reyes led the team with 10 tackles, including nine solo. He forced a fumble, creating the Tigers' only takeaway in the game. Tanner Simdorn finished with seven tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. Jarett Boggs, Keegan Shuler, Reece Zutavern, and Wiseman had five total tackles apiece.

Doane will hit the road for the next two games. The first will be on October 5 in Sioux Center, Iowa, against Dordt.