DWU football gameday: Tigers welcome Red Raiders on Halloween

Oct. 30—MITCHELL — Dakota Wesleyan University returns home off a bye week to resume Great Plains Athletic Conference play on Saturday, welcoming conference-leading No. 14 Northwestern for a Halloween showdown.

The Tigers, who rallied past Hastings in their last contest on Oct. 17, will face Northwestern, who is at 7-1 in league play this season but has not taken a bye week yet. Midland, Morningside and Dordt are all 6-1 in the conference, while DWU is in fifth place alone in fifth place with a 4-3 league mark.

DWU is looking for its first win over the Red Raiders in a decade. Here’s a look at DWU’s matchup on Saturday:

When: 1 p.m. Saturday

Where: Joe Quintal Field

Records: DWU 4-4 (4-3 GPAC); NWC 7-2 (7-1 GPAC)

Coaches: DWU’s Alex Kretzschmar (12-18, third season); Northwestern’s Matt McCarty (103-28, 11th season)

All-time series: Northwestern leads the series 22-4.

Last meeting: Northwestern won 23-0 on Sept. 20, 2025, in Mitchell.

Last time out: DWU rallied for a 20-13 road win at Hastings on Oct. 17. Northwestern pummeled Waldorf on Oct. 24 in Forest City, Iowa, by a 68-10 margin.

Notes: Northwestern has nine consecutive wins in the series, with DWU’s last victory coming in 2016, a 44-27 win in Mitchell … Northwestern is ranked No. 15 in the latest NAIA Massey Ratings, while DWU checks in at No. 43. … The latest edition of the NAIA’s Football Performance Indicator, which assigns a point value for the strength of every win and loss this season, has Northwestern at No. 11 and DWU at No. 48. … Northwestern is also ranked No. 14 in the NAIA’s national selection committee rankings this week. … The Tigers have enjoyed a spooky good run in Halloween games in school history, winning their last four games on Oct. 31, according to Mitchell Republic records. That dates back to a historic comeback in 1992 when the then-No. 7 Tigers rallied from 21-0 down to defeat rival Huron College 28-21. DWU won its last Halloween game 26-7 over Briar Cliff in 2020.

About DWU: Defensive back Trevor Sladky is tied for No. 2 nationally with five interceptions this season. DWU ranks No. 1 nationally with 16 defensive interceptions as a team. The Tigers have 23 defensive takeaways, which is third-best in the country, but have committed 19 giveaways for a turnover margin of plus-four. … DWU remains ranked No. 2 in fewest total penalties this season with 29, ranking only behind Dordt (26). … The Tigers’ Reed Rus has seven sacks and 10 tackles for loss on the season, both of which lead the GPAC. … DWU punter Wyatt Bult is fifth in the country for most individual punts with 45 this season. … Even with a shutout against Midland on Sept. 26, DWU is averaging 24.9 points per game, which is the most in a season since 2017.

About Northwestern: The Red Raiders have won five games in a row, outscoring their opponents 236-77 in that span and averaging nearly 485 yards of total offense per game. … NWC is outscoring opponents 96-24 in the first quarter this season. … Northwestern boasts the all-time collegiate female scoring leader with sophomore kicker Gianna Bennett, who has scored 114 career points for NWC. She is 41-for-45 on extra points and 7-for-8 on field goals. … Red Raider quarterback Colby Duncan has put a charge in the NWC offense, with 2,255 passing yards and 23 touchdowns, plus 752 yards rushing and 14 scores. He has scored 11 total touchdowns in the last two games, including six in the first half on Oct. 24 at Waldorf.

Next: DWU will play its home finale on Nov. 7 against No. 13 Dordt. Northwestern has an off week on Nov. 7 before hosting the rival Defenders on Nov. 14 in the regular-season finale.

GPAC schedule

Saturday, Oct. 31

Hastings at Briar Cliff, 1 p.m.

Waldorf at Doane, 1 p.m.

Morningside at Midland, 1 p.m.

Doane at Concordia (Neb.), 1 p.m.