Kearney, Neb. – For a second straight season, the Lindenwood Lions football team has to come to Kearney to take on the Lopers.
 
UNK and Lindenwood both enter Saturday's contest at 1-5 with kickoff set for 1:00 p.m. Check the Loper schedule page for media and ticket links.
 
When Southwest Baptist and Lincoln decided to leave the MIAA in football, the 2014 schedule went through some changes. Eventually, that meant UNK playing at NW Missouri State again with Lindenwood and Washburn visiting Kearney two years in a row.
 
Last October, in the MIAA Game of the Week, Kearney managed a 56-6 victory over the Lions on a day that felt more like December than early fall.

 
With the winds howling, UNK stayed on the ground to the tune of 68 carries for 365 yards and five TD's. Current junior Romero Cotton (Hutchinson, Kans.) had 215 of those yards with the Lopers completing only three passes but two went for scores (5 and 53 yards).
 
The defense and special teams also got into the act as UNK took advantage of seven Lindenwood turnovers (four INT's and three fumbles). One of those miscues came on a punt attempt as an errant snap led to a four-yard return for a score by current senior linebacker Riley Bonifas (Blue Hill).
 
Having five sacks and four other TFL's, UNK held the Lions to -16 rushing yards.

If the Lopers can beat the Lions again, it would be the 100th career victory for head coach Darrell Morris. His first win as UNK head coach came back in 2000 vs. Wayne State. He would follow Al Zikmund (1955-71) and Claire Boroff (1972-99) as Kearney football coaches with 100 or more wins.
 
Offensively, Kearney enters this year's Lindenwood game as the second best rushing team in the MIAA (204.7). The Lopers have risen quickly in that category thanks to 663 yards (7.6 ypc) over the last two weeks.
 
Junior QB Bronson Marsh (Millard South) now leads the team in rushing yards with 504 while Cotton is right behind at 406. Marsh also has reached the end zone six times with Cotton's lone TD carry being a 49 yarder at Central Missouri.
 
In the air, Marsh has five TD's, one going to junior receiver Allen Sampson (Tampa, Fla.). The Hawai'i transfer leads the team in catches (19) and receiving yards (172).
 
Defensively, UNK hopes to slow down a Lindenwood quick passing game that averages nearly 250 yards per week. True fresh­man Graham Lindman (6-4, 215 lbs.) has won the QB job and is completing 49% of his passes while throwing six TD's and six INT's.
 
Fourteen different Lions have at least one catch with the leaders being junior Jaron Alexander (31 recep., 351 yds., two TD's) and freshman Tre' Roby (21 recep., 229 yds., one TD). Roby was injured last week vs. NW Missouri State but is slated to start.
 
The Lindenwood rushing game produces 57.2 yards per week with junior Lavorrie Johnson (25.0) and sophomore Jared Rayford (24.0) the leaders. The Lions do have six rushing TD's, one for every 26 carries.
 
Up front, the right side of the line has two freshmen starters in Clint Merka (6-3, 290 lbs.) and Derek Gurnea (6-4, 240 lbs.). Finally, LWU has lost a league-high 18 turnovers (six fumbles and 12 INT's).
 
Eight returning defensive starters are allowing 35.0 points and 395.0 yards per game. The Lions rank seventh in the MIAA in both rushing and pass defense and 3rd down conver­sions (37%).
 
Five seniors start but sophomore inside backer Connor Harris (78) and junior safe­ty Roderick Ryles (44) lead in tackles.

 

Harris, with 45 solo stops, has picked off two passes for 79 yards and also recov­ered a fumble. He is coming off games of 21 and 23 tackles and is second in tackles behind Loper sophomore Tyke Kozeal (Sargent).
 
Dating back to last year, Kozeal has had 10 straight games with 10 or more tackles. He needs just to two more to reach 200 for his career and is only 119 tackles away from setting a new UNK record.
 
On the perimeter, first-year starters Shai Harris (Glendale, Ariz.) and Famous McKinnon (Miami, Fla.) have been solid at corner and will have to be again Saturday.

Harris is fourth on the team in tackles (33) and has a team-high six PBU's with McKinnon at 29 tackles, including three for a loss of 14 yards.
 
Behind them, redshirt freshman George Brown (University, Mo.) has two of UNK's four picks, bringing them back for a total of 49 yards.

Kozeal has his second career INT last week with redshirt freshman OLB Devontay LeFlore (Omaha Central) bringing his first career pick back 62 yards for a TD in the win at Northeastern State.  
 
UNK heads to nationally-ranked Pittsburg State next Saturday