Game 11 Preview: Final 2023 Ride Comes in Maryville

11/10/2023 4:20:00 AM

Kearney, Neb. – The Nebraska Kearney football team closes out the 2023 campaign this Saturday at Northwest Missouri State.

It'll be "Senior/Agriculture Day" at Bearcat Stadium with kickoff set for 1:30 p.m. The game is available via The MIAA Network, The River 93.1/106.9 KRVN FM and live stats.

Due to some early season injuries, Northwest (6-4) will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2003. The 'Cats, however, are now healthy and have won four of five. UNK (3-7) is aiming for its second all-time win in Maryville, the first coming back in 1969.

Quarterback TJ Davis (Colorado Springs) will play his 49th and final game for the Lopers. The other "Class of 2018" members are defensive backs Sethe Holt (Chicago) and Armani Webster (Chicago), punter Hunter Kraus (Taylor) and offensive linemen Kooper Reece (Valentine). Reece continues to rehab an October 2022 injury and is aiming for a return in 2024.

The fifth-year Lopers are D-lineman Tell Spies (Mullen) and o-linemen Hunter Hays (McCook), Jon Merten (Albion) and Sam Snider (Centennial, Colo.). They each came aboard in 2019 as part of a smaller recruiting class.

Now with a school-record 123 career offensive touchdowns (61 rushing, 61 passing and one receiving), Davis is looking to reach 11,000 yards of offense. He's up to 10,749 and would join fellow QB Jake Spitzlberger (11,563) as the only Lopers in the 11k club.

It won't be easy against another tough Northwest defense. They have 24 sacks, picked off 12 passes, recovered nine fumbles and are third nationally against the run (56.1 yards per game; 2.0 yards per carry). UNK comes in averaging 133 yards per week and just under four yards a carry.

Allowing 22 points per game, Northwest shut out both Lincoln and Northeastern State while limiting Fort Hays State to 17 points. Their top four tackles have between 33-46 tackles with junior end Jake Fisher (#95) having team-highs in both TFL's (12.5) and sacks (6.0).

AJ McPhee

Another sixth-year QB on the field Saturday will be Mike Hohensee. Missing some time earlier this fall due to injury, he's up to 74 career TD's (15 rushing and 59 passing) and nearly 7,000 yards of total offense. This year, he's at 224 yards per week with 18 TD tosses. He has two of the best receivers in the MIAA in Kashan Griffin (#7) and Trevon Alexander (#13) with sophomore Jay Harris (#23) one of D2's top backs. He had 12 TD's, 10 100-yard games and averages 130 yards per game.

Last year at Cope Stadium, Northwest rallied from a 24-14 third quarter deficit thanks to its run game and strong defense. Harris reached the end zone three times, reserve QB Braden Wright scored with five minutes to go and then the defense stopped UNK inside the 10-yard line. That resulted in a 28-24 win and a 14-4 all-time series lead.

Being tough in the red zone has been one of UNK's bright spots in 2023. The opposition has reached the Loper 20-yard 40 times to date but come away with only 20 TD's. Ranking second in the MIAA in red zone percentage (75%), the 20 "misses" included 10 made field goals, four missed field goals, four turnovers on downs and two turnovers.

Spies, Webster and fellow vets Zach Schlager (McCook) and Tre O'Guinn (Peoria, Ariz) rank one through four on the team in tackles, combining for 161 overall. Both Schlager (Colorado State and Nebraska) and O'Guinn (Utah, Northern Arizona and New Mexico Military Institute) have been at UNK at least two years after beginning their careers at other schools.

These two teams will begin the 2024 season against each other with the 'Cats coming to Foster Field on either Sept. 5 (Thursday) or Sept. 7 (Saturday).

UNK Release/Depth Chart & Roster

NW Football

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