WAUKESHA, Wis. – The Carroll University football team will stay at home for the second weekend in a row, as they welcome the No. 1 North Central College Cardinals to Schneider Stadium on Saturday, October 8.
 
TEAM DETAILS: Carroll enters this matchup at 3-1, with a re-energized offense and a sturdy defense still holding strong in the national rankings. Carroll's rushing offense got back on track after a 300+ yard outing against Augustana last week in the 44-41 2 OT win. The Pios are rushing at 5.2 yards a carry, and are picking up 222.0 yards per game on the ground so far this season. All marks that are second most in the CCIW, second to their opponent this week, North Central. Carroll's passing offense has slowed a bit since the start of the season, now averaging just 205.5 yards per game, but Carroll's 13 passing touchdowns are the second most by a team this season in the CCIW. Josh Raby's 12 touchdowns this season are the second most in the conference and the 19th-highest mark in the Nation. Keon Miller and Reed Breckheimer have caught seven of the 12 this year.
 
The Carroll defense continues to terrorize offenses this season, despite not forcing a turnover last week for the first time this season. Carroll still reports the fourth-best turnover margin in the nation, taking away two possessions per offensive giveaway per game. The rush defense for the Pioneers sits at 99.2 yards per game so far this season, Carroll is one of five teams in the CCIW to allow less than 100 yards per game on the ground. The Pios are allowing just over 17 first downs per game from opponents, and have successfully stopped five fourth down attempts this season. The redzone defense stays locked in, with the second-best defensive scoring percentage in the conference to go along with two takeaways.  
 
PREVIEWING THE CARDINALS: Saturday marks the 56th meeting of the two programs, dating back to the first contest back in 1936. Despite the Cardinals' recent dominance over the past few seasons, Carroll holds the all-time lead with a 31-22-2 record. Carroll won nine straight from 1967-1975, and the Cardinals are on a seven-game winning streak that started in 1994. The Cardinals came to Waukesha in 2021 and took home a 62-7 victory. Carroll scored on the opening possession but the Cardinals responded with 62 unanswered points.
 
NCC sits atop the D3football.com Top 25 and the AFCA Coaches Poll. The Cardinals have been the nation's number-one team since week three of the season. North Central's recent success has brought them to back-to-back Stagg Bowl games, including their 2019 National Championship victory over Wisconsin-Whitewater. The program boasts the second-best scoring offense, the second-best total offense, and the fourth-best rushing offense in the nation. All of their offensive and defensive ranks are top 100 in Division III. Quarterback Luke Lehnen, running back Ethan Greenfield, and wide receiver DeAngelo Hardy are the three main pieces of the powerful offense.
 
WEEKLY PIONEER HONORS: Jaxon Case was named the team's offensive player of the week for obvious reasons. Case led the offense with 238 yards rushing and 249 yards overall in the 44-41 2 OT win. Case's longest rush of the day of 80 yards in the fourth quarter pushed him over 200 yards for the day.
 
Damon Loker was given the team's defensive player of the week honors after leading the team in tackles for the second game in a row. Loker's 13 tackles were a season-high for the sophomore, who added in a half-tackle for loss. Loker was involved in pass protection, and while the stats won't show up on the box score, he was involved in breaking up pass plays over the middle that kept the game in the Pios' favor.
 
Linebacker Travis Runberg was chosen as the team's special teams player of the week. Runberg tallied three tackles, two solo in the game, providing strong coverage on the kickoff team.
 
CRAZY LEGS CASE: Jaxon Case's breakout game against Augustana vaulted him into some hardware throughout the week and into the Pioneer record books. Case's 238 yards on the ground was the most by a Carroll running back since 2015. The sophomore's 80-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter tied the game at 35-35 to push the Pioneers to overtime. Case's efforts landed him on the CCIW Football Player of the Week Team, as well as the D3football.com Team of the Week. Case is the first Pio this season to be named to both teams in the same week.
 
LARGE MARGIN FOR ERRORS: The Pioneer turnover margin this season ranks as one of the best in the CCIW, and the nation. Carroll boasts a +8 turnover differential this season, as the Pios have forced 10 turnovers while only turning the ball over twice themselves. Per game, Carroll is causing two turnovers per offensive possession loss, which sits as the fourth-best mark in the nation. This is largely in part to Jake Binkowski's three interceptions this season, Damon Loker's two forced fumbles, and Josh Raby's 0 interceptions.  
 
HOW TO WATCH: The Pioneers and Cardinals will kick off at 1 PM. Live statistics and a link to the broadcast on the Pioneer Sports Network will be available at gopios.com/football.