Game Notes vs. Millikin

WAUKESHA, Wis. - Carroll's football team is coming down the home stretch of the 2023 season, with just two games remaining, including the Pioneers' final home game of the season Saturday against Millikin University. That game will also double as Carroll's annual Senior Day celebration, where all 20 of the Pios' seniors will be honored on the field prior to the game. This year's group of seniors includes Luke Chavez, Dylan Danforth, Austin Eichstaedt, Josh Hill, Nate Johnson, Jake Laurent, Steven Lazaris, Nick Mantas, Helios Martinez, Tyler McClain, Keon Miller, AJ Moorer, JR Muth, Jake Netchin, Zac Pleester, Trevor Pye, Josh Raby, Parker Raddatz, Wyatt Skipper, and Noah Streveler.

"There's a lot of excitement this week because it's Senior Day, which is a special day to those guys," Carroll Head Football Coach Mike Budziszewski said. "We really want to send those players off victorious on Schneider Stadium one last time."

To do that, the Pioneers (4-4, 3-4 CCIW) will have to get past Millikin (0-8, 0-7 CCIW). This will be the 47th all-time meeting on the gridiron between these two schools in a series that dates back to the 1942 season. The Pioneers won last year's meeting 26-18, which snapped a five-game losing streak to the Big Blue, who lead the all-time series, 27-18-1.

"Millikin is a very athletic team that takes a lot of shots down the field," Budziszewski said. "Their defensive line is pretty good and they've got some really athletic defensive backs. They'll be aggressive, so we need to make sure that we take care of the football on offense and force some turnovers on defense."

Carroll has had a knack for making big plays in front of their home crowd at Schneider Stadium this season, where the Pioneers have a 3-1 record, winning by an average score of 47-24 in front of the home fans. The Pioneers have scored more than 50 points in three of their four home games, and will face a Millikin team that has allowed at least 29 points in all eight of their games.

With 263 passing yards per game, Carroll ranks 55th in all of Division-III. Their passing attack is led by quarterback Josh Raby, who will have a chance at breaking Carroll's single season record for passing yards (2,495), touchdown passes (27), and completions (198) with a pair of outstanding performances the next two weeks.

Despite their success in the passing game, it was the Pioneers' running game that showed flashes in last week's loss at Carthage. Freshman Marcus Johnson ran for 118 yards on 18 carries (6.6 ypc), despite entering the contest with just seven career carries.

"I'm proud of that young man. As a freshman, he's earning his spurs right now and he did a phenomenal job, taking full advantage of his opportunity when he got his number called," Budziszewski said. "The future is bright for that young man and I was excited to see him excel. Even though the outcome wasn't what we wanted it to be, Marcus was one of the shining spots in that game."

That could also be a lesson to a lot of younger players on the team.

"We're going to dress a lot of guys on Saturday, so I told all our players, 'Don't get ready...stay ready," Budziszewski said. "That was Marcus' deal. He waited for an opportunity to show us what he has and he's going to be a force to be reckoned with for the next three years in our league."

Judging by the numbers, one area that Carroll's defense could exploit Millikin is in the run game, where the Pioneers' have limited opposing offenses to 96.2 yards per game, ranking 44th in Division-III. They will face a Big Blue offense that is averaging 24.9 rushing yards per game.

"It's always a beautiful day at Schneider Stadium, so I hope to see a lot of people coming out to the game to support the football program and our seniors on Saturday," Budziszewski said. "These guys have dedicated their time here at Carroll to bettering this football program. Where we are now compared to where we were at the start of their career is a remarkable change in what we do and how we perform, and they deserve a great crowd for their final home game on Senior Day."

Saturday's game will kickoff at 1 p.m. in Waukesha, Wis. It can also be heard live via WAUK radio 540 AM and 101 FM, with that radio call also streaming live at https://waukradio.com/.