KICKOFF COVERAGE
ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – Bethel football travels to Concordia in a battle of undefeated Skyline Division opponents. The winner of Saturday's game earns a spot in the MIAC Championship game the following week. Kickoff in Moorhead is set for 1 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY
Series:Â BU trails 21-24
Last:Â Â Bethel won 31-14 (Nov. 4, 2023) in Arden Hills
• Bethel has won five straight against Concordia as they return to Moorhead for the first time since 2021. During that five-game stretch, BU is outscoring the Cobbers 169-50. Saturday's meeting is the 46th all-time between the programs. The last meeting in Moorhead was a nail biter with BU coming out on top 21-16 thanks to an interception by
Nate Farm in the end zone late in the fourth.
ROYAL NOTES
• Bethel (7-1, 5-1 MIAC) is coming off its fifth straight win, defeating Carleton 56-7 on Senior Day. Concordia (6-2, 5-1 MIAC) won its third straight, beating Augsburg at home 38-7.
• In the last five games, BU has outscored its opponent 301-15 while capturing three shutouts.Â
• The Royals amassed 500-plus yards of offense for the fourth straight week with 549 yards. It's the 16th time in the last five seasons BU surpassed the 500-yard mark.
• Cooper Drews was named MIAC Offensive Player of the week after throwing a single-game record six touchdown passes for the second straight week. Against Carleton, Drews threw for a career-high 422 yards while completing a single-game record 38 passes. He also became the Royals' single-season TD passes leader with 30 on the year.Â
• Micah Niewald moved into second all-time with 3,066 receiving yards after going for 108 yards last Saturday. Niewald had 14 catches and one touchdown grab against the Knights.Â
• Joey Kidder had 11 catches for a season-high 183 yards with three touchdowns against Carleton. His now 15 TDs for the year ties Joel Olson (2001) for the single-season record.  Â
BY THE NUMBERS
31 – Bethel's 31 sacks are the most in a season since 2019 when the Royals had 33 in 10 games. BU ranks sixth nationally.
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10 – Caden DeWall's 10 sacks is tied for the fourth most in Division III and currently leads the MIAC.     Â
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25 – The Royals have gained a nation-leading 25 turnovers this season with 16 interceptions and nine fumble recoveries
STOPPING THE RUN GAME
• Bethel leads Division III in rushing defense giving up a minimal 9.8 yards per game, 22.1 yards better than the next best team.
• Allowing -30 rushing yards to the Pipers, it marked the fourth time this year that BU held its opponent in the negative rushing range.
• Since 2022, the Royals are 18-1 when holding their opponent to less than 100 yards on the ground.
• In all eight games this season, the Royals have held their opponent below their season average.
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JUMPING FOR JUNG
• Sophomore Matt Jung leads the Bethel defense with six interceptions on the year, two coming in each of the first two games. His six picks are currently tied for the second most in Division III.
• He added an 84-yard pick-six against the Johnnies in the third pulling BU within 35-20. It was his third career pick-six for the Royals.
• Adding a 43-yard punt return touchdown to his scoring list against Macalester. Jung now has a TD in all facets of the game including a 69-yard TD reception against Saint John's. It's the first non-blocked punt return for the Royals since Oct. 27, 2012 when Landen Strilzuk returned it 70 yards to the house.
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DEWALL DROPS 'EM FOR A LOSS
• Senior linebacker Caden DeWall currently has a team-leading 10.0 sacks on the year which is also tied for the fourth most in NCAA Division III. It's the third most in a single season and is the most since current assistant coach Kyle Kilgore's 15.0 in 2018.
DREWS DROPPING DIMES
• Sophomore Cooper Drews threw a single-game record six touchdowns in wins over Hamline and Carleton.
• Against the Knights, Drews threw for a career-high 422 yards while setting a single-game record with 38 completions.
• Against Hamline, he added a 92.3 completion percentage (24-of-26) which was the second-best in a conference game according to the MIAC record books.
• Drews leads Division III quarterbacks with a 76.7 completion percentage this season.
• His 30 TD passes on the year is a single-season record and ranks seventh nationally and second in the MIAC.
>>>Â READ BETHEL'S COMPLETE GAME NOTES BY CLICKING HERE.