Tigers meet long-time rival

The Iowa Wesleyan College football team will try to reverse a series of trends against its oldest running rival in Saturday's Mid-States Football Association Midwest League game at 1 p.m. at Mapleleaf Stadium.

The Tigers (1-3 overall, 0-2 league) take on the William Penn University Statesmen (1-3, 1 -1) in the 61st meeting between the two nearby Iowa schools. The Statesmen own a 30-24-6 edge in the all-time series and have won the last six encounters. IWC's last win in the series was a 27-0 shutout Sept. 5, 1987 in Mount Pleasant. Since beating Waldorf in the season opener, the young Tigers have dropped three consecutive games and averaged 169 total yards during the stretch.

"It would be big to head into the off week (Oct. 7) with a win," said first-year coach Jason Smelser. "We have an opportunity to play at home and I feel confident about this game. I think we're getting better as a football team. We just have to have time to develop. There are big plays waiting to happen for our offense. We're real close. We're stopping ourselves right now."

SUSTAINING THE START - IWC scored the first seven points in last week's game, but then surrendered 22 unanswered in a loss at Trinity International. Aaron Rozanski (Aurora, Ill.) hit tight end Seth Laux (Fairfield) with a 6-yard touchdown pass that gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter. It was Rozanski's first touchdown pass of the season; Laux's first scoring reception of his career and IWC's first touchdown in the first half this fall. Rozanski rushed for a season-high 82 yards on seven carries last week, including a long dash of 69 yards. His 82 yards on the ground were the most since he ran for 121 yards against Trinity International as a freshman in 2004.

RAIN, WIND AND TURNOVERS - William Penn capitalized on eight IWC turnovers - five fumbles and three interceptions - and rolled to a 46-14 victory on a wet and windy day in last year's season finale in Mount Pleasant. With the win, the Statesmen clinched their first winning season since 1976. William Penn's James Jackson rushed for 130 yards and set the school's single-season rushing record. IWC's Mickell Harrell topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark in a season, becoming the first Tiger back to do so since Terry Taylor in 1999. Harrell ground out 193 yards on 34 carries and scored both of IWC's touchdowns.

FORMIDABLE FOES - William Penn's 31-14 setback to St. Ambrose last weekend was its third loss to a ranked opponent this season. The Statesmen fell to 31st-ranked (NCAA Division III) University of Wisconsin-Stout, 25-18, and dropped home contests to 2nd-ranked University of St. Francis, Ind., 39-6, and 10th-ranked St. Ambrose. The Statesmen were ranked 33rd in Don Hansen's Weekly Football Gazette after the first week of the season.

MSFA'S BEST - IWC defensive backs Chris Prospere (Plantation, Fla.) and Tremell Jones (St. Louis, Mo.) each stands atop the MSFA in one statistical category. Prospere leads the league in kickoff return average at 22.8 yards per attempt. The junior has returned eight kicks for 182 yards with a long run-back of 71 yards. Jones is tied for the MSFA lead with four interceptions. The senior collected all four of his picks in the season opener against Waldorf. William Penn is first in the league in kickoff returns, averaging 30.2 yards per attempt with one touchdown.

TURN IT TO TURNER - IWC's Floyd Turner registered a career-high 13 tackles last week, including seven solo stops. The senior defensive end has 149 tackles in four years at IWC and is second on the team this season with 25. Turner also owns three NAIA national titles in the discus with the men's track team.

ALL-AMERICAN STATESMEN - William Penn junior linebacker Clint Peery and senior running back James Jackson were 2006 First Team Preseason All-American selections by Don Hansen's Weekly Football Gazette. Peery led the NAIA and MSFA with 143 tackles last season and is averaging 13.8 tackles this fall, second in the league. Peery had 19 tackles against IWC last season. Jackson led the MSFA and ranked fifth nationally with 1,500 rushing yards last season when he earned Third Team All-American honors by Don Hansen's Weekly Football Gazette. Jackson has totaled 201 yards (2.9 ypg) on 69 carries this season.

LOST IN TIME - Trinity International held a 17-plus minute edge in time of possession against the Tigers last week. IWC ran only 37 offensive plays to Trinity's 72. Opponents have run 72 more offensive plays than the Tigers and average six more minutes in time of possession.

TOP TIGERS - Quarterback Rozanski (offense), linebacker James Fisher (defense), punter Keith Smith (special teams), linebacker Jeffery Moore (defensive scout team) and offensive lineman Jaafar Beydoun (offensive scout team) were named players of the week against Trinity by the IWC coaching staff.

ON THE RADIO - Saturday's game will be broadcast on

KILJ-AM 1130. Announcers are John Kuhens and Kent Bennett.