IW football faces best offense in the conference

MT. PLEASANT - It's buckle-up time for the Iowa Wesleyan defense. The Tigers play their first home game of the month on Saturday against the high-powered MacMurray College Highlanders.

IW comes into the game with an 0-6 record. They are the only winless team in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference, at 0-4. MacMurray is 3-3 overall and 3-1 in conference play.

The Highlanders score 33.8 points per game, just ahead of first-place Martin Luther for the top mark in the conference. Their defense is middle of the road, giving up 28.3 points per game.

IW has had a rough go of it in conference play, especially on the offensive side of the ball. They score just 6.7 points per game and give up 37.7. points per game.

Why has MacMurray's offense been so good? The Highlanders have the second-most prolific passing game in the conference with starting quarterback Bobby Tedesco throwing for an average of 277.8 yards per game. He has thrown 18 touchdowns this year and just eight interceptions.

If the Tigers want to upset the Highlanders at home this weekend, they are going to need to score. The Tigers have put up jus tsix points in their last two contests.

On the flip side, MacMurray has had a tough time on defense in their last two games. The Highlanders gave up 33 in a three-point loss to Westminster and 27 in an 18-point win over Crown College.

If the Tigers can ick up a win, they'll take some momentum into their final month of the season. IW will play road games against St. Scholastica University and Greenville Unviersity before hosting the University of Northwestern-St. Paul in their final game of the year.