complete game notes in .pdf format

Storyline
The Lindenwood football team begins the second-longest homestand in school history this Saturday with its Homecoming Game. The Lions will play the first of four straight games at Hunter Stadium with a 1:30 p.m. contest.

Lindenwood returns home after picking up another big victory during its transition season to the NCAA and MIAA. The Lions travelled to Kingsville, Texas and pulled off a 41-35 win over a NCAA Division II program that had made the playoffs the last two seasons.

The win did not come easy. Lindenwood did not seal the victory until stopping the Javelinas on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line with 19 seconds remaining in the game. Andrew Helmick led the offense with three touchdown receptions.

The 2011 Homecoming opponent is Kansas Wesleyan, a NAIA program out of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference. The Coyotes were ranked No. 21 in the nation during the preseason, but they come to St. Charles with a 2-4 record. They are led by a strong running attack, including the No. 9 rusher in the NAIA, Brett Giesen.

Lions head coach Patrick Ross is familiar with the Kansas Wesleyan program. He began his coaching career there and helped the program win a conference title in 2001.

A Lindenwood Win Would...
- improve the program to 123-115-2 all-time.
- improve the Lions to 71-21 under head coach Patrick Ross.
- improve the Lions to 18-4 all-time during their Homecoming contest, including their fifth straight win and tenth over the last 11 seasons.
- improve the team to 3-1 all-time against KCAC programs.
- be the 24th straight regular-season win for the program at Hunter Stadium.

A Lindenwood Loss Would...
- drop the program to 122-116-2 all-time.
- drop the Lions to 70-22 under head coach Patrick Ross.
- be the team's first Homecoming loss since 2006.
- be Kansas Wesleyan's first road victory this season.

TD Receiving Record
Andrew Helmick tied Lindenwood's single-game receiving touchdown record last week with his three scores against Texas A&M-Kingsville. He is the third Lion with three receiving touchdowns in a game and the first since 1996.

Helmick is the team's top receiver this season with 33 catches for 416 yards and five touchdowns. The junior already ranks in the top-10 career Lindenwood receptions and receiving yards lists. He needs just 20 more receiving yards to hit 1,000 for his career.

Special Teams Record
Mike Bunton broke the school's season punt return yards record last weekend. He has 372 yards on the season. Bunton broke the record on a 77-yard touchdown, his third punt return touchdown this season, which is also a school record. Bunton is averaging 18.6 yards per punt return, which is on pace for another Lindenwood season record.

Dual Threat
Therman McGowan was a threat last weekend both rushing and receiving. He rushed 18 times for 90 yards, and also caught two passes for 104 yards. McGowan also scored a touchdown in the game and has scored at least once every game this season but one.

McGowan has rushed for 417 yards this season and is averaging 5.2 yards per rush. He has caught seven passes for 167 yards, an average of 23.9 yards per catch. McGowan leads the team with six touchdowns, including five rushing.

Fourth-Down Stop
Texas A&M-Kingsville was four-for-four on fourth-down plays in Saturday's game prior to the fourth-and-goal play from the one with 23 seconds remaining. But, the Lions made the stop when it mattered the most. Chris Howard and Christian Golder stuffed the Javelinas' top rusher for a two-yard loss.

The stop marked the fourth time this season that Lindenwood has forced a turnover on downs.

Hitting the QB
Lindenwood continues to pressure the opposing quarterbacks. The Lions picked up four more sacks last week and now have 24 on the season. In four of the six games, Lindenwood has collected at least four sacks.

Jon McComb leads the team with 4.0 sacks. Brock Reed and Joe Day are close behind with 3.5 each.

Knocking The Ball Loose
Lindenwood forced three fumbles last week and recovered two of them. Prior to the game, the Lions had three forced fumbles total for the season. Sean Gracy leads the team with two forced fumbles in 2011.

First-Half Defense
Lindenwood's defense has gotten off to a good start this season in the team's victories. In those four games, the Lions are allowing just 1.8 points in the first quarter and 8.8 points in the first half. In the two losses, the team is allowing 16.0 points in the first half of games.

Players of the Week
The team players of the week for the Texas A&M-Kingsville game were Andrew Helmick on offense, Tyler Epstein on defense, and Nick Grubbs on special teams.

Jake Heneisen won the team's Living the D.R.E.A.M. award. That acronym stands for dedication, responsibility, enthusiasm, attitude, and motivation. The award goes to the player who exemplifies those qualities on the practice and game field, around campus, inside the dorm, and in the classroom.

Efficient Quarterback
John Uribe had the most efficient game of his Lion career last Saturday with a 193.43 rating. Uribe threw three touchdown passes, no interceptions, and had 257 passing yards.

In the team's four wins, Uribe has an efficiency rating of 158.65, and has recorded over 145 for every game. In the two losses, his rating is a 114.03, and he has not scored higher than 125.

On the season, Uribe has 10 touchdown passes and just three interceptions. He has seven touchdowns and one intercepton over the last four games.

All-Purpose Skill Players
Lindenwood has two players above 100 all-purpose yards a game, and a third just under the 100-yard mark. Mike Bunton leads the team with 143.2 all-purpose yards a game. Therman McGowan is second with 107.8 yards a game. Helmick is averaging 97.5 yards a contest.

Third-Down Conversions
Lindenwood is just 20.5 percent on its third-down conversions the last three games. Over the first three games, the Lions were converting 50 percent.

Home Field Advantage
Under head coach Patrick Ross, Lindenwood is 38-5 at Hunter Stadium. The Lions are 75-44 all-time at home.

Schedule Breakdown
Lindenwood is 1-1 this season against NCAA Division I teams, 2-1 versus NCAA Division II squads, and 1-0 versus NAIA programs.

About the Coyotes
Kansas Wesleyan is 2-4 on the season, including a 0-3 mark in road games. The team is led by an offense averaging 337.3 yards a game and has allowed just five sacks. Defensively, the Coyotes are allowing 462.8 yards a game.

Brett Giesen is the top playmaker, averaging 100.3 rushing and 160.5 all-purpose yards a game. Trey Dallas is the starting quarterback and he is averaging 188.6 passing yards a game. He has nine touchdown passes and four interceptions. Zach McClain is the lead receiver with 25 receptions for 257 yards and four scores.

The duo of Adrian Thomas and Brady Harwell have combined for 114 tackles, including 15.5 for losses.

Last Week
Kansas Wesleyan won its second game of the season with a 34-15 win over Tabor last weekend. The Coyotes jumped out to a 17-3 lead after one quarter and put the game away with 10 unanswered points in the fourth.

Brian Giesen rushed for 174 yards and a touchdown, and JaLil Turner had three rushing touchdowns. Austin Crisler started at quarterback and threw for 78 yards.

Brady Harwell led the defense with nine tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery.

Head Coach Dave Dallas
Dave Dallas is in his 15th season at Kansas Wesleyan and 23rd as a head coach. He has won 119 games overall, including 81 at Kansas Wesleyan. He has won two KCAC titles in his career.

Up Next
Lindenwood will face Azusa Pacific on Oct. 22 at 1:30 p.m. at Hunter Stadium.

NCAA II Transition
Lindenwood is in its second year of NCAA Division II candidacy in 2011-12. The school has dropped its NAIA membership and is an independent.

In 2012-13, Lindenwood hopes to enter a provisional year in the NCAA. The Lions will join the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association that season.

In 2013-14, assuming all expectations have been met, the NCAA will vote to make Lindenwood a full member.