Storylines
- The Lindenwood football team returns home this weekend with a two-game winning streak. It will put that winning streak on the line against one of the hottest teams in the MIAA, No. 25 Central Missouri. The Lions and Mules will kickoff at 1:30 p.m. in Hunter Stadium.
 
- The Lions improved to 3-5 on the season last week with a 34-30 road victory at Missouri Southern. Lindenwood trailed for most of the game, but scored the final points when Lavorrie Johnson caught a pass from Mason Bendigo and took it 56 yards for the game-winning touchdown with 4:03 left in the contest.
 
- Central Missouri enters play this week with a 6-2 overall record. The Mules are ranked No. 25 in the AFCA Division II national rankings, and No. 18 in the D2Football.com national poll. Central Missouri has won five straight games, including a 54-10 win over Northeastern State last Saturday.
 
- Lindenwood has played Central Missouri four times previously, the most of any MIAA opponent. The Mules have won all four meetings, although three of the four games have been within five points at halftime. The scores have been nearly identical in the series, with the Lions scoring 28 points in each game, and the Mules scoring 47 or 48 points in three of the four contests.
 
- Lindenwood is 2-2 on the season at Hunter Stadium, compared to 1-3 on the road. The biggest difference has been on the defensive side of the ball. At home, the Lions are allowing just 18.5 points and 371.2 yards of total offense. On the road, Lindenwood is allowing 47.2 points and 496.8 yards of total offense.
 
- Lindenwood's offense continues to improve under freshman quarterback Mason Bendigo. The Lions are averaging 31.0 points a game the last two weeks, and have put up two of their top three total offensive yards of the season in their current two-game winning streak.
 
- The Lions defense will have its hands full against one of the top offenses in NCAA Division II. The Mules are putting up over 500 yards a game, and scoring 38.9 points a contest. In their current winning streak, the Mules are scoring 45.8 points a game.
 
- Lindenwood's defense has forced seven turnovers the last two weeks, and have a +2 turnover margin in those games. Central Missouri has a +9 turnover margin for the season.
 
Lions Offense
- Lindenwood is 10th in the MIAA in scoring offense (18.0), and 11th in total offense (303.1).
 
- The Lions offense has scored 62 points over the last two weeks, the most points it has scored in back-to-back games since week two and three of the 2013 season.
 
- Over the last two weeks, the team has seven offensive plays over 30 yards, compared to six for the first six weeks of the season. Five of those big plays the last two weeks have been touchdowns, and three have been over 50 yards.
 
- Running back Lavorrie Johnson had a career game last week, setting career-highs with 77 rushing yards and 98 receiving yards. He scored two touchdowns in a game for the first time as a Lion.
 
- Wide receiver Jaron Alexander is second in Lindenwood's record book with 138 career reception, 15 behind the all-time record. Over the last two seasons, he caught 27 passes for 209 yards in two games against the Mules
 
Lions Defense
- Lindenwood is 10th in the MIAA in scoring defense (32.9), and is tenth in total defense (434.0).
 
- Linebacker Connor Harris continues to have a historic season on defense for Lindenwood:
          -He leads all levels of NCAA football with 17.3 tackles a game, which would be a new NCAA Division II record (since 2000).
          -He leads all levels of NCAA football among active players with 449 career tackles.
          - He is currently ninth in MIAA history with 449 career tackles, and is 10 tackles shy of moving into the top-five of that list.

- Lindenwood's defense has recorded 10 sacks the last two weeks. Seven different players have at least an assisted sack, led by Jonathan Harris with 2.5 sacks. Jonathan Harris also has a team-high 4.5 tackles for loss in those two games.
 
- Roderick Ryles had a career-high two interceptions last week. Both came in the fourth quarter, and the second one helped set up Lindenwood's game-winning touchdown.
 
Lions Special Teams
- Matt Klingler leads NCAA Division II with 45.4 yards per punt. He has punted 38 times and has 12 punts over 50 yards. Eleven of his punts have been inside the 20-yard line.
 
- Deon Rieux leads the team with 13 special teams tackles. Last week, he had five tackles on special teams, three on kickoff coverage and two on punt coverage, and forced a fumble on one of the tackles that was recovered by the Lions.
 
Misc. Notes
- Lindenwood has its final road game of the season on Nov. 7 at Central Oklahoma. The game will mark the first time it has left the state of Missouri since week two of the season.
 
About Central Missouri
- The Mules are first in the MIAA in total offense (506.3) and third in total defense (376.5).
 
- Central Missouri's offense is led by quarterback Garrett Fugate. He is throwing for 276.8 yards a game and rushing for 65 yards a contest. He has thrown 15 touchdown passes and rushed for eight scores.
 
- Austin Miller leads the team with 56 tackles, and he also has team-highs with three interceptions and three fumble recoveries.