Storylines
- The 2017 MIAA edition of the Battle of the Lions will take place this Saturday in Joplin, Mo. Lindenwood will travel to Missouri Southern for the 2 p.m. kickoff.
 
- Lindenwood picked up an exciting victory last weekend with a 35-31 win over Nebraska-Kearney. The win moved the Lions to 3-6 on the season. Lindenwood is tied for ninth in the MIAA, and just one game back of seventh place.
 
- Missouri Southern is still searching for its first victory of the season as it enters play this week with an 0-9 record. Last weekend, Missouri Southern fell to Northeastern State in double overtime by a 32-29 margin.
 
- Last week, Lindenwood trailed late in the game with Nebraska-Kearney, but a blocked punt by A.J. Dudley helped set up Calen Campbell's game-winning touchdown with 1:33 left in the game. Campbell had 107 rushing yards and Kai Collier had 155 receiving yards, and both players had two touchdowns. Defensively, Bakari Triggs had two interceptions and two pass breakups, and Ace Rogers had a career-high 19 tackles.
 
- Lindenwood leads the all-time series with Missouri Southern by a 3-1 margin, including two straight victories in the series. The closest game came in the only previous meeting in Joplin, Mo. Lindenwood won 34-30 when Lavorrie Johnson scored on a 56-yard touchdown reception from Mason Bendigo with 4:03 left in the game.
 
- Lindenwood will look to take advantage of their strength on third-down conversions in the game. Lindenwood is first in the MIAA and 21st in the nation by converting 46.5 percent of its third downs. Missouri Southern is near the bottom of the national statistics by allowing opposing teams to convert 53.4 percent of its third-down play.
 
- Turnovers can also play a big role in the contest. Lindenwood has a -3 turnover margin on the season. Missouri Southern has forced just eight turnovers, but six have been in the last three weeks.
 
Lions Offense
- Lindenwood is currently seventh in the MIAA in total offense (376.1), and ninth in scoring offense (25.8).
 
- Deantrell Prince ranks fifth in the MIAA with 77.3 receiving yards per game. He is third with 42 receptions, and he has four touchdowns.
 
- Wide receiver Kai Collier has improved his production each week this season, including 155 receiving yards and two touchdowns last weekend. Over the last four games, he is averaging four receptions and 71.0 receiving yards a game.
 
- Center Akil Williams is expected to play his 39th career game on Saturday against Missouri Southern. He leads the next closest Lindenwood active player by three games.
 
- Running back Calen Campbell has 50 or more rushing yards in five games this season. Last week, he averaged 7.1 yards per carry, and had a season-high 107 rushing yards.
 
- Najee Jackson is sixth among league quarterbacks with 239.7 total offense yards a game and 218.2 passing yards a contest. He has 12 touchdown passes and three touchdown runs.
 
Lions Defense
- Lindenwood is currently ranked eighth in the MIAA in total defense (419.7), and sixth in scoring defense (27.9).
 
- Darrius Williams hit the 100-tackle milestone for his career last week, joining Bakari Triggs and Jonathan Harris. He has recorded 85 tackles this season, and he leads Lindenwood, and is 32nd in NCAA Division II, with 9.4 tackles a game.
 
- With his two interceptions and two pass breakups last week, Bakari Triggs now leads the team with 11 passes defended on the year. In his career, Triggs has 10 interceptions and 26 pass breakups. His 26 pass breakups is tenth in MIAA history.
 
- Ace Rogers is averaging 14.5 tackles a game the last two weeks, and he has double-figure tackles in each games.
 
- CJ Bivens leads the team with 6.5 tackles for loss this season, and Jonathan Harris has a team-high 4.0 sacks.
 
Lions Special Teams
- A.J. Dudley is the first Lion with a blocked punt since Clint Koons blocked one in 2016 against Missouri Western. Dudley is also tied for the team-high with six special teams tackles. He is tied with Jordan Perry and Kirk Young.
 
- Lindenwood is second in the MIAA with 21.1 yards per kickoff return. Bakari Triggs is averaging 30.6 yards, and Kendell Sparks is averaging 20.9 yards.
 
- Travis Spraul currently leads the team with 44 points. He has not missed a PAT this year in 29 attempts, and has connected on five field goals.
 
- Michael Crowder is tied for the MIAA lead among punters with just one touchback on the season. Last week, he did not allow a punt return yard, and all three of his punts were inside the 20-yard line, with an average spot inside the 10-yard line.
 
Team Notes
- Lindenwood ends its 2017 season on Nov. 11 with a 1 p.m. game against Central Missouri. That contest will be played at Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Mo.
 
About Missouri Southern
- Missouri Southern is looking to snap an 11-game losing streak, and a five-game home losing streak. The losing skid started with last year's 42-28 loss to Lindenwood.
 
- Missouri Southern has played three teams to within 10 points this season, with two of those games taking place at Hughes Stadium.
 
- In the first five games of the year, Missouri Southern averaged less than 10 points a game. Since making a quarterback switch, it is averaging 26.3 points a game.
 
- Brayden Scott has thrown for 810 yards and rushed for 233 the last four games. He has 12 total touchdowns (eight passing) in that span.
- Josh Hadley is the leading rusher with 360 yards, and he is averaging 4.6 yards a rush. Scott has four of the team's six rushing touchdowns.
 
- Josiah Bennett is the team's top receiver with 29 receptions for 359 yards and three touchdowns.
 
- Roc Robbins leads the team with 8.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks. He also leads the team with two fumble recoveries.
 
- Missouri Southern has blocked four kicks this year, which ranks in the top-25 nationally. Robbins has two of those blocks, which ranks 27th in NCAA Division II.