Huskies Football Travels to No. 13 UW-OshKosh – Michigan Tech

Football
9/18/2024 12:45:00 PM

Matt Taylor – Director of Athletic Communications

HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech football team wraps the nonconference ledger on Saturday, traveling to UW-Oshkosh for a 1 p.m. kickoff. This marks the first meeting between the two teams.

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Audio, live stats and a live stream of the game can be found on Michigantechhuskies.com/live. 

About the Titans

The Titans have upset two top-25 teams in their first two games, winning by a touchdown in front of 3,200 fans combined at Titan Stadium to start the season 2-0. UW-Oshkosh toppled then-No. 9 ranked Wheaton (21-14) in their season opener and most recently bested No. 21 Linfield (28-21) on Sept. 14. 

UW-Oshkosh gained national recognition for the back-to-back top-25 victories, coming in at No. 13 in the week three national poll. 

UW-Oshkosh has a well-balanced attack with Wide receiver Jon Mathieu and running back Justice Lovelace both averaging over 90 yards per game and two touchdowns. Additionally, tight end Clayton Schwalbe was named to the D3Football.com Team of the Week for his performance in the 28-21 victory over No. 21 Linfield in overtime—He recorded three receptions for 67 yards and a touchdown.

Quarterback Warren Cole went 15-for-19 throwing for 180 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday’s win.

The Titans’ defense has been lethal accounting for three forced fumbles and three interceptions. Kyle Dietzen and Bryce Edwards lead UWO’s defense with 15 total tackles.

About the Huskies

Michigan Tech travels south to conclude the nonconference slate, coming off back-to-back wins at Kearly Stadium with an overall standing of 2-1. The Huskies most recently won their sixth-straight matchup against Hillsdale with a 21-6 

Senior defensive back Hunter Buechel earned his first GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honor for his efforts in the Huskies win. He recorded seven total tackles, two for loss (12 yards) a sack (nine yards) and a forced fumble on the three-yard line late in the fourth quarter. This comes a week after the Lake Mills, Wisconsin, native posted a game-clinching pass breakup in the 4 OT thriller against South Dakota Mines.

Buechel and Dante Basanese rank first in the league with nine total tackles per game. 

Offensively, Michigan Tech is averaging over 28 points per game through three games. Senior quarterback Alex Fries sits atop the league in passing touchdowns (8), passing yards (847) and passing yards per game (282.3). 

Additionally, the wide receiver room has three players among the top 10 in the GLIAC, Ethan Champney is atop the conference in receiving touchdowns (4) and receiving yards (378), ranking him third nationally. The program’s reception leader, Darius Willis, has two receiving touchdowns paired with 266 receiving yards, ranking second in the league. Brandon Michalak is on pace for a career-high in reception yards, receiving over 100 yards through the air (108) for ninth in the GLIAC.

On special teams, punter Brenden Lach has continued to elevate his game, with his punting average of 47.7 being second in the nation. The South Lyon, Michigan, native also accounted for two tackles in the win over Hillsdale.

One Last Thing 

Michigan Tech has recovered four fumbles through the first three games, ranking third in the country. Buechel has a massive hand in the ranking, having forced two of the Black & Gold’s four recoveries. MTU’s defense is also top-10 nationally in team tackles for loss (9.7) ranked eighth out of 159 teams.