Missouri Western Athletics

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Now 5-2 after two road wins, Griffon Football returns to Spratt Stadium for Missouri Western Homecoming and the MIAA Television Network game of the week.

Missouri Western hosts Emporia State (3-4, 3-4) at 2:07 p.m. Saturday. The game can be found locally on Fox 26 KNPN and on KSMO in the Kansas City area. The Griffons are coming off their highest point total of the season in a dominating 40-14 win at Washburn last week. Emporia State comes in off a 24-21 loss to Fort Hays.

The Griffons
The Griffons are showing signs of improvement, seeing increased output from the offense the past two weeks, while the defense continues to shine. Missouri Western set season marks in a host of offensive categories last week, including passing yards, yards per pass, yards per play and a tie for the highest yardage total of the year. Skyler Windmiller passed for 264 yards and the Griffons won their first game of the year when Raphael Spencer didn’t rush for 100 yards.

Meanwhile the defense continues to give the offense more opportunities and score themselves. The Griffon defense remains second in the MIAA and sixth in the nation, holding opponents to an average of 12.6 points per game. The D is scoring on its own as well. Stephen Juergens returned a fumble 15 yards for a touchdown and Michael Jordan took his fourth interception of the year 39 yards for a score last week in Topeka. The defense forced five Washburn turnovers and the Griffons have seen a +9 turnover differential improvement since the second week of the season. MWSU now sits third in the MIAA with a +7 turnover ratio. The defense is third in the nation in red zone defense, holding opponents to a 0.522 scoring percentage on red zone chances. Just five touchdowns have been scored inside the Missouri Western 20 yard line in 23 chances.

Don’t forget about the specialists. John Schmiemeier was named MIAA Special Teams Athlete of the Week after going 4-5 on field goal attempts at Washburn last week. The senior placekicker leads the MIAA with a 76.5 field goal percentage and is tied for third in the nation, averaging 1.86 field goals per game. Scott Groner is living up to his status as a preseason All-American. Groner is 11th in the nation and leads the MIAA with a 42.4 yard per punt average.

The Hornets
Emporia State enters St. Joseph with a 3-4 record. Health at the quarterback position has been an issue along with a defense giving up well over 400 yards a game and 32 points per contest. Three different qbs have seen playing time, including two in a loss to Fort Hays last week. Despite the quarterback injuries, the Hornets are among the MIAA leaders, ranking second in passing offense (260.3) and fourth in total offense (414.4).

The Hornet defense is allowing more yards (437.7) and points (32.6) than their offense can score. Emporia State has fared well against the run, allowing just over 171 yards per game. Opponents are averaging 266.6 yards passing against the Hornets.