WAVERLY, Iowa—The long-awaited return to Walston-Hoover Stadium will happen on Saturday, Sept. 4, as the Wartburg College Knights host the Fighting Scots of Monmouth College in the opening game of the season.
The Knights faced the Fighting Scots as they opened the 2019 campaign against each other. The Orange & Black posted a 38-9 victory in that contest.
Knights returning from the 2019 squad include
Bennett Goettsch,
Jace Moore,
Eli Barrett,
JoJo McNair,
Jordan Downing,
Sam Joerger, and
Antonio Santillan.
The Knights, who have not played a home game since Nov. 16, 2019, when they defeated Loras College 48-7. The Knights posted a 10-2 record in 2019.
Rankings and Preseason Polls
- McNair enters the 2021 season as a preseason All-American as announced by d3football. McNair, who landed on the Second-Team Defense by d3football, brings an impressive resume to the field.
- On the defensive side of the ball, McNair recorded 40 tackles and three interceptions in the 2019 season. McNair had a season-best game against Central in 2019, recording 10 tackles, 11 rushing yards, and two touchdowns.
- In his defensive career with the Knights, McNair has been credited for 147 tackles, with 96 of the tackles being solo tackles.
- The Orange & Black earned the #18 ranking by d3football and are predicted to finish in second place in the A-R-C standings preseason poll.
Players to Watch
- Running back Goettsch returns for his senior season after ranking fourth in the conference for total yards with 859 a year ago. The Marengo, Iowa native also placed fifth in the A-R-C with eight touchdowns.
- Barrett returns for the Knights after leading the team in tackles during his junior campaign. The Denver, Iowa native racked up 64 tackles a season ago, which ranked 10th in the A-R-C.
- Linebacker Santillan returns on the defensive side of the ball for Wartburg after leading the conference in interceptions with five in 2019.
- In addition to the players, defensive back McNair, linebacker Owen Grover, defensive lineman Donaven Juarez, offensive lineman Ethan Lape and quarterback Moore are some other key players to watch out for this season.
All-Americans
- Goettsch, Sam Reyes, Grover, and Barrett were selected to the CoSIDA NCAA Division III District 8 team.
- Goettsch was selected to the Second Team for Academic All-American Teams, selected by CoSIDA for his work in the classroom.
Behind the Knights
The Knights are under new leadership for the first time since 1997 as long-time head coach
Rick Willis stepped down in July. Willis, who is the all-time coaching wins leader, moves to become the inaugural vice president role for student recruitment.
Chris Winter was promoted to head coach on July 1, after serving with the Wartburg football coaching staff for 16 years. He's been the defensive coordinator since 2011, was promoted to assistant head coach in 2013, and has served as the head strength and conditioning coordinator since 2008. A 2004 Wartburg graduate, Winter was a four-year member of the football and baseball teams and 2017 Wartburg Athletics Hall of Fame inductee.
Additionally, Coach Winter promoted
Matt Wheeler to assistant head coach and
Matt Tschetter to defensive coordinator prior to fall camp.
Wheeler, a 2011 Wartburg Hall of Fame inductee, will enter his 12th season as the program's offensive coordinator and first year as the assistant head coach. Under Wheeler's leadership, the
Knights' offense has led the American Rivers Conference in scoring for three consecutive seasons and ranked 11th nationally with a 45-points per game average during the 2019 season. Since 2014, Wheeler has mentored four Gagliardi Trophy semifinalists, four first-team All-American offensive linemen, four 1,000-yard receivers and two 1,000-yard rushers. D3football.com All-American and Iowa Conference MVP Logan Schrader also set five career records under Wheeler's guidance.
Tschetter, a 2011 All-American for the Knights, will embark on his first season as the defensive coordinator in 2021 after serving the past three years as the linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator. He coached three All-Conference linebackers in the 2018 and 2019 seasons combined, including
Antonio Santillan, who was voted Wartburg's defensive MVP in 2019 after compiling 97 tackles and 5 interceptions.
