SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The 18th-ranked Evangel football team heads back to Iowa Saturday to face the Clarke Pride in the first meeting on the gridiron between the two schools.
SERIES HISTORY
Evangel and Clarke University will meet for the first time ever as the Clarke Pride are in their inaugural season.
OPENING STORYLINES
► No. 18 Evangel makes its first-ever trip to Dubuque, Iowa for a meeting with first-year program Clarke University. The second trip to Iowa in two weeks for the Crusaders will pit Evangel against former Baker assistant coach Miguel Regalado.
► Through two games Evangel ranks fifth nationally in total defense allowing teams to under 196 yards per game. More importantly, the Crusaders are holding opponents to 10.5 points per game, the ninth-best mark in the nation through the first two weeks.
► Two-way leader Sam Morton (Strafford, Mo.) ranks top 20 nationally in tackles for a loss and yards per punt. Morton is averaging 3.5 tackles for a loss, while his addition to special teams has seen the junior average 41.1 yards per punt.
► The three-headed rushing attack for the Crusaders is averaging 176 yards per game behind senior Ben Friend (Lighthouse Christian) and juniors Darrius Lee and Zeke Kuyawa. Kuyawa leads the group at 51 yards per game, while Friend is averaging 5.0 yards per carry.
► Playing havoc in opponents backfields has been part of the Crusader way. This season Evangel has already tallied 14.0 tackles for a loss with Sam Morton (Strafford, Mo.) and Dominic Swillum (Mt. Vernon, Mo.) leading the pack with 3.5 and 2.5 tackles for a loss through two games.
► New to the 2019 season, fans can purchase tickets online at www.EUAthletics.com/Tickets. Tickets can either be presented by smartphone at the gate or by printing the ticket from an email and having it scanned at the gate.
DID YOU KNOW?
Evangel has played a program in its inaugural season as recently as 2014 when the Crusaders traveled to Arizona Christian on Aug. 23, 2014. Evangel earned a 40-16 win over the Firestorm in their first-ever game playing as an Independent. ACU went on to finish 2-7 in their first season and are now members of the Sooner Athletic Conference where they finished 8-3 overall last season and 5-3 in the SAC.
LOOKING AHEAD
Evangel returns to Iowa for the second of three trips in 2019 to take on first-year program Clarke. Kickoff from Dubuque, Iowa is scheduled for 1 p.m.
For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, follow the Crusaders on Facebook at Facebook.com/EUAthletics or go to www.EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the Go Evangel Front Row App at EvangelAthletics.com/FrontRow available on Google Play and in the App Store.
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