Illinois Wesleyan (4-2, 3-1) vs. Carthage (5-2, 2-2)
Sat., Oct. 27 • 6 p.m. • Art Keller Field (AstroPlay synthetic surface), Kenosha, Wis.

LAST WEEK: The Titans jumped out to a 24-6 halftime advantage en route to a 31-13 win over Wheaton. Junior QB Josh Akin (Naperville, Benet Academy) completed 17 of 36 passes for 234 yards and a TD and ran for 59 yards. Senior Aaron Telford (Bloomington, Central Catholic HS) rushed for 36 yards and two TDs and also made four catches for 71 yards and a score. . .Eight Titans caught passes vs. Wheaton. . . The IWU defense limited Wheaton to 99 rushing yards and made three sacks. Junior LB Mike Clark (Joliet, West HS) had seven solo tackles, intercepted a pass for 12 return yards, and forced a fumble. Senior Creighton Drescher (Palatine HS) had nine total tackles (four solo) and recovered a fumble, while senior Andy Rader (Carlock, Normal U High) had sveen tackles and a fumble recovery. Junior DE Steve Schilsky (Springfield, Sacred Heart Griffin HS) had five tackles with a sack.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Chosen by Titan coaches to honor top players in the week’s game and practices.
OFFENSE: Aaron Telford, senior, back, Bloomington (Central Catholic HS)
DEFENSE: Steve Schilsky, junior, end, Springfield (Sacred Heart Griffin HS); Creighton Drescher, senior, back, Palatine (HS)
SPECIAL TEAMS: Peter Dabrowski, sophomore, linebacker, Elmwood Park (HS)
SCOUT (Offense): Joe Sergo, freshman, wide receiver, Park Ridge (Maine South HS); Josh Evans, freshman, quarterback, Sycamore (HS)
SCOUT (Defense): Jason Lyngaas, freshman, end, Lake Barrington (Barrington HS).

FOR THE RECORD: One more win this season would assure IWU of its eighth straight winning season . . . IWU teams are 43-23 (.652) in October in the Norm Eash era . . .The Titans are 52-15 (.776) at home and 44-25-1 on the road (.630) under Eash. . .IWU is 41-8 (.837) at Wilder Field in the last 11 years, including 2001 . . .Dating back to 1995, IWU has won 48 of its last 59 games (.814) and has been over the .500-mark for seven straight years and 11 of the last 12 years...Prior to a Sept. 8 loss at Washington U., IWU had won 11 straight regular season non-league games, dating back to a 24-21 loss to Simpson in 1995.

THE COACHES: Norm Eash (Illinois Wesleyan, 1975) is in his 15th season as head coach at IWU. He has an overall record of 96-40-1 (.704) and a CCIW mark of 75-32-1 (.699) with conference titles in 1992, 1994, 1996 and 2000. Eash is fifth in all-time CCIW coaching wins and is second in victories at IWU, behind Don "Swede" Larson (166 wins in 33 years, 1954-86) . . . Tim Rucks (Carthage, 1983) is in his seventh season at Carthage and has a record of 30-31-1. In 12 seasons overall, he has a mark of 39-64-4. His record at North Park was 9-33-3 (5-29-3 CCIW), but his 1993 North Park team was 4-4-1, the best record at the school in 25 years. Rucks was an all-conference offensive tackle for the Redmen in 1982.

THE SERIES:  In a series that dates back to 1926, Illinois Wesleyan holds a 31-14 lead vs. Carthage. The Titans have won seven in a row, 17 of the last 19 meetings, and 22 of the last 25. Carthage last won in Bloomington in 1981 - a 29-7 victory. The Titans won, 44-13, in 2000.

CCIW STATS: In the latest CCIW statistics, IWU is fifth in total offense with 358.3 yards per game and ranks third in total defense, allowing 235.3 yards per game. . . Tim Snyder is second in the CCIW with 4.0 catches per game and third with 57.7 receiving yards per game. Aaron Telford is sixth with 75.5 rushing yards per game and seventh with 100.2 all-purpose yards/game. Kevin Kaplan is second with an average of 14.2 yards per punt return. Josh Akin is second in the league with 139.3 passing yards per game. . . Carthage’s Randal Baker leads the CCIW in rushing (136.7 yards/game). Patrick Brown is eighth in rushing (66.6 yards) and sixth in passing yardage (95.1). Rob Garnes is fourth in receiving (3.14 catches per game) and eighth in receiving yards (33.4 yards/game). Adam Woodworth leads the CCIW in punting (37.9). As a team, Carthage is fourth in both scoring offense (23.7 ppg) and scoring defense (20.1), sixth in total offense (327.6), and fourth in total defense (327.4).

THE REDMEN: Carthage is 5-2 with wins over Lakeland, Martin Luther, Adrian, North Central, and Elmhurst (41-19). Their losses have been to Wheaton (41-14) and Millikin (20-16)...Last week vs. Elmhurst, QB Patrick Brown threw first quarter TD passes to Scott Steger and Rob Garnes and ran for two TDs, including a 57-yard dash. In the fourth quarter, RB Randal Baker ran for a 53-yard TD and scampered a school-record 93 yards for a TD. Baker, who has 957 rushing yards this year, ran for 188 yards while Brown had 129 rushing and 119 passing yards. Carthage rolled up 487 total yards, 354 rushing. DB Logan Reilly had a team-leading 13 tackles (9 solo, 4 assisted), while DE Ray Hartman had 12 (10 solo, 2 assisted), including two tackles-for-loss and a sack.

LOOKING AHEAD: IWU returns home for the final home game of the season next Saturday. The Titans host North Central at 1 p.m. and it is “Seniors’ Day” at IWU.