ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Griffon Football (3-6, 2-5 MIAA) plays its final road game of the season Saturday at No. 14 Northwest Missouri State (8-1, 7-0 MIAA).
 
Kickoff from Bearcat Stadium in Maryville, Missouri is set for 1:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on the Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen) with pregame coverage starting at 1 p.m.
 
Voice of the Griffons Tommy Rezac will be on the call with Kyle Schmidt serving as analyst. The game is also available to watch on the MIAA Network with a subscription.
 
This game on Saturday will serve as Northwest's Senior Day, as the Bearcats look to lock up at least a share of an MIAA regular season title with a victory.
 
MoWest, meanwhile, goes for three straight wins for the first time since 2023. They also seek their first in Maryville since 2012, which was the last victory over Northwest in this rivalry overall. The Griffs also haven't played at Bearcat Stadium since 2022.
 
About Last Week
Griffon Football scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:44 remaining and the defense held in the final seconds as MoWest topped Washburn, 27-24, on Saturday afternoon at Spratt Stadium in St. Joseph in a game that featured four lead changes.
 
It was the first win over Washburn in St. Joseph since 2018.
 
Brandon Hall had a season-best 130 yards rushing on 23 carries for a season-best two rushing touchdowns.
 
Kane Donovan finished with 213 all-purpose yards – 140 through the air and a career-best 73 yards on the ground. MoWest outrushed Washburn in total yards 215-39, and outgained them in total offense 355-277.
 
Brecken Manus led MoWest with nine total tackles. Khalid Sereal and Marvin Gant each had a sack.
 
Stopping the Run
MoWest ranks No. 1 in the MIAA and No. 19 in NCAA Division II in rushing defense, holding opponents to an average of 94.6 rush yards per contest. The Griffs are holding opponents to just 3.2 yards per rush (2nd MIAA, 21st nation).
 
The Kane Chronicles
Kane Donovan has taken command of the MoWest offense in 2025, ranking No. 3 in the MIAA in completions (174), No. 3 in completions per game (19.3), No. 5 in passing yards (1762), No. 5 in passing touchdowns (10), No. 6 in passing yards per game (195.8) and No. 6 in total offense (1856).
 
His 174 completions is currently eighth most in a single season in MoWest history. His 220 career completions is also eighth in the career record books at MWSU.
 
Since transferring from Southeastern Oklahoma State in 2024, Donovan has made 13 starts for the Griffons, throwing for 2149 yards and 13 touchdowns, completing 58% of his passes in that time. He's also rushed for 111 yards and two scores.
 
Long Drive Runnin'
MoWest is No. 2 in the MIAA and No. 25 in the country in time of possession, averaging 32:22 per game. The Griffons have had touchdown drives of 89 yards or more in four games this season.
 
Northwest Need-to-Knows
Under first-year head coach John McMenamin, a two-time national championship winning quarterback for Northwest (1998-02), the No. 14 Bearcats are back to where they're used to being - a national contender at the top of the MIAA.
 
After a season-opening 38-14 loss at Minnesota State, Northwest has rattled off eight straight wins and remain a perfect 7-0 in the MIAA. Six of those eight wins have come by 17 points or more.
 
Northwest leads the MIAA in scoring offense (34.7), scoring defense 16), total defense (265.6), rushing offense (245.1), opponent yards per rush (3.0), passing defense (166.1), sacks allowed (4), third down defense (26.9%) and time of possession (32:54).
 
At quarterback, Northwest is blessed with solid athletes - returning starter Chris Ruhnke and redshirt freshman Zechariah Owens.
 
Both have played in every game, and both are dual threats. Ruhnke has passed for 1207 yards and 10 touchdowns while rushing for 177 yards and two scores.
 
Owens, meanwhile, has rushed for 530 yards and a team-leading 10 TDs, while passing for 665 yards and six more scores. Northwest has a strong running back to compliment this attack - redshirt freshman Quincy Torry, who's rushed for 546 yards and five touchdowns.
 
The Cats' lead receiver was their lead wideout last year as well - senior Luke Matthews. The second team all-MIAA performer from Liberty North leads the team with 31 receptions, 392 receiving yards and six scores.
 
On defense, lineman Jordan Pigram ranks second in the MIAA with 6.5 sacks, while first team all-conference linebacker Carter Edwards leads the team with 58 total tackles and leads the MIAA with four forced fumbles.
 
Series History
Saturday will be the 46th all-time meeting in this Battle of Highway 71. The Bearcats lead the series 32-13, having won each of the last 11 meetings since 2013.
 
Northwest has won nine of those last 11 by double figures, including a 33-23 win in St. Joseph last November. MoWest's last win this series came on Nov. 10, 2012, with then No. 11 MoWest edged No. 4 Northwest, 21-20, at Bearcat Stadium, locking up an MIAA championship in the process.
 
Special Teams Standouts
Kicker Mason Grove has been impressive again in 2025 on kickoff with 31 touchbacks (No. 1 MIAA) on 44 attempts. Grove, as a freshman in 2024, was No. 2 in the MIAA with 28 touchbacks, putting him up to 59 in his career.
 
In the return game, MoWest is still the only team in the MIAA with a kickoff return for a touchdown in 2025, thanks to Jaelon Dixon's 98-yard run to the house vs. Central Missouri on September 20. MoWest has now returned a kickoff for a touchdown in four of the last six seasons, including twice in 2019.
 
The Griffons are also No. 1 in the MIAA currently with 159 punt return yards. Crew Myers ranks No. 2 in the league with 128 punt return yards himself.
 
Halling the Load
Two-time all-MIAA running back Brandon Hall is back for a fifth and final season after a promising 2024 was cut short with an ankle injury in week four. Even though he missed seven games last year, Hall was the team's lead rusher last season with 557 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged 139.25 rush yards per game and 8.3 yards per carry, while also hauling in 11 passes for 66 yards and a score.

Hall is now tied for fifth in program history with 2911 career rushing yards, having tied Josh Caldwell's total. Hall's career average of 5.8 yards per carry is currently No. 9 in the program record books, and his 505 career carries now ranks sixth all-time.
 
This season, Hall ranks No. 2 in the MIAA in rushing yards (671), No. 1 in rushing attempts (134) and No. 3 in yards per game (74.6).

Personnel Pieces
Missouri Western welcomes back a plethora of talent in 2025 with 21 total starters back, including 11 players on the offensive side who started four games or more in 2024.
 
The Griffons also made some key additions in the offseason, signing 30 freshmen and 10 transfers. The position of choice in this class was defensive backs with 14 DBs joining the team.
 
MoWest also signed seven new receivers, as each of the top four pass catchers from 2024 graduated. The Griffs did, however, bring back each of their top five rushers from 2024, returning 97.4% of their 1800 net rushing yards from last season.
 
Game of Inches
Since the start of the 2023 season, MoWest has played in 32 games - 18 of them decided by a single possession. The Griffons are 8-10 in those games. Dating back to November 2022, 11 of the last 18 losses for MWSU have come by eight points or less.
 
Workin' Overtime
MoWest has gone 0-5 in overtime games since 2022 and 0-6 since 2013. The last overtime victory was in the first round of the 2012 NCAA Division II playoffs - a 57-55 3OT win at home vs. Minnesota-Duluth. The last regular season game that went to overtime and ended with a Griffon victory was the 2006 season opener - a 32-29 double overtime win at Central Oklahoma.

Tune Into the Griffons
The Griffon Sports Network will once again provide live and free coverage all season long for all home and away games.
 
Tommy Rezac is back as 'Voice of the Griffons' for a fifth season. All games can be heard for free on the Varsity Network App and at GoGriffons.com/listen. To listen on the Varsity Network App, simply search "Missouri Western" once you have downloaded the app on your mobile device. Pregame coverage for each radio broadcast starts 30 minutes prior to kickoff.
 
What's Next
MoWest concludes the 2025 season at home on Saturday, November 15 against Central Oklahoma. Kickoff in that game is set for 2 p.m. That game will also be Senior Day for 22 seniors on the MoWest roster.