BLOOMINGTON, Ill - After nearly one month on the road, the Illinois Wesleyan University football team returns to Tucci Stadium this Saturday, Oct. 2, for a Homecoming date with Elmhurst University. Kickoff between the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin battle is slated for 1 p.m.
    Illinois Wesleyan welcomes EU to Tucci looking to get on track. The Titans sit at 0-3 on the year and 0-2 in CCIW play following a loss at Carthage, Sept. 25. Meanwhile, Elmhurst  (0-3, 0-2 CCIW) is also winless on the year. Most recently, EU dropped a 27-7 league game at home against WashU, Sept. 25.
    Fans can tune into an video broadcast with Eric Stock calling the action on the field alongside Joel Swanson, while live stats will also be available for the contest. Links can be found on the football schedule page of iwusports.com.

HOMECOMING HAPPENINGS: In the last 55 years, Illinois Wesleyan has compiled a 35-20 record in its Homecoming games. The Titans have come out victorious in each of their past two Homecoming matchups (2018 vs. Carthage - WOT, 44-34 & 2019 vs. Carroll - W, 42-14). The last time IWU faced Elmhurst for the Homecoming game was in 2007 when the Titans defeated the Bluejays 28-14.

TITANS IN OCTOBER: The Titans have compiled a 96-50 (.657) record in the month of October under Norm Eash. More recently, in the past five seasons, IWU is 19-2 in October. The last loss in October for the Green and White was Oct. 26, 2019 to Wash-U, which ended a 15 game October winning streak for the Titans.

ALL-TIME VS. ELMHURST: The Titans have an overall 55-12-1 record against the Bluejays. The first meeting between these two teams was in 1930 in Bloomington, Ill., which saw a 13-7 IWU victory. At Tucci Stadium, the Titans hold a convincing 37-3 advantage over the Bluejays.
In their most recent meeting on Oct. 19, 2019, IWU shut out Elmhurst 43-0. Hamid Bullie recorded 56 rushing yards and Wesley Watson had 59 receiving yards on two receptions in that matchup.

… AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE: Charlie Hamilton achieved a career high in receiving yards last Saturday, Sept. 25 against Carthage. Hamilton had 178 total receiving yards on eight receptions in that game, beating his previous game high of 128 yards. Against Carthage, Hamilton scored three touchdowns, including a 58-yard touchdown reception. Dating back to the final game of the 2020 season, Hamilton has scored at least one touchdown in his previous four games.

OLD FACES, NEW PLACES: Illinois Wesleyan fans will see three familiar faces roaming the Elmhurst sideline when the Bluejays come to Tucci Saturday, Oct. 2.
Elmhurst head coach Jeff McDonald, who is entering his third season at the helm, is very familiar with IWU. McDonald served as the Titans' defensive coordinator for the 2017 and 2018 seasons and helped the Titans to back-to-back CCIW Championships and a NCAA playoff appearance.
    Elmhurst's Defensive Coordinator Seth Carson coached IWU's defensive backs and return specialists during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, before following McDonald to EU.
    Additionally, Jack Healy, a 2020 IWU graduate, is entering his second season as a graduate assistant and wide receiver coach for the Bluejays. Healy served as a captain his senior year with the Titans and ranks in IWU's top-10 in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.

BETTER WITH AGE: In his third season with the Titans, senior running back Hamid Bullie has proven to get better with age. Bullie, who eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark in IWU's season opener against Franklin, Sept. 4, is averaging a CCIW-best 123.0 yards per game in 2021. As a sophomore, Bullie totalled 659 yards on 144 carries, good for 4.6 yards per rush and 65.9 yards per game. This season, he is blowing those numbers out of the water. The Chicago native has 369 yards on 63 carries through three games and is on pace to surpass his 2019 totals by game six.

EXPERIENCED O-LINE: Illinois Wesleyan is slated to start five seniors across the offensive line in Jake Buhe, Nicholas Cyze, Jacob Finfer, AJ Lust, and Jake Tencza. One of the most experienced offensive line units in the country, the group has combined for 62 starts in 26 games.

YEAR 130: In its 130th season, IWU has an overall 1,064-game record of 602-420-42 (.585 winning percentage). Of the 1,064 games, head coach Norm Eash has been involved in 366 of them (329 as a coach, 36 as a player from 1971-74).
    Illinois Wesleyan's 35-27 win at Albion on Sept. 13, 2014 was the 1,000th game in Illinois Wesleyan football history. The Titans notched the 600th win in program history with a 12-0 shutout of Augustana last season (March 27, 2021).

THE GAUNTLET THAT IS THE CCIW: If preseason polls are any indication, the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin is predicted to be as tough of a conference as there is in Division III. North Central, the 2019 NCAA Division III National Champion, ranked No. 3 in D3football.com's Preseason Top-25. Wheaton was fifth, while both NCC and the Thunder garnered four votes for the top slot in the poll.
In the latest poll, North Central was voted No. 1 with 16 first-place votes, while Wheaton checked in at No. 5.

LONGEVITY IN LEADERSHIP: Illinois Wesleyan Head Coach Norm Eash is one of the longest tenured head coaches in all of Division III. Now in his 35th season at the helm of the Titans, Eash is the third-longest tenured head coach in the nation behind only Rick Giancola (Montclair St. - 39 seasons) and Rich Lackner (Carnegie Mellon - 36 seasons).

200-WIN CLUB: Thirty five-year veteran Norm Eash is one of just nine coaches nationally in NCAA Division III with 200-or-more career wins. Eash, who has won 216 games as the head man at his alma mater, ranks sixth in the country among active head coaches.

CCIW PRESEASON POLL: Illinois Wesleyan was predicted to finish third in the annual CCIW Preseason Coaches Poll. IWU's 58 points were behind only Wheaton (78) and North Central (76). WashU ranked fourth with 56 points, while Millikin's 49 points rounded out the top-five.

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan goes back on the road next weekend, Oct. 9, as the Titans travel to St. Louis, Mo. to take on WashU. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.