BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Plenty is on the line this Saturday, Oct. 10, as the Illinois Wesleyan University football team looks to hand Carroll University its first College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin loss of the season. The Titans and Pios will kickoff at 2 p.m. at Schneider Stadium.
    Illinois Wesleyan enters the key clash with a 4-1 overall record and 2-1 CCIW standing following a 34-14 win over Carthage College, Oct. 3. Carroll, one of three unbeaten teams in CCIW play remaining, carries a 3-0 league record into its Homecoming. The Pios are 4-1 overall and are amid a three-game win streak that includes two shutouts.
    Fans can tune into a live stream on the CCIW Network, while live stats will also be available for the contest. Links can be found on iwusports.com.

HOMECOMING HYPE: A celebratory Homecoming weekend in Bloomington, included a Tucci Stadium crowd of 4,193 fans at Illinois Wesleyan's football game against Carthage, Oct. 3. IWU's crowd size marks the largest on record (dating back to 2001) and is the first time attendance at Tucci has cleared 4000 in more than 25 years.
    Overall, the attendance figure ranks 27th-most across Division III this season. It is also the highest attended CCIW game this season as of Oct. 7.

RUN THE BALL, WE DID: Head coach Jared Williamson discussed the need to run the ball and establish the ground game in the leadup to Saturday's game against Carthage on various interviews throughout the week. The Titans responded with a season-high 201 rushing yards, the most since week three of the 2025 season when IWU rushed for 222 yards at Carthage, Sept. 27.

TWO TIMES THE CCIW AWARDS: For the second time this season, IWU saw two student-athletes recognized with CCIW Player of the Week honors. Will Nazha was named the CCIW's Offensive Player of the Week and Lach Sullivan snagged Special Teams Player of the Week status. Illinois Wesleyan has had a total of five CCIW weekly award winners this season, with Dermot Smyth and Joey DeMaio pulling in awards in week two and Lucas Lappin adding another honor in week three.

WILL IS HIM: Will Nazha nabbed a spot on the D3football.com Team of the Week for the first time in his career, Oct. 6. In fact, Nazha is the first Titan wide receiver to earn national team honors in the publications 28-year history of the weekly team of the week. Nazha went for 168 yards receiving on nine catches with two touchdowns in IWU's win over Carthage, Oct. 3. His yardage total was a career-high and his fourth 100-yard receiving game of the season.

THE CHALLENGE AHEAD: When the Titans and Pioneers square off on the gridiron Saturday, Illinois Wesleyan will go up against one of the top defenses in the CCIW. Carroll, slotted second in the league with 14.4 points per game allowed per contest, has held opponents to nine touchdowns through five games. The Pios have a third-down conversion percentage defense of .227, best in the CCIW, and also lead the league in blocked kicks (3), blocked punts (2), passing yards allowed (266.8 ypg), and redzone defense (.529).
Illinois Wesleyan and Carroll lead the league in team tackles for loss, with CU coming in with 8.8 stops behind the line of scrimmage per game. IWU is second with 7.8 TFLs per contest. Carroll is led by August Johansen, who leads all of Division III with 1.70 sacks per game.

TOUCHDOWN RECEPTION, GRIFFIN?!: With a three-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter, Marcheon Griffin caught his first career pass. Griffin, known for being a menace on the defensive line, entered the offensive huddle out of a timeout and was found wide open on the left side of the endzone by Kyle Beaty for the score.

PLAYING THE PIOS: The Titans and Pioneers have squared off on the gridiron 49 times since the series began in 1935. Illinois Wesleyan heads into Saturday's showdown with a 29-20 lead in the all-time series but has dropped three of the past five matchups with Carroll. The series, which began with a 12-6 IWU win in 1935, took place each season from 1955 to 1991. Following a 25-year hiatus, the series picked back up when Carroll rejoined the CCIW in 2016. The visiting team has come away victorious each of the past two seasons.
    In the last meeting between the two, the Pios snatched a 34-14 win in Bloomington Nov. 7, 2025. Michael Barnes Jr. led the Titans ith five catches for 147 yards and a touchdown, while Joey DeMaio posted 14 tackles and Jack Nevins added 12.

WORTH IT: A key piece of Illinois Wesleyan's success this season is its ability to flip the field with the boot of junior punter Matt Worthington. Thanks in large part to the effectiveness of Worthington and its strong returners, IWU has an average drive start of the IWU 34-yard line, while opponents are starting drives at their own 27-yard line. Worthington is averaging 42.9 yards per punt, good for 15th-best across Division III.

IT'S BUILDING: Illinois Wesleyan remains in the AFCA national poll, receiving votes in the organization's sixth poll. IWU, which garnered 16 points, was one of three CCIW programs in the conversation. North Central topped the poll, with Wheaton checking in at No. 2.

BALL HAWKS: The Titans have recorded nine interceptions on the season with Lucas Lappin leading the team with three. Clint Teater and Nate Frank have two each, while Joey DeMaio and Ian Whitaker have added one pick apiece. IWU's interception total leads the CCIW and is slotted fourth-most across Division III as of Oct. 6.

WINNING UP FRONT: The Green and White's defensive line has been one of the most disruptive units in the country. The Titans lead the conference and are 17th in the country with 3.80 team sacks per game, while their 7.8 tackles for loss are 36th-most. The heavy and consistent pressure in the backfield has opponents limited to a .290 third-down conversion percentage, the third-best mark in the CCIW and 49th nationally.

ON REPEAT: Junior wide receiver Will Nazha has established himself as one of the premiere receivers across Division III. After a breakout season in 2025, the Barrington, Ill. native has built on that this year. Through five games, he is fifth nationally in receiving yards (619), sixth in receptions per game (8.20), ninth in receiving yards per game (123.8), and 11th nationally in receiving touchdowns with six.
At the midpoint of the season, Nazha is on track to be IWU's first 1000-yard receiver since 2018 (Jack Healy - 1137 yards).

TITANS IN OCTOBER: The Titans have compiled a 107-62 record in the month of October since 1987. More recently, in the past eight seasons, IWU is 31-15 in October and went 2-2 in the month in 2025 and is 1-0 this season.

WITH A WIN…: With a win, Illinois Wesleyan will surpass its win total from a season ago and move to 5-1 on the season. The Titans went 4-6 in their first year under Jared Williamson. The win would also catapult IWU to 3-1 in CCIW play, putting them in a tie for No. 2 in the league standings with Carroll and the loser of the Saturday night's battle between No. 1 North Central and No. 2 Wheaton.

ON THE HORIZON: Illinois Wesleyan finishes off its two-game roadtrip with a short jaunt down to Decatur, Ill. for a week seven showdown with Millikin University. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. under the lights at Frank M. Lindsay Field.