Opening Notes
•     The Washburn Ichabods will look to snap a two-game losing streak when they will play host to Fort Hays State on Oct. 4 in Yager Stadium as part of Hall of Fame activities at Washburn.
•     The Ichabods are 1-3 this season while the Tigers enter the game with a 3-1 record.
•    Washburn is coming off a 42-21 loss at Missouri Southern while the Tigers topped then No. 8-ranked Pittsburg State 7-6 in Pittsburg last time out.
•    The Ichabods have won the last five meeting with and eight of the last nine.

 'Bods and Ends
•     The Ichabods had a season-high 533 yards of total offense while recording their first rushing touchdown on the season. 
•    The Ichabods dropped to 21-2 when gaining over 500 yards of total offense under head coach Craig Schurig.
•    Ichabod senior Vershon Moore became the first Ichabod to go over the 100-yard rushing mark in a game this season gaining 109 yards on 22 carries and sophomore quarterback Zeke Palmer threw for a team-high 328 yards completing 27 of 47 passing attempts.
•    The 27 completions were the most by an Ichabod quarterback since Dane Simoneau completed 29 passing attempts against Central Missouri on Nov. 12, 2011.
•    The Ichabods attempted 55 passing attempts in the game, which was eight shy of the school record of 63 set in 1980 against Wayne State and the 32 team completions were two short of the school record also set against Wayne State in 1980.
•    Senior DaJuan Beard had a season-high 110 yards on seven receptions.
•    Washburn had 12 different receivers catch a pass against Missouri Southern.
•    True freshmen Bob Marco, who started at right guard the last three games, along with defensive end Kastin Spencer, linebacker Austin Tillman, defensive tackle Cody Zeller have all seen action this season.
•     Eighty-seven of Washburn's opponents 135 points (64 percent) have come off turnovers. Washburn has scored nine points of its 69 off opponents miscues (13 percent).
•    The Ichabods are 8 of 18 in the redzone this season scoring six touchdowns with two field goals  totaling 48 scoring 44 percent of the time inside their opponent's 20 yard line. The Ichabods have turned the ball over four times on downs and have had two interceptions and two fumbles with two missed field goals.
•    Opponents have scored 13 of 17 times inside the redzone against Washburn for a 77 percent scoring rate recording 90 points with 13 touchdowns with two missed field goals and turning the ball over on downs two times.

 Coaching Staffs
Ichabod head coach Craig Schurig . . .
•     was named head coach of the Ichabod football program Dec. 28, 2001. 
•     is 88-54 (.602) in his 13th season as the Ichabod head coach. 
•     is 70-44 (.630) against the MIAA. 
•     has led the Ichabods to three NCAA Playoff appearances and two bowl appearance championships.
•     led the Ichabods to the 2005 MIAA regular season outright championship. 
•     has recorded ten-straight winning seasons for the first time in the program's history. 
•     led the Ichabods to the program's first 10-win season and their first NCAA or NAIA playoff game victory in school history with a win over Abilene Christian during the 2011 season.
•     is Washburn's all-time winningest coach with 88 wins.
•     is 8-2 against Fort Hays State.

Fort Hays State head coach Chris Brown . . . 
•    is in his fourth season as head coach at Fort Hays State. Brown (Pitt State, 1996) 
•    has compiled a 18-19-0 (.472) record leading the Tigers. 
•    was a three-time All-America free safety for the Gorillas from 1993-95, came to FHSU after serving as defensive coordinator at for the Ichabods from 2002-10. 
•     is 0-3 against Washburn.

 Ichabod Offensive Notes
•     Senior running back Vershon Moore needs 735 rushing yards to become the all-time leader …  has also rushed for 28 touchdowns and has two of the top three single-game totals in school history … he has rushed for 2,681 yards in his career … his seven receptions against Missouri Southern was a career high.
•     Senior quarterback Mitch Buhler has made 23 starts at Washburn passing for 4,486 career yards and 45 touchdowns … his 45 TD passes are fourth all-time at Washburn and his 343 career completions are sixth.
•     Junior running back Sean McPherson has rushed for 1,071 yards in his career going over the 1,000-yard mark against Nebraska-Kearney.
•     Senior DaJuan Beard became the 12th Ichabod to catch at least 100 passes and he now has 145 catches which is fourth all-time at Washburn … his 2,122 yards is fifth all-time at well at Washburn … against Missouri Southern he passed former Ichabods Joe Hastings and Marc Nardella to move into the fifth spot on the receiving yards chart.
•     Senior Dylan Ready has played in 36 games on the offensive line and has started at left tackle, left guard and right tackle on the offensive line.
•    Junior Connor Crimmins has appeared in 26 games adding 29 catches for 444 yards … Crimmins, who also plays baseball for the Ichabods, is switching from No. 14 to No. 19 to honor former Ichabod baseball coach Steve Anson … his seven receptions and 90 receiving yards were also career-highs against Lindenwood.
•     Junior Cameron Brown is moving back into the starting line up this season at center after starting 11 games at right guard in 2012. 
•     Junior Sam Eickhoff has started ten career games at fullback appearing in 20 games.
•     Junior wide receiver Jordan Hart is back after playing in pats of five games last season … he has 40 catches for 793 yards and seven touchdowns in his career.
•     Sophomore running back Donnie Lockhart III received a medical redshirt after recording 26 carries for 120 yards and three touchdowns last season.
•     Junior Jordon McCallister is starting at left guard and made three starts in 2013 appearing in nine games overall.
•     Sophomore Michael Miller was an honorable mention all-MIAA pick after starting 11 games at left guard … this season he is moving to right tackle making four starts.
•    Senior Matt Buhler had a career-high four catches for a career-high 58 yards against Lindenwood.
•     Senior Brad Gourley had a career-long 87-yard reception for a touchdown against Nebraska-Kearney. He has 28 receptions for 373 yards and two scores playing in 23 games.

 Ichabod Defensive Notes
•     Senior safety Calvin Kenney has played in 39 games making 33 starts tallying 200 tackles with 118 solo stops with four interceptions … the last two games he has set his career highs with 14 tackles against Missouri Southern and 11 against Pitt State.
•     Sophomore defensive end Akhmad Abdul-Razzaq moves into a starting defensive end position after recording 23 tackles last season appearing in 11 games. This season he has recorded 24 tackles with a career-high 10 tackles coming against Nebraska-Kearney.
•     Senior defensive tackle Bryan Dale has appeared in 37 games … he has recorded 45 career tackles.
•     Senior defensive end Alex Dowty has appeared in 28 games with 46 tackles.
•     Senior defensive tackle Tyler Ewy has made 17 career starts including 11 in 2013 … overall he has appeared in 32 games with 63 tackles and 9.5 career tackles for loss … he had a career-high seven tackles against Missouri Southern on Sept. 27.
•     Sophomore defensive back Zach Franklin had made three starts appearing in 14 games at Washburn … the nine tackles against Lindenwood was a career-high and his 98 all-purpose yards against Missouri Southern was a career high.
•     Sophomore linebacker Cody Heiman is back to the defensive side of the ball after rushing for 426 yards and 91 carries with six touchdowns in 2013 … his nine tackles against Lindenwood was a career-high … overall he has played in 17 games making six starts gaining 43 tackles with 24 solo stops.
•     Senior defensive back Dwayne Joseph has made ten starts recording 56 tackles with 40 solo stops and one interception in his career.
•     Junior linebacker Mark Kolmer is another Ichabod moving from offense to defense as he's played in 26 career games with nine starts adding 41 tackles … he made six starts at fullback in 2013 … his seven tackles against Lindenwood was a career high and he recorded his first career interception against Nebraska-Kearney returning it seven yards setting up the game-winning field goal.
•     Junior safety Jaime Myers has made 12 starts playing in 26 games with 71 tackles and three interceptions … he has 1,455 career all-purpose yards averaging 56.0 per game.
•     Junior safety Shay Wooten moves into a starting safety role and has recorded 88 career tackles appearing in 26 games.
•    Redshirt freshman Peter Pfannenstiel has started the last three games at safety and  has recorded 20 tackles with 11 solo stops and a pass break up.

 Ichabod Special Team Notes
•     Sophomore Justin Linn returns after being honored as a first team all-MIAA kicker in 2013 … he was a preseason all-American selection for this season by D2Football.com … Linn is 2 of 4 this season with a season-long of 34 … his 62 PATs rank 10th all-time at Washburn and his 16 career field goals ranks eighth.
•     Senior Aaron Hummert has 151 punts for 6,131 yards averaging 40.6 yards per punt playing in 39 career games … his 40.6 career punting average is the best in school history and his 6,131 yards is seventh all-time … had a career-long run of 17 yards on a fourth down against Pittsburg State for a first down.

 Know the Foe
•     Fort Hays State has compiled a 3-1 record coming off a road win at No. 8 Pittsburg State 7-6. 
•    The Tigers are scoring 20.5 points per game and averaging 253.3 total yards (141.0 rushing, 112.8 passing).
•    Defensively the Tigers are allowing 13.0 points per game allowing 108.2 yards on the ground and 231 yards through the air.
•    Junior quarterback Treveon Albert has completed 36 of 74 passes for 257 yards (81.0 ypg) and three touchdowns with three interceptions. He also has carried the ball 36 times for 119 net yards (3.3 ypc) and two scores.
•    Senior running back Edward Smith has carried the ball a team-leading 42 times for 211 yards and two touchdowns, while sophomore running back Kenneth Iheme has 34 carries for 153 yards and one TD.
•    Senior wide receiver Ed Williams has a team-leading 13 catches for 207 yards and one touchdown.
•    Junior linebacker Brock Long leads the team with 33 tackles and junior linebacker Justin McPhail has recorded 31 tackles (20 solo) with a team-leading 4.5 TFLs (3.0 QB sacks) and two INTs. 
•    Sophomore DeAndre James has returned seven kickoffs for a 28.6-yard average, including an 89-yard touchdown. 
•    The Tigers are fourth in the nation in kickoff return defense allowing 11.71 yards per return and ranked 15th in the nation in scoring defense.

 Series Notes with Fort Hays State
Series Record: WU leads 42-23-3
Streak:  WU has won the last five
First Meeting: WU 7-6 (11/27/1919) in Hays
Last Meeting: WU 54-17 (09/14/2103) in Topeka
Last WU win: 54-17 (09/14/2103) in Topeka
Last FHSU win: 17-7 (9/13/2008) in Hays
Largest WU win: 46-0 (11/9/1963) in Topeka
Largest FSHU win: 35-0 (10/14/1967) in Topeka 

 Last Meeting with Fort Hays State
(09/14/2013) TOPEKA, Kan. -- The Washburn Ichabods scored seven touchdowns in their first nine possessions as they rolled to a 54-17 win over Fort Hays State in Yager Stadium.
Washburn scored on its first drive of the game when the reigning MIAA Special Teams Player of the Week Justin Linn hits a 38-yard field goal putting the Ichabods up 3-0 with 10:12 to play in the first quarter.
The Tigers would take their opening possession of the game and drive to the Washburn 11, but could not convert as they missed a 27-yard field goal.
The Ichabods would then add to their lead when Mitch Buhler hit Matt Kobbeman on a 15-yard touchdown pass with 2:20 to go in the first quarter going up 10-0. The Tigers would return with a score on their next drive when Treveon Albert connected with Zack Gaughan on a 16-yard score cutting the Ichabod lead to 10-7.
Washburn pushed their lead back to 10 at 17-7 after Buhler threw his second touchdown pass of the day when he found Tore' Hurst from 7-yards out with 6:06 left to play in the first half. After forcing a punt, Buhler found DaJuan Beard in the corner of the end zone for a score stretching the Ichabod lead to 24-7 with 4:24 to play in the half.
After forcing a Tiger punt, Jordan Hart streaked down the middle of the field and was hit in stride by Buhler for his fourth touchdown pass of the half for a 49-yard yard strike with 1:03 to play in the half and a 31-7 Washburn lead.
Washburn's Bryce Atagi picked off Albert on the Tigers' first drive of the second half setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by Sean McPherson putting the Ichabods up 38-7.
On the Tigers' next play from scrimmage, Isaac Wright picked off Albert and returned it 27 yards to the Tiger 15 yard line. Washburn needed two plays to score as Buhler threw touchdown No. 5 to Connor Crimmins for 11 yards with 9:19 to play in the third quarter.
The Ichabod defense forced another Tiger punt and on Washburn's first play, Vershon Moore had carries of 9- and 65-yards, the latter for a touchdown stretching the lead to 51-7.
Washburn picked off another Tiger pass, this time by Jordan Nelson at the Ichabod 30 and Washburn wrapped up its scoring with a 45-yard field goal by Linn with 12:57 to play in the game. The Tigers added a score with 6:11 to play when Edin Kovan completed a pass to Keaton Callins for 2-yards for the final points of the game.
Buhler finished with a career-high five touchdown passes to five different people. His previous high was four set against Fort Hays State last season. He finished 19 of 27 overall for 272 yards. Moore led the Ichabods on the ground with 106 yards rushing and one score and McPherson finished with 17 carries for 85 yards and a score. Kobbeman had five catches for 58 yards and Hart finished with four catches for 69 yards.
Defensively Shay Wooten led the Ichabods with nine tackles and Atagi finished with seven including one for loss and an interception. Cody Heiman had six tackles and DeAnthony Rimmer had five with an interception.
Washburn pounded out 28 first downs with 520 yards of total offense with 206 coming on the ground and 314 through the air. The Ichabod defense allowed 370 yards with 129 coming in the fourth quarter.

 Last time out for Fort Hays State
(9/27/2014)Fort Hays State football ended a run of 35 consecutive years without a win against Pittsburg State, stunning the No. 8 ranked Gorillas 7-6 in Pittsburg, Kan., on Saturday afternoon.
FHSU scored on a fumble recovery in the endzone early in the first quarter, held PSU to a pair of field goals in the first half, and played shut-down defense the rest of the way for a huge upset in front of Pittsburg State's third-largest crowd in school history (11,489).
The game saw two of the best defenses in the MIAA at their finest. Pittsburg State's offense entered the game as the top scoring team in the MIAA (39 points per game), but the Tigers were up to the challenge, limiting an offense averaging nearly 475 yards per contest to just 240 on the afternoon. Pittsburg State held FHSU to just 141 yards of total offense in the game.
The only points for FHSU came on the first drive of the game on a bizarre play. From the PSU 47-yardline, FHSU quarterback Treveon Albert through a deep ball to receiver Ed Williams that was intercepted at the FHSU 3-yardline, but Williams immediately stripped PSU defensive back De'Vante Bausby for a fumble that Williams ran and landed on near the back of the endzone for a touchdown. FHSU was up 7-0 with 10:57 remaining in the first quarter.
The Tiger defense took the spotlight for the remainder of the game, frustrating one of the most powerful offenses in the nation. The defense set the tone by stopping Pittsburg State's first drive of the game at the FHSU 33-yardline on 4th-and-4.
The Gorillas got on the board following a Tiger fumble deep in Gorilla territory. A tackle for loss by Nathan Lindsey stalled out the brief Gorilla drive on the FHSU 21-yard line, forcing a 37-yard field goal by Connor Frazell to make it 7-3 with 5:24 to go in the opening quarter.
Pittsburg State had its most successful drive of the game in the second quarter, going 71 yards on 12 plays. But Brock Long provided a big tackle on 3rd-and-6 from the FHSU 19-yardline to force the Gorillas into a field goal situation again. Frazell converted from 33 yards with 1:10 to go in the opening half, making it 7-6 in favor of FHSU.
Fort Hays State controlled the clock in the third quarter as the defense held the Gorillas to a 3-and-out on all three of their drives in the period. The defense held the Gorillas to -1 total yards in the quarter.
Pittsburg State finally had big choice to make with the clock nearing 3:00 remaining in the final quarter. In a 4th-and-10 situation from the FHSU 38-yardline, the Gorillas opted to attempt a 55-yard field goal. Daniel Lindsey dashed in off the edge and provided a game-saving block of the field goal, giving the ball back to FHSU with 2:59 remaining.
The Tiger offense could not advance the ball and had to punt back to the Gorillas with 2:00 remaining. The defense would not allow for any last minute heroics from the home 11, as the first three plays for PSU were incomplete passes and on fourth down, Nate Simpson sealed the win by tackling Pitt State's receiver for no gain. The Tigers went into victory formation and ran out the clock from that point, handing the Gorillas their first loss of the season.
Fort Hays State picked up its first win over Pittsburg State since 1978, which occurred in Hays. It was the first win over the Gorillas in Pittsburg since 1976. PSU was 19-0-1 in the last 20 meetings going all the way back to 1979.
After holding Lindenwood to just 20 yards rushing last week, FHSU allowed only 80 rushing yards to the Pittsburg State. Joita Te'i had a great game at defensive end, producing three sacks and six tackles. DeAndre James led FHSU in tackles with eight. Justin McPhail and Brock Long also added six tackles each. Andre McKinnon also had a sack and the Lindsey twins each recorded five tackles.
Edward Smith led the Tiger rushing attack with 37 yards. Treveon Albert threw for 67 yards on 9-of-16 passing. Zack Gaughan had a team-best three catches for 20 yards and Isaiah Maxi had a team-best 23 receiving yards on two catches. Drew O'Brien averaged 41.7 yards per punt, helping the Tigers in the field position battle throughout the afternoon.
Jeff Seybold led PSU in rushing with 32 yards. Anthony Abenoja threw for 160 yards on 15-of-27 passing. Austin Daniel had four catches for 51 yards.

 Last time out for Washburn
(9/27/2014) JOPLIN, Mo. -- The Washburn Ichabods dropped to 1-3 after a 42-21 loss at Missouri Southern. 
The Ichabods took the opening kickoff and marched 57-yards on 10-plays in 4:09 taking the lead on Vershon Moore 2-yard run. The Lions would then come right back and tie the score scoring on a 29-yard rush capping a 10-play, 80-yard drive with 5:32 to play in the first quarter.
The Lions took the lead at 14-7 taking advantage of an Ichabod missed field goal attempt going one play for 80 yards with 12:18 to go. Washburn then drove to the Lion 1-yard line on its next drive but came up short on four attempts inside the 2-yard line returning the ball back to the Lions, who took the 14-7 lead into the break.
Missouri Southern opened the second half with a 4-yard score pushing the lead to 21-7. On the ensuing drive, the Ichabods cut the lead back to seven when Zeke Palmer hit DaJuan Beard on a 11-yard touchdown strike with 9:27 to play in the third quarter. However the Lions came back with a touchdown-scoring drive of their own going up 28-14 with 7:11 to play in the third quarter. The Lions added another score in the third taking the 35-14 lead into the fourth quarter.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, the Lions went up 42-14 prior to Washburn wrapping up the scoring with a 1-yard completion from Palmer to Jordan Hart pulling the Ichabods within 42-21.
Moore led the Ichabods with 109 yards on the ground on 22 carries and one score while Palmer finished 27 of 47 for 328 yards and two touchdowns. Twelve different Ichabods had at least one reception led by DaJuan Beard's 110 receiving yards on seven catches. Moore also had seven catches for 76 yards. Calvin Kenney led the Ichabods had 14 tackles to lead Washburn. Washburn had 28 first downs compared to 18 for the Lions as the Ichabods had 533 yards of total offense while the Lions recorded 405. The Lions had 286 yards on the ground while Washburn had 152. 

 Washburn Football History
Washburn is 526-560-44 (.480) in the 124th year of Ichabod football. 

 A win for Washburn over Fort Hays State would . . .
• lift the Ichabods to 527-560-44 in their football history.
• be the Ichabods sixth-straight win over the Tigers and the ninth in the last 10 meetings.
• be the ninth-straight win by the Ichabods over the Tigers in Topeka.
• improve the Ichabods' record at 2-3.
• make the Ichabods 43-23-3 all-time against the Tigers.

 A loss for Washburn to Fort Hays State would . . .
• drop the Ichabods to 526-561-44 in their football history.
• snap a five-game winning streak by the Ichabods over the Tigers.
• Be the Tigers' first win over the Ichabods since a 17-7 win in Hays on Sept. 13, 2018 and the first win over the Ichabods in Topeka since a 30-0 win on Oct. 26, 1985.
• drop the Ichabods record to 1-4 for the first time since the 1994 season.

 Ichabods in the National Polls
WACO, Texas -- The Ichabods fell did not receive any votes this week after the loss to Lindenwood after receiving votes in the preseason poll released on Aug. 18.
Under head coach Craig Schurig, the Ichabods have been ranked or have received votes in the AFCA poll 52 times and have been ranked in the top 10 15 times. Washburn has received votes in or been ranked in 10-consecutive AFCA preseason polls.

 Up Next
Washburn will travel to Warrensburg, Mo., to face Central Missouri for the first time since the 2011 season on Oct. 11. Washburn will then come back to Yager Stadium to host Missouri Western on Oct. 18 for homecoming festivities.