MARION, Ind. - No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan Football returns to Wildcat Football Stadium Saturday to host St. Mary of the Woods in the first-ever meeting between the two programs. The Wildcats enter unbeaten at 2-0 after wins over No. 9 Dordt and St. Francis (Ill.), powered by a
Ryan Whitwell-led rushing attack that has produced 678 yards and 9 touchdowns on the ground through two games. The Pomeroys are 0-1 after dropping its opener at Lawrence Tech, though quarterback Caden Gordon threw for 337 yards and 3 touchdowns in the loss, setting up a matchup between IWU's balanced offense and a St. Mary of the Woods team looking for its first win of the season.
THE ESSENTIALS
- #9 Indiana Wesleyan University vs St. Mary of the Woods
- Location: Marion, Ind. | Wildcat Football Stadium
- Kickoff: 6:00 PM
- Records: IWU: 2-0 | SMWC: 0-1
- NAIA Top-25: IWU - #9 | SMWC - Unranked
HOW TO FOLLOW
THE SERIES
- Saturday's game will be the first all-time meeting between Indiana Wesleyan and St. Mary-Woods.
IWU TEAM STATS
- IWU has outscored its first two opponents 96-37, averaging 627.5 total yards per game (339.0 rushing, 288.5 passing).
- The Wildcats' ground game has produced 9 rushing touchdowns through two games, led by Ryan Whitwell's 367 yards.
- Defensively, IWU has forced a turnover, recovered a fumble and broken up 7 passes through two games.
WILDCAT LEADERS | 2026 SEASON STATS
- Arjun Lothe is 39-of-61 passing (63.9%) for 462 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception through two games, averaging 231.0 yards per game.
- Ryan Whitwell leads the ground game with 367 yards and 4 touchdowns on 50 carries. Dede Person has added 151 yards and 4 touchdowns on 21 attempts, and Ayden Ewing has 63 yards and a score on 11 carries.
- Casey Hawkins leads the receiving corps with 9 catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. Drew Dutton has 6 catches for 82 yards, Simon Vinson has 6 for 69 yards and a score, and Blake Brumbaugh posted 5 catches for 105 yards in the opener.
- Terry Sylvester leads the defense with 17 tackles, while AJ Schafer has added 13. Wilson Webster picked off a pass, and Arlondo Sheets has the team's lone sack.
- Josh Clifton is 2-of-3 on field goals with a long of 36 and has converted 12 of 13 PATs.
- Drew Dutton has returned 7 kickoffs for 126 yards, and Leo Morrow has added 5 punt returns for 62 yards.
SMWC TEAM STATS
- SMWC fell in its opener at Lawrence Tech, managing 382 total yards (45 rushing, 337 passing) in the loss.
- The Pomeroys leaned heavily on the pass, with Caden Gordon completing 14 of 26 attempts for 337 yards and 3 touchdowns without an interception.
- Defensively, St. Mary of the Woods totaled 65 tackles, 6 tackles for loss and 2 sacks in Week 1.
POMEROY LEADERS | 2026 SEASON STATS
- Caden Gordon completed 14 of 26 passes (53.8%) for 337 yards and 3 touchdowns in the season opener.
- Derron Hazzard led the Pomeroys' ground game with 28 yards and a touchdown on 8 carries, part of a rushing attack held to 45 total yards on 22 attempts.
- Caelen Bell paced the receiving corps with 5 catches for 107 yards and a touchdown. Corbyn Cleveland added 2 catches for 91 yards and a score, and Joshua Murray caught a 43-yard touchdown on his lone target.
- Holtman Doades and Adonimi Parker each led the SMWC defense with 7 tackles. Hezron Kincey recorded a tackle for loss and a sack.
- Connor Wardlaw converted all 4 PAT attempts for St. Mary of the Woods. Holtman Doades also handled punting duties, averaging 43.7 yards per punt on 3 attempts with a long of 57.
- Jason Rucker II led the Pomeroys' return game with 3 kickoff returns for 64 yards.
UP NEXT
- The Wildcats will travel to Saint Xavier (Ill.) on Sept. 19 next weekend.
- Kickoff is scheduled for 7:00PM Eastern
- Live video and stats will be available on IWUWildcats.com.
FOLLOW THE WILDCATS
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