The Lindenwood Lions are 3-6 on the year and will finish the 2023 season with a home game against Bryant University on Saturday. (Photo courtesy: Lindenwood Athletics)
Lindenwood Football – Gameday Info
Game No. 10 – Bryant (4-5, 1-3) at Lindenwood (3-6, 1-4)
Date/Time – November 11, 2023 – 1 pm
Location – Hunter Stadium — St. Charles, MO
Broadcast – ESPN+
Live Stats – Sidearm Stats
DeMarcus Dixon
Staff Writer
ST. CHARLES, MO — The Lindenwood University football team will close out the 2023 season, Saturday afternoon, when it hosts Bryant University in a Big South-OVC Football Association game at Hunter Stadium at 1 p.m.
The injury-riddled Lions, who have lost three straight and five of their last six, are without starting quarterback Cole Dugger, starting running back Robert Giaimo, and leading receiver Jeff Caldwell, Jr. There are also several players on the defense that are out.
The last two months of the season have been rough for Lindenwood, but head coach Jed Stugart has remained positive about his team’s play. Last week, the Lions fell behind 16-0 early, but didn’t allow any points after the first quarter and rallied to get back into the game late, before finally succumbing 16-10.
“I was really proud of how these guys that are out here just keep battling and keep giving us everything they’ve got to keep us going and keep us in a game like this,” Stugart said, following the loss. “A lot of young guys and a lot of inexperienced guys, but they keep working and I was proud to see that.”
Bryant is coming off a tough, overtime loss at home to Gardner-Webb. The Bulldogs trailed 24-10 at halftime, but scored three straight touchdowns to take a 38-24 lead early in the fourth.
Gardner-Webb scored a touchdown with 18 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime, then after Bryant scored a touchdown and went for two, but didn’t get it, Gardner-Webb scored and made the extra-point to win the game.
Lindenwood is 3-6 on the year and Bryant is 4-5. This will be the first meeting ever between the two teams.
Players to Watch: For Lindenwood, all eyes will be on the quarterback spot, where the Lions expect to play both redshirt sophomore Cooper Justice and true freshman Tyler Kubat.
Both players played last week and both played well. Kubat started — his first collegiate start — and threw for 186 yards with two interceptions.
He left the game after taking a couple of rough hits in the fourth, which allowed Stugart to send Justice in. He completed just four passes, but one of them did produce Lindenwood’s lone touchdown and put the Lions in position to have the ball with a chance to win in the final seconds.
Lindenwood will likely use its backfield combo of Jared Rhodes and Justin Williams a lot against a Bryant defense that allowed 270 rushing yards against Gardner-Webb last week.
On offense, Bryant is led by its quarterback, Zevi Eckhaus, who became the program’s all-time leading passer last week, when he threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ defeat. Wide receiver Matthew Prochaska caught nine passes for a career-high 149 yards in that team’s loss.
Defensively, Robert Crockett III had a pick-six, Michael Otty tallied 2.5 TFLs, a sack, and a forced fumble. Hollis Dirstine posted his first career sack, and Dontae Lunan registered 1.5 TFLs and a FF.
Probable Starters
Lindenwood Offense Lindenwood Defense
QB – 9 Tyler Kubat – Fr. DE – 4 Kobe McClendon – So.
RB – 33 Jared Rhodes – Fr. DT – 8 Moses Ale – Sr.
WR – 10 Spencer Redd – Sr. DT – 99 Makai Finau – Fr.
WR – 19 Jeff Caldwell – Sr. DE – 30 Donnie Wingate – Fr.
WR – 81 Ronnie Thomas – Jr. LB – 20 Ethan Stuhlsatz – So.
LT – 78 Gareth Warren – Jr. LB – 52 Brenden Dye – So.
LG – 68 Joe Becker – So. LB – 40 Tyrone Griffin – Jr.
C – 60 George Miki-Han – So. CB – 14 Tre Bell – Fr.
RG – 71 Jacob Swihart – Jr. FS – 1 Taylen Blaylock – So.
RT – 74 Ethan Johnson – So. SS – 11 Mann McGruder – Sr.
TE – 18 Chase Lanckreit – Jr. CB – 24 Wesley Hines – Sr.
PK – 43 Logan Siebert – So. P – 95 Patrick Turner – Fr.