The Lindenwood Lions will open up the 2023 football season, Thursday night, with a game at Hunter Stadium against Wisconsin-Stevens Point. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
Lindenwood Football – Gameday Info
Game No. 1 – Wisconsin-Stevens Point (0-0) at Lindenwood (0-0)
Date/Time – Thursday, August 31 – 7 pm
Location – Hunter Stadium — St. Charles, MO
Broadcast – ESPN+
Live Stats – Sidearm Stats
Cedric Williams
Senior Editor
ST. CHARLES, MO — The new season of Lindenwood football will begin Thursday night, when the Lions will kickoff their first game of the year against NCAA Division III opponent, Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
With eight new starters on the offense and six on the defense, Lindenwood will have a bit of a new look on the field this year. No longer will the Lions be lead with all-conference standouts Cade Brister and Payton Rose.
The new season will be one that features lots of new faces that have been patiently waiting their turn to get on the field and show what they can do.
“Yeah, we’ve got new guys everywhere,” head coach Jed Stugart said. “Well, they aren’t all new. They’ve been on the team, but some of them weren’t starters until this year. But they’ve all been waiting their chance. And these guys are hungry to show who they are and what they can do.”
The thing Stugart, who is entering his seventh season (including the cancelled Covid year of 2020), is hoping these players can show is that they can live up to the standard that’s been set for Lindenwood since he took over. The Lions are 33-24 with him at the helm, which includes going 7-3, 9-3, and 9-4 over the last three seasons, respectively.
“We feel like we’ve set a standard here that’s something to be proud of and proud to be a part of,” he said. “That’s why these guys came here and have stuck with us here. And now they’re gonna get their chance to shine.”
That first chance to step into the spotlight will come tonight. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., with a live streaming broadcast available on ESPN+.
Players to Watch: One of Lindenwood’s main new starters is quarterback Cole Dugger. A 6-foot-2 redshirt junior from Oklahoma, Dugger has been LU’s backup QB for the past three seasons.
And though he sat behind Brister for three seasons, Dugger has shined when given the chance in the past. Over his career, he’s appeared in 15 games and passed for 749 yards and 12 touchdowns, which includes a 300-yard, five-touchdown pass effort in a game in 2021 when Brister was injured.
Dugger will be throwing to an almost completely new set of receivers, which will be led by seniors Spencer Redd and Jalen Bethany, and sophomores Jeff Caldwell and Ronnie Thomas, Jr. One of Lindenwood’s top returning starters on the offense is tight end Chase Lanckreit, who caught 26 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns last year.
One defense, the Lions will be led by defensive line standouts Kobe McClendon and Moses Ale. Outside linebackers Devon Edwards and Tyrone Griffin are back as well, as is Lindenwood’s veteran group of defensive backs, led by Darion Bolden, Mann McGruder, Jayden Patrick, and Wesley Hines.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point is led by returning leading passer Jacob Leair, returning leading rusher RB Reed Smith, and returning leading tackler S Tysen White.
Up Next: Lindenwood will begin league play in the Big South-Ohio Valley Conference with a showdown against new rival and returning OVC champ, Southeast Missouri State, next Saturday, September 9.
That contest will be played in Cape Girardeau at SEMO’s Houck Field. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m.
Probable Starters
Lindenwood Offense Lindenwood Defense
QB – 2 Cole Dugger – Jr. DE – 4 Kobe McClendon – So.
RB – 21 Robert Giaimo – So. DT – 44 Tajay Passmore – Jr.
WR – 10 Spencer Redd – Sr. DT – 99 Makai Finau – Fr.
WR – 19 Jeff Caldwell – Sr. DE – 8 Moses Ale – Sr.
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 – 58 George Miki-Han – So. CB – 7 Jayden Patrick – So.
RG – 71 Jacob Swihart – Jr. FS – 3 Darion Bolden – Sr.
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.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point Offense Wisconsin-Stevens Point Defense
QB – 15 Jacob Leair – So. DE – 96 Christian Nickel – Jr.
RB – 30 Reed Smith – So. DT – 8 Dakota Carriveau – Sr.
WR – 33 Jeffrey Williams – Sr. DT – 7 Connor Jeske – Jr.
WR – 40 Evan Loduha – So. DE – 11 Tyriq Sims – Jr.
WR – 89 Miles Gallagher – So. LB – 21 Cody Trowbridge – Sr.
LT – 72 Zach Riemer – Sr. LB – 45 RJ Miner – So.
LG – 71 Harley Jones – Sr. LB – 44 Marshal Bukowski – Sr.
C – 63 Zachary Kriegel – Jr. CB – 19 Brandon Shoen – So.
RG – 62 Jacob Scott – Fr. S – 6 Tysen White – Sr.
RT – 75 Joe Wojcik – Jr. S – 20 Will Wallerius – Jr.
TE – 1 Devin Baldridge – Sr. CB – 9 Gavino Lopez – Sr.
PK – 99 Aleks Sauer-Milli – Fr. P – 97 Carter Unger – Sr.
| 2023 Lindenwood Lions Football Schedule |
| Thu., August 31 — vs. Wisconsin-Stevens Point — 7 pm |
| Sat., September 9 — at Southeast Missouri State* — 6 pm |
| Sat., September 16 — at Western Illinois — 6 pm |
| Sat., September 23 — at Illinois State — 12 pm |
| Sat., September 30 — vs. Austin Peay — 1 pm |
| Sat., October 7 — vs. Tennessee Tech* — 6 pm |
| Sat., October 14 — at Charleston Southern* — 3 pm |
| Sat., October 28 — at Tennessee State* — 2 pm |
| Sat., November 4 — vs. Eastern Illinois* — 2 pm |
| Sat., November 11 — vs. Bryant* — 1 pm |
| * – denotes Big South-Ohio Valley Conference game |
| All Lindenwood home games will be played at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium |