DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University football team returns home for its final non-conference game of the season on Saturday afternoon when it hosts Indianapolis. Kickoff at Drake Stadium is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Tickets for the contest are $12 for adults and $6 for youth and can be purchased online here. Out of town fans can follow the action via live stats and video on www.GoDrakeBulldogs.com and the radio broadcast on 1350 KRNT-AM.
The Bulldogs return to their home turf, where they have won 15 of their last 17 games, following a much needed bye week after opening the season 0-2 with losses to Grand View and No. 9 Northern Iowa.
“Looking at the schedule all winter and spring, I thought the bye was too early,” head coach Chris Creighton said. “Honestly it came at a good time. It had been six weeks of going hard and came at a good time to regroup and get back to fundamentals with one non-conference game before league play.”
That final non-conference game before the Bulldogs begin the defense of their back-to-back Pioneer Football League titles will provide the squad with another tough early season test. The Greyhounds are currently 2-0 and ranked No. 12 in the NCAA Division II coaches poll. The squad opened the season with a win over then No. 9 Ashland and has racked up more than 1,000 yards of offense in its first two games.
“They're really good,” Creighton said of Saturday's opponent. “Our non-conference schedule is shaping up the way we wanted it to. We're playing really good teams and they're going to make us better. Indianapolis is just like the best teams in our league. They're very experienced and offensively their quarterback is experienced and they're loaded at the skill positions and averaging over 500 yards of offense a game.”
The Greyhounds are one of four teams that won a conference title in 2012 that dot the Bulldogs' challenging schedule.
In addition to preparing for Saturday's opponent, the Bulldogs have been able to use the last week to focus internally, correct errors from the first two games and strive to make improvements on both side of the ball.
“We're not where we want to be, but we're going to get there,” Creighton said. “It was a good week to step back and get back to some basics.”
Despite the scores, Drake's defense has been a bright spot to date as the Bulldogs are ranked seventh nationally in third-down defense by allowing opponents to convert just 25 percent of the time. That defense is led by the nation's leading tackler in John Hugunin (Oswego, Ill.). The junior is averaging 15.0 tackles per game after leading Drake in tackles as a sophomore in 2012.
Saturday is also Parents and Family Weekend at Drake with discounted tickets available for registered families and friends attending the game. Character Counts in Iowa is also giving the first 500 fans in eight grade or younger and free ticket and t-shirt to attend the game. Families of those youths can purchase up to four general admission tickets for $2 each to attend the game with a voucher from Character Counts in Iowa. For more information on the special promotion, contact Carly Pollock (carly.pollock@drake.edu/515-271-1909).
Following Saturday's game, the Bulldogs will begin Pioneer Football League play at league newcomer Mercer. Kickoff in Macon, Ga., is scheduled for Noon, CDT. The squad returns home on Oct. 5 to host Jacksonville at 1 p.m.
