The 7-4 Skyhawks welcome the 5-6 Lindenwood Lions to Hardy M. Graham stadium for one last home bout of the season on Saturday, Nov. 23 at 1 p.m.
Last weekend saw the Skyhawks fall to 6-5 Tennessee Tech, 9-10. With this loss, the Skyhawks saw their odds of winning the Big-South OVC move out of reach and the ability to achieve an automatic bid into the FCS playoffs. Instead, the Skyhawks have the chance to bolster their resume with a strong victory over Lindenwood.
Despite their 5-6 record, the Lions, coming off of a bye week, aren’t going to fall over for the Skyhawks to run over on the way to their eighth win. See their game against #11 SEMO, in which the Lions jumped out to an early lead and were able to hold off the Redhawks for a statement win. This isn’t a case of a perfect game for the Lions. They turned the ball over twice but were able to manage the Redhawks offense and create turnovers of their own.
The Lions boast a strong rushing game (182.5 yards and 1st in Big South-OVC) that pairs well with playmakers in the offense that quarterback Nate Glantz has the ability to spread the ball to. Within the offense, both WR Jeff Caldwell and RB Steve Hall have the ability to create explosive plays that can shift games in the Lions’ favor.
The Skyhawk defense has the capability to contain the Lindenwood offense in the ground game with the second-best run defense in the Big South-OVC.
Glantz provides an extra wrinkle to the Lions’ offense with his ability on the ground. Not only does Glantz take advantage of the designed run game, but he also has the ability to escape pressure on passing plays and make throws downfield.
This also helps the Lions’ third down conversion rate (43.8%), which ranks first in the conference. The Skyhawks follow shortly after at 42.4%. No one else in the conference is within 10%.
Defensively, the Lions bring a lot of playmakers to the table. LB Vincent King flies around the ball and is a sure tackler when he gets there. He’ll make life hard on the Skyhawk running backs. Other playmakers on the defensive side include DL Donnie Wingate who relentlessly puts pressure on the QB and DB Jayden Patrick who leads the Lions in passes defended and interceptions with seven and two, respectively.
UT Martin and Lindenwood have only faced each other once in the past, in 2022. The result being a 56-26 victory for the Skyhawks.
Lions’ statistical leaders
Passing
QB Nate Glantz- 1,984 yards, 16 touchdowns, 9 interceptions
Receiving
WR Jeff Caldwell- 45 catches, 933 yards (2nd in Big-South OVC), 10 touchdowns (1st)
WR Reece Thomas- 24 catches, 275 yards, two touchdowns
WR Drew Krobath- 13 catches, 174 yards, two touchdowns
Rushing
RB Steve Hall- 106 carries, 794 yards, 5 touchdowns
RB Cortezz Jones- 107 carries, 544 yards, 5 touchdowns
QB Nate Glantz- 119 carries, 256 yards, 5 touchdowns
Defense
LB Vincent King – 98 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble
DB Jayden Patrick- 29 tackles, 7 passes defensed, 2 interceptions, 1 sack
DL Donnie Wingate- 20 tackles, 5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery
