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Football_General2023

Football Takes on Benedictine in Season Opener

September 1, 2023

By: Brandon Lindholm | Director of Athletic Communications
DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Loras College Duhawks kick off the 2023 season this Saturday, Sept. 2, by welcoming in the Eagles of Benedictine University. Kickoff is slated for 6:00 p.m. at the Rock Bowl. Loras will be recognizing first responders and military personnel before the game as part of the program's Appreciation Night. Loras is 2-1 in its last three meetings with the Eagles, with both wins coming in the first two matchups – 39-20 in 2018 and 42-14 in 2019.

Loras is coming off a 2022 campaign that saw the program go 5-5 overall, including a mark of 5-3 in American Rivers Conference play. Under the direction of 11th-year head coach Steve Helminiak, the Duhawks return nine starters on the offensive side of the ball, in addition to 11 on the defensive side. Experience can be found all over the roster, evident by the 17 student-athletes listed as a senior, fifth-year, or as a graduate student.

This Day in Duhawk History (Sept. 2)
  • Sept. 2, 2017: Loras begins the season in an impressive way by beating Elmhurst University, 41-9. Then-senior Ike Cloward rushed for 86 yards and three touchdowns, while the Duhawk defense forced four turnovers and held the Blue Jays to three third down conversions. 
  • Sept. 2, 1989: The Duhawks, led by the winningest coach in program history in Bob Bierie, take down Illinois Benedictine College, 47-26, which kick started the program's first winning season since 1986.
Notes
  • Wide receiver Mani Brown is coming off of an excellent junior campaign, as the Fort Meyers, Fla., native hauled in 918 yards and 10 touchdowns on 67 receptions. With 97 receptions, Brown stands ninth all-time in Loras history, while trailing just 48 yards shy of cracking the program's top-10 list in receiving yards.
  • Like Brown, junior quarterback Evan England doesn't stand far behind those ahead of him on the all-time top-10 lists at Loras. In his lone season as a starter, England passed for 2,600 yards and 23 touchdowns, marks that each rank second-most in a single season at Loras. England's 23 career touchdown passes place him seventh all-time, while his 2,600 yards are the ninth-most in program history. Additionally, the Wheaton, Ill., native set single season records in completions (257) and total offense (2,873) during the '22 season.