2023 Wartburg Knights football team
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| 2023 Wartburg Knights football | |
|---|---|
 | |
ARC champion | |
NCAA Division III Semifinal, L 27–34 vs North Central | |
| Conference | American Rivers Conference |
| Ranking | |
| AFCA | No. 3 |
| D3Football.com | No. 3 |
| Record | 13–1 (8–0 ARC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Matt Wheeler (13th season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Matt Tschetter (3rd season) |
| Home stadium | Walston-Hoover Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 Wartburg $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 13 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coe ^ | 7 | – | 1 | 9 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central (IA) | 6 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dubuque | 5 | – | 3 | 5 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Loras | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nebraska Wesleyan | 2 | – | 6 | 4 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simpson | 2 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Buena Vista | 2 | – | 6 | 2 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Luther | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2023 Wartburg Knights football team represents the Wartburg College as a member of the American Rivers Conference (ARC) during the 2023 NCAA Division III football season. The Knights, led by third-year head coach Chris Winter, play home games at Walston-Hoover Stadium in Waverly, Iowa.[1] The Knights clinched their 19th conference championship on October 28, 2023, with a win over Central College[2] and then capped of the regular season 10–0 following a win at Nebraska Wesleyan. Wartburg ended the season in the national semifinals for the second straight year, losing to North Central 34–27.[3][4]
Senior linebacker Owen Grover was named the Cliff Harris Award winner, awarded to the defensive player of the year in division III.[5] He was also named ARC Defensive player of the year and 1st team all-American along with 3 other teammates, including running back Hunter Clasen, who was also named ARC Offensive player of the year.[6]
Schedule[edit]
Wartburg's 2023 regular season scheduled consisted of five home and five away games. The Knights also hosted 4 postseason games.[7]
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Monmouth (IL)* | No. 5 |
| W 62–35 | 3,756 |
| September 9 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 16 Bethel (MN)* | No. 3 |
| W 16–2 | 3,642 |
| September 16 | 1:00 p.m. | Buena Vista | No. 3 |
| W 47–0 | 2,137 |
| September 23 | 1:00 p.m. | at Simpson | No. 3 |
| W 63–0 | 1,524 |
| September 30 | 1:00 p.m. | Coe | No. 3 |
| W 27–21 | 3,016 |
| October 7 | 1:00 p.m. | at Luther | No. 4 |
| W 54–0 | 317 |
| October 14 | 1:30 p.m. | Dubuque | No. 3 |
| W 31–10 | 5,102 |
| October 21 | 1:00 p.m. | at Loras | No. 3 |
| W 62–7 | 1,300 |
| October 28 | 1:00 p.m. | Central (IA) | No. 3 |
| W 24–14 | 1,500 |
| November 4 | 1:00 p.m. | at Nebraska Wesleyan | No. 3 |
| W 45–0 | 1,200 |
| November 18 | 12:00 p.m. | Illinois College* | No. 3 |
| W 49–14 | 1,355 |
| November 25 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 20 Whitworth* | No. 3 |
| W 42–20 | 1,207 |
| December 2 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 5 Wisconsin–Whitewater* | No. 3 |
| W 31–28 | 3,259 |
| December 9 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 1 North Central (IL)* | No. 3 |
| L 27–34 | 3,525 |
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Rankings[edit]
| Week | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | Final |
| D3football.com | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| AFCA | Not released | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ||
Roster[edit]
| 2023 Wartburg Knights football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
| Defense
| Special teams
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Roster | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Awards and honors[edit]
| Player | Award |
|---|---|
| Owen Grover | William V. Campbell Trophy Finalist Gagliardi Trophy Finalist ARC Defensive Player of the Year Cliff Harris Award D3Football.com Defensive Player of the year DIII Academic All-American of the Year D3football.com 1st team All-American AFCA 1st team All-American AP 1st team All-American |
| Hunter Clasen | ARC Offensive Player of the Year D3football.com 1st team All-American AP 2nd team All-American |
| Parker Rochford | D3football.com 1st team All-American AP 1st team All-American |
| Riley Konrardy | D3football.com 1st team All-American |
| Jordan Downing | D3football.com 3rd team All-American AP 2nd team All-American |
| Tucker Kinney | D3football.com 4th team All-American |
| Coach | Award |
| Chris Winter | ARC Coach of the year AFCA Region 5 Coach of the year |
| Reference:[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] | |
| Player | Position | Team | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jordan Downing | DL | 1 | SR |
| Riley Konrardy | DL | 1 | SR |
| Owen Grover | LB | 1 | SR |
| Nate Link | LB | 1 | SR |
| Parker Rochford | DB | 1 | JR |
| Hunter Clasen | RB | 1 | SR |
| Tucker Kinney | OT | 1 | SR |
| Alex Lahmon | OG | 1 | SR |
| Justin Grieff | DL | 2 | SR |
| Preston Rochford | LB | 2 | SR |
| Drew Wyffels | DB | 2 | SR |
| Nile McLaughlin | QB | 2 | SR |
| Tom Butters | TE | 2 | SR |
| Ethan Stockwell | OT | 2 | SR |
| Cael O'Neill | K | 2 | SR |
| Jaxson Hoppes | P | HM | SO |
| Dylan Steen | DB | HM | SR |
| HM = Honorable mention. Reference:[16] | |||
References[edit]
- ^ "Wartburg Facilities". go-knights.net. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ Promnitz, Donald (October 28, 2023). "Wartburg College clinches A-R-C championship in win over Central". The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Cedar Falls, Iowa. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
- ^ Nelson, Jim (December 9, 2023). "Wartburg Fights to Finish Stunned Late in National Semifinal Loss to No.1 NCC". The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. Cedar Falls, Iowa. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
- ^ "Wartburg falls short in national semifinal loss 34–27 to North Central". krcg.com. KRCG. December 9, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
- ^ Miller, Danny (December 15, 2023). "Knighted:Wartburg College Linebacker Owen Grover wins Cliff Harris Award for NCAA Division III". CLiff Harris Award.
- ^ Miller, Danny (November 18, 2023). "College football: Clasen, Grover earn A-R-C top honors". Telegraph Herald. Dubuque, Iowa. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
- ^ "2023 Wartburg Knights Football Schedule". go-knights.net. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- ^ "2023 D3football.com All-America team". D3Football.com. December 15, 2023.
- ^ "NFF Proudly Announces the Finalists for 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy". National Football Foundation. October 25, 2023.
- ^ "Illinois College's Collin Brunstein and Pomona-Pitzer's Cameron Shirangi Headline the 2023 AFCA Division III Coaches' All-America Teams". AFCA. December 11, 2023.
- ^ Russo, Ralph. "Cortland quarterback Zac Boyes and North Central RB Joe Sacco lead AP Division III All-America team". Associated Press. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
- ^ "Five named Gagliardi finalists". D3football.com. D3football.com. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
- ^ "Wartburg's Owen Grover named finalist for 2023 Gagliardi Trophy". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. December 9, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
- ^ "Kalen Deboer and Willie Simmons Headline the 2023 AFCA Regional Coach of the Year Winners". afca.com. AFCA. Retrieved January 5, 2024.
- ^ "2023 Academic All-America® Football Teams announced for all NCAA and NAIA divisions" (Press release). January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 28, 2024.
- ^ "Wartburg's Clasen, Grover, and Winter Highlight A-R-C All-Conference Football Selections". American Rivers Conference. November 17, 2023.