Titans To Host Knights In NCAA Postseason Quarterfinal
UW-Oshkosh will host Wartburg College (Iowa) in a clash of unbeaten teams in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division III Football Championship on Saturday (Dec. 2). Kickoff is set for 12:05 p.m. at J. J. Keller Field at Titan Stadium.
UW-Oshkosh (11-0), ranked third in the country by D3football.com, is in the national quarterfinals for the third straight season and the fourth overall in four NCAA postseason appearances.
The Titans reached the quarterfinals of this year's 32-team tournament with home wins of 63-0 over Lakeland University on Nov. 18 and 42-21 over ninth-ranked North Central College (Ill.) last Saturday (Nov. 25).
Seventeenth-ranked Wartburg College (12-0) is seeking to advance to the semifinal round for the first time in its 12 Division III Championship appearances. The Knights previously reached the quarterfinals in 1994, 2008 and 2014.
The Knights began this season's NCAA tournament with home victories of 35-34 in overtime over Franklin College (Ind.) on Nov. 18 and 49-7 over 25th-ranked Trine University (Ind.) last Saturday.
UW-Oshkosh is averaging 42 points per game and allowing 14.2 points per contest. Wartburg College is scoring 39.3 per contest while surrendering 16.1 points per game.
The Titans have won 14 consecutive home games by a combined 579-200 score while Wartburg College has been victorious in its last five road contests.
UW-Oshkosh and Wartburg College earned automatic berths to the NCAA postseason field. The Titans completed the sixth perfect WIAC season in school history with a 7-0 record while the Knights finished 8-0 in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference for their fifth perfect league record in program annals.
The Titans, who played in last year's national championship game, rank third in Division III history with a .786 winning percentage (11-3 record) in NCAA postseason play. UW-Oshkosh advanced to the semifinals in 2012 and to the quarterfinals in 2015.
Wartburg College has a 10-11 NCAA postseason record, including a 1-3 mark against WIAC teams.
The Knights have won both of their two previous meetings with UW-Oshkosh, defeating the Titans by scores of 31-10 on Sept. 1, 2001, in Waverly, Iowa, and 24-20 on Sept. 7, 2002, in Oshkosh.
Ticket prices for Saturday's game are $10 for adults, $8 for senior citizens (55 or older) and $6 for students (K-12 & College). Children under the age of 5 will be admitted free.
The UW-Oshkosh Student Association will distribute free tickets to UW-Oshkosh students. Tickets can be picked up from the UW-Oshkosh Athletics Office in Kolf Sports Center beginning at noon Monday (Nov. 27). UW-Oshkosh students must present a valid Titan ID Card to obtain a ticket.