Setting the Scene: Pacific Lutheran opens its home slate today at Sparks Stadium, facing its second straight California opponent in Simpson University. Today's game is the first of six home games for the Lutes who will play seven games in Pierce County this fall and eight inside the state of Washington.
Series History: This is just the second all-time meeting between the Lutes and the Red Hawks. The two met last fall in Simpson's first home game as a varsity program on Sept. 7. The Lutes scored early and often in a 43-0 victory at Bill Johnson Stadium.
That game saw the Lutes throw for almost 400 yards with Darius Chaffin finishing the game 21-for-24 for 340 yards and four touchdowns.
About the Lutes: Connor Meade had a career day with 121 reception yards but it wasn't enough for the Pacific Lutheran University football team to come away with the win, falling 18-15 to West Coast rival California Lutheran University on Saturday in the season opener at William Rolland Stadium.
The visiting Lutes (0-1) drew first blood, scoring on their second drive of the game. PLU benefited from good field position, starting the drive at its 41-yard line thanks to a fourth down stand by the defense. A pass interference call on the first play of the drive set the Lutes up at midfield and the Lutes needed just nine plays to find the endzone, with the 59-yard drive capped off by a Meade 18-yard touchdown reception from Darius Chaffin. PLU would miss the extra point and finished the opening quarter with a 6-0 edge.
The host Kingsmen (1-0) got on the board late in the first half, kicking a 41-yard field goal with 3:15 left in the second. Cal Lu would find the endzone less than a minute later with Drew Nees scoring a pick six to make it 10-6 Kingsmen, a scoreline they'd take into the locker room at halftime.
A First Team All-Northwest Conference selection last year in basketball, PLU's Emmett Holt wasted little time making an impact on the gridiron, scoring a go-ahead touchdown for the Lutes with 3:35 left in the third quarter to cap off an 80-yard drive. Meade was a big part of the drive, grabbing receptions of 13 and 27 yards during the drive. A 15-yard reception from Jase Ellamar put PLU at the seven yard line before Chaffin found Holt to make it 15-10 PLU.
A shanked punt gave Cal Lu a short field late in the fourth quarter and they capitalized. The Kingsmen covered 39 yards on just six plays, scoring the eventual game winner on a 12 yard rush with 3:30 left in the game.
PLU had two opportunities to tie or take the lead, going three and out on its first drive before mounting a drive that started at the Lute 15-yard line. A 29-yard catch from Dayton Savea put the Lutes in Cal Lu territory. A pass interference call moved the Lutes to the Cal Lu 25-yard line but the Lutes would run out of time after a dropped pass in the endzone and a long scramble, stalled the drive at the Cal Lu 20-yard line.
Chaffin finished 19-for-42 with 232 passing yards and two touchdowns with Meade the most popular target with seven receptions for 121 yards and a score. Ellamar had four catches for 43 yards, one of six Lutes to catch a pass on the day. Jacob Schuh led the ground game with 43 yards.
Micah Ragaza-Bourassa led the Lutes with six tackles, including a sack while Cole Becker had three quarterback hurries.
PLU finished the game with more first downs (18 to 15), more passing yards (232 to 148) and more total yards (277 to 234) than the hosts.
Meet the 2024 Team Captains
This year's team captains are Jake Schuh, Josh Holder, and Darius Chaffin on offense and Micah Ragaza-Bourassa, Zak Gable, and Jackson Hale on defense.
About the Red Hawks: Simpson (0-1) opened its second season as a varsity program under the lights in Ashland, Oregon, getting rolled 59-0 against NAIA power Southern Oregon University back on August 28.
The host Raiders needed just one play to get on the board, tallying a 60-touchdown strike to take an 8-0 lead just under two minutes into the game. SOU would finish the opening quarter with 22 points. SOU finished the night with 542 total yards and held Simpson to just 193, including just 46 through the air.
Simpson completed just four of its 15 pass attempts, with two interceptions. The Red Hawks had more success on the ground with Kaleb Anderson averaging 8.6 yards per carry as the team rolled up 147 rushing yards.
Defensively, Charlie Walden made 11 tackles, including six solo takedowns while Louis Sanders and Caleb Utter each had eight.
Sanders handled two of Simpson's four punts on the day, averaging 35 yards per kick.
Highlights from Luteville
It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of Coach Jud Keim after a courageous battle with cancer.
An ’86 PLU graduate, “Keim Time” was a four-year letterwinner in both football and track & field for the Lutes and was a two-time All-Conference running back. Jud went on to coach football for over three decades, including 20 seasons at PLU (2004-2023) where he served in a variety of roles, including special teams coordinator, defensive coordinator, and interim head coach. In addition to PLU, Jud had coaching stops at Gustavus Adolphus, California Lutheran, Mankato State, Lewis & Clark, and Puget Sound.
Jud had a tremendous impact on PLU, the NWC, and all of Division III. A student of the game, his Lute defenses were routinely some of the toughest in the conference. But beyond the X’s and O’s, Jud had infectious energy and cared deeply about his student-athletes.
A servant warrior, Jud gave back to the community, as a high school track & field official and ran the “More than Champions” youth football camp in Gig Harbor.
He is survived by his wife Sari and children Kalen and Jace who are all Lute graduates.
4 National Titles. 22 Conference Championships. This is PLU Football.
NWC Coaches' Poll
This August, the Lutes were picked to finish third in the NWC standings in the annual coaches' poll. Last fall, PLU finished third in the league standings behind playoff qualifiers Linfield and Whitworth.
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace last fall through the department's partnership with Opendorse. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
Next Home Game:
Sept. 20 vs. Trinity (Texas) at 12 p.m.
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu