Setting the Scene: Pacific Lutheran closes out the season today, welcoming Oregon rival George Fox University to Sparks Stadium. The two Northwest Conference rivals will be battling for third place in the conference standings, both sitting with a 4-2 NWC record.
Series History: The Lutes and Bruins have met 10 times since George Fox started up ts program in 2014 with the series tied at 5-5.
The two teams met last season on Nov. 2 in Sparks Stadium, with the Lutes prevailing 24-14, getting a pair of receiving touchdowns from Thor Stepina.
About the Lutes: Big special teams plays early on set the tone for the Pacific Lutheran University (5-4, 4-2 NWC) last Saturday afternoon. Scoring on offense, defense, and special teams, the Lutes outlasted host Lewis & Clark College 46-36 in a Northwest Conference clash inside Griswold Stadium. Brock Kinch blocked a punt on Lewis & Clark's opening drive, scooping up the ball and running 40-yards to make it 7-0 PLU just under two minutes into the game. Later in the first quarter, Ryan Dikover booted a 41-yard punt with the coverage team making a tackle at the two-yard line. The Pioneers (5-4, 2-4 NWC) fumbled the first snap of the drive and recovered the ball in the endzone for a Lute safety to make it 9-0. Connor Meade made it 17-0 Lutes, returning a punt 62-yards for a touchdown just 20 seconds into the second quarter with AJ Stepina catching the two-point try. Anthony Mahaffey hit Jacob Schuh from 35-yards out to make it 23-7 before Jackson Hale had a pick-six with just over five minutes left in the first half to make it 30-7 PLU. The Pioneers scored just before halftime, getting an interception and scoring three plays later with 42 ticks left in the half, tightening the gap to 30-15. Host Lewis & Clark would close to within a score on three occasions in the second half but the Lutes answered the call each time, getting touchdowns from Jase Ellamar later in the third, an AJ Stepina receiving touchdown midway through the fourth, and an Evan Harvey 25-yard field goal inside two minutes to hold off any chance at a Pio comeback. Mahaffey finished the day 18-for-28 for 205 yards and three touchdowns while Schuh had 91 yards on the ground, averaging 4.6 yards per touch while also leading the squad with five receptions for 75 yards and a score. Kawika Lopez had eight tackles to lead the Lutes while Hale and Eli Fernandez both finished the day with interceptions. Hale's monster day included seven tackles, including five solo, one quarterback hurry, and a pick six. Saturday's win was the fourth time this fall the Lutes have scored over 40 points in a game.
Kinch and Hale were both honored by the NWC on Monday, with Kinch earning NWC Special Teams Player of the Week while Hale was tabbed NWC Defensive Player of the Week.
The Lutes head into Saturday's clash averaging 27.9 points per game and averaging 376.8 yards per game.
Jacob Schuh leads the team and ranks third in the NWC in rushing, with 820 yards and six touchdowns, averaging 4.9 yards per carry and 91.1 yards per game. Anthony Mahaffey is completing 57.4 percent of his passes, slinging it for 1,496 yards and 16 touchdowns. Jase Ellamar has been the top target with 37 receptions and five touchdowns for 489 yards. Connor Meade leads the team in receiving yardage with 586 on 33 receptions with five touchdowns. Dayton Savea has 400 receiving yards while AJ Stepina has a team-best six TD receptions. All told, six different players have caught touchdown passes this season.
PLU's defense is limiting its opponents to less than 100 yards a game, holding its first nine foes to an average of just 80.7 rushing yards per game.
Defensively, Eli Fernandez has been lock down for the secondary with four of the Lutes' 12 interceptions. Will Frank has two. Fernandez also leads the team in both total tackles (79) and solo takedowns (46). Avery Coleman has 58 tackles along with 7.5 tackles for loss. Zachary Gable leads the team in TFLs with 10.5 while also boasting a team-best 11 quarterback hurries.
Cole Becker leads the team in sacks with 8.5 with Gable close behind with six.
Evan Harvey has hit all five field goals he has attempted this season, including a season-long 34 yarder. Ryan Dikover is averaging 35.6 yards per punt, with nearly a third of his kicks landing inside the 20-yard line.
Meet the 2025 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 Bruins: George Fox (4-5, 4-2 NWC) heads to Tacoma riding a four-game win streak.
It was a rocky start to the year for the Bruins, getting edged 10-7 in the season opener at Redlands (Calif.) before dropping a 38-10 non-conference game against Lewis & Clark the following week. GFU came up short 28-21 to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (Calif.) in the non-league finale before opening NWC play against the league's two juggernauts in Linfield (35-17) and Whitworth (40-16).
Since then, things have been looking bright in Newberg, with the Bruins exacting revenge on Lewis & Clark with a 42-28 victory on Oct. 18. That was followed by a 48-23 home win over Puget Sound, a 31-9 thumping of Willamette and a 27-21 senior day victory last Saturday against Pacific.
Last Saturday's game saw the Bruins race out to an early 17-0 lead and do just enough to hold on for the win in the second half. The Bruins finished the day with a nearly balanced offensive attack, getting 182 yards through the air and 171 on the ground.
JJ Leman is the Bruins' first-year starting quarterback, having thrown for 1,776 yards and 11 touchdowns with seven interceptions. Leman can also use his legs, leading the team in rushing touchdowns with seven while sitting third on the team in rushing yards with 316. Taylor Saben is the leading rusher with 474 yards, averaging 4.5 yards per rush while Brody Snyder has 350 yards, averaging an impressive 7.1 yards per rush. Karesen Denault is the top receiving target with 37 catches for 830 yards and nine of the team's 12 receiving touchdowns. Kaelan Frey is the next best receiver with 27 catches for 211 yards.
Jacob Erickson leads the defense in tackles (59), TFLs (17), sacks (11), and QB hurries (11). Ben Nuss has 59 tackles, including a team-best 40 solo tackles while Kuyper Assink has 9.5 sacks this season. Bruin kicker Ben Rembisz is eight-for-12 on the season, having made both a 40-yarder and a 42-yarder this year.
All-Star Attaways
It's been a banner fall this year for the Lutes with four players securing D3football.com Team of the Week accolades. Connor Meade literally kicked off the awards, returning a kick against Simpson University while Cole Becker was named to the Team of the Week for his exploits against Willamette University. Two weeks ago it was Jacob Schuh's turn, securing a spot on the 11-player offensive team for his record breaking day against UPS.
Zachary Gable become the 24th Lute to secure D3football Team of the Week honors which is now in its 27th season, recognizing the best weekly performances from the 241 NCAA Division III programs. Gable won the accolade after a dominating performance against Pacific.
Lutes Donate Over 3K to Texas Flood Victims
The Pacific Lutheran University community showed its support for the victims of the Texas floods this summer, combining to donate $3,200 to the Kellyanne Elizabeth Lytal Memorial Foundation from tickets sales, donations, and a direct match from the President's Office.
The Lutes announced that 25 percent of all tickets sales from the non-conference finale against Trinity University (Texas) would be donated to the Kellyanne Elizabeth Lytal Memorial Foundation. The Foundation was established in honor of Trinity offensive coordinator Wade Lytal's daughter who tragically passed away on July 4, 2025 along wth 26 others during the flooding at Camp Mystic.
Walk with Us: Jacob Schuh
Learn more about running back Jacob Schuh in season 2 episode 2 of Walk With Us...
Thank You Seniors!
This year's senior class has left their mark on the program with four straight seasons of finishing .500 or better, including four consecutive winning seasons in NWC play. The 2025 seniors boast a 23-16 overall record and an 18-9 mark in NWC play. They've finished third of better in the league standings every single season and are the winningest senior class since the class of 2014.
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.
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Thanks for your continued support of lute athletics!
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