The NAIA football season got off to the start we all needed. Teams are playing on Saturdays, fall is in the air and we’ve got a full season of NAIA football in front of us.
The one thing we don’t need is a complete overreaction to things that took place in week zero. I’m guilty of it, just like you. Too often I look at some of these early games and start mapping out playoff scenarios based on what we saw in 60 minutes of football. . .on one weekend. . .in August.
There’s a ton of football to be played, but I still want to be entertaining. So here’s a few overreactions followed by the correct reaction.
Overreaction: MONTANA WESTERN IS COOKED AND MONTANA TECH WILL COMPLETELY DOMINATE THE FRONTIER EAST DIVISION.
Correct reaction: These are two solid teams with a lot to work out. Tech was aided by spectacular special teams play and a tremendous home crowd. Western performed well and I have no doubt they’ll bounce back.
Overreaction: THE GPAC WAS WEAK, BENEDICTINE PROVED IT BY BEATING MORNINGSIDE.
Correct reaction: Wow, that was a hell of a game. Kudos to the programs for scheduling it. Both teams are far from perfect and will need to improve to compete for a national title.
Overreaction: OMG MARIAN GOT STOMPED BY INDY! HOW COULD YOU RATE THEM SO HIGH?!?
Correct reaction: D2 Indy has one of the best QBs in their division and bigger offensive and defensive lines. Marian won’t see another combo like that until the postseason. Sometimes D2 teams are just better than NAIA teams.
Overreaction: OPSU BEAT PERU STATE AT HOME! I THOUGHT PERU COULD COMPETE FOR THE POSTSEASON BUT THAT AIN’T HAPPENING
Correct reaction: OPSU is a solid team that plays a physical brand of football. Peru State needs to improve offensively as they head into their game with Baker. But at the end of the day, they are still 0-0 in the Heart North.
Overreaction: INDIANA WESLEYAN LOST AT HOME TO START THE SEASON! IT’S STARTING TO ALL FALL APART!
Correction reaction: Keiser is the No. 2 team in the country for a reason. They have one of the best QBs in the NAIA as well as a solid running game. The Seahawks are used to high intensity games and the win over IWU is more of a testament of how they respond in tough situations. IWU can learn from the loss and be better next week.
Overreaction: WHAT IS UEN THINKING HAVING THAT FAT SLOB JASON DANNELLY HOST THEIR KICKOFF SHOW? CAN’T THEY FIND A BETTER LOOKING, SMARTER, MORE PROFESSIONAL BROADCASTER?
Correct reaction: This is actually the correct reaction.
Featured NAIA Football Games
Benedictine (KS) at Grand View (12:00 PM CDT): This is a no-brainer for NAIA Game of the Week. Grand View kicks off their season at home with possibly the toughest matchup on their regular season schedule. The Ravens are tuned up after beating Morningside at home last week and definitely looked the part of a contender for the crown. It won’t come easy as EJ Peterson makes his head coaching debut for the Vikings, but things can be made a little easier with QB Jackson Waring leading the way. If the Vikings D can get pressure on Waring and shut down the run, they’ll be on their way to 1-0.
Grand View 24 Benedictine 20
Campbellsville (KY) at Webber International (FL) (1:30 PM EDT): Campbellsville is putting on the miles after starting the season in Indiana and playing week one in Florida. The Fighting Tigers had a huge win against USF and will look to continue their momentum. WIU is coming off a road win over DI-FCS non-scholarship Stetson where their defense stepped up and aided the victory. CU is playing without QB Jager Gillis due to injury, but Jett Engle performed well last week and should help to carry the Tigers to a 2-0 mark. Webber’s offense can’t turn the ball over if they want to be succeed this week.
Campbellsville 35 Webber International 24
Midland at Hastings (1:00 PM CDT): The Watchorn-McLaughlin Trophy is on the line this week between the Warriors and the Broncos. Midland is coming off a loss to D2 U-Mary while Hastings notched a victory over Doane. The winner of this game is one step closer to competing with the Top 2 or 3 in the conference and potential postseason consideration. This will be a solid, good old fashioned NAIA football game between two tremendous regional rivals. I’m picking Midland because of their experience but would not be shocked to see the Broncos pull out the W.
Midland 21 Hastings 17
Saint Xavier (IL) at Indiana Wesleyan (6:00 PM EDT): SXU is looking to get their 2025 off on the right foot with a big road victory while IWU is looking to avoid their first ever 0-2 start to a season. SXU’s defense will be stout and will go toe-to-toe with the Wildcat offense. IWU’s “tune-up” last week against No. 2 Keiser will pay dividends this week. Playing against top competition vs no games this season gives the edge to IWU.
IWU 31 SXU 21
Reinhardt (Ga.) at Cumberland (Tenn.) (6:00 PM CDT): The Eagles start off 2025 with a better than average stretch of non-conference games while Cumberland is coming off a loss to FCS Tennessee Tech. This will be a good test for both clubs as they try to climb their way into the NAIA Top 25. Reinhardt seems more a little further along at this point in the year and has the edge but don’t count out Cumberland bouncing back from last week’s shutout.
Reinhardt 24 Cumberland 17
Montana Tech (MT) at Carroll (MT) (6:00 PM MDT): It’s Tech/Carroll. . .there’s not much I need to say about why this is one of the top games of the week. Ultimately, this game will come down to which team’s QBs can settle down and perform well against the opposing defense. That won’t be easy as both squads are stout and athletic on D. I’m giving the Saints the slight edge at home.
Carroll 21 Tech 17
Southwestern at Tabor (6:00 PM CST): This is one of those games that could tell us more about where each team is in their progress this year. The Moundbuilders are rated and coming off a great 2024. Tabor is expected to compete for the Kessinger Division title with Evangel. It’s an early season game that definitely matters in each squads development. The homefield for Tabor plus the unknown about the Bluejays this year intrigues me. I think a lot of people could overlook this game as a potential upset by Tabor. I’m going with Southwestern but I think Tabor will raise more than a few eyebrows.
Southwestern 28 Tabor 24
Peak Performances
Week 0 delivered more than a few eye-popping performances across the NAIA. While the National Players of the Week deserve recognition, these are the efforts that really caught my attention.
Levi Torgerson – Montana Tech
Torgerson didn’t just make plays—he stole the show. The wideout scored on a kick return, a punt return, and a passing touchdown, while also hauling in three catches for 39 yards. After that display, opposing teams may think twice about giving him a returnable kick the rest of the season.
Xavier Malone – U-Pike
Malone lit up the air with a Week 0-best 407 passing yards, going 39-for-58 against Georgetown. Unfortunately for the Bears, his monster outing came in a losing effort.
Five QBs with Four TDs
It was a big week under center as five quarterbacks tossed four touchdowns apiece: Rugby Ryken (Mount Marty), Reid Potts (Evangel), Dom Montiel (Southern Oregon), Pryor Lamb (Lindsey Wilson), and Drew Gregg (Cumberlands). Each one led their team to victory, with Montiel pacing the group with 346 passing yards.
Payton McGregor – Mayville State
Efficiency at its finest. McGregor rushed just five times—but piled up 152 yards and a score in the Comets’ 49-20 win over Judson. His carries went for 40, 73 (TD), 12, 8, and 19 yards. Fear the Veer, indeed.
Jaden Miller – Keiser
Miller was unstoppable against Indiana Wesleyan, rushing 19 times for 140 yards and four touchdowns. His 70-yard dash with under four minutes to play gave the Seahawks the decisive edge in a 38-31 thriller.
K’Vonte Baker – Friends
Baker accounted for five touchdowns—four rushing, one passing—as Friends rolled Bethany 73-14. He ran for 129 yards, threw for 66 more, and guided an offense that racked up 695 total yards, including 595 on the ground.
Khia Sherrad – Lindsey Wilson
Sherrad put up video-game numbers: five catches, 215 yards, and three touchdowns in the Blue Raiders’ win over Texas Wesleyan. That’s a jaw-dropping 43 yards per reception, with 60% of his grabs going for six.
Eli Nourse – Montana Western
Nourse reminded everyone why he’s one of the NAIA’s premier wideouts, tallying 188 yards and a touchdown on 12 receptions. His Bulldogs came up short against Montana Tech, but he was nearly unstoppable.
Clayton Davis – Georgetown
Davis hauled in 11 passes for 174 yards and two scores in a 34-17 win over U-Pike. His final blow—a 47-yard touchdown—put the game on ice and delivered head coach John Perin his first career win with the Tigers.
AJ King – Tabor
Quiet no more. King emerged with 96 yards and three touchdowns on six receptions as Tabor downed Sterling 34-9. His scores came from 9, 15, and 21 yards out.
Defensive Standouts
Eli Bertrand – Keiser
Bertrand set a program record with 17 tackles in the Seahawks’ win over Indiana Wesleyan.
Diego Davis – Kansas Wesleyan
Davis terrorized Ottawa’s backfield with 2.5 sacks, fueling a 27-10 Coyotes win.
Cale Pittenger – Morningside
In person, Pittenger was flat-out disruptive. Despite Morningside’s loss to Benedictine, he posted two sacks, forced two QB hurries, broke up a pass, and recovered a fumble—single-handedly making life miserable for the Ravens’ offense.
Ballhawks on Opening Weekend
Three defenders doubled up on interceptions: Cullen Snow (Evangel), Jack Hartman (Dickinson State), and Jeremiah Dennard (Campbellsville). Each performance set the tone for their squads in Week 0 victories.
Other Crazy Stats
Truitt Bosher, kicker for Friends University, was 10/10 on PATs and 1/1 on FGs. That’s 13 total points. There are some programs who barely kick 10 PATs all season. Levi Torgerson was mentioned earlier, the finished the week with 246 all purpose yards. Cortez Thomas of Point University had six tackles for loss.
Ramblings of Dannelly
Benedictine was a fantastic host for my first on-campus visit of the year. Plenty of NAIA schools create a big-time gameday atmosphere, but the Ravens are at the top of that list. From the tailgate to the in-stadium energy, they get it right. Huge credit to AD Charlie Gartenmayer and Assistant AD Josh Pound for putting it all together.
It was also great connecting with so many of you in person. Putting faces with names always makes the experience better, so thank you to the parents and alumni who introduced themselves on Friday and Saturday.
The Clash of the Week pregame show was a blast. Thanks to Urban Edge and the Heart Conference for inviting me to host. If you missed it, you can catch the archived broadcast here—and don’t forget to download the UEN app to follow NAIA football all season.
I’ve already said plenty about Morningside and Benedictine over the past few days, so I won’t rehash it all here. You can hear my full thoughts on Sunday night’s podcast. In short: both are outstanding programs with elite coaches and athletes. More NAIA teams should schedule non-conference games like this one.
As for the rest of the opening weekend—let’s not overreact. Yes, I could dive deeper into Texas Wesleyan’s road loss to Lindsey Wilson or Montana Tech’s win over Montana Western, but it’s still just Week 1. As more games are played, we’ll get a clearer picture of what these results really mean.
Grand View will finally get the chance to defend their national title this week. Interesting when you think about their last game against Keiser and that the Seahawks got into the title game by edging out Benedictine in the semifinals. Now, it’s Benedictine and Grand View in week one. The Vikings were a team that seemed to blow through their regular season schedule prior to playing in much higher stakes games in the postseason. That trend continues this week in a Heart Conference crossover game. It will be exciting to see the Vikings back on the field and Coach EJ Peterson put his stamp on the program.
Another great weekend of NAIA football is on deck. Be sure to subscribe to NAIA Football with Dannelly and Donley on YouTube so you never miss a show—and get out there to enjoy some NAIA football!