Wabash starts the second half of the 2017 football season this Saturday with a home contest against the Ohio Wesleyan Battling Bishops.
 
The Little Giants are one of three undefeated teams in the NCAC through the first six weeks of competition. Wittenberg and DePauw both are 5-0 overall and 4-0 in NCAC games along with Wabash.
 
The Little Giants improved to 5-0 overall with a 4-0 conference record after a 28-7 win last weekend over Denison. Wabash limited the Big Red to 49 yards of total offense and one first down. Denison entered the game as the third-ranked offense in Division III, averaging 455 yards of total offense a game. The Little Giants also forced a pair of turnovers with a fumble created by Satchel Burton and recovered by Evan Hansen. The duo combined again on an interception in the fourth quarter when Burton broke up a pass and Hansen scooped it up for the turnover. Hansen and Burton each recorded a team-high seven tackles in the contest.
 
"Saturday we had three things on defense: one, tremendous effort. Two, perfect assignments," Wabash head coach Don Morel said. "Three, we had a couple of veteran guys that had been out with injuries who returned. We made plays and really looked like the defense that we want at Wabash. Now we want to build off that. Certainly we are capable, if we are completely locked in mentally, to be a great defensive team. And it takes all 11 guys. We don't have one guy who can do it by himself. All 11 have to play great and we've got a chance to be good."
 
Ike James earned NCAC Offensive Player of the Week honors for the second time this season after rushing for three touchdowns and 158 yards versus Denison. He churned out a 67-yard run that set up a fourth TD by Weston Murphy, the longest rush of the season for the Little Giants and longest of James' career.
 
Both reigning NCAC football players of the week will be on the field this Saturday at Byron P. Hollett Little Giant Stadium. Ben Rubel, the starting strong safety for the Battling Bishops, earned Defensive Player of the Week honors after making ten tackles to share the team lead last week in a 23-21 come-from-behind win by OWU over Kenyon. He made a tackle for no gain on a fourth-and-one try by Kenyon midway through the fourth quarter to give the ball back to Bishops. OWU moved the football 85 yards in 11 plays for the game-winning score on a 27-yard pass from quarterback Brian Berry to Hunter Baker. Berry finished the game 19-of-37 passing for 211 yards and three TDs.
 
The Battling Bishops are two point away from riding a three-game winning streak heading into Saturday's contest at Wabash. OWU defeated Allegheny 37-21 before suffering a 31-30 defeat to DePauw a week prior to their win versus Kenyon.
 
OWU averages 25 points and 352 yards of total offense per game. Berry has thrown for 1,272 yards  (254.4 ypg) and 12 touchdowns through the first half of the season. Baker leads the team with 30 receptions for 470 yards and five TDs. Mher Tcholakian has caught 17 passes for 297 yards and four TDs, while his brother, Sasoun Tcholakian, is fourth on the team with 14 receptions for 148 yards. Deji Adebiyi has caught 17 passes for 108 yards and one score.
 
AJ Jones is the leading rusher for the Battling Bishops with 31 carries for 234 yards and two TDs for an average of 58.5 yards per game in his rookie season. Jesse Beachy has added 99 yards and one touchdown in 26 rushing attempts. Alex Barrett has carried the ball 25 times for 87 yards and one score.
 
Ohio Wesleyan's defense ranks fifth in the NCAC against rush, allowing only 147 yards a game this season, and has forced eight turnovers. Free safety Brad Brodek tops the tackles list for the Battling Bishops with 64 stops. Defensive ends Jermaine Frazer-Phillips and Anthony Chambers have each recorded 5-1/2 tackles for combined losses of 38 yards. Chambers has also made a team-high 3-1/2 sacks for 17 yards.
 
"Offensively Ohio Wesleyan has nothing to lose. We have to be ready for a consistent offense that is capable of putting up points using the running game and the passing game," Morel said. "Defensively they will take chances to get turnovers. We can't fall into that trap. We have to focus on playing our game."
 
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Tickets are available for sale in advance at http://www.ticketor.com/wabash. Tickets are $7 for adults and $4 for students and children ages 5-18. Children under 5 are admitted free. On the day of the game, prices for the individual game tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and children ages 5-18.
 
Live video of the game will be provided by Wabash TV and made available online at https://www.wabash.edu/live. Live statistics can be viewed at http://www.sidearmstats.com/wabash/football.