Wabash College and DePauw University will meet in the Monon Bell Classic for the first time since 2019 this Saturday. The two teams will play for the 127th time at 1:07 p.m. at the new Little Giant Stadium on the Wabash campus.
 
It's been 729 days since DePauw won 17-13 in Greencastle in the 126th Monon Bell Classic. The Tigers scored on a 62-yard TD pass from Chase Andries to  Gavin Ritter with 38 seconds remaining in the game.
 
Wabash enters Saturday's contest with a record of 6-3 and a 5-3 mark in  North Coast Athletic Conference games. The Little Giants lost their last home game a week ago in a 35-14 contest against Wittenberg University. Wabash was shut out in the second half after matching the Ohio Tigers in scoring throughout most of the first half. A late interception return --- one of four turnovers in the game for the Little Giants --- put Wittenberg up 21-14 at the half on the way to the win.
 
Wabash has allowed 30 points and 407 yards of offense a game to opposing teams this season. While the run defense has been dependable, surrendering just 121 yards per game, opponents have attacked the Little Giants in the air, scoring 19 passing touchdowns and accumulating an average of 407 passing yards a game. Sophomore Will Netting and senior Casey Crozier lead the Wabash defense with 54 tackles apiece. Crozier has 4-1/2 tackles for losses and one sack this season.
 
Senior Seth Buresh will play in his final Monon Bell game and is one of five Buresh brothers to play football for the Little Giants. He's also the team's leader in sacks with eight this season as well as tackles for losses with 9-1/2 for 38 yards. Joe Rios and Jose Franco have both made two interceptions this season to lead the Little Giants in that category. Wabash has picked off eight passes and recovered three fumbles but has a turnover margin of minus five.
 
The Little Giants' strength all season has been its high-powered offense. Wabash ranks ninth in the nation and leads the conference in total offense with an average of 494.9 yards per game. The Little Giants' average of 184.6 rushing yards per game is second in the NCAC. Donovan Snyder leads the ground attack with an average of 98.4 yards per game to lead the conference. Dual-threat quarterback Liam Thompson has run for 369 yards and a team-best eight touchdowns.
 
Thompson ranks eighth in the nation in passing yards (2,793) and 17th in passing touchdowns (27) among Division III quarterbacks this season. He has thrown at least one touchdown pass in every game this season, including a season-high four TD strikes against Hiram in week two. Cooper Sullivan leads a deep receiving corps of targets for Thompson. Sullivan has caught 53 passes for 809 yards and seven TDs this season. Derek Allen has enjoyed a break-out year with 39 catches for 715 yards and five TDs. Tight end Jackson Clayborne has caught five touchdown passes among his 24 receptions this season. Nick Hamman adds 28 catches and 435 yards to the mix of 10 different players to catch a pass this season for Wabash.
 
Joey Annee leads the Wabash special teams unit and is among the overall leaders in punting this season. His average of 42.5 yards is second in the nation, showing why he was named a preseason First Team All-American by D3football.com. Jacob Handley has connected on 41-45 extra points with a streak of 10 consecutive PATs coming into the game. He has also made four field goals this season with two career-long 41-yard kicks.
 
DePauw Scouting Report
DePauw (8-1, 8-0 NCAC) claimed its first North Coast Athletic Conference title since joining the league in 2012 and first trip to the NCAA DIII playoffs since 2010. The Tigers clinched the berth with a 66-13 home victory against Oberlin. DePauw produced a school-record 502 passing yards with starter Chase Andries completing 16-of-22 passes for 391 yards and five TDs. Andries has thrown 2,190 yards and 19 touchdowns while completing 64.5 percent of his passes.
 
DePauw ranks second in the conference in both total offense and defense. The Tigers' 452.4 offensive yards per game place them 23rd among all Division III teams. DePauw has limited opposing teams to an average of 301 yards per game. Turnovers have been a key for the Tigers this season. Their plus-16 turnover margin is second in the nation behind Alma College's plus-19 margin. DePauw has scored five defensive touchdowns this season to tie for the second-most among DIII teams.
 
Trey Shaw leads the Tiger receivers with 41 catches for 677 yards and eight touchdowns. Jaylon Smith has 29 receptions for a team-best 761 yards and 10 TDs. Sixteen different players have rushed the football for DePauw this season. Gus Baumgartner is the leading runner for the Tigers with 120 attempts for 686 yards and six TDs for a 76.2 yards-per-game average. Andries enters the day with 60 rushes for 148 yards and four scores.
 
Freshman linebacker Luke Marsh leads the team on defense with 53 tackles. He has one of the Tigers' 18 interceptions this season and one of three returns for a touchdown. Joe Zanca's 10-1/2 tackles for losses are the most by a DePauw defender. Brevon Gude has recorded a team-best four sacks. Dylan Hyatt has a team-best five interceptions to tie for the lead in the conference.
 
Tickets
The 127th Monon Bell Classic is sold out as of Wednesday. No tickets will be available for sale at the gate on the day of the game.
 
Broadcast Info
Fans can watch the game on the ISC channel (Channel 81) on Comcast Infinity in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Lafayette, and Cincinnati as well as ten other local television providers in Indiana. MyIndy TV23 will also carry the game over the air and on cable and satellite systems where the channel is normally carried. The game will be also be live streamed nationally through ISC's social media channels on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, as well as the ISC Sports Network app available through Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Roku, Google Play, and Chromecast. 

The live feed will also be available through the Wabash College Video Network over the Internet at https://team1sports.com/Wabash and through the Wabash College Video Network television apps available through Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Roku, and through mobile apps available through Apple, Android, and Amazon Fire Tablet. 

WNDY Radio (91.3 FM) will carry the audio feed of the ISC broadcast live beginning at 1 p.m.