SPOKANE, Wash. – Saturday marks one more trip to Oregon and one more important Northwest Conference football game for the Whitworth Pirates this week. The Bucs will take on Lewis & Clark College in a contest that will significantly shape the final league standings. Saturday's contest will kick off at 1:00 pm and will stream live on FloSports.
Whitworth (4-2 overall, 3-0 NWC) is coming off a 30-20 win at previously #24 Linfield. The Pioneers are 5-1, 2-1 after suffering their first loss of the season at George Fox 42-28.
Tickets: Lewis & Clark encourages fans to purchase tickets in advance. There are no cash sales at Griswold Stadium and there are limited opportunities to purchase tickets in person via credit card. Use the L&C tickets link to access the order form.
The Pirates: Whitworth dominated the second and fourth quarters to win 30-20 at Linfield on Saturday, the Pirates' second win at Maxwell Field in as many trips. Whitworth was behind 7-3 after the first, led 20-7 at halftime, was tied 20-20 after the third and outscored the Wildcats 10-0 in the fourth quarter.
Logan Lacio completed 24 of 38 passes for 275 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and he ran for the go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Tyson Hoke had his best game yet as a Pirate wide receiver, catching seven passes for 101 yards and a 24-yard touchdown just before halftime. Caleb Northcroft caught four passes for 37 yards, including a twisting, one-handed touchdown in the second quarter. Luis Salgado ran the ball 27 times for 119 yards against the league's top rushing defense. On Whitworth's final two scoring drives, Salgado converted four third downs into first downs. The Pirates finished with a season-high 410 yards and had a 36:03 – 23:57 edge in time of possession.
The Pirate defense came up with big plays when needed, including two turnovers. The first was a fumble forced by Trey Rose and recovered by Hunter Letteer at the Whitworth 13 that ended Linfield's first possession. The second was a game-clinching interception by Chris Knutson, his second of the season, after the Pirates had taken a 30-20 lead. Letteer, Drew Cody and Wyatt Hess each had seven tackles. Hess broke up a pair of passes. Lane Watkins and Luke Jacobson each had a sack.
The difference in the game may have been the performance of Whitworth's special forces. Iden Bone made three field goals, including a 37-yarder with just over two minutes to play that gave the Bucs a two-score lead. Including three PATs, he scored 12 points in the game. Matthew Herzog averaged 43.2 yards per punt, including a 52-yarder. Jake Gaffaney averaged 63 yards per kickoff, including three touchbacks. The game turned on two Linfield kicks. At the end of the first half the Pirates got enough pressure on Linfield's Gavin Dalziel to force him to miss a 40-yard field goal as time expired. Then after Linfield tied the game in the third, Ryen Borchers blocked Dalziel's extra point, keeping the game knotted at 20-20.
Bone Earns Second Honor: Iden Bone was selected as the NWC's Special Team's Player of the Week for the second time in 2025. His three field goals and three extra points were the scoring difference in Whitworth's 30-20 win at Linfield. Bone's 37-yarder with 2:24 to play gave the Pirates a two-score lead.
Team Captains: The Pirate team captains in 2025 are RB Luis Salgado and TE Taylor Wells from the offense and safety Trey Rose and DL Lane Watkins from the defense. Senior DB Luke McCorkle was the special teams captain vs. George Fox. A new special forces captain is selected by the coaches on a week-by-week basis.
The Oregon Trail: Whitworth is making four trips to the Willamette Valley this season. The Pirates have defeated Pacific University (Oct. 4) and Linfield University (Oct. 18). They are at L&C this Saturday and will visit Willamette on November 8th. The 2025 season is the first time Whitworth has had four games in Oregon since Rod Sandberg took over as head coach.
Road Warriors: Saturday's win at Linfield was Whitworth's second straight on the road over the Wildcats, the first time the Pirates have accomplished that in the series' history. Whitworth has now won 11 consecutive Northwest Conference road games, dating to the 2022 schedule.
Value the Ball: Whitworth has taken great care of the football in 2025. The Pirates lead the NWC and rank fifth in NCAA Division III with only three turnovers allowed. The Bucs have lost one fumble and had two passes intercepted.
Running Man: Luis Salgado is a two-time first team All-Northwest Conference honoree. He has gained 2,743 yards in his career with a 6.0 yards per carry average and has run for 29 touchdowns. Also a threat catching the ball out of the backfield, Salgado has 83 career receptions for 545 yards and four scores. In 2024 he was Whitworth's first 1,000-yard rusher since Duke DeGaetano ran for 1,001 yards in 2016 and posted the second-highest single season total in school history with 1216 yards, behind only the 1293 yards Damian Putney put up in 1999.
Defensive Stopper: Sophomore Drew Cody leads the Northwest Conference in total tackles (57) and tackles per game (9.5) so far in 2025. The Pirate inside linebacker also leads the NWC, and ranks 23rd in NCAA Div. III, in solo tackles per game (5.7).
"Foot"ball Excellence: Whitworth's kickers have been a bright spot in 2025. Iden Bone leads the NWC in field goals made (11) and in scoring by a kicker (48 points, 8.0 points per game). He ranks first in NCAA Div. III in field goals per game (1.83) and 15th in DIII in field goal percentage (0.846). His 47-yard field goal is the longest in the conference this season.
Matthew Herzog is second in the NWC and ninth in all of NCAA Division III in punting average (41.7 yards per punt). He has six punts of over 50 yards.
Jake Gaffaney has averaged 60.1 yards per kickoff with ten touchbacks, the most touchbacks of any player in the NWC.
NWC Poll: Whitworth was picked second in the Northwest Conference preseason poll behind Linfield. The Wildcats received five first place votes while the Bucs got two and PLU one.
Class of Distinction: Thirty-two Whitworth Pirates played their last game in the Pine Bowl against Pomona-Pitzer in the opening round of the NCAA Division III playoffs last November. That number marks the largest outgoing class in team history, which included nearly a dozen 5th-year players who used the extra eligibility awarded after the COVID-19 outbreak. Among that number were 10 starters on defense and nine on offense. Fourteen of those 19 departed starters earned All-NWC recognition. Quarterback Ryan Blair was the NWC Offensive Player of the Year. Linebacker Zach Brooks was the NWC Man of the Year, an award encompassing athletic ability, academics, leadership and community service.
Leading the Evergreen State: Since Rod Sandberg took over as head coach in 2014, Whitworth has the best winning percentage of any football playing university in Washington State. Heading into 2025, the Pirates are 84-24 since 2014, a winning percentage of .778.
Above Water: The Pirates' all-time record in football now stands at 432-422-18. Last season Whitworth moved above the .500 mark in all-time won-loss record for the first time since the Bucs were 32-31-2 before the start of the 1929 season.
Whitworth won its 100th game in 1959, during Heritage Gallery member Sam Adams' second season. The 200th victory came in 1981 under Bruce Grambo and the 300th win came in 2006 when John Tully led the Pirates to an 11-1 finish. Whitworth won for the 400th time in school history on October 16, 2021 vs. PLU. It took 55 years to get the 100th win, 22 more to get to 200 and 25 to get to 300. It took Whitworth only 15 years to get to 400.
In 1997 Whitworth's record in football was 248-337-18, 89 games under .500. Since that point Whitworth is 184-85.
11th Heaven: With the win over Puget Sound on October 19th last fall, Whitworth clinched its 11th consecutive winning season under head coach Rod Sandberg. That extended the longest streak of winning campaigns in school history. The previous long streak of seven was set between 1959 and 1965.
Winning the Opener: Following the win over Gustavus Adolphus this season, Whitworth has won 10 of its 12 season-openers under head coach Rod Sandberg. The Pirates are 6-1 at home and 4-1 on the road. Whitworth's only season-opening losses under Sandberg came in 2016 and 2022.
Looking Back at 2024: Whitworth opened the season with a 40-7 win at Gustavus Adolphus, leading to a 3-0 record against non-conference opponents. The Pirates finished 6-1 against the Northwest Conference, including a 31-0 win at George Fox and a 39-32 win at Pacific in which Luis Salgado broke the NWC record for rushing yards in a single game (365). The only loss was 34-7 to Linfield in the season finale. At 9-1, Whitworth was invited to the NCAA Division III playoffs and defeated Pomona-Pitzer 21-13 in the first round to claim a second straight 10-win season for the first time in school history. The Pirates were defeated in the second round by eventual champion North Central (Ill.).
Watch on FlowCollege: Like the rest of the Northwest Conference, Whitworth's home athletic events will be steamed through FloCollege in 2025-26. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $120 for an annual subscription or $20 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
Inland Northwest Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Bud Nameck, familiar in Spokane as the KXLY channel 4 sports director for over 20 years and the longtime host of the KXLY 920am Morning News, is in his 11th season as the voice of the Pirates in 2025. He was the voice of Washington State University men's basketball for 22 years and spent that same amount of time on the Cougar football broadcasts – the final three on play by play. He is a longtime resident of the Inland Northwest who began his career as the Sports Information Director and radio voice of Gonzaga University basketball and baseball in the 1980s.
Listen to Road Games: Fans can tune in online to listen to Pirate ROAD games for free at WhitworthPirates.com. Bud Nameck will provide play by play when Whitworth is away from the Pine Bowl.
The Head Coach: Now in his 12th season, Rod Sandberg has entrenched himself in the Whitworth and NCAA record books as the Pirates' head football coach. Sandberg has guided the Pirates to an 84-24 record over his first 11 seasons, including four appearances in the NCAA Division III playoffs (2015, 2018, 2023 and 2024). He is in second place in total victories in school history and no Pirate coach reached 50 victories as quickly as Sandberg. Sandberg's winning percentage of .778 is the best among Whitworth coaches with at least five seasons and currently ranks among the top 10 active coaches in all of Division III. He coached the Pirates to the fourth unbeaten regular season in school history (9-0) in 2018. In 2023 and 2024 he coached Whitworth to the first-ever back-to-back ten-win seasons in school history, as well as the first back-to-back NCAA playoff appearances. The Bucs' 15-game winning streak, counting the final five games of 2017 and the first ten of 2018, is the second-longest in school history. Whitworth was 6-4 in 2014, Sandberg's first season, the best first-year record for a Pirate football coach since Rod Enos led the team to a 6-3 mark in 1965.
Sandberg spent 19 seasons on the defensive staff at Wheaton College (Ill.), including the last 11 as defensive coordinator. Wheaton made the NCAA Division III playoffs five times during Sandberg's tenure as defensive coordinator. The team never lost a first round playoff game and reached the Division III semifinals in 2008 and quarterfinals in 2003. Sandberg's 2007 and 2013 squads led the Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, regarded as one of the strongest football leagues at the Division III level, in scoring defense. The Thunder were second in the league in scoring defense five other times.
The Pioneers: Lewis & Clark is 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the NWC following last Saturday's 42-28 loss at George Fox. The Pioneers started 5-0 for the first time since 2011 and only the second time since 1963. They have done it with an explosive offense and big play defense. L&C leads the league in scoring offense (38.2 ppg) and is second in total offense (433.0 ypg). The Pios have allowed only 19.3 points per game and 351.2 yards per contest.
Brett Elliott is in his first season as head coach. He was previously the offensive coordinator at Linfield for six seasons and was the NCAA Division III player of the year as a QB when he led the Wildcats to the 2004 NCAA Division III title.
Sophomore QB Dashiell Weaver, a transfer from Fresno State, has been impressive. He has completed 68% of his throws for 1,480 yards with 20 touchdowns and only four interceptions and has run for 255 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite targets have been junior WR Lee Garrett, who has 30 receptions for 455 yards and four scores, and Senior WR Dez Holton, who has 26 catches for 389 yards and five touchdowns. Senior LB Daryl Scott leads the defense with 41 tackles and has added 3.5 sacks, an interception and a forced fumble. Junior DL JT Chavez has 19 tackles, including 7.0 TFLs for 34 yards in losses.
Lewis & Clark fell behind 14-0 last Saturday at George Fox, fought back to within 21-14 at halftime, then watched the Bruins score 21 points in the fourth quarter of a 42-28 loss. L&C had beaten GFU 38-10 at home in a non-conference contest during the second week of the season. Weaver completed 17 of 31 passes for 230 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran for 75 yards and a touchdown. Holton had eight pass receptions for 105 yards and two scores, while Garrett caught five passes for 118 yards. Scott finished with 10 tackles, including an 18-yard sack, and forced a fumble.
Last Meeting: Whitworth played well on both sides of the ball against the Pioneers and set some significant records along the way in last season's 48-9 win in the Pine Bowl.
The Pirates rolled up a season-high 631 yards and averaged more than 10 yards per play for the third consecutive game. Taylor Wells caught his first touchdown pass of the season. Luis Salgado ran for 90 yards on 17 carries and became the first Whitworth player to gain more than 1,000 yards in a season since Duke DeGaetano did it in 2016. Kurt Solano ran for the first two touchdowns of his career in the fourth quarter.
Zach Brooks led the defense with a career-high 16 tackles, including 11 solo stops, and forced a fumble. Joshua Lawson and Omari Williams each picked up an interception. Twenty-two different players saw action on the defensive side of the ball against the Pioneers.
Whitworth never had to punt against L&C. Iden Bone made two out of three field goals and all six of his extra points. Jake Gaffaney kicked off nine times and averaged 53.2 yards with one touchback.
The Series: Whitworth leads the all-time series 41-13 and the Bucs have won 23 of the last 24 contests. The Pioneers' 30-22 win in 2011 is their only victory in that stretch. Whitworth won the 2006 game 70-3, the largest margin of victory for either team. The biggest margin of victory for Lewis & Clark was 49-26 in 1993. Lewis & Clark won the first-ever meeting between the schools, 19-0 in 1956.
Coming up next: Whitworth will return home for the first time in three weeks to take on Pacific Lutheran University on November 1st at 1:00 pm in the Pine Bowl.
