PITTSBURG — The Pittsburg State University football team will travel to Jefferson City, Mo., Saturday (Oct. 15) for an MIAA matchup against Lincoln University. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. (CDT) at Dwight T. Reed Stadium.

The Gorillas are 6-0 on the season, alone atop the MIAA standings and ranked No. 7 in the most recent American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) NCAA Division II Top 25 poll released Monday (Oct. 10).

Pitt State posted a 24-22 home win over No. 9 Northwest Missouri State University last Saturday (Oct. 8). The Gorillas also own victories over Central Missouri (21-10), then No. 11 ranked Nebraska-Kearney (35-28), Northeastern State (49-14), Emporia State (14-13) and Missouri Southern (38-9) on the season.

The Gorillas have opened the season 6-0 for the first time since the 2013 campaign. Pitt State won its first eight games in 2011 as the Gorillas eventually captured the NCAA Division II National Championship that year. Pitt State's last undefeated regular season came in 2004 when the Gorillas finished as the NCAA-II National Runner-Up.

Lincoln is 0-6 after dropping a 37-14 road decision to Missouri Southern last Saturday at Joplin, Mo. The Blue Tigers are seeking to halt a 22-game losing streak dating back to Oct. 19, 2019, when LU posted a 27-9 win against Northeastern State.

The Coaches
Brian Wright is in his third season as head coach at Pittsburg State.

He was hired as the program's 15th all-time head coach on December 7, 2019. Wright led the Gorillas to a 2-2 record during the abbreviated 2020 season; and he guided Pitt State to an 8-3 mark in 2021. He has a 16-5 (.762) record leading the Gorillas and a 20-5 (.800) mark as a collegiate head coach.

Wright came to Pitt State after serving the previous four seasons as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at the University of Toledo.

Prior to coming to Toledo, Wright coached at Florida Atlantic for four seasons as the Owls' offensive coordinator. He stepped in as interim head coach for the final four games of the 2013 season, leading the Owls to four consecutive victories and bowl eligibility (6-6) for the first time since 2008. Prior to his stint at Florida Atlantic, Wright spent two seasons at Montana State as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.

Before heading west to Montana State, Wright served nine years at perennial FCS power Youngstown State.

Wright joined the Penguins' staff in 2001 as quarterbacks coach, also working as offensive coordinator from 2005-09. He began his collegiate coaching career at Walsh (Ohio) University as a graduate assistant in 1995-96.

After a year as a graduate assistant at YSU in which the Penguins won the NCAA Division I-AA national title, Wright returned to Walsh in 1998 and served until 2000. 

Saturday's action will mark Wright's second match-up against LU. He is 1-0 vs. the Blue Tigers.

Jermaine Gales is in his first season as head coach at Lincoln after being hired in November 2021. Gales came to Jeff City after serving as associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks \coach at Bluefield State during the 2021 season. He also served as offensive coordinator at Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 2018-19.

He has a 4-9 career coaching record. This will be his first meeting vs. Pitt State.

Gorillas on the Road
Historically, Pitt State has compiled a solid record in road games. The Gorillas have posted a 109-34-1 (.760) record in its last 144 road games (including post-season play) dating back to the start of the 1994 season.

The Gorillas are 45-11 (.804) in their last 56 road games dating back to Oct. 23, 2010, including a 9-2 record in three seasons under head coach Brian Wright.

The Pitt State - Lincoln Series
This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the Gorillas and the Blue Tigers in a series that dates back to the 1981 season. However, this will be the just the third match-up between the squads since 2013.

Pitt State holds an unblemished 11-0-0 advantage in the series, averaging a 52-9 victory over Lincoln in those games.

Last year, Pitt State scored the game's first 24 points and rolled to a 59-7 Homecoming victory over Lincoln on Oct. 16 at Carnie Smith Stadium.

Mak Sexton passed for 151 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for a third score before exiting the game following three series of action. Backup quarterback Chad Dodson Jr. also completed eight of 11 passes for 68 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the contest.

All-Time Winningest Programs
Pittsburg State is the all-time winningest NCAA Division II football program. The Gorillas, who are playing in their 115th season of intercollegiate competition, have compiled a 735-359-48 overall record, winning 66.4 percent of their 1,142 all-time games.

Pittsburg State is one of just nine NCAA Division II institutions to have recorded 600 all-time victories and the Gorillas became just the 33rd program – the first Division II institution – across all levels of college football to reach the 700-win plateau. The Gorillas entered the 2022 campaign ranked 30th among all college football programs in all-time victories.

Tuskegee is second on the Division II all-time list with 703 victories, followed by Hillsdale (656), Carson-Newman (646) and Central Oklahoma (646).

LU has a 252-489-25 (.350) record in 93 seasons of intercollegiate play.

PSU's Regular Season Success
Pitt State has won 318 of its last 386 regular season games, posting a phenomenal 318-66-2 (.826) mark during the past 37 seasons (1985-2022). PSU is 168-28-1 at home, 146-29-1 on the road and 4-9-0 at neutral sites in the regular season during that span.

Scouting the Gorillas
Sophomore quarterback Chad Dodson Jr. has completed 102 of 185 passes (.551) for 1,551 yards and 16 touchdowns with just two interceptions on the season.

Dodson (5-11, 191) is averaging 258.5 passing yards per game and is sporting a 151.94 passer rating. He currently ranks second in the MIAA and 20th in NCAA Division II in passing efficiency and third in the conference in passing yards.

The Jacksonville, Fla., native has completed 147 of 252 passes (.583) for 2,211 yards and 23 touchdowns in 12 career games played for Pitt State. He was named the MIAA Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 12 for his efforts in the Gorillas 35-28 road win over Nebraska-Kearney that week.

Dodson is 7-0 as Pitt State's starting quarterback.

Graduate linebacker P.J. Sarwinski was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Week Monday (Oct. 10) after posting nine tackles (six solo), 1.5 tackles-for-loss and a pass breakup against NWMSU Saturday.

The Galena, Kan., native has made a team-leading 40 tackles (22 solo) on the season with 6.0 tackles-for-loss, 2.0 quarterback sacks and two pass breakups.

Sarwinski, who earned first-team All-MIAA and honorable mention NCAA Division II All-America honors in 2021, has posted 144 career tackles with 18.0 tackles-for-loss, 5.5 quarterback sacks, one interception and four pass breakups.

Sophomore placekicker Cross Holmes garnered MIAA Special Teams Player of the Week honors Monday for his efforts against the Bearcats last Saturday.

Holmes booted a 45-yard field goal that proved to be the game's deciding points with 2:25 to play in the game..

The Aurora, Ill., native earned first-team All-MIAA and honorable mention NCAA Division II All-America honors in 2021, when he led Division II in field goals (18-23, 2.0 pg). Holmes has converted 20 of 27 (.741) career field goal attempts.