SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth will host Chapman University in the first round of the NCAA Division III football playoffs on Saturday afternoon in the Pine Bowl. Kickoff is scheduled for noon. Check the online football schedule for links to live statistics and the ESPN+ broadcast.
The Pirates (8-2 overall, 8-0 NWC) closed out the regular season with a 59-31 home victory over Puget Sound. Chapman (8-2 overall, 8-0 SCIAC) rallied to a 27-17 victory over Cal Lutheran in the championship of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference.
NCAA Tickets: Digital tickets are required for entrance to the Whitworth Pine Bowl for all fans. Tickets can be purchased in advance using the Hometown Ticketing App. Follow the link for access. Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for senior adults and students. Children five and under are free.
Watch on ESPN+: ESPN owns the broadcast rights to all NCAA Division III football playoff games, so Whitworth is unable to stream the game on FloCollege as normal. Viewers will be able to find Saturday's game on ESPN+, through the ESPN app or on the ESPN network through a cable or satellite service. A subscription that includes ESPN+ is required to view the game. Bud Nameck will provide play by play and former Whitworth player and Roger HS Matt Miethe will provide color commentary.
NCAA Playoff Info: The NCAA Division III football playoffs consist of a 40-team field. The top 24 seeded teams do not play in the first round. As the 30th seeded team, Whitworth hosts one of the eight first-round games (bottom 16 seeds) on Saturday against Chapman. After Saturday, 32 schools will remain in the playoffs and will advance on a week-by-week basis to the NCAA Division III championship game, known as the Stagg Bowl. It will be played on January 4th in Canton, Ohio. All games up to final are played on campus and will start at noon local time. Click here for an interactive online bracket.
With the vast majority of NCAA Division III schools located east of the Mississippi River, Saturday's contest in the Pine Bowl will be the last of the eight to kick off. All others will start two or three hours before the Pirates and Panthers.
The Pirates: Whitworth clinched the outright Northwest Conference championship with last Saturday's 59-31 win over Puget Sound. It is Whitworth's second title in three seasons, third under head coach Rod Sandberg, and 13th ever. Whitworth won six Evergreen Conference championships in the 50's and 60's and the Pirates have won or shared seven NWC crowns since 1975.
The Pirates won by four touchdowns against the Loggers, despite the fact the UPS had significant advantages in total offense (646-489), first downs (29-20) and time of possession (32:14 – 27:46).
Logan Lacio had his most efficient game as a Pirate QB, completing 20 of 24 passes for 351 yards with six touchdowns and no interceptions. He threw a pair of touchdowns to Drake Matthies, including a 74-yard score in the fourth quarter. Dawson Tobeck, Caleb Northcroft, Deacon Deitz and Luis Salgado also caught touchdowns. Salgado ran for 95 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. Kurt Solano had 49 yards on seven carries.
Omari Williams had a career-high 14 tackles, including 13 solo stops, to lead the defense. He added four pass breakups and was named the NWC's Defensive Player of the Week. Ryen Borchers also had a career-best 11 tackles, while Drew Cody finished with ten tackles. Cody also had an 87-yard return for the game's final touchdown after Mason Toomalatai forced a fumble on a sack. Hunter Letteer's forced fumble deep in Pirate territory at the end of the first half was a key play in the game. Wyatt Hess had the recovery.
Iden Bone made his only field goal attempt, from 22 yards, but it officially tied him with Rehn Reiley for the Whitworth record for field goals in a season with 15. He also made all eight of his extra points and was named the NWC's Special Teams Player of the Week. Whitworth only punted twice in the game and Matthew Herzog averaged 44.0 yards per kick. Jake Gaffaney averaged 61.9 yards per kickoff.
Trifecta: Saturday's game will be Whitworth's third straight appearance in the NCAA Division III playoffs, another first in school history. This is Whitworth's seventh NCAA playoff appearance, fifth under Rod Sandberg.
Pirate Playoff History: The Pirates played in the 2024 NCAA Division III playoffs, defeating Pomona-Pitzer 21-13 in the first round before falling to eventual DIII champion North Central 42-17 on the road in the second round.
In 2023 the Pirates received an at-large bid and defeated Chapman (42-28) in the first round before losing at Wartburg (42-20). Whitworth previously appeared in the NCAA DIII playoffs in 2018 following a 10-0 regular season. The Bucs rolled past Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 48-6 in the first round, then lost 45-24 on the road at 3rd-ranked St. John's. In 2015 the Pirates were invited as an at-large participant and lost 48-10 at 2nd-ranked Linfield in the first round. In 2006 Whitworth finished the regular season 10-0 and defeated an unbeaten Occidental squad 27-23 in the first round of the tournament in the Pine Bowl. The Pirates fell to St. John's (Minn.) 21-3 in the second round, also played in the Pine Bowl. Whitworth's first NCAA playoff appearance came in 2001 when the Pirates lost at home to Pacific Lutheran 27-26 in overtime in the first round. The Pirates are 4-6 all-time in the Division III playoffs.
The Bucs had one NAIA playoff appearance, falling 13-7 at Humboldt State in the semifinals in 1960.
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. Rose was also the special teams captain against Puget Sound. A new special forces captain is selected by the coaches on a week-by-week basis.
The Oregon Trail: Whitworth made four trips to the Willamette Valley this season. The Pirates defeated Pacific University (Oct. 4), Linfield University (Oct. 18), Lewis & Clark (Oct. 25) and Willamette (Nov. 8). The 2025 season is the first time Whitworth has had four NWC games in Oregon since Rod Sandberg took over as head coach.
Road Warriors: Whitworth has won 13 consecutive Northwest Conference road games, dating to the 2022 schedule. It is the longest conference road winning streak in school history.
Value the Ball: Whitworth has taken great care of the football in 2025. The Pirates lead the NWC and rank sixth in NCAA Division III with only six turnovers allowed. The Bucs have lost three fumbles and had three passes intercepted in eight games.
Running Man: Luis Salgado is a two-time first team All-Northwest Conference honoree. He has gained 3,178 yards in his career with a 5.9 yards per carry average and has run for 33 touchdowns. Also a threat catching the ball out of the backfield, Salgado has 92 career receptions for 597 yards and five scores. He has 972 yards and 11 touchdowns in ten games this season. In 2024 he was Whitworth's first 1,000-yard rusher since Duke DeGaetano 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. On November 8th Salgado became only the fourth player in school history to surpass 3,000 career rushing yards and needs 161 yards to break Whitworth's career rushing record of 3,338 held by Adam Anderson (2007-10).
Defensive Stopper: Sophomore Drew Cody is first in the Northwest Conference in total tackles (96) and in tackles per game (9.6) in 2025. The Pirate inside linebacker is also first in the NWC, and ranks 39th in NCAA Div. III, in solo tackles per game (5.3).
"Foot"ball Excellence: Whitworth's kickers have been a bright spot in 2025. Iden Bone was named to the Fred Mitchell Award mid-season watch list as the top place kicker in all divisions below FBS. He leads the NWC in field goals made (15) and in scoring by a kicker (78 points, 7.8 points per game). Bone is second in all of NCAA Div. III in field goals per game (1.5) and 8th in DIII in field goal percentage (0.833). His 47-yard field goal is the longest in the conference this season. He has tied Whitworth's school record for most field goals in one season with Rehn Reiley, who went 15 of 22 in 2015.
Matthew Herzog is second in the NWC and 27th in all of NCAA Division III in punting average (40.0 yards per punt). He has six punts of over 50 yards.
Jake Gaffaney has averaged 60.6 yards per kickoff with 14 touchbacks, the most touchbacks of any player in the NWC.
Power of 12: With the win over PLU on November 1, Whitworth clinched its 12th 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.
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. Through ten games in 2025, the Pirates are 92-26 since 2014, a winning percentage of .779.
Above Water: The Pirates' all-time record in football now stands at 436-422-18. 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 188-85.
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.
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 Panthers: Chapman University is located in Orange, California and is a member of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference. The Panthers had a very similar season to Whitworth, losing two non-conference games before rolling through SCIAC play unbeaten. Chapman defeated Cal Lutheran 27-17 in the SCIAC championship game on Saturday after trailing 17-7 late in the second quarter. The Panthers are averaging 29.4 points and 367.3 yards per game. They have allowed only 18.0 points and 251.3 yards per contest.
Senior QB Tyler Pacheco is the engine that drives the offense. He has completed 56% of his passes for 1,416 yards with 13 touchdowns and five interceptions and run for 616 yards with five scores. Junior running backs Fischer Huss and Andrew Latu have combined for 1,186 yards and 15 rushing touchdowns this season. Senior WR Kade Zimmerman has 49 receptions for 723 yards and eight touchdowns. Kade's brother, Tate Zimmerman, is the big play defender with 16.5 tackles for losses of 56 yards, four sacks, nine QB hurries and two fumble recoveries. Junior LB Andrew Buck leads the defense with 65 total tackles, including eight TFLs for 28 yards.
Last Saturday in the 2025 SCIAC title game, visiting Cal Lutheran took a 17-7 lead late in the second quarter before the Panthers outscored the Kingsmen 20-0 the rest of the way, including a last-minute drive in the second quarter that cut the halftime margin to 17-14. Pacheco scored the clinching touchdown with 3:36 to play in the game. Pacheco completed 9 of 19 passes for 176 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and ran for 41 yards and a score. Kade Zimmerman caught two passes for 56 yards, including the go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter. Latu ran for 78 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Buck led the team with nine tackles and forced a fumble, while Tate Zimmerman had 2.5 tackles for loss and recovered a fumble.
Last Meeting: After trailing 7-0, the Pirates scored 28 of the next 35 points to open a 28-14 third quarter lead and won 35-28 on Sept. 21, 2024 after the visiting Panthers got within a touchdown with less than two minutes to play. Chapman outgained Whitworth 441-285, but the Bucs won the turnover battle 2-0 and used superior special teams for a strong edge in average starting field position.
Dawson Tobeck caught the first touchdown pass of his career. The Pirate running game was held in check for much of the game as Luis Salgado ran for 64 yards on 24 attempts. The Panthers' Kade Zimmerman led all receivers with five catches for 104 yards and two scores.
As mentioned, the special teams allowed the Pirates to have an average starting field position of their own 45-yard line, while keeping the Panthers to a starting field position of the Chapman 24. Matthew Herzog punted seven times for an average of 41.9 yards and four of those kicks ended up inside the Chapman 20. Jake Gaffaney kicked off six times for an average of 61.5 yards with three touchbacks. Cameron Sheley had a 55-yard punt return and averaged 22.5 yards on two kickoff returns.
The Series: Following last season's win, Whitworth holds a 10-4 advantage in the all-time series with Chapman. The Pirates won the first meeting 49-22 in Spokane in 2000. One of the Panthers' four victories has come in Spokane – 49-34 in 2014. Whitworth's largest margin of victory in the series was a 37-7 victory in Orange in 2015. The Panthers' 21-point win in 2013 (38-17) is their largest margin of victory. Whitworth defeated Chapman 42-28 in 2023 in their only post-season match up.
Coming up next: The winner of Saturday's game will play at 3rd-ranked Wis.-River Falls (9-1) on November 29th in the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs.
