SAN ANTONIO – The No. 6 University of the Incarnate Word football team is set to play No. 3 South Dakota State on Saturday, December 14 in the 2024 FCS Football Championship – Quarterfinals in Brookings, South Dakota. 

UIW

• The Cardinals received a first-round bye and defeated No. 11 Villanova (13-6) last weekend at Benson Stadium in the second round to advance to SDSU and improve their record to 11-2. With last weekend's second round win, UIW is currently on a 10-game win streak.
• The No. 6 seeding is the highest playoff seed in program history. This comes after securing UIW's fourth postseason trip since 2018 and the fourth Southland Conference Championship.
• Head Coach Clint Killough was named the Southland Coach of the Year and an Eddie Robinson Award Finalist after guiding the Cardinals to finish undefeated in conference play (7-0) for the first time in program history.
• During the regular season, the Cardinals saw over 5,000 yards of offense, with student-athletes leading the FCS in passing and receiving touchdowns the majority of the season. UIW was sitting at No. 4 in the FCS for scoring offense, averaging 37 points per contest and No. 6 for total offense with 451 yards per game. In the air, the Cardinals finished No. 10 with 285 passing yards per contest.
• On the defensive end, the Cardinals finished the season ranked No. 2 in the FCS for fumbles recovered, No. 5 for defensive touchdowns and No. 8 for red zone defense.
• Quarterback Zach Calzada earned himself the Southland Conference Player of the Year, while receiver Jalen Walthall was crowned Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year.
• Fifteen Cardinals were named to the Southland All-Conference First and Second Teams.
• Both Calzada and Walthall were announced as finalists for the Walter Payton Award Watchlist, while Mason Chambers appeared on the final 35 for the Buck Buchanan Watchlist.

 
THE LAST TIME THEY MET

• The Cardinals and Jackrabbit faced off already this season at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium for a week two matchup.
• UIW and SDSU were tied 17-17 in the third quarter, until the Jackrabbits pulled away for the 45-24 victory.

SCOUTING THE JACKRABBITS

• The two-time defending FCS champions earned the Missouri Valley Football Conference's automatic bid to the 24-team FCS Playoffs via a tiebreaker after sharing the league title with North Dakota State and South Dakota (7-1).
• Quarterback Mark Gronowski was once again one of 35 finalists for the Walter Payton Award after winning the award in 2023. He surpassed 100 touchdowns on his career and in his final season, has tallied 19 passing TDs and seven rushing TDs.
• A total of 19 players were honored on the MVFC Teams.
• Griffin Wilde is the leading receiver for the Jackrabbits with a team-high 1,014 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.
• Amar Johnson has amassed over 1,000 rushing yards on the season to go along with 13 touchdowns.
• The Jackrabbit defense is No. 1 nationally in fewest points allowed per game and had a three-game stretch in which they did not allow a touchdown. SDSU's defense is led by Adam Bock who has tallied 83 total tackles, eight tackles for loss for 28 yards, three sacks for 16 yards, two interceptions and one fumble recovered.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

• Zach Calzada is second in the FCS with 34 passing touchdowns and is sixth for passing yards with 3,533 on the season. He comes in at No. 7 for total offense with 295 yards per contest.
• Jalen Walthall is second in the FCS for his 14 receiving touchdowns. He's recorded at least one touchdown in 10 games this season, with a 6-game streak. He's amassed over 1,000 receiving yards at 1,224 yards on 76 catches to put him third in the FCS for receiving yards.
• Roy Alexander also adds 1,000-plus receiving yards to the UIW receiving corp with his 1,016 yards on 87 catches and 12 touchdowns coming in at No. 16 in FCS for receiving yards.
• Mason Chambers is the leading tackler for the Cardinals with 81 on the season to go along with seven pass break ups and three interceptions.
• Devin Grant leads the team in sacks with 8.5 for 57 yards and Mister Williams adds 13 tackles for loss for 41 yards with five forced fumbles.
• Darius Sanders and Chambers each have three interceptions on the season.

 
FOLLOW ALONG    
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on, and like UIW Athletics on Facebook.     
Follow the team on Twitter @UIWFootball and Instagram @uiw_football.