Football Gets 1st Win under New Coach

New Coach, Same Mission

Kansas Wesleyan Football started their 2025 season on the right foot. The Coyotes took on the Braves of Ottawa University on Saturday night. This was the first game under the direction of new football coach Matt Middleton. With an all-around effort, the Coyotes put a beating on the Braves. The final score of the game was 27-10 at Gene Bissell Field at JRI Hospitality Stadium and Graves Family Sports Complex.

KW practicing before their game against Ottawa

Domination

The team total stats were heavily in favor of the Yotes in almost every single category. The Yotes led total yards by a large margin, 362-166. The only category the Braves led was pass yards, 161-140. But this was heavily overshadowed by the rushing yards. Kansas Wesleyan ran for 222 yards compared to only 5 by Ottawa. 

Senior RB D’Heaven Domena helped KWU with 2 rushing TDs

On the offensive side of the ball, the Coyotes were led, unsurprisingly, by All-American senior Luke Armstrong. He had 136 rushing yards on 17 carries with a long of 55. New quarterback Henry Austad, a transfer from Southeastern, threw for 140 yards. Austad was 15-22 passing with no touchdowns and an interception. D’Heaven Domena was the money maker for the KWU offense, though, as he punched it in twice from inside the five-yard line. Austad added a 1-yd touchdown as well. 

On the defensive side, the Yotes defense was led by transfer Diego Davis. Davis, like many other transfers, came over with Coach Middleton from Harding University. He was the offensive coordinator the last two seasons where they won a national championship. Davis had 2.5 sacks in his first game. 

Special Teams was also a big factor in the game as well. KWU used two kickers to help put the victory away. Talon Cope hit a 33-yard field goal in the third quarter. Cole Segraves then hit a 44-yarder in the fourth to make it a 27-10 game, and that’s where it stayed till the final whistle blew.

Up Next

Coach Middleton was excited about the first victory but also said there were areas they could improve.

“We’ve got a good football team, we’ve just got to string some things together see if we continue to get better.”

The new coach and 1-0 Coyotes will head down to Lindsborg and take on the Bethany Swedes next Saturday at 6 p.m. Bethany is 0-1 after losing to 12th-ranked Friends last weekend. 

You can check out the full Coyote schedule here: 2025 Football Schedule – Kansas Wesleyan University