After seven weeks of the college football season in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC), the top of the standings remain extremely cluttered and unsettled. November is upon us, and three teams, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Stout, and UW-Platteville, are bunched in a tie for first with 3-1 conference records. Furthermore, three more squads, UW-LaCrosse, UW-Whitewater, and UW-River Falls, are one notch back as all stand at 2-2. All six programs are either in this week’s d3football.com Top 25 or on the outside looking in after “receiving votes” for the poll.
To say the WIAC is competitive in 2024 would be a vast understatement; the final three weeks of the season should eventually usher in some clarity, but much drama and intrigue awaits the contenders for the remainder of the schedule. However, one of challengers for the conference crown arguably has the clearest path to a championship.
UW-OSHKOSH LOOKS TO NAVIGATE WIAC TRAIL TOWARDS GLORY
After the cannibalizing of the member teams concludes on November 16, UW-Oshkosh potentially has the inside track to winning at least a share of their first WIAC championship since 2019.
If the Titans can get past 1-3 UW-Eau Claire this weekend, they do face a tough challenge with Stout at home at J.J. Keller Field the following week. But by the time they end their regular season on November 16 against River Falls, the conference picture should be less fuzzy.
Although Oshkosh has lost two total games–dropping a seven-point game at Whitewater and bested by Division II Michigan Tech–their quality wins put them in the driver’s seat for a post-season NCAA Division III-tournament bid.
Non-conference wins against then-ranked #10 Wheaton College, 21-14, in their opener on September 7, an overtime triumph over nationally ranked Linfield University, and a victory over co-leader Platteville should hold much sway even if the Titans do not win the WIAC outright.
All tension and stress would dissipate if Oshkosh can take care of business and control their own destiny in November.
THE TITANS ARE DESIGNED TO COMPETE AT A HIGH LEVEL
Third-year head coach Peter Jennings understands that his Titans have a lot to hurdles to overcome before they reach the finish line, and he realizes how difficult the WIAC obstacles can be. Before taking over the UW-Oshkosh program in 2022, Jennings spent four seasons as the offensive coordinator for UW-Whitewater, thereby introducing him to the foes around the state.
After their two impressive non-conference victories to kick start their season, Jennings was effusive in his praise of how focused his team was. “They are unfazed. Absolutely unfazed,” Jennings said. “We talked a lot this off-season about being tough and about finishing plays and finishing the task at hand. The guys have taken that to heart and we’re seeing it on the field. They don’t give up. They don’t get worried. They don’t panic. They move on to the next play. It’s a special characteristic for a program.”
Play to play, week to week, UW-Oshkosh is poised and confident in how they approach each and every mission, on the field and off. Said Jennings: “If we focus on being the best version of ourselves day in and day out, ultimately, the wins come for our guys on the field and in the classroom. We want to reset the standard every day and see us focus on personal growth.”
Junior linebacker and captain Kyle Dietzen echoed his head coach’s attitude about preparing for the season. “All off-season we were confident in our abilities,” Dietzen said. “We started out unranked but knew we were better than that. We showed the country where we were and where we knew we were from the beginning.”
If the Titans can stay the course over the final three Saturdays of their WIAC season, their season may be far from over, which will allow them to keep showing the country what they can do.