Washburn (4-2-1, 3-2 MIAA) at
Fort Hays State (3-4, 2-3 MIAA)
Saturday, October 24 – 1 p.m.
Hays, Kan. – Lewis Field Stadium
 
Promotions: Scouts Day (Presenting Colors prior to the game), Cheer Camp Performance at Halftime, Wear Pink in Support of Breast Cancer Awareness (Team will wear pink socks)

The Tigers host Washburn on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 24), looking to pull even with the Ichabods in the MIAA standings. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Lewis Field Stadium. The Tigers enter at 3-4 overall and 2-3 in the MIAA, while the Ichabods are 4-2-1 overall and 3-2 in the MIAA.

HOW TO WATCH
All remaining games on Fort Hays State's regular season schedule will be available on The MIAA Network. Subscriptions to the network are as follows…
 
All-Access Pass: $140 (all sports, all events on The MIAA Network in 2026-27)
Monthly Pass: $35 (all events on the network within a calendar month from time of subscription)
Individual Broadcast Pass: $15
 
SERIES HISTORY
WU leads 46-30-3
Last Meeting: FHSU won 13-10 (OT) in Topeka (10/25/25)
FHSU Record in Hays: 18-20-2
FHSU Record in Topeka: 12-26-1
 
Fort Hays State and Washburn meet for the 80th time on Saturday. The first meeting occurred back in 1919 in Hays. Washburn leads the series 46-30-3 overall. FHSU has won 7 of the last 10 meetings between the schools, but Washburn won 8 of the first 9 meetings in MIAA play.

WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE
Head Coach Chris Brown talked about the upcoming game with Washburn. Cornerback Matthew McBride and quarterback Kody Guy also fielded questions. Watch video below courtesy of ECTV and Hays Post Sports.  



WEEKLY TIGER TALK
Head Coach Chris Brown and offensive lineman David Sjoberg join Voice of the Tigers Gerard Wellbrock on the October 19, 2026 edition of the show.



BOTH TEAMS RECEIVE RECOGNITION IN AFCA POLL THIS YEAR
Fort Hays State opened the 2026 season receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25 Poll. The Tigers were briefly in the Top 25 at No. 25, but then fell back into the receiving votes section for a few weeks. Washburn recently was among the receiving votes section of the poll, but have since dropped back out as well.

TIGERS WON THE LAST THREE VS. ICHABODS
Fort Hays State has won 7 of the last 10 meetings with Washburn going back to the 2015 season. The Tigers have won the last 3 meetings overall, winning 13-10 (OT) last year in Topeka, 38-7 in Hays in 2024, and 31-28 in Topeka in 2023. Four of the last six meetings between the schools in Topeka have gone to overtime. The teams split those four overtime contests. The Tigers have won the last six games in the series when they score at least 30 points.
 
LAST MEETING IN HAYS
Fort Hays State won the 2024 meeting with Washburn in Hays by a score of 38-7. Both teams scored seven points in the first quarter and then FHSU outscored WU 31-0 from the second through fourth quarters. FHSU led just 10-7 at halftime, but scored 28 points in the second half with no response from Washburn.
 
BROWN INCHING CLOSER TO 100
Fort Hays State head coach Chris Brown is only two wins shy of 100 for his career, now in his 15th season leading the Tigers. Brown's 98 wins are 16th most among active NCAA Division II football head coaches.
 
BROWN VS. THE ICHABODS
FHSU Head Coach Chris Brown holds a record of 7-7 against Washburn. Brown holds a record of 4-2 at home against the Ichabods. He was an assistant coach at Washburn from 2002 to 2010 before taking the head coaching job at FHSU.
 
FACING A FORMER ASSISTANT
Zach Watkins is in his second year as head coach at Washburn. He was an assistant under FHSU head coach Chris Brown for three years as a defensive line and special teams coach. Watkins played his collegiate career at Washburn, when Chris Brown and Cooper Harris (FHSU coaches) were at Washburn as assistant coaches. Brown holds a 1-0 lead head-to-head so far after FHSU won last year's meeting with Washburn in Topeka in overtime.
 
SIMILAR NUMBERS
Fort Hays State enters this game averaging 26.7 points per game, while Washburn averages 26.0. The Tigers and Ichabods are also stacked next to each other in total offense in the MIAA with FHSU averaging 397.7 yards per game and WU averaging 387.7.
 
Interceptions vs. Fumbles
Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in interceptions this season with 10. Washburn leads the MIAA in forced fumbles with 9. On the flip side, FHSU has only 1 forced fumble this season, while Washburn only has 2 interceptions.

Establish the Run
FHSU ranked fourth in the MIAA in rushing offense last season at 161.9 yards per game. Fort Hays State is averaging 163.9 rushing yards through 7 games this season, which ranks 2nd in the MIAA. AG Floyd leads FHSU and ranks 4th in the MIAA for rushing average at 73.7 yards per game. LaAngelo Bell adds 51.7 per game, which ranks 11th in the MIAA. Quarterback Major Cantrell averages 37.8 yards rushing yards per game.
 
ALL-AMERICAN ON THE DEFENSIVE FRONT
Gaven Haselhorst is the lone All-America performer returning for FHSU in 2026. Last year, he was a unanimous All-MIAA First Team selection before garnering D2CCA All-Super Region 4 First Team honors and then All-America Honorable Mention selections by Don Hansen Football Committee and D2Football.com. Haselhorst has the most career tackles of any returner on the Tiger defense with 134, while also being the active career leader in tackles for loss (32) and sacks (14).
 
DOOLEY AND ROBINSON-WAYNE TOP RECEIVING THREATS
Keyshawn Dooley is the team leader in receiving yards this season with 423. He had a career-high 175 receiving yards at Missouri Western. Ayden Robinson-Wayne ranks second on the team with 397 yards and he has two 100+ yard receiving games this season. Dooley currently ranks 12th in the MIAA for receiving yards per game (60.4), while Robinson-Wayne ranks 1st in the MIAA in yards per reception (24.8).
 
TIGERS LEAD MIAA IN INTERCEPTIONS
Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in interceptions this season with 10. The Tigers had a season-high 4 interceptions in their win over Pittsburg State. FHSU ranks 12th nationally in interceptions. UT-Permian Basin leads NCAA Division II with 16.
 
MCBRIDE RANKED 3^RD NATIONALLY IN INTERCEPTIONS
Cornerback Matthew McBride ranks 3rd nationally in interceptions this season with 4. Teammate Eli Moulton is tied for 11th nationally with 3. Zyking Patillo of Fayetteville State is the national leader with 6, followed by Jason Hewlett of Lake Erie with 5.
 
TURNOVER MARGIN
Fort Hays State currently ranks 48th in NCAA Division II and 4th in the MIAA for turnover margin at +0.43. The Tigers have 13 takeaways compared to 10 turnovers committed for the season. FHSU ranks 3rd in the MIAA and 32nd nationally in turnovers gained (13).
 
BEST IN MIAA ON 4^TH DOWN
Fort Hays State is 9-of-13 on 4th down conversions this season, a conversion percentage of 69.2. The Tigers currently rank 18th in NCAA Division II and lead the MIAA in 4th down conversion percentage.
 
WHEN THE TIGERS SCORE 30 UNDER BROWN
Fort Hays State is 66-6 under head coach Chris Brown when reaching 30 points in a game. The Tigers went 2-0 last season and 3-0 so far this season when reaching 30 points in a game. They now have a streak of 11-straight wins when scoring 30.
 
REACHING 200 RUSHING YARDS IN A GAME UNDER BROWN
The Tigers have a record of 45-2 since the start of 2013 when rushing for over 200 yards in a game. They had 211 in the season opener at Angelo State, 207 against Pittsburg State, and a season-high 220 against Missouri Southern. The last time the Tigers rushed for over 300 yards in a game was November 2, 2024 with 331 at Emporia State on the way to a 36-7 win. The Hornets were ranked No. 11 in the nation by the AFCA in that meeting.
 
CHEWING UP CLOCK
The Tigers have an average of 33:29 on time of possession this season, which leads the MIAA and ranks 6th in NCAA Division II. Minnesota Duluth is the national leader at 34:26. FHSU has possessed the ball over 35 minutes 4 contests this season, but 28 or less in 2 of its 4 losses.
 
RUSSELL SOLID AT PUNTER
Logan Russell has enjoyed a good start to the 2026 season at punter. He is averaging 42.9 yards per punt so far this season on 28 punts, which ranks 16th in NCAA Division II and 3rd in the MIAA. Russell was an All-MIAA Honorable Mention selection last season.
 
LIGHT ON PENALTIES
Fort Hays State currently ranks 3rd in the MIAA for fewest penalties with 39 for the season. Missouri Southern and Northwest Missouri State are tied for the fewest, each with 33. The Tigers rank 32nd nationally in fewest penalties per game (5.57).
 
THIRD IN MIAA FOR KICKOFF RETURNS
Fort Hays State ranks 3rd in the MIAA for kickoff returns, averaging 21.9 yards per return. Central Missouri is the conference leader at 22.3 yards per return.
 
GUY SOLID IN STARTING DEBUT
With Major Cantrell out last week, Kody Guy did a solid job in his first start at quarterback for Fort Hays State. He finished 21-of-34 passing for 236 yards and 2 touchdowns against No. 12/10 ranked Northwest Missouri State. He also ran the ball twice for 11 yards to finish with 247 yards of total offense.
 
BROWN HOLDS FHSU COACHING WINS AND TENURE RECORD
Chris Brown is in his 15th year guiding the Tigers and owns the FHSU Football coaching wins record with an overall mark of 98-67. He has 43 more wins than previous record holder Bob Cortese. Brown is also the longest tenured head coach in program history as he passed Wayne McConnell for the longest stint in history last year. Brown currently ranks 16^th among active NCAA Division II coaches in career wins.

ABOUT THE ICHABODS:

• Last week the Ichabods fell in a high-scoring battle at Central Missouri by a score of 49-43.
• Washburn has a rare tie on its record this year, playing to a 16-16 result earlier this year with Colorado School of Mines. The game was tied at the end of regulation and due to excessive heat, the game did not go into overtime.
• Head coach Zach Watkins is in his second year leading the Ichabods. He has a record of 7-10-1 at Washburn.
• Washburn quarterback Logan Madden averages 275.6 passing yards per game, which ranks third in the MIAA.
• J.C. Heim leads the MIAA in tackles with 86, averaging 12.3 per game.