Dakota Wesleyan 2023 football schedule set, leading with Aug. 26 home opener
Jun. 7—MITCHELL — The Dakota Wesleyan University football team's traditional season-opening game with Dakota State will move back to a Saturday night for 2023, as the Tigers' 11-game schedule and the respective game times have been finalized.
The Tigers will host the Trojans at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 26 at Joe Quintal Field, as the two teams continue their season-opening series they've had since 2015. The game moved to a Friday night in 2016 and then has mostly been a Thursday-night contest since 2017. In 2020, the game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and DWU hosted the game on a Saturday night in 2021.
The early start — including as early as Aug. 23 in 2018 — has given the Tigers and Trojans the distinction of being one of the nation's earliest college football games each season. DSU has won six consecutive games in the series, including a Thursday-night 29-19 contest in 2022 in Madison.
DWU will play three of its first four games at home, with the Great Plains Athletic Conference schedule starting on Sept. 2 against Hastings. After a Sept. 9 road game at Doane, DWU will host Blue and White Days on Sept. 16 against Midland with a 2 p.m. start time. The other remaining home games will be played at the traditional 1 p.m. time.
After a Sept. 23 game at Concordia, DWU's only other night game will be played on Sept. 30 at Mount Marty. The game will be a 6 p.m. kickoff at Yankton's Crane-Youngworth Field, which will be followed by DWU's open week on Oct. 7.
The remainder of the six-game home schedule includes hosting Morningside on Oct. 14 and Jamestown on Oct. 28, sandwiched around an Oct. 21 game in Sioux City, Iowa at Briar Cliff.
The Tigers will host defending national champions Northwestern (Iowa) on Nov. 4, which will double as Senior Day, and then will close the regular season at Dordt on Nov. 11.
DWU was 2-9 last season and 2-8 in GPAC play.
AUGUST
26 — DAKOTA STATE, 7 p.m.
SEPTEMBER
2 — HASTINGS, 1 p.m.
9 — at Doane, 1 p.m.
16 — MIDLAND (HC), 2 p.m.
23 — at Concordia (Neb.), 1 p.m.
30 — at Mount Marty, 6 p.m.
OCTOBER
14 — MORNINGSIDE, 1 p.m.
21 — at Briar Cliff, 1 p.m.
28 — JAMESTOWN, 1 p.m.
NOVEMBER
4 — NORTHWESTERN (Senior Day), 1 p.m.
11 — at Dordt, 1 p.m.
