Pride Open Up 2022 Season Against Evangel

DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Clarke University Pride football program opens its fourth season on Thursday with a trip to Nixa, Mo., to face the Evangel Valor at 6:30 p.m. at Eagle Stadium. The game will be televised on the Heart Network. Clarke Athletics will host a watch party for students and faculty in the Student Activities Center starting at kickoff. 

The Series

Clarke is 0-3 all-time against Evangel, with the most recent meeting resulting in a 24-9 loss in last season's opener.

Evangel at a Glance

The two programs will match up against one another to open up the season for the second-consectutive year. The Valor finished the 2021 campaign with a 5-6 overall record. Head coach Chuck Hepola enters his seventh year at the helm and holds a record of 35-27 over that span. Four First Team All-Heart selectees are set to return for Evangel, including offensive lineman Derrick Johnson, wide receiver Dillon Hester, defensive lineman Will Anoa'i and defensive back Athanie Leeviraphan. Also returning are defensive back Koel Orchard, defensive lineman Seth Cathey, and defensive back Nate Swofford, all of whom were various all-conference sections. 

Storylines to Follow

Coaching Staff

The Pride enter the 2022 campaign coming off an 1-10 finish to the 2021 season. Fourth-year head coach Miguel Regalado returns to the sideline for the Pride, with Adam Hicks (Assistant Head Coach - Linebackers/Defensive Coordinator), Larry Behling (Assistant Coach – Defensive Back), and Collin Herrington (Director of Football Operations) all remaining in their roles. Mason Randall (Assistant Coach – Quarterbacks/Pass Game Coordinator), Derrick Brown (Assistant Coach – Defensive Line), Cooper Gross (Assistant Coach – Running Backs), and Jaymes Six (Assistant Coach – Assistant Defensive Backs) have all joined the program ahead of the new season. Nick Young (Assistant Coach – Offensive Line/Run Game Coordinator), returns to Clarke after stepping away prior to the 2021 season. 

Quarterback Named for Week One

Regalado named Brandon Mueller the team's starting quarterback ahead of Thursday night's matchup. The El Paso, Texas, native has seen action in six career games for the Pride and has thrown for 1,175 yards and seven touchdowns with a 61.3-percent completion rate. Mueller was named the starting quarterback ahead of the 2021 season-opener, but only made it through a half of action before succumbing to a season-ending injury. 

The Big Uglies

The Clarke University offensive line comes into 2022 as one of the deeper positional units on the roster, as every starter played in at least three games during the 2021 season. Jeremy Lennox returns to helm the unit, but left guard Shawn Buhr, center Ricci Giambruno, right guard Andrew Culpeper, and right tackle Andrew Richards also combine to make a formidable unit.

Powering the Trenches

On the opposite side of the ball, the defensive line boasts depth and experience. Defensive ends Israel Hernandez and Griffin Mulcahy each are entering their fourth years into the program, while nose tackle Kejuan Lankin brings an additional 14 games of experience to the table. The trio has combined for 243 total tackles, 61 tackles for loss, and 24 sacks heading into the 2022 season. 

Head Coach Miguel Regalado's thoughts ahead of the 2022 season

Opening Statement: 

"This team's come quite a bit of ways since we began this whole thing. I think this is the most experienced and skilled football team that we've gotten. If you asked me what the strengths of this team are, I'd have to say it's the defensive line. This is the most experienced group that we've ever had at our school. It's a group that has a ton of talent and a ton of depth. Brandon Mueller, if we can keep healthy, is one of the more dynamic quarterbacks in the conference. Our offensive skill – our wide receivers and tailbacks, are good football players. Our receivers are young and untested, so that'll be interesting how they handle things come Thursday when the bullets are firing for real. It's a football team that I feel good about. We've come out of camp reasonably healthy. Now it's time to go into a tough environment on a Thursday night and show that we can play with the big boys. Evangel is a good football team, and we have a great opportunity to show that we belong."

On week one/season preparation:

"It's been different. We're losing three practices because we're going to Evangel and we're leaving on a Wednesday. We've also had some weather issues with a couple other practices, so I'm a little nervous. I would've liked to have a few of those practices back. Other than that, I feel great about this football team. This league is tough. Evangel is a team that when you look at their record a year ago, they easily could've won seven games. They're in every single game. They're battling. They've got just about everybody coming back – especially on defense. We've got our work cut out for us. It'll be 90-degrees at kickoff, so we're going to find out if our team is in shape. We're going to find out if our team can execute. A lot of our guys haven't played in a lot of football games, but that's why you have groups like our defensive line who can carry us. You've got two experienced secondary players in Johel (Gonzalez) and Kenneth Spaight, but they're kind of flanked by some young bucks. Aaron Fernandez isn't young, but he hasn't played a whole lot of football yet. Linebacker-wise, Adrian Tamayo, Bryan Valdes, Courtney Mables all have played a ton of football. That's why I think our defense is going to be the thing that keeps us in this. I'm also very, very encouraged by our special teams, so that'll be helpful as well."

On QB Brandon Mueller:

"He's shown fantastic leadership this summer. We had over 50 guys working out here this summer and Brandon Mueller was one of the better leaders of that group. Every single day we followed a saying about going 1-and-0 for 22-straight workouts. There were quite a few guys who couldn't go 22-and-0 in all 22 workouts, but Brandon was one that could. He brought the same energy and enthusiasm to every workout and it's carried on over to camp. Mueller is a guy that you don't want to put the whole game on. You want to give him a good defense, a good running game, and then you want to allow him to do things where he doesn't have to think a whole lot about, but rather can use his athletic ability. That's what you're going to see on Thursday."

On freshman RB Nico Estrada:

"He's a fantastic player. Nico signed with Idaho out of high school and happened to play for someone that I coached at Baker University in the past. He called me and said, "Coach, I've got this kid. He's a phenomenal dude and is not really enjoying his time at Idaho right now and is looking to make a move." So, we made our move fast on Nico and got him signed and into camp about a week or so before camp began. He has not played in quite a while as a kid from the class of 2021, but he's dynamic and is going to be one of the better 'backs in our league. Like a lot of our offensive skill players, he's a baby. So, we're going to find out a lot about him on Thursday night. He's a fantastic guy and is going to be a great football player."

On what makes this year's team different from the previous teams: 

"Maturity. I've been saying it now for two years. The second that this team matures, they'll be a good football team. They're starting to really mature now.  A lot of the stupid penalties in practices in the past and the smack-talking is all starting to go away, finally. Don't get me wrong, we've still got a little way to go yet with our maturity. But it's a much more mature football team. You look at Israel Hernandez, it's his fourth year in the program. Griffin Mulcahy – fourth year in the program. These are guys who know what the culture of our program is and they're starting to put it on to our young guys, which is going to make us a very good football program."

Follow the Pride

For the latest information on Pride football, visit ClarkePride.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.