Chris Winter

Wartburg will host Aurora of Illinois on Saturday in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division III football playoffs. The Knghts advanced after winning at fourth ranked St. John’s of Minnesota and this will be the first time Wartburg has hosted a quarterfinal round game. The Knghts are 12-0 and have won their last 18 home games.

“We’ve played so well historically at Walston-Hoover Stadium that to have an Elite Eight game here is a big deal”, said Wartburg coach Chris Winter. “It gives our team a lot of confidence going into this game. There is just a lot of excitement and I can’t wait for Saturday to see what that crowd is going to be like. I think it is going to be pretty special.”

Aurora entered the playoffs unranked but the Spartans have posted road wins over Wisconsin-Whitewater and Alma College to reach the round of eight.

(By Darin Svenson, KDEC, Decorah)