Whitworth Pirates will head to St. John’s for second-round playoff matchup

The Whitworth Pirates will travel to Collegeville, Minnesota, for a second-round tussle against St. John’s University on Saturday in the second round of the NCAA Division III Playoffs. Kickoff is set for 10 a.m. PST.

Whitworth (10-0) reached the second round with a 48-6 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at the Pine Bowl in the first round.

The Johnnies (11-0) set a Division III playoff record, scoring 84 points in an 84-6 rout of Martin Luther in the opening round.

St. John’s has won two NAIA national titles and two Division III titles under legendary former head coach John Gagliardi, who won a college-record 489 games before retiring in 2012. He died Oct. 7.

Whitworth’s defense will be tasked with slowing down St. John’s quarterback Jackson Erdmann, who has passed for 2,727 yards and 40 touchdowns with only five interceptions this season.

The Pirates will be seeking their third playoff win in school history and will try to match the 2006 team’s school-record 11 wins.