Week 17, 2026

played in Minnesota, MN

15 degrees, fair, 7 mph wind

Champaign Thunder	14	7	0	7	-	28
Minnesota Golden Hawks	0	0	7	0	-	7

Scoring Summary
1Q: 09:44 CHM - Jeffrey Donovan 2 run (Sam Linquist extra point)
1Q: 01:05 CHM - Phillip Farley 4 run (Sam Linquist extra point)
2Q: 09:10 CHM - Sedrick Blunt 4 pass from J.R. Carpenter (Sam Linquist extra point)
3Q: 14:41 MIN - Sean Pallansch 71 pass from Benjamin Lee (Irving Clemens extra point)
4Q: 05:17 CHM - Bennie Sandlin 12 pass from J.R. Carpenter (Sam Linquist extra point)

Scoring Summary
1Q: 09:44 CHM - Jeffrey Donovan 2 run (Sam Linquist extra point)
1Q: 01:05 CHM - Phillip Farley 4 run (Sam Linquist extra point)
2Q: 09:10 CHM - Sedrick Blunt 4 pass from J.R. Carpenter (Sam Linquist extra point)
3Q: 14:41 MIN - Sean Pallansch 71 pass from Benjamin Lee (Irving Clemens extra point)
4Q: 05:17 CHM - Bennie Sandlin 12 pass from J.R. Carpenter (Sam Linquist extra point)

Team Statistics CHM MIN
Record 15-1 11-5
First Downs 22 9
- by Rushing 8 2
- by Passing 13 6
- by Penalty 1 1
Total Net Yards 391 235
- Offensive Plays 72 52
- Yards per Play 5.43 4.52
Net Rushing Yards 116 101
- Rushing Attempts 33 25
- Yards per Rush 3.52 4.04
Net Passing Yards 275 134
- Att./Comp./Intrcpt 39 - 23 - 0 24 - 15 - 1
- Gross Passing Yards 275 153
- Sacks/Yards Lost 0/0 3/19
- Yards per Pass Play 7.05 4.96
Fumbles/Lost 2/1 0/0
3rd Down Conversions 8/17 3/14
- Avg. YtG on 3rd Down 7.3 9.3
4th Down Conversions 1/1 0/1
Penalties/Yards 3/30 3/29
Punt Returns/Yards 4/39 4/43
Kick Returns/Yards 2/56 5/139
Interception Ret./Yards 1/18 0/0
2pt Conversions 0/0 0/0
Red Zone Visits 4 0
- Red Zone TDs/FGs 4/0 0/0
Avg. Drive Start OWN 27 OWN 32
Time of Possession 35:02 24:58

Team Statistics	CHM	MIN
Record	15-1	11-5
First Downs	22	9
- by Rushing	8	2
- by Passing	13	6
- by Penalty	1	1
Total Net Yards	391	235
- Offensive Plays	72	52
- Yards per Play	5.43	4.52
Net Rushing Yards	116	101
- Rushing Attempts	33	25
- Yards per Rush	3.52	4.04
Net Passing Yards	275	134
- Att./Comp./Intrcpt	39 - 23 - 0	24 - 15 - 1
- Gross Passing Yards	275	153
- Sacks/Yards Lost	0/0	3/19
- Yards per Pass Play	7.05	4.96
Fumbles/Lost	2/1	0/0
3rd Down Conversions	8/17	3/14
- Avg. YtG on 3rd Down	7.3	9.3
4th Down Conversions	1/1	0/1
Penalties/Yards	3/30	3/29
Punt Returns/Yards	4/39	4/43
Kick Returns/Yards	2/56	5/139
Interception Ret./Yards	1/18	0/0
2pt Conversions	0/0	0/0
Red Zone Visits	4	0
- Red Zone TDs/FGs	4/0	0/0
Avg. Drive Start	OWN 27	OWN 32
Time of Possession	35:02	24:58

Drive Charts

Champaign Thunder
Quar	Began	Poss	From	Plays	Yards	Result
1	15:00	5:24	OWN 40	9	60	Touchdown
1	6:31	5:34	OWN 11	9	89	Touchdown
2	13:36	4:33	OWN 14	12	86	Touchdown
2	6:27	3:08	OWN 19	8	43	Fumble
2	1:16	1:16	OWN 26	3	11	Half
3	14:27	1:19	OWN 41	3	1	Punt
3	12:00	3:12	OWN 22	8	24	Punt
3	6:03	0:25	OWN 31	3	0	Punt
3	3:50	1:38	OWN 33	3	3	Punt
4	12:04	1:02	OWN 16	3	5	Punt
4	9:09	4:02	OWN 32	6	68	Touchdown
4	3:18	1:10	OWN 20	3	2	Punt
4	1:51	1:12	OPP 45	3	4	Punt

Minnesota Golden Hawks
Quar	Began	Poss	From	Plays	Yards	Result
1	9:36	3:05	OWN 32	7	15	Punt
1	0:57	2:21	OWN 48	3	3	Punt
2	9:03	2:36	OWN 39	3	8	Punt
2	3:19	2:03	OWN 38	8	36	Downs
3	15:00	0:33	OWN 29	1	71	Touchdown
3	13:08	1:08	OWN 33	3	8	Punt
3	8:48	2:45	OWN 8	5	21	Punt
3	5:38	1:48	OWN 31	3	2	Punt
3	2:12	5:08	OWN 10	8	33	Punt
4	11:02	1:53	OWN 40	3	2	Punt
4	5:07	1:49	OWN 44	3	9	Punt
4	2:08	0:17	OWN 44	2	15	Interception
4	0:39	0:39	OWN 20	4	18	Game

Game MVP: J.R. Carpenter, Champaign Thunder

Rushing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Yards	Avg	LG	10+	TD
Jeffrey Donovan	26	98	3.77	24	5	1
Phillip Farley	6	11	1.83	5	0	1
J.R. Carpenter	1	7	7.00	7	0	0

Minnesota	Att	Yards	Avg	LG	10+
Stephen Dixon	15	47	3.13	8	0
Mel Stokes	7	15	2.14	9	0
Benjamin Lee	2	33	16.50	24	1
Courtney Finch	1	6	6.00	6	0

Passing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Comp	Yards	Sk/Yd	TD	LG	Int	Rate
J.R. Carpenter	39	23	275	0/0	2	32	0	97.7

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Yards	Sk/Yd	TD	LG	Int	Rate
Benjamin Lee	24	15	153	3/19	1	71	1	77.2

Receiving Statistics

Champaign	Catch	Targ	Yards	Avg	YAC	LG	TD
TE Fred Lohr	7	8	73	10.43	25	22	0
WR Bennie Sandlin	6	11	45	7.50	9	12	1
WR C.J. Emmons	4	9	73	18.25	12	28	0
WR Rufus Mularkey	2	4	36	18.00	22	32	0
RB Jeffrey Donovan	2	3	41	20.50	28	31	0
FB Morris Gordon	1	1	3	3.00	0	3	0
TE Sedrick Blunt	1	1	4	4.00	0	4	1
WR Butch Bostic	0	2	0	0.00	0	0	0

Minnesota	Catch	Targ	Yards	Avg	YAC	LG	TD
WR Troy Wiggins	4	7	30	7.50	2	15	0
TE Lester Baskey	3	3	20	6.67	1	14	0
TE Brad Bensen	3	3	11	3.67	0	6	0
FB Courtney Finch	2	3	7	3.50	2	5	0
WR Bernie Sweeney	2	5	14	7.00	0	8	0
WR Sean Pallansch	1	1	71	71.00	28	71	1
RB Mel Stokes	0	1	0	0.00	0	0	0
RB Stephen Dixon	0	1	0	0.00	0	0	0

Interception Statistics

Champaign	Ints	Yards	Avg	TD
CB Jason Vance	1	18	18.00	0

Minnesota	Ints	Yards	Avg	TD

Fumble Statistics

Champaign	Fumb	Recov
Jeffrey Donovan	1	0
Carlton Di Pietro	1	0
Morris Gordon	0	1

Minnesota	Recov	Force
Derek Holliday	1	0
Lorenzo White	0	1
Brad Bensen	0	1

Punting Statistics

Champaign	Punt	Yards	Avg	Net	LG	In20
Brandon Baxter	7	320	45.7	36.7	56	4

Minnesota	Punt	Yards	Avg	Net	LG	In20
Jackie Scott	9	375	41.7	35.1	47	5

Kicking Statistics

Champaign	FGs	40+Yd	50+Yd	LG	PAT
Sam Linquist	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	4/4

Minnesota	FGs	40+Yd	50+Yd	LG	PAT
Irving Clemens	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1/1

Punt Return Statistics

Champaign	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Kirk Nobles	4	39	9.8	0

Minnesota	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Bernie Sweeney	3	35	11.7	0
Roy Reynolds	1	8	8.0	0

Kick Return Statistics

Champaign	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Gary Zytniak	1	32	32.0	0
Carlton Di Pietro	1	24	24.0	0

Minnesota	Ret	Yards	Avg	TD
Sean Pallansch	3	80	26.7	0
Marcus Rodgers	2	59	29.5	0

Defensive Statistics

Champaign	Tack	Asst	Sack	RPlay	PPlay
S Rod Rockett	7	3	0.0	24	27
ILB Charlie Poloski	6	2	0.0	16	19
OLB Jared Shimada	4	2	0.0	19	23
S Jeff Marion	4	0	0.0	23	25
DE Ben Banks	3	3	1.0	25	27
DE Walt Borders	3	0	1.0	22	20
DT Kelvin Mealey	3	0	0.0	8	6
DE Heath Warren	2	2	1.0	13	21
CB Carlos Hines	2	1	0.0	19	20
OLB Tom Meier	2	1	0.0	8	6
DT Rich Westbrook	2	0	0.0	17	21
DT David Jackson	1	2	0.0	11	6
OLB Kyle Jeffries	1	2	0.0	18	22
CB Jason Vance	1	0	0.0	10	15
CB Gary Zytniak	1	0	0.0	21	20
S Carlton Di Pietro	0	2	0.0	13	8

Minnesota	Tack	Asst	Sack	RPlay	PPlay
ILB Brandon White	7	2	0.0	28	33
ILB Lorenzo White	7	1	0.0	19	24
OLB Bo Tanner	6	0	0.0	27	32
CB Ernie Vertescher	5	1	0.0	24	32
S Norman Haworth	5	1	0.0	23	36
CB Percy Oliver	3	2	0.0	30	32
S Marco Harp	3	1	0.0	16	31
DE Mitch Oxenby	3	0	0.0	18	25
OLB Wayne Hines	3	0	0.0	6	7
CB Larry Warkentien	2	1	0.0	6	13
OLB Jackie Stevens	2	0	0.0	10	7
DE Stephen Wilkerson	1	1	0.0	22	26
DE Derek Holliday	1	1	0.0	29	32
S Emmanuel Ouellette	1	0	0.0	10	3
TE Lester Baskey	1	0	---	---	---
OLB Geoff Figley	1	0	0.0	23	32
ILB Herb Jazynka	1	0	0.0	15	11
S Dean Tanner	0	1	0.0	17	10

Pass Rush Statistics

Champaign	Sack	Hurry	Knock	PPlay
DE Walt Borders	1.0	1	2	20
DE Ben Banks	1.0	0	2	27
DE Heath Warren	1.0	0	1	21

Minnesota	Block	Hurry	Knock	PPlay
OLB Geoff Figley	1	1	2	32
DE Stephen Wilkerson	0	1	0	26
OLB Jackie Stevens	0	1	0	7

Pass Defense Statistics

Champaign	Caught	Defnsd	Intrcp	PPlay
S Jeff Marion	3	1	0	25
S Rod Rockett	2	1	0	27
CB Carlos Hines	2	0	0	20
OLB Jared Shimada	2	0	0	23
CB Gary Zytniak	1	2	0	20
CB Jason Vance	1	0	1	15
DT Kelvin Mealey	1	0	0	6
DE Heath Warren	1	0	0	21
OLB Tom Meier	1	0	0	6
ILB Charlie Poloski	1	0	0	19
S Carlton Di Pietro	0	1	0	8

Minnesota	Caught	Defnsd	PPlay
OLB Bo Tanner	4	1	32
CB Ernie Vertescher	3	3	32
S Norman Haworth	3	1	36
CB Percy Oliver	3	0	32
CB Larry Warkentien	2	0	13
OLB Wayne Hines	2	0	7
ILB Lorenzo White	1	1	24
ILB Brandon White	1	0	33
S Emmanuel Ouellette	1	0	3
DE Derek Holliday	1	0	32
S Marco Harp	1	0	31
OLB Jackie Stevens	1	0	7

Blocking Statistics

Champaign	KeyBl	BlOpp	RPly	PPly
Clay Ramsey	3	5	27	33
Irv Williamson	2	6	26	29
Jamie Hatcher	2	6	26	33
J.C. Nichols	1	4	13	21
Mitch Howe	0	6	30	35
R.J. Oliver	0	3	27	28
Quentin King	0	1	10	10
Butch Athanas	0	1	6	6

Minnesota	KeyBl	BlOpp	RPly	SckA	PPly
Glenn Darlington	1	4	22	0	24
James Gerhardt	1	3	23	0	24
Billy Francis	1	3	12	0	18
Claude Oshiro	1	1	3	1	7
Lester Baskey	0	2	14	0	18
Brad Bensen	0	2	7	0	8
Andrew Powell	0	2	15	0	14
Stan Hastings	0	2	7	0	8
Korey Way	0	1	20	1	17
Dustin Rhodes	0	1	5	1	4
Courtney Finch	0	1	17	0	20
Korey Westbrook	0	1	18	0	19

Special Teams Tackles

Champaign	Tackles	STPlays
Phillip Farley	2	23
Leslie Kalu	2	7
Kirk Nobles	1	15
Carlton Di Pietro	1	14
Morris Gordon	1	14
Horace Nelson	1	10
Butch Athanas	1	3

Minnesota	Tackles	STPlays
Mel Stokes	1	20
Hardy Stansberry	1	15
Dustin Rhodes	1	9
Brad Bensen	1	9
Dean Tanner	1	8
Cole McCormick	1	3

Participation

Champaign	RPlyOff	PPlyOff	RPlyDef	PPlyDef	STPly	Total Plays
J.R. Carpenter	33	39	---	---	---	72
C.J. Emmons	30	36	---	---	---	66
Mitch Howe	30	35	---	---	1	66
Clay Ramsey	27	33	---	---	6	66
Jamie Hatcher	26	33	---	---	3	62
Gary Zytniak	---	---	21	20	21	62
Kyle Jeffries	---	---	18	22	21	61
Jeffrey Donovan	27	27	---	---	5	59
Ben Banks	---	---	25	27	6	58
R.J. Oliver	27	28	---	---	1	56
Fred Lohr	27	29	---	---	---	56
Irv Williamson	26	29	---	---	---	55
Rod Rockett	---	---	24	27	1	52
Rufus Mularkey	23	20	---	---	9	52
Bennie Sandlin	21	30	---	---	---	51
Jeff Marion	---	---	23	25	---	48
Ross Deskins	13	13	---	---	21	47
Walt Borders	---	---	22	20	1	43
Jared Shimada	---	---	19	23	1	43
J.C. Nichols	13	21	---	---	7	41
Carlos Hines	---	---	19	20	1	40
Rich Westbrook	---	---	17	21	2	40
Phillip Farley	6	11	---	---	23	40
Charlie Poloski	---	---	16	19	2	37
Carlton Di Pietro	---	---	13	8	14	35
Heath Warren	---	---	13	21	---	34
Sedrick Blunt	5	11	---	---	14	30
Quentin King	10	10	---	---	7	27
Morris Gordon	4	8	---	---	14	26
Jason Vance	---	---	10	15	---	25
Kelvin Mealey	---	---	8	6	6	20
David Jackson	---	---	11	6	3	20
Butch Bostic	9	9	---	---	---	18
Tom Meier	---	---	8	6	2	16
Horace Nelson	---	---	3	3	10	16
Kirk Nobles	0	0	---	---	15	15
Butch Athanas	6	6	---	---	3	15
Gerald Battle	0	1	---	---	9	10
Marcus Reese	---	---	5	3	---	8
Leslie Kalu	0	0	---	---	7	7
Brandon Baxter	0	0	---	---	7	7
Anthony Wheeler	---	---	0	1	5	6
Sam Linquist	0	0	---	---	5	5
Robbie Wooden	---	---	0	4	---	4
J.B. Mireles	0	0	---	---	---	0
A.J. Palkowski	0	0	---	---	---	0

Minnesota	RPlyOff	PPlyOff	RPlyDef	PPlyDef	STPly	Total Plays
Derek Holliday	---	---	29	32	2	63
Percy Oliver	---	---	30	32	---	62
Brandon White	---	---	28	33	---	61
Bo Tanner	---	---	27	32	1	60
Norman Haworth	---	---	23	36	1	60
Ernie Vertescher	---	---	24	32	---	56
Geoff Figley	---	---	23	32	---	55
Bernie Sweeney	23	21	---	---	11	55
Benjamin Lee	25	27	---	---	---	52
Courtney Finch	17	20	---	---	15	52
James Gerhardt	23	24	---	---	1	48
Stephen Wilkerson	---	---	22	26	---	48
Lester Baskey	14	18	---	---	15	47
Marco Harp	---	---	16	31	---	47
Glenn Darlington	22	24	---	---	---	46
Korey Way	20	17	---	---	8	45
Lorenzo White	---	---	19	24	1	44
Mitch Oxenby	---	---	18	25	---	43
Tyrus Ragland	---	---	18	18	7	43
Billy Francis	12	18	---	---	9	39
Mel Stokes	8	10	---	---	20	38
Korey Westbrook	18	19	---	---	---	37
Andrew Powell	15	14	---	---	7	36
Dean Tanner	---	---	17	10	8	35
Wayne Hines	---	---	6	7	21	34
Sean Pallansch	12	15	---	---	5	32
Herb Jazynka	---	---	15	11	6	32
Stephen Dixon	17	15	---	---	---	32
Roy Reynolds	4	5	---	---	19	28
Troy Wiggins	15	13	---	---	---	28
Billy Clayton	---	---	12	16	---	28
Larry Warkentien	---	---	6	13	6	25
Brad Bensen	7	8	---	---	9	24
Marcus Rodgers	5	6	---	---	13	24
Herb Newhart	---	---	9	7	8	24
Jackie Stevens	---	---	10	7	7	24
Claude Oshiro	3	7	---	---	9	19
Dustin Rhodes	5	4	---	---	9	18
Hardy Stansberry	---	---	1	2	15	18
Emmanuel Ouellette	---	---	10	3	4	17
Stan Hastings	7	8	---	---	2	17
Cole McCormick	3	4	---	---	3	10
Jackie Scott	0	0	---	---	9	9
Irving Clemens	0	0	---	---	2	2
Buddy Cahill	0	0	---	---	---	0
Butch Campbell	0	0	---	---	---	0

Directional Rushing Statistics

Distance	Att	Yards	Avg
Left	13	68	5.2
Middle	9	12	1.3
Right	11	36	3.3
None	0	0	0.0

Distance	Att	Yards	Avg
Left	5	18	3.6
Middle	12	67	5.6
Right	8	16	2.0
None	0	0	0.0

Detailed Passing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Cmp	20+	BdTh	Drop	Dfns	Hurr	Knck	Intc
J.R. Carpenter	39	23	5	2	4	6	3	2	0

Minnesota	Att	Cmp	20+	BdTh	Drop	Dfns	Hurr	Knck	Intc
Benjamin Lee	24	15	1	1	1	5	1	5	1

Directional Passing Statistics

Distance	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg
Screen	3	3	39	13.0
Short (0-8 Yds)	25	15	142	5.7
Medium (9-18 Yds)	7	3	44	6.3
Long (19+ Yds)	4	2	50	12.5

Distance	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg
Screen	1	1	5	5.0
Short (0-8 Yds)	13	10	36	2.8
Medium (9-18 Yds)	5	3	41	8.2
Long (19+ Yds)	5	1	71	14.2

Detailed Receiving Statistics

Champaign	Targt	Caugt	Dropd	Yards	20+	PPlay
WR Bennie Sandlin	11	6	3	45	0	30
WR C.J. Emmons	9	4	1	73	2	36
TE Fred Lohr	8	7	0	73	1	29
WR Rufus Mularkey	4	2	0	36	1	20
RB Jeffrey Donovan	3	2	0	41	1	27
WR Butch Bostic	2	0	0	0	0	9
FB Morris Gordon	1	1	0	3	0	8
TE Sedrick Blunt	1	1	0	4	0	11

Minnesota	Targt	Caugt	Dropd	Yards	20+	PPlay
WR Troy Wiggins	7	4	1	30	0	13
WR Bernie Sweeney	5	2	0	14	0	21
TE Lester Baskey	3	3	0	20	0	18
FB Courtney Finch	3	2	0	7	0	20
TE Brad Bensen	3	3	0	11	0	8
RB Mel Stokes	1	0	0	0	0	10
WR Sean Pallansch	1	1	0	71	1	15
RB Stephen Dixon	1	0	0	0	0	15

Red-Zone Rushing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Yards	Avg	Overall Avg
Jeffrey Donovan	4	8	2.00	3.77
J.R. Carpenter	1	7	7.00	7.00
Phillip Farley	1	4	4.00	1.83

Minnesota	Att	Yards	Avg	Overall Avg

Red-Zone Passing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg/Att	Overall Avg
J.R. Carpenter	7	5	45	6.43	7.05

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Yards	Avg/Att	Overall Avg

Red-Zone Receiving Statistics

Champaign	Target	Catch	Yards	Avg/Targ	Overall Avg
TE Fred Lohr	3	3	29	9.67	9.13
WR C.J. Emmons	1	0	0	0.00	8.11
WR Bennie Sandlin	1	1	12	12.00	4.09
WR Butch Bostic	1	0	0	0.00	0.00
TE Sedrick Blunt	1	1	4	4.00	4.00

Minnesota	Target	Catch	Yards	Avg/Targ	Overall Avg

Third Down Rushing Statistics

Champaign	Rushes	Conversions
Jeffrey Donovan	6	3
Phillip Farley	1	0

Minnesota	Rushes	Conversions
Stephen Dixon	7	0
Mel Stokes	2	0
Benjamin Lee	1	1
Courtney Finch	1	0

Third Down Passing Statistics

Champaign	Att	Comp	Conversions
J.R. Carpenter	10	7	5

Minnesota	Att	Comp	Conversions
Benjamin Lee	3	3	2

Third Down Receiving Statistics

Champaign	Targ	Catch	Conversions
WR C.J. Emmons	3	2	2
WR Rufus Mularkey	3	2	1
WR Bennie Sandlin	2	1	1
TE Fred Lohr	1	1	0
RB Jeffrey Donovan	1	1	1

Minnesota	Targ	Catch	Conversions
WR Bernie Sweeney	2	2	1
FB Courtney Finch	1	1	1

Section Attendance
Stadium 54,200 (69,300 capacity)
Upper Deck 17,000 (21,000)
End Zone 12,300 (15,200)
Mezzanine 7,200 (8,800)
Sideline Seats 10,100 (13,400)
Club Seats 5,900 (8,200)
Luxury Boxes 1,700 (2,700)

Section	Attendance
Stadium	54,200 (69,300 capacity)
Upper Deck	17,000 (21,000)
End Zone	12,300 (15,200)
Mezzanine	7,200 (8,800)
Sideline Seats	10,100 (13,400)
Club Seats	5,900 (8,200)
Luxury Boxes	1,700 (2,700)