WICHITA, Kan. - The much-anticipated rematch between the 2024 division champions of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference will be played at Equity Bank Park in Wichita on November 1.
Equity Bank Park, formerly known as Riverfront Stadium, is the home of the Wichita Wind Surge, the Minnesota Twins Double-A affiliate. The stadium has previously hosted several football games, including Wichita City League (high school) games and college football games as well. The 2021 Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference championship game between Garden City and Hutchinson was the first-ever football event held at the stadium.
"Hosting events and football games year-round at Equity Bank Park is our goal," said Wind Surge General Manager Matt Hamilton. "We are very excited about college football returning to our first-class venue."
"This is an outstanding opportunity for our student-athletes and our football program," said Miguel Paredes, Athletic Director at Kansas Wesleyan. "This is a great opportunity for both Friends University and KWU to be able to showcase the incredible talent on our football teams in a unique environment."
Last year's game came down to the wire with Friends coming away with a 28-26 win over KWU on a field goal as time expired on September 21. KWU then stepped into divisional play posting a 5-0 record in the Dr. Franklin Gene Bissell Division of the KCAC, and earned a berth in the NAIA Football Championship Series.
This season, both teams will compete in the Bissell Division of the KCAC as the conference realigned divisions on the first of the two-year cycles, that take the records of teams from two years ago (2022 and 2023 in this instance) and realign the divisions with a snaking format.
KWU leads the all-time series between the two teams 43-38-1. The first game in the all-time series was in 1914. The teams played a yearly series in the early part of the 1920s, then did not play again until 1952 when the teams played every season between 1952 and 1968. The teams did not meet in 1969 and 1970 as the KCAC experimented with divisions for the first time in football during that time. The teams have played annually since the 1971 season.
General admission tickets to the game are listed at $15, with seating in the club level will be with a yet to be announced ticket price.
Wesleyan will be under the direction of first-year coach Matt Middleton, who joined the program last November. Middleton previous served as an assistant coach at NCAA Division II Harding University in 2023 and 2024. Harding was the 2023 NCAA Division II National Champions with a 15-0 record.
Friends is led by Terry Harrison who is entering his fourth season at the helm of the Falcons. Harrison led the Falcons to an 11-2 record a year ago and a division championship in the KCAC's Kessinger Division.
More information about the game at Equity Bank Park will be announced as it is made available.