LIVONIA, Mich.- The Madonna University Football team and Head Coach Herb Haygood have released the Crusaders' 2021 schedule, headlined by five home dates and two opponents who qualified for the 2020 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Football Championship Series playoffs last spring.

THE EARLY GAMES

Madonna will open the season Saturday, August 28 just a stone's throw from campus in Southfield for a battle with Lawrence Technological University (Mich.) at Blue Devils Stadium. The Blue Devils were 0-2 in the spring, falling to opponents by a 75-28 scoring margin. 

The first-ever home game for the Crusaders is slated for Saturday, September 4 against the Trojans of Trinity International University (Ill.) who finished their 2020 slate 0-6 against teams from the Mid-States Football Association (MSFA).

All-in-all, Madonna's first two games will be against teams with combined records of 0-9 from the spring. 

"It is exciting to see our full 2021 schedule out," said Haygood, "Our guys have started our summer program and are focused on the season ahead."

STOUT COMPETITION

Marian University (Ind.) in Indianapolis were one of those who qualified for the 2020 postseason after a 5-2 record before falling in the first round to Reinhardt University (Ga.), 40-29. The Knights will travel to Livonia on September 11. 

Sandwiched between Marian and arguably one of the more important dates on the schedule is a trip to St. Louis, Missouri to face Missouri Baptist at Spartan Field on Saturday, September 18. MoBap tallied a single win in 2020 against Trinity International. In the past two seasons, the Spartans have a record of 3-16. 

HOMECOMING

On September 25, the inaugural Madonna University Football Homecoming game will be held in Livonia against the  Judson University (Ill.) Eagles, a first-year program and the other new  member of the MSFA Midwest Division. 

"We are looking forward to having our first homecoming and starting a tradition that will impact the on-campus culture and encourage healthy habits on our campus," said Haygood.

A STACKED OCTOBER

Once more Madonna finds itself with opponents who are no strangers to success. University of Saint Francis (Ind.) in Fort Wayne, Indiana will host the Crusaders on Saturday, October 9 at Bishop D. Arcy Stadium coming off a 2-2 campaign and missing the 16-team postseason for the first time in five seasons, finishing 17th in the final NAIA Top 25 Poll. Saint Francis has two National Championships to its name in three years from 2016-2018.

October 16 will see Madonna will head to Adrian, Michigan at O'Laughlin Stadium for the second time in program history on the 30th to face Siena Heights University (Mich.). The Saints finished 2020 with a 2-2 record with losses to Concordia University (Mich.) and Indiana Wesleyan University while beating Madonna in their first-ever meeting 65-0 on March 20. 

On Saturday, October 23 Madonna welcomes a familiar foe to Livonia in Taylor University (Ind.) whose lone victory of the spring season came in a 45-0 win against the Crusaders back on March 13. 

FINISHING THE SEASON

The final, postseason qualifier Madonna will face on the road is Concordia at Cardinal Stadium on November 6. Madonna scored its first points in program history, putting 17 on the board in the loss on March 27. The Cardinals won their opening round game at Georgetown College (Ky.) 21-7 before falling to eventual national champion Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.) 49-27. 

Madonna will be at home in its final game of the season on Saturday, November 13 where it will take on Indiana Wesleyan. The Wildcats finished the spring 2-3.

"Our responsibility as coaches is to assist our players and help them reach their full potential as people, students, and athletes," said Haygood, "Our staff is obligated to the total student-athlete development and are excited about the future."

THE SCHEDULE
 

DATE	OPPONENT	LOCATION
8/28/21	Lawrence Tech	Southfield, Michigan
9/4/21	Trinity International	Livonia, Michigan
9/11/21	Marian (Ind.)	Livonia, Michigan
9/18/21	Missouri Baptist	St Louis, Missouri
9/25/21	Judson*	Livonia, Michigan
10/9/21	Saint Francis (Ind.)	Fort Wayne, Indiana
10/16/21	Siena Heights	Adrian, Michigan
10/23/21	Taylor	Livonia, Michigan
11/6/21	Concordia (Mich.)	Ann Arbor, Michigan
11/13/21	Indiana Wesleyan	Livonia, Michigan

* Homecoming

TICKETS

Tickets for the upcoming 2021 fall campaign will be available at a later date. All ticketing questions should be sent to tickets@madonna.edu. 

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