Defending National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III champion UW-Whitewater has released its 2010 football schedule.  UW-Whitewater will open the season at home September 4 against Adrian College and begin defense of its Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title at UW-Platteville October 2.  The annual Homecoming/Hall of Fame celebration is set for October 30 with UW-Stevens Point visiting Perkins Stadium.  

"I excited that we have filled our schedule", UW-W head coach Lance Leipold said.  "This is the earliest in my time here that we have accomplished that task, and we're already set for 2011 so we can turn our attention elsewhere."

UW-Whitewater, the five-time defending WIAC champion, will go the first month of the season without playing a conference game.  After the first league game at Platteville, UW-W returns home to host UW-Stout for the annual Family Day game October 9 at 3:00.  

"With the WIAC rule prohibiting overnight stays we face a difficult stretch with some long rides when we play at Eau Claire (October 16) and at River Falls (October 23)," Leipold noted.  "But we know that even if we're at home, the WIAC games are always tough."

UW-W closes the 2010 regular season at UW-Oshkosh November 6 and at home, hosting UW-La Crosse November 13.

"I think it's intriguing that all three of our non-conference opponents are new, so it will be a good learning experience for the football team and something different for our fans," Leipold added.  Campbellsville (away, September 13) is an up and coming program that went 7-4 last year with a young team that has a lot of speed, so they'll present a good challenge.  We have two NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) teams on the schedule, which is not always positive when the NCAA ratings and selections are debated, but we think that playing two schools that offer athletic scholarship and good competition prepares us for the WIAC and presents an opportunity for our team to compete."

UW-W opens the season with two homes, the first against NCAA Division III member Adrian College of the highly respected Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association, 6-4 last year, followed by NAIA member Dakota State University, 2-7 in 2009.    

In addition to five consecutive league titles and the two national championships, UW-Whitewater has advanced to the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, the NCAA III championship game in Salem, Virginia, the last five seasons.  The Warhawks have gone 42-3 in Leipold's three years, including a 20-1 mark in WIAC play.

The 2010 Warhawks return seven starters on defense and five offense.  Sixteen more players that were listed on UW-W's two-deep are also back.  Among the players returning are All-American running back Levell Coppage (Oak Park, IL/Oak Park) (2,107 yards, 35 TD's), four of the five offensive linemen including All-American guard Matt Weber (Oregon/Oregon), and wide receiver Aaron Rusch (Hartford/Hartford), UW-W's career reception leader.

Tickets for the 2010 season can be purchased at the UW-W ticket office, located in the Connor University Center on campus.  The ticket office is open Monday-Friday during normal business hours.  The ticket office phone number is 262-472-2222.  Tickets for games can also be purchased at the Perkins Stadium ticket window on the day of the game. 

For more information:  Lance Leipold, UW-W head coach