NEWBERG, Ore. -- For the first time in 2025, the George Fox faithful will get to cheer on their Bruins at home.

After two road games to open up the year, Fox will play their home opener at Stoffer Family Stadium as they host the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stags. The game will be the first for new head coach Spencer Crace, who taAkes the reins from longtime Northwest coaching legend Chris Casey following his retirement.

Those who have tuned into the Bruins' two games thus far in the season will see familiar faces in the lineup; the same 22 players who were listed as starters before Fox's game at Lewis & Clark are listed as starters against the Stags.

JJ Leman will once again be the starting quarterback for Crace's offense. The freshman quarterback threw his first career touchdown pass against the Pios, finishing with 187 yards passing. The Bruin QB has shown his dual threat ability as well in the early stages — Leman is currently the third-leading rusher in the Northwest Conference with 116 yards on the ground.

Taylor Saben and William Moffitt will serve as the running backs for the Bruins; through two games, Saben has carried the ball just nine times, while Moffitt has totaled just six carries. Both players have been active in the passing game, though, with each player having totaled at least one reception in each game.

Kaelan Frey, Dreylen Tolentino, and Karsen Denault are slated to start at wide receiver for the Bruins. While Frey is tied for the co-lead with eight receptions, Denault has been the big-play threat. In his first two career games, the freshman has eight catches for 173 yards (good for sixth in the NWC) and one touchdown. Also sharing the pass-catching duties will be Sheyden Iokia at tight end.

On the line, Miky Amare, Rylan McGraw, Kyle Martin, Lawa Ah Yat, and Sean Brewster will start for Fox. It was the same five players that earned the start against the Pios, with Kapala Pilialoha earning rotation snaps as well.

Defensively, Fox will have Jacob Erickson, Silas Kincaid, Kaden Raever, and Kuyper Assink start up front defensively. Erickson had a "vintage" performance, recording his first sack since his return from a season-ending injury in 2024. The senior DE had two sacks and a forced fumble, while Assink had one sack.

Caleb McElfish and Kaikoa Iokia will start as linebackers for the Bruins, with Zak Holsey lining up as the nickel. McElfish led the team with six tackles against the Pios, while Iokia recorded a sack on a linebacker blitz.

Rounding out the defense are corners Ben Nuss and Austin Harrison alongside safeties Ty Borde and Reyn Asato. While the Bruins have yet to record an interception on the year, Nuss does have two pass breakups, and Fox in general has been converting on tackles. Borde finished the game alongside McElfish as the tackles leader with six, five of which were solo.

Special teams for the Bruins will remain the same as the past two seasons, with Ben Rembisz serving as the kicker and Riley Rutledge as the punter.

The game has all the makings of another defensive slugfest against a SCIAC opponent. CMS has played just one game on the season, a 14-7 win over Lake Forest. The game, which was played on a neutral site at an Arizona high school, was scoreless for the first 45 minutes of the game.

Despite losing All-Region linebacker Joey Asta, the Stags haven't shown signs of slowing down. The CMS defense held the Forrester offense to just 199 total yards throughout the game, forcing punt after punt. Despite not forcing a turnover, Lake Forest never had a drive materialize of their own until a TD reception with seven seconds left in the game. 

All-SCIAC defensive lineman Michael Houk commands the front of the CMS defensive attack and comes to Newberg following a two-sack performance against the Foresters that earned him SCIAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. Linebacker George Kruger is another player to watch for the Stags — he recorded 10 tackles in the win over Lake Forest.

Offensively, CMS will have big shoes to fill with the departure of senior Justin Edwards. Edwards was a First Team All-Region running back who rushed for 1,228 yards in 2024, including 126 against the Bruins. Taking his place is sophomore Jake Son, who rushed 18 times for 53 yards against the Foresters. 

Without either their former star back or starting QB Walter Kuhlenkamp, both of whom graduated, the Stags managed just 174 yards of offense in Arizona. CMS used two quarterbacks in the game, with Luke Gildred getting the start. Gildred split time with Robert Litscher, who appeared in three drives in the second quarter and led both touchdown drives in the fourth. In the game, Litscher finished 9-14 for 105 yards and two scores, while Gildred was 8-11 for 38 yards. On CMS's two-deep, Gildred is listed as the starter, but both quarterbacks could see some time.

For special teams, the Stags lose a key contributor in their kicking game. Rich Brutto, an All-SCIAC kicker for CMS, made his presence known in the Stags' 27-17 win over Fox in 2024 with a 51-yard field goal. Without Brutto's big leg, senior Samuel Brewer takes over kicking duties. He attempted one 38-yarder against the Foresters, which was blocked.

With plenty of unknowns for the Stags on offense, the game has all the makings of another defensive struggle between the two teams. The Bruins will look to hit a new offensive gear against a talented Stags squad and give the Fox faithful something to cheer about.

The game is scheduled for a 1:00 pm kickoff and will be live streamed on FloSports. Live stats and ticketing information are available on the George Fox Athletics website.