Get In The Lab: How South Dakota, Southern Illinois Can Improve Their Pass Rush In 2026

We take a look at how South Dakota and Southern Illinois could improve their pass rush going into the 2026 season.

Southern Illinois defensive tackle Amir Dwight (94) | SIU Athletics

We continue our new series called "Get In The Lab." The focus of this series has been to examine specific weaknesses of playoff-contending teams ahead of the 2026 season. My goal is to highlight the reasons for the struggle, while also exploring how these teams can "Get In The Lab" this offseason and correct the issue next season.

Each article will focus on one aspect of the game, such as pass-rush, explosive plays, or red zone efficiency. For each category, we will look at teams that finished with a winning record and had an obvious weakness last year. Then we will narrow our focus to the top contender in each section, mainly teams that have championship aspirations or the talent for a deep postseason run.

We move over to the defensive side of the ball and analyze which top FCS programs need to revamp their pass rush going into the 2026 season.

Bottom 5 Sacks Per Game (Teams with Winning Record)

1. South Dakota (1.20)
2. Alabama State (1.50)
3. Southern Illinois (1.50)
4. Duquesne (1.58)
5. Jackson State (1.58)

The first glaring observation is that South Dakota had the lowest sacks per game by any winning team by a fairly large margin. It's also a little bit surprising because the defense was largely solid last season. This may highlight why the Coyotes had a good, but not elite defense, especially missing the likes of Mi'Quise Grace from the 2024 squad.

It jumps out that another MVFC contender finds its way on the list, but this team is a little less surprising. Southern Illinois had a lot of defensive issues in 2025, which held back one of the best offenses in the country. We take a closer look at both South Dakota and Southern Illinois, analyzing how each team can correct its pass rush next year.

It's also worth noting that two of the top contenders in the SWAC East find themselves on this list. Both of these teams must prioritize addressing this issue if they want to make a run at the SWAC Championship and Celebration Bowl.

South Dakota: The Problem & Potential Solutions

Pass rush is a critical aspect of successful defensive football. Consistent sacks and pressure typically lead to turnovers that change the outcome of games, while the negative plays created are a sure way to end drives. Also, it often goes understated how the secondary has to rely on a decent pass rush to be able to stay in coverage long enough to be effective.

There are a couple of different ways to measure a pass rush, and the impact that it has, most obviously, is just looking at sack numbers. Last season, the worst winning team in the country at taking down the quarterback was South Dakota with only 1.2 sacks per game. This number was consistent across their 8 conference games.

Part of this can be attributed to the defensive scheme at South Dakota. The Coyotes had one of the lowest blitz rates in the country, which has been consistent over the past few seasons. They like to play two safeties over the top and take away explosive plays, but we saw the most optimal version of this in 2024, where USD averaged 2.14 sacks per game, which ranked 4th in the MVFC.

Last season's unit was a solid defense, but it was hampered by a pass rush that just didn't get home. A secondary that was incredibly talented was asked to do too much at times. I think you can argue that this also contributed to USD only being able to force 15 turnovers in 15 games in 2025.

Obviously, sacks aren't the only way to measure a pass rush and the effectiveness it can have in a given game. Pressures and hurries can impact the outcome of a play just as much as a sack. I compiled pressure data from PFF for all 10 MVFC teams and divided it by the number of passing attempts faced to give us an overall pressure rate ranking.

MVFC Pressure Rate

1. North Dakota State (59.78%)
2. South Dakota State (52.84%)
3. North Dakota (49.66%)
4. Youngstown State (44.95%)
5. Illinois State (44.84%)
6. Indiana State (41.32%)
7. Southern Illinois (40.77%)
8. South Dakota (39.91%)
9. Northern Iowa (38.55%)
10. Murray State (31.53%)

Even looking at pressure rate, South Dakota had one of the least impactful pass rush units in the MVFC. If they are able to raise that number closer to 45%, it would go a long way in helping this defense thrive next season.

It doesn't appear that the defensive scheme will change much, even with the departure of Travis Johansen. Most of the defensive staff, including defensive coordinator William Kirch, remained in Vermillion. This means they're just going to have to get more production out of their returning contributors.

Unfortunately for the Coyotes, they lose their most effective pass rusher in Caden Crawford. However, on the positive side, they do get back their next Top 3 players in pressure with Nyle Dickel, Nathan Laperi, and Chris Dixon all set to return.

Dixon is a redshirt senior, serving as arguably the most important piece of this defensive line as the nose tackle. He's able to demand double-teams and take up space on the interior of the line of scrimmage. At 300+ pounds, he's actually quite effective as a pass rusher.

What South Dakota really needs is a breakout season from Nyle Dickel and Nathan Laperi. Dickel is a senior whose first season starting was 2025, in which he put up decent numbers from the hybrid linebacker spot, but that never turned into major production. He only finished with 0.5 sacks. The Coyotes need a lot more production in 2026.

The biggest x-factor and potential reason to look for improvement in this conversation is Nathan Laperi. He was a rotational piece, playing only about 20 snaps per game, after transferring from North Texas. He has excellent size at 6-3, 260 pounds and was extremely effective with 5.5 TFLs and 4.5 sacks in limited snaps. The combination of size, athleticism, and youth makes Laperi a potential star.

South Dakota also added several defensive linemen from the transfer portal. Tyler Sapit (Bemidji State), Sam Samè (Iowa State), and John Starman (Brown) are the most notable names. Starman was a solid player at Brown, but was not known as an elite pass rusher. Sapit had 5.5 sacks last season, but he will have to navigate a large step-up in competition. Same is extremely intriguing, coming in at 6-5, 225 pounds and was a former 4-star prospect.

Keep an eye on Isaiah Wray, who has an outstanding frame at 6-5, 256 pounds, plus brings proven production at Concordia-St. Paul. The Coyotes also need Calen Presser, Asher Tomaszewski, and Evan Adams to be able to thrive as potential rotational players. Jeff Bowie is also back after starting early last season before being sidelined with an injury.

Southern Illinois: The Problem & Potential Solutions

The main highlight of this article was South Dakota, but I wanted to spend some time on Southern Illinois. This defense had a ton of issues last season, falling off from the elite unit we saw in 2023. A lack of a pass rush is only a small part of it, but we will see if the Salukis were able to address it. If this defense can take a real step forward, the offense should be elite again, and it would give them a real shot to compete in the MVFC.

Their leading pass rusher, Donnie Wingate, is gone, but their next three leading pass rushers will be back for the 2026 season. Lukas McDaniels is the name to watch here, potentially emerging as a real star for the Salukis. He's only played 2.5 years of organized football, but is 6-6, 250 pounds, and is a guy who could really explode once he figures it all out. In only 220 snaps in 2025, he was 4th on the team in pressures generated.

Defensive tackle Amir Wright is also young, but he played in every game as a freshman and sophomore. Last year, he showed real value as a pass rusher from the interior, and he enters next season as a potential star on this defense. He'll be joined by defensive end Jake Parella, who also played nearly 400 snaps last season.

Division II transfer Caleb Saner could also emerge as an impact player. He had 20.5 TFLs over the last two seasons, including 9 sacks last year at Southwest Baptist. He's still got two years of eligibility remaining.

The rest of the room is filled with underclassmen that this staff will need to bring along and develop. It'll be important for the Salukis to find 1-2 of these young guys who can contribute at a high level, especially if this team is going to take the next step.

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