By Eric Stock

BLOOMINGTON – Jordan Hassan was just a sophomore playing special teams when Illinois Wesleyan football lost to North Park for the first time in three decades in 2015.

Now a senior who starts at linebacker for the Titans, Hassan said he gets a frequent reminder.

“It hurt just to feel that and it didn’t help that my brother (Matt), right when I get home, starts singing the North Park fight song because he was a four-year running back (at North Park),” Hassan recalled. “So that just made it worse.”

That loss was Norm Eash’s only loss to NPU in his 30 years as Titans’ head coach. He said that loss stings more than any other he’s had.

“I told the kids there’s two games that will always stick in my mind as a coach here and that’s going to be the (Wisconsin) Whitewater game – beating the number 3-ranked team (on Sept. 2) – and probably the North Park (loss),” Eash said.

The Titans are also trying to erase the memory of a more recent defeat, to number 5-ranked North Central on Saturday.

“One game doesn’t define our football team and one game doesn’t define our season,” Eash said. “I think we are a very good football team and now the margin of error is very small.”

This game will mark the fourth start against North Park for senior left tackle Connor Melvin who will be making his 30th consecutive start. Melvin said he’s come a long way since his freshman season.

“Now I actually understand the plays, which freshman year that was rough,” Melvin said. “I would always have to ask my guard what I’d have to do on the play because a lot of time I wasn’t confident enough even if I did know what to do.”

WJBC will have the play-by-play starting at 5:45 p.m.

Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].