The Valparaiso University football team gave fans an early glimpse of the 2026 Beacons on Saturday as the Brown & Gold held the program's annual spring game to close out the slate of 15 spring practices in preparation for the Aug. 29 start of the season.
 
The program welcomed well over 100 recruits, 19 signed incoming freshmen, over 200 parents plus alumni, supporters and fans to witness the team's spring game.
 
The game used an offense vs. defense format with four quarters, the first two of which featured 12 minutes of running clock before the third and fourth featured 10 minutes of running clock.
 
During the first quarter, the offense started each drive with first-and-10 from its own 25, and when the offense faced fourth down, the ball was reset to first-and-10 at the 25. The defense got stops throughout the first quarter, then in the second quarter the offense started from its own 40. Early in the second redshirt sophomore quarterback Marcus Brown (Richton Park, Ill. / Brother Rice) broke free for a long touchdown run. Redshirt junior kicker Ryan Pimentel (Hobart, Ind. / Hobart [Grambling State]) followed by sending the PAT through the uprights.
 
On the next series, redshirt junior linebacker Connor Cervantes (Griffith, Ind. / Griffith) made an interception. Two series later, Cervantes made his second interception of the game, snagging a ball that was originally broken up by senior defensive back O.C. Nurse (Dumbries, Va. / Forest Park [Marietta]). Cervantes' second pick came after the offense had moved the ball on that drive thanks to a pair of catches by redshirt freshman Nolan Teising (Zionsville, Ind. / Zionsville), his second and third receptions of the first half.
 
The defense continued to have the upper hand on the penultimate drive of the first half, as redshirt freshman defensive lineman Caleb Baczek (Libertyville, Ill. / Libertyville) and redshirt senior defensive lineman Alex Goworowski (Chicago, Ill. / Saint Patrick) both recorded "sacks" – the quarterbacks wore no-contact jerseys for the game and play was blown dead when a defensive player was in position to bring them down.
 
The defense notched a pair of pass breakups on the final drive of the opening half, as redshirt freshman Alex Prine (Scottsdale, Ariz. / Horizon) broke up a pass at the line of scrimmage and Nurse was part of another breakup.
 
In the third quarter, the offense started each drive at the defense's 30-yard line. Baczek had two more "sacks" on the second series of the second half, leading to a field-goal attempt on the second drive of the half. Pimentel put one through the uprights from 41 yards out. Early in the fourth quarter, Pimentel made another field goal from 40 yards out.
 
Later in the fourth quarter, junior Kojo Totimeh (Philadelphia, Pa. / Cardinal O'Hara [Alvernia]) recorded a sack, but the offense bounced back as redshirt freshman Nathan Downey (South Elgin, Ill. / Wheaton Academy) completed a first-down pass to senior Isaac Tran (Bothwell, Wash. / Bothwell [University of Puget Sound]) just before the two-minute timeout. After the two-minute timeout, Downey completed a first-down pass to redshirt junior Marty O'Keeffe (Orland Park, Ill. / Brother Rice), then a 20-yard catch by redshirt senior Chris Gundy (Smithfield, Va. / Smithfield) got the ball down to the 10-yard line. Valpo ran it inside the 4-yard line, but the defense eventually stood tall with a goal-line stand as Goworowski knocked down the final pass.
 
To close out the game, the offense and defense went into a 2-point conversion scenario, and O'Keeffe caught a pass from redshirt freshman quarterback Noah Ehrlich (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point [Miami]) for the successful conversion on the final play of the spring game.
 
The Beacons will host Lawrence Tech in the season opener on Saturday, Aug. 29 at Brown Field.