This story was updated in a separate post:

The Bethel Collegian

UPDATE | Football team vacates season-opening win over Atlantis University

On Aug. 30, The Collegian reported that the Bethel football team had vacated its 51-0 win over Atlantis University in the season opener. Since then, the NAIA has formally ruled on the situation: “Competing in the game/opponent in question is not in and of itself a violation, it would just be considered a normal varsity game that will still count towards …

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6 months ago · 1 like · Brett Esch

Updated: Aug. 30, 2022 at 2:55 p.m.

On Tuesday, The Collegian learned that the Bethel football team was forced to vacate last Saturday’s 51-0 season-opening win over Atlantis University.

As listed on the NAIA website, Atlantis qualifies as an uncountable opponent because the “Institution does not meet the accreditation or NCCAA membership requirement.”

“I’m still glad we got to play another team before week one — whether it was a scrimmage or not,” head coach A.B. Stokes said. “It gave us a chance to see what we need to work on as a team.”

All stories and statistics related to the contest — which will be considered a scrimmage by the NAIA — have been removed from the Bethel Athletics website. The Threshers will officially open the 2022 regular season at 6 p.m. this Saturday when they host McPherson College to begin KCAC play.