Final Power Rankings

I know that these are later than everyone expected, but I have other things to do and frankly it was nice to let these power rankings marinate for a little bit before throwing them out there. I can’t stress enough that the season was a good season for the UMAC. However, the quality of competition was down starkly from the past couple of years. Nobody had a quality win outside of the conference or even played a close game with a good team from another conference. The loss of marquee players such as QB Alex Thiry, WR Carl Givens, LB Sean Graskey, as well as many others really hurt the conference as far as the quality of play. That won’t really matter in the long run because the nation already perceives, correctly I might add, that the UMAC is the worst conference in all of college football. Why do I mention all of this? I think this simply means that everyone has to get better and improve to make the UMAC a respectable conference. Facilities, recruiting, coaching, and athletes have to improve. It’s hard to do with limited budgets, but if the UMAC wants to make some noise on the national level in football in the future there is going to have to be commitment by the entire school to put in the resources and hard work. On a brighter note, the season was good and a lot of fun because the mediocrity of the conference resulted in a lot of close games and exciting finishes. Congratulations to all of the teams and players that contributed to another great year in UMAC football. Without further ado, here are the season’s final power rankings.

    1.     Greenville. Everyone, including myself, considered Greenville to be out of the race after that 45-3 loss to St. Scholastica. After two consecutive victories over Northwestern, I really believe if St. Scholastica and Greenville played again it would be a very different game that the Panthers would win. Co-conference champions and Victory Bowl champions is quite the accomplishment for this team that was predicted to finish as the top team. I know people will say that they all finished in a tie in the conference, but let’s be honest; this team was the best team in the conference by the end of the year. They really shored it up on defense and for the most part stifled a powerful Northwestern offense twice. It only gets better for Greenville with QB Brendan Chambers and RB Manny Gamble coming back for their senior season. Next year, they should be primed to finish as outright champions and get their first trip to the NCAA playoffs, which by the way, I believe they deserved this year.

   2.      St. Scholastica might not have played like the number two team in the conference at times though the latter part of the season, but besides the hiccup against Northwestern ended up winning the rest of their conference games and representing the UMAC in the D3 playoffs. I want to clarify my statement about them not playing like the number two team in the conference.  Going to OT against Presentation? Beating Morris by 7? Not the signs of a dominant team. They did have a top ten defense in the nation for a while, but in the UMAC. Come on people...wake up to reality. I promise you that they wouldn't have been in the top 30 if they had played in a good conference. Do you want more proof? A true top ten defense would not have given up 55 points to anyone.  But this was still a good season for the Saints. Heck, they even were up 10-0 over UW-Oshkosh before getting “sloshed” 55-10. This team weathered the loss of a lot of pivotal seniors and had a good season even though they were nowhere close to as good as last year. They could return to dominance if they can get more out of the QB position by either more development from Tyler Harper or (and this is what I would want to happen if I were the head coach) hopefully another guy can step up and then you can move Harper to WR or RB. Overall, this year’s team can’t complain too much. After all, this team was one lucky/spectacular play away from winning the conference outright.......
     *The Saints finished 28th in total defense and 25th in scoring defense...just in case anyone got confused*

   3.  Northwestern. Yeah I know, can you believe that you lost twice to Greenville? What is that, 5 or 6 in a row? Oh and about the St. Scholastica win…I don’t know that you could beat them again. It really was a spectacular/lucky play that QB Josh Balzer somehow connected with RB Josh Sinnen who decided to turn on the inner Rambo and do everything except score on the play. The question I faced when doing these power rankings is realistically how good were you this year? The conference was a dump this year compared to other years and that’s saying something. The competition really took a tumble this year, and I’m not sure this year’s Eagle’s team was much better than last years. Obviously an 8-3 record is better than a 6-4 record, but still you have to wonder if this year’s team could have done much better facing last year’s competition. Greenville and St. Scholastica, in my humble opinion, were much better last year as was Westminster. What am I getting at here? Well, I guess what I am saying is that we at the UMAC Central really shouldn’t have been too surprised that Northwestern lost twice to Greenville. What’s next for Northwestern? I have to say that it’s not looking very promising mainly because they have to replace QB Josh Balzer as well as WR Brian Lecheler and DE Josh Swore. The two losses against Greenville might be the start of some tough seasons upcoming for the Eagles.

   4.      Minnesota Morris had a pretty decent season all things considering. Despite the 2-QB system, the Cougars managed a 6-4 season and played especially well down the stretch even pushing St. Scholastica to the limit in their season finale. This team is losing both of its starting QB’s which leaves a lot up in the air for this team. WR Brendon Foss is returning but it might not matter if he doesn’t have anyone to give him the football. By the way, Foss could have had an amazing statistical season if he had played every game. On defense, this team should be better with returning LB’s Cody Hickman and Zeke Miller. Overall, I see this team struggling next year probably because they try a 3-QB system.

   5.      Martin Luther really improved as the season progressed. QB Luke Rothe and RB/WR Matt Olson should provide the offensive firepower next season and that defense should improve which is scary. I stand by my way too early prediction that Martin Luther will finish as the 3^rd best team in the conference next season, and since I won the pick-em challenge this year my predictions carry a lot of weight—mostly dead weight. For example, I was high on Eureka to start the season, so what the heck do I know. Still, I like the makeup of this team going into 2013. Oh and by the way, there are these things called wristbands that can be used instead of the ever faithful “index card in the pants” method of play calling. Just a friendly heads up.  

   6.      Eureka. This could be titled the QB Sam Durley rant. I think he is a solid QB and is probably a nice guy, but for all of the all-star game invitations and scouts he has had as a result of the record setting day, he has tossed so many more interceptions and lost four straight games to end the season. Obviously, some of Durley’s problems are the result of an atrocious offensive line but still I can’t let Durley off the hook. Durley is deserving of his 2^nd team all-conference award and nothing more. He couldn’t will his team to victories over good competition and threw very untimely interceptions. In conference play, he was a very average QB throwing 13 td’s to 10 interceptions. While throwing 700+ yards is impressive, Knox finished 237^th  both in passing defense and in total defense. Out of 239 teams. It’s about as impressive as the guy from Grinnel shooting 100 times in basketball and getting 138 points a while back. It’s impressive, but you shot 100 times and let’s just say he probably wasn’t being guarded by the D3’s equivalent of Scottie Pippen or Ron Artest. Ok enough ranting about bad teams setting records. Good luck to you Mr. Durley, and I hope that someday I will be famous as this power ranking will be aired on 60 minutes as the reason that you have such a chip on your shoulder and also the primary reason that your career took off in the NFL.

   7.      Westminster was the season’s greatest disappointment. I had no idea that WR Carl Givens meant so much to this team. Actually, they started to fall apart last year towards the season’s end and haven’t really recovered. Here’s a stat for ya. Westminster averaged 24.3 rushing yards a game. Awesome job. Ineptitude at its finest. Shout out to DL Rodney Lyles for dominating the trenches, but that is the only bright spot I see and that bright spot is graduating.

   8.      Crown. Let me begin by saying that I really did enjoy the way that this team battled week in and week out. And then I noticed the jerseys…very nice. But then I figured out that they only have one set of jerseys. Listen, I understand you can’t afford to be like Oregon and play with a different set every Saturday but seriously? You don’t even have the old jerseys? What did you do with them? Sell those so you could buy the new ones? Anyway, 35 of the 53 guys on the team are freshmen or sophomores this year and it showed. This is a very young team that returns QB Wes Safford and RB Amos Schmidt and on defense DB Cheepheng Her. By the way, Mr. Her (that’s ironic) is listed at 5-9. If that’s true, then I am 8 feet tall and I’m going to be getting a huge bonus from UMAC Central.  Things could be looking up for myself as well as the Storm.

    9.      MacMurray. There can only be one Highlander…and there can only be one last place team in my power rankings. Coincidentally, the Highlanders will be keeping last place pretty snug for the winter. Really, I think MacMurray probably was missing last place just a little bit. On a serious note, QB Cody Hussey played pretty well down the stretch of the season. If MacMurray doesn’t turn the ball over as much, they could have really put together a string of wins. The program itself needs to be overhauled with a different pattern of thinking that promotes a winning attitude. It’s tough to turn it around when all these players have known is losing. It’s really easy to get into a tough game and get the feeling of “here it goes again” and let a game slip away. MacMurray has let itself get mired into a pattern of losing behaviors and they just need to snap out of it. Also, they need to get all four legs of the visiting bleachers on solid ground, put real grass on the field, put a net behind the field goal post near the road so kids don’t die trying to catch footballs that are kicked, and finally extend the field so that people don’t fall out of the endzone. If they can do all that and get someone sober to paint the field lines, then at least the field will be safer for both players and fans alike and MacMurray will be headed in the right direction.

Finally, here is my way too early predictions for how the teams in the UMAC will finish next year:

 1.    Greenville- You thought they were explosive on offense this year? Just wait…

      2.      St. Scholastica- QB situation needs to be resolved, but they just reload.

      3.      Martin Luther- Young studs on offense make them huge players in the conference.

      4.      Westminster- QB Plassmeyer will make huge strides this offseason.

      5.      Northwestern- Losing the QB. Enough said

      6.     M innesota Morris- All depends on how many kids are playing QB next season. 2? 3?

      7.      Crown- Young guns make it interesting, but I think they are still two years away.

     8.      Eureka- The fighting Durley’s are replacing Mr. Durley.  

      9.    MacMurray- Field improvements not enough. 

UMAC Central's Outstanding Team of the Year

After much deliberation, we now present to you the 2012 UMAC Central Outstanding Team of the Year. We chose the players who we believe were the best at their position in the UMAC based upon our observations of the players as well as their statistical performances. There were several outstanding players left off of the list because our tough decisions were made as though we were selecting players to comprise a starting lineup. Brendan Chambers, for example, had an outstanding year, but having two starting quarterbacks just does not make sense (sorry UM-Morris, it still doesn't work). Congratulations to all of the outstanding athletes chosen! And to those athletes who did not make our list, work hard this offseason and maybe you can earn this distinction next season.

Outstanding Offense:

QB - Josh Balzer (Northwestern)*
- 129/235 attempts, 54.9% completion, 2244 yards, 9.5 yards/attempt, 23 TDs, 8 INTs, & 2 rushing TDs
RB - Immanuel Gamble (Greenville)
- 208 carries, 1188 yards, 5.7 average per carry, 11 TDs
RB - Josh Sinnen (Northwestern)
- 131 carries, 764 yards, 5.8 avg, 8 TDs & 13 receptions, 222 yards receiving, 2 TDs
WR - James Gladstone (Westminister)*
- 96 receptions, 1246 yards, 13 yard average, 14 TDs
WR - Brian Lecheler (Northwestern)*
- 45 receptions, 963 yards, 21.4 yard average, 9 TDs
WR - Brendon Foss (UM-Morris) 
- 54 receptions, 789 yards, 14.6 yard average, 8 TDs (7 games played)
TE - Matt Dammann (Northwestern)*
- 19 receptions, 234 yards, 12.3 yard average, 7 TDs
LT - Jeremy Burrows (Greenville)*
LG - Luke Scharrer (St. Scholastica)
C - Connor Leach (Northwestern)
RG - Mike Evans (St. Scholastica)*
RT - Ethan White (Greenville)
-Offensive Line Statistics:

--Greenville - 314.2 rushing yards/game, 5.2 yards/carry and only 9 sacks in 181 passing attempts

--St. Scholastica - 188.4 rushing yards/game, 4.8 yards/carry and only 14 sacks in 286 passing attempts

--Northwestern - 182 rushing yards/game, 4.6 yard/carry and only 13 sacks in 243 passing attempts

Outstanding Defense:

DT - Rodney Lyles (Westminster)*
- 71 tackles (34 solo/37 assisted) 17.5 TFL, 7.5 sacks, 1 FF, 2 FR
DE - Joshua Swore (Northwestern)*
- 74 tackles (29 solo/45 assisted) 17.5 TFL, 7 sacks, 3 FF, 2 FR/1 TD, 3 pass breakups
DE - Derek Loewen (Martin Luther) 
- 95 tackles, (35 solo/60 assisted) 12.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks, 1 FF, 1 FR, 3 pass breakups, 2 blocked kicks
DT - Zack Dubanoski (St. Scholastica) *
- 73 tackles, 29 solo/44 assisted), 9 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 2 pass breakups, 1 blocked kick
LB - Cody Hickman (UM-Morris) 
- 119 tackles (38 solo/81 assisted), 9.5 TFL, 2 sacks, 3 FF, 1 FR, 1 pass breakup
LB - Jacob Carls (Eureka) 
- 106 tackles (25 solo/81 assisted), 9.5 TFL, 1 sack, 2 FF, 2 FR, 1 INT, 2 pass breakups
LB - Kendall Sommerlot (Northwestern)*
- 86 tackles (38 solo/48 assist) 2.5 TFL, 1 FF, 3 FR, 1 INT, 2 pass breakups
LB - Zeke Miller (UM-Morris)
- 77 tackles (29 solo/48 assisted), 8 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 3 FF, 2 FR, 2 pass breakups
CB - Raymond Smith (MacMurray)
- 4 INTs/66 yds, 16 pass breakups, 46 tackles, (35 solo/11 assisted), 1 sack, 2.5 TFL, 1 FF
CB - Alec French (St. Scholastica)
- 3 INTs/84 yards/1 TD, 7 pass breakups, 90 tackles (51 solo/39 assisted), 2 sacks, 6.5 TFL
CB - Mike LaValley (St. Scholastica)
- 4 INTs/108 yards/1 TD, 7 pass breakups, 25 tackles (13 solo/12 assisted)
S - Galen Holzhueter (Martin Luther)
- 3 INTs, 9 pass breakups, 76 tackles (35 solo/41 assisted), 2 TFL, 1 FF, 2 FR
S - Sebastian Alvar (Crown)
- 5 INTs/134 yards/1 TD, 10 pass breakups, 48 tackles, (34 solo/14 assisted), 1 TFL, 1 blocked kick

Outstanding Special Teams:

K - Mike Theissman (St. Scholastica) 
- 12/13 FG, 44 yard long, 35/37 XP, 71 total points
P - Josh Balzer (Northwestern)*
- 44 punts, 37.6 average, 62 yard long, 10 punts in-20, 3 touchbacks
KR/PR - Cory Gebhard (St. Scholastica) 
- 7 kick returns, 32.4 yard average, 1 TD // 23 punt returns, 10.1 yard average
KR/PR - Dalton DeGraffenreid (UM-Morris) 
- 10 kick returns, 25.4 yard average, 1 TD // 7 punt returns, 21.7 yard average, 1 TD

Outstanding Season Awards:

Outstanding Offensive Player of the Year: Brendan Chambers - QB (Greenville)
Outstanding Defensive Player of the Year: Josh Swore - DE (Northwestern)*
Outstanding Rookie of the Year: Luke Rothe - QB/KR (Martin Luther)
Outstanding Senior of the Year: Josh Balzer - QB (Northwestern)*
Outstanding Coach of the Year: Ordell Walker (Greenville)
Outstanding Team of the Year: Greenville College Panthers

* = Senior Athlete

Q&A with Cody Hussey

Our Week 9 Outstanding Athlete of the Week, the MacMurray Highlanders sophomore Quarterback, Cody Hussey, recently answered a few questions for us about his football experience and his recent performance this past weekend which earned our recognition. Congratulations again Cody, keep playing hard and we wish you the best of luck in your last week of the season.

The Numbers:

This past weekend, Hussey led the Highlanders to a 29-14 victory over the Eureka Red Devils for their second victory of the year. Hussey passed for 281 yards with 19 of 36 passes completed, 3 touchdowns and 1 interception thrown. Not only did he lead his team through the air, but the quarterback also averaged 11.2 yards per carry and with 12 carries he totaled 134 yards including a pivotal 44 yard touchdown run that helped to seal the victory for MacMurray. His 205.6 passing yards per game and 18 total touchdowns thrown are both currently third highest in the UMAC with one game remaining for the Highlanders.

 

Q&A:

 

What is your first football memory?

My first football memory is when I was 4. The league let me play in the 5 and 6 year old league cause I was so big. I don't know where that went now haha

 

What was the biggest key to your individual success in last week’s performance?

Our biggest key in last weeks performance was avoiding 3 and outs and keeping the chains moving. We wanted to control the tempo of the game.

 

Where does your recent performance rank for you on your list of individual best games?

I would say around number 2 or 3. We had a good performance against them last year.

What did you eat for breakfast on game day?

I ate hash browns and fruit for breakfast on game day.

What is the biggest area you want to improve upon moving forward?

I want to improve on taking advantages when we have them. I want to improve on capitalizing when D gets turnovers

What is going to be the key to your team succeeding this week?

The key this week is the same as last. Control the game by controlling the tempo. Moving the chains and getting stops on D

What is on your pregame music playlist?
Pregame music: Lil Wayne, Eminem, got my country too

Who is your favorite NFL athlete?
My favorite NFL athlete is Julio Jones, I'm from Alabama and Julio is a beast and I've always wanted to throw to him. #RollTide

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I see myself in 5 years coaching football at my high school Smiths Station back in Alabama

What, if any, are your gameday rituals?
#1 pray and thank God for another day to play the sport and represent for him.
#2 tell my gf the game plan even though she has no idea on what I'm talking about.
#3 play my heart out

Panther's Claw Clips Eagles Wings

Greenville College Panthers [27-16] Northwestern College Eagles



(Photo credit to Channing Smith)



Both teams knew this was the biggest game of the season for them, but the Eagles did not seem to play like it as they made several costly errors that ended up putting the game in the Panthers hands (paws?).  Northwestern got on the board first with an 18 yard touchdown pass from QB Josh Balzer to RB Chris Simon-Wallace who ended up hurdling a defender on his way to the endzone. After the PAT, NWC kicked the ball to the Panthers who fumbled the return and gave the ball back to the Eagles on the Greenville 49 yard mark. After a few plays, the Eagles brought in K Ethan Zepp who banged the kick off the upright and through the posts to put NWC up 10-0. Greenville was forced to punt on their next drive, and it looked like another game where Northwestern was going to dominate and win easily as the Eagles drove 76 yards on their next drive. This is where the trouble starts though, as Eagles RB Chris Simon-Wallace fumbled the ball at the Panthers 6 yard line and it was recovered by defensive back Cody Lopez to end the long drive. Greenville got to work quickly, going 94 yards in just over 2 minutes to reduce NWC's lead to 3 on a 4th down pass from QB Brendan Chambers to WR Shawn McKnight for an 18 yard touchdown. A couple uneventful drives later and it was halftime with Northwestern leading 10-7.



(Photo credit to Avery Chambers)



After getting a first down on their first drive of the second half, RB Steven Glover lost a fumble to the Eagles and gave them great field position at the Panthers 46 yard marker. Northwestern handed the ball of eight times to put themselves at the 1 yard line before Balzer connected with TE Matt Dammann who caught the 1 yard score. A missed extra point and NWC now lead 16-7 and Greenville had the ball again, starting the drive at the 29 yard line. The Panthers gained a couple first downs before RB Steven Glover broke off a 28 yard run and finished just shy of the goal line, setting up RB Manny Gamble for an easy 1 yard score to close the gap to 16-13 after a botched snap led to an unsuccessful point after attempt. Northwestern appeared ready to answer and marched down the field and Balzer tossed a long pass to WR Brian Lecheler who appeared to be wide open. But Greenville DB Anthony Moore made a great play on the ball at the goal line and intercepted the long pass and returned it up to the Panther's 40 yard line, and giving his team plenty of momentum.



(Photo credit to Avery Chambers)



The Panthers rode this momentum and the NWC turnover led to 7 points for Greenville as Gamble crossed the goalline again to put the Panthers in the lead 20-16, minutes into the fourth quarter. Several drives later, Greenville again started the drive near midfield and after a facemask penalty on LB Alex Zeller, Chambers connected with WR Cody Hutchin to extend the Greenville lead to 27-16 with only 5:29 left to play. Northwestern got the ball back and Balzer completed a long ball to WR Joe Sutton for 42 yards, but the drive stalled as WR Brian Lecheler was unable to haul in two consecutive balls in the endzone. A few minutes later the clock read all zeroes and the Panthers had handed Northwestern their first lost of the UMAC season.

Neither team did well on third down in this game as Greenville converted 15% (2 of 13) and Northwestern uncharacteristically converted 25% (4 of 16). Both teams converted four times on fourth down with the Panthers going a purrrrfect 4 for 4 while the Eagles completed 4 of 7. QB Brendan Chambers averaged 10.1 yards a pass play, completing 9 of 16 passes for 162 yards and 2 touchdowns in addition to the 63 yards he gained on 14 carries. Defensive backs Cody Lopez and Bryce Wright along with LB Robert Deernig all had double digit tackles going 15, 11, and 11, respecively while Wright also had 2 forced fumbles. For the Eagles, QB Josh Balzer was 15 of 37 for 217 yards, 2 TDs, and an interception. WR Joe Sutton led the Eagles receiving corps with 108 yards from 6 receptions. Both teams end UMAC play at 7-1 and tied with St. Scholastica as UMAC Co-Champions. Although the Saints won the randow draw for the tie-breaker to represent the UMAC in the NCAA Playoffs starting November 17th, Northwestern and Greenville will also be playing on that day as they have been selected by the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) to face each other again in the Victory Bowl.



(Photo credit to Avery Chambers)



Week 9 Game Recaps

Crown College Storm [14-41] Martin Luther College Knights
The Knights were led by their young offensive stars QB Luke Rothe and RB Matt Olson in their 41-14 rout of the Storm. Both teams started the game slow offensively with 2 interceptions and punts by each team and the first half ended with a 14-0 lead by Martin Luther after rushing scores by both Rothe and Olson. The second half was a different story however as the Knights came out and scored unanswered on their first three possessions of the half with 2 touchdown runs by Matt Olson from 24 and 16 yards out, followed by a 52 yard scoop-and-score by defensive lineman Derek Loewen. The Knights were now up 34-0, only six minutes into the third quarter, and had only allowed 58 yards to the Crown offense up to this point of the game. Crown wasn't ready to be shut out and put together a 61 yard drive led by QB Wes Safford and RB Amos Schmidt and converted a fourth down pass to WR Kyle Knox to put their first points on the board. MLC's Rothe kept the Knights momentum moving by returning the Crown kickoff across midfield to the Crown 47 yard line before connecting with WR Scott Henrich on the next play for 37 yards. Matt Olson got the ball to the goal line before RB Mark Voss was able to punch it in on 4th down to make the score 41-7 with 3:27 left in the third. A few drives later, Crown scored again on a 10 yard run by Kurt Fickle, who then kicked in the extra point to reduce the deficit to 27, but the effort came much too late in the game and Martin Luther easily claimed the victory nine minutes later.

Rothe finished the game with 6 completions on 11 attempts for 132 yards as well as 131 yards rushing on 12 attempts and a score. Olson finished with a 5.5 average per rush and a total of 121 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Storm's QB Wes Safford was held to 13-29 passing and 144 yards with a TD and 2 INTs and DB Eli Dahl picked off Rothe twice. Crown ends the season 1-7 in conference and 2-8 overall and has a lot of work to be done in the offseason to improve their young team. Martin Luther finishes the season 4-6 overall and 2-6 in conference, ending with a two game win streak, and seem to have found a few promising young players to build their team around.

MacMurray College Highlanders [29-14] Eureka College Red Devils
Talk about a disappointing end to not only a season, but also to the college career of NCAA-record holding QB Sam Durley. After playing tough against the UMAC co-champion Northwestern College last week, they fall to MacMurray for the second consecutive year with Durley going 18-43 passing (41%) and throwing 3 interceptions. Leading the team on the other sideline was QB Cody Hussey, who opened the scoring for the game with a 8 yard pass to WR Deshonta Smallwood to cap a 90 yard drive. The next possession for the Highlanders started at their own 3 yard line, but again, they marched 95 yards down the field and this time K Taylor Hosta booted in the 19 yard field goal to give MacMurray a 10-0 advantage heading into halftime. The third quarter was fairly quiet with a lot of punting and a few turnovers, but the score was unchanged heading into the fourth quarter. After a punt gave the Red Devils great field position at the MacMurray 48 yard line, Durley found WR Jordan Kindred on a 49 yard completion to get Eureka on the scoreboard. The Highlanders answered on the next drive however as Hussey moved the ball down the field before hitting receiver Zach Mudd for the 6 yard score. A failed extra point made the score 16-7 as the ball was kicked to the Red Devils. Three plays into their drive, Durley's pass landed in the hands of MacMurray LB Howard Glover who returned it to the Eureka 28 yard line, setting up Hussey to hit Smallwood again on a 27 yard strike. With eight minutes remaining, Eureka trailed by 15 and needed to get moving. Durley completed 5 passes on the drive to arrive at the goal line before the quarterback pushed it in himself from 2 yards out to close the gap to 8 and keep the game alive. MacMurray started the next drive trying to run as much clock out to keep their one possession lead, and RB Patrick Hall and Hussey were alternating runs and gained 2 first downs before Cody Hussey broke free for a 44 yard sprint to the end zone. The score now 29-14 with under 2 minutes remaining and no timeouts remaining, Eureka's hope was fading and after four plays, vanished completely as Durley's fourth down pass fell incomplete and the Highlanders ran the clock out to claim the victory.

Hussey finished with an outstanding game, going 19 of 36 for 281 yards, 3 TDS, and 1 interception, while gaining 134 yards and a touchdown on 12 attempts with his feet. RB Patrick Hall also passed the 100-yard rushing mark, going 125 yards on 33 attempts while Deshonta Smallwood led the Highlanders receivers with 104 yards on 6 receptions along with his two scores. Defensive back Raymond Smith intercepted Durley twice and also had a pass breakup to lead the Highlanders defense. For the Red Devils, WR Jordan Kindred had another great performance, gaining 151 yards on 11 receptions as well as a score. Eureka finishes the year 3-5 in UMAC games and 4-6 overall while the Highlanders are now 2-6 in conference and finish out their season next week in a non-conference matchup with Westminster College.

College of Saint Scholastica Saints [28-21] University of Minnesota-Morris Cougars
A victory for the Saints meant a possible chance at making the playoffs; a loss meant a possible fourth place finish in the UMAC. The Saints knew the circumstances and came out firing, putting up 21 unanswered points in the first 20 minutes thanks to two Tyler Harper to Cory Gebhard touchdowns and a Thomas Fragle touchdown run. The Cougars were finally able to move the ball a little bit and drove down the field and kicked 2 field goals, courtesy of kicker Cameron Adel. UM-Morris headed into the locker rooms needing to make some adjustments if they were going to make this game close. The tables turned in the second half, after a Cougar punt, they recovered a fumble by RB Thomas Fragle and set themselves up at the Saints 44 yard line. Four plays later, the Foss brothers connected on a 12 yard touchdown pass and then again for a two-point conversion to make the score 21-14. After the kickoff, the Cougars defense forced the Saints into a three-and-out and the Cougars offense got the ball at the St. Scholastica 41 yard line. QB1 Dan Gerrigan dropped back and found WR Tyler Peterson for a 41 yard score on the first play and the Cougars tied it up at 21 with a successful point after kick. The next three drives ended with punts before Saints DB Michael LaValley picked off Gerrigan and then on the Saints third play, UMM defensive back Trevor Checkal forced a fumble by Tyler Harper, which was recovered by the Cougars. Set up near midfield, the Cougars were unable to move the ball and after three plays, punted it back to the Saints with just over nine minutes remaining in the game.

The Saints, hungry for the win, put the ball in the hands of junior RB Jake Jensen, twelve times in 14 plays, and he rushed for positive yards every time, gaining 52 yards as the Saints ate up the clock and moved the ball down the field. Facing third down with 7 yards to go, the Saints were not ready to settle for a field goal and Harper found Nick Thiry for a 10 yard score to give the Saints a 7 point lead with under 2 minutes left til the final horn. The Cougars got the ball back and soon faced a 4th down with 17 yards to the first down marker but QB1 was able to find WR Roumy Desir for 21 yards to keep their hopes alive. After two more completed passes, the Saints were called for pass intereference and the Cougars now had the ball at the Saints 16 yard line threatening to tie the game up. However, on the next play, the Cougars were hit with a costly holding penalty and moved back to the 31 yard line. Now facing 2nd and 25 to go, the Cougars were unable to pass the first down marker and gave the ball back to the Saints, who kneeled the ball to run the clock out on the Cougars season. Quarterback Tyler Harper finished 16 of 27 for 169 yards and 3 touchdowns while RB Jake Jensen put up 124 yards with a 5.2 yard-per-carry average. The Saints defense tallied 8 tackles for a loss, totaling 42 yards with LBs Blake Cedarleaf and Zack Dubanoski contributing 2.5 of those tackles each. Cougars QB1 and QB2 combined to complete 25 of 49 passes for 288 yards, 2 TDs, and an interception. Three WRs for UM-Morris,Tyler Peterson, Brendon Foss, and Danny Kernan, each had 63 yards. Defensively, LB Cody Hickman led the Cougars with 12 tackles, 10 of which were solo. The Cougars finish the year with a UMAC record of 5-3 and 6-4 overall. The cards all fell in place for the Saints as they not only tied with Northwestern and Greenville to be UMAC Co-champions, they also won the random draw to represent the UMAC in the NCAA playoffs, which will have them playing on November 17th.

UMAC Championship and Playoff Scenario

There has been some confusion over what will happen in different scenarios concerning the UMAC Championship and who will claim the automatic qualifier (AQ) into the NCAA Playoffs. In order to clear things up, I have done some research and contacted the UMAC's SID Greg Johnson and here is what I have learned:
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Scenario 1:

Northwestern defeats Greenville:
-Northwestern claims UMAC Championship outright and AQ into NCAA Playoffs
-UM-Morris at St. Scholastica result is inconsequential

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Scenario 2:

Greenville defeats Northwestern & St. Scholastica defeats UM-Morris:
-Northwestern (7-1), Greenville (7-1), and St. Scholastica (7-1) will share the UMAC Championship
-There will be a random draw to detemine who receives the AQ into the NCAA playoffs according to the UMAC's official criteria for tiebreaking (from the Official UMAC Website):

http://umacathletics.com/custompages/bylaws/UMAC%20Football%20Sport%20Guidelines.pdf
II. NCAA Championship Automatic Qualifier (“AQ”) Determination & Tiebreaker Criteria

1. Best conference record (based upon winning % of conference contests)
1. Each team will have a .875 win percentage
2. If two way tie then head-to-head result
1. Not applicable
3. If three-way tie then head-to-head results amongst three (2-0 advances)
1. Head-to-head results amongst the three are 1-1 for each team
4. If three-way tie without 2-0 record, then record against rest of conference standings in descending order of finish (4th place, 5th place, etc.)
1. As each team will have only lost to each other and have defeated all other UMAC opponents, their records will be equal against the rest of conference.
5. Random draw (if three or more teams) or coin flip (two teams) by UMAC Commissioner
1. This will be the criteria used to determine who receives the AQ into the NCAA playoffs.

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Scenario 3:

Greenville defeats Northwestern & UM-Morris defeats St. Scholastica:
-Northwestern (7-1) and Greenville (7-1) will share the UMAC Championship
-Because Greenville won the head-to-head matchup, they will receive the AQ into the NCAA Playoffs according to part 2 of the UMAC AQ Tiebreaker Criteria listed above.
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After all of this is determined, the NCAA playoff brackets will be assembled and we will learn who the UMAC will face in the first round. D3football.com writer Pat Coleman has made bracket predictions and the likely opponent (due to the NCAA leaning towards reducing costs and likely shuffling playoff brackets to limit travel distances) will be the No. 4 ranked St. Thomas Tommies of St. Paul, Minnesota. If the NCAA does not limit the travel distance, then the other predicted opponent would have the UMAC champion traveling out to McMinnville, Oregon to face Linfield College.

Week 9 Predictions: Tommy's Picks

Tommy's Picks (4 of 5 Week 8, 29 of 38 on the season)

I took a shot on Crown last week and I was feeling pretty good about myself for the most of the game. Then came overtime and the dreaded extra point. It really isn't fair to the Storm that they have to kick the ball in between the cross bars from so far away after they score a touchdown in order to get a bonus point. I mean, who came up with that stupid rule anyway? I was so close to tying Jay going into the last week and wiping that smug grin off of his face. Instead, I find myself in a two game hole needing to toss up a Hail Mary. I can only hope I have better results than Durley did in his final throw of the game against Northwestern. (Sorry... that's the last shot at the Eureka QB for the week. I promise.)

MacMurray @ Eureka - If Eureka loses this one they might as well just shut down their football program and invest their money in something more useful, like their "Ronald Reagan Went Here so You Should Too" campaign. It is certainly within the realm of possibility for MacMurray to win this one. They are getting better as the season goes along and Eureka has lost 3 in a row. Still, it is hard for me to imagine Durley losing to MacMurray at home in the final game of his career. Unless, of course, he has Brett Favre syndrome and feels the need to throw an interception in his final pass attempt. Eureka has had a disappointing season but they are still a lot better than MacMurray. The Red Devils send their seniors out on a high note with a strong performance and a win at Pete FioRito Stadium at McKinzie Field (The only field with a longer name than that is Mall of America Field at the Hubert H Humphrey Metrodome). Eureka 31 MacMurray 13

Crown @ Martin Luther - Crown let me down last week but I am going with them again this week for 3 primary reasons: 1) Jay picked Martin Luther 2) Crown has more upperclassmen at key positions with QB Wes Safford and RB Amos Schmidt. I give them the edge in a close game over the Knights who have freshmen at key positions with QB Luke Rothe and RB Matt Olson 3) MLC has the most ridiculous system for sending in their play calls that I have ever seen. In case you haven't noticed, after every play Rothe runs over to the offensive coordinator who proceeds to open up a recipe box full of color coded index cards. He then hands one of these cards to Rothe who runs over to the huddle and holds it up for everyone to see. And, naturally, he tucks the card into his pants before running the play (Well obviously. Where else would you put an index card with the play on it?) It can only be so long before teams start stealing the cards out of Rothe's pants while he is laying on the ground after he gets tackled. I can't wait until I see a 15 yard personal foul penalty called against an MLC opponent for "Unsportsmanlike Reaching into the Pants of a Defenseless Quarterback." Crown 27 Martin Luther 21

St. Scholastica @ Minnesota Morris - These two teams will be amped for this game. Well, at least I would suspect they would be. I know that the boys from Morris will be. They have rallied together with an us-against-the-world mentality and nothing would put the cherry on top of their already successful season like an upset over St. Scholastica at home in their final game of the year. St. Scholastica has to know that they still have a legitimate shot at a playoff berth with a win in this one. It is not at all out of the question for Greenville to beat Northwestern. And thanks to Greg Johnson, UMAC Sports Information Director, we have confirmation that in the event of a Northwestern loss and Scholastica win the Saints would possess the tie-breaker and go to the playoffs. ***(UPDATE: NWC loss and CSS win creates a 3-way tie and automatic qualifier is determined by random draw)*** I suspect that CSS will put their lackluster performances of the past few weeks behind them and come out full steam ahead against the Cougars. The talent level of these two teams is a lot closer than I thought earlier in the year, but I still think that Scholastica is better than Morris and with so much on the line will find a way to win. St. Scholastica 28 Morris 17

Greenville @ Northwestern - We have done our best here at UMAC Central to build up excitement each and every week of the season in order to keep our ratings high - our advertisers like it that way. But the reality is that we all know that in terms of who would win the conference there were only going to be 3 games that meant anything this year - Scholastica vs. Greenville, Northwestern vs. Scholastica, and now the final piece of the puzzle is Greenville vs. Northwestern. Algebra would tell us that since Scholastica blew out Greenville and Northwestern beat Scholastica, Scholastica > Greenville, Northwestern > Scholastica and therefore Northwestern > Greenville. (That's called the Transitive Property folks. Some bonus math for you there.) However, anyone who knows anything about football knows that it is all about matchups. I have felt since the beginning of the year that Greenville matches up extremely well against the Eagles. Northwestern has yet to beat the Panthers in their 2 games against them since Greenville joined the UMAC. You also have to consider the fact that Greenville was behind 23-0 at halftime last season against NWC before scoring 27 in the fourth quarter to win. No matter how big of a lead the Eagles are able to build, the Panthers have to always feel like they still have a chance. The film tells me that I should go with Northwestern. There seems to be no way that Greenville's defense can stop the Eagles' offensive attack. But, for some reason, I have that feeling deep in my gut that the Panthers are going to pull out a huge upset on the road in the most exciting UMAC game of the year. I'm going with the inverse score of Jay. And let the UMAC chaos begin. Greenville 38 Northwestern 35 

Week 9 Predictions- Jay's Picks

Jay’s Picks (5 of 5 Week 8, 31 of 38 on the Season)

Luck was on my side last week. I even guessed a score correctly. This is by far the most exciting week of UMAC football. Northwestern has a share of the UMAC championship, but Greenville and St. Scholastica are still holding on with a death grip. Ok, St. Scholastica is slipping into the abyss a little bit but all can be forgotten if everything falls into place for them. The question of the hour is who will be representing the UMAC in the playoffs. Tommy will have to post his picks after the games are done if he wants to catch me in the standings. Have a great weekend everyone and enjoy UMAC championship weekend.

MacMurray @ Eureka- This game will be a tight one. QB Sam Durley will want to forget last week’s debacle that included 3 interceptions. In games against legitimate competition, St. Scholastica and Northwestern, Durley has thrown for only 226 yards a game, 0 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions with a less than stellar completion percentage. In those two games, that’s the equivalent of a 49.17 NFL passer QB rating. I don’t know if that will cast a shadow on the 736 yard record to NFL scouts or not, but in light of all that Durley might want to end his college football career on a slightly higher note. MacMurray has been competitive all season and I see that trend continuing this Saturday, but Eureka has to be feeling pretty good after nearly beating Northwestern and Durley will be out to prove he is better than the three interception game last week.Eureka 31 MacMurray 23

Crown @ Martin Luther- I have been looking forward to this game ever since Martin Luther started to figure out their offense. Both teams are extremely young. Crown has a bevy of young guys playing everywhere and Martin Luther’s two best players QB Luke Rothe and RB/WR Matt Olson are both freshman. Youth that has a lot of talent also tends to make a lot of mistakes that don’t occur on experienced football teams. Rothe’s 5 interceptions last week for example. Looking forward to next year, Northwestern has to replace some very integral players including QB Josh Balzer, WR Brian Lecheler, DE Josh Swore, DB Mitch Swanson, LB’s Kendall Sommerlot and Joey Bauman, and the list goes on and on. The Fighting Durley’s lose well…Durley. Morris loses both starting QB’s. St. Scholastica loses a lot of senior experience for the second year in a row. Greenville should be loaded again, but the rest of the UMAC is fairly uncertain. This game could go a long way in showing who the players will be for next year. Bold prediction way too far in advance…Knights will finish in top 3 of conference next year AND Crown will find a kicker.  Martin Luther 24 Crown 20

St Scholastica @ Minnesota Morris- Before the Northwestern game, most people would have said this would be a 20-30 point blowout by St. Scholastica. Not so fast my friends. Ok, a couple of weeks ago you could have counted me in as the torch bearer for St. Scholastica blowing out Morris. Oh how the tides have turned. Morris has always been confident, even when sometimes they don’t really have any reason to be. St. Scholastica is like a little boy who just saw dad, their hero, get toasted in one-on-one basketball. Crushed, demoralized, and probably not bragging about dad's basketball skills anymore. The Saints look like they are just going through the motions right now. They are more talented than Morris, but Morris is good enough to beat St. Scholastica if the Saints decide to give the same type of effort that they did against Presentation. Morris has played the “It’s Jay and Tommy/ the World against us” card all season and will be very motivated to get a signature win that they have been lacking to this point. I keep repeating this, but St. Scholastica still has an opportunity to claim a share of the conference championship as well as represent the UMAC in the NCAA playoffs. If that’s not motivation enough, the Saints deserve to lose. St. Scholastica 34 Morris 27

GAME OF THE WEEK

Greenville @ Northwestern- Nobody’s surprised with this game of the week. This is as close to a conference championship game as you will see in the UMAC. If Greenville wins, they will still need help from Morris to get into the playoffs but it has all the signs and feel of a big time game. Here’s a couple reasons why: 1) The last two times they have played each other have been crazy games decided by a touchdown or less 2) Last season Northwestern dominated until basically the fourth quarter and then fell apart as Greenville pulled of the comeback 3) QB Josh Balzer is the best QB in the UMAC(sorry Durley, but see my post above) and QB Brendan Chambers is the most dynamic QB in the UMAC 4) RB’s Manny Gamble and NWC’s RB’s Josh Sinnen and Chris Simon-Wallace all average 6.3 yards a carry or more. I could keep going but you get the point. Here are some matchups to keep an eye on:

1. Greenville’s #1 rushing attack vs. Northwestern #2 rush defense
2. QB Josh Balzer vs. Greenville secondary
3. NWC’s OLB’s and SS vs. QB Brendan Chambers and RB Manny Gamble

Keys to the game:

Northwestern:

1. The secondary is going to have to be able to tackle in space because if they don’t it could be a long day.
2. Hit QB Brendan Chambers. It doesn’t matter if he has the ball or if he doesn’t. Make him pitch the ball.
3. Consistency on offense. It might seem like a little bit of a track meet until your defense figures things out, but don’t panic. This offense has been very good all year. Don’t try to be who you aren’t.

Greenville:

1. Do not turn the ball over! I repeat…do not turn the ball over! It killed you against St. Scholastica.
2. Stop the run and stop big plays in the passing game. Force QB Josh Balzer to consistently convert through the passing game.
3. Force turnovers. Northwestern hasn’t turned the ball over much this year, but if Greenville wants to beat the Eagles they need to force the issue.

Like I mentioned above, this game could get into a little bit of a track meet offensively. Nobody has really stopped Greenville from running the football; even St. Scholastica didn’t stop them. Greenville’s achilles heel has been turning the ball over. Even if it does turn into a shootout, Northwestern has the firepower to go toe-to-toe with Greenville. This game will be filled with a lot of emotion and intensity that the UMAC often doesn’t have late in the season. This type of game is so rare late in the season that I’m predicting something even more strange— a last minute field goal will decide the game. Northwestern 38 Greenville 35

The Week that Was: Week 8

Have you ever had deja, deja, deja, deja vu? As the dust settled from week 8 of UMAC action I was left with one clear, overriding thought - At this point in the season, the teams of the UMAC are what they are. And in case you were wondering what exactly they are, I detailed that for you below. It may look a lot like Power Rankings, but give me a break. I can't keep coming up with fresh ideas for articles indefinitely.

Northwestern - Best team in the conference. They have proven it week in and week out. They certainly still have a big hurdle to overcome in Greenville, but at this point they have absolutely earned the right to be called the best team in the UMAC by destroying the teams they should destroy and coming out with a couple close victories on the road over St. Scholastica and Eureka. The Eagles definitely have weaknesses and are by no means unbeatable, but they just keep winning.

St. Scholastica - Good but losing air fast. For the past year and a half, the St. Scholastica Saints had this swagger about them and they thought that they were unbeatable. Everyone from their players to their coaches to their fans felt vastly superior to every other team in the conference. Then little old Northwestern went up to Duluth and stole their aura of invincibility. Ever since then, teams think they can beat the Saints and their own players feel the same way. Suddenly they are going in to overtime with Presentation. Yikes. Still a good team, but something has changed.

Greenville - Quietly good. After taking a 45-3 shellacking from Scholastica, the Panthers have taken a back seat to NWC and CSS in the conference race. But they have quietly gone about their business and beaten everyone they have played since that time. It has not always been pretty, but for the second year in a row Greenville has an opportunity to string together 7 straight wins to end the season. That is, if their defense can get out of its own way. We will find out soon enough.

UM-Morris - Just keeps winning... sort of. Not only has it not always been pretty, it has been downright ugly at times. But the Cougars do keep winning. And while it took a furious comeback and a missed extra point for them to beat Crown, they did win and their are no asterisks next to their record.* Senior leadership at key positions (including double the senior leadership at quarterback)gives them the edge in close games against evenly matched opponents. They seem to believe in themselves and maybe that gives them a shot this week against a St. Scholastica team who seems to have lost some confidence.

Eureka - The all-hype team. Losses to Scholastica, Greenville, Morris, and Northwestern prove that Eureka lacks the substance to compete at any sort of significant level. The last drive of the game against Northwestern was a perfect microcosm of their entire season. With an opportunity for a game-winning drive, the ball was in the hands of their senior, record-setting, star quarterback getting scouted by NFL teams. Everything was set up for a magical moment. And what happens? Interception. Third of the game by the way. Close, but no cigar. Just like their entire season.

Martin Luther - The scrappy battlers. They are completely outmatched across the board by nearly all of their opponents. But ask any of the top teams in the UMAC and they will tell you that they do not enjoy playing Martin Luther. I admire the attitude this team plays with. It's hard to root against the Knights this year.

Crown - So close, but yet so far. Another loss by a missed kick - second of the year. Talk about deja vu. They just can't quite get it done. At some point a loss is a loss and those losses are starting to stack up for Crown regardless of whether they are by 1 or 34.

MacMurray - Getting better, but not quite there (And by 'there' I mean the 7th best team in the conference) They battled Martin Luther but ended up on the wrong end of the scoreboard. The Highlanders have demonstrated some gumption, but the program is coming up short even more than Crown and Martin Luther.

Westminster - Inept. Passing 77 times wasn't the answer against MacMurray. So their coaches figured passing 79 times against Greenville was the solution. I am hoping for 90 passes this week. Westminster is really just ahead of its time. It's just a matter of time before the rest of the country realizes that you must pass over 80 times to win a game.




*Although they did lose to Hamline.

Q&A with Matt Olson

Our Week 8 Outstanding Athlete of the Week, the Martin Luther College Knights freshman RB/QB/SS Matthew Olson, recently answered a few questions for us about his football experience and his recent performance this past weekend which earned our recognition. Congratulations again Matt, keep playing hard and we wish you the best of luck through the rest of the season.

The Numbers:

RB Matt Olson (left) and QB Luke Rothe

Olson led the Knights in both rushing and receiving this past weekend with 212 rushing yards on 39 carries for an average of 5.4 yards per rush and and 4 catches for 54 yards and a touchdown. His 266 yards gained accounted for more than 60% of the Knights total offense and was only 31 yards shy of the opposing MacMurray Highlanders entire offensive production. In addition to his touchdown, Olson also ran for two 2-point conversions and caught one to contribute to 12 of MLC's 30 total points. Similarly to his teammate Luke Rothe, our week 6 Outstanding Athlete, Matt Olson is a very versatile player and has been moved around in the team throughout the year in an effort to find where he best fits. He started the first three games of the year at quarterback and had a 109 yard rushing game for the Knights in week 2. In week 4 he switched to safety for one game before switching back to offense and starting at running back in week 5. He has been in that role ever since. Olson is one of three players, along with Rothe and backup QB Josh Rathje, who have each rushed for, caught, and thrown a touchdown for the Knights this season.

Q&A:

What is your first football memory?

Playing offensive guard in the sixth grade.

What was the biggest key to your individual success in last week’s performance?

Just reading the holes that my line created for me.

Where does your recent performance rank for you on your list of individual best games?

It is definitely in the top two. The other game was a state semi final game but doing it at the college level definitely means alot to me.

What did you eat for breakfast on game day?

I ate cereal and a Big Texas. Not to much since we were on the road.

What is the biggest area you want to improve upon moving forward?

Getting faster and making cuts. I have never played running back before so this is all new to me.

What is going to be the key to your team succeeding this week?

Not turning the ball over, playing fundamentally sound football and ultimately scoring more points than the other team does.

What is on your pregame music playlist?

I honestly dont listen to music before sports. I like to just joke around and relax with the guys.

Who is your favorite NFL athlete?

Robert Griffin III. He is so athletic, he does it all and stays humble.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

Finishing up my last year of college (5 year course) and then moving on to be a high school teacher and coach.

What, if any, are your gameday rituals?

I don't really have any besides having fun with the guys and relaxing.



Week 9 Power Rankings

Last week was the most competitive week all season with every game being decided by 12 points or less, four games decided by four points or less, and two games being decided in OT. Everything gets decided in two games this weekend. Will Northwestern be able to hold on to the championship, or will somebody else claim the right to represent the UMAC in the Division III NCAA playoffs?

1.  Northwestern College is still in the driver’s seat after a very close call in Eureka. With the exception of St. Scholastica, this is the first time all year that the Eagle’s needed the defense to win a game for them and DB Mitch Swanson and LB Alex Zeller answered the call. Every team is going to play an ugly game, and good teams figure out a way to make the plays to win ugly games. Still, it has to make you wonder if the Eagles aren’t quite as invincible as we thought going into this week’s UMAC championship game against Greenville.

2.  St. Scholastica apparently decided it was going to play nice and a little more Saint-like than anticipated, but seriously do they understand that they can still win the conference if they win and Northwestern loses on Saturday? Ever since they lost to the Eagles, it just doesn't seem like they have the same nasty disposition to dominate teams as before. Going to OT against Presentation could make it onto ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown segment of “C’Mon Man!”

3.  Greenville just keeps plugging away in their quest to win the UMAC championship. It all comes down to Saturday. If the Panthers beat Northwestern and St. Scholastica loses, then Greenville would claim the UMAC conference championship and the honor to get crushed by St. Thomas. A lot of things have to go right for the Panthers, but things somehow always go in their favor in crunch time. They might not be the most prolific passing team, but that run game is as dynamic and explosive as any team in the UMAC and it might be enough to carry them to the upset win against Northwestern.

4.  Minnesota Morris. Usually when your QBs are a combined 30 for 60 with 2 interceptions, it does not bode well for a team. Fortunately, 14 of those completions went to WR Brendon Foss who has been sensational this season.  Fortunately, the Cougars were playing a young inexperienced football team. What is it with UMAC teams throwing the football over 50 times?

5.  Eureka really impressed me on Saturday. They nearly beat a Northwestern team even though QB Sam Durley had a rough day throwing three interceptions. I definitely did not give them a chance. Props to the Red Devils for hanging tough against what I thought would be a team that was clearly superior. Unfortunately, there isn’t anything in the standings about moral victories.

6.  Martin Luther’s QB Luke Rothe came back to earth just a little bit on Saturday. Ok, it’s more like he’s approaching earth’s inner core. Five interceptions? Yikes.

7.  Crown, crown, crown. It’s really never too early to start recruiting kickers. Try raiding the soccer teams.  

8.  MacMurray continues to find a way to lose close games. I know you could argue that they have been competitive in every game except Northwestern, St. Scholastica, and Wartburg but at some point you just have to figure out how to win some of these games.

9.  Westminster is firmly in last place in my book. Here’s why: 1) Plassmeyer threw it 79 times, two more times than last week which results in a grand total of  156 times in two games 2) They are averaging 0.9 yards a carry for the year 3) They have rushed for a total, A TOTAL of 193 yards on the year.  There might not be a more inept run offense in the entire nation and I’m including high school football.

Week 8 Game Recaps

Greenville College Panthers [34-22] Westminster College Blue Jays
The Panthers came into this game needing a win to stay in the race for a share of the UMAC conference championship and they kept that dream alive with a 34-22 victory of the Blue Jays that did not come as easily as was expected. After Greenville scored twice, the teams went back and forth scoring the rest of the game and the Blue Jays pulled within 6 points with just under thirteen minutes remaining in the game. Greenville then drove down the field and scored the final points of the game as RB Manny Gamble crossed the goal line on a 4 yard run to score his second touchdown on the day. Westminster's defense held the Panthers to a season "low" of 198 yards rushing, which ironically is actually 5 yards more than the Blue Jays offense has rushed for all season. Greenville's RB Steven Glover accounted for more than half of those rushing yards as he gained 103 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. The Blue Jays QB, Joe Plassmeyer, completed 53 of his 79 passes for 342 yards and 2 touchdowns completing 15 passes each to WRs James Gladstone and Justin Grahl for 133 and 70 yards, respectively. Westminster has lost their last five games and end conference play at 2-6 as they head into their bye week before hosting MacMurray on November 10th in a non-conference matchup. Greenville moves to 6-1 in UMAC games as they ride their six-game win streak into their matchup against Northwestern this weekend and a chance to win a share of the conference championship.

Northwestern College Eagles [21-17] Eureka College Red Devils
In one of the two surpisingly close games in the UMAC this week, Eureka nearly upset conference-leading Northwestern, but the Eagles snuck away with the victory, 21-17. The game opened with a 3-and-out by Eureka who then punted to Northwestern who quickly converted two 30-yard plays to get into the endzone on a run by RB Chris Simon-Wallace. A 31-yard return by the KR Robert Gilliam set Eureka up with great field position and helped them string together a thirteen-play drive for 59 yards ending on a 1-yard run by RB Zach McCoy. The Eagles looked to be in form as they responded with a 39 yard strike to standout WR Brian Lecheler who accumulated 4 receptions for 70 yards on the day. Unfortunately the next time Lecheler touched the ball was not as profitable for the Eagles as he dropped a punt that was quickly recovered by the Red Devils at the Northwestern 35 yard line and then turned into 3 points on a Travis Huber field goal kick. A few drives later, a pass from NWC's QB Josh Balzer was picked off and returned down to the Eagles 31 yard line, with the Red Devils appearing ready to take the lead. However, two plays later, Eureka's NCAA-record holding QB, Sam Durley, threw a pass that was deflected into the hands of Eagles' DB Mitch Swanson just before halftime.

After a punt by the Eagles to start the second half, Sam Durley's first pass since the interception was thrown again to his most recent receiver, the Eagles DB Mitch Swanson, who returned it down to the 11 yard line to set up a score by Eagles RB Josh Sinnen on the very next play. The score now 21-10, the Red Devil's were not ready to give up as they converted 12 plays on the next drive to go 75 yards down the field to score on a Sam Durley run. A fumble and punt by each team was followed by Eureka blocking a Northwestern field goal kick which was then followed by a Eureka punt, a NWC fumble, a Eureka punt, and a NWC turnover on downs, giving Eureka the ball at their 10 yard line with 2:43 remaining on the clock and a chance to win. Durley got the two-minute offense going and led a drive out close to midfield before with a 31 yard pass to WR Jordan Kindred before NWC's LB Alex Zeller intercepted a throw to the sideline and snuffed out Eureka's hopes for a victory. Northwestern will try to finish undefeated in the UMAC as they host Greenville next week. Eureka falls to 3-4 in conference play, and welcomes MacMurray into town next weekend to close out the season.

University of Minnesota-Morris Cougars [30-29] Crown College Storm
Every point really does count as the Cougars took advantage of a missed extra point to gain the victory after overcoming a 14-point deficit with only 7 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Crown started off the scoring in the first quarter as RB Amos Schmidt sprinted into the endzone, gaining 56 of his 153 total rushing yards for the game on that play. QB Wes Safford followed that up one quarter later with a 1-yard scoring run of his own. UM-Morris closed the gap later on in the second with a touchdown pass from Foss1/QB2 to WR Dalton DeGraffenreid followed by a Cameron Adel field goal just before halftime. The third quarter was very uneventful and consisted of eight drives ending in eight punts. The Storm put 3 more points on the board thanks to a 24-yd Kurt Fickle kick and then defensive back Sebastian Alvarado intercepted the Cougars QB1 and returned it 16 yards to give Crown a 23-9 advantage with 7:16 remaining before the clock hit zero. The Cougars had different plans in mind though as they "stormed" (see what I did there) back and scored quickly, courtesy of the Foss brothers, closing the gap to seven with just over 5 minutes left. Crown's next drive ended after three plays and a punt, giving the ball back to UM-Morris after only 1 minute. UM-Morris put together the games longest drive, going 67 yards on 10 plays before RB Leandro Dower powered into the endzone for his first 1-yd touchdown of the game. Crown was unable to move the ball and punted back to the Cougars who were content taking a knee and heading into overtime.

UM-Morris won the coin toss and elected to allow Crown to begin the extra period on offense. The Storm struggled on their first three plays before converting a 20-yard pass on 4th down. RB Amos Schmidt was able to get into the endzone six plays later after a pass interference call on the UMM defense. Unfortunately, the Kurt Fickle extra point was missed, only giving Crown a six point advantage to begin the Cougar's drive. After a loss of 5 yards by Leandro Dower, Crown was called on pass interference the next play to put UMM on the 15 yard line with a first down. Three plays later, the Storm were called for pass interference again, giving Morris the ball on the 2 yard line. Two plays later, Leandro Dower gained his most important yard of the day as he got into the endzone to tie the game at 29. The Cougar's extra point was good and their comeback efforts were completed. This game featured 19 punts and 11 three-and-outs, so you would think there was not much offense, but somehow each team still put up over 350 yards, despite so many unsuccesful drives. WR Brendon Foss had another outstanding game, putting up 150 yards on 14 catches to lead the Cougars offense. UM-Morris now has a 5-2 record in conference games and heads to Duluth, MN next week to face the St. Scholastica Saints. Crown will be facing the up and coming Martin Luther Knights next week on the road in New Ulm, MN.

College of Saint Scholastica Saints [20-17] Presentation College Saints
Our experts here at UMAC Central predicted St. Scholastica would blow Presentation out of the water in this non-conference game, but the second  year Presentation College Saints were ready for this challenge and only narrowly lost to the more-experienced St. Scholastica Saints squad. The CSS Saints looked like the favorites heading into halftime with a 14-3 lead, only having allowed 91 offensive yards to the PC Saints. The CSS Saints' first half scoring came courtesy of a 3 yard run by RB Jake Jensen and a 6 yard reception by receiver Cory Gebhard. The tables were turned in the second half as Presentation's WR Jalanni James caught a 14 yard pass to close the gap before PC QB Stephen Braswell delievered another 5 yard strike to receiver Will Vealy to put Presentation up 17-14. During this same period of time, PC's defense allowed only 38 yards to St. Scholastica's offense. After a punt by each team, CSS QB Tyler Harper was able to lead a drive down to the 13 yard line to set up K Mike Theismann for a field goal attempt. The kick was good and the score was now tied at 17 with 10 minutes remaining. Presentation was forced to punt on their next possession and Scholastica put together a thirteen play drive chewing up 7 minutes of the game clock as they set Theismann up for a 31 yard attempt to win the game. This time though, the attempt was wide right and with only 18 seconds left on the clock, Presentation decided to run the clock out and try their luck in overtime. After three plays. the PC Saints had not gained a first down and elected to kick a 35 yard field goal, but they missed, giving the CSS Saints the ball and the ability to take the lead and win the game. Scholastica handed the ball off to  RB Chris Gassert who with two runs had the ball down to the 8 yard line, before Presentation's defense stifled the CSS offense for three plays, making it now 4th down and Mike Theismann came trotting back out to the field, easily putting in the 25 yard field goal to give St. Scholastica the victory. Neither team was particularly effective on third down as the CSS Saints went 6/15, while the PC Saints only converted on 4 of their 12 third down attempts. The UMAC Saints will head home for their final game of the regular season as they host the UM-Morris Cougars next week.

Martin Luther College Knights [30-27] MacMurray College Highlanders
The first half of our game of the week made us regret our decision to label this game as such, as there were several punts, turnovers on down, other turnovers, and just general ineffectiveness on offense. Just before halftime though, MLC QB Luke Rothe finally updated the scoreboard with a 2 yard run to make the score 6-0 before a 2 point conversion made it 8-0 heading into halftime. To start the second half, Knights RB Matthew Olson had a 38 yard reception from Rothe that he took into the endzone to make the score 14-0. The MacMurray offense was stagnant again, going three-and-out and punting it back to a Knights offense that was starting to heat up. Luke Rothe's got his second consecutive touchdown pass on the next play, but this one was caught by a receiver with the wrong jersey on as MacMurray's John Brockhouse Jr. returned the interception 89 yards to paydirt, breathing some life into the Highlanders.The teams traded touchdowns on the next two possessions with RB Tyler Dorn score for the Knights and Highlanders' WR Deshonta Smallwood catching a 24 yard pass from QB Cody Hussey. MLC's Luke Rothe was picked off on the Knights next two drives, for his 4th and 5th interceptions of the game, with the second one leading to a 91-yard drive for MacMurray which ended with a 1 yard run by Hussey to make the score 22-20 after a failed 2-pt conversion attempt. The next two drives were again ended with Zorn and Smallwood scoring for their respective teams with MLC going for 2 and MAC kicking the PAT to make the score 30-27. MacMurray's next drive was ended with an interception by DB Galen Holzhueter to allow the Knights to run the clock out and escape with the victory. RB Matthew Olson put together an impressive day for the Knights, rushing 39 times for 212 yards as well as catching 4 passes for 54 yards and a touchdown. RB Patrick Hall of the Highlanders, also passed the 100 yard mark, carrying the ball 24 times for 101 yards. Defensively for MacMurray, DB John Brockhouse Jr. intercepted Luke Rothe twice, and DB Samuel Stanton one-upped him by picking off MLC's QB 3 times in this game. The Knights gain their first conference win, and now sit at 1-6 heading into their game against Crown College next weekend. MacMurray will play their final conference game next week at Eureka before ending in a non-conference matchup at Westminster on November 10th.