Week 2 Power Rankings

Thanks to a commenter, we need to go over Power Rankings and last weeks results. Last week’s power rankings were fairly accurate; however, in the most shocking development in college football since the North Dakota State Bison beat the Kansas State Wildcats, the #6 ranked Crown lost to #7 Westminster. I know. Unbelievable. How could UMAC Central’s power rankings have been wrong THAT much? A 7 beating a 6 (which by the way I predicted)? It’s an outrage! Oh, that’s not even the half of it. The 244^th (where is my satirical font when I need it?) ranked team beating the 8^th team? Oh no! It’s not like both UMAC Central’s predictions picked Martin Luther to win…wait, actually UMAC Central unanimously picked Martin Luther to win. Ok, ok, I’ll admit I definitely did not see Eureka beating Northwestern. But seriously folks, last week’s Power Rankings were based off of a non-conference week which is about as useful to predict UMAC final standings as picking teams out of a hat (sorry, I couldn’t resist making that joke again). Shoot, how was I supposed to know Hendrix was a decent ball club? As for Martin Luther, of course I don’t think they are the 244^th ranked team, but it’s the principle of the thing. When you lose to Maranatha, you get a spot at the bottom of my Power Rankings.

Enough housekeeping. On to the stuff that matters. This week actually contained useful information, and these Power Rankings will start reflecting where teams actually line up in the conference. The tough thing about this year is that I believe there is much more parity in the league. Aside from Greenville and St. Scholastica, who I think will be undefeated in UMAC play and will meet in a “conference championship game” the last week of the season, I think anyone can beat anyone on any given Saturday. It’s still early, and teams often improve dramatically as the season goes on so take Power Rankings with a grain of salt.

      1.      Greenville- Another week, another 500+ yards of offense. It just seems like the Panthers have an endless supply of playmakers. We had the usual suspects led by QB Brendan Chambers, who had another fine day, but players like TEs Nathan Butler and Nicholas Newton make it impossible for anyone to shut down the Panthers. The Greenville offense sliced and diced through a very experienced (although maybe not very talented) Morris defense. As always, the defense gives up some points as well but if this team takes care of the football then I can’t see anyone outside of St. Scholastica having any chance against the Panthers.

      2.      St. Scholastica- That’s more like it. The Saints first game in UMAC play looks like what we are accustomed to seeing from the reigning UMAC champions. QB Tyler Harper reminded everyone of what he is capable of doing throwing for 4 TDs. 682 yards of total offense will get anyone pretty excited, but let’s not forget the defense only allowed 214 yards of offense and held WR Ridge Hobbs to 2 catches and 14 yards.  This is the only team that can pose a challenge to Greenville, and even then they will need Greenville to turn the ball over.

      3.      Westminster-It looks like the Blue Jays have completely switched their offensive philosophy. I like to think that they finally listened to me. RB Ronnie Seals Jr. is a breakout player this year in the UMAC rushing for 143 yards and 3 tds. That’s like a third of their entire rushing total from last year. QB Plassmeyer is efficiently leading the passing attack, and the defense looks solid. Losing a close one to a solid Hendrix squad, and soundly beating Crown in week 2? Looks like a good start for the Blue Jays.

      4.      Eureka- I still don’t think that Eureka will finish in the top three in the conference, but they are a lot better than I gave them credit for. The score of the game is a little deceiving as the game was a one possession game till the very end of the third quarter, but 2-0 is 2-0. Eureka’s defense, statistically speaking, has performed the best through two games allowing only 13 points and 302 yards a game. That’s right, the Red Devils and the Panthers are the only undefeated teams in the UMAC. Ok, now you can shove the whole 50% in our face.

      5.      Northwestern- Apparently there is some confusion about game length at UNW. If you have even been to a game at Northwestern, you know about the famed “5^th quarter.”However, the actual game is only four quarters long and it appears as if Head Coach Kirk Talley forgot to mention that to his team because this team quits playing in the fourth quarter. Through two weeks, they have been close through three quarters and then laid a duck in the fourth quarter. We expected QB Jake Fletcher to take some lumps, but what happened to the running game? Only 15 rushing yards? Wow. The good news? They play Martin Luther’s defense. The bad news? They play Martin Luther’s offense in New Ulm. Tip for the week: don’t plan on starting the comeback in the “5^th quarter.”  

      6.       Minnesota Morris- The Cougars are on the rise, and could end up being one of the better teams in the conference by the end of the season. They turned the ball over too many times and could not withstand the Panther’s offensive onslaught for 4 quarters. But who can? QB Caleb McLaren looks like a promising young QB if he can avoid costly interceptions.

      7.      Martin Luther- Well it wasn’t the race to 50, but it did take 40 points for the Knights to fend off MacMurray. The defense was not quite as bad this week, granted against MacMurray, which could be a good sign for the Knights. If the defense can be respectable, QB Luke Rothe and the Knights will be a tough out especially at home.

      8.      Iowa Wesleyan- I’m just not sure where to put the Tigers just yet. St. Scholastica will manhandle several teams in the UMAC, but the Tigers look one dimensional on offense and the defense has been horrendous. They have played two very good opponents, but they are allowing an average of 51 points and 645 yards a game which is last in all of D3 football (Discaimer: Maranatha is actually listed as last with 622 yards because the NCAA has not included Iowa Wesleyan in their statistics yet). I expect the Tigers to improve, but they sure don’t look the part of a top 5 team in the UMAC.

      9.    MacMurray- It’s still early in the season, but MacMurray definitely looks like an improving football team. They are competetive, but still don’t quite have the winner’s attitude yet. They just need to win a couple of the close games, and this team’s confidence would really build.

10. Crown- I consider MacMurray and Crown to be 9a and 9b. Both are young teams that are improving. In Crown’s case, I think their program is headed in a much better direction. New stadium, uniforms, bigger recruiting class, and dedication to football excellence will really help Crown in the future. Until then, they need to pick up some quality wins against UMAC opponents. Unfortunately, that won’t happen against St. Scholastica.