September 22nd, 2009 12:00am
With just one game this week matching up top 25 teams, this week's slate upcoming of games may seem uneventful at first glance.
But upon further review, that isn't really the case.
In my opinion, this is actually the most important week of the regular season thus far. In "ESPN-speak" let's call this the Division II version of Separation Saturday. There are games all over the country that will catapult the winning teams into playoff and league title contender status, and put the losers at significant risk of not achieving preseason goals. By Saturday night we should start to have a pretty good feel for which teams to watch with great interest as the rest of the season unfolds.
Northern Sun Expanding and Increasing Scholarship Limits
The NSIC board of directors met earlier this week, and decided to accept applications from schools interested in joining the conference as it seeks to increase its membership from 14 to 16.
The applications must be received no later than June 1, 2010 and the two new members would begin conference play in the 2012-2013 school year. Interestingly enough, that is the year that the University of Sioux Falls and Minot State (both moving up from the NAIA) will be on target to become active members of Division II. USF would fit nicely in the south division of the conference and MSU would do likewise in the North.
Since there are no other D-II schools within in the footprint of the conference, and no area schools other than USF and MSU that have announced an intention to move to D-II, it would seem fairly likely that those two schools will be the ones added to the NSIC.
I do think having 16 members makes more sense than having 14 for obvious scheduling reasons, but many of these D-II conferences are becoming a bit too large for my liking. But we are in the age of the super-conference and this type of conference growth isn't likely to change anytime soon.
Also, the NSIC has decided to increase scholarship numbers in football by one per year over the next four years, which will increase the limit from 24 to 28. It is good to see D-II conferences like the NSIC looking to get more competitive nationally in the sport of football.
News, Notes and Thoughts from around the Country in Week Three
- Missouri S&T head coach Kirby Cannon and offensive coordinator Josh Richards were involved in an altercation with each other following their team's 21-17 loss to D-III Wisconsin Stevens-Point. The Miners are off to a 0-3 start and failed to score from their opponents' 8-yard line in the waning seconds of the game. The incident is still under review, according to athletic director Mark Mullin.
- Southeast Oklahoma State junior quarterback Justin Pitrucha saw his first extensive action since the 2006 season, throwing for 225 yards and two touchdowns in his team's 33-14 loss to Abilene Christian last week. Pitrucha was a first team All-LSC North pick in both 2005 and 2006, but missed the past two seasons to deal with some off the field issues.
- Apparently, Buck Wakefield makes the Carson-Newman offense much more explosive. The senior running back missed the first three games with an injury, but ran for 125 yards, led the team with three pass receptions and had three touchdowns in the Eagles' big win over UNC-Pembroke last week.
- A season that started with great promise is quickly unraveling for Michigan Tech. The Huskies lost a pair of close games to good opponents to start the season, but then completely melted down in an embarrassing 48-16 loss to rival Northern Michigan last week. To top it off, starting quarterback Steve Short and running back Phil Milbrath were both injured in that loss. With Grand Valley State coming to town on Saturday, MTU fans have probably already turned their attention to hockey season.
- UNC-Pembroke did not win at Carson-Newman last Saturday, but the young Braves performed pretty well and proved that they are not far away from being a top D-II team. With as young as UNCP is, next season is setting up to be a big year.
- I'm not sure if Ouachita Baptist's 24-14 win over Valdosta State says more about the Tigers' ability or if the Blazers are really that down this year. We will find out a lot more about Tigers after they host Delta State on Saturday.
- Chadron State's 28-game RMAC win streak ended in a 28-17 loss to CSU-Pueblo last week. Judging from how the Eagles have struggled so far, it's likely that it won't be the last league loss this year.
- The JJ Harp aerial circus continued last week as he threw for 602 yards and five touchdowns in his team's 76-56 win over Texas A&M-Commerce. Harp has now thrown for 2302 yards in just four games. It will be very interesting to see how he and the Greyhounds do against the better defenses in the league, starting with Abilene Christian this week.
- Simon Fraser was officially admitted to the GNAC this week and will begin conference play next season. The addition of SFU brings the league to five football teams.
Top Games this Week
American International (3-1) at Bentley (4-0)
Bentley has played very good defense so far, but Rob Parent and the AIC offense will have something to prove after being shut down by Southern Connecticut State last week. Both teams need a win in this game to keep pace with the Owls in the Northeast 10. American International 23 Bentley 13.
Hillsdale (3-1) at Ashland (3-1)
Both teams can score points and both have also been suspect defensively at times this season. For those reasons, I expect a rather entertaining game and high scoring game.
The bottom line to me is that Ashland quarterback Billy Cundiff is outstanding and I think he and the Eagles will be tough to beat at home. Ashland 31 Hillsdale24.
Newberry (2-1) at Carson-Newman (2-2)
This is the conference opener for both teams, but with two Division II losses already, every week is like the playoffs for Carson-Newman.
Newberry quarterback Brandon Gantt will probably give the Eagle pass defense some problems, but having a healthy Buck Wakefield makes the Eagle offense very potent. C-N should be successful in defending its home field. Carson-Newman 30 Newberry 21.
Charleston (4-0) at Shepherd (3-1)
The conference title in the WVIAC has gone through Shepherd for quite some time now, and although they are favored, the Golden Eagles will have their hands full trying to win on the Rams' home turf.
That said, this is not the same powerhouse Shepherd team of two and three years ago and I question whether the Rams can stop Charleston's rushing attack. Charleston 27 Shepherd 20.
Chadron State (2-2) at Nebraska-Kearney (3-1)
The Eagles appear to be in disarray after the surprising loss to CSU-Pueblo last week, but this is the kind of rivalry game where past performance gets thrown out the window.
UNK has more talent, however, and the Lopers will be favored to pick up their first win over the Eagles since 2005. Nebraska-Kearney 23 Chadron State 16.
Central Missouri (4-0) at Washburn (3-1)
The Mules are obviously off to a fine start, but haven't exactly been dominating in league play. Washburn will want to defend its home field after suffering a heart-breaking last second loss to Missouri Western last week. Washburn 28 Central Missouri 24.
Southwest Minnesota State (3-1) at Wayne State (3-1)
The Mustangs have been explosive offensively, but this is their first real road test of the season and it comes against a WSC team that will be eager to erase the memory of last week's overtime loss to Minnesota State.
WSC's Silas Fluellen and SMSU's Ryan Ratekin are a pair of outstanding quarterbacks, but WSC has more talent at most other positions on the field. Wayne State 31 Southwest Minnesota State 23.
Minnesota State (4-0) at Winona State (3-1)
WSU is sporting a 35-game home conference winning streak that will be severely tested this season. This is the first of three NSIC games against top 25 teams, which includes a visit from defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth in November.
The Mavericks have to be the favorite on paper, but this is developing into a tense rivalry and the Warriors are not going to want to have the streak end at the hands of Mavericks. Winona State 30 Minnesota State 28.
Missouri Western (4-0) at Pittsburg State (2-2)
Can the Gorillas get up off the mat and play with some confidence after two straight defeats? That is the big question going into this game.
MWSU can score points and the Griffons have always played PSU tough, so this should be a very good game. PSU needs to get off to a better start and match the Griffons early in the game or it could be another long Saturday for Gorilla fans. Pittsburg State 31 Missouri Western 28.
Colorado Mines (2-2) at CSU-Pueblo (3-1)
CSU-Pueblo served notice to the entire RMAC that they are already a major factor in the league after ending Chadron State's 28-game league winning streak last week. Both teams enter this game with 2-0 league marks.
CSM has finally gotten it going offensively the past two weeks, but the Orediggers have problems protecting the quarterback. Unfortunately, CSM is likely to have problems against a CSU-P defense that is physical and adept at causing turnovers. CSU-Pueblo 28 Colorado Mines 23
Delta State (2-1) at Ouachita Baptist (3-0)
DSU has recovered nicely from its season opening loss and has proven over the last two weeks that it is the team we all thought we would get at the beginning of the year.
OBU is coming off one of the biggest wins in school history after knocking off Valdosta State week. The question is if the Tigers can get up again to play another GSC power. DSU should win, but the Tigers are good enough on both sides of the ball to give the Statesmen a battle. Delta State 31 Ouachita Baptist 21
Mailbag
[Q] Why do you feel that there are so few D-II football teams in the western part of the country?
Kyle
[A] Two different reasons. Number one, many D-II schools in California that used to have football dropped the sport in the 90's because of Title IX concerns. This alone eliminated four football programs, and since then, a couple of others have moved on to D-I leaving Humboldt State as the only D-II program left in the entire state.
Secondly, outside of California, there just aren't many D-II schools in the West, period. The higher education structure in many of these states was set up differently than in the eastern part of the country, and tends to be more consolidated around a couple of major state universities. States like Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, and Utah either have no regional state universities (the types of schools that typically have D-II athletic programs) or so few that are there are big enough that they play at the D-I level (Idaho State, Weber State, Southern Utah, etc.).
Contact Me
Have a question, comment, or criticism? Want to have your question answered in the weekly Mailbag?
Email Bob.