2008 NAIA Football Weekly Report - #2
Sept. 19, 2008
A Brief Look Inside: Report #2 || Complete PDF Version
Page 1 Winningest Teams of the 2000s
Game of the Week; Games to Watch
Page 2 Streaks
Carroll’s (Mont.) Legacy: More Wins Than Oklahoma
Cris Reisert Record Watch
Page 3 Hank Biesiot: Chasing History
What is the Toughest Conference?
Useful Nuggets in 2008
Page 4 Nearing 100 Coaching Wins
New Home for Championship
Page 5 Looking Back at 2007
VSN First Down Classic
Page 6 Postseason Dominance in the 2000s
Page 7 Active Coaching Lists
Page 9 National Individual Statistical Leaders
Page 10-11 Composite Schedule: Aug. 23 - Sept. 21
Page 12 Week-By-Week Top 25 Polls
2008 NAIA Football Season Report #2
There have been a few surprises and a few constants as we move into Week 4 of the NAIA football season.
St. Francis (Ill.) and Union (Ky.) are a couple of the shockers thus far. With two wins, one over an NCAA FCS member Valparaiso (Ill.) and No. 8 St. Xavier (Ill.), St. Francis has leaped into the national spotlight with a No. 22 ranking. The Saints’ success has been a long time in coming -- overall, USF has won four straight, the longest streak since 1991. Union is 2-0 and was ranked No. 18 (tie) in this week’s Coaches’ Poll -- the first Top 25 ranking for the Bulldogs since the 1996 season. Included in their fast start is a win over No. 24 Malone (Ohio) last week.
On a different note, Bethel (Tenn.) has been one of the surprises in its 0-2 start. A Football Championship Series Quarterfinalist last season, Bethel has dropped games to NCAA Division III Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Concordia College Selma. The Wildcats have fallen from No. 5 in the preseason poll to No. 24 this week.
No. 1 Carroll (Mont.) continues to keep winning. In fact, the Fighting Saints ride an 18-game winning streak into their game with No. 15 Montana State-Northern in the “NAIA Game of the Week.” Carroll, who is under the quarterback direction of freshman Dane Broadhead, has more wins this decade than NCAA schools such as Grand Valley State (Mich.) and Oklahoma. The top five teams (Carroll, Sioux Falls, Missouri Valley, St. Francis (Ind.), Ohio Dominican) in the NAIA Coaches’ Poll continue to dominate their opponents in the early going. These schools own a combined 504-94 scoring advantage.
Northwestern (Iowa) head coach Orv Otten is looking to reach 100 career wins for the second straight week. This week, Northwestern travels to winless Nebraska Wesleyan. With the win, he would become the 13th active coach to hit 100 career tallies. Two other coaches have a shot at the century club this season: Dale Carlson of Ohio Dominican stands with 98 wins while Monty Lewis of Friends (Kan.) sits with 95.
Game of the Week:
• No. 1 Carroll (Mont.) at No. 15 Montana State-Northern • Sept. 20 • 1 p.m. MST • Blue Pony Stadium:
A battle of the lone undefeated teams in the Frontier Conference (FC) and an 18-game overall winning streak are on the line as the No. 1 Carroll College Fighting Saints travel to Havre, Mont., to face No. 15 Montana State-Northern. The winningest program this decade with 102 wins including 18 straight, Carroll’s storied tradition has included five national championships in the last six years and eight straight FC Championships (outright or tied). The offense has not missed a beat, despite turning to its second quarterback this year and freshman, Dane Broadhead. Piling up 119 points in three games, the Saints went on a 27-0 second half scoring surge last week in the Rocky Mountain win.
MSU-Northern running back Justin Moe leads the league in rushing with a 121 yards per game clip and also in scoring (15.0). The Lights look to play better at home this year --- they went 2-4 at Blue Pony Stadium in 2007. Both defenses have been the showcase in recent meetings. This year has the making’s of another offensive struggle. In national statistics, MSU-Northern ranks sixth in rushing defense (60.0) and 12th in overall defense (240.0) while Carroll is an edge better -- 5th in rushing (38.7) and eighth in defense (204.3).
Last year, Carroll extended its record to 28-7 in the overall series after a pair of 10-3 wins. MSU-Northern limited Carroll to a season-low for points in both contests. In the two games, Carroll averaged 277 total yards of offense while MSU-N totalled just 225 on average. The Lights owned a +2 turnover margin (4-2).
