After UMHB, conference getting a shakeup
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The Crusaders have won the last four ASC titles and so far this season, have outscored opponents 101 to 14 in their first two games. This weekend they host McMurry, who fell to Mississippi College 61-14 last week and is desperate to snap a 16-game losing streak and get coach Hal Mumme his first Division III win. This probably won’t be the week for “The Nation,” as the team formerly known as Indians is getting referenced these days.
At the start of the season, it appeared it would be Hardin-Simmons would be that challenger. The Cowboys lost twice to UMHB last season by a total of five points in 2008. But devastating injuries that include quarterback Justin Feaster and two straight losses have the Cowboys title hopes on life support.
How much will Feaster play this week after making a surprise appearance last week? It’s hard to say. He still falls within the medical redshirt guidelines if he doesn’t play the rest of the season. Getting a do-over for his junior year wouldn’t be all bad if the injury is serious enough to keep him below his usual high level of play. As we all know on the Division III level, football glory isn’t the only goal most players have. It’s good that Feaster would have the option of another year.
However, don’t be too ready to kick dirt over Hardin-Simmons coffin just yet. The Cowboys could place themselves back in contention with wins at Mississippi College this weekend and an upset of UMHB in Abilene next week. Of course, that is easier said than done but the Cowboys have only lost two in a row three times since 1992. They haven’t lost three in a row in this decade. You don’t win as many games as they have over the past decade and walk into a game with no chance.
HSU coach Jimmy Keeling said last week before the loss the Cowboys goals haven’t changed. And even after last week’s disappointment you wouldn’t expect to change. He told the Abilene News Reporter this last week.
“We think our goals are still in place and our desires and intentions are the same,” he said. “We’ve just got to do it. We’re going to have to do it a different way with some players that are a little bit different. But that’s why it’s a team. It takes a bunch of guys to be a team, and we’ve got guys that will step in and do a great job, we think.”
 Ben McLaughlin was 18-for-32 passing for 177 yards and a touchdown in Louisiana College's win aganist Hardin-Simmons. Louisiana College athletics file photo |
It was the Wildcats' first win in ten tries against the Cowboys, who started the season ranked fifth in the nation. After slow improvement since the LC football program was restarted in 2000, which includes last season’s 7-3 finish, it’s LC’s first win over a team with a nation reputation.
"I think when we look back," Coach Dennis Dunn told Thetowntalk.com, "There is no question this will be a marquee win in the development of the football program at Louisiana College."
No doubt Dunn will have to get his team refocused after such an emotional win because the next three games will tell whether the Wildcats are now indeed ready for prime time in the ASC. They travel to Alabama this weekend to take on a Huntingdon team that was 8-2 last season and has won two of three this year. After which, they return to ASC play at home against Mississippi College before traveling to UMHB on Oct. 10.
Dunn felt in preseason that an improved running game that returned five starters on the offensive line would be a key to success. So far the ground game hasn’t disappointed. Last season, the Wildcats averaged just 78 rush yards a game but this year they’ve averaged 191 a game after two games.
Throw in the return of quarterback Ben McLaughlin, a starter in 2006 and 2007, and the Louisiana College offense now has balance. The Wildcats have averaged nearly 250 yards a game through the air too.
Still Dunn knew at the beginning of the season that the defense was his team’s strength. After the unit ranked near the top of the ASC last season, thus far they’ve forced eight turnovers, including six interceptions. They are currently third in the ASC in total defense allowing less than 300 yards per contest.
Mississippi College (2-1) also looks like a challenger. The Choctaws bounced back from a loss to NAIA power Cumberlands to roll over an improved McMurry team 61-14 on Saturday. The return of quarterback Adam Shaffer has them scoring points in bunches (44.7 per game), but they’ve also been giving them up in bunches (37.7.) Shaffer, coming back from his second season-ending injury in three years, has been tremendous. The senior has completed just over 70 percent of his passes and thrown nine touchdown passes without an interception for a unit averaging nearly 400 yards of total offense a contest. Will that be enough to win shootouts the next three weeks against HSU, Louisiana College and UMHB? The Choctaw defense will have to step. We’ll see.
East Texas Baptist (1-2, 1-0 ASC), or Howard Payne (2-0, 0-0 ASC) could be good stories. But they don’t take on the conference favorites until later in the season. The Tigers got their first ASC win over Sul Ross State last weekend after a brutal pair of non-conference losses to UW-La Crosse and Redlands.
The Yellow Jackets host SRSU in their ASC opener Saturday, looking to move to 3-0 for the first time since 2006. If things fall into place Howard Payne could be 5-0 heading into an Oct. 17 match up against Hardin-Simmons.
Centre of attention
Centre knocked off Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference preseason favorite and 20th-ranked DePauw 34-24 on Saturday. The win kept the Colonels unbeaten at 3-0 and marked them as a bona fide contender for the conference crown.
Centre built a 34-3 lead by early in the fourth quarter, then survived a 21-point rally by the Tigers.
“We played about as well as I’ve seen us play the last three years in the first two quarters,” Coach Andy Frye told amnews.com. “We were moving the ball well. The things that hurt us were turnovers. We had two fumbles late in the fourth quarter. You’ve got to secure the ball. A good team will always capitalize on those types of mistakes.”
Sophomore Tyler Osterman has followed up a promising freshman year by averaging nearly 300 yards of total offense a game so far. Brian Sneed, a senior linebacker, has headlined the defense and twice been named SCAC defensive player of the week.
The Colonels will host Austin College this weekend. The Kangaroos (2-1, 0-1 SCAC) are coming off a heart-breaking 31-30 loss to three-time defending SCAC champion Millsaps last weekend. The Roos can ill afford a loss if they plan staying in the SCAC title hunt. Centre needs this game too. They’ll travel to both Millsaps and Trinity later in the season.
Do you believe in miracles?
Trinity (3-0, 1-0 SCAC) will return to Jackson for the first time since the “Mississippi Miracle” of 2007. Last season, there were no miracles for the Tigers as Millsaps (2-1, 1-0 SCAC) handed them their first home SCAC loss in eons by a 56-27 margin. After winning ugly the first two contests, the Tigers offense found some continuity in a 40-19 win over SCAC rival Rhodes.
Quarterback Patrick Dickinson came off the bench impressively completing 18 of 22 passes for 265 yards with three touchdowns, while running back Chris Baer broke out with 123 rushing yards. The Tiger defense forced six turnovers while allowing just 212 yards.
Millsaps pulled off another mini miracle of their own against Austin by scoring ten points in the final five minutes to earn a one-point win. It’s tough to get a good read on this game, but it should be exciting. The winner clears a major obstacle out of the way on the road to the SCAC title.
Contact info
My travels this week will take me to Georgia to broadcast the Wesley/LaGrange game. I am looking forward to giving you an eyewitness account of Division III football in the Peach state. The Panthers went from 0-20 in their first two seasons, to a playoff team last season. I am interested to see how the collapse of the Saint Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and a 1-2 start have affected coach Todd Mooney and his program as the take on the fifth-ranked Wolverines. You can reach me at jason.bowen@capital.k12.de.us, Conrad on Post Patterns or on Facebook at Facebook.com/jasonbowen3. Enjoy your weekend!