By Jason Bowen
D3sports.com

For Mary Hardin-Baylor quarterback Josh Saenz, the memory of last season's semifinal 16-7 loss to UW-Whitewater is still crystal clear.

"Being in that locker room after, we lost," Saenz reflected. "That wasn't fun. I was hoping we'd get back there to play them again. Sure enough, we're here."

But what made it all the more painful was the feeling of missed opportunity. Trailing 13-7 in the fourth quarter on the frozen turf of Perkins Stadium, UMHB had driven to inside the Whitewater 10-yard line but came away with no points.

The Warhawks added a game-clinching field goal a few moments later and went on to defeat Mount Union the next week to clinch the 2007 national championship.

It was the Crusaders' third loss in 13 months to Whitewater. The Warhawks had bombed UMHB 41-14 six weeks earlier and squeezed past them 7-3 a year before in Belton during the 2006 season.

Over the past five seasons, the Crusaders have probably been the third best team in Division III football. They advanced to the Amos Alonzo Stagg in 2004, upsetting Mount Union in the semifinals before falling 28-21to Linfield.

So on Saturday, UMHB gets a chance at not only avenging those three losses to the Warhawks, but a return to the Stagg Bowl to play for a national championship that has eluded them.

Crusader coach Pete Fredenburg knows that knocking off the defending national champions wouldn't be easy. But perhaps no team outside of Mount Union has been more dominate during this season's tournament than the Crusaders.

UMHB has posted back-to-back romps over Washington and Jefferson (63-7) and Wesley (46-14) after defeating America Southwest Conference rival Hardin-Simmons 38-35 in the opening round.

"We, obviously, think Whitewater's an excellent football team," Fredenburg said. "They're a team that does a lot of good things that we try to emulate.

"They are a great program with excellent coaches, good players and all of those things. We certainly respect them. We're not intimidated by them, but we do respect them. We know we've got an enormous challenge to beat a team and program like Whitewater. But I think our guys are looking forward to the opportunity."

However, for the first time in their deep playoff runs of recent years, the Crusaders will get to host a semifinal game. UMHB traveled to frigid and snowy locations in Whitewater last season and Alliance, Ohio back in 2004.

"Home field advantage in the playoffs, it's huge," Saenz said. "I'd rather play where it's 70 degrees instead of zero like it is up there."

Not that the Crusaders failed poorly in either location nearly knocking off Whitewater last year and being one of the few program to beat the Purple Raiders in Alliance.

"We're a whole lot more excited than going into Wisconsin," Fredenburg joked about the frigid north. "It was a neat experience, but once you've had that neat experience you can just tell stories about it, you don't need to relive it."

One of the big reasons, that UMHB is in this position again has been they efficient play of Saenz. The senior has started all three playoff victories after sharing the starting role this season with sophomore Kyle Noack.

Saenz has rushed for a team-best 742 yards and 10 touchdowns this season, including 253 during the playoffs. But has been has been his pinpoint passing during the tournament that has really made the Crusader offense take off. The senior completed less than 50 percent of his passes during the regular season, but has completed 19-of-31 (61 percent) during the playoffs. Those numbers include 365 yards and five touchdown passes and no interceptions.

Saenz has applied the same patience learned from backing up four-year starter Josh Welch on the field this season.

"It was tough," Saenz said of backing up Welch. "Josh was good player and it was good in a way I got to learn a lot from him.

"The way I looked at it was, whenever I got a chance to get in there, I just played my best and got experience" Saenz said. "I learned a lot from it. I really appreciate him teaching me the things he did."

And even this season, Saenz has hardly had the job handed to him having to compete and split time with Noack.

"We have great confidence in both of them," Fredenburg said. "The thing that Josh has done ever since he was a sophomore and decided that he was going to stay here was devote himself to this team.

"He devoted himself to getting better as an athlete and as a quarterback. He has demonstrated an incredible work ethic and it's showing up. The intangible qualities of a competitor have come out. He is demonstrating the leadership and kind of things that it takes when somebody really works to earn his position."

"I grew to like the program a lot," Saenz added. "I like the coaches and staff. I knew it was a winning program and they'd be going somewhere, so I just stuck it out and grew with it. I'm glad I did. And here we are now."

Saenz credits his father, a football coach for over 20 years, for developing his strong work ethic and team concept.

"He's was always on me when I was younger as a coach instead of a dad," Saenz said. "(He was) always making me work hard and I owe him a lot for respect for that.

"He always told me if you aren't working out, there's somebody else out there that is, getting ahead of you."

And even though he's shared time with Noack, who has put some good numbers too by completing 65 percent of his passes for 547 yards and six touchdowns, their relationship has been a positive one.

"It's doesn't matter who's in there, we're backing each other up," Saenz said. "We watch film and goof off all the time (saying) ‘I would have done this' just playing around.

"He's a great guy. I'm glad they got him so when I leave he'll be a great quarterback next year."

All this has led to a team that has hit its stride after a disappointing midseason loss to Southern Oregon and numerous injuries. The team averaged nearly 50 points a game in their three playoff victories.

"Injuries, that hurt us at the beginning of the year," Saenz said. "It's tough having a different running back or different anybody in there every week trying to get everything straighten out."

The movement of Bryson Tucker (675 yards) from defense to tailback has spurred the running game, along with the return to health of Matt Hurst (558 yards, 10 touchdowns.)

The Crusaders have also gotten great play from an offensive line led by D3Football.com All-South region guard Josh Littlejohn.

"The offensive line is just getting better and better," according to Fredenburg. "The more we play and the more intense the game is, the better they are performing.

"I thought last week was their best performance. In order to move to move the ball against Whitewater, to even have a chance, they have to raise their level of play even more so. They understand that."

Fredenburg also credits his receiving corps for helping the passing game become more explosive than in past years. The Crusaders are averaging nearly 150 yards a game through the air and nearly 18 yards per reception.

"They've probably enjoyed the best group of receivers we've had," Fredenburg said of unit that features six players with ten or more catches.

Pi'Dadro Davis (22 catches) and Brian Scott (15 catches) have combined for 14 touchdown receptions and both average more than 27 yards per reception.

"We're just clicking," Saenz said. "We're just playing together. We're all on the same page. We've been doing this for 14 weeks and now it's just finally like clockwork."

If they can keep clicking this week, Mary Hardin-Baylor may find itself back in the national championship game.