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| Leading receiver Tim
Bartholomew and Wash U open with a team from the
OAC. Washington University athletics photo |
There are no shortages of storylines in the Midwest this season, from teams trying to maintain streaks, breaking glass ceilings, new challengers emerging to other teams trying to establish dominance in their own conferences.
Will North Central actually win its ninth consecutive College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin titles? Will Franklin really win five Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference crowns? Will Benedictine prevent Concordia (Wis.) from defending its Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference throne? Who will emerge as the champion under the Midwest Conference's new two-division format?
Yes, there are more storylines than you can shake a stick at. The fun part about it is that most of them will not be resolved until Nov. 15 and beyond. New teams and new players will emerge from predictions we have here, fooling us all, but that's the fun of having the season, so let it being. As of now, here are the 10 games in the Midwest we think you should keep your eyes on as the season progresses.
I may revisit this with a short list of five games at midseason, but here we go with my top 10.
Ohio Northern at Washington University, 2 p.m., Sept. 6: Things were already tough for Washington U. to make the playoffs as a Pool B team playing in the tiny University Athletic Association. Now that the Bears are in waiting mode with Case Western Reserve and Carnegie Mellon jumping to the Presidents' Athletic Association, that has become even more difficult even though they have received a vote in the Top 25 poll. That's why getting an impressive win over usually respectable Ohio Northern can help them make their case for more consideration. Of course, the Bears will need plenty more impressive wins and hope other teams ahead of them stumble along the way, but this game would be a good foundation builder.
Illinois College at St. Norbert, 2 p.m., Sept. 27: A lot has changed in the Midwest Conference since the last time these two teams played two years ago. The MWC has gone back to its North-South format, so as the conference favorites in their divisions, this matchup does not mean as much but it is still seen as sort of a preview of the potential title game. It is also the a match of wits between the conference top offensive player in Blueboys quarterback Michael Bates and new St. Norbert coach Steve Opgenorth. He replaces Jim Purtill who produced 11 MWC titles and 10 trips to the NCAA playoffs in 15 seasons. No pressure.
No. 25 Franklin at Mount St. Joseph, 1:30 p.m. Oct. 18: Even though the Grizzlies will be shooting for their fifth consecutive Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference title, a few other teams have started the close the talent gap. There was a time where Mount St. Joseph shared the top of the heap of the Franklin and Lions could have the talent to it again this season, led by the return of all-conference wideout Leonard Riston. The looming question for Franklin will be can Grant Welp actual fill the shoes of Jonny West as quarterback. How he plays against Mount St. Joseph will go a long way to answer that question.
Illinois College at Lake Forest, 2 p.m., Oct. 25: The Blueboys’ biggest challenge in its division will likely come from the Foresters. Even though the Illinois College defeated Lake Forest handily last season, the Foresters derailed the Blueboys’ title hopes in 2012 with an upset and coaches picked the teams to finish 1-2 in their division. The winner of this game will have the inside track to likely facing St. Norbert in the new conference title game on Nov. 15.
No. 6 North Central at No. 24 Wheaton, 8 p.m., Oct. 25: Yes, the battle for the Little Brass Bell always makes this list because it always seems to have playoff and conference title implications and this year will be nothing different. Particularly for the Cardinals, who will play Wheaton and Illinois Wesleyan, which could be ranked in the top 25 by this time, in back-to-back weekends, making the North Central prove their worthiness for a ninth straight CCIW crown.
Benedictine at Concordia (Wis.), 1 p.m., Nov. 1: After surviving a one-point nail-biter on a missed extra point last year that allowed the Falcons to run the table in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference, expect much more of the same this time around when Benedictine and Concordia lock horns again with the conference title on the line again in Mequon, Wis. Concordia roared back from two touchdowns down to win that game a year ago.
Illinois Wesleyan at No. 6 North Central, 2 p.m., Nov. 1: If North Central survives its trip to Wheaton, and then it gets the Titans to see it can beat its predicted two closest competitors on consecutive weekends. This time, the Cardinals return home where they should be the favorite.
Augustana at No. 6 North Central, 2 p.m., No. 8: This game will not show up on the radar of too many people but it did on mine. The Cardinals will be coming off of two predicted highly anticipated games against rival Wheaton and Illinois Wesleyan. Augustana was quietly picked fourth to finish behind the big three in the CCIW polls a few weeks ago, with six starters returning on offense and five starters returning on defense. If the Vikings are playing well at this time – well you never know but it is perfectly suited for one of the infamous "trap game scenarios," if you believe in those things of course. But Augustana will have the talent to pull it off. The question is will North Central be looking back at what it accomplished and looking too far ahead toward the playoffs to make the mistake?
Concordia (Wis.) at Wisconsin Lutheran, 2 p.m., Nov. 15: If the Falcons manage to get by Benedictine on Nov. 1, they will not be out of the woods in the NACC because Wisconsin Lutheran will still provide a strong challenge against the Falcons in the regular season finale. The Warriors lost to the Falcons in a wild high-scoring affair last season and Concordia could likely ill afford to take a chance to let the same thing happen again this season.
Hanover at No. 25 Franklin, 1:30 p.m., Nov. 15: The battle for the Victory Bell is always an interesting game between two rivals and not as much of a gimme as some outsiders may think for Franklin. The Grizzlies will have the home field advantage and likely will be HCAC title hopes and playoff implications on the line for extra incentive, but then again this is an old school, down-the-road in-state, bragging rights kind of rivalry. Hanover veterans like senior running back standout Spencer Corrao and junior All-HCAC performer Jake Stillwell would want nothing more than to stick it to Franklin on the final game of the regular season.
What big game did I miss? Drop me a line at clyde.hughes@d3sports.com or send me at direct message on Twitter at @clydehughes and tell me why your school's big game should have made my list and I will listen. Really, I will. Honestly.
