Week Six Preview

As we overtake the mid-point of the UMAC football season, the picture becomes ever clearer week by week. The Martin Luther Knights have emerged as a force, and the underdog favorite (at least for me) to take control of the conference. If you missed it, the Minnesota paper Star Tribune did a nice little blurb on the Knights and their miraculous turnaround from being 0-10 just two years ago. It remains to be seen if they can ride this wave to the top, and potentially begin a new dynasty of Martin Luther actually being good at football, or if this is just a really good team that will fade back into obscurity. While that’s really interesting and all, we have games that are being played today, so let’s get to those!

Martin Luther at Iowa Wesleyan - The Tigers are coming off of a big win over Crown last week and it’s their homecoming, so they might have a little bit of momentum going into this one. The difference is that they’re playing a conference contender in the Knights. The pressure is squarely on Martin Luther to keep playing at such a high level, but I don’t think Iowa Wesleyan will be able to pull off the upset. MLC keeps rolling with the dub, 56-13.

Crown at Minnesota Morris - This is Crown’s best shot to win a game this year. The Cougars have been downright pathetic on offense this year, and while the Storm haven’t been much better, they need to get in gear early in this one to avoid another winless season. I’m not saying it’s impossible for Crown to win a game if they let this one slip away, but the road just gets tougher after this. Unfortunately, the odds are stacked against them in this one as well. Morris is coming out of a bye week after earning their first victory (and points in 2018) against Iowa Wesleyan, who just wrecked Crown last week, and they will travel to the Big Cat in Morris, which the Cougars are surprisingly tough at over the past few years despite their offensive struggles. I’m thinking Morris outlasts Crown in a tough battle, 21-13.

Westminster at MacMurray - This is the UMAC’s actual Game of the Week, which is just a little surprising, considering Northwestern’s stake in this week’s game against St. Scholastica, but it’s not a bad pick. Westminster spoiled the Highlanders chances at a title last year, so they will be looking for revenge at home in Jacksonville, Illinois. I think the Blue Jays won’t be able to pull the wool over MacMurray’s eyes this year, and they’ll fall to the Highlanders, 27-13.

Northwestern at St. Scholastica - This game has big implications. After falling to the Knights last week, the Saints face an uphill battle to get back to the D3 playoffs. They basically need to win out and hope for a loss or two for the Knights down the road to see the light at the end of the UMAC tunnel. The Eagles, on the other hand, are fighting to stay in that top tier of the UMAC and are still hoping and dreaming of that conference title. A loss to either team is essentially a dagger in their seasons, effectively eliminating them from conference contention. It’s do-or-die desperation time for both teams, so we should see a pretty competitive game, but I think the better team in St. Scholastica comes out on top in this one, 28-17.

This might honestly be the most competitively matched week we’ve had so far, so it should be a fun one! Stay tuned to the Twitter account for scoring updates! Good luck to all coaches and athletes this week, and stay safe!