Pacific Lutheran vs
Pacific (OR)
(2-2) (2-3)
Last Week: Pacific Luther bounced back from their loss
to Linfield and pulled off a big win, beating previously undefeated Lewis &
Clark 31-14. The Lute offense had a
semi-productive day statistically, putting up 436 yards of offense (273 through
the air, 163 on the ground). Dalton
Richey went 19-30 for 273 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Kyle Warner led the receiving core with nine
receptions for 195 yards and one touchdown.
Brandon James led the ground attack with 81 yards and a touchdown on 13
carries. Most impressively on the day,
the Lutes defense held an explosive Pios offense to 264 yards and forced a season-high five turnovers. Pacific is coming off an amazing 62-21
thrashing of Pudget Sound. The loggers
posted 526 yards of offense for the game, including 250 yards on the
ground. The points and yards were all
the highest single-game totals since the Pacific football program was
reinstated in 2010. Leading the day for
the Boxers was QB P.J Minaya, who went 25-30 for 276 yards and four touchdowns
with zero interceptions.
Thoughts entering the
game: On the surface, this game
looks like a match-up between two of the worst offenses in the Northwest
Conference. Pacific is fifth in the
conference in scoring and sixth in yards per game. Pacific Lutheran is sixth in scoring and
fifth in yards per game. The big
difference in the game comes down to defense:
Pacific Lutheran has the Number-one defense in the NWC in scoring and
yards allowed per game, while Pacific is sixth in both categories. While both teams are coming off impressive
wins, and Pacific has shown tremendous growth as a football program, Pacific Lutheran
has played against tougher competition and were super competitive against
Linfield and Cal Lutheran, two of the top ten teams in the nation. Pacific Lutheran is more talented on both
sides of the ball.
Winner: Pacific Lutheran
Lewis & Clark vs
Willamette
(4-1) (5-0)
Last Week: Lewis & Clark is coming off the first
loss of the season, a 31-14 defeat at the hands of Pacific Lutheran. The Pio offense was held to a season-low 264 yards and committed a season-high five turnovers; their lack of offense took
away all the chances the L&C defense created for the team to come back from
a 17-0 deficit. Willamette is coming off
a strong showing against Whitworth, where they rallied from three first-half
interceptions by Josh Dean and a 17-14 halftime deficit to win 38-24. The offense racked up 598 yards of offense
for the game, and the Bearcat defense tightened the lid on things in the second
half. Josh Dean, the top quarterback in
the conference, went 23-41 for 392 yards and four touchdowns with the three interceptions. The bearcat offense also pounded out 206
yards on the ground, led by Dylan Jones’ 131 yards on 22 carries. Josh dean added 43 yards on 12 carries.
Thoughts entering the
game: At this point in the season,
Willamette stands as the team with the best chance to dethrone Linfield’s
three-year reign of the conference. With
the number one offense in the conference at this point in the season, it’s
pretty easy to see why. Lewis &
Clark brings a high-caliber offense into the game as well, but are coming off a
game against PLU where they had a hard time getting anything going on that side
of the ball. While Willamette’s defense
isn’t quite as strong overall as PLUs, they do lead the league in turnovers
forced. Lewis & Clark’s defense is
second in the NWC in yards per game allowed, but the 73 points allowed in the
last two games has dropped their scoring defense to fifth in the NWC. Don’t be surprised if this game becomes a
shoot-out.
Winner: Willamette
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