Thursday December 10, 2015
NORTHWEST MISSOURIAN
nwmissourinews.com V91 • N14
SEMIFINAL SHOWDOWN HANNAH WOODSON | NW MISSOURIAN
Northwest defeated conference foe Emporia State 38-17 in the quarterfinals. The Bearcats host West Georgia in the semifinals Saturday, Dec. 12 at 2:30 p.m.
The Bearcats face their toughest opponent yet in battle for a spot in the Division II National Championship TYLER MARTIN Sports Editor | @Tyler_Martin78
The Northwest Missouri State football team is one step away from its ultimate goal: a national championship game. The only thing standing in its way are the West Georgia Wolves. Beating the Wolves will be no easy task. The Wolves have the second best defense in all of Division II behind only the Bearcats. Head coach Adam Dorrel said there are some parallels between Northwest and West Georgia. “Obviously, there are some eerie similarities when you start looking at offense, defense and special teams,” Dorrel said. “Give them and us a pat on the back because that’s probably why we are where we’re at. Both programs do a very good job of being good in all three phases.” It’s never easy to game plan for a team you have never played with just one week of preparation time, especially at the Division II level. Although the Bearcats have never faced
off against West Georgia, they have had a few run-ins with their coaching staff. West Georgia Head Coach Will Hall coached at Southwest Baptist when it took on the Bearcats in 2005. The Wolves’ defensive coordinator was on the staff at Harding when the Bearcats defeated the team at home in the first round of the playoffs in 2012. Dorrel said although these two teams have never played each other, their talent level is obvious to him. “After watching film, they are what you expect them to be at this time of the year with only four teams remaining,” Dorrel said. “They will obviously be the best football team that we have seen. The things that stick out to me is their offensive and defensive line. They are extremely large, athletic and physical. From a team speed standpoint, they are the fastest team we have seen this year.”
CHAMPIONSHIPS 2ND ROUND
QUARTERFINALS
54-7
38-17 SEMIFINALS
VS SATURDAY, DEC. 12 @ 2:30 BEARCAT STADIUM
SEE SHOWDOWN | A5
HANNAH WOODSON | NW MISSOURIAN
Senior safety Bryce Enyard and junior linebacker Jacob Vollstedt tackle an Emporia State player, Saturday evening.
PM
HANNAH WOODSON | NW MISSOURIAN
Sophomore Cameron Wilcox rushed for 63 yards Saturday evening.
AN UNDEFEATED 2015 UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA AT KEARNEY (AWAY)
MISSOURI
31-0
48-7
SOUTHERN (HOME)
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL MISSOURI (AWAY)
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA (HOME)
NORTHEASTERN STATE UNIVERSITY (AWAY)
34-30
23-16
59-7
LINDENWOOD STATE UNIVERSITY (HOME)
PITTSBURGH STATE UNIVERSITY (AWAY)
FORT HAYS STATE UNIVERSITY (HOME)
MISSOURI WESTERN UNIVERSITY (AWAY)
EMPORIA STATE UNIVERSITY (HOME)
69-0
31-14
45-24
24-10
44-10
AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1914.
WASHBURN STATE UNIVERSITY (AWAY)
49-13 PLEASE
RECYCLE