Now it gets serious.

Six teams have yet to put one in the win column; three have yet to lose. Enough prelude: let's go!

Seton Hill (0-2) at #6 Shepherd (2-0)

Based on what we've seen this season, does Seton Hill stand a chance of winning this game? Not unless Seton Hill's offense can turn things around.

Actually, that's not entirely fair: they had some good looking moments in the second half of last week's game against Assumption. The problem is those moments were periodic spurts and not the team's norm. The Griffins still committed way too many penalties (13 for 103 yards) for the second week of the season. Daniel Butler is doing a lot better in the running game than I expected, and D.J. Lenehan did play much better than he did against Slippery Rock. But for some reason, it just isn't coming together, and that something missing may be the offensive line. Still, the Griffins could have won if the defense didn't suddenly have a big letdown in the last eight minutes of regulation and again in overtime.

Naturally, Shepherd has looked dominant in the last two games, but it's especially in the second half where the Rams have excelled. Admittedly this is partially because of the competition they've faced so far, but frankly, it's been hard to find ANY weakness on Shepherd's team. I kind of expected more turnovers to be generated by the Rams' backfield, especially since the passing game was going to be the Pumas' strength last weekend anyways, but I know that I'm just nitpicking: holding the opponent to 45 net yards on the ground and less than 200 in the air is plenty effective.

Shepherd's defense is too physical for Seton Hill's offensive line to be able to open up running lanes and protect Lenehan effectively. The Griffins have a couple playmakers on defense but not enough to stop a Ram offense that hasn't lost a step from last season. Don't expect this game to be close.

Prediction: Shepherd 42, Seton Hill 10


West Liberty (0-2) at West Virginia Wesleyan (2-0)

Last season, it was a Bobcat win in this matchup (on the Hilltop, no less) that led people to start thinking that West Virginia Wesleyan was for real. Now the home team comes in as the likely favorite against a team predicted by the coaches as Shepherd's biggest challenger in the conference. Yeah, I think I can stop referencing preseason polls now.

Zach Amedro would have done pretty much anything to have a defense that has played as well as West Liberty's played last weekend, holding an experienced Southern Connecticut State team to 27 points. Unfortunately, watching the Hilltoppers' offense, it was clear to me that the new faces on that side of the ball haven't come together as a team yet. L.D. Crow's six interceptions were illustrative of how he hasn't figured out what kind of quarterback he wants to be yet: a deep vertical passer or someone who throws more short crossing and out patterns. Brandon Davis and Scott Victorio have provided virtually nothing on the ground either, and while special teams were better than against Edinboro, they're still cause for concern.

West Virginia Wesleyan may be 2-0, but there's still plenty to be concerned about. After the first quarter, the defense looked sharp until giving up a late touchdown in the fourth quarter, and the Bobcats were only saved by an offsides penalty on the ensuing onside kick. Adam Neugebauer was outstanding (so much so that he was the national D2Football.com Offensive Player of the Week), but the running game hasn't been anywhere near as good. Keith Dickens, the leading rusher the previous week against Millersville, had only 17 yards on the ground, and the Bobcats as a team only had 56. The defense has definitely been stronger against the run, though three sacks of Bentley quarterback Bryant Johnson don't look so bad either.

Eventually, West Liberty's offense is going to turn a corner and perform somewhere close to the level we've seen from the Hilltoppers in recent years. But I think it's still too soon for that to happen quite yet. Wide receivers T.J. Benners and Jon Meadows play the Texas Tech style of offense extremely well for the Bobcats, and even though West Liberty's defense will be the best that West Virginia Wesleyan has faced, it won't be quite enough.

Prediction: West Virginia Wesleyan 21, West Liberty 17


Concord (0-2) at Charleston (0-2)

Sometimes two games doesn't really tell you much of anything about a team. That can be said about these two squads, each fighting for their first win of the season.

Concord's offense actually looked better last week against a Division I-FCS opponent in Elon than it did in the season opener at home against Lenoir-Rhyne. We've seen plenty of ability from Zack Grossi for years now, though he's having to do it without Thomas Mayo to help him in the receiving corps. How much is that affecting him and putting extra weight on runningback Brian Kennedy? It's hard to know right now. How good is Concord's defense? We can't really tell from having to slow down an unusual wishbone-style offense and a bigger, deeper Division I team. This game will go a long way toward answering those questions.

Charleston's performance is somewhat understandable: it's what you'd expect with a new head coach and staff as well as a new offensive scheme. And it seems to work better for quarterback Maurice Leak and runningback Jordan Roberts. But why are the Golden Eagles struggling to score points? I've followed Urbana for a couple years now, and I know they lost a lot on defense this past offseason, so 17 points against that young of a defense raises a lot of questions. Giving up 31 points to Urbana is even more surprising (though Mars Hill, a better team, likely would have scored more were it not for four turnovers).

Right now, I think Concord is moving in the right direction, and facing an opponent more on its level can only help. Charleston's offense, much like West Liberty's, still hasn't come together yet (though it will eventually), and Concord has much more experience on both sides of the football. That experience pays off this week.

Prediction: Concord 28, Charleston 13


Game of the Week
Glenville State (0-2) at Fairmont State (2-0)

Glenville State has lost its two games by a combined score of 93-41. Fairmont State has won its two games by a combined score of 76-31. But if you switched the teams' schedules, it might be Pioneers at 2-0 and the Falcons at 0-2.

Quarterback Darold Hughes looked a lot better last weekend against North Alabama than he did against Carson-Newman. His passes came out sharper even though he has four interceptions on the season. Still, even if the numbers don't show it, he is the better man under center than Steffen Colon. Joe Mesadieu is a strong runner, but the offensive line hasn't been giving him enough openings to have a chance to show the breakaway speed we saw from him last season. Like with Concord, I won't criticize the defense too much given the offenses they've faced thus far.

Fairmont State, meanwhile, is looking for its first 3-0 start since its NAIA days. But quarterback Logan Moore is, I hate to say it, officially in a slump. I could forgive dropped balls and a bad night against Clarion in the season opener. But I expected more from him against an overmatched West Virginia Tech defense. Instead, I got less from Moore and more from Daniel Monroe, who is my early pick for second-best runningback in the conference (behind, of course, Shepherd's Tommy Addison). Monroe can't carry the whole load all season, though, so Moore has to step up this week. So do the Falcons' run defense, which still have has left something to be desired, just like last season, and facing a runner like Mesadieu, could be in for another tough time.

What Fairmont State does have right now on Glenville State is a better sense of protecting the football, and that will make all the difference in this game. Expect this one to stay close before the Falcons put this one away in the fourth quarter.

Prediction: Fairmont State 31, Glenville State 20


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