Game of the Week

Humboldt State (1-1 GNAC, 5-1 overall) vs. Central Washington (3-1, 4-3)

This is an important one. This rivalry was a bit more heated a few years ago with Central Washington coming off it's dominant 2009 campaign and Humboldt State building up to its strength soon after. While that's not as consistent now, the importance on this game rests on the fact that the winner here keeps close to an Azusa Pacific team in the GNAC standings. Central Washington is out of the playoff picture and Humboldt's chances are very slim - with a loss to APU and a win over a very week Texas A&M-Kingsville squad not helping - but the GNAC title is still within reach and very important for both squads.

Key for the Lumberjacks is the potential return of stars Jeremiah Maluia at defensive back and Ja'Quan Gardner at running back. Humboldt's bye week last week will allow for 16 days of recovery time for both players to heal up before hosting the Wildcats.

Despite watching Azusa Pacific score 55 on the Lumberjacks two weeks ago, Humboldt State is one of the best defensively in the nation, holding teams to less than 17 points per game and just 292 total yards per game. Offensively - especially when backs Nick Ricciardulli and Gardner are in sync - the Lumberjacks are difficult to beat in the ground game. HSU puts up nearly 210 yards per game in rushing, an area where Central Washington has shown difficulties defending this fall.

Where the Wildcats shine consistently is pass defense, picking off a GNAC-leading 14 passes (next closest is two teams with eight), and holding teams to less than 192 yards in the air. Statistically speaking, Humboldt is better at overall pass defense (176 yards per game against), but the Wildcats and their interception ratio gets plenty of attention.

CWU quarterback Jake Nelson has shown significant growth this season while the running game needs to be something the 'Cats can rely on more. Central Washington is still trying to find its identity under new head coach Ian Shoemaker and while it's shown some good things, CWU is still inconsistent, espeically against teams that run the ball well. I see this going Humboldt's way, 31-21.

Western Oregon (1-1, 3-4) vs. Simon Fraser (2-1, 2-5)

While the standings wouldn't indicate this a must-watch contest, I'm actually looking forward to this matchup to see how well each team does. I'd like to see if Western Oregon keeps its place as a team that has promise, but finishes middle-of-the-road. I'd also like to see if Simon Fraser can pull off an upset like it's been known to do (ie, at Central Washington in 2013). We'll wait and see.

WOU quarterback Ryan Bergman had a typical Bergman day against Central Washington last weekend: Big yards (412), a couple of touchdowns (two) and a few picks (three). As he was against CWU last week, he's listed No. 2 on the depth chart behind Trey Shimabukuro but my guess is he'll get the nod for the Wolves, although Shimabukuro has taken more than a few snaps this year as well. Bergman and Co. are in the traditional place of No. 1 in the GNAC with passing yards, throwing for nearly 2,200 thus far this year (313 yards per game). Simon Fraser is suspect in pass defense, yielding nearly 300 yards and 3-plus touchdowns per game. This is hugely in favor for the Wolves.

Neither team relies on the run that much, and it's no surprise both are the bottom two teams in rushing yardage. This could be a pass happy game, which might lead to a fun contest, but a long game as well as the clock will stop quite often.

Western Oregon is at home and want to make up for the close loss to the Wildcats last week in Ellensburg. Let's go with the Wolves, 30-20.

South Dakota Mines (0-3, 1-6) vs. No. 24 Azusa Pacific (3-0, 6-1)

Trent McKinney vs. Terrell Watson.

OK, it's more than that, but both players are the respective go-to men for their teams. We're going to see plenty of rushing yardage for both teams. Will Watson hit 200 yards again for Azusa Pacific? Will McKinney get 100 yards on the ground and pass for another 200?

Both teams are fun to watch on the offensive side of the ball. South Dakota Mines averages a league-best 442 yards of offense a game. APU puts together more than 266 yards on the ground alone. The difference here? As good as Mines is offensively, the Hardrockers are porous on defense, with teams gaining 554 yards per game, including nearly 200 on the ground. That's not good.

Azusa gets this one to go 4-0 in league play and move up in the D2football rankings, 42-20.

Dixie State (0-7) vs. Menlo (2-5)
Menlo just got beat 70-2 last weekend. Dixie needs win No. 1 this weekend. It's homecoming in St. George, that provides a bit of motivation for the Red Storm.

Menlo did get by Simon Fraser last month and Simon Fraser owns a win over DSU already, but I see this going Dixie's way, 23-17.