Nebraska Kearney 31
Central Oklahoma 27Northeastern State 10
Central Missouri 62Northwest Missouri State 38
Washburn 17Fort Hays State 13
Missouri Western State 23Pittsburg State 34
Emporia State 13Lindenwood 51
Missouri Southern State 13

The lone Saturday game in Week 2 was another one that was close at the half before the road team pulled away late. Lindenwood jumped out to a 20-0 lead early in the second quarter and then Southern scored on three straight drives to get within a touchdown going into the second half. LU Head Coach Jed Stugart must have had a heck of a halftime speech, as his team responded with four touchdowns in the third quarter to blow the game open. Missouri Southern ran for 231 yards, with running back Caleb Batie gaining a game-high 151 yards, but MSSU QB Sean Kelly gained just 33 yards through the air on 11 of 24 passing. He also threw an interception, which was returned for the second of the four third quarter Lindenwood touchdowns. LU QB Cade Brister completed 20 of 33 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns while adding another 57 on the ground. Erik Henneman caught 8 passes for 74 yards, and half of those receptions were touchdowns, and Lindenwood racked up 488 yards of offense.

Ranking the TeamsWeek 3 PreviewsMissouri Western State (1-1) at #19 Central Missouri (1-1) 1PM
Family DayMissouri Southern State (0-2) at #3 Northwest Missouri State (2-0) 1:30 PM
Family DayEmporia State (1-1) at Nebraska Kearney (2-0) 2PM
HomecomingWashburn (1-1) at #16 Fort Hays State (1-1) 7PMCentral Oklahoma (0-2) at Lindenwood (1-1) 7PM
Family Day#14 Pittsburg State (2-0) at Northeastern State (0-2) 7PM

In Week 3 of 2016, the Riverhawks came into the Jungle with a 1-1 record and came oh so close to a big upset, losing 38-37 in overtime after electing to go for two for the win and falling short. At the time, it looked like NSU Head Coach Rob Robinson had the Riverhawks going in the right direction after going winless in his first year in 2014 and 3-8 in 2015. Unfortunately for the NSU faithful, that game seemingly broke the spirit of the team, and they finished with just one more win in 2016, and last year the only win was against winless MSSU. Meanwhile, the Gorillas have enjoyed a bit of a resurgence after starting last year 2-4 and then running the table. They are 2-0 for the first time since 2015, and are looking to be 3-0 for the first time since 2014. Considering the 2016 contest was the only close game of the series since NSU joined the MIAA and the Gorillas have dominated the Riverhawks, the Gorillas will walk into Doc Wadley Stadium with a mental edge. Of course, they also likely have a physical edge, as they are better statistically than the Riverhawks in just about every category. The Gorillas are near the top in the league and the Riverhawks near the bottom almost across the board. I seriously doubt that changes in this game, and that divide only widens. Barring an injury to Roderique, this game is probably over early.

PSU 52
NSU 14


(Last week: 4-2)
(Season: 10-2)


As always, if you have any questions or comments, please post below! You can also follow me on Twitter @IanD2FMIAA