There might as well be a no-fly zone in place around Mount Union safety Alex Kocheff. Photo by Dan Poel, d3photography.com

At nearly 54 points per game, Mount Union has one of the nation's top offenses. Naturally, the Purple Raiders get plenty of headlines for their explosiveness.

Statistically speaking, though, Mount Union's defense can claim it is the country's best. The Purple Raiders rank at the top of nearly every defensive category and it's not even close in many cases:

Total yards per game: 1. Mount Union (136.3), 2. Linfield (179.3)

Rushing yards per game: 1. Mount Union (44.7), 2. Wabash (49.7)

Passing yards allowed per game: 1. Mount Union (91.6), 2. Linfield (116.1)

Points allowed per game: 1. Mount Union (3.4), 2. Linfield (6.8)

Opponents third down conversion percentage: 1. Mount Union (18.3), 2. Husson (19.7)

Well, you get the idea.

"We take tremendous amounts of pride in not letting people in the end zone and scoring and holding them to minimal yards passing and rushing," MU senior defensive end Tom Lally said. "When we are able to come out and do that, we feel like we have a great shot at making a run in the playoffs.

"The key to us being able to dominate is that we come to work every day. We lock it in during practice. We have a lot of talented players and our defensive coordinator, Chris Kappas, does a great job getting the plays in and the right plans to go against each team," he continued. "We don't change too much for each opponent; we stick to our base stuff and we come to work. We are a blue-collar defense and hang our hats on getting after the quarterback and stuffing the run."

Chemistry has played a big part in the Raiders' defensive success this year, too.

"We're all one big group of friends. I have never been a part of a group like this before where there aren't any cliques or anything. In years past, we might have had some cliques and different groups of friends, like most teams do. I think this year, we've just really meshed well. We have the right guys in the right positions to make plays," Lally said. "This year, everything seems to be all coming together for us. We have a lot of talent on the field, but we all have the same goal and that's a national championship. We're all together and we're all looking to get to the same place."

Head coach Vince Kehres has noticed the defense's closeness.

"We always want to have 11 guys on the same page. You need them to act together as one unit in order to have a good defense," he said. "With so many seniors, these guys have been together for four years and they work well together. They provide great leadership to the younger players as well."

Heading into the postseason, chemistry is enormous for a defense. If the players aren't all on the same page, it won't be long before the playoffs are the playovers.

"From here on out, one breakdown could be the difference in our season. We have to do our best to limit that. With us being so close, if something does happen, someone can step up and cover it and make up for it," Lally said. "We don't get down on each other if something bad happens. We have short-term memory and move onto the next play."

Mount Union's defense is seasoned, too. Lally and the rest of the seniors won a national championship in 2012 and have played in two other Stagg Bowls.

"One of the biggest factors for this group is that a lot of guys got play as freshmen in 2012. They were on a championship team and they saw what great leadership it took," Kehres said. "They have been on the other side of it the past couple years, but they are motivated and they know what it takes to be successful. Ultimately, to win championships, you have to play great defense."

Lally, a first team All-American last year, captured two program records in the team's 36-3 win over John Carroll, which locked up another OAC crown and pushed the team's regular season winning streak to 103. Lally became Mount Union's all-time leader in sacks (32.5) and tackles for loss (57.0).

"That's definitely special. Coming into this season, I knew I was close to those records. Those, along with an OAC championship and national championship were my goals," he said. "Those two records wouldn't be possible without all three other defensive linemen out there with me getting after the quarterback. A lot of sacks might have been forced to me by other guys getting pressure. You need three other good guys out there to get records like that. These are really records for all the defensive linemen I have been able to play with over my four years here."

Game of the week

Wabash rolled past DePauw, 45-17, to claim its seventh Monon Bell win in a row and secured the outright NCAC title. Mason Zurek set a Little Giants single-game rushing record with 278 yards on 38 carries in the victory.

"A Bell win is nice but this is the last year I get to play football so at least I have one more week and maybe more," Zurek said in a postgame interview.

Down to the wire

Hiram produced its third come-from-behind win in the last five weeks when it upended Oberlin, 24-21. The Terriers saved their best for last, too. With little more than two minutes remaining, Nic Paolo hit Nate Eaton for a 98-yard touchdown, which set the program record for the longest pass play.

Going dancing

Mount Union, Wabash, Thomas More and Albion all punched their ticket to the postseason party. Albion and Wabash meet in the first round and the winner could face Thomas More, if the Saints defeat Washington and Lee.

In the polls

No. 1 Mount Union (10-0) finished the regular season on top with a 36-3 win over John Carroll. The Purple Raiders meet St. Lawrence to open playoff action.

No. 7 Wabash (10-0) claimed the NCAC crown with a 45-17 victory over DePauw. The Little Giants play host to Albion in the playoffs.

No. 9 Thomas More (10-0) enjoyed a bye week. The Saints open the postseason at home against Washington and Lee.

No. 23 John Carroll (8-2) slipped eight spots with its 36-3 setback to Mount Union.