By Don Stoner
Augsburg Sports Information Director

MINNEAPOLIS -- Last year, St. Norbert College was ineligible for the Midwest Conference football championship, thanks to a preseason scrimmage that violated conference rules. Grinnell College "ran the table," going 10-0 in the regular season, but was kept out of the NCAA Division III national playoffs.

This year, thanks to the new automatic qualifier rule, a Midwest Conference team is guaranteed a berth in the playoffs for the first time since 1993. And that team could be St. Norbert. But Grinnell is standing in the way.

The Green Knights are on a roll, having won their last five games in a row to stand at 5-1 and 5-0 in the Midwest, and a win at 4-2 Grinnell this Saturday at 1:30 p.m. would match St. Norbert's best start to a season since -- ironically -- 1993.

St. Norbert has put together some serious offensive numbers in its run toward the MWC championship, which would be its fifth overall and first since a run of three consecutive titles from 1987-89. The Green Knights are averaging nearly 400 yards per game of total offense -- 397.2, to be exact (238.3 passing, 158.8 rushing) and have scored 33.2 points per game.

The offensive numbers aren't surprising. First-year head coach Jim Purtill earned his stripes at Albion, where he was named Division III Offensive Coordinator of the Year in 1996. That year, the Britons averaged 538 yards and 50.8 points per game. He spent four years at Albion before being named the Green Knights' head coach this season.

Quarterback Tim Pierret has had an impressive season, with 1,328 yards passing and 12 touchdown tosses, with just four interceptions. Adding 110 rushing yards, he could threaten his school record of 1,903 yards of total offense.

The defense has been stingy as well, among the nation's leaders in fewest rushing yards allowed (71.7 per game). The linebacker trio of Jeremiah Janssen (42 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and five sacks), Josh Gehl (47 tackles) and Jason Piurkowski (42 tackles) have been virtually unstoppable.

"I believed that the conference champion would not go undefeated this year. Judging from common scores it looks like St. Norbert has an edge on paper to remain unbeaten," admitted Ripon coach Greg Wallace.

But it won't be easy to stop Wallace's Pioneers, who are smarting from a 63-20 loss at Ripon last week, breaking Grinnell's 17-game regular-season conference winning streak. The defending MWC champions are at home for the big game.

Grinnell allowed an amazing 622 yards of offense by Ripon, while just compiling 368 yards (97 rushing, 271 passing). But the Pioneers are as adept at putting up impressive offensive numbers, too. Consider Grinnell's 53-35 the week before against Illinois College. All Grinnell did was put up 522 yards, including 322 in passing from quarterback Troy Dougherty.

All signs point to an offensive show on Saturday in Grinnell, Iowa.

POINTERS READY TO CLINCH PLAYOFFS BERTH: This year's move to the automatic qualifier rule for the playoffs probably wouldn't have affected the champion of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The WIAC's champ has always been a virtual lock for the playoffs. But this week, Wisconsin-Stevens Point can make it official.

The Pointers, 6-0 overall and rated No. 9 in the AFCA national poll, can lock up the WIAC championship -- and the automatic berth to the playoffs that goes with it -- if it beats 3-3 UW-La Crosse this Saturday at La Crosse and if UW-Platteville loses to UW-Stout.

Stevens Point is on an 11-game winning streak, and would tie the school's longest-ever winning streak with a win Saturday. The Pointers topped UW-Whitewater 23-7 last week, behind an impressive college debut by freshman quarterback Dave Berghuis, who threw for 241 yards on 18-of-28 passing. Wally Schmitt rushed for 108 yards on 28 carries.

AHEAD IN THE CCIW: Circle the Oct. 30 date on your calendars in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, when AFCA No. 16 Millikin will play at No. 15 Wheaton. Both teams are 5-0 overall entering winnable games this weekend.

Wheaton has the tougher game with a matchup at 4-1 Illinois Wesleyan, hoping to win its third consecutive game in the series over the Titans and fourth in a row game over IWU in Bloomington, Ill. Meanwhile, Millikin hosts 2-3 Carthage, though Carthage has won the last two games in the series.

Games of the Week

Gustavus (5-1) at Concordia-Moorhead (4-2), 1 p.m., Moorhead, Minn.
Last year, it was the WIAC that had a four-team logjam. This year, it's the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, as four teams are tied at 4-1 in the league standings, the two teams playing here plus St. John's (5-1) and St. Thomas (4-2). Gustavus has been a solid offensive team, averaging 222.5 yards per game rushing behind the duo of Travis Prunty and Ryan Britz. Concordia, as usual, has been strong both in rushing (174 yards per game) and in defense (14.7 points per game allowed).

The Cobbers are coming off a 7-3 loss to St. John's, while Gustavus has won two in a row, including a 26-20 win last week against Bethel, which included a rare "hook-and-ladder" touchdown play. Quarterback Joe Thorvig tossed an 18-yard pass to Greg TeBrake. TeBrake lateralled to Ryan Britz, who ran the remaining 31 yards for the score with 20 seconds remaining in the first half. The play earned Compaq College Football National Play of the Week honors.

Central (6-0) at Upper Iowa (5-2), 1:30 p.m., Fayette, Iowa
No. 4 Central hopes to remain unbeaten in this matchup of the top two defensive teams in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Central and Upper Iowa rank 1-2 in nearly every conference defensive category. In fact, Upper Iowa is one of the top defensive teams in the nation, ranking 12th nationally in total defense (215.6 yards per game). Of course, Central isn't that far behind -- 21st (239.7 yards per game).

"We wouldn't frown on a 7-6 game," said UIU coach Paul Rudolph. "Last year, we both came in with defenses ranked pretty high, though, and it was a shootout (Central won 36-33). I think it will be lower scoring this year."

This column is drawn from a variety of sources, including the outstanding work and research of sports information directors from Division III schools all over the Midwest.