By Don Stoner
Augsburg Sports Information Director
MINNEAPOLIS - It's what's great about Division III football.
It seems as though every week this season, each of the four conferences in this region has had at least one "big game," which is vitally important for conference championships, playoff berths, and, possibly most vital, college pride.
This week is no exception.
Perhaps the biggest game of the week in the region is in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, where Wartburg College hosts Luther College on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. No. 7-ranked Wartburg is 5-0, has a 16-game IIAC winning streak and a 14-game home winning streak, and is aiming to even its record with IIAC rival Central (6-0), which is idle this week. On the other hand, Luther has rebounded from an 0-3 start with two dominating victories -- the 74-0 first-half slaughter of Dubuque two weeks ago and a 17-7 upset of Coe, which had entered the week rated No. 20 in the AFCA Top 25.
But that's not the real reason this game is so big. The two schools share one of the deepest and fiercest rivalries in the IIAC. And though Luther hasn't beaten Wartburg since 1991, the series is even -- 28-28-1. Last year, the Knights evened the series by holding on late for a thrilling 20-17 victory.
There are many great stories in this exciting rivalry between the two Evangelical Lutheran Church in America schools in northeast Iowa, from recently retired Wartburg sports information director Duane Schroeder. Scroll down for the complete story.
This year's Norse-Knight tilt pits the best rushing offense in the IIAC (Wartburg, 252 yards per game) against an improving Luther passing offense, which used a 311-yard passing day from quarterback Jacob Nimrod to score the upset win over Coe last week. Plus, Wartburg and Luther have the second- and third-rated defenses in the IIAC, respectively.
"I think we can play with anyone right now," said Luther coach Brad Pole. "It ought to be a dandy in Waverly. In a rivalry situation, you can almost throw records and those things out the gates. People on both sides play really high. It's one of those things in athletics that draws out the best in people."
While the Norse has come on strong in the past two weeks, gaining more than 1,000 yards of offense in the two wins, Wartburg has struggled in its last two wins, a 21-20 victory at Upper Iowa on Sept. 23 and a 23-20 win last week against Buena Vista. Wartburg had to rally from a 20-3 deficit in the fourth quarter with three touchdowns, two from leading rusher -- and Wartburg Homecoming King - Tyler Molstre.
Other top games
St. John's at Gustavus, 1:00, Saturday, St. Peter, Minn.
The biggest game in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference this week pits MIAC leader and AFCA No. 6 St. John's (5-0) against conference contender Gustavus (3-2), which faces its third nationally-ranked opponent in its first six games. The Gusties opened the season with a last-minute, 14-7 loss at Trinity (Texas) and were edged 14-13 on Sept. 23 by Bethel, now ranked No. 20 in the AFCA poll.
The Johnnies, as usual, have been the dominant force in the MIAC, scoring 40 or more points in four of their five victories, while holding their opponents to seven points or less in their last four victories -- the first time that has happened since 1992. Legendary head coach John Gagliardi has his Johnnies on a serious roll, using quarterback Tom Linnemann and a strong defense ranked No. 1 in the league in virtually every category.
Meanwhile, the Gusties, under seventh-year coach Jay Schoenebeck, have been a pleasant surprise in the MIAC, despite losing 16 starters to graduation last year. The defense has been solid, recording 23 sacks in five games -- eight from junior tackle Josh Peterson. However, the game may come down to the performance of Gustie quarterback Joe Thorvig, who has been both spectacular (456 yards passing and four touchdowns in the last two Gustie victories, 39-22 over Concordia and 42-14 at Carleton) and shocking (six interceptions in the 14-13 loss to Bethel).
UW-La Crosse at UW-Stout, 1:30, Saturday, Menomonie, Wis.
Yes, indeed, UW-Stout is, in fact, for real. Wins over UW-Stevens Point (16-8), UW-River Falls (34-13) and UW-Eau Claire (17-14) in the past three weeks have cemented the Blue Devils' 5-0 record and No. 8 ranking in the latest AFCA poll. But another big game looms, this time against defending Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference co-champ UW-La Crosse (3-2). Both teams are 3-0 in the WIAC.
Stout has one of the nation's leading defenses, ranked fifth in the nation (187.8 yards per game) in total defense and eighth in scoring defense (8.8 points per game). Linebacker Steve Miller (41 tackles) and defensive back Eric Moe (four interceptions) have led the way. The offense is solid, utilizing freshman running back Luke Bundgaard and his five touchdowns.
La Crosse has become an offensive power in the WIAC under first-year head coach Larry Terry, averaging 405.7 yards per game in conference play. The offensive explosion coincided with the return of senior quarterback Andrew Youngbauer to the starting lineup, replacing season-starter Josh Boraas. Youngbauer has thrown for 934 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions in his four games. His major target has been wide receiver Nick Wagner, who has caught 20 passes in the last three games.
Stout head coach Ed Meierkort provides the quote of the week, comparing the tradition of the Eagles (15 WIAC titles since 1966) and his Blue Devils (no titles in the same span) -- "This week, it is David and Goliath. They have more conference championships than we have practice dummies."
Ripon at Grinnell, 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Grinnell, Iowa
A matchup of two Midwest Conference contenders, as both Ripon (4-1) and Grinnell (3-2) enter the game with identical 3-1 league records.
Ripon enters the game on the heels of an impressive 40-7 win against Lake Forest, behind 215 rushing yards and two touchdowns from running back Troy DeVoe and two Brock Bauer-to-Dan Henken touchdown passes. The defense also picked off a pass and corralled the Lake Forest quarterback four times for sacks. DeVoe is averaging 103 rushing yards per game and has five touchdowns this season, and the defense has 15 sacks and seven interceptions through the first half of the season.
Grinnell is coming off a 34-31 loss to MWC surprise team Illinois College, a victory for the Blueboys over the Pioneers for the first time since 1994. Sophomore running back Adam Wallace has been the Pioneers' rushing workhorse, leading the conference in rushing (136.5 yards per game), scoring (13.5 points per game) and all-purpose yards (172 per game). He has had 100 yards rushing in four of the Pioneers' five games this year.
Kudos to Christopherson
A final tip of the cap to Concordia-Moorhead head coach Jim Christopherson, who announced this week that he will retire at the end of this season, after serving 32 years as the Cobbers' head coach. In fact, Concordia has had just two head coaches since 1941 - Jake Christiansen (1941-68) and Christopherson (1969-2000). Christopherson currently has a 216-98-7 career record. Christopherson will retire with a reputation as one of the true class acts in college football, and his presence on the sidelines will be greatly missed.
Simpson's Williams goes for win No. 100
Simpson head coach Jim Williams will attempt to win his 100th career game, becoming just the 25th Division III head coach to accomplish the feat, as the Storm hosts Buena Vista Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in Indianola, Iowa. His Storm have won four IIAC titles since 1998, qualified for five NCAA tournaments and completed three unbeaten regular seasons in the last decade.
365 sporting events in 365 days
The Ultimate Sports Fan Tour hits Simpson's game against Buena Vista. Matt Malm, the self-proclaimed "Ultimate Sports Fan," is planning to hit 365 sporting events in 365 days in his motor home. The tour started at Super Bowl XXXIV, has included stops at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, NCAA Division I Men's Final Four and many pro sporting events. The tour is sponsored by UsFans.com, a fan advocacy group.
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.
Stories from a storied rivalry
By Duane Schroeder, Wartburg Sports Information Director (retired)
Wartburg will put its 5-0 record and No. 9 ranking in the latest NCAA Division III poll by the American Football Coaches' Association on the line this Saturday when it hosts arch-rival Luther College, which is hoping to play "giant killer" for a second-straight week after upsetting 20th-ranked Coe, 17-7, Saturday to improve to 2-3. That should add some excitement to one of Division III's top football rivalries, which has never been lacking in intensity.
These two arch-rivals enter Saturday's game with the series record appropriately knotted at 28-28-1, following Wartburg's thrilling 20-17 win last year, also in Waverly.
The series wasn't always that close. When Don Canfield became the Knights' head coach in 1973, the Norse were a dominant football power, not only in the Iowa Conference but throughout the Midwest, and led the series 20-9-1.
At a point in time when most college football squads were made up of 60 to 70 players, legendary Norse coach Edsel Schweizer, who also doubled as a psychology professor, was frequently able to dress more than a hundred.
"The field seemed to tilt," opponents said when Luther took the field, which then was located on the upper level of the Decorah campus. Retired Wartburg sports information director Duane Schroeder recalls phoning Warren Berg, Luther's sports information director at the time, after he had received a Luther roster for a game program and telling him, "I asked for a roster, not a student directory." Schweizer, behind such marquee players as Kent Finanger, Brad Hustad, John Pake and Gerry Anderson, compiled a 150-78-6 record from 1952 until his retirement in 1977.
But Wartburg's football fortunes turned around in the '80s and '90s, and the Knights have been able to claw their way back to even. At the moment, they are riding a seven-game win streak over the Norse.
Last year's 20-17 win over the Norse typifies the series. Records, indeed, go out the window. Wartburg was en route to its seventh Iowa Conference football championship and its first perfect regular season record ever, while Luther was struggling to a 2-8 record, yet it took a last minute pass break-up by cornerback Bo Harris to preserve the Knights' win. In 1961, Wartburg's Eldon Ott intercepted a pitch early in the first quarter and ran it in for a touchdown on a rainy night in Decorah. The Norse ran up and down the field the rest of the night, piling up 14 first downs to the Knights' four while outgaining Wartburg 224 to 54 yards, yet the Knights hung on for a 7-6 win, their last of the season in a 2-7 year. The Norse, on the other hand, finished in the thick of the IIAC race with a 6-2 record.
The off-field antics have almost outshone some of the in-game heroics. There was a point in time when the hijinks were more destructive and juvenile than the series deserved -- the painting of campus landmarks, disfiguring the opponent's field with herbicides and burnings of "Ls" and "Ws," shaved heads and general vandalism.
Mercifully, the off-field antics have taken a more creative turn. In fact, the notorious fly-over challenge before the 1996 Wartburg-Luther football game by the Wartburg cross country team was picked by "Rolling Stone" magazine as one of the Top 10 college pranks of the year. Two years ago, KWAR-FM, the Wartburg campus radio station, posed as an environmentalist interest group and was allowed to participate in Luther's Homecoming Parade. As the KWAR float passed the parade reviewing stand, strings were pulled, clothes were changed and the environmental float became obviously a Wartburg float.
Oddly enough, there never has been a trophy that would be the hallmark of the football rivalry. In the '50s and '60s, there was a "Battle Axe" that was passed between the two schools, but that encompassed all sports plus sportsmanship as the criteria for possession by each school. In the '70s and into the '80s, the student body president of the losing school was to give his or her counterpart their pants at mid-field at the conclusion of the game, but that tradition also has died.
"Bragging rights" fuels this rivalry, just as it does every other rivalry. Not only are the two schools located within 70 miles of each other, they are sister schools of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and their student bodies are similar in backgrounds. The students frequently come from the same communities, the same churches, even the same families. This makes "bragging rights" a priority and the Wartburg-Luther rivalry an experience for anyone who is touched by it.
