Chase Burton threw three interceptions in his first start. He's thrown just two, with 22 touchdowns, since then. Photo by Jennifer Mangrum

The Franklin Grizzlies have been down this road before.

For the past five seasons, Franklin has dominated the competition in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference to win titles and represent the league in the Division III playoffs.

But when the Grizzlies turned the ball over seven times in their season opener at home back in September during a 34-24 loss to Illinois Wesleyan (now ranked No. 19), some wondered if this could be the year that a new champion would emerge in the HCAC.

As the Grizzlies prepare for their biggest conference game of the year against undefeated Rose-Hulman, it is hard to find anyone saying that anymore. Franklin (5-2, 5-0) has steamrolled through conference play behind the play of sophomore quarterback Chase Burton and a run-stingy defense.

"Our offense really struggled early," said veteran Franklin coach Mike Leonard. "Chase was just getting his feet wet and we turned over the ball a lot in our first two games. Actually, to stay so close to Illinois Wesleyan after turning the ball over seven times gave us a little bit of optimism that if we could correct the offensive mistakes, we would be alright."

And Franklin is alright, averaging 55.8 points over its five HCAC games while the defense is giving up 15.2 points per game. Burton, who opened the season with three interceptions and one touchdown against Illinois Wesleyan, has thrown for 22 touchdowns and two interceptions the last six games.

Burton this week was crowned the HCAC's offensive player of the week for the fourth consecutive week because of his performances.

"You don't see that happen very often," Leonard said of Burton's honors. "They usually try to give it to different people to have some variety. His confidence level is really up and he's got a nice supporting cast of wide receivers and the offensive line that's helping him a great deal."

Burton's emergence – evidenced by him completing nearly 70 percent of his passes (182-263) – has made Franklin a much more potent team now than what they were at the beginning of the season. Running backs Ty'Ronte Files (60.6 yards per game) and Kole Stogner (47.0) are averaging together more than 100 yards per game as they split time at running back.

Lee Wroblewski (34-578) and Mason Deal (32-454) have 12 touchdown catches between them while Austin Carlton anchors the offensive line.

Franklin will be challenged defensively by a Rose-Hulman offense that is averaging 44.3 points per game.

"They have a great coaching staff and great bunch of student-athletes," Leonard said. "They're an intelligent group, so they execute really well and play hard. They've given us some great battles in the past and this year will be no different. I know the entire Terre Haute community is excited about the Engineers this season."

Franklin's linebacking twins of Jerry Windell (47 tackles) and Lucas Windell (36 tackles) have anchored the Grizzlies defense with defensive lineman Nate Bryan (29 tackles). Defensive back Taylor Christensen leads Franklin with three interceptions and six pass break ups in the secondary.

"We're going to have to be on our toes," Leonard said. "We have to be prepared for any surprises, not that they'll need any. What I can say is that we will be prepared as we can possibly be."

For the past five seasons, that has been plenty good enough for the Franklin Grizzlies.

Benedictine, Lakeland emerge in the NACC

Benedictine and Lakeland have emerged as the early frontrunners in the NACC race with identical 4-2 records and 2-0 in conference play. Benedictine, the defending titleholders, did it the hard way, down 28-7 in the third quarter before roaring back to beat Concordia (Wis.) 39-35. Lakeland convincingly beat Trine in a nonconference tilt 61-35 on Saturday.

Benedictine quarterback Ryan Sample completed 35 of 55 passes for 381 yards and four touchdowns, including the game winner to Elijah Walker with 4:46 left in the game. The effort overshadowed Concordia signal-caller Aaron Nixon who threw for five TD passes.

"This was a big win," Eagles coach Jon Cooper said. "I thought we played a poor first half, but we still believed and were confident. The key was to stop their quarterback. We played well in the second half and came back."

Benedictine will play at Lakeland Nov. 14 which could amount to an NACC title game, but there's a lot that can happen before then. Lakeland still has to play at Concordia (Wis.) on Halloween. The Falcons (2-4, 2-1), which won their last NACC championship in 2013, already know they have to win out and the contest against the Muskies will amount to an elimination game for them.

Games of the week

Alright, things are getting real in the Midwest with several crucial contests that will have national and playoff implications next month. When tournament slots are decided, here are some of the contests the selection committee will point to.

No. 8 Wheaton (6-0, 3-0 in CCIW) at No. 16 North Central (4-2, 3-0 in CCIW), 3 p.m. – It is another big game for the Little Brass Bell, but isn't it like this every year? Wheaton is the defending champion and may be feeling a little unhappy that their 62-14 win over Millikin last week got the Thunder demoted one spot in the Top 25 poll. North Central on the other hand is arguable the best two-loss team in the country, dropping games to No. 4 Wesley and No. 12 UW-Platteville in the final moments of both contests. But the chances of the selection committee taking a three-loss at-large team in the playoffs is nil, even if all the losses have come to highly ranked teams, so the Cardinals know they must win to have any hope of the post season. Even with the win, both teams still have No. 19 and undefeated Illinois Wesleyan waiting in the wings, so a win here will not clinch anything. Both teams will want to win in the worst way possible.

Franklin (5-2, 5-0 in HCAC) at Rose-Hulman (6-0, 4-0 in HCAC), 1:30 p.m. – If North Central is the best two-loss team in the country, Franklin may well be the second best the way it has dominated the HCAC this year. For the Fightin' Engineers, there are no more excuses. They have an improved defense and a quarterback with big games already under his belt. If you remember, Rose-Hulman actually led this game last year in the final quarter before Franklin pulled away. While one-loss Manchester still has to play Rose-Hulman, this is essentially the HCAC championship game.

Monmouth (5-1, 2-0 in MWC South) at Cornell (3-3, 2-0 in MWC South), 2 p.m. – Monmouth and Cornell are the last two undefeated teams in the MWC South. Monmouth first-year head coach Chad Braun has the Fighting Scots playing impressively, giving up only a touchdown in their first two MWC South matchups. The Rams may be the last team able to stop Monmouth's run after coming off nice wins over Grinnell and Knox the past two weeks. Monmouth, though, will present Cornell with an entirely different test.