Could Carleton win the Goat Trophy back from St. Olaf and get to take The Walk for the first time since 2013? Our panelists predict below. 2008 file photos by Pat Coleman, D3sports.com

We've got big games from coast to coast this week highlighted by a Empire 8 clash, our first big headliner from the WIAC, and a battle for supremacy in the Pacific Northwest. Also, the Goat Trophy! Our Quick Hits panel is here to break it all down in our weekly six pack of preview questions to get you ready for Saturday. 

Our regular crew is Greg Thomas, Pat Coleman, Ryan Tipps, Adam Turer, Frank Rossi, plus a guest. If you've participated in the conference Pick 'Ems on Post Patterns, you know this week's guest panelist because he's probably beat you badly at picking winners. He has also recently opened up a board tracking unique Division III football scores (you know the name for it) which is the kind of wholesome content we all need. We're excited to have Franklin College alumnus and pillar of the Post Patterns community Kevin Miller as our guest panelist this week. 

— Greg Thomas

Which game is the Game of the Week?

	Greg's take: Brockport at No. 19 Cortland. I feel like we've been here before with Brockport. The Golden Eagles take an early season loss, we sort of lose track of them and they wind up winning the Empire 8. This is probably the decisive Empire 8 game for 2021 and it will be up to Brees Segala and the Red Dragons to take the crown from Brockport.
	Pat's take: No. 9 UW-Oshkosh at No. 20 UW-La Crosse. And anything else I might say here seems destined to end up on someone's bulletin board so I will leave it at that.
	Adam's take: No. 8 UW-Oshkosh at No. 20 UW-La Crosse. The Titans can silence their doubters with a convincing road win. Or prove them right with a dud.
	Ryan's take: No. 18 Whitworth at No. 7 Linfield. With several big conference matchups already taken place this year, I feel as if these two undefeated NWC teams have slid under the radar a bit. Both have Top 25 defenses, which should make this game all the more interesting, and Linfield, especially, now has an opportunity to justify such a high spot in the polls.
	Frank's take: Brockport at No. 19 Cortland. I can’t see the winner of this game not winning the Empire 8 and going to the NCAA Playoffs. The rest of the pack may have some say, but this is a quality showcase game between a great offense at Cortland and a terrific defense at Brockport.
	Kevin's take: No. 9 UW-Oshkosh at No. 20 UW-La Crosse. One of two games between ranked teams, I'll take the top 20 battle in the number 1 conference. La Crosse broke an eight-year losing streak to Oshkosh in 2019 and can make it 2 in a row.

Which Top 25 team is most likely to be upset?

	Greg's take: No. 12 Washington & Jefferson. Pat is right- there aren't great options and I'm not sure a La Crosse over Oshkosh result qualifies as an upset so I'll stay away from that one. The Presidents are coming off of a squirmy game against Geneva while St. Vincent comes in with momentum after a win over CWRU. This one looks most likely of all of the very unlikely choices I have this week.
	Pat's take: None. Not this week.
	Adam's take: No. 19 Cortland. Brockport's defense is still a force and the Golden Eagles are hungry to win their fourth straight E8 title.
	Ryan's take: No. 19 Cortland. This is just one of a handful of opportunities we get this weekend to really shuffle the list of Top 25, something that didn't change at all last week.
	Frank's take: No. 7 Linfield (vs. No. 18 Whitworth). Okay, it’s the second time I’ve picked against Linfield this season — Whitworth nearly nipped Linfield in 2019, but I feel the 2021 Pirates bring back a better offense in what could be a high-scoring game. Slight advantage: Whitworth.
	Kevin's take: No. 24 Westminster (Pa.). On the road at Carnegie Mellon, this matchup hasn't been decided by more than 14 points in the last 8 meetings with CMU winning 3 of those.

Carleton, Chicago, Centre: Which of these undefeated C's will remain undefeated?

	Greg's take: Chicago. I'm buying the Maroons as the new leader of the MWC and I like them to win at Monmouth this weekend. Carleton and Centre will see their win streaks end with tough road games on Saturday.
	Pat's take: None. And I'm on a nihilistic streak. Should be an interesting game for the Goat Trophy, Chicago not yet ready to take the mantle from Monmouth and Centre won't find it easy traveling to Trinity.
	Adam's take: Carleton gets a win at St. Olaf while the other two fall in tough road games. Centre at Trinity (Texas) should be a great game.
	Ryan's take: Chicago. The other two will slip up in the record books, but all of these games look to be competitive.
	Frank's take: Chicago, Centre. I think St. Olaf at home will nip Carleton in a good close game.
	Kevin's take: Just Chicago. Carleton with be in a tight game but lose the Battle for the Goat for the 8th year in a row while Centre makes the more than 1000 mile trip back home after losing the battle of unbeatens.

Which game are you following that no one else on the panel is following?

	Greg's take: DePauw at Wittenberg. I suspect I'm not the only one on the panel with eyes on this game, but this should be a good contest and DePauw's best shot to win in Springfield since joining the NCAC.
	Pat's take: UW-Stout at UW-Eau Claire. No matter the records -- and in this case, they are both pretty good -- the War on 94 is typically a hard-fought game with a ton of energy on both sides. Plus you can count on the fans to pack Carson Park as much as possible.
	Adam's take: Illinois Wesleyan at Wash U. The top of the CCIW is as good as it gets, but these two teams are usually battling for the spot right below North Central and Wheaton. Disappointing starts for both in 2021 make this a pressure-packed contest.
	Ryan's take: Minnesota-Morris at Finlandia. The Lions haven't won a D-III game since 2016, and the team they beat back then isn't even in existence anymore. Last week's narrow loss against Northwestern may bring a bit more confidence to this team and will have me paying attention.
	Frank's take: Western New England at Endicott. I’ll be attending this game, as it holds giant CCC implications after the Golden Bears beat Salve Regina last week. Winner of this game has a great inside track at the CCC title.
	Kevin's take: Lakeland at Benedictine. Both teams off to good starts this year, but need to win here to set themselves up for a showdown with Aurora later in the season.

Which team with a disappointing first five weeks will get things going in the right direction with a Week 6 win? 

	Greg's take: Rowan. I know Kean is coming into this game after a win last week, but the Profs have had two weeks to reset and prepare for their NJAC opener. 1-0 in NJAC play will go a long way to putting that 0-3 September in the rearview.
	Pat's take: Tufts. The Jumbos come in at 0-3 and lost to Williams and Amherst by three points apiece but that's a good sign for righting the ship when they host Bates this weekend.
	Adam's take: Concordia-Moorhead. After being blanked by St. John's, the Cobbers offense gets back on track. They'll get to 2-3 before facing another defensive force in Bethel next week.
	Ryan's take: Illinois Wesleyan. For the kind of offense the Titans have and their recent history, this year's performance has to be crushing. Tightening their defense and improving the turnover margin will get them a win this weekend against Wash U. to feel good about.
	Frank's take: WPI (vs. Catholic). WPI may be the best 1-4 team in the region, if not the country. While Catholic looks upstart this season, I think WPI will get the edge here after a close call vs. USMMA last week.
	Kevin's take: St Norbert (vs Wisconsin Lutheran). It's not been a good debut in the NACC, but St. Norbert (1-3 overall) should get its first conference win this week

Four HCAC teams are 2-2 and they pair off on Saturday.  Which two teams leave Week 6 with a winning record?

	Greg's take: I'm going home teams here with Mount St. Joseph and Rose-Hulman to win. It's really hard to trust Franklin right now and Hanover hasn't quite been the kind of favorite in the HCAC that I thought they would be.
	Pat's take: Rose-Hulman in a pick-em game at home against Hanover, and Franklin in a win at Mount St. Joseph.
	Adam's take: Rose-Hulman and Mt. St. Joseph. Advantage to the home teams in a conference race that should come down to the wire.
	Ryan's take: Rose-Hulman and Franklin. I'm simply happy to see this kind of excitement happening in the HCAC, even midway through the season.
	Frank's take: Rose-Hulman gets revenge from the Spring against Hanover; Mount St. Joseph wins at home vs. Franklin in a close game.
	Kevin's take: Rose-Hulman (vs. Hanover) and Mount St Joseph (vs. Franklin). I think the Hanover at Rose-Hulman winner goes to the playoffs with the Engineers breaking their three-game losing streak to the Panthers. As much as it hurts to pick against my alma mater, they're third-worst in D-III in turnover margin at minus-2.25 per game.

Got picks? Put them in the comments!