Video: 2012 Linfield vs Whitworth

Your video of the week is up and this was a fun one to put together as Linfield just double barreled blasted Whitworth for the 'Cats 2012 Homecoming game. Whitworth came into the contest with a 4-1 record and had confidence after playing Linfield tough the previous two seasons. For me, that was part of the reason Linfield's 54-14 win ('Cats held a 54-0 lead going into the 4th) was so satisfying. In both the 2010 and 2011 Whitworth games, the Rats held slight leads at the half before Linfield was able to assert themselves. In 2010, Linfield turned it on to mop up Whitworth 42-17 after being down 17-14 at the half. Then in 2011, Linfield faced an even bigger deficit in being down 25-14 at half before being able to pull off a 4-point win. After that close win, there were some Rats questioning if Linfield was really a top ten D3 team.

In my eyes there was no doubt that Linfield was the superior team in every aspect but for whatever reason the 'Cats struggled for stretches of the game with Whitworth. However, that wasn't the case last season. Linfield wasted no time in letting those Rat doubters know that Linfield is one of the best programs in the country in scoring 8 TD's in their first 12 possessions. It wasn't even close as the 'Cats defense took everything away from Whitworth and limited the Rats to just a measly 75 total offensive yards after 3 completed quarters while Wildcat offense did what they wanted.

So we'll see what the 2013 rematch has in store. The Pine Bowl is a tough place to play. It's a long bus ride out the Spokane and one of the few places in the Northwest that still plays their games on grass. Whitworth had a solid 7-3 season last year but still finished 4th in the NWC behind Willamette, PLU, and Linfield. The Rats will point to the large amount of injuries as part of their issues last season and should be improved on defense. If the 'Cats sleep on the Rats they could be in another fight like 2010 & 2011 but if they bring their top game up to Spokane it could be another keelhauling for Whitworth.