Wow. Can’t believe we’re actually into Week 2 of the 2019 football season. I love that the season is here but we all know this goes by quickly so let’s make sure we all enjoy the time. Yeah, I didn’t get a pick ‘em up for last week as I was hustling to get some video projects wrapped up (like the one above! *cheap plug*) but I did spend time watching a great majority of the NWC teams in week 1 play. Some teams surprised me with their performance, and not in a good way, and some teams are who we thought they were.
Whitworth has the bye this week so I’ll get this my 2 cents on the Rats out of the way. The Pirates smacked La Verne around down in SoCal last weekend 50-24. The NWC coaches picked Whitworth to repeat as NWC champs and they looked good in their 2019 debut. It’s early but I only see one true challenger on their schedule this season. We know who that is.
I’ll sprinkle the rest of my thoughts in the week 2 picks below and in Wildcat11’s first NWC power rankings of the season.
NWC Games of the Week:
Redlands (1-0) over Puget Sound (1-0) at Redlands: Redlands looks like a complete and legit playoff worthy team in week 1 in Newberg against Fox. Good physicality on both the offensive and defensive lines, liked their schemes, and have dudes in the skill positions (‘Cats better be ready to go next weekend). Puget Sound knocked off Claremont last week and will be a tough out this year. The Loggers go with a 2-QB system with Rutledge as their primary passer and Bernhardt comes in for Georgetown rush packages. Receiver AJ Johnson continues to be a stud receiver for UPS and Rutledge makes a ton of good plays but will throw 3-5 really bad balls per game. However, I do think the UPS defensive backfield is suspect and Redlands will expose that on Saturday and limit the Logger running game. Dawgs take care of business.
Lewis & Clark (0-0) over Pomona-Pitzer (1-0) at PP: In 2018 Pomona knocked off Lewis and Clark and my gut tells me the Pios return the favor and start the season at 1-0. L&C is debuting a new offensive scheme tomorrow from a local high school coach that was hired as the OC in the off-season. I believe it’s a single back/spread/hurry up (a.k.a. every other offense in college). I look for the Pios to hitch their wagon on returning All-NWC running back Michael Abraham (kid is a hoss) and ride him to a victory.
Alfred (1-0) over George Fox (0-1) at Alfred (NY): The Bruins are also on the East Coach this weekend (Man…they really do try to copy everything Linfield does) as GFU is in New York facing the Alfred Saxons from the Empire 8. Alfred is on a good run with a National Semi's appearance in 2016 and are coming off an 8-3 season last year. They kicked off the 2019 season with a 42-0 shutout of Thiel. On the other side the George Fox Bruins have a football team. Fox looked bad in week 1 and especially on the offensive line. GFU’s offense is all based on the ability to run the ball, and if their line play doesn’t improve, it’s going to be a long year for Linfield Lite. The Butlers knock off the Bruins.
Dubuque (0-1) over Pacific (0-1) at Dubuque (IA): It’s the 5th year in a row that these two out-of-conference foes match up, with Pacific looking to finally knock off the Spartans. If I had to base the Boxers chances on what I saw from them last Saturday, then I would say it’s probably not gonna happen in 2019 either. I mean, the Boxers made the Chapman defensive line looks like Mary Hardin-Baylor at times. The Pacific offensive line play might have been worse than George Fox, and that was brutal. On the other side of the ball, Pacific's defense would make two nice plays in a row and then get absolutely gashed by Chapman. What was most depressing for Pacific was their crowd, or the lack of one. I think class started in Forest Grove but you wouldn’t know it based on the attendance. The official attendance number for last Friday's game was 737. (George Fox would have listed that at number at 2,367). You could have shot cannons in the Boxer end zone bleachers and not harm a single living creature. It doesn’t seem too long ago when it seemed like the Boxers had a lot of excitement around their program, but if Saturday is an indication, maybe that new car smell has finally faded and the fan base is left with the aroma of a middle of the pack finisher. As for Saturday, this might be tight game, and the Boxers receivers might make enough plays, but I’m not betting on it.
Pacific Lutheran (0-0) over Cal Lutheran (0-0) at PLU: The Lutes’ get the honor of being the only NWC team hosting this weekend up at Sparks. It’s year 2 under the new coaching staff and I think PLU is moving in the right direction. The Lutes’ brought in a big recruiting class and have been very active in making improvements to build towards the future. I still think the Lutes’ are a couple of seasons away from being an NWC contender again but McCord and his staff are doing a good job. CLU is actually the more experienced and talented team in this matchup, but Cal Lutheran is the most under-performing program on the West Coast. The Kingsmen SHOULD win the SCIAC title each year but they seem to be a rudderless ship on the sea since their taste of success earlier in the decade. I might be off the mark on this one but I’m gonna give the Lutes’ the benefit of the doubt here.
La Verne (0-1) over Willamette (0-0) at La Verne: Battle of the two of the worst teams on the West Coast go down on Saturday. The Bearcats are in year 1 of a major, and I mean major, rebuilding job under their new head coach and staff. The new Bearcat staff was hired late and are only bring in 20 something new Bearcats. I’m not sure how much talent they could add to an already talent starved roster. La Verne is not a very good football team but I suspect they’ll be better than the Bearcats. I hope I’m wrong because I wouldn’t mind a little Bearcat Rumble in week 1 because it’s going to be a LONG season for Willamette in the Northwest Conference.
Wildcat11’s Week 2 NWC Power Rankings:
1. Whitworth: They’re the champs and looked good in week 1.
2. Linfield: Dangerous week 1 game for the ‘Cats. Catdome baby!
3. Puget Sound: Have offensive weapons but secondary is a big question mark
4. Lewis and Clark: The Pios are gonna surprise a lot of teams this year.
5. George Fox: If the offensive line play doesn’t improve, the Bruins are going to struggle
6. Pacific: I like the Sophomore QB and their receivers. They could turn it around and move up.
7. PLU: Going to be here for the majority of 2019.
8. Willamette: It was a decade ago that their program was talking about an NWC football dynasty. How times change.
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