Complete game notes attached in .pdf format
Storyline
Lindenwood has a lot riding on its final regular season game which is this Saturday at home against William Jewell.
A win will be a historic victory for the team, giving the Lions an outright conference championship and just its second undefeated regular season in school history.
An upset loss however, will force Lindenwood to share the HAAC Championship with rival MidAmerica Nazarene and also hurt the team's seeding heading into the NAIA Football Championship Series.
Lindenwood could set a new school record on almost any offensive snap this week, including the team being just 21 points away from scoring the most points in a season, and Denodus O'Bryant being one touchdown shy of tying the school mark for touchdowns in a season.
The Lions hope for a repeat of its performance early on last week when they jumped out to a 33-0 lead and cruised to a 53-21 win over Graceland.
William Jewell is happy to see the finish line after a tough 2009 campaign in which its offense is averaging less than 10 points a game. The Cardinals lost their first eight games before picking up a victory last weekend versus Culver-Stockton.
A Lindenwood Win Would...
-?improve the program to 106-110 all-time.
-?improve the Lions to 54-16 under head coach Patrick Ross.
-?clinch the outright 2009 HAAC Championship.
-?achieve the second undefeated regular season in school history, matching the 2004 Lions.
-?increase Lindenwood's conference winning streak to 19 games.
-?increase its home winning streak to 17 games.
-?move its winning streak to 10 games, its third straight year with a streak that long.
A Lindenwood Loss Would...
-?drop the program to 105-111 all-time.
-?drop the Lions to 53-17 under head coach Patrick Ross.?
Offensive Scoring
Lindenwood has scored 501 points this season and needs just 21 more to set a new school record for most points in a season. The old record was set last year when the Lions scored 520 points, but that mark took 13 games to reach.
According to Tex Noel at 1st-N-Goal, Lindenwood is one of three teams at every level of college football to score over 500 points in 2009.
The Lions are currently averaging 55.7 points a game, which would be the most in NAIA history if the season ended today.
O'Bryant Nears Record
Denodus O'Bryant, who ranks third in the NAIA in touchdowns, scored twice last week and now has 17 touchdowns this season, just one shy of the Lindenwood record.
The most impressive thing about O'Bryant is that his 17 touchdowns have come in limited action. He has touched the ball just 79 times this season, meaning he has scored once every 4.6 times that he has been directly involved in a play.
Top QB In The HAAC
Philip Staback has made his mark in the HAAC this year while directing one of the top offenses in NAIA history.
Staback has completed 2/3 of his passes this year for 242.3 yards a game. He has 23 touchdown passes and just four interceptions. Over the six games since leading the game-winning drive over Missouri Valley, Staback has completed 73 percent of his passes and has a 16:1 touchdown to interception ratio.
Who To Guard?
When Lindenwood drops back to pass, the defense has a tough choice on how to defend the receivers.
The Lions' top two receivers, Rudy Fleming and Marcel Thompson, have each caught 36 passes for over 600 yards and six touchdowns apiece. Matt Bramow is close behind with 30 receptions for 373 yards and another six touchdowns. Roren Thomas and Matt Angell have combined for 40 receptions, 635 receiving yards and four touchdowns, and Denodus O'Bryant has caught 13 passes out of the backfield for another 225 and three touchdowns.
Early Game Defense
Lindenwood has not allowed a first quarter touchdown over the last three games and on the season, has allowed just four touchdowns and two field goals in the opening 15 minutes.
Turnover Margin
Lindenwood leads the HAAC with a +11 turnover margin, including turning the ball over a conference-low 12 times.
Kickoff Returns
Lindenwood continues to lead the NAIA with 27.7 yards per kickoff return and has five kickoff return touchdowns in 2009. Denodus O'Bryant has three of those touchdowns, one shy of the NAIA record.
Up Next
The first-round matchups in the 2009 NAIA Football Championship Series will be announced on Sunday afternoon.
About The Cardinals
William Jewell is led by its defense, which has held opponents to 26 or less points in six of nine games this season. Its offense, however, has been held under 10 points five times, which has caused the team's 1-8 record.
The defense is led by David Diener and Zach Traphagen, both of whom have over 60 tackles. Traphagen leads the team with 5.5 sacks.
Offensively, Drew Whitman is averaging 170 yards a game. He has six touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Jake Lynch and Bobby Rech each average just under 60 yards rushing a game, and Lynch has a team-high two rushing touchdowns.
Adam McBride leads the receivers with 29 receptions and Daniel Johnson has a team-high 368 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Last Week
In a battle between winless teams, William Jewell scored 13 unanswered points in the second and third quarters and then held on for a 20-13 win over Culver-Stockton.
The Wildcats had a chance late to tie, but the Cardinals' defense held inside their 10-yard line to seal the win.
Drew Whitman threw for 172 yards and one touchdown, and Jake Lynch rushed for 107 yards and a score. Daniel Johnson caught three passes for 47 yards and a score. Zach Traphagen led the defense with 11 tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble.
Head Coach Fran Schwenk
Fran Schwenk, who is retiring after today's game, is in his fifth year as William Jewell's head coach. In 26 seasons as a NAIA head coach, he has 136 wins, the sixth most among active coaches.
