complete game notes in .pdf format
Storyline
The 2010 NAIA Football Championship Series starts this Saturday and one of the top first-round matchups will take place in Hunter Stadium in St. Charles. The No. 5 Lions will host No. 10 Saint Francis in a rematch of a 2007 first-round playoff game.
Lindenwood and Saint Francis are two programs that have come close to national titles, but neither have taken that final step yet. The Lions have reached the semifinals the last two seasons and last year's title game, while Saint Francis has been in six semifinals and three championship games since 2003.
On paper, the two teams look very similar. Defensively, both teams average around 300 yards allowed a contest and Saint Francis has a slight advantage by allowing 2.3 points less a game. Offensively, Lindenwood is averaging nearly 20 points more a contest, but Saint Francis does average 468.4 yards of offense.
A key area to watch will be the two running games for both teams. The Lions enter averaging nearly 200 yards a game on the ground, but the Cougars are allowing just over 100. On the other side, Saint Francis is averaging 211.2 rushing yards a game. Lindenwood will have to slow the Cougars' run game down, or Saint Francis can control the clock like it did in a 35-14 victory during the 2007 playoff contest between the two teams.
A Lindenwood Win Would...
- improve the program to 119-112-2 all-time.
- improve the Lions to 67-18 under head coach Patrick Ross.
- be the team's 25th consecutive win at Hunter Stadium.
- be the third straight year that Lindenwood has won its NAIA Football Championship Series first-round game.
- be the fourth consecutive 10-win season for the Lions and the fifth season in program history with 10 or more wins.
A Lindenwood Loss Would...
- drop the program to 118-113-2 all-time.
- drop the Lions to 66-19 under Patrick Ross.
- be Lindenwood's second first-round loss against Saint Francis.
- drop the Lions to 5-6 all-time in postseason play.
Record Watch
Philip Staback needs just three touchdown passes to break the school's career record in that category. Other Lions approaching career records are Denodus O'Bryant being five rushing touchdowns away from tying that mark, and Matt Bramow needing 149 receiving yards to hold all three major receiving records.
NAIA Leaders
Lindenwood currently leads the NAIA in pass efficiency, total offense, and scoring offense. Individually, Philip Staback is first nationally in pass efficiency and completion percentage. He is on pace to become the second player in NAIA history with a completion percentage above 70 percent.
Big Play Threat
Denodus O'Bryant has touched the ball 114 times this season and is averaging 12.3 yards for each touch. He is averaging 7.0 yards per rush, 24.0 yards per reception, and 38.5 yards per kickoff return. O'Bryant is averaging a touchdown once every 7.1 times he touches the ball. He has 20 plays of 20 yards or longer, including six plays of 50 yards or longer.
Top Receiving Option
If the Lions need a big pass completion on Saturday, Matt Bramow is the likely target. Last year in the postseason, Bramow caught five touchdown passes. He had two touchdowns in both the semifinals and finals, including the game-winning catch against Carroll. This season, he ranks 16th in the NAIA in receiving yards.
Stepping Up In Postseason
Last season, Lindenwood's defense held all four opponents it faced below their season scoring average. In three of those games, it held opponents to 13 or more points below their average.
Its best performance came in the national championship game when the Lions allowed just one offensive touchdown to a Sioux Falls team that averaged over 50 points a game.
Forcing Turnovers
Lindenwood's defense has forced three or more turnovers in seven of its 10 games this season. The unit has intercepted 15 passes and recovered 13 fumbles. Hakim Thomas leads the team with four interceptions, one more than Brock Reed. Keenan Mace is the team leader with three fumble recoveries.
Kickoff Returners
Lindenwood has two of the top kickoff returners in the NAIA, but has not been able to use them much. Most teams have elected to kick short to avoid the pair. That strategy has still given the Lions great field position, as Lindenwood has an average starting spot of the 42 yardline on kickoffs.
The last time a team kicked deep against the Lions was the opening kickoff in game eight versus Benedictine, which O'Bryant returned 95 yards for a touchdown.
Up Next
The winner of this week's game will advance to the NAIA Football Championship Series Quarterfinals on Nov. 27.
About The Cougars
Saint Francis opened the season with eight straight victories and was ranked as high as seventh in the NAIA. Its lone loss came in game nine with a 30-6 setback against No. 3 Saint Xavier. The Cougars bounced back to take last week's season finale by a 33-21 score over Taylor.
Offensively, Saint Francis has a run game that ranks 15th in the NAIA and a pass offense that ranks 16th.
Quarterback Shanie Tierney is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes for 210.4 yards a game. He has thrown for 13 touchdowns and rushed for seven others. Frank Wolfe is the leading rusher with 90.9 yards a game and five touchdowns. Taylor Vieck has eight rushing touchdowns and Bo Frye has seven. Jared Clodfelter has 70.9 receiving yards a game and has caught six touchdown passes.
Defensively, the team is 13th nationally in rush defense, but 37th in pass defense.
Defensive team leaders include Ross Bauman with 53 tackles, Anthony Moore with 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks, and Jordan Wise with three interceptions. Devron Robinson and Derek VandenBosch are also in the top three in tackles.
Head Coach Kevin Donley
Kevin Donley is the third all-time winningest coach in NAIA history with 244 wins at four schools. He has been at Saint Francis since 1997 and has won 130 games in 13 years. Donley has won nine conference championships, six conference coach of the year awards, and one national coach of the year honor at Saint Francis.
