NEW ULM, Minn. - Football heads to St. Bonifacius to take on Crown in the team's final nonconference game.
Inside the Matchup
The Knights have a 17-10 record against the Polars in program history. The teams have met every season that there have been games since 2000.
MLC dropped both matchups a season ago, losing 17-7 at home and 34-21 on the road. In the second game,
Jude Pederson caught nine passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns.
"What's important now?"
The message from the coaching staff to the team ahead of week 3.
"What's important now? What is my job on this snap. What's my alignment, my assignment, my keys, my responsibilities, what do I have to do in this moment... so that I can execute at my peak performance level to be successful? "
MLC through two weeks
The Knights are 0-2 after losses to Macalster and Concordia (Wis.).
Offensively, MLC has been able to move the ball with reasonable success, particularly through the air. The Knights are first amongst UMAC teams throwing the football.
Brady Turriff leads all conference quarterbacks with 490 passing yards, 123 more than second. Likewise,
Jude Pederson has 242 receiving yards, which is more than double any other player in the UMAC. On the ground,
Arthur Robinson is fourth among conference runners with 105 yards.
"We've been bailing ourselves out on third-and-long way too much," Huebner said. "Last week at Concordia, we didn't have a single third- or fourth-down and short situation. We need to stay ahead of the chains better moving the ball, being efficient on first down is going to give us a better chance at a manageable second downs and manageable third downs."
Defensively, MLC ranks third among UMAC teams in points allowed and fourth in yards allowed.
Ethan Melso and
Carson Burow are both inside the top-10 in total tackles.
Jasper Lawrenz leads all conference competitors with three pass break ups.
Crown through two weeks
The Polars are 0-2 after a 31-21 loss at home to Hamline University in Week 1 and a 52-0 loss to Simpson College in Week 2.
Crown ranks last in the conference with 21 points scored and 205 yards per game. When the Polars have found success, it's come on the ground, where they average 113 yards per game. Their top runner is Judah Davis, who has rushed for 126 yards and two TDs thus far. Crown has thrown for just 184 yards.
"They do have a very strong offensive line," Huebner said. "Three all-conference guys are back on the offensive line, including the lineman of the year, so they're big and physical up front and they lean on that, especially in the run game."
On defense, the Polars are fourth in points allowed and last in yards allowed per game. Brian Amune Jr. is third amongst UMAC players with 19 total tackles, Keller Maguire ranks ninth with 15 tackles. Defensive lineman Jakalyn Roy leads all UMAC competitors with four-and-a-half tackles for loss and two sacks.
"[They have] a bunch of guys that are really athletic, really physical and they run to the football well," Huebner said. "Their defensive coordinator says organized chaos and it really is. It is very hard to get a handle on what you're going to see from them front-wise, coverage-wise, blitz-wise. It's a variety of things that you have to prepare for."
