Toucanbird's Week 5 NSIC Power Rankings

This week's rankings are pretty cut and dry. There's not really much debate in the rankings.

1. #2 UM-Duluth 4-0 (3-0 NSIC) (-)
PG - W vs. #18 Wayne State 42-10
LG - W vs. Bemidji State 44-21
UG - @ MSU-Moorhead (2-2)
Note - I wouldn't let the final score confuse you, UM-Duluth put Bemidji State to bed early in last week's game as the score was 44-7 going into the 4th quarter. Right now, there is no team in the NSIC that can compete with the Bulldogs. I'd say if there is a team, it's probably Augustana but even I would have my doubts. The Bulldogs travel to Moorhead this week to take on the surging Dragons. Trust me fellas, this game won't be close...I'd be surprised if Moorhead keeps it within 40.

2. #20 Augustana 4-0 (3-0 NSIC) (-)
PG - W vs. U-Mary 52-21
LG - W vs. SW Minnesota State 53-21
UG - @ Concordia-St. Paul
Note - I'm starting to wonder who has the best QB-WR tandem in the NSIC. Is it Vogler/Winfield for UM-Duluth? Is it Klaphake/Williams for St. Cloud? Right now, the Hanson/Schulte combination for Augustana seems to be working like a charm. Last week against the Mustangs, Hanson passed 385 yards, going 18-for-23 and 4 TDs. Impressive numbers, thanks on the part of Schulte, who made 6 catches for 210 yards and 3 TDs. Schulte leads the NSIC in receptions per game (6.50), yards per catch (23.7), yards per game (154) and TD receptions (10). Even though Augustana is on a hot streak, they could be entering a trap game this Saturday when they travel to St. Paul to take on Concordia-St. Paul.

3. St. Cloud State 3-1 (3-0 NSIC) (-)
PG - W vs. #17 Winona State 31-26
LG - W vs. U-Mary 30-14
UG - @ Northern State (0-4)
Note - There aren't many hotter teams than St. Cloud State after getting a relatively easy 30-14 win over Mary this past weekend. Granted, I wouldn't let the final score fool you. Mary blocked a punt with less than two minutes to go and recovered it in the endzone for a touchdown. Mary was never really in this game offensively since both their touchdowns were non-offensive. Even though it wasn't a pretty win, a win is a win nonetheless. However, if I were the Huskies, I'd be a little worried. These blocked punts and interceptions should start to be a cause for concern. Granted, Klaphake has been solid all year and the one guy that threw the interception was the backup QB. You won't see that very often this season but special teams is a big cause for concern. A blocked punt is what cost them the game against Augustana and here they just had another one. I guess taking the safety in the WSU game wasn't such a bad idea. Luckily for St. Cloud, they travel to take on Northern State this Saturday. The good news is they are 0-4 but the bad news is they play tough, no matter the opponent.

4. Winona State 3-1 (2-1 NSIC) (-)
PG - L @ St. Cloud State 31-26
LG - W @ Upper Iowa 42-14
UG - vs. #25 MSU-Mankato (3-1)
Note - Don't let the final score of the Upper Iowa game fool you. The Warriors played an AWFUL game. It was tied going into halftime and the Peacocks did what they've been doing all season...choking big time in the second half. Aber looked out of sorts in the first half but came back strong in the second half and ended up completing 26-of-39 passes for 347 yards with 4 TDs and 2 INTs. I could definitely tell from this game that the Warriors just overlooked the Peacocks coming into this game and Coach Sawyer woke them up at halftime. WSU outscored the Peacocks 28-0 in the second half and the WSU defense did a solid job again holding the Peacocks to only 274 yards. That's a good sign considering Winona State will be hosting a MSU-Mankato offense this Saturday that has struggled all year.

5. Wayne State 3-1 (2-1 NSIC) (-)
PG - L @ #2 UM-Duluth 42-10
LG - W vs. Northern State 44-20
UG - @ SW Minnesota State
Note - After an embarrassing loss to UM-Duluth a few weeks ago, the Wildcats rebounded by taking out Northern State. If anything, Wayne State should be happy to beat a team like Northern State by 24, especially since the Wolves hadn't lost by more than 10 leading up to that game. I'm sure the Wildcats are pleased that backup QB Evan Johnson was able to play well in Cyle Schultz absence, going 17-of-24 for 253 yards and a TD. It was one of those games where the Wildcats didn't do anything great but did everything really well. Wayne State travels to SW Minnesota State this week and considering how the Mustangs have played lately, I'd almost put one in the books for the Wildcats.

6. Concordia-St. Paul 3-1 (2-1 NSIC) (+2)
PG - W @ Northern State 27-17
LG - W @ #11 MSU-Mankato 28-26
UG - vs. #20 Augustana (4-0)
Note - Boy, the Golden Bears are road warriors this year. Two consecutive road games and two solid victories for Concordia. The win in Mankato was huge for the Golden Bears program and ever since the horrible loss to St. Cloud, they seem to be moving in the right direction. If there's any downside to Concordia-St. Paul, it is the rush defense is a problem. MSU running back Taylor Brookins rushed 170 yards on 22 carries with 3 TDs. If Concordia wants to remain competitive in the NSIC, they'll need to shore up the run game, even though that might not be their biggest concern coming into this week. Instead, they'll need to be ready for the high-flying Augustana offense powered by Josh Hanson and Tyler Schulte. If Concordia can shut down the Augie pass game, it might be good enough for them to pull off a major upset.

7. Bemidji State 2-2 (1-2 NSIC) (-)
PG - W @ SW Minnesota State 30-14
LG - L @ UM-Duluth 44-21
UG - vs. Upper Iowa (0-4)
Note - You're probably wondering, why would I keep the Beavers at #7 despite losing? Well, like one fan once told me, at least a 23 point loss to UM-Duluth looks respectable. Considering the Bulldogs are winning by 32.5 PPG against high quality opponents, that's very respectable. They also held Issac Odim to only 79 yards rushing on 20 carries. Respect...able. However, offense is still a concern for Bemidji as the offense only scored 7 points on 244 yards. Granted, you need to almost throw that stat out against the Bulldogs. Considering that their defense is only giving up 13.5 PPG and 293 yards (take into consideration that they played Wayne State and Central Washington). Luckily for the Beavers, they get an easy one this week when Upper Iowa comes to town.

8. #25 MSU-Mankato 3-1 (2-1 NSIC)(-2)
PG - W @ UM-Crookston 42-3
LG - L vs. Concordia-St. Paul 28-26
UG - @ Winona State (3-1)
Note - Call me crazy, but I think there's a lot that the Mavericks need to be worrying about right now. Of course, they did just lose their first game of the season but they have not looked pretty in their three wins, especially on offense. Granted, that defense is pretty good, but it wasn't great last week when they gave up 28 points. Overall, it seemed like the Mavericks and Golden Bears were pretty even, but special teams continues to be a problem for MSU-Mankato. Brockshus and the special teams unit continues to struggle. Brockshus was 0-for-1 on FGs and 2-for-3 on PAT attempts with one being blocked. That PAT being blocked was a big difference between this game going to OT and MSU losing. What's worse, Brockshus has been bad all year. He's 0-for-6 on FG attempts now and it's not like he's missing difficult kicks. Right now, Minnesota State has a lot to worry about because their season could be heading towards the light when they play a night game on white-out night at Winona State this Saturday. A loss could be a huge setback with St. Cloud State, Wayne State, Augustana and UM-Duluth still on the schedule.

9. SW Minnesota State 2-2 (1-2 NSIC) (-)
PG - L vs. Bemidji State 30-14
LG - L @ #23 Augustana 53-21
UG - vs. Wayne State (3-1)
Note - Remember what I said about SW Minnesota State entering this meat grinder stretch in their season? It'd be a testament as to just how good or bad they really are? Well, they are bad...really bad. What's sort of funny about them is they seem to play somewhat decently in the first half but the last two weeks, they've been trash in the second half. Granted, they might have one of the best QBs in the league in Ryan Ratekin, he can't do it by himself. I know this is a tough three game stretch for SW Minnesota State, they still need a signature win. They could get one against Wayne State this week, but they need to play way better ball if they want to compete with a high caliber team like the Wildcats.

10. MSU-Moorhead 2-2 (2-1 NSIC)(+1)
PG - W vs. Upper Iowa 28-24
LG - W @ UM-Crookston 48-18
UG - vs. UM-Duluth (4-0)
Note - Well, well, well, look what team is on the rise and is .500? Actually, I said it myself that I thought the Dragons would be .500 after four games and low and behold they are. It seems that after their unusual win against the Peacocks, they went into Crookston and dominated the lowly Eagles. The Dragons anemic offense rattled off 48 points on 512 yards and their horrid defense held the Eagles to only 217 yards of total offense. What a difference a week makes, huh? Well, I got bad news for you Moorhead...you've got a home game this week and it's not going to be pretty. UM-Duluth comes to town, so you better savor .500 football while you still can...

11. Northern State 0-4 (0-3 NSIC) (-1)
PG - L vs. Concordia-St. Paul 27-17
LG - L @ Wayne State 44-20
UG - vs. St. Cloud State (3-1)
Note - I keep telling myself that Northern State isn't a bad football team but when I look at their body of work, I just can't help but wonder when they will win a game? They seem better than 0-4. I know it won't happen the next two weeks when they host St. Cloud State and then travel to Augustana. I foresee it happening in Week 8 when they play at UM-Crookston. Looking ahead to their last 5 games, they could end their season with 3 wins...maybe even 4. I don't know but all I will say is, they'll have a tough time competing with the Huskies this week.

12. U-Mary 0-4 (0-3 NSIC) (-1)
PG - L @ Augustana 52-10
LG - L @ St. Cloud State 30-14
UG - vs. UM-Crookston (1-3)
Note - Well, I have to give at least a little bit of credit to the Marauders. They only lost by 16 to St. Cloud State. I envisioned them giving up 50 points and probably losing by at least 35, especially considering it would be the second consecutive game without star running back Jamal Lomax. I'm sure Bismarck will be rejoicing considering they finally come home and they host the worst team in the conference. Will the win? Probably. If they don't? Then they are the worst team in the conference...and should be ashamed if they lose to Crookston.

13. Upper Iowa 0-4 (0-3 NSIC) (-)
PG - L @ MSU-Moorhead 28-24
LG - L vs. Winona State 42-14
UG - @ Bemidji State (2-2)
Note - They played very well against Winona State...for one half. Again, the story continues for Upper Iowa with their second half play. As of now, they are being outscored 96-10 in the second half. Like I said, I don't know what their problem is, but they really struggle in the second half. Granted, I give them props. They kept WSU to within 28 points...I predicted at least a 40 point loss. It doesn't get any easier for the Peacocks as they travel to Bemidji this week. It's not an easy place to win and with the Beavers tough D, I think it'll be even more difficult for the Peacocks to even compete.

14. UM-Crookston 1-3 (0-3 NSIC) (-)
PG - L vs. MSU-Mankato 42-3
LG - L vs. MSU-Moorhead 48-18
UG - @ U-Mary (0-4)
Note - Welcome back to NSIC play Crookston. No offense to the University of Minnesota-Crookston, but your football team sucks! In NSIC play, the Golden Eagles have been outscored by 44 PPG...wow. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw they lost by 30 to MSU-Moorhead. I thought if they win a game this year, it'd be against them. Well, I guess if there's another opportunity for a win, it would be against a Lomaxless Mary team...but I don't think even Mary would lose to Crookston, even without Lomax.