Frontier Notebook: Western puts a jolt into the Frontier

Halfway home in the Frontier Conference. As the second week of October dawns, many teams will begin to play each other for a second time as the schedule turns for the home stretch.

And while the Frontier title is very much up for grabs, it's time to take a look at who the top individuals have been in the first half of the season and who the candidates are for the Frontier postseason awards.

As for the coveted Offensive Player of the Year Award, that race is probably down to three players right now, and two of them reside at Montana Tech. Senior quarterback Quinn McQueary has been sensational thus far, twice winning NAIA Offensive Player of the Week honors. McQueary has thrown for 1,685 yards and 16 touchdowns, averaging 337 yards per game, and those numbers would be even better had he not sat out a few fourth-quarter blowouts. McQueary is fifth in the NAIA in total offense and has rushed for five more scores this season.

McQueary's teammate, running back Jed Fike is also in the discussion. Fike transferred to Tech from Dickinson State and has completely fortified Tech's ground game. Fans may have been worried when two-time Frontier MVP Nolan Saraceni graduated, but in just five games Fike has rushed for 765 yards and eight touchdowns. He's averaging a whopping 153 yards per game, and 6.7 yards per carry, on just 114 carries so far. He leads the Frontier in rushing by a crazy 70 yards per game over College of Idaho's Darius-James Peterson.

Not to be outdone, Southern Oregon's Tanner Trosin is having a monster season of his own. After missing last fall with an injury, Trosin returned to the Raiders and hasn't skipped a beat. He's thrown for 1,737 yards and 11 touchdowns against just two interceptions. He's sixth in the NAIA passing and fourth in the nation in total offense, and he has the Raiders undefeated and in first place in the Frontier standings.

Other offensive players making their mark so far this season include UM-Western QB Bennett Gibson and running back Hunter Thomsen, MSU-Northern quarterback Tommy Wilson and running back Trey Blanchard, Montana Tech WR Dion Williams, Rocky Mountain running backs Mason Melby, Sam Sparks and Jade Olson, and Eastern Oregon quarterback Kai Quinn.

The Defensive Player of the Year award is much more muddled than the offensive side at the halfway point. Montana Tech's Connor Wines is off to a great start with 9.5 tackles for loss and six sacks, but as expected, College of Idaho defensive back Nate Moore is again racking up the tackles. Moore has 64 stops this season, after leading the Frontier in tackles each of the last two years. He and Northern linebacker Garet Fowler are the only defenders in the Frontier averaging more than 10 tackles per game. Moore also has an interception to his credit, along with six pass breakups, while Fowler, who should also be in the running, has two picks this season. Rocky Mountain College has safety Keenan Fagan with four picks at the halfway point, while teammates Ryder Rice and Chase Bertelsen are also impact players.

Others in the defensive discussion include Southern Oregon linebacker Keegan Lawrence, Eastern Oregon linebacker Michael Arenas, College of Idaho defensive end Josh Price and UM-Western defensive back Zach Janis.

As for the Coach of the Year, it's early, but there's no denying what SOU first-year head man Charlie Hall is doing with the Raiders. Hall was hired after longtime SOU great Craig Howard passed away, and despite the emotions of losing their beloved head coach, Hall hasn't let the Raiders slip. In fact, after SOU suffered a subpar season last season, Hall has brought them right back to national prominence.

Of course, Tech head coach Chuck Morrell is doing another bang-up job with the Orediggers this season, but another head coach who has to be considered for the award, at least halfway through the season, is UM-Western's Ryan Nourse. Nourse got the Bulldogs through a brutal opening stretch to their season, and now, they appear to be legitimate Frontier contenders.

Dawgs Shake It Up

Speaking of the Bulldogs, they certainly threw a wrench into the Frontier's title race. Playing their biggest rival at home, Western ended Montana Tech's chance at perfection last Saturday with a 42-35 win over the Orediggers in Dillon.

Western's victory was huge, not only for the program but also for SOU's chances of winning an outright Frontier title. Because the Raiders and Diggers play just once this season, if SOU wins out, Tech can't catch the Raiders for the conference championship.

The win was also an indictment on how well Western has been playing lately. After squeaking by C of I in their season-opener, the Dawgs lost three straight games - albeit one of those to FCS powerhouse Weber State. Still, Western's season was already slipping away and September wasn't even over yet. But a 61-7 thrashing of MSU-Northern, followed by a bye week, and then a monumental win over Tech, has thrust the Dawgs back into the NAIA Top 25, and right back into the hunt for, at the very least, an NAIA playoff berth.

Round Two

Speaking of the playoffs, the Rocky Mountain College Batllin' Bears aren't out of the playoff hunt yet either. Like Western, Rocky responded to an early-season loss with some thrilling wins, and a near-miss against Montana Tech late last month.

One of those thrilling wins came all the way back on Sept. 2 when the Bears stormed back to beat Northern in the final minutes of a great game in Billings. Now, Rocky sits at 3-2 in Frontier play and will have to navigate a second win over the Lights in order to keep their playoff push alive.

But the Lights will certainly be out for revenge Saturday at Blue Pony Stadium. Northern put up huge offensive numbers last month in Billings and twice led the Bears in the fourth quarter. So, despite Rocky's fine play in recent weeks, the Lights know full well they have what it takes to take the Bears down this Saturday.

The Northern/Rocky game is also one of three rematches on the slate this weekend in league play. Montana Tech will try to shake off its stunning loss to Western when it travels to Carroll College. The Orediggers beat the Saints 45-28 Aug. 30 in Butte, and Carroll has won just once since. Southern Oregon also comes out of its bye week with a dangerous trip to Eastern Oregon. Under the lights of Community Stadium, the Raiders will try and avoid an upset at the hands of their biggest rival. SOU beat EOU 31-21 last month in Ashland, Oregon, and SOU will have to be on high alert as EOU will be riding high after busting a three-game losing streak last week when they beat Northern 41-12.