Frontier Notebook: Plenty of big games left on the Frontier calendar

The 2019 Frontier Conference football season isn't half over just yet.

But, last weekend saw every team in the league take a week off. Now however, all breaks are over, and it will be an interesting race to the finish line in November.

College of Idaho and Montana Western are currently in the driver's seat in the Frontier, each sitting at 4-0 in league play. Both teams have been superb this far, and at this point in the season, either one of them could end up as Frontier champions.

The reason the Yotes and Bulldogs have the edge right now, too, is it looks like the challengers might be a few less this year than in season's past. Montana Tech has rebounded from an 0-1 start to get to 3-1 heading into the second month of the season. The Orediggers have played extremely well of late, but their offense has also sputtered at times, so even they do not have the firepower to catch Western and C of I.

Carroll College, sitting at 2-2, and, surprisingly, Southern Oregon at 1-3, look like the two teams that could have a shot to play spoiler over the next six weeks. The Fighting Saints' two losses have been heartbreaking affairs where they had leads late and lost them. SOU has been in the same situation much of the season, and while the Raiders have a hole to dig out of still, they are talented and have already played most of the top half of the league once.

Of course, there are some big games that will help shape the league standings in the coming weeks. The first two happen Saturday when Western visits Tech, in what is probably an elimination game for the Diggers at least, while C of I faces its biggest road challenge of the season when it plays at Carroll.

The Yotes will also list SOU Oct. 26 in what will be another huge game for their playoff hopes, while Western's finish will make or break the Dawgs. They travel to Nampa to play the Yotes Nov. 9 in what could be a winner-take-all game, while they finish at home against SOU Nov. 16.

Other games throughout the next six weeks will also play a factor in how the 2019 season turns out, but for now, those are the biggest games on the docket. Of course, it's also the Frontier, and as we've seen in recent seasons, anything can, and usually does, happen.

Leaders

A host of players are having big statistical seasons so far in league play.

Western quarterback Jon Jund is averaging 312 yards passing, and is among the NAIA leaders in several offensive categories. Just a sophomore, Jund has thrown for 1,249 yards and 12 touchdowns against just five interceptions. He also leads the Frontier in total offense. Northern quarterback Brenden Medina is currently third in the league in passing at 242 yards per outing. He's thrown for 1,210 yards and 11 scores.

In the rushing department, no one has been better than C of I's Nick Calzaretta, who is averaging 150 yards per game. Carroll freshman Matthew Burgess has also been an exciting player to watch, as he is averaging 117 yards per outing. Two-time rushing champion Jed Fike of Tech is averaging 103 yards per game but is currently injured, while Jett Robertson is Northern's top rusher at 38 yards per game.

Another breakout performer on offense so far is Tech's Trevor Hoffman. The speedy wide receiver already has 24 grabs and 436 yards this season. Not far behind is Western freshman Trey Mounts, who averages a whopping 24 yards per catch. MSU-N junior Marvin Williams Jr. is seventh in the Frontier in receiving at 72 ypg.

On defense, it's to no one's surprise that Western's Jason Ferris is leading the league in tackles. Through four games, Ferris has 48 total stops and averages 12 per contest. Northern freshman safety Japerri Powell is fourth in the league with 32 tackles.

C of I's J.T. Melton leads the Frontier in sacks with 4.5 on the year, while EOU's Sage DeLong has seven tackles for loss. EOU's Zach Jacobs and SOU's Michael Chisley Jr. are tied atop the standings with three interceptions apiece.

Poll Position

Even though the three teams ranked in last week's NAIA Coaches Poll were idle this past Saturday, all three squads jumped in the new poll released Monday.

C of I moved up one spot to No. 8 in the new rankings, while Western rose to No. 15 and Montana Tech jumped to No. 22. Morningside continues to hold the No. 1 spot in the NAIA.

NAIA Coaches Poll

Rn. Prv. Rec. Pts.

1 1 Morningside (Iowa) [17] 4-0 392

2 4 Kansas Wesleyan 5-0 361

3 6 Marian (Ind.) 4-0 357

4 5 Concordia (Mich.) 5-0 352

5 7 Grand View (Iowa) 6-0 338

6 2 Benedictine (Kan.) 5-1 297

7 8 Northwestern (Iowa) 4-0 294

8 9 College of Idaho 4-0 285

8 3 Saint Francis (Ind.) 3-1 285

10 10 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 5-0 273

11 11 Cumberlands (Ky.) 4-0 235

12 12 Southeastern (Fla.) 4-0 212

13 15 Saint Xavier (Ill.) 2-2 195

14 13 Dickinson State (N.D.) 4-1 191

15 16 Montana Western 4-0 188

16 17 Langston (Okla.) 3-1 171

17 18 Evangel (Mo.) 5-1 155

18 20 Ottawa (Ariz.) (AZ) 5-0 129

19 22 Keiser (Fla.) 5-0 112

20 21 Reinhardt (Ga.) 4-2 108

21 19 Siena Heights (Mich.) 4-1 85

22 23 Montana Tech 3-1 81

23 14 Bethel (Tenn.) 3-2 64

24 24 Baker (Kan.) 4-2 46

25 NR MidAmerica Nazarene 5-1 44

Others: Sterling (Kan.) 15, Cumberland (Tenn.) 6 and Bethel (Kan.) 2.