Frontier Notebook: Frontier title comes down to the last day

A three-way tie for the Frontier Conference championship? Yes, it's entirely possible that could happen. But, not if the Montana Tech Orediggers have anything to say about it.

Tech put itself in position to win the conference title outright this Saturday by beating No.1-ranked Southern Oregon 21-17 last Saturday in Ashland, Oregon. In what was billed as the NAIA Game of the Week, Tech's stingy defense put the brakes on an SOU offense that had been averaging nearly 50 points per game over its last three. The Orediggers also snapped a seven-game SOU win streak in the process, and prevented the Raiders from winning the Frontier title outright, as well as possibly garnering the No. 1 seed in the upcoming NAIA playoffs.

And with the win, Tech and head coach Chuck Morrell have gone from worst to first in one season. The Orediggers can do no worse than a share of the league title, and that comes just one year after winning a single game and finishing last in the conference.

So, this Saturday will be an exciting one, and that's how the final weekend of the regular season should be. The Orediggers are home to face arch rival UM-Western in what will be billed as the NAIA Game of the Week as well. Western demolished Montana State University-Northern last Saturday night in Dillon, which means the 7-2 Bulldogs can share the Frontier title with an upset at Tech. The game is a meeting of the top two defenses in the league, and two of the best in the NAIA, so don't expect a ton of points, and expect the game to come right down to the end.

While a Tech win over Western would lock up the league title, and a top four seed in the playoffs for the Orediggers, SOU will be hoping Western beats Tech in Alumni Coliseum. With a Western win, and a win of their own at improving Eastern Oregon, the Raiders would share the Frontier title with both the Orediggers and Bulldogs, and likely all three teams would make the playoffs. If Western and SOU both lose this Saturday, both teams will be on the playoff bubble.

Trying for a Repeat

The long rebuilding season the MSU-Northern Lights have been going through is nearing its conclusion. But, the Lights certainly aren't ready to be done.

Saturday is senior day for Northern at Blue Pony Stadium, and it's also the last chance for a resilient Lights' team to win a game before the long winter sets in. And Northern may have some history on its side.

MSU-N beat Rocky Mountain College in the 2014 season finale last November in Billings, and the last time the Lights played their last regular season game at home, they won that one, too. So, in recent years, the Lights are pretty good at finishing strong.

Of course, this year hasn't been like other seasons for the Lights and beating the Bears Saturday will be no easy feat. RMC just knocked off Carroll College last Saturday in Helena, while the Lights lost 52-6 at Western. Rocky also brings the top passing attack in the conference to Blue Pony Stadium, and the best wide receiver in the NAIA in senior Andre McCullouch, who will be playing his last game as a Bear in what has been a brilliant four-year career. This season, McCullouch has benefitted from the emergence of quarterback Chase White, a former Shelby star, who started his career as a University of Montana recruit before mentoring under RMC great Bryce Baker the last two seasons.

RMC also has a Northern connection at running back in junior tailback Kodee Varner. Both of Varner's older brothers were standout defensive backs for the Lights, while the younger Varner went to FCS North Dakota before transferring to RMC.

But while the Bears come to Havre feeling good about their win over Carroll, and the fact they bested the Lights 46-0 back on Sept. 12 in Billings, it's Northern's senior day, and it's the Lights' last stand in 2015. And they'll be fired up and excited for one more opportunity to make a statement before the season closes.

"Our guys want to get a win," MSU-N head coach Aaron Christensen said. "They want to find a way to come out of there with a victory."

Top Awards

This being the final Frontier Conference Notebook of the season, it's always fun to see how the Frontier Conference postseason honors might shake out.

The Frontier's Offensive MVP is probably a no-brainer at this point, as Tech junior running back Nolan Saraceni has put together an incredible season. Despite missing two games, Saraceni has racked up 1,390 yards and is averaging 174 yards per outing. If Saraceni wins the honor, he'll be the first non-quarterback to win it in three years.

Other offensive standouts this season include MSU-N's Zach McKinley, who needs just 25 yards against RMC to get to 1,000 for the third year in a row, while McCullouch has been the top receiver in the Frontier all season. EOU quarterback Zach Bartlow leads the Frontier in total offense, RMC's White is the top passer and EOU running back Jase Billingsley leads the league in all-purpose yardage.

The Defensive Player of the Year honor is a little more up for grabs. UM-Western's Reno Ward has had a huge season with his 13.5 sacks and 21.5 tackles for loss, both tops in the Frontier. But EOU linebacker Gary Posten has had another monster season, with 126 tackles. Carroll safety James Dowgin, Northern defensive end Tyler Craig and Western linebackers A.J. Wilson and Joe Coker are also in the discussion for best defensive player in the Frontier.

The discussion for who will be Coach of the Year is now officially over. There's no question Tech head man Chuck Morrell is deserving of the honor, as Tech has pulled off one of the biggest one-year turnarounds in league history. Western head man B.J. Robertson also dserves the honor for what he's done with the Bulldogs, but there's no doubt, Morrell's quick turnaround in Butte is something very special.

Honors

Tech's Clay Cavander is the Frontier Offensive Player of the Week. In then No. 9 Montana Tech's 21-17 upset road win over then No. 1 Southern Oregon, Cavender rushed for 129 yards and one touchdown on 13 carries. He caught one pass for a touchdown and was 2-of-3 passing for 12 yards.

Western's Ward was named Defensive Player of the Week. In then No. 13 Montana Western's 52-6 conference win over Montana State-Northern, Ward recorded 11 unassisted tackles, two assisted tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss (-29) and 2.5 sacks.

Western's Seth Mason was named Special Team's Player of the Week. In then No. 13 Montana Western's 52-6 conference win over Montana State-Northern, Mason kicked 7 of 7 P.A.T.'s and was 1 of 1 in field goals (27 yards).