The following “Pick Six” points offer a quick look inside GLVC football action this week:
[1 | teams prep for regular season finale]
The final week of the GLVC football regular season is upon us and GLVC Champion Indianapolis (10-0, 7-0 GLVC) will be one of two conference members competing outside of league play. The Greyhounds will host Notre Dame College, while William Jewell (2-8, 2-5) travels to Texas A&M-Kingsville. Back in league action, Lincoln (1-8, 0-6) heads to Southwest Baptist (4-5, 3-3), Missouri S&T (6-4, 4-2) hosts Quincy (3-7, 1-5), and Truman State (4-6, 3-3) welcomes McKendree (7-3, 5-1). All GLVC home games are available for free on GLVCSN.com, the GLVCSN iOS and Android mobile apps, and GLVCSN OTT apps on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Android TV.
[2 | fourth no more, champions once again]
At the start of the 2017 GLVC football season, the eight league coaches predicted Indianapolis would finish fourth in the league this year, right where they finished after a disappointing 2016 campaign. The Greyhounds went 6-5 last season and 5-3 in league play, ending the year by rallying for victories in their final four games. With a 43-34 comeback victory against Missouri S&T last week, UIndy completed a perfect season in league play, while also locking up the outright GLVC title and moving to 10-0 for the first time in program history.
[3 | unbeaten uindy falls from fifth to sixth in coaches poll]
Despite a thrilling 43-34 comeback win versus Missouri S&T over the weekend, the undefeated and GLVC Champion UIndy football team (10-0, 7-0 GLVC) slipped one spot to No. 6 in this week’s AFCA Division II Coaches Poll. The Greyhounds were leapfrogged by Fort Hays State (10-0), who is coming off a 13-12 win versus defending-champ and then-eighth-ranked Northwest Missouri State. Four teams received first-place votes this week, including two for Fort Hays State. Minnesota State (10-0) garnered the bulk of them, however, to retain the No. 1 ranking for a second straight week. Each of the top-eight teams has yet to lose a game this year. The Greyhounds look to complete their first undefeated regular season since 1953 when they host non-conference Notre Dame College on Senior Day Saturday, Nov. 11. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
[4 | uindy, mckendree earn weekly awards]
Indianapolis senior quarterback Jake Purichia and McKendree senior linebacker Austin Weltha and senior wideout/returner Derrick Curry were named the GLVC Players of the Week in football, it was announced by the league office Monday. Purichia was tabbed Offensive Player of the Week after throwing 21-for-33 for 237 yards and three touchdowns, while rallying the Greyhounds from 11 points down at half to beat Missouri S&T, 43-34. Weltha earned his third career Defensive Player of the Week honor after finishing with a team-best 12 tackles, including six solo stops, as well as two fourth-quarter interceptions, one of which he returned 94 yards for a touchdown in a 42-14 win over Truman State. In that same game, Curry notched a 50-yard touchdown on a punt return and averaged 29.3 yards on four punt returns to earn Special Teams Player of the Week accolades.
[5 | hounds remain second in regional rankings]
The undefeated UIndy football team held steady at No. 2 in this week’s NCAA Division II Super Region Three rankings. The other top four teams remained static as well, including No. 1 Fort Hays State. The top seven teams from the country’s four regions will earn berths in the NCAA Division II Playoffs. The No. 1 seed in each region will earn a bye, with seeds 2-4 will hosting 5-7 in first-round action Nov. 18. The bracket plays out on consecutive Saturdays until a champion is crowned Dec. 16. UIndy is looking to earn its fourth-ever trip to the Division II playoffs. The Hounds qualified in 2012, ’13 and ’15, earning the program’s only postseason victory in 2012. This year’s playoff field will be announced Sunday, Nov. 12.
[6 | uindy’s schickel kicking his way to national recognition]
UIndy kicker Brad Schickel was one of just 12 Division II place kickers and 41 collegians nationwide named to October edition of the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List, released last Friday. The annual award will be presented in mid-December to the nation’s top kicker based on performance both on the football field and in the community. A native of Louisville, Ky., Schickel owns a career field goal percentage of .840, the highest in school history. His season percentage of .818 is good for tops in the GLVC and 13th in Division II. He is second in the conference in scoring (7.8 ppg) while also ranking third in the league in net punting (39.3), dropping nearly half of his punts inside the 20. The annual Fred Mitchell Award is presented to the nation’s top collegiate place kicker among more than 750 FCS, Division II, III, NAIA and NJCAA football teams. The recipient will be chosen based on excellence on the football field and in the community. The honor is named for Fred Mitchell, the record-setting place kicker, Wittenberg University Athletic Hall of Famer, author, philanthropist and Chicago Tribune sports columnist.
