THE LIGHTNING ROUND--WEEK 5

Last week: 19-12 (.613)
Year-To-Date: 68-37 (.648)

Another great weekend of small college football action was on display nationwide, as summer slowly segued into fall, and many teams started moving away from non-conference action to conference play.

While Northwest Missouri State managed to slip past Missouri Western 24-21 last Saturday, fans in Richmond, Va. witnessed one of the true classics of the 2006 season so far, as Johnson C. Smith needed five overtimes to defeat Virginia Union 40-37.

In NCAA Division III action, what appeared to be a potential thriller turned out to be just the opposite, as the St. John Fisher Cardinals ran their record to 4-0 with a 34-10 rout of Ithaca. On the other hand, the game between Hobart and RPI in the Liberty League was as good as advertised, as the Statesmen pulled out a close 24-17 win over the Engineers to improve to 3-0 overall, and 1-0 in conference play. In the Pacific Northwest, perennial powers Linfield and Pacific Lutheran are a combined 0-5, with the Wildcats 0-2, and the Lutes 0-3, respectively. On the flip side, Puget Sound and Whitworth are both off to 3-0 starts. Could there be a changing of the guard in the Northwest Conference? We'll wait and see.

Finally, in NAIA action, Carroll (Mont.) managed to win a 12-7 defensive struggle over Montana State-Northern, while Northwestern (Iowa) rolled past Nebraska Wesleyan 36-0.

Well, enough about last weekend. Let's focus on this weekend!

Projected winners are highlighted in RED

Key games are highlighted in BOLD type.

Classics are highlighted in italics

DIVISION I-AA

New Hampshire (3-0) vs. Delaware (2-1)

Southern Utah (3-1) at Cal Poly (3-1)

Montana (2-1) at Portland State (3-1)

(Battle for a share of first place in the Big Sky Conference)

Princeton (2-0) vs. Columbia (2-0)

DIVISION II

Grand Valley State (4-0) at Wayne State (Mich.)--(3-1)

Northwest Missouri State (4-0) at Missouri Southern State (3-1)

Arkansas Tech (3-1) at North Alabama (3-0)

Northwood (4-0) at Saginaw Valley State (3-1)

(Share of first place on the line in GLIAC)

Pittsburg State (3-1) vs. Emporia State (3-1)

Carson-Newman (4-0) at Newberry (4-0)

(South Atlantic Conference opener for both teams)

Catawba (3-0) at Mars Hill (3-1)

Indiana (Pa.)--(2-1) at Edinboro (3-1)

Tusculum (3-1) at Wingate (3-1)

Winona State (3-1) at Concordia-St. Paul (Minn.)--(2-2)

Bryant (3-1) at Pace (3-1)

West Alabama (3-1) at Harding (2-2)

Adams State (3-1) at Western New Mexico (3-1)

DIVISION III

Carleton (3-0) at St. John's (Minn.)--(4-0)

(Share of first place at stake in MIAC)

Wesley (3-0) at Huntindgon (3-1)

Mississippi College (3-0) at Hardin-Simmons (2-0)

Wartburg (3-0) at Central College (3-0)

(First place showdown in Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference)

Western Connecticut (3-0) at Rowan (2-1)

Worcester Tech (2-1) at Hobart (3-0)

Ithaca (3-1) vs. Brockport State (2-1)

(Can the Bombers bounce back against the Golden Eagles in this non-conference tilt?)

Merchant Marine (3-1) at Union (N.Y.)--(2-1)

Trinity (Conn.)--(1-0) at Williams (1-0)

(Early season showdown in NESCAC)

St. Thomas (2-1) at Bethel (Minn.)--(3-1)

Elmhurst (3-0) at Carthage (3-0)

(CCIW opener for both teams)

Massachusetts Maritime (2-1) at Coast Guard (2-1)

Colorado College (2-1) at Carnegie-Mellon (4-0)

Fitchburg State (2-1) at Bridgewater State (2-1)

NAIA

St. Ambrose (3-0) vs. Quincy (3-1)

Nebraska Wesleyan (3-1) at Morningside (2-1)

Langston (1-1) vs. Northwestern Oklahoma State (2-2)

Montana Tech (3-1) at Carroll (Mont.)--(4-0)

(Four-time defending champs face stiff backyard test)

Virginia-Wise (4-0) at Georgetown (Ky.)--(3-0)

(Mid-South Conference showdown in the Bluegrass!)

Benedictine (Kans.)--(2-1) at Graceland (3-1)

Geneva (1-1) vs. Malone (2-1)

(Mid States Football Association opener for both teams)


INTERDIVISIONAL GAMES

North Greenville (D-II)--(3-1) at Charleston Southern (I-AA)--(3-0)

South Dakota (D-II)--(4-0) at Central Arkansas (I-AA)--(3-1)