MARYVILLE, Mo. - With his fourth consecutive conference crown in hand, Northwest Missouri State University head coach Mel Tjeerdsma isn't worried about how the playoffs shape up, he just wants to win for his seniors.
Fourteen Bearcats will celebrate Senior Day Saturday in Maryville against the University of Central Missouri and try to complete a four-year career with no losses in the powerful Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA).
“We have to win this game because it's Senior Day,” Tjeerdsma said. He isn't concerned with his current No. 2 position in Super Region 4 of the
NCAA Division II Regional Rankings, which determine who makes the playoffs (the top 2 seeds in each of the four regions earn a bye).
“We can only control the game,” Tjeerdsma said when asked about what's at stake for Northwest.
What's at stake for the Bearcats, ranked 3rd in the latest editions of both the
AFCA Coaches Poll and the
D2Football.com Media Poll, is the chance for Tjeerdsma's senior class to complete a 36-0 conference mark. Northwest's current MIAA winning streak already stands at 36. They lost the 2nd to last conference game of 2005 and have not lost since.
Two of Tjeerdsma's seniors, running back LaRon Council and safety Ike Urum-Eke, are from the Kansas City area and look to play big roles in the Bearcats' quest for a fifth-consecutive National Championship game. They have lost all four.
Council, a Center High School (KC) graduate, is a work-horse running back who single-handedly drove Northwest to the end zone in overtime two weeks ago against conference rival Washburn, the last MIAA team to beat the Bearcats in Maryville (that was in 2005, the same year as Northwest's last conference loss, against Pittsburg State at Arrowhead Stadium).
Urum-Eke, originally from Nigeria but who moved to America at age 12 and went to Lee's Summit High School, has never started a game, but sees ample playing time on special teams and certain defensive situations.
Perhaps playing for even more in Saturday's game, set for 1 p.m local time at Bearcat Stadium, is Central Missouri. At 8-2 and at No. 6 in SR4, they're in the playoffs if they win. But a loss will almost certainly deny the Mules' bid for just their second all-time playoff appearance.
