RAPID CITY - In the NCAA Division II playoffs, 24 teams are tested by playing the best throughout the country. In most of the games, the teams have little knowledge about the opposing team unless they played a common opponent or by chance met during the regular season.
But that will not be the situation for the Chadron State and Wayne State football teams, who will meet at 11 a.m. today at Elliott Field in Chadron, Neb. The effort for both teams will be to approach this as any other game.
The similarities abound. Though they are not in the same conference, they are both in Nebraska and share some of the same recruiting territory. They both play on natural-grass fields in northern Nebraska, both run a similar offense and each team's coaches know the other team's players.
"It's going to affect us," said Chadron State head coach Bill O'Boyle, who added his team will be focused this weekend as if it were just another game during the regular season. "We've had some of these (Wayne State's) guys in camps."
The one wild card: While No. 11 Chadron State (10-1 overall) met No. 13 Wayne State (9-2) during the 2007 and 2006 seasons - each resulting in decisive wins for the Eagles - they have not met this season. But this season, for the first time since 1995, Wayne State has earned a national ranking.
"They are night and day from where they were last year," O'Boyle said about the Wildcats.
The game plans will be the same for each team: Keep the opposing quarterback off the field.
Chadron State's offense goes through Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference offensive player of the year Joe McLain. The quarterback has thrown for 2,464 yards, 15 touchdowns and five interceptions this season. But more impressive to O'Boyle is McLain's calm demeanor and ability to handle pressure situations.
"There's no better guy in our league," O'Boyle said. "He's the guy you want in a big game. He's a hard guy to shake … and the right guy for this system."
Wayne State has a dynamic quarterback of its own in Silas Fluellen. He has completed more than 60 percent of his passes for 2,666 yards, 15 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He is also the team's second-leading rusher with 677 yards and five touchdowns.
"He's a kid that can hurt you with his feet," O'Boyle said. The team also has a talented group of wide receivers that have improved this season, with Logan Masters leading the group with 71 catches for 1,061 yards and five touchdowns.
Chadron State will also have the home-field advantage, and according to O'Boyle, the advantage of coming through pressure playoff situations in the past couple of years. On the same field last year in the playoffs, Chadron State was able to win a three-overtime contest against Abilene Christian,
76-73, after trailing by more than three touchdowns at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
If Chadron State makes it through Wayne State, the team's next opponents will be relative unknowns for the Eagles. As of this season, Chadron State plays in a different region with Great Lakes teams. In past years, the Eagles have played in a southern super-region with games against West Texas A&M, Abilene Christian and Southwest Missouri State. Chadron State's new super-region includes No. 1 Grand Valley State, with No. 7 Minnesota-Duluth waiting to host the winner of Saturday's game.
"We don't know anything about the Great Lakes teams," O'Boyle said. "But this time of year, everybody's good."
Win or loss on Saturday, O'Boyle said a lot can be said about the quality of Division II football in Nebraska through the past couple of years - especially with University of Nebraska-Omaha also in the playoffs.
"(Any other situation) I'd like to see Wayne State go on (in the playoffs)," O'Boyle said, adding that he feels the same way about UNO. "It shows what kind of kids we have in this area and reflects on their work ethic."
The two teams share some history, but not much recently. The two teams met in 1912, with Chadron State winning 27-0. Both teams were also members of the Nebraska College Conference until the mid-1970s. The teams have met 64 times in 96 years, with the Eagles holding a 36-28-1 edge.
