Linfield Unanimous Pick to Win Fifth Straight
| NWC Football Coaches' Pre-Season Poll: |
2003 records |
| School |
(1st) |
Pts. |
All |
NWC |
| 1. Linfield (Ore.) |
(6) |
42 |
11-1 |
5-0 |
| 2. Willamette (Ore.) |
|
29.5 |
7-3 |
4-1 |
| 3. Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) |
|
23.5 |
6-3 |
3-2 |
| 4. Whitworth (Wash.) |
|
16 |
4-6 |
2-3 |
| 5. Puget Sound (Wash.) |
|
12 |
0-9 |
0-5 |
| 6. Lewis & Clark (Ore.) |
|
8 |
3-6 |
1-4 |
(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on 7-5-4-3-2-1 basis).
Linfield College is heavily favored to claim its fifth straight Northwest Conference football title, according to the 2004 pre-season poll of conference coaches.
Linfield, which ran to an 11-1 finish on the way to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals and an undefeated NWC record in 2003, claimed all six first place votes and the maximum of 42 poll points. The Wildcats return 16 starters from last fall, eight on offense and defense, as well as an All-NWC punter and kicker. First Team All-NWC running back Thomas Ford and wide receiver George Carter will lead the offense, while First Team All-NWC defensive lineman Kelly Bertrand and defensive back Eric Hillison will lead the defense.
Willamette University finished second in the poll with 29.5 total points. The Bearcats return five offensive and seven defensive starters from a team that finished 7-3 overall and 4-1 in the NWC last season. Senior Nate Matlock, a 2003 Co-Defensive Player of the Year as a defensive end, will lead another strong Bearcat defense.
Pacific Lutheran University is third in the poll with 23.5 points. The Lutes hope to build on last season's 6-3 overall record and 3-2 finish in the NWC. PLU returns seven offensive starters, including three-year starting quarterback Dusty Macauley, and six starters on defense.
Whitworth College, picked to finish fourth with 16 points, returns 5 starters on offense and four on defense, including All-NWC defensive back Jeremy Scroggins. The Pirates hope to rebound from last fall's 4-6 overall record and 2-3 NWC mark.
The University of Puget Sound and Lewis & Clark College round out the final two places in the poll. Puget Sound returns ten starters on both sides of the ball from last season's 0-9 squad. Logger running back Andy Carlson led the conference in rushing last fall.
Lewis & Clark will have six starters back each way from last fall's 3-6 finish. All-NWC linebacker Chris Stokes will lead the Pioneer defense.
This will be the ninth season since the Northwest Conference readopted football as a conference sport. From 1985 through 1995 the Northwest Conference schools played football as part of the Columbia Football Association and the NAIA. In 1995 the Northwest Conference began the process of joining the NCAA and withdrew from membership in the CFA.