Linfield Unanimous Pick to Win NWC Title Once Again
| NWC Football Coaches' Pre-Season Poll: |
2002 records |
| School |
(1st) |
Pts. |
All |
NWC |
| 1. Linfield (Ore.) |
(6) |
42 |
10-1 |
5-0 |
| 2. Willamette (Ore.) |
|
28 |
6-4 |
3-2 |
| 3. Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) |
|
25 |
5-4 |
3-2 |
| 4. Whitworth (Wash.) |
|
18 |
7-3 |
3-2 |
| 5. Puget Sound (Wash.) |
|
10 |
1-8 |
0-5 |
| 6. Lewis & Clark (Ore.) |
|
9 |
3-6 |
1-4 |
(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on 7-5-4-3-2-1 basis).
Linfield College is favored to claim its fourth straight Northwest Conference football title, according to the 2003 pre-season poll of conference coaches.
Linfield, which rolled to a 10-1 finish and undefeated NWC record in 2002, claimed all six first place votes and the maximum of 42 poll points. The Wildcats return nine starters from last fall, including First Team All-NWC quarterback Tyler Matthews and First Team All-NWC linebacker Harrison Bertsch.
Willamette University finished second in the poll with 28 total points. The Bearcats' "fly" offense will be strong again behind Billy Joe Murray and Morgan Smith, a pair of All-NWC lineman, and All-NWC slot back Greg Reed. Willamette finished 6-4 overall and tied for second in the conference with Whitworth and PLU at 3-2.
Pacific Lutheran University is third in the poll with 25 points. The Lutes hope to rebound from last season's 5-4 finish. PLU returns nine offensive starters, including three-time All-NWC running back Aaron Binger.
Whitworth College, picked to finish fourth with 18 points, returns 10 starters on defense and eight on offense, including two-time All-NWC wide receiver Dwayne Tawney. The Pirates finished 7-3 last fall.
The University of Puget Sound and Lewis & Clark College round out the final two places in the poll. Puget Sound returns nine starters on both sides of the ball from last season's 1-8 squad. Lewis & Clark will have five starters back each way from last fall's 3-6 finish.
This will be the eighth 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.