CANTON, Ohio — The University Mary-Hardin Baylor Crusaders will play for their second Stagg Bowl Championship on Friday in Canton, Ohio.
They are playing North Central College from Naperville, Illinois. The Cardinals won the 2019 Stagg Bowl and were unable to defend their title because of COVID-19.
The game will be played at the historic Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, an impressive venue for the game.
Both of these schools will look to join a group of nine other programs who have won multiple NCAA DIII Championships. The Cru used to be included in that group, but their 2016 title was vacated after self-reported violations stripped them of a championship and a 2017 Stagg Bowl appearance.
Both teams enter the game undefeated. The Cardinals allow their opponents just under 12 points a game while averaging more than 54 points on offense.
The Cru are similar, allowing nine points a game and averaging 48 points per game.
North Central head coach Jeff Thorne is impressed with UMHB and compares them to Wheaton College, a school that went 10-1 this season before losing in the second round of the NCAA DIII playoffs.
"I mean defensively they're really, really good. Unbelievable front seven and the best secondary we've seen this year by a margin. They just are a very, very athletic, very talented team. Both sides of the football," he said.
UMHB head coach Pete Fredenburg will coach in his third Stagg Bowl (excluding two from retracted years) after losing in 2004 and winning in 2016. He says that the Cardinals have a gifted running back in Ethan Greenfield and quarterback in Luke Lehnen.
But what the longtime coach is most concerned with is the men in the trenches.
"The most impressive part to me is the offensive line and the defensive line. Both of those groups are outstanding, it poses a huge issue to us," he said.
The Cru and Cardinals will kickoff in Canton at 6 p.m. Central Time. You can follow Matt Lively on Twitter for in-game updates, with previews at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. on 6 News. Full highlights and breakdown will be aired during the 10 p.m. newscast.
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