University of Wisconsin La Crosse vs. UW-Whitewater Preview

UW-Whitewater (8-0) at UW-La Crosse (7-1)

Nov. 8 at Veterans Memorial Stadium in La Crosse, Wis. at 1 p.m.

Offense: Neither team has trouble moving the ball, as they are averaging a combined 984 yards and 81 points per game this season. The Eagles need to avoid the mistakes that plagued them earlier in the season. The emergence of wideout Brandon Hall (212 yards last week) gives UW-L a nice compliment to Jeremy Earp, one of the nation's finest receivers. The Warhawks strength is the one-two punch of their running game. Seniors John Damato and Eddie McKennie are both averaging over 100 yards per game on the ground. Both experienced limited success in last year's 28-16 victory by La Crosse. Quarterback Ty Grovesteen, who set an NCAA record for consecutive pass completions earlier this season, runs a Warhawks offense averaging 503 yards per game.

Advantage: Even

Defense: The Eagles boast a young front seven that has improved their performance against the run. Their secondary is second to none. Cornerback Ric Mathias was all-conference last season and safety Mike Scheuer leads the WIAC with seven interceptions. Senior John Wilson spearheads the pass rush. UW-W is led by Art Gutierrez, Jeremy Doering and Ross Headley. Look for the Eagles to try to exploit freshman cornerback Jake Wolter and the rest of the secondary. The Warhawks are yielding just 245 yards and 14 points per game, substantially better than the Eagles averages of 310 and 20.8, respectively.

Advantage: UW-Whitewater

Special Teams: UW-L punter Jerry Faust is an All-America candidate after all-conference accolades in '96. The Eagles took advantage of a fake punt last season to gain a crucial first down that Whitewater never recovered from. One negative, the kicking game, as the Eagles have yet to make a field goal outside of 22 yards this season. The Warhawks Bryan Mader has impressive statistics, but might be haunted by two key misses early in last season's meeting. He could be the difference in a close game. Punter Matt Beisser averages just 32.2 yards per kick and has had one blocked.

Advantage: UW-La Crosse

Intangibles: UW-L is fighting for a berth in the playoffs, while UW-W is virtually assured a spot. The Eagles are 41-4 at home in the 1990s and have beat Whitewater five times in a row.

Advantage: UW-La Crosse

Quotes from UW-La Crosse coach Roger Harring:

"They (Whitewater) have two excellent running backs, and their quarterback has been very effective. They're more of a two-dimensional team as opposed to one-dimensional that they were last year. That makes them a lot better offensively."

"Defensively, they're (Whitewater) very effective against he run but have been suspect in the passing situations. Our (UW-La Crosse) defense some games really plays well, but we have to tackle better. It should be one of those games that should be a high-scorer again."

"We always have some tricks up our sleeve that we save for Whitewater because they are well-coached, and those are the teams that are more vulnerable to trick plays than those that are not as well prepared."