After two decades of serving as a football patsy for St. John’s, Bethel finally beat the Johnnies in 1999—their first win in 21 meetings between the two schools. Since then, they have proved to be a worthy gridiron adversary, taking 3 of 8 games from the Johnnies, sharing two MIAC titles with St. John’s, and winning a third outright.
Another chapter in the growing rivalry will be written when the two teams meet Saturday in Arden Hills with the outright MIAC title on the line. For the Royals, who began their season with an upset loss to Iowa-also-ran Buena Vista, the game represents their only legitimate chance at an NCAA playoff berth. For the Johnnies, a win virtually guarantees a top-two playoff seed in the West Region and the opportunity for at least two home playoff games. With a loss, the Johnnies’ fate lies in the hands of the playoff selection committee, likely relegating them to an opening round road game—or worse, no playoff invitation at all.
With so much riding on the season’s finale, let’s take a look at the numbers that shape the remainder of the season:
No Place Like Home… Or is There?: It has been well documented that Alex Kofoed and the passing offense have enjoyed their time at Clemens Stadium this year, shredding opposing defenses for 326 passing yards per game at home. It should be noted, however, that the Johnnies have gained more yards rushing and allowed fewer yards rushing, passing, and overall in road games.
St. John’s has played its two toughest opponents, St. Olaf and Concordia-Moorhead, at home, where they have won their five games by an average score of 50-21. While the Johnnies haven’t been nearly as explosive on the road, they have beaten their four overmatched opponents by a similarly impressive average margin of 29-6.
Win or lose against Bethel this week, the Johnnies will likely have to travel to UW-Whitewater if they hope to win the West Region. St. John’s may find itself falling back on the old playoff football staples—a strong running attack and a stout defense—that have been their keys to success on the road so far this year.
A Place in St John’s History: With a win Saturday, the Johnnies would complete the 11th undefeated and untied regular season in school history. The Johnnies are also gunning for their 30th MIAC title and coach John Gagliardi’s 26th conference championship.
The 2007 graduating class is trying to become the 14th straight group of St. John’s players to win at least 3 conference titles in their 4 years on campus. The last class of players to fall short of that mark was the 1993 graduates, who won two MIAC titles between 1990 and 1993.
This year’s seniors have already guaranteed themselves a winning percentage of at least .826, extending the Johnnies streak of classes with at least an .800 winning percentage to 17 (1990’s class, at .774, was the last to win less than 80% of their games). John Gagliardi, in his 55th season in Collegeville, has never graduated a class of players with a winning percentage below .600.
Close Contest: Judging St. John’s and Bethel by their common opponents—fellow MIAC teams—the two teams seem to be closely matched. The Johnnies and Royals are ranked first and second, respectively, in both points and yards allowed, while the two teams rank third and fourth (again, St. John’s has the advantage) in points scored and yards gained.
This game also promises to be largely mistake free, as both teams are stingy with turnovers (12 apiece, tied for second in the MIAC) and penalties (the Johnnies, at 31 ypg., and Royals, at 34 ypg., are by far the least penalized teams in conference play).
Both teams also feature individual standouts on either side of the ball. St. John’s quarterback Alex Kofoed leads the MIAC in pass efficiency, while Bethel’s offense is led by the conference’s leading rusher, freshman Logan Flannery (103.3 ypg.). Keep an eye on Flannery’s availability for this week’s game as he left the Royals’ game against Augsburg with an injury. On the defensive side of the ball, Bethel senior Brandon Carr leads the conference with 5 interceptions and 7 passes broken up, while St. John’s junior defensive tackle Nick Gunderson paces the MIAC with 7 sacks and 11 tackles for a loss.
