If the Missouri S&T football team is going to put together a fourth winning season in the past five years, it will do so against perhaps its toughest schedule since leaving the Mid-America
Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) in 2005.
S&T officially released its 2009 football schedule recently and there seems to be few breathers.
The ‘09 campaign is slated to begin Sept. 3 in Warrensburg against former MIAA rival Central Missouri. The Miners will face two other former MIAA foes (Lincoln at home Oct. 31 and Southwest Baptist in Bolivar Nov. 7). Last season S&T defeated all three former MIAA rivals on its schedule (Lincoln, SBU, Truman) on its way to a 7-4 overall record.
Other highlights to this fall’s schedule includes its road “money” game against NCAA Division I-AA foe Central Arkansas on Oct. 3 as well as a pair of home games against NAIA powers Northwestern Oklahoma Oct. 17 and St. Francis (Ind.) Oct. 24. The St. Francis contest will be the Miners’ Homecoming Game. S&T will also resume a rivalry with NCAA Division I-AA non-scholarship program Drake University on the road (Oct. 10) and will host NCAA Division III power Wisconsin-Stevens Point Sept. 19.
The past several years the Miners have been paid to face a NCAA Division I-AA opponent, with those funds being put back in the S&T football program. This year’s “money” foe, Central Arkansas, finished with the best record in the Southland Conference (10-2) in 2008.
Both Northwestern Oklahoma and St. Francis have won NAIA football national championships in the past. In ‘08 St. Francis played Sioux Falls (S.D.) in the NAIA playoff semifinals.
In addition, the Miners will be trying to defend their Great Lakes Football Conference championship this year against St. Joseph, Lincoln and Kentucky Wesleyan. S&T is not scheduled to play Greal Lakes Football Conference opponent Central State this year.
“Central Arkansas will probably be the best football team we’ve ever played,” said Miner head coach Kirby Cannon. “They are picked to win the Southland Confeence and open the season with Hawaii.
“Northwestern Oklahoma and St. Francis are both top-eight teams in the NAIA. Both are in the preseason rankings and both have won national titles. And (Wisconsin) Stevens Point was a (NCAA) Division III team last year who will be very good again. Drakes has gone eight or nine years in a row with a winning record and St. Joseph will again be a talented team.”
With a large number of players back from last season Cannon feels the Miners are up to the stiff schedule.
“I think we are,” he said. “You have to prepare for it. The players understand the challenges of the schedule. And being a winning team we won’t sneak up on anyone.”
The last time S&T (then Missouri-Rolla) played Central Missouri the Miners hung a 42-38 loss on the Mules. Cannon says that won’t go unnoticed in Warrensburg as the Mules prepare for the Miners this preseason.
“We look forward to that game,” he said. “We’ll find out how good a football team we are right off the bat.”
The S&T 2009 football schedule (Games times not yet announced):
Sept. 3...at Central Missouri
Sept. 12...St. Joseph
Sept. 19...Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Sept. 26...at Wisconsin-LaCrosse
Oct. 3...at Central Arkansas
Oct. 10...at Drake University
Oct. 17...Northwestern Oklahoma
Oct. 24...St. Francis, Ind. (Homecoming)
Oct. 31...Lincoln University
Nov. 7...at Southwest Baptist
Nov. 14...at Kentucky Wesleyan
