Week 7 as we are in the second half of the season where the Teachers come out of the teachers lounge and the gradebook starts to give lower and higher scores. Just Win Baby and get top grades, and if you can’t pull them out not a lot of moral victories will be given high grades thru the rest of gthe year
October the 17th 2026 at the FCS, D2, D3, and NAIA level in Iowa our SGI teams put up some impressive victories.
SGI Star Student(s) of the Week
Two star students this week- Dubuque A+ went to Indianola to play the Storm where they were slight underdogs against Simpson. This meeting of two undefeated teams in the A-R-C was expected to be a tight one. The Spartans led by Joey Rhomberg from Mt. Vernon IA and his 6 TD’s passing dominated on the day and ran away with a lopsided win.
Wartburg A+ The Knights continue to dominate the DIII landscape in Iowa and wiped out the Loras DuHawks 68-7 with almost 600 yards of offense (474 on the ground) while only allowing 169 yards of offense. The Knights have scored 69, 72, and now 68 points in the last three weeks. The Knights are playing angry and running the ball down teams’ throats. Those are some A+ performances
Top of the Class Performers
Dordt A: The Defenders won the Battle of the Sioux’s – City vs. Center in NW Iowa convincingly in a runaway 49-3 victory. At 5-2 Joel Penner’s Boys in Black are setting themselves for another NAIA playoff run.
Northwestern College A: A few weeks back our SGI team were calling for more consistency from one of the best NAIA programs in the country. Their 45 points yesterday in a big win against Doane and 52 the week before show us that the Blood Red Oranges from Orange City are looking like another playoff force this fall in NAIA.
Upper Iowa A: Iowa’s Only D2 program went down to Missouri and put it on Southwest Baptist to go into a first-place tie in GLVC at 3-1. After having 5 straight games of every game decided by 2 pts or less, the Peacocks strutted their feathers with a 42-23 victory over the Bearcats. Our Peacock Corner Show hosts were thrilled with the lack of drama and the runaway win.
St. Ambrose A: Vince Fillips Bees on the Bluff in Davenport had a dominant 46-26 win over Clarke University from just up the road on Highway 61. The Bees are off to an excellent 4-2 start this fall and are building program. They are having their best year ever since joining the Heart of America Conference a few years back (which is arguably the best NAIA Football Conference in America) so they had a huge step up in competitive class. It’s been close to a decade since the Bees have had a winning record in Football, and it’s exciting to see what the Bees are building in the Quad Cities.
Coe College A: Coe rolled over to Storm Lake and handled the Buena Vista Beavers 42-7 behind another strong day from Quincy Drummer. The KoHawks are 3-0 in the A-R-C (tied with Dubuque and Wartburg) setting up some huge showdown games in the A-R-C over the next few weeeks.
Central College A: Some key skill player injuries have hurt the Dutch’s progression this year, but the Red Tulips from Pella are a proud program and put it on the Wolves from Nebraska Wesleyan this Saturday 44-11. The Dutch are historically one of Iowa’s all time great football programs so it’s always good to see the guys with a C on their helmet excel.
Grinnell B+: The Pioneers went to Appleton Wisconsin and must have visited the Harry Houdini Museum (Houdini was from Appleton) and been inspired to escape with a big win after trailing going into the 4th quarter 7-6. The Pioneers put up 22 unanswered and won 28-7. We are big fans of the flexbone that Coach Barnes runs and the competitiveness that the Pioneers play with as the school’s academic profile means they compete with a much smaller roster than almost every D3 team they play against has. The Pioneers are a plucky bunch who are playing above their weight this year
Cornell B+: The Rams overcame four turnovers to nip the Prairie Fire from Knox 28-26. Curt Ritchie has a very young squad and is building his numbers up, so it is great to start to see some payoff. The Cornell and Grinnell game this week is going to be fun one to watch.
UNI C-: UNI fell short of their 3rd straight top 10 upset and got in a hole to top 10 Youngstown state 28-0 fast. The Purple fellas did not quit but fell 35-22. The Fellas from Cedar Falls are a tough out this fall in the uber competitive Missouri Valley Conference which 90% of the time produces the FCS National Champion.
Clarke C-: Coach Zuck was a late cycle hire and everyone knew this was going to be a build from the ground up situation as Clarke is a new Football program founded in 2020. They lost to the Bees but they do not quit and scored all 22 of their points in the 2nd half. Playing for 60 and making progress is good to see for the Pride.
Graceland C-: This week on Thursday the Yellow Jackets faced Grandview on a Thursday night in Lamoni. We loved it as we were able to watch the entire game on the feed. TJ Shanks their QB and Phil Stabacks Offense are a fun watch. The four turnovers the Yellow Jackets had made this score a bit lopsided but they do not quit.
The Rest of the Weekend and D+’s
Luther is having an excellent season but facing #24 Lake Forest was rough as they fell 57-3. Buena Vista got handled by Coe 42-7. Mt. Mercy had a rough day against Peru State and fell 59-10.
Simpson in a Showdown game with Dubuque broke down defensively and lost going away 58-27. Briar Cliff had a rough day against Northwestern College. Loras had a road trip to Waverly and the Knights put up 68 on them in a burn the tape on the bus ride back to Dubuque game (Wartburg is making a habit of close to 70 point outbursts).
William Penn had a turnover filled day giving Culver Stockton a 29-28 victory. Losing to the Butter Burgers by turning the ball over 4 times led to big NAIA upset.
Drake fell in tight one to Marist 25-22 in DSM. It was our in person covered game this weekend. A 4th Straight PFL championship is likely gone as Marist goes to 3-0 and has the tiebreaker. Some observations I wanted to share. Drake had a late coaching change when much of last years staff went to Rutgers. Taking over in late Feb. at the D1 level is tough that late even for a national title winning coach like Matt Walker (UWRF just won the NCAA D3 Natty under Coach Walker). When coaches leave players go portal and some of last years Drake players are now playing in the Big Ten. It’s a restock the cupboard situation, and where it shows up is in player size when you do not have time as a late hire. Those bigger guys are highly sought after and already signed elsewhere. Seeing them live last year and this year Drake is smaller up front, and fighting thru that.
They have a fun offense and championship winning staff, so very confident in their long term progress and the building they are doing this year.
As always, we appreciate your support and comments,
