GRR: Great Midwest
Loyola-Chicago’s defeat of Northern Iowa has the Great Midwest sitting up and taking notice.
Now at 2-1, Loyola is tied with Northern Iowa at 3-1 and in a solid position to make a go in the Great Midwest playoffs.
Now, Loyola’s 27-22 loss to Illinois State on September 7 looms large as an indication that Loyola could be very serious.
No one doubts that Wisconsin Whitewater is still the favorite to win the Great Midwest Conference, but other teams are bubbling up to a high level.
Loyola of Chicago has beaten UIC and DePaul and looked pretty good doing it. Their only loss was 27-22 to Illinois State, which sits 3-0.
UW-Platteville is only 1-2, but beat UW-Milwaukee 22-19 on a dramatic last-minute score.
Wisconsin-Whitewater reminded us all that the Warhawks are still able to fly, beating Minnesota-Duluth 57-17 and putting paid to any notions that the Bulldogs might chase the Warhawks down.
It's early days in the Great Midwest Conference and everyone is still in it, mostly, but some teams have logged early results with noting.
Struggling right now is Northern Michigan, which had a tough opening two weeks against Minnesota Duluth and Marquette, both losses. There's time for NMU to rebound, however, and they are perfectly capable of it.
The University of Minnesota-Duluth opened up a new season in a new conference with a very impressive 65-19 defeat of Northern Michigan.