The Linfield football team looks to complete a perfect regular season for the first time in six years as the Wildcats host Lewis & Clark in the Pacific Office Automation Hall of Fame Game on Saturday at Maxwell Field. The game also marks Senior Day for the Wildcats.
 
The last time the Wildcats went undefeated in the regular season was in 2015. The only blemish in that season was a 38-17 loss at St. Thomas in the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Playoffs. St. Thomas has since moved up to Division I's Pioneer Football League in the FCS.
 
The 'Cats enter the week at 8-0 overall and 6-0 in Northwest Conference play under Joseph Smith, who is in his 15^th season as head coach. The Pioneers sit in sixth place in the NWC standings at 3-5 overall with a 2-4 conference mark.
 
The game kicks off at 1 p.m. Live coverage begins on the Linfield Sports Network at 12:30 p.m. with the Farnham Electric Pregame Show. Joe Stuart and Dave Hansen will provide play-by-play coverage. Links to the game's live stream broadcast and live stats can be found above.
 
THE WILDCAT OFFENSE
The Wildcats have the fourth-highest scoring offense in Division III. They are averaging 52.6 points per game after a 77-7 rout of Willamette last week. The 'Cats lead the Northwest Conference with 493.4 yards of total offense per game, including 317.5 through the air. Their 55 touchdowns are 21 more than the next NWC team.
 
There's not enough time to talk about the impact of Wyatt Smith under center. The senior quarterback has completed 194 of 278 passes for 2,371 yards. Smith ranks third in Division III with 210 points responsible for, fourth with 31 passing touchdowns, 10^th with a 69.8 completion percentage and 15^th with 313 yards of total offense per game.
 
Smith was named the NWC Football Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week for the fourth time on Monday after he threw for seven touchdowns in the first half against Willamette. Junior Dawson Lieurance entered the game after halftime, completing six passes for 87 yards and a touchdown of his own.
 
Linfield leads the NWC with 175.9 rushing yards per game. Junior running back Connor Morton ranks No. 4 in the conference with 57.4 rushing yards per game while fellow junior Connor McNabb is fifth at 57 yards per game. Both are tied for third in the conference with six rushing touchdowns.
 
It seems like there's a new hot hand for the Wildcats every week in the receiving corps. Junior Colton Smith and sophomore Joel Valadez both had three touchdown catches against Willamette, Smith leading the team with 124 receiving yards in the 70-point victory. Valadez leads the NWC with 67.5 receiving yards per game while junior Devon Murray ranks fifth at 50.8. Valadez and Smith lead the conference with eight touchdown catches while Murray has seven.
 
THE PIONEER OFFENSE
The Pioneers are fourth in the Northwest Conference in scoring with 30.9 points per game to go with 373.5 yards of total offense per game. They are third in the conference with 253 passing yards per game.
 
The Pioneer offense is led by junior quarterback Cruz Montana, who has completed 54.5 percent of his passes for 1,524 yards and 12 touchdowns to go with six interceptions. He is third in the NWC with 190.5 passing yards per game.
 
The top rushing threat for the Pioneers is sophomore running back Dyontae Navarrete. Navarrete is third in the NWC with 65 rushing yards per game and tied for third with six rushing touchdowns. Junior Elijah McGee and freshman Tony Rangel have two rushing touchdowns apiece.
 
McGee is also the Pioneers' top pass catcher, averaging 57.6 receiving yards per game to go with four touchdown catches. Senior Aidan Verba-Hamilton is right behind McGee with three touchdown catches while sophomore Sean Bodi has two.
 
THE WILDCAT DEFENSE
Linfield has one of the most dominant defenses in Division III. The Wildcats are fourth in Division III in total defense, allowing 191.9 yards per game. They also rank fourth in rushing defense (47.4 yards per game) and lead the country with a 14.9 percent third down defense.
 
Senior defensive end Travis Swanson continues to lead the Northwest Conference with 18 tackles for loss and 10 sacks and is tied for the team lead with 33 tackles, 20 solo. Fellow senior Vinny Niosi anchors the other end of the defensive line with 20 tackles, including 5.5 tackles for loss and three sacks, to go with five pass breakups and a forced fumble. Senior tackle Chase Lydig has 14 tackles on the year with 6.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.
 
Sophomore Blake Rybar has settled in well in his first full season in the linebacker corps. He has 26 tackles, 19 solo, with six tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, a pass breakup and two quarterback hurries. Senior Cedric Agcoili-Ostrom has 16 tackles while sophomore rover Caiden Biege-Wetherbee is third on the team with 31 tackles to go with a team-leading five pass breakups.
 
Senior safety Tyler Bergeron is expected to return from injury against the Pioneers to anchor the Linfield secondary. He has 25 tackles on the year with an interception. Senior cornerback Tyler Sitton has stepped up in Bergeron's absence. He is fourth on the team with 27 tackles to go with two interceptions and four pass breakups. Junior monsterback Ben Baxter has a team-leading 33 tackles with two interceptions.
 
THE PIONEER DEFENSE
The Pioneers have the sixth-best scoring defense, allowing opponents an average of 34.1 points per game to go with 388.8 yards per game. They have 20 sacks and nine interceptions on the season.
 
The defense is led by senior defensive back Anakin Mares with his 58 tackles, ranking second in the Northwest Conference. Mares also has a forced fumble and two interceptions. Fellow senior defensive back Tanner Ono has 36 tackles, two tackles for loss, an interception and a fumble recovery while Makana LaBoy has 25 tackles.
 
Four of the Pioneers' top tacklers on the season are linebackers. Sophomore Sam Meinhard leads the group with 45 tackles to go with three tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception. Senior Alex Hensley and sophomore Justin Hope have 39 tackles and two sacks apiece while junior Jake Bushman has 37 tackles.
 
Up front, the Pioneers are led by senior defensive linemen Ari Blemur and Cameron Chang. Blemur has 34 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss, including a sack. Chang has 27 tackles, 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.
 
THE SERIES
Linfield and Lewis & Clark have met 85 times. The Wildcats own a commanding series lead with a 65-19-1 record against the Pioneers. The 'Cats have won 42 straight meetings dating back to the 1974 season. The last time the Pioneers beat the 'Cats was a 7-4 win in Portland in 1973. Linfield is 37-6 against Lewis & Clark in McMinnville. The 'Cats took the most recent game by a score of 54-7 at home on Nov. 2, 2019.
 
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
Linfield's 77-7 win over Willamette last week clinched at least a share of the Northwest Conference title and the program's 31^st national playoff berth. With a win over Lewis & Clark, the Wildcats would secure sole possession of the NWC title for the 35^th time in school history. They have also shared the title eight times.
 
SPECTATOR POLICY AND COVID-19 PROTOCOLS
All individuals (age 12 and over) entering any athletics venue must provide proof of vaccination along with photo identification. Since all Linfield faculty, staff and students have completed this task in order to be on campus this fall, the Linfield individual must simply show their current Linfield ID.
 
Masks must be worn by all spectators at all times. Participants, including players, coaches, support staff and media on the sidelines, must wear masks throughout the duration of all athletic events, both indoor and outdoor, and during pregame and postgame activities.