Complete Game Notes (PDF)

Live Video/Audio/Stats

Setting the Scene:  The Cardinals recognize the efforts of their senior student-athletes and look to cap off the fifth perfect 10-0 regular season in school history in an effort to extend the nation’s longest winning streak to 21 games.

Series History: This is the 61st football meeting between the two institutions. North Central owns a 48-10-2 record in the all-time series and has won each of the last 24 meetings dating back to 1996.

The Cardinals hosted North Park on Sept. 28, 2019, celebrating Homecoming with a 77-0 shutout victory. North Central owned a 56-0 lead by halftime and limited the Vikings to just 117 yards of total offense.

Broc Rutter set a North Central single-game record for passing accuracy, completing 16 of 17 attempts, and combined with backup signal caller Jake Johnson, threw six touchdown passes to five different receivers.

The 77-point margin of victory is the Cardinals’ largest ever against North Park and the fourth-largest against any team in the last 63 years.

National Rankings: North Central remains in the No. 1 spot in the D3football.com Top 25 Poll this week, receiving 18 of 25 first-place votes.

The Cardinals are also ranked No. 1 by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), receiving 40 of 47 first-place votes.

This is the sixth straight week North Central has been No. 1 in both polls.

Scouting the Vikings: After breaking into the win column with consecutive victories over Carthage and Elmhurst, North Park comes into its season finale on a two-game losing streak.

The Vikings lost at Millikin Saturday, 21-0, as they saw six offensive possessions, including two trips to the end zone, conclude with a failed conversion attempt on fourth down.

North Park has averaged 327 yards of total offense, 229 of which has come from its passing attack. This week’s listed starting quarterback, senior Hunter Hughes, has attempted just 17 passes this season.

The Vikings have yielded 443 yards and 35 points per game this season. Safety Juan Nieves has collected three of North Park’s five interceptions.

This Week for the Cardinals: North Central won its 20th consecutive game on Saturday and clinched at least a share of its 15th CCIW championship Saturday with a 59-20 win at WashU.

The title is the Cardinals’ 12th in the past 15 years. North Central has also clinched the CCIW’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Football Championship.

The Cardinals’ winning streak is now the longest in college football, just ahead of Sam Houston State (19) and Oklahoma (17).

Andrew Kamienski returned a punt 77 yards for a touchdown late in the first quarter against the Bears, notching the first punt return TD by any Cardinal since 2016 and the longest since 2012.

Luke Lehnen ran for two touchdowns, marking his sixth straight game with a rushing TD, while Ethan Greenfield ran for 94 yards on 14 carries to move within 51 yards of matching Steve Holden ‘06 for the program’s all-time rushing record.

Next Week: Pairings and host sites for the 2021 NCAA Division III Football Championship will be announced Sunday  on ncaa.com at 4:30 p.m. Central time.

Subsequent coverage will follow on northcentralcardinals.com  and the North Central Cadinals app.

This Day in Cardinal Football History:  1993 vs. Carthage – After doing battle in a second quarter that saw 10 touchdowns scored between the two teams, the Cardinals closed the 1993 campaign with a 45-35 triumph over Carthage on the Redmen’s home field in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Senior Tony Laesch opened the scoring with a 12-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter, marking the lone touchdown of Laesch’s collegiate career. Quarterback Kevin Platt ran for a North Central single-game record 231 yards and two TDs while also throwing for 173 yards and a pair of scores.

Platt had to exit the game for a play due to a contact lens issue with the ball at the Carthage one-yard line, and backup signal-caller Barry Smeltzer plunged across the goal line for a score.

Had Platt run for the TD, it would have tied him with Bill Shupryt ’76 for the single-season school record at the time.

'Red Zone' Returns in 2021: Once again, fans of North Central College football can get an insider's look at the Cardinals' football program, as 'The Red Zone' highlight show returns for its 13th season on Naperville Community Television, Channel 17. 

The show airs each Thursday at 8 p.m., Friday at 12:30 a.m., 10:00 a.m., 3:30, 7:00 and 9:30 p.m., Saturday at 12:30 and 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. It will feature interviews with coaches and players, highlights of the previous week's game, and a look ahead to the upcoming opponent. 

Each show is viewable online at nctv17.com and is archived at youtube.com/northcentralsports as well as at northcentralcardinals.com.