D2football.com: Tony Nicolette's Weekly Column

Here is an excerpt as Tony breaks down Hillsdale vs. Northwood.

Northwood (0-1, 0-1) at Hillsdale (0-1, 1-1)

Here's another early-season tilt where we'll be looking to learn a lot. Specifically, is Northwood really as bad as they looked in that first game? Also, how well does Hillsdale recover after a tough loss last week?

Northwood Keys:
- Play some D - They got rolled for 561 yards last week. Hillsdale's MORE than capable of doing the same thing.
- Clean it up - The Wood surrendered four turnovers last week. Enough said.
- Get the passing game going - I have no idea where that was last week, and I still believe the Woodbone can be potent if Klukowski can hit for at least 150 yards per game. If he doesn't, The Dale just needs to stick to its assignments on D and they can keep the ground game relatively in check.

Hillsdale Keys:
- Avoid mistakes - Hillsdale's offense has been plenty solid thus far, they just made too many mistakes last week to overcome. Avoid turnovers, finish drives, and make kicks.
- No letdown - Don't get caught up in last week's result/emotion, unless it's to be ornery about not getting it done.
- Panizzi - Get him well up over 100 yards. The resulting balance should get you past that defense.

Prediction: I don't normally get swayed too far in any direction by one game, but last week's performance by Northwood truly struck me - so much so that it has me concerned that I (along with the coaches) may REALLY have mis-judged what they had the capability to do this year. Maybe having a game under their belt will make a big difference. If it doesn't, Hillsdale certainly as the offense to hang big numbers like Northern did last week. My gut tells me this is likely to happen again. Hillsdale 48, Northwood 28.

Full column