Is the Best Offense a Great Defense?

Welcome to sunny and warm (89 degrees) Shotwell Stadium, where the No. 2-ranked Wildcats, should they take time to look in the mirror tonight, might see a team that looks a lot like themselves the last two years.  

For the first time in quite a while, the team entering this game with a suspect defense and a high-octane, record-setting offense is not wearing purple and white but green and white. Eastern New Mexico is 2-2 overall and 2-1 in the LSC, averaging nearly 600 yards of passing, 668.8 yards of total offense and is fresh off a 76-56 scoring circus last week in its win over Texas A&M-Commerce. Two weeks ago, Greyhound quarterback J.J. Harp set NCAA records for pass attempts (94), completions (64) and a Division II record for total offense by a single player (681). ENMU also set a NCAA record with 47 first downs.

The storylines are intriguing. Can ENMU sustain that kind of offense against the best defense it has seen this season? Will Lone Star Conference sack leader Aston Whiteside and his buddies put the kind of pressure on Harp that Commerce couldn't last week in its lackluster performance? Can quarterback Zach Stewart lead sustained drives for ACU, and keep Harp's offense off the field? If it falls behind ENMU in a scorefest, can ACU display the big-play offense it has come to be known for having? Can ACU's stingy defense keep its pedal to the metal in a game that could push four hours in length? 

Do comparative stats from this season mean much to these two opponents? On Sept. 12, ENMU lost 49-47 to Southeastern Oklahoma, a team ACU whipped last week, 33-14.  Two weeks ago, the Wildcats won dramatically in overtime to beat a stubborn A&M-Commerce team, 20-14, yet the Lions gave up 76 points to the Greyhounds the very next week. 

ACU enters the tape-your-ankles part of its 2009 season tonight, with four of its next seven opponents (Texas A&M-Kingsville, 4-0; Midwestern State, 4-0; Tarleton, 4-0; and Angelo State, 3-1) sharing only one loss among them as of this week.