AFCA Release

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's University was ranked No. 5 for the ninth straight week in the final American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll of the 2021 regular season on Monday, Nov. 15.  
 
Seven teams in NCAA Region 6 (MIAC, NWC, SCIAC, UMAC, WIAC) were ranked in the top 25, including four in the top 15: Wisconsin-Whitewater (No. 3), SJU (No. 5), Linfield (No. 6), Wisconsin-La Crosse (No. 15), Bethel (No. 17), Redlands (No. 21) and Wisconsin-River Falls (No. 25). Three others (Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Gustavus Adolphus, George Fox) received votes.

SJU won its MIAC-record 35th conference championship and earned the league's automatic bid to the 2021 NCAA Division III playoffs with a 29-28 win Nov. 13 at Bethel. Senior quarterback Chris Backes (St. Cloud, Minn./Tech) connected with junior tight end Alex Larson (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) for a three-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-goal to tie the game with one second remaining. Freshman kicker Conor Pavelko's (Sioux Falls, S.D./O'Gorman) extra point provided the difference for SJU, which trailed 21-8 at halftime.

Backes threw for 151 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 103 yards and another score – the first time a Johnnie quarterback crossed the 100-yard rushing mark in a game since Ken Pletcher ran for 104 yards on four carries at Macalester on Oct. 30, 1993.

The victory marked the largest halftime deficit an SJU team has overcome and won since trailing 28-13 at the half in a 35-34 win at St. Thomas on Oct. 8, 1994.

SJU (10-0, 8-0 MIAC) earned one of the four No. 1 seeds and plays host to No. 22/24 Lake Forest (10-0, 9-0 MWC) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Football Playoffs this Saturday, Nov. 20. Kickoff is scheduled for noon at Clemens Stadium in Collegeville.