By Jim Henry

jhenry@joplinglobe.com

Tailback Danny Woodhead and his 7,962 rushing yards, 109 touchdowns and two Harlon Hill trophies have graduated.

Nevertheless, Chadron State’s offense will present a challenge today to the Pittsburg State defense.

“We’re excited to see what we can do against a team like that,” Gorillas nose guard Mike Roberts said. “We didn’t play bad last week, but (Central Oklahoma) definitely didn’t have the offensive line that Chadron has. Chadron’s line is not as big but fundamentally sound and good.”

Kickoff is at 1 p.m. today in Chadron, Neb., for the matchup of top-15 ranked teams.

No. 8 Chadron State opened with a 37-17 victory at Mary (N.D.) as senior quarterback Joe McLain hit 13 of 25 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 33 yards and a score. The Eagles have a 28-3 record since McLain became their starting quarterback midway through his freshman year.

“He’s not very big (5 feet, 9 inches and 168 pounds), but he’s a good runner and a good thrower,” PSU head coach Chuck Broyles said. “And their running back (Aaron Cooksley) last week had (120) yards rushing.

“They are not going to change very much probably (with Woodhead gone). They are very sound, a lot like the North Dakota teams we’ve played in the past in that they are not real fancy but they don’t make very many mistakes. And they run to the ball on defense.”

Pittsburg State moved up two spots to No. 14 in the NCAA Division II poll after last week’s 16-12 victory at Central Oklahoma. It was the Gorillas’ fewest points in a victory since beating Central Missouri 14-7 in 1999 and just the 28th time since Broyles became head coach in 1990 that PSU scored 16 points or less.

The Gorillas gained 376 yards but lost four fumbles — one at the UCO 1-yard line — and threw an interception.

Quarterback Mark Smith and wide receiver Harrison Kush hooked up for a 17-yard touchdown pass to break an 10-10 deadlock early in the fourth quarter. A botched snap on the extra point allowed Central Oklahoma to score a defensive 2-point conversion.

The Gorilla defense, led by linebacker Rusty Morgan’s 10 tackles, stopped the Bronchos twice on downs and forced a punt to preserve the victory.

“I think we did good (holding UCO to 221 yards),” Roberts said. “For the most part we had our responsibilities under control, did what we were supposed to. But they weren’t as strong fundamentally as what we’re going to see this week.”