Three out of the past four Wildcat football seasons have commenced at Arizona Stadium with a battle between two football powerhouses: NAU and Arizona. Now when I say "powerhouse," I mean NAU was a dominating factor in the Division I-AA two years ago and Arizona, although the program may have seen better days, used to be closer to the top of the totem pole.

Either way, these two teams know how to play football in their respective divisions, be it now or in the past. The question is, can the I-AA Lumberjacks keep up with the hard-hitting, disciplined, highly-recruited, experienced, unforgiving, and often underrated squad of the Arizona Wildcats? Probably not.

Mike Stoops entered into his second year as the Wildcats' head coach with a disappointing 27-24 loss to Utah last week. His club scored 21 second half points against the Utes, but finished three points short of an overtime-forcing comeback.

Wildcat quarterback Richard Kovalcheck threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns, leading the comeback Cats in the quest. If it weren't for a few hiccups along the way (namely two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown), that quest would have been completed.

Freshman wide receiver Michael Thomas showed some signs of stardom by catching seven passes for 92 yards and a touchdown, while Mike Bell ran for a reasonable 99 yards.

Unfortunately, mental miscues, dropped balls, and defensive gaps were among the many costly mistakes that the Wildcats could have avoided. Fortunately, this week is a perfect week for them to learn from those mistakes, work out the kinks and prepare for a tough game next week against Purdue.

Now, I'm sure that if you were to ask any player or coach associated with athletics, none of them would classify a game as a "sure-win." But I think we can all safely assume that the Cats will come out on top this week.

In his eighth season as the skipper of the NAU football program, head coach Jerome Sauers and his Lumberjacks are coming off of a dominating 52-13 victory over division opponent Adams State after a lop-sided 45-7 beating in the second half.

In an interview courtesy of NAU Athletics, Sauers said his team "is anxious to prove itself." It seems like they are off to a good start, and with many returning players, a solid defense, and a potent offense, this week's game against the Wildcats may only be a speed bump to a season similar to that of the Big Sky Conference Championship season in 2003-2004. Nonetheless, after finishing last season 4-7, talk is cheap.

On paper, this matchup would never seem so skewed. The Lumberjacks have a quarterback and wide receiving combination that could keep Darrell Brooks and the Wildcat defense on their toes.

Last week, Lumberjack quarterback Jason Murietta completed 14 of 24 passes for a respectable 195 yards and three touchdowns. On the receiving end of all three touchdowns was Kory Mahr.

He and fellow wide receiver Kawon Walker are two speedy threats for any corner. The rushing game was quasi-impressive as well, as NAU running back Philo Sanchez led the 179-yard running brigade with 66 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. The Lumberjack defense forced three interceptions and one sack while giving up 13 points.

The bottom line is this: the Lumberjacks are no match for the Wildcats. On paper, the stats are somewhat similar and the Lumberjacks will come in to the game playing with passion, dignity, and the tenacity of true competitors.

But the Wildcats are better conditioned, better coached, more experienced and, quite frankly, better players. Wildcat fans should expect a break out game from Mike Bell this week, since last week his performance was restricted due to the injury scare in the first half of the game.

With his performance, another solid performance from Kovalcheck and his receivers and a refreshed defensive squad, the Wildcats will come out polished and have no problems sending NAU crawling back to Flagstaff all Lumberjack-ed up.

Final score: Arizona 41, NAU 10.