Winners of 18 of their last 20 games, the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears will face their stiffest test of 2019 when the Carson-Newman Eagles come to Hickory. Owners of 21 South Atlantic Conference Championships, the Eagles have been the gold standard but the Bears are the reigning league champs and are looking to go back-to-back. 

The matchup features two of the most potent rushing offenses in the nation. C-N ranks fourth in Division II in rushing yardage at 330 yards per game with the Bears placing fifth at 304.2 yards per contest. Each team ranks top 10 in the nation in team passing efficiency, scoring offense, total defense and third down conversion percentage. 

The strength of the LR defense this season has been stopping the run and they will be challenged on Saturday. The Bears, fresh off a game where they held Tusculum to -5 yards rushing, rank third in the land by allowing just 51 yards rushing per game. In fact, the Bears have had two games this season (St. Augustine's the other) where opponents have been held to negative yards rushing. In total, LR has not allowed an individual to rush for over 100 yards in 20 straight games. 

In contrast, C-N has three straight games with a rusher gaining at least 100 yards. It was QB Derrick Evans last week as he exploded for 154 yards on just eight carries and leads the league in rushing yards per game at 91.6. 

Each team is strong on special teams as well. Carson-Newman is coming off a game that saw them score three touchdowns on special teams, while Kyle Dugger is tied for the national lead with a pair of punt returns for touchdowns on the season. 

The difference may come down to who makes the least mistakes. A year ago, C-N turned the ball over seven times as LR erased a 21-7 deficit and scored the final 33 points of the game to come away with a 40-21 victory which clinched an outright South Atlantic Conference Championship. 

The other difference may be the home dominance LR has displayed since the start of 2018. LR is 10-0 at Moretz Stadium and has won those games by an average 35 points per game. The Bears are averaging 50 points per game at home under Drew Cronic.

This marks just the second road contest of the season for the Eagles who dropped their lone game outside of Jefferson City 30-28 to Wingate. C-N went 3-3 on the road in 2018 and a loss to the Bears on Saturday would all-but guarantee a 10th straight season without a league title for the Eagles.