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By David Boyce  |  Facebook Photo Album

KANSAS CITY, Kan. - During the school-record, 30-game winning streak that includes back-to-back national titles for Northwest Missouri State, the Bearcats always have a different player make several key plays.
 
And sometimes, it comes from a player you might not expect.
 
In Northwest's 29-3 victory over North Alabama in the 2016 NCAA Division II Championship game Saturday evening at Children's Mercy Park, it was junior Randy Schmidt time to shine.
 
"We just care about each other," Northwest senior running back Phil Jackson, who rushed for two touchdowns. "The team that really cares about each other, has players that step up. That is what happened today, and it has happened all season.
 
"We had guys go down and other guys stepped up. They (backups) care about us (starters) so they practice hard. They go hard in the weight room even though they know they might not play."
 
Undaunted by the heavy snow, wind and brutal sub-zero wind chill, Schmidt turned in a memorable performance. He rushed for a game-high 96 yards. He completed five passes, one of which went for the first touchdown of the game. He also caught two passes for 25 yards and played on special teams.
 
"This was something we have never played in before so it took a little while to get used to," Schmidt said. "After a while, we did a good job keeping our footing. We did a good job from there."
 
After playing a key role in the only touchdown in the first half, Schmidt had an amazing one-handed catch in the third quarter that eventually led to a 2-yard touchdown run by Jackson, which gave Northwest a 14-3 lead with 5:57 left in the third quarter.
 
"Randy is a heck of an athlete," said junior Jordan Grove, who caught a 7-yard pass from Schmidt in the second quarter. "I got to see that a little bit in high school because we played in the Shrine Bowl together. He was my quarterback. We were both coming to Northwest together. I knew we had a special player.
 
"He has done a great job stepping up this year, especially the last two weeks doing whatever the team needed him to do, obviously making amazing plays and highlights."
 
Given the snow-covered field and Northwest's stellar defense, the 11-point lead was nearly insurmountable.
 
"I am not sure where to start," Northwest coach Adam Dorrel said. "I think the last two weeks have been monumental wins in the history of Northwest Missouri State.
 
"I thought our kids were resilient in all three phases. I thought we played to win today."
 
Nobody should be surprised by Schmidt's spectacular performance. The Bearcats always seem to have somebody come up big in important games. It is why this senior class by Northwest goes down as one of the most decorated groups in Division II history.
 
In the 16 seniors' four seasons at Northwest, they have experienced three national championships and gone an unheard of 55-2.
 
Like any other game in the last four years, it took more than one player to get the victory. Punter Matt Thorman consistently pinned North Alabama deep in its territory, forcing the Lions to drive 70 to 80 yards to score.
 
Perhaps his biggest play came with 10:43 left in the game when recovered a snap that hit the ground and got the ball off, sticking the Lions at their 10.
 
"Matt Thorman did a phenomenal job punting the ball today," Dorrel said.
 
 Across the board, the defense played exceptional. Jack Young had a key interception in the second quarter that kept the game scoreless at 0-0. Jacob Vollstedt, playing with a broken hand, made huge tackles throughout the game.
 
Senior defensive end Cass Weitl set a new championship game record for most tackles for losses with 4.5.
 
"We had a game plan to make the quarterback spill out," Weitl said. "We executed that game plan well. It was unreal the atmosphere here. It was a lot of fun."
 
Another unsung player was sophomore corner back Chama Pierre. He replaced junior Edward Richey, who was injured early in the first quarter.
 
Northwest defense allowed only 20 total yards in the second half.
 
"Our defense is the reason we won the game," Jackson said.
 
And the offense held onto the ball after building an 11-point lead. That was no easy task considering temperatures that hovered near 10 degrees with wind chills below 5. Also, Jackson rushed for two touchdowns and senior Kyle Zimmerman, playing with a sore shoulder, tossed a touchdown pass.
 
"It was awesome," Jackson said of his touchdowns. "Last year I didn't score. I really wanted to score. I can't do it without the O-line and the receivers blocking down field."
 
It was a perfect second half that followed a grind-it-out first half.
 
After both teams failed to score through much of the first half, 10 points were scored in the final minute of the second quarter. Northwest took a 7-3 lead halftime thanks to a 7-yard shuttle pass from Schmidt to Grove with 58 seconds left in the second quarter.
 
North Alabama wasted little time answering with some points. A 15-yard pass interference penalty followed by a long pass by quarterback Jacob Tucker and then a 15-yard run by Tucker put the ball at Northwest's 5 with less than 30 seconds left.
 
The Bearcats stood strong on defense at their goal line, forcing a 21-yard field goal by Kevin Henke with 4 seconds left in halftime.
 
It was great, red zone defense that prevented Northwest from falling behind early in the second quarter. North Alabama moved to the 5. Young stopped the drive with an interception in the end zone.
 
"We were backed up and they were driving on us," Young said. "They made a couple of big plays. I knew somebody had to step up and make a big play. I saw the ball in the air and I made sure I caught it. I was happy to make a big play at the time."
 
Snow picked up the rest of the second quarter, making it hard for teams to move the ball. The first half featured seven punts by North Alabama and six by Northwest.
 
The Bearcats finally generated some consistent offense with a little over 4 minutes left in the second quarter. They got the ball at their 47 and moved 57 yards in eight plays.
 
Schmidt was key in the drive, coming off the bench and rushing for over 30 yards in the drive. One run was 17 yards and another was 10. Northwest converted its only scoring opportunity in the first half.
 
"It is that next-man up mentality," Young said. "Our coaches preach it all year long. It doesn't matter what injuries you have. Tonight, it was Chama Pierre when Richey went down.
 
"Randy Schmidt at quarterback, just like last week, was able to get in and pick up yards. As a dual threat, his running and passing, he brings something else to our team.
 
"It is so amazing to see all the group of guys come out and everybody be ready to play no matter what happens."