When No. 2 Carroll College meets up with No. 1 University of Sioux Falls in the NAIA national football championship Dec. 15 in Savannah, Tenn., it will be a story of two defensive Goliaths.

The undefeated teams bring the two best defenses in the nation, both running 3-4 schemes and both bringing an onslaught of stars that have devoured offenses, holding them to an average of under 230 yards per game.

While their numbers appear to be very much the same, the teams go about their business differently.

"There's some similarities but I think everybody has their own stamp on a few things that are a little bit different," said Carroll head coach and defensive coordinator Mike Van Diest. "Our strengths might be a little bit different and we try to play to those strengths."

For the Cougars, their defense relies on its muscle to dominate their opponents. For Carroll, it's speed and depth.

Sioux Falls has built one of the best defenses in the nation, thanks to some heavy hitters up front.

Defensive lineman Letarius Lee leads the crew. The 6-foot-2, 250-pound senior has accumulated a team-high 4.5 sacks and nine tackles for a loss.

"I think he's very good, he's got great speed and comes off the edge," Van Diest said."

Dareen Quaile, a four-year starter, adds experience and 30 total tackles, the most on the line. Meanwhile Dan Moe, at 6-3, 270 pounds is by far the largest in the group.

"All three of them have pretty good size," said Sioux Falls' head coach Kalen DeBoer. "They can see where ball carriers are at and where the quarterback's going."

The Cougars moved to the 3-4 defense in a much more permanent status last year and used the scheme to win the NAIA national championship.

"I think it's been a big difference on our program," DeBoer said. "It puts a little more speed on the field and we're able to disguise blitzes and coverages."

Which is definitely something they needed after four of their top linebackers graduated last season.

The Cougars moved senior Robbie Tiff from safety to outside linebacker at the beginning of the season and placed utility man Demetrius Washington, a junior, in the mix to give them more experience.

Washington, at 6-2, 235 pounds has the strength to cover the run, but can also be a powerful pass rusher.

Freshman Dom Studzinski leads the linebacking corps with 52 total tackles, including 8.5 for a loss, and will likely be an All-American someday. Tyler Newman, the smallest of the corps at 6-feet, 200 pounds, is fifth on the tackles list with 45 total plus 8.5 for a loss.

"They have great pass rush, they can put great pressure on the quarterback with four-man rushes or a zone blitz package. They do a great job with that size up front," Van Diest said.

The Cougars biggest strength, however, comes from its secondary where defensive backs Tyler Lodermeier and Trevor Holleman lead the squad in tackles.

Lodermeier, a 6-2, 180-pound senior, has 57 total tackles while Holleman, a 6-1, 180-pound sophomore is second with 54 and leading the team with five interceptions.

Sophomore Andrew Schoenfelder and junior Nick Bendetto join them downfield, helping them to the No. 1 pass defense in the nation, allowing just 132.5 yards per game.

Though Carroll is ranked No. 19 in pass defense, allowing 31.3 more yards per game than the Cougars, they've kept teams from shooting over them with a lethal pass rush that actually developed from a strong run blitz. They have the No. 3 rushing defense in the nation (64.4 ypg).

With a defensive line that averages about 270 pounds, the Saints work their hands and are among the most elusive group of players to face off with an offensive line.

None has struck more fear than senior defensive end Phil Lenoue. The first team all-Frontier Conference selection has racked up a team-high 10.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for a loss.

As Van Diest said, he causes more destruction across the line and benefits from the rest of the three-man group that is actually five strong.

Senior Nick Gilchrist starts at the other defensive end while junior Mike Paffhausen and senior Will Hamilton switch off at nose tackle.

When Gilchrist went down with an ankle injury for nearly three games this season, freshman Mike Ogrin stepped in and racked up six sacks, proving to be the No. 1 backup upon Gilchrist's return.

"What makes it so amazing is how well Gilchrist has played down the stretch," he said. "I think the last four or five games Gilchrist has really turned it up a notch."

Van Diest said that the lineman could count the number of games he had left on one hand and didn't want to finish the season watching from the sidelines.

"For those five guys to play an awful lot in there has been a real plus for us," he said.

With so many options, the starters on the line can burn off a lot of energy over five or six plays before another swaps in to fill his role.

The same goes for the linebacking corps, which has been the highlight of the Saints' defense over the years.

Junior middle linebacker Owen Koeppen is the spotlight of the team, leading the Saints with 111 total tackles, including 12 for a loss, eight sacks and an interception. The 6-2, 232-pound machine earned the Frontier Conference's defensive MVP.

He is joined by sophomore Mac Gordon, a second team all-conference selection, to create one of the best sets of runstoppers on the team.

Juniors Brandon Day and Rick Young, at the outside backs, meanwhile have particularly different styles of play.

Day ties for the most interceptions on the team with four, and is one of the strongest at covering receivers. He was also listed as a first team all-conference player.

Meanwhile, Young is a player Van Diest considers "an unsung hero."

Often stepping up to the line in a simple two-point stance, he joins Lenoue in a speedy pass rush and has racked up 7.5 sacks and nine tackles for a team-leading loss of 50.5 yards.

"He's been real steady. He makes plays, he's not out of position and he just goes about his business," Van Diest said. "If he was on another team his numbers might have been more impressive."

The same speed he uses to get into the backfield allows him to drop back just as fast, making him a great complement to Day. With Ellis Beckwith out on the season with an injury, Chanler Buck has provided more depth in the linebacking corps.

That might bother the Saints' secondary, who seem to enjoy as much action as possible. Junior strong safety Zach Richardson and senior free safety Cody Zimmerman are No. 3 and No. 4 on the team's tackles list, respectively, and might be two of the hardest hitters on the field.

Their physical presence keeps even the best rushing games from breaking for big yardage and has quarterbacks throwing to the cornerbacks.

There, they can get into trouble. Seniors Nick Milodragovich and Marcus Miller are among the two most athletic players on the team and though neither one clears 5-10, both are able to compete with often taller wide receivers.

With Cody Lamb, who has had 40 solo tackles coming mainly on special teams, joining the safeties and Shawn Holland seeing time at corner, the Saints have proven they have starting talent backing up all the positions.

"You can't just have 11 defensive players or even 12 or 13. You need to have 20 to 24 players on a defense that play regularly," Van Diest said.

The Saints might need to use that many players on Dec. 15 when they face the Cougars' balanced offense. Sioux Falls averages 474.2 yards per game with a very balanced offense.

With Carroll averaging 348.1 per game, the Saints defense could see a lot of action.

Reporter Jeff Windmueller:

447-4070 or

jeff.windmueller@helenair.com