The Husson University football team can take another step toward the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference championship with a win over Anna Maria on Saturday. Kickoff is 12:30 p.m., and is Husson’s final home game of the season.

Husson (5-1, 4-0 ECFC) leads the conference in offense (356.7 yard per game) and is second in defense (282.2 yards per game allowed), only behind Gallaudet.

If Husson beats Anna Maria (0-7, 0-4) and wins at Becker (0-7, 0-4) next week, the regular-season finale at Mt. Ida (3-4, 3-1) could be for the conference title and the automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs. Mt. Ida also plays Becker and Anna Maria before taking on the Eagles.

Norwich also is 3-1 in league play, and hosts Gallaudet on Saturday.

Lawrence grad Bryant Wade is third on Husson in tackles, with 24. Cony’s Rick Orio has 23 tackles for the Eagles, while Oak Hill grad Luke Washburn has 21.

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Colby plays at Tufts on Saturday, where the Mules will face the best Jumbos team since 2008.

Tufts (3-3) entered the season on a 31-game losing streak. The Jumbos beat Hamilton, 24-17, in the season opener, their first win since the first week of the 2010 season, also over Hamilton. In between, Tufts endured three consecutive winless seasons.

The Jumbos’ impovement on offense has been a key to their refound success. Tufts leads the New England Small College Athletic Conference in passing yards per game, at 244.2.

For Colby (1-5), sophomore quarterback Gabe Harrington continues to improve. In the last two games, Harrington has eight touchdown passes and one interception while throwing for 459 yards. This season, Harrington is third in the NESCAC in touchdown passes (10) and fifth in passing yards (1,111).

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Bates can win the Colby-Bates-Bowdoin series for the second time in three years with a win at Bowdoin on Saturday. The Bobcats (2-4) beat Colby, 34-28, in overtime last week to take the edge in the rivalry.

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The series concludes next week, when Bowdoin (2-4) plays at Colby.

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When Maine Maritime played Nichols in 2013, it was the first meeting between the teams since 2005. Now that the teams are rivals in the revamped New England Football Conference, you can’t blame the Mariners if they start looking forward to the Nichols game.

Last week, MMA beat Nichols, 62-43. It was the Mariners highest-scoring game since last season, when they beat Nichols 63-52. The 2013 win over Nichols was the only win of the season for MMA. Last week’s victory pushed MMA’s record to 3-3, 2-2 in conference games.

The Mariners lead Division III in rushing offense, averaging 411.7 yards per game. Maine Maritime plays at Salve Regina on Saturday.

Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM


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