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KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Northwest Missouri State coach Adam Dorrel was almost moved to tears after his Bearcats clinched their second consecutive Division II championship game appearance, his thoughts turning to the 16 seniors who will be suiting up for the final time.It is hard not to get emotional when you talk about our team and their performance, Dorrel said after a semifinal victory over Ferris State, when three starters went down with injuries. I thought it was one of the gutsier performances in Bearcat history.There have been plenty of them heading into Saturdays game against North Alabama.Northwest Missouri State (14-0) is on the cusp of back-to-back unbeaten seasons, and the third in a four-year stretch. The Bearcats are also tied for the most Division II national championships with North Dakota State, now a Football Championship Subdivision powerhouse, with five apiece.Dorrel has elevated the Bearcats to still another level since taking over six years ago. Theyve won 29 straight games, the longest active win streak for any level of NCAA football. In fact, their coach has only lost eight games total and none since Nov. 22, 2014.Their semifinal victory may have been their most memorable yet.They lost quarterback Kyle Zimmerman, starting cornerback Marcus Jones and starting wide receiver George Sehl, and Ferris State made it a one-point game early in the third quarter. But the Bearcats kept making crucial stops on defense, and Northwest Missouri State had enough to put the game away.Zimmerman said Thursday night that he expects to play in the championship game.Its huge, Dorrel said. When you come off a season of going 15-0, as magical as it was last year, its very hard to get caught in the pressure.North Alabama, a perennial Division II powerhouse in the 1990s, is back on the rise. The Lions beat last years runner-up, Shepherd, to reach its first championship game since 1995 -- the last of three straight titles that the program captured.The Lions (11-1) have managed to replace three-year starting quarterback Luke Wingo and rebound from a loss to FCS power Jacksonville State in their opener. Theyve won 11 straight since, including a pair of wins over ranked Division II teams in their first four games.Their new quarterback, Jacob Tucker, is a finalist for the Harlon Hill Trophy given to the divisions top player after throwing for 2,661 yards and 21 TDs and running for 902 yards and 16 more scores.Perhaps it makes sense that North Alabama is back among the nations best.Bobby Wallace led them to those heights in the 1990s before leaving to take over Temple, where he never could get things going in eight seasons. He took over rival West Alabama for five seasons, briefly retired, and now is back leading the Lions, with four straight conference titles and a 39-9 record over that span.This is the penultimate chance for North Alabama to win another national title. The school announced last week that all of its programs are moving to Division I status starting in 2018.Nothing would be better than to start their final full year in Division II as champions.Ive spoken this whole year, were not satisfied until were playing on December 17th, North Alabama defensive back Dorsey Norris said. Now that well be playing on December 17th, our mindset has to change to we have to win (on) December 17th.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 Clayton Thorson Jersey . Perez, 35, posted a 1-2 record with a 3.69 earned-run average in 19 relief appearances last season. His season ended Aug. 9 due to a torn ligament in his left elbow. Perez joins infielder Andy LaRoche and catcher Mike Nickeas with minor-league agreements for 2014 that include invitations to attend spring training. Chuck Bednarik Womens Jersey . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration. http://www.eaglesrookiestore.com/Eagles-Reggie-White-Jersey/ .ca NFL Power Rankings, overtaking the Denver Broncos and remaining ahead of NFC competition San Francisco, Carolina and New Orleans. Reggie White Eagles Jersey .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. Fletcher Cox Eagles Jersey . The Barrie Colts defenceman, who impressed many with his play for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship, is the top-ranked skater in the February rankings. He has 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 45 games with the Colts this season. NEW YORK -- Louisville coach Jeff Walz is never one to mince words. After his team lost to No. 5 Maryland on Thursday, he called out his players for their lack of hustle, missed free throws and inadequate defense.He then went on to discuss societys decision to hand out trophies to nearly everyone who plays a game now regardless of whether they win or lose.Youve got to have a will. Youve got to have a will, he said. Right now the generation of kids that are coming through, everybody gets a damn trophy, OK? You finish last, you come home with a trophy. You kidding me? I mean, whats that teaching kids? Its OK to lose. And unfortunately, its our society. Its what were building for. And its not just in basketball; its in life. You know, everybody thinks they should get a job. Everybody thinks they should get a good job. No, thats not the way it works. But unfortunately thats what we are preparing for. Because you finish fifth, you walk home with this nice trophy, parents are all excited.His team responded to their coachs viral rant by showing toughness down the stretch in an overtime win over rival Kentucky on Sunday.We all took it to heart, Louisville star Myisha Hines-Allen said. We knew we had Kentucky coming in next, so we had to chew it, had to take it and come ready to play. It started in practice because we had energy that next day. He was completely right.In other things that happened this week:POLL MUSINGS: Its was a rough week for a few teams in the Top 25. Third-ranked South Carolina dropped its first contest of the season, losing at Duke. The Gamecocks could see their run of top five appearances in the poll end as theyve been in the first five every week since the start of the 2014 season. The win was Dukes highest since the Blue Devils beat No. 3 Ohio State in 2009. No. 12 Oklahoma lost a pair of games. No. 22 Tennessee also got blown out by Baylor on Sunday, and should fall out of the poll Monday. That would mark the second straight season that the Lady Vols fell out of the Top 25.STRONG STARTS: No. 21 Colorado continues its unbeaten run to start the season as the Buffaloes won their eighth consecutive game (8-0) under first-year head coach JR Payne.dddddddddddd. Theyve already surpassed last seasons win total (7-23) and are off to their best start since 2013. Its only the sixth time that Colorado has won its first eight games and is only the second time the school has done it while beating a Top 25 team (Kentucky) in those contests. Next up for the Buffs is rival Colorado State on Thursday. ... Providence is also undefeated through its first seven games, the best beginning to a season for the Friars since 1990-91. ... Boise State has won its first seven games for the first time since 2009-10. The Broncos beat Washington State 77-73 in OT on Sunday, their first road win over a Pac-12 opponent since Dec. 9, 2007.HONORING NIELE: Notre Dame honored longtime assistant and former star Niele Ivey by putting her in the schools Ring of Honor on Sunday . The 39-year old has coached at the school for the past decade and is the third womens basketball player to have the accolade, joining teammate Ruth Riley and Skylar Diggins. Ivey helped the Irish win the national championship in 2001 as the starting point guard.RISING TO THE RAFTERS: Rutgers retired the No. 25 jersey of former great Cappie Pondexter on Thursday night at halftime of the game against Duke. The former star became the third womens player at the school to have that honor, with her No. 25 joining June Olkowski and Sue Wicks in the rafters. Pondexter helped the Scarlet Knights reach the NCAA Tournament regional final her junior season. The current team all wore shirts with Pondexters jersey number on itMILESTONES: Marquettes Natisha Hiedeman had a triple-double against Western Illinois on Friday night -- the second in program history. She had 12 points, 18 rebounds and 10 assists. The 18 rebounds were the most in the Big East this season.---Follow Doug on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/dougfeinberg ' ' '