SIOUX FALLS -- One more season and the Cougars from the University of Sioux Falls will move on to the NCAA Division II ranks.

Less than a decade since Morningside walked away from that very same level of athletic competition, a series of intense football showdowns with USF has made that seem almost like a distant memory.

So, there's some irony at work here as Morningside and Sioux Falls square off today in the NAIA playoff quarterfinals.

The 1 o'clock clash at 5,400-seat Bob Young Field will very likely be the next-to-last meeting between the two best programs in the Great Plains Athletic Conference for the last six years.

Defending national champion Sioux Falls, which has played in the NAIA title game the last three years in a row, is leaving the GPAC after next season. And, the Cougars of Coach Kalen DeBoer bring a spotless 12-0 record into a rematch of their 49-21 win in a regular season finale two weeks ago at Olsen Stadium in Sioux City.

"I think this is the best team they've ever had,'' said Morningside Coach Steve Ryan, whose seventh-ranked team is 10-1 after a 24-6 win over No. 11 Missouri Valley in first-round playoff action last weekend.

"I think a lot of it has to do with Lorenzo at quarterback,'' said Ryan, referring to USF senior Lorenzo Brown, who has already surpassed his numbers from a first-team NAIA All-American season as a junior last fall. "They just have so many offensive weapons, so many things they can do offensively in terms of scoring points.''

It's not as though Ryan's team lacks a wide range of weapons, as well.

However, the Cougars, a remarkable 64-3 in five seasons since DeBoer succeeded Bob Young at the USF helm, have just seemed to have a little bit more of everything, winning 41 consecutive home games and 44 regular season starts in a row since a 27-26 loss to Morningside on Oct. 15, 2005.

Two weeks ago, it came down to costly mistakes as Morningside lost six turnovers to USF's one, throwing four interceptions and coughing up two fumbles.

Even after their first four giveaways, the Mustangs managed to tie the game at 21-21 just over a minute before halftime.

However, Sioux Falls squeezed in a go-ahead touchdown just before the break and then started the second half with three straight scoring drives to make it a 28-point win.

"Turnovers were huge and also field position has been critical in all the many games we've played with Morningside over the years,'' said DeBoer. "It's a matter of executing. I'm sure they'll tweak a few things and try to put pressure on us in all phases of the game and we'll do the same.''

DeBoer's biggest concern is facing an opponent for a second time, a scenario that takes away most of the surprises his Cougars might throw at most postseason opponents.

"It's more of a chess match where you're playing a team like Morningside that knows you so well,'' said DeBoer.

Morningside is in the playoffs for a sixth season in a row and has reached the quarterfinal round, or the final eight, for the fifth straight year. However, the Mustangs have advanced to the semifinals in just one of their four previous tries.

For Sioux Falls, on the other hand, this is the ninth straight playoff team. Not only have all nine moved through the first round, but all but one of the previous eight in this remarkable stretch have advanced to the semifinals.

Both teams are prominent in the national statistics, both team-wise and individually.

Sioux Falls is NAIA football's second highest scoring team (54.2 points a game) and Morningside ranks fourth (47.3). Meanwhile, USF is first in scoring defense (9.1) and ranks No. 2 (14.1).

Morningside's outstanding senior trio of running back Jake Peterson, wide receiver Beau Kildow and quarterback Tim Richard have all been ranked either first or second nationally in various categories for much of the fall.

Peterson's school-record 1,548 rushing yards is still first in the country, but his average of 140.7 yards a game now ranks him second. Kildow is third with 1,375 total receiving yards (77 catches) and 125.0 yards a game. Meanwhile, Richard has slipped from first prior to the regular season finale with USF to fourth with a pass efficiency rating of 176.2.

Richard has completed 169 of 261 passes for 2,651 yards and 27 touchdowns, but his 10 interceptions, five in the last two games, have enabled USF's Brown to climb to the top with a 203.0 rating. Brown is 170 of 246 for 2,619 yards and 35 touchdowns while having just three passes picked off.

Running back Ryan Lowmiller leads the rushing game with 1,061 yards, 11th nationally. However, Brown, a Bristol, Conn., native and a transfer from North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City, Iowa, has chipped in another 639 rushing yards as a dual threat for the Cougars.

Sioux Falls' most significant advantage may be its massive offensive line, led by 300-pound seniors T.J. Wendt and Kyle Staudt.

The Cougars have had considerable recruiting success in Northwest Iowa. Junior Brandon Koolstra is a defensive line starter along with Drew DeGroot from Doon (Central Lyon/George-Little Rock), a former prep teammate of USF center Casey Peters a sophomore. The offensive line also includes 6-7, 292-pound junior tackle Travis Beaver from Sioux Center.