Setting the Scene: The Cardinals continue their postseason quest with another home game this week, facing another perennial national contender.

Series History: This is the second football meeting between the two institutions. North Central won the inaugural encounter, 41-17, at Bethel in the national quarterfinals on Dec. 7, 2013.

Playing in brutally cold conditions with a game-time temperature of minus-four degrees, the Cardinals scored three times in a seven-minute span in the first half to seize control of the contest, then kept the pressure on and pushed the lead to 41-10 early in the fourth quarter.

Ryan Kent ran for 109 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries, while Spencer Stanek completed 15 of 27 passes for 249 yards and threw a pair of TD passes to Chad O'Kane.

North Central's defense forced five turnovers in the game. Shane Dierking led the way with 10 tackles, one interception and a fumble recovery.

National Rankings: North Central was ranked ninth nationally by D3football.com and the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) at the close of the regular season.

Bethel was ranked 11th by D3football.com and 15th by the AFCA.

Scouting the Royals: Bethel opened the postseason at home last Saturday, recording a 41-14 victory over Wartburg.

The Royals scored the first 35 points of the contest and never looked back, forcing three turnovers and holding Wartburg to a net loss of 42 yards rushing.

Bethel gained 387 of its 434 yards on the ground, led by freshman quarterback Jaran Roste's 150 yards and three touchdowns on just 10 carries.

Roste and sophomore running back Sam Gibas are the lynchpins of the Royals' running game, combining for more than 1,800 yards and 26 touchdowns. Roste has also thrown for 1,425 yards and eight touchdowns with three interceptions. His primary receiving targets are juniors Joel Koenecke and Drew Larsen.

The Royals' defense has intercepted 19 passes this season, five of which have been returned for scores.

Senior linebacker Drew Ragsdale is Bethel's leading tackler with 79 stops, while safety Dawson Brown has picked off six passes and defensive end Kyle Kilgore has registered 10 quarterback sacks.

This Week for the Cardinals: North Central recorded its first shutout victory in postseason play on Saturday, routing Hanover, 52-0.

The Cardinals opened the contest with a 24-point first quarter and saw the lead balloon to 45-0 less than a minute into the second half. Ethan Greenfield and Dominick Muoghalu each ran for two touchdowns, while Terrence Hill added one.

Quarterback Broc Rutter completed 14 of 23 passes for 200 yards, threw 32-yard scoring pass to Andrew Kamienski and delivered a 43-yard touchdown run which was the longest play of the game by either team.

North Central's defense forced four turnovers, allowed only nine first downs and held the Panthers without a single third-down conversion in recording its fourth shutout of the year, the most by any Cardinal team since the creation of Division III in 1973.

Senior safety Matt Sutherland intercepted three passes, tying a single-game school record.

National Leaders: The Cardinals currently rank first nationally among 250 NCAA Division III teams in first downs (297), completion percentage (71.6) and third-down conversion percentage while ranking second in red-zone offense (95.5%), sixth in total offense (513.5 yards per game), seventh in scoring offense (45.5 points per game) and 10th in passing efficiency (170.93).

Rutter sits first nationally in individual completion percentage (71.8), fourth in passing yards (3,275), eighth in passing efficiency (173.7) and 11th in completions per game (23.36).

Kicker Derik Judka ranks third nationally in field goals per game (1.36) and sixth in field-goal percentage (.882).

North Central in the NCAA Playoffs: The Cardinals own a 13-10 overall record in the Division III Football Championship, including victories in each of their last 10 first-round games.

North Central reached the national quarterfinals in 2010 and the national semifinals in 2013.

North Central vs. the MIAC:The Cardinals own a 4-0 all-time record against current members of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

North Central defeated Saint John's, 17-7, in the first round of last year's playoffs, and posted a pair of victories over Augsburg in 2004 (31-24) and 2005 (64-25).

Gagliardi Trophy Semifinalists Announced: Rutter was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Gagliardi Trophy, the premier individual award in Division III football, on Tuesday.

Rutter is the fifth North Central player to advance to the semifinal stage of the award process, joining quarterback Kam Kniss '07, running back Dominic Sulo '10, defensive lineman Peter Bulandr '13 and running back Austin Breunig '18.

All-CCIW Selections: Rutter was named the CCIW Art Keller Offensive Player of the Year for the second time in three seasons on Wednesday, the 11th in North Central's history.

Cardinals have won five of the last six Offensive Player of the Year awards. Rutter is the third North Central player and the fifth in CCIW history to win the award more than once.

Guard Sharmore Clarke was voted the CCIW Offensive Lineman of the Year. This is the first year the CCIW has presented this award.

Joining Rutter and Clarke on the All-CCIW Offensive First Team are Kamienski and guard Ricky Strba, while wide receiver Michael Sfikas is on the Second Team.

The Cardinals have three representatives on the Defensive First Team in defensive back Jake Beesley, linebacker DJ Warkenthien and defensive tackle Tommy Hyland, while Judka was named the conference's First Team kicker.

Single-Season Records Threatened: Rutter enters this week's game within striking distance of a pair of single-season school records. He needs seven completions to match the North Central record of 264 and 220 passing yards to tie the current record of 3,495. Both records were set by Spencer Stanek '13 in 2013.

Kamienski, meanwhile, needs 10 receptions to tie the Cardinals' record of 81, set by Tyke Spencer '06 in 2004, and Judka is six points short of matching the school scoring record of 114 points, set by Austin Breunig '18 last season.

North Central Career Rankings: Rutter ranks second in North Central history in career completions (695), passing yards (9,410) and touchdown passes (88). He needs just three TD passes to match the all-time record of 91 set by Kniss from 2003-2006.

Warkenthien is the Cardinals' career record holder for tackles for loss (57.5) while ranking fifth in tackles (251) and sixth in quarterback sacks (19.5). Pat Cravens ranks second in school history in punt return yards (838), 11th in pass breakups (19) and 13th in interceptions (8).

Kamienski sits fifth in receptions (127), seventh in receiving yards (1,718) and ninth in receiving touchdowns (15), while Sfikas and Cory Hartema sit ninth (1,505) and 13th (1,065), respectively, in receiving yards and 13th (11) and 19th (8) in receiving touchdowns.

Muoghalu currently sits ninth all-time in rushing touchdowns and 11th in total touchdowns (23), Talha Ayhan is 15th in quarterback sacks (11.5) and Josh Leonhard ranks 16th in sacks (11) and tackles for loss (26.5).

'Red Zone' Returns in 2018: Once again, fans of North Central College football can get an insider's look at the Cardinals' football program, as 'The Red Zone' highlight show returns for its 11th season on Naperville Community Television, Channel 17.

The show airs each Thursday at 7 p.m., Friday at 12:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 9 p.m., Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and 9:30 p.m., Sunday at 4:30 p.m., Monday at 10:30 a.m., Tuesday at 9:30 p.m and Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. It will feature interviews with coaches and players, highlights of the previous week's game, and a look ahead to the upcoming opponent.

Each show is viewable online at nctv17.com and is archived at youtube.com/northcentralsports as well as at northcentralcardinals.com.