<table> </table> MARYVILLE, Mo. | Before the start of football camp the last two summers, Northwest Missouri State wide receiver Kendall Wright, a Texas native, spent a relaxing five days at Lake Okoboji in Iowa.</p><p>Fellow fifth-year senior, quarterback Joel Osborn, invited Wright to vacation with his family.</p><p>They cooked out, water skied, and as Osborn tells it, Wright even saved one of his friend&#8217;s lives when a water-ski stunt went awry.</p><p>&#8220;We were jet skiing,&#8221; Osborn said. &#8220;I was the driver, and Kendall was on the back seat as the spotter. We hit a good streak of waves, and (my friend on the tube) flew up and came down with his mouth open, and water flowed in his mouth. He was like, &#8216;Help, help.&#8217; &#8221;</p><p>Osborn said Wright jumped out and got his friend, pulling him back on the jet ski.</p><p>&#8220;He almost drowned me when I got him out,&#8221; Wright said.</p><p>Since everything turned out OK, Wright and Osborn can laugh about the incident that happened two years ago.</p><p>What the vacation story reveals is how the off-field friendship has affected the Northwest Missouri football team on the field.</p><p>The chemistry between Wright and Osborn is one of the reasons Northwest Missouri advanced to the NCAA Division II quarterfinals. The Bearcats, 11-1, play at Abilene Christian, 11-0, at noon Saturday.</p><p>Northwest Missouri extended its season when Osborn tossed a 15-yard touchdown pass to Wright with 55 seconds left, lifting the Bearcats to a 38-35 victory over Pittsburg State.</p><p>&#8220;Like Kendall said, I think it starts with the off-the-field chemistry,&#8221; Osborn said. &#8220;We hang out so much off the field that we start to think alike.&#8221;</p><p>Both players arrived at Northwest Missouri in 2004 and redshirted. Wright had steady playing time in 2004 and has been a starter ever since. Osborn had to wait his turn, finally becoming the starter last season.</p><p>Osborn is having a fine season, completing 215 of 315 passes for 2,762 yards, 20 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Wright has caught 56 passes for 733 yards and five touchdowns.</p><p>&#8220;He throws it perfect for me,&#8221; Wright said. &#8220;It&#8217;s not too hard and not too soft. He has a real good arm and an even better brain.&#8221;</p><p>Osborn brings a confidence that rubs off on his teammates. When Northwest Missouri lost its season opener at home 44-27 to Abilene Christian, Osborn didn&#8217;t panic. He focused on the positive and said the Bearcats were going to be all right.</p><p>Eleven games later, the Bearcats are back where they started with a game against Abilene Christian. The hardest part for Northwest Missouri is Abilene Christian&#8217;s prolific offense, which is operating at a scary level.</p><p>Last week, Abilene Christian beat West Texas A&amp;M 93-68. The fewest points the Wildcats have scored this season is 37. Their scoring average is 53.8.</p><p>Those ridiculous offensive numbers don&#8217;t scare Bearcats. It&#8217;s a challenge they are looking forward to.</p><p>&#8220;I love getting another chance at them because I feel like we didn&#8217;t play up to our potential the first game,&#8221; Wright said. &#8220;We let them take from us and we didn&#8217;t take from them.&#8221;