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ATN Podcast 347: No more purple

Yep, that’s correct. You see the colors above, and nary a Purple Power to be found. No more UW-Whitewater, no Mount Union, and of course, none of those other prominent purple powerhouses that failed to make the field. Instead, you’ve got the familiar red of North Central, plus Cortland as actual Red Dragons, along with the Yellow Jackets of Randolph-Macon and the orange of Wartburg.

These teams got here through a pretty fantastic quarterfinal round, and Patrick and Greg talk about it all. We sit down with DeAngelo Hardy of North Central after his amazing day where he filled the stat sheet in ways you wouldn’t imagine possible in one person. Keith McMillan makes another return to the podcast and chats with Mitchell Johnson and Nick Hale, two of the four key running backs for Randolph-Macon. Zac Boyes talks about finding his receiver wide open on a key play that broke the Cortland game at Alma wide open, and Wartburg’s Hunter Clasen talks about catching the game-winning touchdown pass against UW-Whitewater.

Plus, our listener question: What does each team need to do defensively this week in order to succeed?

This edition of the podcast is sponsored by d3photography.com, the licensed photography bureau contracted by D3sports.com.

Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas discuss, in this edition of the podcast.

The D3football.com podcast is a weekly in-season podcast by Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas, which was started in 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Full episode:

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos.
Photos: All by d3photography.com: Doug Sasse, Larry Radloff, Caleb Williams, Larry Radloff

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ATN Podcast 346: Heading to the quarterfinals

We used to do this preview podcasts all the time, before life and day jobs interfered. But it’s great to get back in the saddle, and do some longer interviews in this edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast.

Founding co-host Keith McMillan sits down for an in-depth conversation with Randolph-Macon coach Pedro Arruza as his team gets ready to take on Johns Hopkins in the quarterfinals. Arruza’s career as a head coach at Randolph-Macon has now reached 20 seasons, and that’s something considering he almost didn’t get past year No. 3. Keith and Pedro talk about that, plus what drove Arruza to become a head coach, and much more.

Patrick Coleman sits down with Alma quarterback Carter St. John. Yes, he joined us for Fast Five in 345 and talked about the final drive at Mount Union, but this is a new conversation about how St. John came to Alma rather than backing up a D-III quarterback you have definitely heard of at another school in the region. Plus, how far the kilt wearing has spread on the team, and whether a name like Carter St. John really lends itself to a fine clothing line. (Psst, it does.)

We also chat with Curt Fitzpatrick, who is bringing his Cortland team to Alma this upcoming weekend. You’ll hear about the Red Dragons’ unexpected itinerary, plus get an early look at how Cortland quarterback Zac Boyes compares to St. John. Fitzpatrick also talks about the difference between his team’s two very different playoff performances so far in this bracket.

And we wrap up our conversations with UW-Whitewater cornerback and Gagliardi Trophy semifinalist Egon Hein. He talks about playing for a new head coach and a new defensive coordinator, ones who are hardly new to the program at all, as well as what it’s like to play in front of all those people at Perkins Stadium, preparing for the Nameless Gray Face on the opposing side this week, playing with his brother, and much more.

Plus, Trevor Castle brought us a great question: How did North Central get to this dominant position, and who are the programs that are poised to make that next step themselves?

This edition of the podcast is sponsored by d3photography.com, the licensed photography bureau contracted by D3sports.com.

Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas discuss, in this edition of the podcast.

The D3football.com podcast is a weekly in-season podcast by Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas, which was started in 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Full episode:

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos.
Photos: Larry Radloff, d3photography.com; Dan Hunter, d3photography.com; Darl Zehr Photography; Alma athletics

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ATN Podcast 345: Well, that doesn’t happen every day

We can’t say in any way, shape or form that we called it. But in podcast 343, we did identify Alma as a team that could challenge Mount Union. But when push comes to shove, no, Alma scoring 24 points in the fourth quarter to defeat Mount Union was not something any of us saw coming.

The magnitude of the victory may not have sunk in yet for everyone at Alma. We catch up with Scots quarterback Carter St. John, who talks us through that final drive and the game-winning touchdown with 10 seconds left. We also talk about the reaction to the loss in Mount Union circles and whether people should circle the wagons around their head coach. Plus, has anyone ever scored 24 in the fourth quarter of an elimination game against Mount Union? Our crack research staff has the answer.

How about another thrilling finish? That’s what happened when Cortland went for two, then held on against a field goal attempt from Grove City in the closing seconds. Cortland was always going for two, and Red Dragons head coach Curt Fitzpatrick comes on to talk about it.

Plus, it’s still hard to believe that North Central has to travel to UW-La Crosse this week. It’s just as unbelievable for North Central coach Brad Spencer, whose monologue about how we have to do better for student-athletes is well worth your time to listen to.

Patrick and Greg talk about all eight second-round games, and take your questions in this edition of the podcast.

This edition of the podcast is sponsored by d3photography.com, the licensed photography bureau contracted by D3sports.com.

We also hand out game balls and spotlight the key stats in the bracket.

Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas discuss, in this edition of the podcast.

The D3football.com podcast is a weekly in-season podcast by Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas, which was started in 2007.

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device.

Full episode:

You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast

Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps:

Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos.
Photo: Alma athletics photo