Here’s where we tell you, and you tell us, whatever you’re seeing or hearing during Saturday’s games.
I’m live here in Abilene, Texas, currently at McMurry for homecoming against East Texas Baptist. Though the Tigers are coming in off three consecutive wins, and McMurry has lost three in a row by 23 points or more, the Maroon and White (preferred local terminology after the surname Indians was dropped in the wake of NCAA pressure) is off to a fast start, scoring on a 58-yard TD run by Rashon Lewis, a junior transfer from Mount St. Joseph. They already picked off a pass in Tigers territory and are threatening again. Techinically, at 3-0 in the ASC, ETBU is in first in the conference, though most people here are aware that the game just underway across down has major title implications. No word yet from Mary Hardin-Baylor’s game at Hardin-Simmons, but keep an eye on the Dose here and the D3 scoreboard.
Some interesting scores so far around the country (Mount Union up 23-0 early, Randolph-Macon up 14-7 vs. Carnegie Mellon, La Crosse perhaps hung over from last week’s stunner, down 21-9 vs. UW-Eau Claire), as well as yesterday (TCNJ beating Rowan). What are people seeing and hearing?
P.S. McMurry now up 13-0.
With 2:44 left, Wabash leads Allegheny, 21-20. The Little Giants have a first and ten on the Gator 30.
Yep – Mount is taking it to the Polar Bears 30-0 early in the 3rd QTR…I just put this on another thread, but its good to see them playing at such a high level against a top 25 opponent…number 9 at that…ONU defense playing them better than any other has yet though…the Raiders need to keep up the intensity and finish strong…dont give them an inch….
UW-Whitewater leads UW-River Falls at the half 21-6. Justin Beaver with 23 carries for 194 yards and 2 TD’s lead the Warhawks. River Falls only 117 total yards.
I really wish I could listen to the DIIIfootball.com guys call the game…the Mount guys on the radio are pretty bad…Kostelnik INT though!
It’s 12-0 here at McMurry, not 13-0, and they just forced another ETBU turnover. Word on the street is 10-0 UMHB.
Also, I should have refreshed the scores before posting about La Crosse. It was 28-23 right after I posted, and they just took a 29-28 lead.
GO HEIDELBERG….take BW DOWN!!!! I think I just heard 21-6 in favor of the student princes…
Eau Claire kicks 46 yard FG with :24 left to regain lead 31-28 over UW-La Crosse. Looks like the comeback will fall short. Too bad for the Eagles!
Final:
Wabash-28 Allegheny-20
As tight as some at d3football predicted.
Whitewater takes a 28 – 6 lead on UW-River Falls. QB Danny Jones runs it in from 19 yards. Justin Beaver over 200 yards rushing on the day…10 minutes to go in the 3rd.
Big INT deep in ETBU territory turned the tide here, the Tigers’ pick & runback led to a short TD run and they threatened again before what looked like a 4th-and1 stop from field level.
I’m told UMHB 24-7 at HSU. I’d better get over there before there’s nothing left to see.
12-7 here, 3:30 left in the 2nd. Out.
Not much of a game here at Kean. But an upset brewing at Heidelberg, where the Student Princes lead Baldwin-Wallace 28-13.
I think ‘Berg got another one…35-13..what a win this is going to be for them should they hold on…
WW 31 – RF 6
Whitewater capitalizes on an River Falls INT, with All-American placekicker Jeff Schebler on to tack on 3 more with a field goal from 23.
Clock at 04:48 of the 3rd.
42-20 Heidelberg over BW….wow
Union defeats WPI 16-3. Union looks like they have come along way since Springfield but they still have a long way to go. Union lost its new starting QB Andrew Catellier early (he looked excellent in the pocket and just by watching him for a few series I can tell why Audino went with him after the loss to Muhlenburg) I think this kid is going to be good if and when he returns (he seperated his shoulder)! Civetti came in and played O.K. he has a strong arm but for some reason the offense seems not to flow with him. The Dutchmen also came in with Jared Gourrier who is an excellent runner and also showed he can throw the ball. He ran for a nice TD. So we will see how the Dutchmen do in the next few weeks. With RPI, Hobart, and Rochester all winning the LL is very interesting. You have two teams at 3-0, two teams at 2-1 (although arguably Hobart is better at 2-1 then Union is at 3-0 but we shall see), and Susquahanna, SLU and MM winless. We shall see how the league unfolds. As much as it pains me to say RPI is the favorite for right now withou question.
SORRY Hobart has not played as of yet. So they are still 1-1 and if they can beat Susquahanna then they will be 2-1.
OK,
Josh Bowerman and I made it over to Hardin-Simmons just in time for halftime. HSU, down 24-7, scored with 3;49 left in the half to finish a 9-play, 87-yard drive that got them back into the game, at least from our perspective. Much nicer to roll up to a 10-point game than 17.
From the halftime stats, Jarvis Thrasher’s already at 97 yards, TOP is even, total offense is 264-201 in favor of UMHB. 10 passes for UHMB! ( 🙂 ) … Hardin-Simmons eight penalties to two. UMHB turned over twice, HSU once.
OK. Halfway up to speed.
Yeah, the Heidelberg score resonated here too. St. John’s is down two in the fourth according to my last refresh.
Second half kicked off here, will update with interesting developments.
Also Rhodes up two TDs on Trinity (Texas) is a wow!
Johnnies survive 30-29. Trailed 26-17 entering the fourth.
Hardin-Simmons not getting a ton of help from its offense here in the third. A couple of missed opportunities led to short drives — one dropped pass on third down, another interception on a deep ball — and both times Mary Hardin-Baylor has taken the ball and methodically marched down the field. Hard to imagine anyone will stop this offense before several weeks deep into the playoffs, if then, although HSU is admittedly not the best barometer.
I don’t think HSU is playing terribly in the small portion of the game I’ve seen so far, but they really had to play their absolute best here. For every time they’ve blown up the option or drawn a pass interference, they’ve been gashed the next play for an 8-yard run or not been able to complete a pass.
UMHB has used three tailbacks in the quarter, but most impressive is the 6-7 receiver Patrick Oliver. He’s not just a basketball guy out here playing football, he showed great body control on a sideline catch and the folks here in the press box say he’s a great blocker.
Sounds like that could be trouble down the road if an elite receiver is an element to a potent running offense.
It appears St. John’s held on by a point, squeaking by for the second week in a row. Hey, a win is a win, but I’ll still be eager to hear from Johnnie fans on their recent play.
Upset of the day so far, Heidelberg over B-W or Rhodes over Trinity?
End 3rd here. Eric Drennan of the Temple Daily Telegram points out to me that HSU ran 10 plays for 1 yard in the third.
UMHB gets an Eric Henri safety to make 40-14.
Pat and Keith getting some love for their visit and subsequent article on the Linfield radio broadcast!
A touchdown on a punt play put Grove City ahead 36-15 where they finished the game, defeating Bethany. Tyler Parafinik’s kick was deflected from the outstretched hands of the Bethany receiver and was recovered in the end zone by the Wolverine’s Mike Baker. Unique way to score.
Yeah, a win is a win, but it was also a win for St. John’s against a team you guys felt good enough about to rank 18th … 🙂
Actually, a couple of special-team issues hurt: A punt return and a fumbled kickoff.
But getting the ball with 5:30 to play in the game and killing the game with red zone kneel downs (and a little Ole help) was impressive.
And a big MIAC-WIAC upset in Augsburg beating Wartburg ….
Roll, Crusaders, Roll! Final: University of Mary Hardin Baylor 47 – Hardin Simmons 14. See you in the Stagg Bowl.
Oops, dreamin’ .. make thet MIAC-IIAC ….
47-14 final here. Off to update the front.
I dont know about the other teams that much…As far Heidelberg is concerned though…this is a team who had not won a game in four seasons until week 1 of this year, right? Baldwin Wallace has been a playoff team for quite a few years and near the top of the OAC…Knowing these two schools so well I guess…I definitely thought Heidelberg was going to improve this year, but to beat No.17 BW…I cant say I would have predicted it at all…as far as the OAC is concerned, that is just a huge upset…
In the real WIAC, however, late FG lifts Eau Claire over La Crosse leaving a pretty good team at 0-2 on the bottom of the league.
Mary Hardin-Baylor look great this year and I think they can win it all. Their defense is awesome and as soon as the offense stats to click on all cylinders they will have the complete package.
Pretty impressive win by MHB…Hardin Simmons is a good team…I have to say, Id like to see MUC and MHB in the Stagg…would be a great game….
Another Redlands/Occidental barnburner.
So that score is current? Might have to tune in if there’s audio (admittedly, I have not looked yet. Seen so much football here in Texas, I’m lucky to be awake still)
I was thinking though, if No. 25 Redlands holds on to lose, that makes how many top 25 teams to fall?
No. 6 La Crosse
No. 9 ONU
No. 11 Wartburg
No. 12 Trinity Texas
No. 17 Baldwin-Wallace
No. 19 Rowan
No. 21 HSU
No. 24 John Carroll
Eight, nine with Redlands. We were guaranteed four though with the h2h games.
On top of last week (still there were six defeats of ranked teams in Week 5. No. 5 St. John Fisher, No. 6 La Crosse, No. 10 Baldwin-Wallace, No. 12 Linfield, No. 16 Montclair State and No. 24 Bridgewater all lost.) … that’s 3/5ths of the top 25 losing in a two-week span.
(thinking of reason to absolve voters from fault … )
Hobart rolls 41-13… Coulda been alot worse, another big day for QB Andrew Strom… What if the LL ends in a 3 way tie… With Bart Beating Union, but Union beating RPI… That’s a crazy lockjam that could happen… If Hobart runs the table and finishes 8-2, any shot at an at-large bid, Pat???
I really doubt it. The second loss usually takes you out of the Pool C conversation, although if the national picture is jumbled there is always a chance. You need to start cheering for a lot of teams to lose in the second half of the season.
dcfbguy1 I think Hobart would have an outside chance at a pool c bid. Cortland has it right though, you must cheer for many others. Hobart plays a decent schedule and has a good reputation in the east but they must, must beat Alfred and obviously Union. Hobart must not take the Dutchmen lightly either. Yet if Unions QB is still out when they play I have a feeling Hobart will win that game. As much as I like to see Alfred do well I am a LL guy and will route for Hobart to win the game. Things are getting very exciting here in the east, and everywhere for that matter!
Thanks guys, sounds good… Looks like the Statesmen are looking more at a ECAC bowl bid and will only get in the playoffs if they are lucky… Division 3 is ever expanding… With 230+ schools, do you think more teams should be let in the playoffs or is it fine as is? I see many good teams stuck in tough conferences not getting in this year… The OAC, Empire 8 and NJAC are all very deep conferences…
dcfbguy1,
I think there are several points implicit in your previous post.
The NCAA is now funding one playoff spot for every 6.5 participating schools up to bracket limits such as 32 in football and 64 in hoops. The net ratio of schools to playoff bids in D-III football now is ~ 230 schools for 32 bids or 1:7.19. If the NCAA funded one bid for each 6.5 schools, we would have a 35-team playoff. This 35-team bracket moves the playoffs to 6 weeks, something no one is espousing. In that 35-team bracket we would roughly see 22 Pool A bids to the AQ conferences, 4 Pool B bids to the at-large and 9 Pool C bids. Hobart would have a better chance at the Pool C bid, about which you speak.
Part of the debate on the D-III/D-IV split is philosophical in nature. If the D-IV’s want to take their football and play elsewhere, well they are of sufficient legislative competency to move those initiatives thru the NCAA. They say that D-III is getting too big. They have highlighted philosophical differences about red-shirting an off-season activities as a reason to split D-III.
If those ~110 schools want to move to D-IV, and play in a 16-team/4-week football championship, then that leaves some room for the remaining 120-130 football schools to have a longer playoff that might invite 18-20 schools.
The D-III/D-IV issue will be coming to a vote in the next 1-2 years. We can watch that.
Yes, unfortunately, we’re never going to get more than 32 football teams in. We were lucky to get it expanded up from 16, as there were many schools that resisted adding another weekend to the bracket.
I have a few questions,
1: Has any at-large team ever won it all?
2: Has any team seeded in the bottom half, ever won it all?
The reason I say this – is that if only the the teams slotted in the top half win it all and only teams that earned their bids win it all then what is the real purpose of expansion? Making teams feel good about themselves?
In 2004 Linfield was an at-large team in the respect that the NWC did not have an AQ. The Wildcats won the title. They played another at-large team, Mary Hardin-Baylor, in the Stagg Bowl after the Crusaders beat Mount Union in Alliance. UMHB probably does not make the tournament in a smaller bracket that year and proved they were very worthy of the playoff opportunity.
If you consider Pool B to be at-large teams, then you can also put Pacific Lutheran (1999) on the list of national champions.
Other at-large teams who won their regional bracket (national semifinalists):
2006: St. John Fisher, Wesley (Pool B)
2005: Wesley (Pool B)
2004: Mary Hardin-Baylor, Linfield (Pool B)
2003: RPI (Pool B)
2002: John Carroll
2001: Pacific Lutheran (Pool B)
I may be forgetting one or two.
PLU was a seven-seed the year they won.
Both UMHB and PLU played five road games on the way to Salem. (Actually, four; five includiing Salem)
The purpose of expansion was/is access.
Previously, under the 16 team system, four playoff teams came from each region based solely on the committee’s rankings. In 1998, Trinity (Texas), Catholic, Western Maryland, Lycoming and Emory & Henry all went undefeated, and it was up to the committee to vote on which of those teams was not deserving of a playoff spot. A lose-lose situation.
The automatic qualifier system gives each team a direct, understandable route to the postseason, and therefore the championship, each season. Every team that doesn’t make the playoffs can point to which games it didn’t win to explain why it didn’t get in, as opposed to a committee’s opinion.
Why should the past results of who has won determine who has a chance? If a Muncie would beat a Milan (or whichever) 99 times out of 100, who’s to say we shouldn’t play the game? The “100th” ends up a great moment.
Division III is saying everyone has a chance. What they do with that chance is completely unrelated to the fact they always will have a chance.