[Note: This is an entry of an ongoing Stagg Bowl blog by sideline commentator Frank Rossi. To read his previous entry, click here.]

My first full day in Virginia has started very well, although, as some have pointed out after my first blog entry, the weather has become suspect. More on that in a bit, but first, an update to the map since last I updated you here.

Last night, I waited in Dulles Airport for Pat Coleman to finish his day job and tripped onto a Washington, D.C., staple, Five Guys, for a makeshift lunch/dinner. I now understand the hype that I’ve heard — “cheap eats” that make a burger lover happy. For me, this trip is about accentuating the positives, so Five Guys gets high marks on the karma scale to kick things off (granted, my diet is deteriorating down here with the hotel cookie and the greasy food, but New Year’s resolutions don’t start for another couple weeks…). When Pat picked me up, we headed down to Roanoke without incident (meaning, no fights about the music choice). By the time we got settled in at the hotel, it was bedtime for me after a long day of travel.

This morning, I woke up pretty early without any problem — I think I have a little adrenaline running through my veins with the Stagg Bowl approaching. The daytime hours involved two events; the first was interview sessions with both teams, and the second was watching both teams practice on the actual Stagg Bowl field. Interviews with the coaches present some instant contrasts when you compare the two men. For Whitewater, Coach Lance Leipold comes across a little reserved but very warm — an easy guy to talk to, and someone who you know bonds well with his team. For Mount Union, Coach Larry Kehres comes across more as a stoic authority figure at first — very direct with his answers, but very open about his feeling about certain topics. In fact, Coach Kehres was more fun to speak with after the official interview, as he became anecdotal (for instance, we know now that he’s a “Criminal Minds” fan on CBS based on some post-interview comment he made). This is the type of thing you don’t get to see on game day or from conference calls with the teams; it truly humanizes the men who have become household names in Division III households over the last couple years.

We also had a chance to briefly speak with Mount Union senior running back phenom Nate Kmic, who can’t even explain himself why other teams have trouble tackling him (aside from crediting his offensive line). Let me be honest: if the Mount Union offensive line blocked for unathletic 5’9”, 160-pound me, maybe I’d average two or three yards per carry — not eight. Kmic is modest, but I know, like all of you, that he has a talent that can’t easily be measured — especially since he comes across as unimposing when you meet him in street clothes for the first time.

The interview session was a good time — and a chance for me to confirm that Pat Coleman is the equivalent of “Norm” from “Cheers” in Salem (except, without the alcoholic intake on a perpetual basis and much thinner). He might be able to run for mayor around here, although Coach Kehres might be able to run a close race against him.

The daytime hours closed with both teams practicing. I won’t get into specifics about what the teams did on the field as the practices are not for public consumption. However, I was able to place faces with a lot of the names that play major roles in Division III Football on the sidelines, including Selection Committee Chair Dick Kaiser and many of the Committee members. It was also great to see a man I interviewed after the Warhawks’ win last year, former head coach Bob Berezowitz, who stays very much involved with Whitewater Athletics (that’s a good thing with his wisdom surrounding the team to this day). We all braved the rain on the sidelines in 50-degree temperatures to watch the teams prepare, and there were plenty of stories being shared by everyone. The weather today was not as bad as the weather we experienced during the 2007 Stagg Bowl (which was about ten degrees colder with a more persistent rain), but it also provides a preview of the weather forecasters believe we will see this Saturday (my big ears can’t wait).

So, Thursday at the Stagg Bowl isn’t so much about the families and the fans as it is about the teams, the media and the NCAA role players that helped to get us to this point this season. Now that today’s practices are over, we will move into a transition point — tonight’s Gagliardi Trophy presentation reception — when families and fans begin to become more integral in the process. Mount Union quarterback Greg Micheli will receive the honor — no surprise there as his play on the field and grades and service off the field are tremendous feats. I’ll discuss this ceremony more later. In the meantime, it’s time to get ready for the reception — but all in all, I just wanted to say that today’s experiences have made me understand a bit more that a lot of people care a lot about the promotion of Division III Football and the values it promotes. I felt part of a bigger family today based on the work we do in Salem — and I’ve been treated like family all day.

I’m Frank Rossi. For those who don’t know me, please let me introduce myself. Since 1995, I have been a play-by-play commentator for the Union College Fighting Dutchmen, and over the past few years, I’ve been a contributor to D3Sports.com. In 2007, I was called in at the last minute to work the sidelines for the NCAA.com/D3Football.com broadcast of the Stagg Bowl. It was an interesting experience, driving eight hours from New York City to Roanoke, VA, with two hours to spare before our pregame show airtime, working outside for five hours in 40-degree temperatures and getting to watch what many people think was one of the biggest upsets in Stagg Bowl history from field level. It’s an experience I still cherish, not because I was rooting for either team, but because the atmosphere was electric and the event lived up to the years of hype I had heard from many fans.

The only letdown in 2007 was that I spent a total of 24 hours in the Salem/Roanoke area, half of which was consumed sleeping after the game was over and five hours were on the air. I asked Pat Coleman if I could renew my role as sideline commentator for this year’s game, but on one condition: that I could enjoy the entire Stagg Bowl experience. Pat agreed, and I’m writing this blog entry from my flight from Fort Lauderdale Airport to Washington-Dulles Airport. In a few hours, Pat will meet me, and we’ll begin the 3 1/2-hour trek to Roanoke.

Among the events that I am looking forward to are the awarding of the Gagliardi Trophy, meeting the teams and coaches, meeting the families of the players and enjoying the area that has become the long-time home of the Stagg Bowl. As the week and weekend continue, I’ll update you with the activities in which I partake for those of you that can’t make it to Salem for the first couple days — or who unfortunately can’t make it at all.

Let me end this entry with my take on this year’s game as I head into the conclusion of the first leg of my trip to Salem. Yes, it’s a rematch of the same teams for the fourth straight Stagg Bowl — and that fact is getting a lot of play among Division III Football fans. However, what people are forgetting is that UW-Whitewater beat Mount Union in 2007. No matter how hot Mount Union has come into and through the playoffs this year, they still haven’t dethroned the defending National Champions. In many ways, for the first time in this heated rivalry, the pressure is on the Purple Raiders. Sure, my belief is that Whitewater has had more trouble than Mount Union in the playoffs to this point, but the score is still zero-zero right now until we kick things off Saturday.

Am I disappointed with the rematch? Initially I was concerned — but the more I have thought about it, the more I realize that these two teams deserve to be playing in front of a national crowd this year. We have a playoff system to force the teams to earn their path to a championship — instead of basing it to a large degree on teams’ reputations. I’d rather have this rematch than have a dissatisfied taste in my mouth after the fact that the winner might not REALLY be the best team in the land.

This should be an exciting and fun week. I hope you join me as I update you on my experiences at least once a day — maybe more if time allows. Feel free to comment with any Salem stories, recommendations on what I should do with my down time this week, or assessments on the big game, and I’ll try to respond as I can.