Triple Take: Round 2 of the playoffs

Steven Wwbb
Steven Webb scored three touchdowns in Hobart’s first-round win against Washington and Lee.
Hobart photo by Andrew Markham

The top two seeds in each bracket survived the first round, but there was certainly a lot to be excited about last Saturday from top to bottom. And, of course, we’re looking to repeat those thrills as we enter into Round 2, with 16 of the nation’s best teams still alive.

The CCIW and the MIAC can still boast two teams in the field. And every team playing this weekend is in the D3football.com Top 25 poll.

Pat, Keith and Ryan again give you the game-by-game score predictions. Remember, these postseason Triple Take predictions are not intended to be lines on the games, but rather a broad test of expectations vs. outcome.

If you’re feeling prescient, leave your final score guesses for any or all games below, and be sure to come back afterward to see how you did. Keep an eye on the scoreboard page throughout game day, and if you’re posting on Twitter, be sure to use the hashtag #d3fb.

For more info on the 32-team race to Salem, including the brackets, info on each team and feature stories, check our playoffs home page.

LINFIELD BRACKET
Ryan’s take: Linfield 38, North Central 33
Keith’s take: Linfield 31, North Central 30
Pat’s take: Linfield 31, North Central 20

Ryan’s take: UW-Oshkosh 41, Bethel 17
Keith’s take: UW-Oshkosh 31, Bethel 17
Pat’s take: UW-Oshkosh 34, Bethel 21

ST. THOMAS BRACKET
Ryan’s take: St. Thomas 28, Elmhurst 10
Keith’s take: St. Thomas 21, Elmhurst 13
Pat’s take: St. Thomas 28, Elmhurst 17

Ryan’s take: Hobart 31, Wittenberg 24
Keith’s take: Hobart 27, Wittenberg 19
Pat’s take: Hobart 17, Wittenberg 10

MARY HARDIN-BAYLOR BRACKET
Ryan’s take: Mary Hardin-Baylor 45, Franklin 21
Keith’s take: Mary Hardin-Baylor 42, Franklin 28
Pat’s take: Mary Hardin-Baylor 38, Franklin 13

Ryan’s take: Wesley 31, Cortland State 10
Keith’s take: Wesley 23, Cortland State 17
Pat’s take: Wesley 41, Cortland State 16

MOUNT UNION BRACKET
Ryan’s take: Mount Union 45, Johns Hopkins 14
Keith’s take: Mount Union 42, Johns Hopkins 21
Pat’s take: Mount Union 52, Johns Hopkins 7

Ryan’s take: Salisbury 38, Widener 24
Keith’s take: Widener 28, Salisbury 22
Pat’s take: Salisbury 28, Widener 27

19 thoughts on “Triple Take: Round 2 of the playoffs

  1. First round was exciting! This round appears to be some of the best football in recent years. Clearly with the exception of the mighty purple raiders game, any game is up for grabs. Here are my predictions:
    North Central 30 Linfield 27 OT
    Oshkosh 38 Bethel 24
    St. Thomas 21 Elmhurst 17
    Wittenberg 28 Hobart 21
    Mary Harden-Baylor 45 Franklin 17
    Wesley 38 Cortland St 7
    Widener 30 Salisbury 27
    Mount Union 58 John Hopkins 10

  2. Linfield 35 North Central 17
    Bethel 22 UW-Oshkosh 21
    St. Thomas 38 Elmhurst 14
    Hobart 35 Wittenburg 24
    Mary Hardin-Baylor 42 Franklin 28
    Wesley 28 Cortland State 7
    Salisbury 24 Widener 21
    Mount Union 35 Johns Hopkins 14

  3. Great to see these comments backing a couple of the road teams (“upset” picks)! For others who want to throw in their $0.02, here’s the list of games for easy cutting/pasting purposes:

    North Central at Linfield
    Bethel at UW-Oshkosh
    Elmhurst at St. Thomas
    Wittenberg at Hobart
    Franklin at Mary Hardin-Baylor
    Cortland State at Wesley
    Johns Hopkins at Mount Union
    Salisbury at Widener

  4. North Central 24 Linfield 21
    Oshkosh. 28 Bethel 24
    Elmhurst 21 St. Thomas 20
    Hobart 35 Wittenberg 28
    Mary Hardin-Baylor 42 Franklin 21
    Wesley 38 Cortland 17
    Mount Union 49 Johns Hopkins 14
    Widener 21 Salisbury 17

  5. North Central 35 at Linfield 31
    Bethe 17 at UW-Oshkosh 21
    Elmhurst 10 at St. Thomas 28
    Wittenberg 27 at Hobart 31
    Franklin 17 at Mary Hardin-Baylor 38
    Cortland State 14 at Wesley 27
    Johns Hopkins 10 at Mount Union 42
    Salisbury 17 at Widener 24

  6. North Central 31 Linfield 27

    UW-Oshkosh 38 Bethel 17

    St. Thomas 30 Elmhurst 14

    Wittenberg 21 Hobart 20

    Mary Hardin-Baylor 42 Franklin 20

    Wesley 35 Cortland State 10

    Mount Union 45 Johns Hopkins 7

    Salisbury 31 Widener 17

  7. North Central 21 at Linfield 27
    Bethel 24 at UW-Oshkosh 35
    Elmhurst 24 at St. Thomas 35
    Wittenberg 21 at Hobart 24
    Franklin 27 at Mary Hardin-Baylor 42
    Cortland State 17 at Wesley 35
    Johns Hopkins 14 at Mount Union 42
    Salisbury 21 at Widener 24

    I have no “upsets” picked – though the North Central/Linfield and the Salisbury/Widener games could go either way and not really be “upsets”. I think the only real upset potential would be Bethel at Oshkosh because the Titans are flat and/or wore down from the long season. The Grizzlies could also take an early run at UMHB, but I don’t think they can sustain it.

  8. North Central 31 at Linfield 30
    Bethel 17 at UW-Oshkosh 34
    Elmhurst 20 at St. Thomas 28
    Wittenberg 28 at Hobart 27
    Franklin 28 at Mary Hardin-Baylor 49
    Cortland State 17 at Wesley 27
    Johns Hopkins 21 at Mount Union 34
    Salisbury 24 at Widener 21

  9. I have been following Division III football since 1996 and I don’t remember a weekend with the opportunity for more upsets. With the exception of Mount Union and maybe Wesley, the other games might surprise. Just because Mount beat up on Franklin in September doesn’t have any meaning now. Franklin is very athletic, with a great quarterback. North Central and Elmhurst are sleepers After last weekend, Wittenberg may be for real? Salisbury-Widener was a toss up, anyway. It will be interesting to see how this thing plays out !!

  10. I forgot to mention Bethel and Oshkosh. Oshkosh may have all that it takes to go all the way, but look at scores in the past when they played Mount Union and then look at Bethel against the same opponent. Different players and different years but there may some thing to the pattern?

  11. I can’t imagine St. Thomas winning by less than five touchdowns. They are so deep and so YOUNG they may not lose another conference game for years. I think they have or soon will reach the level of Mt. Union and Whitewater. Their resources guarantee it, I read their latest fund raiser gathered Five…Hundred…MILLION dollars!! With cash like that they can give “academic” scholarships to anyone they choose. With tuition pushing forty grand at MIAC schools the Tommies can buy whoever they want.

  12. Geiger from St. Thomas has a right to be proud of his team and what they have accomplished, but he is talking like a Big Ten or SEC fan, not someone who has to deal with the realities of financial aid packages and “academic” scholarships at a Division III school. Who has deeper pockets than Washington University, the University of Chicago and Johns Hopkins, etc. but that doesn’t mean a lot in Division III.

  13. Just a parting shot at Geiger. He must be a jealous St. John’s fan because no one with any knowledge of St. Thomas and fund raising at any college or university, let alone a small Catholic one, would through around a number like $500,000,000. St. Thomas. St. Johns,St. Norbert, St. John Fisher, John Carroll, and Salve Regina may not have a combined endowment of that amount. I think he might be off two decimal points and was meant $5 million which is realistic.

  14. My apology. That is truly amazing, especially the amount for student financial aid which is part of it. Usuallly the $$ just goes for buildings.

  15. Yep — that story is worth reading. Also there’s a story about St. Thomas choosing to stay in Division III, which is on the front page, under What We’re Reading.

  16. I think St. Thomas is different that the aforementioned U of Chicago, Washington U and John’s Hopkins as STU seems to have put a focus into developing a championship football team. That makes the $500 Million more amazing with their focus on the athletic side. Capital U in Columbus, OH seemed to have a focus on the Football team and athletics in the early 2000s, but recently stepped back in those areas, and you can see the result in the football team the past few years.

  17. Capital was very good for about a 4 year span. If it wasn’t for mount union in the way they may have even won a couple championships. Also in that 4 years they had maybe one of the best ever QBs in d3. Rocky Pentello,

  18. We have four indexes in the ASC Pick’em game: Lazindex, Bornpowerindex, Compughter and Atomic Football.

    They predicted the UMHB-Franklin game at 26, 25, 32 and 29 points. The 46-point margin was even more than they expected.

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