D-III from the other side

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Thirty-two teams are preparing for NCAA playoff games and a handful of others are readying for other postseason experiences. Others headed for the offseason with a warm feeling from beating an archrival in the final game, or breaking a streak of losing seasons, finishing on a hot streak or any of a bunch of ways to gather some momentum going into the offseason.

And then there’s a fairly large group at the other end as well, teams whose seasons ended on a down note. That doesn’t include just RPI, Redlands, Montclair State and the others who played their way out of a likely playoff bid with Week 11 losses, but teams who were quickly out of the playoff running altogether.

Or winless, even.

Such was the fate of Colorado College, along with McMurry, Principia, Maranatha Baptist, Massachusetts Maritime and Cornell. And if you remember from early on in the season, Colorado College freshman Chris Jarmon was writing on his blog, The D3 Experience, about the season.

Reading back on it now, you can sense the frustration. This was from a post heading into the final game:

We’re 0-8 now, and just saying that feels strange. It’s hard to believe that with all of the talent and confidence we entered the season with, we’ve been unable to win a single game. I feel especially bad for our seniors, who have busted their tails for four years and deserve better.

For all of those out there who feel that pain, good luck this offseason. Don’t give up. It can get better. But college football, at any level, is hard work.

Review: Out of the Comfort Zone

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This is the time of year I actually get to do some reading. Not because November, the crossover season between D3football.com and D3hoops.com, is some wonderful bastion of free time, but because every once in a while I have to get on an airplane to get to a playoff game.

This week I’ll be spending 16 hours in a car instead. but that’s beside the point.

There have been just a handful of books in the past decade that really speak to the Division III football experience. One of them came out in the past 12 months, however, and that’s Frank Agin’s Out of the Comfort Zone.

Former Principia and Capital wide receiver Lewis Howes has had some D-III football experiences himself, and he reviews the book for us.

Out of the Comfort Zone coverLewis Howes’ review of Out of the Comfort Zone (by Frank Agin)

If you have ever played, been a fan of or watched D-III football, you should read Frank Agin’s Out of the Comfort Zone — it is an exciting and enjoyable story.

Frank knows D-III football first hand, having played four years at Beloit College (Beloit, Wis.) during the early 1980s. In Out of the Comfort Zone, he crafts his experiences into one inspiring and yet very entertaining season of D-III football. Frank has a vivid writing style — he actually makes you feel the hits, sense the emotion and smell the game.

What I really enjoyed about Frank’s novel, however, is that while it centers on small college football players, Frank devotes a surprisingly little portion of the book to the game of football itself. Out of the Comfort Zone touches on the players’ camaraderie off the field, their romantic interests as well as the relationships they share with coaches. The story explores the rigors of being a true student-athlete in a demanding academic environment. And, the novel reminds us that no matter what we try to achieve, that there will be hard work, challenges and setbacks.

If you played (or play) D-III, Out of the Comfort Zone will bring back a rush of memories. If you haven’t, this novel with give you a first hand view of life as a small college football player. In Out of the Comfort Zone, Frank Agin will make you laugh … he will bring a tear to your eye … and, he will make you long for a chance at one more big time play — the kind that lives in your mind forever.

– Lewis Howes
D3 All-American, NCAA All-Division Record Holder

Bracket analysis, podcast

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If you think this bracket is good … and I do, at least a little … you should’ve seen the first version that went out. It had one extra flight in it, and that made a world of difference.

Instead, we have business as usual. And I mean business.

I’m in between show No. 3 and No. 4. I’ll be on North Central’s radio station later, where I’ll probably get asked most of the same questions, which is fine, because it’s a different audience. But there are a lot of things on people’s minds.

We took a ton of questions on our post-selection analysis show. If you missed it, it’s below, and it will end up in your feed if you’re a podcast subscriber.

We also talked with Wheaton coach Mike Swider, Willamette coach Mark Speckman, Mount Union quarterback Greg Micheli and Washington and Jefferson coach Mike Sirianni. Plus, you’ll get an interesting insight into the bracket that did not make ESPNews.

Thanks to the more than a thousand people who listened to the show live, and to the 75 percent of our audience that stuck with us even as we went 45 minutes longer than we planned. But we got to everyone’s questions.

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