ATN Podcast 302: Are the Purple Powers still at the top, plus, North Central’s new coach

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Pat Coleman

The podcast is back, as we start our 16th season here at the D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast, and we’re doing it this time around by going a little more in-depth and doing a deeper dive with one coach, in one conversation.

With that in mind, Pat Coleman stopped by in Naperville, Illinois, on a recent Division III basketball road trip and checked in on new North Central coach Brad Spencer. Spencer had been in the job for six weeks, but had only just moved into the head coach office a day and a half earlier. He and Pat talk about Spencer’s long relationship with North Central — not just as an assistant coach, not just as a player, but … as a bat boy? Plus, they talk about what makes the head coaching job different, what keeps him from getting his lunch eaten on a daily basis, getting to know the guys on the other side of the ball, etc.

Also, Pat and Greg borrowed a couple of “big picture” type questions which come from D3boards.com message board posters MUC57. Are the Purple Powers still on top in Division III? Why is the WIAC so good? You know, that sort of thing. Great offseason conversation and fodder. Plus, there’s just a small amount of basketball talk, as Pat and Greg recorded this episode while looking at each other during, as each was in Fort Wayne, Indiana, for the Division III men’s basketball Final Four.

Pat Coleman and Greg Thomas talk about it all in the latest D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast is a regular conversation covering the wide range of Division III football.

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

Full episode: [display_podcast]

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:

Apple Podcasts: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast
Google Podcasts: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast
iHeart Radio: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast
Stitcher: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast
Spotify: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast

Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos.
Photo: North Central athletics

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

ATN Podcast 301: Vote coming on smaller conferences, pads in practice

Posted on January 19, 2022 by Pat Coleman

If it seems like there is always something important about Division III football being voted on at the NCAA convention, well, we think you’re probably correct. This year, there is a significant proposal that could limit using pads in practice during the fall, but add time with pads and helmets in the spring.

This proposal is long and convoluted. Should it be broken up into smaller pieces and voted on individually? What does it even mean for Division III football teams and coaches.

The second proposal is much shorter but could have much longer-ranging effects. If the proposal to reduce the number of teams needed for an automatic bid in Division III sports is changed from seven teams to six, there could be one at-large bid which disappears almost immediately, and we only have five to begin with. Pat Coleman talks about what the consequences could be for football. In addition, an expert panel talks about the reasonings behind the proposals and whether they will pass. That panel: Stevie Baker-Watson, the athletic director at DePauw; Brad Bankston, the commissioner of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference; Jason Fein, the athletic director at Bates and co-chair of the NCAA Division III management council; and Angel Mason, athletic director at Berry and Chair of the NCAA Financial Aid committee and the Division III Technology Committee.

Pat Coleman and Dave McHugh, sitting in for Greg Thomas, talk about it all in the latest D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast is a regular conversation covering the wide range of Division III football.

This podcast contains excerpts from a much longer Hoopsville podcast on D3hoops.com. To hear or see the full version, go to Hoopsville.

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

Full episode: [display_podcast]

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

Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos.
Photo: Birmingham-Southern athletics

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

ATN Podcast 300: Players of the Year

Posted on December 18, 2021 by Pat Coleman

It was great to have a 2021 Division III football season to have a podcast about, and since the 300th podcast fell right at the end of the season, we celebrate by bringing back an old favorite — longtime co-host Keith McMillan. Keith joins Pat Coleman and Greg Thomas, along with Frank Rossi to break down the end of the season and Stagg Bowl.

Our final podcast of the season is always the time where we discuss the D3football.com Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year. You may know who we chose, but how did we get there? And how did the huge win by Mary Hardin-Baylor affect the crew’s thoughts about their final Top 25 ballots?

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
					1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31