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ATN Podcast 288: Close calls from Week 5

Week 5 was witness to a number of key battles, both inside and outside of the Top 25, and if you’re living life in the fast lane, your hopes for making the postseason may be already gone in the long run. One of these nights, you think, someone is going to upset the team you are chasing in the standings, or in the Top 25, and then there’s going to be a heartache tonight. That did not happen to Washington & Jefferson, which survived a close game at Geneva and will finally get another home game. Presidents coach Mike Sirianni talks about that and more with us in our Tight Five segment. There’s no wasted time when we get the interview down to five minutes.

Or perhaps you are exceeding everyone’s expectations and you’re the new kid in town. That could well be FDU-Florham, which took it to Widener this weekend. There’s implications here beyond the MAC standings, however, and if you can trust your lyin’ eyes, you can probably have a peaceful, easy feeling about your postseason chances.

Saturday night also saw a big game down in Georgia that we’ll talk about, and of course, you’d have to think hell freezes over if we don’t talk about that big win for Ithaca against Hobart. Meanwhile, it was business as usual for Central against Wartburg — 2021 style, anyway. Perhaps not 2019 style.

Plus, who really are the best dual-threat quarterbacks in Division III? You are not alone if you think it’s your quarterback, so we’ll give you a few more names because your program may not be the center of the universe.

What have been the most impactful plays of the season so far? Which two teams should play for the Twilight Trophy? That and much more in episode 288.

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:

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

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Theme music: DJmentos.
Photo by Martin Santek photography for Washington & Jefferson athletics

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ATN Podcast 264: The one with the second-round shocker

Highlights, reaction and analysis from across all parts of the bracket are what you find in this edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast. That includes North Central coach Jeff Thorne’s reaction to the Cardinals’ epic win at Mount Union, and it also includes Jeff’s father, John Thorne, who retired from the position after the 2014 season, with his postgame reaction.

Salisbury quarterback Jack Lanham talks about the team’s balance between running and throwing the ball, and Union’s Paul Chambers talks about defending the Sea Gulls’ brand of triple option. St. John’s Jackson Erdmann and coach Gary Fasching talk about what is next for the Johnnies and what they face at Wheaton, while Wheaton coach Mike Swider expresses his pleasure with the way his Thunder started the game against Central.

UMHB coach Pete Fredenburg talks about this week’s most notable personnel change of the tournament: moving Jefferson Fritz from safety to linebacker. Why did he do it and what did it accomplish? And Muhlenberg linebacker Mickey Kober talks about one of the secrets to how the Mules have pitched back-to-back shutouts to start the playoffs. Note: The Union player who speaks in this podcast is misidentified. He is George Reed.

And if that’s not enough, Pat has a story for everyone who wanted to kick Mount Union out of Division III for being too successful. Maybe also for MIAC presidents as well.

Plus, Pat and Keith rank the quarterfinal matchups. All that and more is covered in Podcast 264.

This edition of the D3football.com Around the Nation podcast is sponsored by Gotta Have It: 3D Fan Foam Wall Signs for the D-III fan in your life.

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

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

Full episode:

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:

Theme music: DJmentos. Photo by Steve Frommell, d3photography.com; Dan Poel, Ohiosi.com; Salisbury athletics.

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Quick Hits predicts the second round

This week our panel gets you ready for all eight second round games by predicting not just winners, but final scores. Curious which games will be close? Or where to find a high scoring shootout? We’ve got your winners and game expectations covered right here.

Keith McMillan, Ryan Tipps, Pat Coleman, Adam Turer, Frank Rossi and Greg Thomas each take their guesses at scores for each second-round game.

— Greg Thomas (Photo by Matt McClure, d3photography.com)

Mary Hardin-Baylor bracket
Keith’s take:  UMHB 49, Huntingdon 14
Ryan’s take: UMHB 41, Huntingdon 7
Pat’s take: UMHB 61, Huntingdon 7
Adam’s take: UMHB 41, Huntingdon 24
Frank’s take: UMHB 40, Huntingdon 14
Greg’s take: UMHB 51, Huntingdon 10
Consensus: The Crusaders move on comfortably.
Keith’s take:  UW-Whitewater 17, Wartburg 13
Ryan’s take: UW-Whitewater 24, Wartburg 17
Pat’s take: UW-Whitewater 27, Wartburg 20
Adam’s take: UW-Whitewater 24, Wartburg 14
Frank’s take: Wartburg 28, UW-Whitewater 24
Greg’s take: UW-Whitewater 28, Wartburg 17
Consensus: Whitewater by a majority decision, winning in a lower scoring game.
Wheaton bracket
Keith’s take:  Wheaton 34, Central 20
Ryan’s take: Wheaton 34, Central 20
Pat’s take: Wheaton 45, Central 30
Adam’s take: Wheaton 40, Central 20
Frank’s take: Wheaton 37, Central 27
Greg’s take: Wheaton 38, Central 14
Consensus: Wheaton advances to the quarterfinal with a 2-3 score margin.
Keith’s take: St. John’s 34, Chapman 24
Ryan’s take: St. John’s 41, Chapman 38
Pat’s take: St. John’s 38, Chapman 28
Adam’s take: St. John’s 38, Chapman 22
Frank’s take: St. John’s 51, Chapman 37
Greg’s take: Chapman 34, St. John’s 32
Consensus: Not unanimous, but the panel sees St. John’s throwing its way past Chapman.
Salisbury bracket
Keith’s take: Salisbury 42, Union 28
Ryan’s take: Salisbury 45, Union 21
Pat’s take: Salisbury 41, Union 24
Adam’s take: Salisbury 42, Union 21
Frank’s take: Union 24, Salisbury 20
Greg’s take: Salisbury 41, Union 17
Consensus: Five out of six see the top-seeded Sea Gulls march on with a multiple score victory.
Keith’s take: Muhlenberg 31, Brockport 21
Ryan’s take: Muhlenberg 27, Brockport 10
Pat’s take: Muhlenberg 21, Brockport 6
Adam’s take: Muhlenberg 31, Brockport 18
Frank’s take: Muhlenberg 26, Brockport 21
Greg’s take: Muhlenberg 24, Brockport 14
Consensus: The Mules return to the quarterfinals with a double digit win.
Mount Union bracket
Keith’s take: Mount Union 35, N. Central 21
Ryan’s take: Mount Union 31, N. Central 17
Pat’s take: Mount Union 34, N. Central 31
Adam’s take: Mount Union 45, N. Central 43
Frank’s take: Mount Union 50, N. Central 24
Greg’s take: Mount Union 41, N. Central 35
Consensus: Mount Union to win unanimously in a bit of a shootout.
Keith’s take:  Del Val 21, Wesley 20 (4OT)
Ryan’s take: Del Val 28, Wesley 24
Pat’s take: Wesley 34, Del Val 21
Adam’s take: Wesley 30, Del Val 27 (2OT)
Frank’s take: Wesley 30, Del Val 17
Greg’s take: Wesley 27, Del Val 24
Consensus: Another majority decision, this time with Wesley advancing in a close game.

We invite you to add your predictions in the comments below, or tweet at us at @D3Keith, @NewsTipps and @d3football. Download the Around the Nation podcast on Mondays, where Pat and Keith review the picks and the highlights from the weekend’s playoff games.