ATN Podcast: Down to the final eight

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Pat Coleman

Jasper Collins caught five touchdown passes. That’s all. No big deal.
Photo by Dan Poel for d3photography.com

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When you have just eight games in a given week, we definitely have time to do a thorough breakdown, and a rundown of the four games coming up next week. So no, there weren’t too many surprises in this particular second round of the playoffs but the highest-ranked teams advanced in every instance.

•Updated bracket, playoff features

Pat and Keith give their strengths and weaknesses for each of the eight remaining teams, looking at the matchups. Plus get Widener’s take on Salisbury and the Pride’s take on Mount Union. UW-Oshkosh linebacker Ryan Stefaniak talks about the play that turned the game, then his coach disputes that that was the turning point at all.

Plus, we talk about the retirement of legendary St. John’s coach John Gagliardi, his legacy, and explain who this Mike Grant person is everyone is talking about as the possible successor.

Keith and Pat talk about that and more in this week’s Around the Nation Podcast, sponsored by the City of Salem, hosts of Stagg Bowl XL. Tickets on sale now!

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You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in iTunes. 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

Postgame show

Here’s this week’s D3football.com reports, highlight packages and postgame interviews.

And this week’s photo galleries from our friends at d3photography.com:

Salisbury at Widener

Triple Take: Round 2 of the playoffs

Posted on November 22, 2012 by ryantipps

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

ATN Podcast: When a surprise isn’t a surprise

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Pat Coleman

Mary Hardin-Baylor bounced Louisiana College from the playoffs, perhaps a round sooner than it should have been.
Photo by Andrew Zavoina, d3photography.com

Subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in iTunes.

Maybe an upset isn’t an upset when 76 percent of you pick it to happen. There were five road teams who won on Saturday in the opening round of the playoffs and one of them was an upset if you believe in the other Top 25. But when Elmhurst and North Central each went on the road and won, and Bethel won on the road as well, they each struck blows for their conferences.

•Updated bracket, playoff features

But so did Concordia-Chicago. So did Framingham State, despite losing. There aren’t moral victories necessarily in the playoffs but it’s better to go out 20-19 or 24-23 than it is 73-14. But every game gets discussed and we look ahead to what we hope will be a great second weekend of the playoffs as well.

Keith and Pat talk about that and more in this week’s Around the Nation Podcast, sponsored by the City of Salem, hosts of Stagg Bowl XL. Tickets on sale now!

Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your phone or portable device.[display_podcast]

Postgame show

Here’s this week’s D3football.com reports, highlight packages and postgame interviews.

And this week’s photo galleries from our friends at d3photography.com:

Christopher Newport at Mount Union