D3football Daily Dose

I know Wabash isn’t the only program to do something like this — in fact, I interviewed one coach for Kickoff (coming next week!) who does something similar with his program, even giving up a day of practice to get it done. But reading Matt Hudson’s take on the seniors’ retreat to West Virginia seemed interesting and worth sharing.

It gives us an opportunity to talk about the upcoming season, and really bond with the guys that you came in with. After all, my class started with about 60 guys, were down to around 35 after one year, and now we sit with 20 after inheriting 2 from last year’s class (a great thing, because they’re both studs). So since we’ve all been through football together for the last 3 years, we all have great relationships, and I think it shows, both on and off the field.

Follow the link above for the full post.

A decade ago at this time, I was throwing the proverbial switch and getting ready to unleash D3football.com on the World Wide Web.

It had been a project we were attempting to keep secret, which was difficult to do, assembling 220-some football schedules, quick facts and the like without being noticed. In the weeks before our July 7, 1999, launch, we saw the competition, Division III Football Online, really ramp up its preseason coverage, much better than it had done previously. And since we were moving into what was basically another site’s established territory, we were concerned there would be a backlash.

That potential backlash had kept us from expanding Division III Basketball Online and adding a football site the year before. We did talk very seriously about doing it for the 1998 season, and there was definitely some split opinions among our inner circle at the time, which was basically me, Jim Stout and Ray Martel. But Ray and I took a break from our coverage of Catholic University football to cover the Widener-Lycoming game that fall, a classic in which Lyco rallied from a 13-2 deficit after starting with the ball on its 1-yard line with a little more than three minutes left, and we knew we had to cover this sport more often.

When I took over Division III Basketball Online in November 1997 I had this illusion that I could do it a few hours a night, a few nights a week, which would make the site more up-to-date than it had been previously and everyone would be happy. But that illusion quickly faded and by that time, the site already took up 20-30 hours a week during the basketball season. So I had a pretty good idea what I was getting into.

Your response, the fans’ response, to D3football.com was overwhelming, from the opening days. It eventually passed D3hoops.com in traffic and popularity and really drives the whole D3sports.com network. Thanks for being a part of it and choosing to follow NCAA Division III football with us. It’s been a very rewarding decade, getting to go across the country and see great football games, meet people, find good stories and bring them back to you.

And while this site is still really a labor of love, and may well never be my full-time job, I don’t love it or Division III football any less.

Spread the word.

It came without warning, the dropping of Colorado College football. It appears the school might not have even had the courtesy to call its own conference and let them know that football and softball were going away, as was women’s water polo, not an SCAC sport.

In fairly short order, we’ve lost three Division III football programs, after we’d lost just three in the previous decade. Mass-Boston and Swarthmore were cut loose after the 2000 season, while New Jersey City shut it down after the 2002 season.

Chris Jarmon, who has been blogging since choosing Division III on a blog we’ve previously cited called The D3 Experience, tells the story of Colorado College football being eliminated.

He’d been writing all season as Colorado College struggled and finished winless. But this was basically a surprise to everyone on campus.

Jarmon isn’t letting his career end: “As soon as I heard the news, I knew I had to transfer. Football means almost everything to me, and I couldn’t live with myself not knowing I’d exhausted all playing opportunities. To be honest, I don’t know how I’m going to live without football once my senior season is over. So to not play my remaining three seasons would be the biggest regret of my life.”

Read the full story.

This makes Jarmon’s blog even more interesting than expected. But not in a way he wanted.

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.

Just a reminder of who has clinched bids to the 2008 Division III football playoffs:

ASC: Mary Hardin-Baylor
CC: Muhlenberg
CCIW: North Central
HCAC: Franklin
IIAC: Wartburg
LL: Hobart
MIAA: Trine
MWC: Monmouth
NCAC: Wabash
NEFC: Plymouth State
NJAC: Cortland State
NWC: Willamette
OAC: Mount Union
ODAC: Randolph-Macon
PAC: Thomas More
SCIAC: Occidental
SCAC: Millsaps
USAC: Christopher Newport

We could have nine automatic bids handed out this week and there are two head-to-head winner-take-all games, between Otterbein and Mount Union in the Ohio Athletic Conference and between Trine and Adrian in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

There aren’t any live stats for the Otterbein/Mount Union game, but we’ll have updates here on the blog filling in some of the blanks. There’s live audio for that game and others on the Scoreboard.

I’ll be in Eau Claire, Wis., to see if UW-Stevens Point can keep up its run of nail-biters. In fact, I should be getting on the road pretty soon.

There are a couple of key Pool C (at-large bid) games — one of them between Rowan and Montclair State in the NJAC. I just stumbled on a Rowan football blog with some extra information worth checking out. Huntingdon and Hampden-Sydney play in Alabama in a game that affects both at-large pools. And we talked more about these games in the Triple Take yesterday, of course.

Plenty of other games, as always, and thanks to those who drop by with regular updates each week!

Having trouble logging in? When you get back to this page after putting in your password, hit refresh.

The NCAA released its first 2008 regional rankings today.

Teams are listed with their regional record first, followed by their overall record. For more information about the playoff format and how participants are determined, check out our FAQ.

EAST REGION
1. Cortland State 7-0 7-0
2. RPI 5-0 6-0
3. Ithaca 5-1 6-1
4. Montclair State 6-1 6-1
5. Rowan 6-1 6-1
6. Hartwick 5-1 5-1
7. Worcester Polytech 6-1 6-1
8. Hobart 5-1 5-1
9. Plymouth State 5-1 7-1
10. Husson 6-0 6-2

NORTH REGION
1. Mount Union 6-0 7-0
2. North Central (Ill.) 7-0 7-0
3. Otterbein 7-0 7-0
4. Wabash 6-0 7-0
5. Trine 7-0 7-0
6. Case Western Reserve 6-0 7-0
7. Wheaton (Ill.) 6-1 6-1
8. Franklin 5-1 6-1
9. Adrian 5-1 6-1
10. Rose-Hulman 7-1 7-1

SOUTH REGION
1. Muhlenberg 7-0 7-0
2. Millsaps 6-0 7-0
3. Washington and Jefferson 6-0 7-0
4. Trinity (Texas) 6-0 7-0
5. Mary Hardin-Baylor 5-0 6-1
6. Hardin-Simmons 7-1 7-1
7. Huntingdon 1-0 7-0
8. Catholic 5-1 6-1
9. Salisbury 2-0 7-1
10. Thomas More 6-1 6-1

WEST REGION
1. Willamette 7-0 8-0
2. Occidental 6-0 6-0
3. Monmouth 8-0 8-0
4. UW-Stevens Point 3-1 6-1
5. UW-Whitewater 5-1 6-1
6. Cal Lutheran 5-1 5-1
7. Redlands 5-1 5-1
8. Northwestern (Minn.) 5-1 7-1
9. Concordia-Moorhead 4-2 5-2
10. St. John’s 5-2 6-2

Keith took the car out for a trip to upstate New York and came back with a pretty good game. What did Cortland State show Saturday in its win against Montclair State? Keith (and Cortland coach Dan MacNeill) give their thoughts in this week’s Around the Nation podcast.

Also, Keith and Pat talk about the many other big games of the day, including the gutty performance by Salisbury at St. John Fisher. By the way, there’s also some pretty interesting news for Salisbury, Wesley, Case Western Reserve and Huntingdon in the podcast.

You can load the podcast page in iTunes or can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3football.com/dailydose/?feed=podcast

Or you can click the play button below to listen.

 

 Around the Nation Podcast [29:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

D3football.com All-American tight end Michael Allan broke Division III’s draft drought in April when he was selected in the seventh round by the Kansas City Chiefs. He’s apparently enjoying his time in the Chiefs camp so far, which is miles away from the Division III experience.

At the D-3 level we never expected to receive such treatment and while the NFL is a completely different level, I saw no surprise in the faces of those who came from division 1 schools. Chartered flights, full meals, free gear and top-notch facilities was just something that they always had. It’s a change; a change I am excited to make and I cannot thank fans like you enough for making all of this possible.

Allan writes more in his blog on the Kansas City Chiefs Web site.

Injuries have always been a part of the game. For someone to go throughout their four years of college football without an injury would be the equivalent to someone picking all four teams in last year’s NCAA basketball final four. It just doesn’t happen.

Some injuries may cause an athlete to miss a play, series, game, season, or career. I’ve seen plenty of them and have had my fair share (knocking on wood). It’s funny how you don’t realize how much you appreciate the simple act of walking or running until you pull a hamstring; or being able to dress yourself once you tear a muscle in your shoulder.

It is true, football is just a game. There is much more to life than what is played between those thin white lines. However, it is funny how much you can take from such a violent game.

For instance, on Friday, September 22, Travis Hearn, a Rock Island High School junior running back suffered a serious spinal cord injury. He is now paralyzed from the shoulders down. Travis may never be able to walk or use his arms again, which makes a pulled hamstring seem like a paper cut.

Many rival high school teams throughout the area have collected thousands of dollars to be put towards his recovery. The Rock Island Rocks have come together as a team and more importantly, as a family. Vic Boblett, the head coach of the Rock Island High School football team stated, “It’s one of the neat things about football; it’s truly a family. You don’t realize how much of a family it is until you go through something like this.” in the wake of the injury.

This game means so much to so many people. Football has its many ups and downs, but throughout those trials and tribulations you really get to know the people surrounding you who share the same passion for the game. It’s a bond you don’t find too often. Then again, when something like this happens you realize how many things you take for granted.

Here at Augustana College we have started a fundraiser for Travis Hearn and the football team alone has raised nearly $1,200. If anyone would like to contribute we would greatly appreciate it, and so would Travis.

Contributions may be sent to any branch of THE National Bank, with checks made payable to: “Travis Hearn Fund”. One hundred percent of all funds collected will go toward the payment of medical care and related expenses incurred by Travis Hearn arising from this tragic accident.

The National Bank
1800 5th Avenue
Rock Island, IL 61201

Phone: (309) 752-9251