By Clyde Hughes
D3sports.com
So you made the playoffs. Now what?
Many teams opened training camp with August with several goals, including having a winning seasons and capturing their conference titles. But there is an old saying which goes: “Be careful what you wish for.”
Take Mount St. Joseph for example. The Lions were able to shake off an early conference overtime loss to Hanover at home to capture its second consecutive Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference championship. It’s something coach Rod Huber and his team worked hard for and even took a big gamble by making a quarterback change at the beginning of the season.
What is the Lions reward for going 9-1 and making the Division III playoffs for the second time? They just get to travel to the one team that strikes fear in the heart of most football programs this level: Mount Union, of Alliance, Ohio.
The Purple Raiders' (9-1) accomplishments are near legendary, but if you’re of not this football world, a few mind-numbing stats on Mount Union. No. 5 Mount Union was 12-1 last year and came within 48 seconds from playing for the national championship.
Of course, that doesn’t include Mount Union’s 14 consecutive Ohio Athletic Conference titles -- nearly as long as Mount St. Joseph has had a football program -- seven national championships since 1993 and owning a one-time 55-game winning streak, the best in NCAA history.
Oh yeah, that Mount Union. Huber said he knows his Lions will be heavy underdogs when they take the field at noon in the first-round playoff game, and he likes it that way.
“This is a David-vs.-Goliath type of game and no one in the country believes we can win this one,” Huber said. “We have nothing to lose. I expect our players to play a great game. They are looking forward to the trip.”
Two Midwest teams, Augustana and North Central from the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, will both be favorites and have home games Saturday. Thus, their perspectives on the playoffs are a little different.
No. 10 Augustana (9-1) will host Lakeland (8-2), champions of the Illini-Badger Conference, in Rock Island, Illinois, at noon Saturday. Both teams have a common opponent, Carthage. Lakeland lost to Carthage 20-16 on the road in the second game of the season. Augustana beat Carthage 7-0 three weeks later on the road as well. Augustana coach Jim Barnes said all the records and past games, though, should be thrown out the window.
“The playoffs indicate the start of a new season,” Barnes said. “Right now, we are 0-0, as is everyone. A victory this Saturday is important to us as we then earn our way into a very elite group amongst the 16 best teams in the country.”
Lakeland makes its first trip to the playoffs and carries the banner for a conference that is 0-5 in postseason competition. Coach Jim Zebrowski said his team will be able to get through the hoopla of just being there and be ready to take the next step.
“I think it was very important to make the playoffs because it never happened before in the history of the school,” Zebrowski said. “A first round win would not just change our program, but change our conference. The IBFC has not won a first-round game in the playoffs and all of the coaches in our conference would love to see that happen.”
No. 12 North Central (9-1), a last-second field goal away from going through the season undefeated and winning the CCIW title, will play a noon contest at its home in Naperville, Illinois, against No. 16 Capital (8-2), of the OAC like Mount Union.
“Capital is well coached and battle tested from their outstanding conference so we look forward to the challenge of developing a game plan that will give our players a chance to be successful,” Cardinals coach John Thorne said. “Our players have played hard for four quarters in every game and when your team does that good things are always possible.”
While a win for Lakeland would be a big deal for the IBC, Barnes said Augustana and other teams in the CCIW (which has a 8-7 record in the playoffs) are looking for more.
“A first-round win will not change our program, but it may change the outside perception of our program,” Barnes said. “A victory can entrench us in some people’s minds back amongst the top 10-15 programs in the country. We have a highly competitive conference and region. However, the bottom line is that we earned the opportunity to play our way into that grouping this year and we need to take advantage of it.”
Undefeated Monmouth (10-0) could be placed in the same category as Mount St. Joseph. The Scots, champions of the Midwest Conference, will travel to Collegeville, Minnesota, to take on No. 3-ranked St. John’s (10-0), who won the Stagg Bowl in 2003 and capture another national title in 1976. Monmouth is making its first playoff appearance, but takes on a team with extensive playoff experience.
“They’re obviously very good,” Monmouth coach Steve Bell said recently. “The one thing that stands out is how fast they are. There’s going to be a speed difference in this game compared to what we’ve seen. They’re not overpowering size-wise, but they’re athletic, and they can run.”
Each team will be looking to make the most of its new season against the best competition.
More wins for Mount St. Joseph
Last week, I wrote that Mount St. Joseph had two winning seasons since starting its football program in 1990. I don’t think it was clear that I meant two winning seasons going into this season, which would make it three winning season for the Lions.
However, Kelby Siler, associate director of athletics and recreation at Mount St. Joseph, pointed out to me that former coach Ron Corradini had a winning season in 1995, taking the Lions to a 5-4 season, giving Mount St. Joseph its first, and now four, winning seasons.
Thanks for the e-mail and the catch.
