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Non-Division I for the Division I Fan

Archive for category Division News and Notes

D-II: Week Four Recap.

Sep 26

Posted by Jon Morse in Division II, Division News and Notes | Comments off

The D-II Spready: (Excel2003, 289 kb)

Slightly Abbreviated:
Due to some chaos over at SB Nation this week, I’m having to curtail things here a bit to compensate.  Apologies, but we’ll make up for it later when I won’t shut up about conference races heating up, right?

Divison II Game of the Week:
It seems like California (PA) is just bound and determined to get in here every week at this point.  On Saturday, the Vulcans clashed with arch-rival Indiana (PA) in the annual Coal Bowl, and it was not a disappointment.  Indeed, it may have been the best game in the schools’ 82-game rivalry.

California got on the board first, scoring on their initial drive when Peter Lalich found Mike Williams for a five-yard touchdown pass.  It took almost fifteen minutes for the Crimson Hawks to even the score, Harvie Tuck breaking loose for a 14-yard dash into the end zone.  A few minutes later, Lalich hit R.J. Thomas to put the Vulcans back on top; the teams then traded field goals, Cody Nuzzo hitting from 20 yards out for Cal with no time remaining in the first half to send the Vulcans into the locker room with a 17-10 lead.

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FCS: Week Four Recap.

Sep 25

Posted by Jon Morse in Division News and Notes, FCS | Comments off

The FBS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 320kb)

The FCS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 291kb)

FCS Game of the Week:
Early on, it looked as though #8 New Hampshire had #4 Old Dominion’s number.  The first quarter ended with a 16-3 lead for the Wildcats, as the Monarchs’ defense wasn’t stopping them and the offense, although staging two drives deep into New Hampshire territory, only came away with a single field goal for their efforts.  Early in the second, a 57-yard touchdown pass from Taylor Heinicke to Nick Mayers made it 16-10, but New Hampshire, aided by a fumbled punt return after their drive stalled, got the points back in just over two minutes.  After ODU had to punt, Nico Steriti broke free on a 61-yard touchdown run for the Wildcats, who were suddenly leading 30-10.

And then things went insane.
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NAIA: Week Three Recap.

Sep 20

Posted by Jon Morse in Division News and Notes, NAIA | Comments off

The Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 151 kb)

Short and Sweet: Despite four games pitting ranked teams against one another, there was not a single upset in the top 25 this week, making for a pretty boring recap.  So, we’ll just get on with it, in somewhat abbreviated form.

NAIA Game of the Week:
Montana-Western hosted #20 Montana Tech last Saturday in Dillon in what wasn’t expected to be too exciting a contest.  Indeed, Tech led 17-7 going into the fourth quarter before Western popped off for ten points in a little over six minutes to pull even.  The teams traded touchdowns in the first overtime before Joe Mitzel picked off Western’s Jeff Logan in the second overtime; on the ensuing possession, Nick Baker hit James Roberts from five yards out to seal the win for the Orediggers.

It Only Took Three Weeks:
Wayland Baptist, most well-known for its tenure in the 70s as home of one of the nation’s best women’s basketball programs (and I do not mean in the NAIA, I mean period), picked up their first win ever in football last weekend with a 27-23 win at home over D-III Howard Payne.

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D-III: Week Three Recap.

Sep 19

Posted by Jon Morse in Division III, Division News and Notes | Comments off

The Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 385 kb)

If This Was Division I, You’d Have Been Watching:
Imagine, if you will, that last weekend had featured Oregon at LSU, Michigan State at Oklahoma, and you heard Alabama was only beating TCU 3-0 with two minutes to play.  That’s what happened in Division III last weekend.

D-III Game of the Week:
When the Warhawks of Wisconsin-Whitewater scored on a 21-yard Eric Kindler field goal with 2:58 to go in the first quarter to take a 3-0 lead over lightly-regarded Buffalo State, most people started writing their “Whitewater wins 48th straight game” stories.  After all, Whitewater’s defense had absolutely refused to allow Washington (MO) to get on the board in the season opener, and surely the offense had to open up.

Almost 46 minutes later, Kindler hit a 29-yarder with only 1:35 left.  Of course, by that time everyone covering the game had started a secondary file, one with a completely different narrative, just in case.  Why?  Because that field goal made it 6-0, and Buffalo State had been banging on the door most of the second half.  In the third quarter, Nate Benoit missed a 38-yard field goal which would have tied the game, and a Casey Kacz fumble at the Whitewater 13 had ended the Bengals’ first drive of the fourth quarter.

Buffalo State took over on their own 25, and immediately Kacz hit Sherman Nelson for a 14-yard gain.  Two incompletions, a false start, and a sack later, the Bengals were facing 4th-and-19 from their own 30, and, well… here.

That was a hook-and-lateral from Kacz to Ryan Carney, then Rich Pete, then Brooks Estarfaa for 34 yards.  Not shown in between that and the touchdown pass: an 8-yard run by Kacz, an incompletion, a 33-yard strike to Manny Brooks, and two more incompletions before Kacz found Carney for the game-tying score.  When Nate Benoit split the uprights with the PAT and only three seconds remained on the clock, Twitter exploded.  Whitewater’s Lee Brekke uncorked a desperation heave — 57 yards in the air — after the kickoff, but when Chris Hall came down with the interception at his own 10-yard line, pandemonium struck.  Whitewater had fallen for the first time since Mount Union defeated them in the 2008 Stagg Bowl, and it was only their second regular-season loss to a D-III school since 2004.  Meanwhile, Buffalo State — a team nobody considered better than third or fourth in their own conference — finds themselves ranked #19, for now.

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D-II: Week Three Recap.

Sep 19

Posted by Jon Morse in Division II, Division News and Notes | Comments off

The Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 285 kb)

D-II Game of the Week:
The only meeting between ranked teams in Division II this week was a barn-burner, pitting the brisk ground game of the Bloomsburg Huskies against the dangerous aerial assault of the Kutztown Golden Bears as the arch-rivals opened conference play.  And yes, I realize Kutztown’s in this slot for the second week in a row.

The teams traded punches in the first quarter, with Kutztown striking on the opening drive thanks to a 6-yard run by QB Kevin Morton. After the Golden Bears recovered a Bloomsburg fumble then promptly turned it back over when Morton was picked off by Sean Clift, Eddie Mateo raced in from ten yards out to even the score.  The Huskies forced a three-and-out, then scored again early in the second quarter on an 18-yard pass from Tim Kelly to Ryan Maggs; the PAT was no good, and Bloomsburg led 13-7.  Kutztown responded, capping a quick 10-play drive with a 22-yard connection between Morton and Brett Fox to regain the lead, but three plays later Kelly tossed a screen to RB Franklyn Quiteh, who rambled 65 yards for a score.  Morton would hit Kodi Reed on an 18-yard touchdown pass later in the quarter to go in front again, but with nine seconds remaining in the half Dan Fisher was true on a 42-yard field goal attempt, allowing the Huskies to take a 23-21 lead into the locker room.

Bloomsburg started to pull away in the third, scoring on a 2-yard Quiteh run on the opening drive to go up 30-21.  Two plays later, Morton was injured at the end of an 8-yard run, and that put a serious hurt on the Golden Bears’ chances to come back.  They caught a break, though; forced to punt, Kutztown was able to force a fumble on the return.  TaJae Bryant recovered at the Huskies’ 23, and two plays later backup QB Josh Luckenbaugh found Reed for a 19-yard score to pull back within two.  Things got very sloppy toward the end of the quarter; the teams traded fumbles, then after Bloomsburg was forced to kick it away, Kutztown lost another fumble when Luckenbaugh was sacked.  Tony David recovered in the end zone to give the Huskies a touchdown and a 37-28 lead.  When Luckenbaugh again fumbled while being sacked on the first play of the fourth quarter, it looked like it was over.

But no; Kutztown held the Huskies at the three and took over on downs.  It was only a brief reprieve, however.  The Golden Bears were unable to sustain the drive, and had to punt.  Four plays later, Quiteh ripped off a 47-yard run to effectively ice the game.  Kutztown did immediately react, scoring on a 7-yard pass from Luckenbaugh to Anthony Kelly, but missed the two-point conversion.  Another Bloomsburg fumble put Kutztown in position to get back in the game, but they had to settle for a 26-yard Jack Ruggieri field goal to close within seven at 44-37.  They only had 3:42 to work with, though, and a failed onside kick attempt meant field position was a factor.  Bloomsburg got to the Golden Bears’ five yard line before Maggs fumbled; Kutztown’s last gasp was to start at their own one yard line with 2:17 to go.  Luckenbaugh directed the offense downfield quickly, reaching midfield with just a little over a minute to go, but Luckenbaugh’s luck ran out then as he was intercepted by Terrell Oglesby, and that was that.

Quiteh ran for 152 yards on the day, moving to #3 on Bloomsburg’s all-time rushing leaders list at 3710 career yards, and the team as a whole rambled for 309 yards on the ground.  Quiteh’s got a way to go to get to number one on that list, as he’s still nearly 2,000 yards behind Jamar Brittingham’s 5689 yards.  He’s still only a junior, though, so it’s certainly within range.  The other half of the battle, Kutztown’s passing game, saw Morton and Luckenbaugh post remarkably similar stats, combining for 376 yards on 32 of 45; each had 16 completions, an interception, and two TD passes, with Luckenbaugh netting 194 yards to Morton’s 182.  The real difference between the teams was on the weaker aspect of their offenses.  Kutztown was held to 94 yards on the ground, whereas Bloomsburg’s Kelly went 16-28 for 246 yards and two touchdowns, without being intercepted.

The Huskies improved to 3-0 and moved up to #11 in this week’s poll, while Kutztown is now a very hard-luck 1-2 after close losses to two teams in the top 11 — losing both by a total of ten points — and fell out of the top 25.

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FCS: Week Three Recap.

Sep 18

Posted by Jon Morse in Division News and Notes, FCS | Comments off

Ze Spreadsheetz:
FBS (Excel2003, 289 kb)
FCS (Excel2003, 288 kb)

FCS Game of the Week:
#15 Illinois State never led by more than four points in regulation, while twice Eastern Illinois took ten-point advantages.  But there were five lead changes and three ties by the time the clock read zero in a game that defines the concept of sixty-plus minutes of HAM.

It’ll be hard to process this given the final score, but the game was scoreless for the first twelve and a quarter minutes.  That’s when Alex Donnelly picked off a Jimmy Garoppolo pass and returned it 30 yards to the house to put the Redbirds up 7-0.  Two minutes later, Eastern Illinois tied things up on a four-yard Taylor Duncan run, and then things got quiet again for ten minutes before the Panthers took a 14-7 lead when Duncan again scored, this time from eleven yards out.  Matt Brown tossed a 19-yard TD pass to Lechein Neblett three minutes later to even the score; with no time left in the first half, Cameron Berra hit a 44-yarder to put Eastern up 17-14.

The Panthers extended the lead to 24-14 when Garoppolo found Erik Lora for a 10-yard score early in the third, but two TD runs by Brown put the Redbirds back on top heading into the fourth.  Eastern Illinois jumped back out to a ten-point cushion over the first six minutes of the final period, with Garoppolo connecting with Lora a second time and Jake Walker breaking off a 13-yard scoring run; Illinois State now had 9:07 to get things back in hand.

And so they did.  Brown hit Cameron Hunt from 20 yards out, but the Redbirds tried for two and failed; this was almost a deadly error.  With only 51 seconds to go, the Redbirds scored again on a 13-yard toss from Brown to Donovan Harden, and took a 41-38 lead.  Had it been 42-38 instead… but it wasn’t, and Berra booted a 20-yard field goal as time expired to send the game into overtime.

Both teams added seven in the first overtime, with Brown and Harden again hooking up for a score, followed by Duncan bulling in from the two.  The Panthers had to settle for a Berra field goal in the second extra frame, and finally Illinois State was able to escape with a 54-51 win when Brown threw his fifth touchdown pass of the day, this one to to Tyrone Walker.

There was almost no ground game in this shootout; Eastern Illinois only picked up 122 yards rushing, while Illinois State was held to a mere 60.  Brown finished with 473 yards on 42 of 57 to go with his five TD passes, with an interception thrown into the mix.  Garoppolo was 37 of 61 for 387 yards and two TDs, but turned the ball over three times on bad passes.  The teams combined for over 1000 yards of offense, but possibly the most mind-blowing statistic of the game was this: Illinois State was penalized 22 times for a ridiculous 178 yards.

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NAIA: Week Two Recap.

Sep 13

Posted by Jon Morse in Division News and Notes, NAIA | Comments off

NAIA Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 149kb)

NAIA Game of the Week:
There were five games this last weekend in which both teams were ranked, all of which would have been good candidates for Game of the Week five days ago.  Unfortunately, four of them were blowouts.  Fortunately, on the other hand, we have the benefit of 20/10 hindsight here at Those Other Guys, and as a result we can zoom in on the one that wasn’t.

Then-#20 Saint Ambrose paid a visit to then-#6 Saint Francis (IN) on Saturday for a cross-divisional (read: non-conference) Mid-States Football Association matchup.  Oddly, there’s not a great deal to say about the contest.  Each team scored a rushing touchdown on a long drive in the first quarter; each team scored through the air on lightning-quick drives in the fourth and added two-point conversions.  In between, Saint Ambrose turned the ball over twice on lost fumbles (and a third time after Saint Francis scored their second touchdown); Saint Francis turned it over twice on interceptions (and a third time on their final possession with 11 seconds to go).  Saint Ambrose rushed 47 times for 157 yards; Saint Francis 47 times for 176.  Saint Ambrose threw 24 times, completing 12 for 149 yards; Saint Francis 25 times with 16 completions for 207, but the three interceptions balanced out their advantage.

No, there was one main difference between the two squads in this game, and it decided the strategy for the entire contest.  Midway through the first quarter, Saint Francis scored on a nine-yard Antoin Campbell run to take a 6-0 lead, but Emerson Weber missed the extra point.  Quinn Treiber did not miss the point after when Cole Kelly scored on a two-yard plunge later in the first, and Saint Ambrose took a 7-6 lead.  Halfway through the fourth quarter, the scoreboard finally changed again when Wes Hunsucker — the third quarterback utilized by Saint Francis on the afternoon — hit Austin Coleman for a 70-yard touchdown strike.  The two-point conversion, called for as a result of the prior missed point after, was successful and Saint Francis found themselves with a 14-7 lead.

Then things got hairy.

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D-III: Week Two Recap.

Sep 12

Posted by Jon Morse in Division III, Division News and Notes | Comments off

D-III Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 380kb)

D-III Game of the Week:
There was only going to be one real option for the game of the week this week, as #3 Wesley (DE) visited #6 Salisbury.  Salisbury opened with a drive into Wesley territory, but Brian Snell picked off a Dan Griffin pass at the 26.  Wesley then marched downfield, scoring on a Justin Sottilare pass to Ryan Gerlitz.  Salisbury responded with a long drive which died on a dropped pass on 4th and 6 at the Wesley 14 as the quarter ended.  After a trade of punts, Salisbury again threatened when Sottilare was picked off by Greg Stanton, but even starting at the Wolverines’ 32, Salisbury couldn’t manage a first down.  Wesley then burned eight minutes off the clock, reaching the Sea Gulls’ 14; Sottilare threw another interception, this one snagged by Matt McMurdo in the end zone for a touchback.  The half ended with Wesley up 7-0.

Wesley began the second half by chewing up half of the third quarter on a drive which culminated in a 23-yard Dan Tryon field goal after Salisbury held on first and goal from the three.  Salisbury responded quickly, picking up 45 yards on three plays; unfortunately, the end of the third play was a Ross Flanigan fumble at the Wesley 28, recovered by the Wolverines at their own 16.  Wesley had to punt, but forced yet another turnover near midfield when Griffin was picked off by Sean Hopkins just into the fourth quarter.  Wesley drive, but turned the ball over on downs at Salisbury’s 19.  The Sea Gulls finally got on the board three and a half minutes later when Griffin hit Juma Richards with a 19-yard strike with 6:10 left.  Four minutes later, however, Askia Jahad scored on his second of two fifteen-yard runs on the drive, putting the game out of reach.  With no time left, Griffin was picked for the third time, Hopkins’ second interception of the game, at the Wesley one-yard line.

It was somewhat ugly, obviously.  Despite the relative success of the Salisbury rushing attack, Griffin shouldn’t have been throwing as much as he was; last week he only attempted six passes in the Gulls’ win over Christopher Newport.  Salisbury’s strength is the option game, and they managed 232 yards on the ground against the Wolverines, 138 credited to Flanigan.  Griffin was 9/16 with three interceptions, and that just wasn’t going to cut it.  However, the fact that Griffin needed that many attempts was a testament to the Wesley defense, which continually forced
long-yardage passing downs.  The drive chart tells the story; four key drives ended on 3rd or 4th and long with two interceptions, a sack, and an incompletion.

Wesley wasn’t the only team showing strong defense, though.  Although the Wolverines managed 260 yards in the air, Salisbury was effective in making most of those yards meaningless, and Wesley’s usually potent ground game was limited to 105 yards, 98 of them on the legs of Askia Jahad.

Wesley, of course, is playing a schedule that would make an SEC fan blush in shame.  After knocking off the sixth-ranked team in the nation, they now get to host the fourth-ranked Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders.  The following week, it’s 2-0 Louisiana; the week after, it’s 18th-ranked Birmingham-Southern.  They’ve also got a date with unranked but potent Huntingdon down the line.  If there’s any team poised to break the Whitewater-Mount Union stranglehold, it’s right here.

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D-II: Week Two Recap

Sep 12

Posted by Jon Morse in Division II, Division News and Notes | Comments off

Ye Olde D-II Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 283kb)

D-II Game of the Week:
Last Saturday’s meeting between #10 California (PA) and visiting #11 Kutztown was the highest-profile game on the D-II schedule for the week, and it was everything you’d have expected.  It didn’t start that way, however.  With just three minutes gone in the second quarter, the Vulcans had piled up a 27-0 lead, and Kutztown looked to be nothing more than a grease smear left behind California’s path.

Over the next 24 minutes, the Golden Bears reeled off 38 unanswered points aided by four Kevin Morton touchdown passes, and the entire situation appeared to be completely reversed.  But then the Vulcans geared up to return fire.  After taking over possession on the Kutztown 21 after a botched punt with two minutes gone in the final quarter, California only needed 31 seconds to get into the end zone and trim the lead to five; a two-point conversion attempt failed.  Morton was intercepted on the first play after the kickoff, giving the Vulcans the ball on the Golden Bear 22; Kutztown escaped that disaster when California’s Peter Lalich was himself picked off just four plays later.  The Golden Bears almost gave up a safety on the very next play, as Morton was sacked at his own two yard line; they were able to get out of the hole, however, before being forced to punt.  Taking over from their own 39 right at the midway mark of the fourth quarter, California drove downfield, eating nearly half the remaining clock before Jeff Knox scored on a four-yard run.  The two-point conversion was successful this time, and California had implausibly regained the lead they’d squandered, 41-38.

It took Kutztown seven plays and just over two minutes to erase it, thanks in large part to a 46-yard kickoff return by Shahaid Smith onto which an additional 15 yards was added due to a late hit out of bounds at the end of the run.  Curtis Wortham bulled in from the two to put the Golden Bears back on top 45-41.  Starting at their own 33, Lalich threw an incompletion, then hit on consecutive passes of 14, 14, and finally 39 yards; the last to Kowan Scott with 1:02 to play which put the Vulcans ahead again, 48-45.  Kutztown was unable to get a first down on the ensuing possession, and California ran out the clock to escape with a wild, crazy, and hard-earned victory.

It was a big day for both quarterbacks, as Lalich threw for 398 yards and two scores, but was picked off twice.  Morton had 359 and four scores, but was intercepted three times.  The win, combined with the chaos in the top five, moved the Vulcans up to #6 in this week’s poll; Kutztown was perhaps harshly penalized, falling ten places to #21.
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FCS: Week Two Recap.

Sep 11

Posted by Jon Morse in Division News and Notes, FCS | Comments off

The FBS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 285kb)

The FCS Spreadsheet: (Excel2003, 285kb) (no, really, they’re the same size this week.)

FCS Game of the Week:
Twice before, Montana had beaten Appalachian State in playoff meetings, but this was the first-ever regular-season tilt between the two perennial powerhouses.  Over 30,000 fans descended on Kidd-Brewer Stadium in Boone for the showdown, and they did not go home disappointed.  After then-#12 Montana got on the board in the first three minutes, the then-#11 Mountaineers exploded for 21 unanswered points over the next ten to take a 21-7 lead into the second quarter.  The Grizzlies responded, though, scoring early in the period then again with only 35 seconds left in the half to knot the game at 21.  After a scoreless third, Appalachian State pulled ahead on Jamal Jackson’s second scoring pass of the game.  Just four minutes later, Trent McKinney hit Dan Moore for an 87-yard touchdown, but the PAT failed, leaving Montana behind 28-27.

With five minutes to go, the Mountaineers took an eight-point lead on a two-yard Steven Miller run, and then appeared to have iced the game on 3rd-and-8 after the kickoff when Patrick Blalock intercepted McKinney in Montana territory.  However, the Grizzlies held and got the ball back at their own 11 with 4:24 to go.  Montana drove, but it was slow and yards were scarce; there were only 18 seconds left, with Montana at the Mountaineer 42, when McKinney went for the end zone.  Demetrius McCray came down with the interception, ending the threat and giving ASU a 35-27 win.
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