Last season Valdosta State ended Grand Valley State’s run at three consecutive Division II National Championships. Since 2002, Valdosa State has won 2 titles while Grand Valley State has won 4 titles. Both are in the playoffs once again.

In the 2007 championship game, Michael Terry’s one-yard plunge with 22 seconds remaining in the game propelled Valdosta State to the second NCAA Division II Football National Title in school history as the Blazers defeated Northwest Missouri State 25-20 in front of 7,532 fans at Braly Stadium. This season the playoffs start this week and culminate on December 13 at Florence Alabama for the title game. Here are the brackets for this season.

Super Region 1
6. Seton Hill (9-2) at 3. American International (9-1)
Winner plays at 2. California Pa (10-1)

5. Southern Connecticut (8-2) at 4. West Chster (8-3)
Winner plays at 1. Bloomsburg (10-1)

Super Region 3
6. Wayne State (9-2) at 3. Chadron State (10-1)
Winner plays at 2. Minnesota Duluth (11-0)

5. Minnesota State (9-2) at 4. Ashland (8-3)
Winner plays at 1. Grand Valley State (10-0)

Super Region 2
6. Carson-Newman (7-3) at 3. Valdosa State (8-2)
Winner plays at 2. Northern Alabama (10-1)

5. Albany State (7-3) at 4. Tusculum (8-3)
Winner plays at 1. Delta State (9-1)

Super Region 4
6. Nebraska-Omaha (7-3) at 3. Pittsburg State (10-1)
Winner plays at 2. Northwest Missouri (10-1)

5. Central Washington (10-1) at 4. West Texas (10-1)
Winner plays at 1. Abilene Christan (10-0)

The winner of Super Region 1 will play the winner of Super Region 3 in one semi-final game while the winner of Super Region 2 will play the winner of Super Region 4 in the other semi-final game.


1. James Madison Dukes (91) 8-1 2,729
2. Appalachian State Mountaineers (17) 8-2 2,642
3. Cal Poly Mustangs (2) 7-1 2,390
4. Northern Iowa Panthers 8-2 2,364
5. Montana Grizzlies 9-1 2,247
6. Villanova Wildcats 7-2 2,169
7. Richmond Spiders 7-3 2,034
8. Weber State Wildcats 9-2 1,967
9. Wofford Terriers 7-2 1,767
10. Southern Illinois Salukis 7-2 1,757
11. Elon Phoenix 8-2 1,685
12. William & Mary Tribe 7-2 1,394
13. New Hampshire Wildcats 7-2 1,375
14. Furman Paladins 7-3 1,191
15. Central Arkansas Bears 8-2 1,153
16. McNeese State Cowboys 6-3 949
17. South Carolina State Bulldogs 8-2 871
18. Tennessee State Tigers 8-2 653
19. Harvard Crimson 7-1 598
20. Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks 7-3 583
21. Maine Black Bears 7-3 561
22. Massachusetts Minutemen 6-4 462
23. Colgate Raiders 8-2 387
24. Liberty Flames 8-2 279
25. Western Illinois Leathernecks 5-4 274



Others receiving votes: South Dakota State 195, Lafayette 131, Prairie View 118, Jacksonville State 101, Holy Cross 79, North Dakota State 78, Eastern Kentucky 63, Grambling 57, Northern Arizona 53, Montana State 33, Texas State 19, Florida A&M 16, Dayton 14, Northwestern State 13, Albany 12, Monmouth 9, San Diego 6, Morgan State 5, Penn 4, Samford 3, Bethune-Cookman 2, Georgia Southern 2, Hampton 2, Jacksonville 2, Sacred Heart 2, UC Davis 2.


11/11/08

For weeks Penn State fans talked about the possibility of getting shut out of a National Championship Game like they were in 1994, now they don’t have that worry after Iowa crushed the Lions’ title hopes will one swift kick.

It’s funny the range of emotions a fan goes through after an upset win. I was watching the game in a bar in downtown Pittsburgh. Immediately after the game, I left the bar (it was full of Pitt fans who were more happy to see Penn State lose than their team win). The rest of the night I spent in denial. I refused to watch any highlights or watch any other games because there is that chance I could see the winning kick over and over again.

The next day the sun still comes up, and that loss is still there, that’s when you really start breaking down what happened for your team to lose. In the case for Penn State, it was the old conservative nature of playing a road game. You could tell from the first snap, that it was going to be a struggle for the Nittany Lions. Heading into a 30 mph win, the coaches did not adjust, but threw three straight times into the wind. The third one almost (and in my opinion should’ve) resulted in a defensive score by the Hawkeyes.

Daryll Clark did not look sharp, he looked like a man still suffering from the effects of the hit against Ohio State. I won’t question his heart, but his decision making was a little slow and his passes were high all day, which we can attribute to the wind. Andrew Quarless has all the talent in the world, but he still misses key blocks and drops passes at the most inopportune time. The Nittany Lions were inside the 10 yard line twice with 1st and goals, only to come out with field goals each time. That’s where they lost the game!

Defensively, there were a lot of pass coverage breakdowns and why they did not blitz and put more pressure on Ricky Stanzi is beyond me. I give all the credit in the world to Iowa. They were given the chance to upset the #3 team in the country, and they took it. They stuck to their game plan, and made halftime adjustments that allowed their team the chance to win. Unlike their opponents, they played to win…instead of playing not to lose.

Next will be the true character test for Penn State. This week is Indiana, but the following week is Michigan State. Those two games will decide if Penn State plays in the Rose Bowl or is relegated to the Capital One or Outback Bowls. In 1999, the team went into the tank after losing a heartbreaker to Minnesota. So it will be up to the leaders of this team to refocus on the secondary title at hand…the Big Ten Title.

Taking a quick peak at the Big Ten Standings thus far this season, it looks as if only Penn State, Ohio State, and Michigan State have a real shot at winning the Big Ten crown. Minnesota and Northwestern still have a mathematical shot, but it is a long shot at best. With Penn State playing at Iowa and Ohio State playing Northwestern, there could be even more separation between the top 3 and the rest after this week.

Ohio State at Northwestern - ESPN2 12pm - The Buckeyes had a week off to lick their wounds after losing to Penn State at home, in a game where they did not score a touchdown. This isn’t the first time this season Ohio State has failed to score an offensive touchdown at home, think back to Purdue. Northwestern bounced back nice with a win over Minnesota after losing to Indiana the week previous. The Wildcats are going to have their hands full trying to move the ball against a tough Ohio State defense, and with the injuries on their own defense, it is going to make it tough for them to hold Ohio State under 20 which I think they need to do to win. Ohio State 28-14

Wisconsin at Indiana - Big Ten Network 12pm - Wisconsin has to be one of the most disappointing teams in the country. In the early part of the season we were talking a possibly Big Ten Championship for the Badgers. Now at 4-5, the Badgers see themselves needing to win 2 of their last 3 games to make a bowl game. Their inconsistent quarterback play has plagued them all season. Dustin Sherer is now the man, but still isn’t the person for the job. Luckily for Wisconsin, they have Indiana. But the Hoosiers cannot be taken lightly. Two weeks ago they had a win against Northwestern and last week they went down to the wire with Central Michigan. But I don’t think the Hooisers have the horses up front on defense to stop the Badgers rushing attack. Wisconsin gets a much needed win. Wisconsin 34-20

Purdue at Michigan State - Big Ten Network 12pm - This game just became really interesting. In the absence of Curtis Painter, Justin Siller was inserted into the starting lineup for Joe Tiller’s offense and accounted for over 300 yards of total offense (77 on the ground) in the Boilermakers come from behind victory over Michigan State. We’ve seen before that Purdue can hold teams like Penn State and Ohio State with good rushing offenses to low outputs. That has to put a scare into Michigan State and their horse Javon Ringer. It is imperative that Brian Hoyer protect the ball and take some of the pressure off of Ringer by completing passes down the field. This will be one of the better Big Ten games this week. There is a chance Painter will play, but if I am Tiller and still want to go to a bowl game, I’d give the ball to Siller. As I said, close game, but I give the nod to the Spartans because I firmly believe head coach Mark Dantonio has them focused on this game and not the game two weeks from now. Michigan State 24-20

Michigan at Minnesota - ESPN 12pm - This game is purely about pride for the Wolverines. They were knocked out of any contention for a bowl game last week, and also Steven Threet was knocked out of the game and won’t play this week. Which means Nick Sheridan will get the call. Adam Weber might be one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the Big Ten right now, but he efficiently runs this Gopher offense throwing for 2100 yards with 11 touchdowns and only 4 interceptions in 9 games. It doesn’t hurt to have an athlete like Eric Decker to throw to and a solid guy in the backfield with DeLeon Eskridge. Michigan is beaten…battered…and looking towards next year. The Gophers win this game and continue one of the great college football stories of this year. Minnesota 30-10

Illinois at Western Michigan - ESPN Gameplan 12pm -The Illini are going to have their hands full with a Broncos offense who throws for over 320 yards per game. Illinois has shown they have a bit of trouble stopping teams who like to throw it all over the field. This game will come down to one thing and one thing only…Juice Williams’ ability not only to protect the ball (12 interceptions in only 9 games), but his ability to make positive plays for his team. He has the tools around him with Arrelious Benn and Daniel Dufrene but still has the tendency to try and do too much himself which gets him in trouble. I believe that Illinois has more talent even though the Broncos have a 7-2 record coming into this week. They have played only one BCS school to date and that was a loss to Nebraska. This game will be close early, but I see Illinois pulling away with their speed on defense being the key. Illinois 37-16

Penn State at Iowa - ABC 3:30pm - This game would have been much more interesting last week, but with Penn State having a bye week to regroup and refocus after that big win in Columbus, it will make it tougher for the Hawkeyes to pull of the upset. But it can be done, no one this year has really put the clamps on and totally shut down Shonn Greene. Greene has nine straight 100 yard games for the Hawkeyes this year, but for Iowa to win they need not only a 100 yard game by Greene, but a big game from their quarterback. To beat Penn State, a team needs balance on offense. The Nittany Lions are going to stack the box and force Iowa to throw the ball and we all know by watching Iowa this year Ricky Stanzi is not going to win you a game. Iowa is going to have to take some chances on defense and go after Daryll Clark. Clark will play this week after getting knocked out of the Ohio State game. I feel Iowa’s game plan will be a steady diet of Greene to keep the Lions’ offense off the field, but their lack of balance and Penn State’s steady balance on offense keeps them from winning this game. Penn State 28-13

Last Week: 3-2 (.600)
Overall: 55-17 (.764)

We are back! After a week off to regroup and get things in order, Brian and Adam are back talking College Football on this week’s edition of the In The Bleachers Podcast. We recap the action from the past two weeks and talk about the teams, players, and coaches that have surprised and disappointed us thus far this year.

With only a month left in the season, each game is important. This week we breakdown the games of the week and pick winners in each match up. This week’s games are California at USC, TCU at Utah, Cincinnati at West Virginia, Florida at Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech at North Carolina, Louisville at Pittsburgh, Ohio State at Northwestern, Oklahoma State at Texas Tech, Penn State at Iowa, and Alabama at LSU.

To listen to the episode you can download it here, or subscribe as laid out below.

Remember, if you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedbuner but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for “In The Bleachers” on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Enjoy this week’s episode of In The Bleachers and if you have any questions or comments to the show please email them to inthebleachers AT gmail DOT com.

Hopefully everyone did their civic duty yesterday and got out and voted. Just remember, there are people in this world who do not have that right, so please exercise it whenever possible. Keeping on the subject of voting, the BCS is once again making headlines. I always find it humorous this time of the year because you have the teams in the drivers seat who have no problems with the BCS, then you have the teams just behind them who are all fired up about it.

This year, Pete Carrol becomes one of the first people to opening speak out against the BCS. He says he doesn’t understand how it works and it stinks. Well Pete, you’ve been a college coach for quite a few years now, if you don’t understand how it works, it is your own fault. It isn’t nuclear engineering or rocket science, you take one part USA Today Coaches poll, one part Harris Poll, and combine it with one part of the computer polls. Divide by three and you get your result.

Listen, I know people like Pete want a playoff, but isn’t each week basically a playoff? Was Pete out crying the blues for Auburn in 2004 when they were left out of the Championship game? I bet not. USC and Carrol has one person to blame…that is themselves for not beating Oregon State.

For those who are angry with Fox’s coverage of the BCS, might get a reprieve in 2010. The BCS wants Fox to pay 60% more for the Post Season games which would mean that Fox would pay $132 million a year for its four BCS games. Again this doesn’t even include the Rose Bowl game, since that bowl is always on ABC. Fox’s coverage is horrible and I think it would be best if the BCS just parted ways and went back to ABC, I don’t need to hear Jimmy Johnson whine about losing the 1987 Fiesta Bowl every year.

Besides the clusterf*** that is the BCS, the entire Big 12 South could be a mess if Oklahoma State pulls off an upset this weekend. Adam Zuvanich walks us through the scenarios for each of the Big 12 South teams to make the Big 12 title game. Also, the top 3 players in the Heisman Pundit’s Poll are Big 12 South QBs.

Finally, I just got video from inside the BCS Headquarters….enjoy! Podcast will be back tomorrow!!


1. James Madison Dukes (91) 8-1 2,707
2. Appalachian State Mountaineers (17) 7-2 2,617
3. Cal Poly Mustangs (1) 6-1 2,373
4. Northern Iowa Panthers 7-2 2,296
5. Montana Grizzlies 8-1 2,233
6. Villanova Wildcats 6-2 2,110
7. Richmond Spiders 6-3 1,984
8. New Hampshire Wildcats 7-1 1,874
9. Weber State Wildcats 8-2 1,767
10. Wofford Terriers 6-2 1,747
11. Elon Phoenix 7-2 1,690
12. Southern Illinois Salukis 6-2 1,650
13. Massachusetts Minutemen 6-3 1,262
14. William & Mary Tribe 6-2 1,202
15. Furman Paladins 7-3 1,081
16. Central Arkansas Bears 7-2 887
17. Western Illinois Leathernecks 5-3 824
18. McNeese State Cowboys 5-3 789 20
19. South Carolina State Bulldogs 7-2 750
20. Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks 7-2 527
21. Harvard Crimson 6-1 463
22. Tennessee State Tigers 7-2 425
23. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 6-3 395
24. Colgate Raiders 7-2 207
25. Liberty Flames 7-2 195


Others receiving votes: Maine 181, South Dakota State 136, Northwestern State 114, North Dakota State 97, Jacksonville State 95, Lafayette 89, Georgia Southern 81, Prairie View 78, Eastern Kentucky 63, Grambling 54, Holy Cross 41, Morgan State 34, UC Davis 26, Albany 25, Brown 14, Hampton 13, Sacred Heart 12, Dayton 10, Texas State 9, Florida A&M 7, San Diego 6, Nicholls State 5, Montana State 4, Monmouth 2, Penn 2, Jacksonville 1.


11/4/08

I am usually hesitant in using the terms…game of the year…or play of the year, but if you watched the Texas-Texas Tech game on Saturday, you would have to agree that up to this point of the season that was the game of the year. The Graham Harrell to Michael Crabtree touchdown pass was the play of the year so far.

You have to give Mike Leach some credit for running a play with that little time left on the clock, because so many things could’ve went wrong where time ran out, but Leach believed in his team and knew they could get job done. Remember last year when Les Miles pulled the same stunt with his team?

Texas was at the tail end of their brutal schedule, while the Red Raiders are just beginning their tough stretch. This week they have the Cowboys followed to a trip to Oklahoma, finishing out the year against Baylor who gave Missouri a run for their money. It isn’t going to be easy for Texas Tech, but if they do run the table, their ticket will be punched for Miami.

Another good game this weekend was the Pittsburgh-Notre Dame four overtime game. After watching Pittsburgh I have noticed two things about that team. Without Shady McCoy this team would be lucky to win 3 games, and if they had a half decent quarterback, this team would run away with the Big East.

Notre Dame on the other hand is still searching for an identity. They have beaten a total of 1 team with a wining record (Stanford) and now head coach Charlie Weis is worried about the psyche of his team.

To me, the Irish thought they had the game in the bag at halftime and didn’t come out to play. And am I the only one who thinks Jimmy Clausen should be better than what he is showing? I heard the NBC announcers after Clausen missed a wide open receiver, how that throw was unlike Clausen cause he had been so accurate today. I wouldn’t call a 22 of 43 showing, a clinic in accuracy.

Dying for some bowl projections? Bruce Feldman and Mark Schlabach take a stab at making some bowl projections. Hint: Only one of the top 3 in the BCS Standings right now is in the Championship game.

Unfortunately I only have time to give you all the bare minimum this week and that is the scores.

Central Michigan at Indiana - Big Ten Network 12pm - Central Michigan 38-30

Wisconsin at Michigan State - ESPN 12pm - Michigan State 28-17

Northwestern at Minnesota - ESPN2 12pm - Minnesota 24-14

Michigan at Purdue - Big Ten Network 12pm - Loser cannot make a bowl game…OUCH! Purdue 17-16

Iowa at Illinois - ABC 3:30pm - Iowa 21-14

Last Week: 3-2 (.600)
Overall: 52-14 (.788)


Thursday, October 30th
South Florida at Cincinnati 7:45 pm ESPN



Friday, October 31st
Wofford at Appalachian State 8 pm ESPN2



Saturday, November 1st
Wisconsin at Michigan State 12 pm ESPN
Northwestern at Minnesota 12 pm ESPN2
Michigan at Purdue 12 pm Big 10 Network
Brown at Penn 12 pm Versus
Air Force at Army 12 pm ESPNU
Kansas State at Kansas 12 pm Fox Sport Net
San Diego State at Wyoming 2 pm Mountain West Sports
Pittsburgh at Notre Dame 2:30 pm NBC
Oregon at California 3:30 pm ABC
Florida State at Georgia Tech 3:30 pm ABC
Iowa at Illinois 3:30 pm ABC
Iowa State at Oklahoma State 3:30 pm ABC
Florida vs. Georgia 3:30 pm CBS
Clemson at Boston College 3:30 pm ESPNU
Temple at Navy 3:30 pm CBS-CSN
Washington at USC 6 pm Fox Sport Net
BYU at Colorado State 6 pm Mountain West Sports
Tennessee at South Carolina 7 pm ESPN2
Louisville at Syracuse 7 pm ESPNU
Nebraska at Oklahoma 8 pm ESPN
Texas at Texas Tech 8 pm ABC
TCU at UNLV 8 pm CBS-CSN
Utah at New Mexico 9:30 pm Mountain West Sports
Arizona State at Oregon State 10:15 pm Fox Sport Net



Sunday, November 2nd
East Carolina at Central Florida 8 pm ESPN