COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF RESULTS FROM NOVEMBER 30TH

* NAIA PLAYOFFS *

SAFETY LAST – A Safety wound up being the last points scored by the winning team in this Quarterfinal playoff game in the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics). The MORNINGSIDE COLLEGE MUSTANGS were on the road against the BAKER UNIVERSITY WILDCATS but led 14-7 after 1 Quarter of play. At Halftime they led 28-21 and that remained the score as the 4th Quarter began. The Mustangs scored a Touchdown early in the 4th but botched the PAT, only to force the Wildcats into yielding a Safety later. Baker managed 7 points of their own to make the final score Mustangs 36 Wildcats 28.

DOUBLING UP – The UNIVERSITY OF THE CUMBERLANDS PATRIOTS welcomed the UNIVERSITY OF SAINT FRANCIS (IN) COUGARS for this Quarterfinal clash. The Patriots were in control from the very beginning of this game, leading 7-0 at the end of the 1st Quarter and 21-7 at the Half. In the 3rd Quarter Cumberlands hung 7 more points on Saint Francis, making it a 28-7 game. With the outcome all but decided the Cougars mustered a Touchdown of their own in the 4th Quarter but it was too little too late as the Patriots moved on with this 28-14 victory.

A GRAND VIEW TO A BUTTKICKING – The GRAND VIEW UNIVERSITY VIKINGS battled the visiting TABOR COLLEGE BLUE JAYS, who were hoping to keep their upset mojo going here in the 2nd Round of the playoffs. Things seemed to be going Tabor’s way at first as the Blue Jays led 14-7 after 1 Quarter of play. The Vikings had an ENORMOUS 2nd Quarter though, making it the most important Quarter of their season so far by putting up 23 points while shutting out Tabor College. That 30-14 Halftime lead became 37-17 after the 3rd, then 44-17 before the Blue Jays added a garbage time Touchdown for a 44-24 final score.

WHAT YOU CALL HELENA THE FIGHTING SAINTS CALL HOME – Helena, MT is the stomping grounds of the CARROLL COLLEGE FIGHTING SAINTS, the most storied football dynasty in NAIA history. Yesterday CC played host to the MISSOURI VALLEY COLLEGE VIKINGS and virtually shut down the usually potent MVC offense. The Fighting Saints led 6-3 at the Half, then 13-3 in the 3rd before exploding for 14 more points in the final Quarter of play. CC moved one step closer to a return to the Championship game with an authoritative 27-3 win.

* NCAA DIVISION 2 PLAYOFFS *

REST OR RUST? – In recent years in the NCAA Division Two playoffs the teams with a 1st Round Bye have often gotten bounced in the 2nd Round. Today five of the eight teams who had Byes last week wound up going home for the year. The WEST CHESTER UNIVERSITY GOLDEN RAMS took it on the road and handed the well-rested BLOOMSBURG UNIVERSITY HUSKIES a very tight 40-38 loss.

DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN – The CSU-PUEBLO THUNDERWOLVES once again had a 1st Round Bye and once again lost their 2nd Round home game. The GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY LAKERS continued their quest for their first national championship since 2006 by bouncing the Thunderwolves yesterday. The final score in this back and forth affair was Lakers 34 Thunderwolves 30. Next year CSU-Pueblo may want to play just badly enough to not get a Bye.

HUSKIES UPSET THE MAVERICKS – Team number 3 to lose after their bye last week was the MINNESOTA STATE MAVERICKS, who hosted the SAINT CLOUD STATE UNIVERSITY HUSKIES. These two powerhouses engaged in an epic shootout for four Quarters and when the dust settled the Huskies were left standing with a 54-48 victory. On to Round 3 for Saint Cloud State.

A FOOTBALL GAME WITH A BASEBALL SCORE – This next game was a complete 180. From a shootout won by the team who played last week to a low-scoring affair in which a team who had a Bye last week actually managed to win! The SHEPHERD UNIVERSITY RAMS welcomed the WINSTON-SALEM STATE UNIVERSITY RAMS in a game that was scoreless for over 2 Quarters. This instance of Ram on Ram violence wound up being won by Shepherd thanks to a single touchdown. The final score was Shepherd 7 Winston-Salem State 0.

YOU CAN CALL IT A BEAR MARKET – The CARSON-NEWMAN UNIVERSITY EAGLES seemed on the verge of being yet another road team to upset a well-rested opponent yesterday. The Eagles led the LENOIR-RHYNE UNIVERSITY BEARS for a large part of the game before the Bears wound up turning the tables. In the end Lenoir-Rhyne advanced to the next round by a final score of 27-20.

AN OUTCOME DETERMINED BY KIRK HERBSTREIT? – Not only were the traveling WEST TEXAS A&M BUFFALOES continuing their tradition of being potent road warriors in the D2 playoffs but their opponents, the homestanding OHIO DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY PANTHERS were figuratively jinxed on national television yesterday morning. When Kirk Herbstreit on College Gameday mentioned that ODU had the longest winning streak in Division 2 superstitious people around the country groaned inside. The Panthers lost to the Buffaloes in a 34-27 game for the ages.

THE LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVES – With apologies to Archie Bunker. The fifth and final game from yesterday which featured the rested team getting defeated saw the UNIVERSITY OF NORTH ALABAMA LIONS on the road against the UNC-PEMBROKE BRAVES. This was a comparative buttkicking with the Gulf South Conference’s Lions hammering the Braves by a final score of 37-13.

THE BEARCATS DEFIED THE ODDS – The NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE BEARCATS wound up being one of the three teams who had a Bye last week yet still managed to win their 2nd Round game. The Bearcats battled the visiting UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA-DULUTH BULLDOGS and played a game that would have put a smile on the face of their former coach, the legendary Mel Tjeerdsma. When all was said and done in this offensive clinic the final score was Bearcats 45 Bulldogs 21.

* NCAA DIVISION 3 PLAYOFFS *

ROYALS REMAIN PERFECT – The BETHEL (MN) UNIVERSITY ROYALS kept their 2013 record unblemished by a single loss yesterday. The Royals battled the visiting WARTBURG COLLEGE KNIGHTS for the right to advance to next week’s 3rd Round of the playoffs. This game turned into a very nerve-wracking affair. The Royals led 14-7 at the Half but the Knights had tied it up at 14 all by the end of the 3rd Quarter. The 4th Quarter saw more drama than the entire rest of the game but in the end Bethel put up 20 more points to the 13 scored by Wartburg (German for “Burg of Warts”). The final score was Royals 34 Knights 27.

DON’T CALL THEM THE WESLEY CRUSHERS – Fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation will get it. The WESLEY COLLEGE WOLVERINES hosted the ITHACA COLLEGE BOMBERS in this 2nd Round game. The Crushers – I mean Wolverines – led the Bombers 9-7 after the 1st Quarter, 16-7 at Halftime and 23-7 after 3 Quarters of play. The Bombers went down fighting, logging a Touchdown and 2 point conversion in the 4th to make the score 23-15 but Wesley held them scoreless after that and got the win.

WILD WILD WILDCATS – The LINFIELD COLLEGE WILDCATS have been THE major West Coast football power in D3 in recent years. I guess they’ve grown so confident they felt they could spot the visiting HAMPDEN-SYDNEY TIGERS a 21-3 2nd Quarter lead. From that point on the Wildcats clamped down defensively and came to life offensively. When the Half arrived the score was just 21-10 and when the 3rd Quarter came to a close the Tigers were clinging to a fragile 21-17 lead. Linfield went in front for good in the 4th Quarter, emerging with a 31-21 comeback victory.

SMACKDOWN IN GENEVA – As in Geneva, NY, home of the HOBART STATESMEN. The Statesmen were visited by the SAINT JOHN FISHER COLLEGE CARDINALS and were well and truly eviscerated. The Cardinals led 14-0 at Halftime, 24-0 after 3 Quarters of play and added 3 more points in the 4th. The Statesmen didn’t even get on the scoreboard until the final Quarter themselves, feebly putting up 6 points when the game was all but over. The final score: Cardinals 27 Statesmen 6.

AND SPEAKING OF TEAMS CALLED CARDINALS … – Teams called Cardinals just could not help themselves when it came to folding, spindling and mutilating their opponents yesterday. The NORTH CENTRAL COLLEGE CARDINALS welcomed the PLATTEVILLE PIONEERS and proceeded to use them as a pinata. A 21-3 1st Quarter lead became 35-17 by the Half. The 2nd Half of the game did not go any better for the Pioneers and by the time all was said and done the Cardinals had won a 52-24 blowout.

MORE DANGEROUS THAN WHITEWATER RAFTING – The UW-WHITEWATER WARHAWKS are the winners of four D3 football championships in recent years and are once again tearing up the postseason after a one year hiatus from the playoffs. The Warhawks were very ungracious hosts to the visiting FRANKLIN COLLEGE GRIZZLIES yesterday. The only points Whitewater allowed the Grizzlies to score came with a mere Field Goal in the 3rd Quarter. The Warhawks themselves put up 7, 10, 6 and 10 more points in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Quarters respectively for an easy 33-3 win.

OH, THOSE KIDDERS FROM MOUNT UNION! – The UNIVERSITY OF MOUNT UNION PURPLE RAIDERS, the most successful gridiron dynasty in D3 history, played their usual sadistic game of letting a playoff opponent think they had a chance against them before yanking the rug out from under them. The visiting WITTENBERG UNIVERSITY TIGERS were tied up with Mt Union 14-14 after 1 Quarter of play. After that the Purple Raiders said “fooled ya” and opened up a 21-14 lead at Halftime, then a 35-21 lead at the end of the 3rd Quarter. Having had enough fun those Mt Union jokesters added 21 more points in the 4th to win by a final score of 56-21.

“BELTON” YOUR OPPONENTS AROUND – Belton, TX is the home of the storied UNIVERSITY OF MARY HARDIN-BAYLOR CRUSADERS, aka “the Cru”. The Crusaders decided not to make the ROWAN UNIVERSITY PROFS wait until the D3 championship game to have their postseason meltdown and proceeded to wallop them. A 14-6 1st Quarter Crusader lead became 35-6 at the halfway mark, then 38-8 in the 3rd. By the time the Profs were out of their misery the homestanding Crusaders had annihilated them to the tune of 59-8.

* NJCAA CHAMPIONSHIP *

The NJCAA National Championship Game will be played on December 8th between the number 1 team in the nation, the GEORGIA MILITARY COLLEGE BULLDOGS and the number 2 team, the EAST MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE LIONS. Both teams are 11-0 and the Lions are seeking their 2nd title in the last 3 years.

* CCCAA SEMIFINALS *

YORBA LINDA, NOT MY BELINDA – Yes, I know that’s a pretty lame joke even for me. Anyway, Yorba Linda, CA was the site of today’s title game for the Southern California Football Association. The winners of the SCFA and the NCFA battle each other in two weeks for the CCCAA Championship. The FULLERTON COLLEGE HORNETS welcomed the RIVERSIDE COLLEGE TIGERS. At the end of the 1st Quarter the Hornets led 10-7, a score that held up til Halftime, too. In the 3rd both teams put up a Touchdown but Fullerton outscored Riverside 6-0 in the 4th for a final score of 23-14.

GRIDIRON CLASSIC BOWL – As part of the CCCAA’s way of combining their playoff format with their Bowl structure this was the Championship Game for the Northern California Football Association. The BUTTE COLLEGE ROADRUNNERS, where Aaron Rodgers played his college ball before transferring to Cal way back when, battled the FRESNO CITY COLLEGE RAMS. The Roadrunners made this one a laugher pretty early, leading 14-0 after 1 Quarter and 28-7 at the Half. By the end of the 3rd Quarter the Rams had cut the Roadrunner lead to 41-21, which, following a scoreless 4th Quarter wound up being the final score as well. It will be the Roadrunners vs the Hornets in two weeks for the CCCAA Championship.

*** NATIONAL CHRISTIAN COLLEGE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION – The NCCAA football championship was played last week in the Victory Bowl as covered here at Balladeer’s Blog. The AZUSA PACIFIC UNIVERSITY COUGARS are the national champions with the GREENVILLE COLLEGE PANTHERS (the 2012 champs) as the runners-up. FOR DETAILS CLICK HERE: https://glitternight.com/2013/11/24/college-football-playoff-and-bowl-results-from-november-23rd/