Courtesy of SXU Sports Information:
CHICAGO – When you talk to Saint Xavier University head football coach Mike Feminis about his upcoming game this Saturday against No. 7 ranked University of Saint Francis (Ind.), the fact that a milestone coaching win (No. 100) is on the line does not even enter the conversation. It may be the fact that there are plenty Continue reading
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Jim Mora proving that sometimes a coach just has to lie to keep his team's respect.
As I love to point out, the College Football Divisions covered by Balladeer’s Blog settle it on the field in the form of a playoff. Here’s a nice preview of this weekend’s semifinal games in the Jayhawk Conference.
HCC Sports Information
The Hutchinson Community College football team will play host to its first Region VI playoff game since 2004 when the seventh-ranked Blue Dragons will meet Independence in a semifinal matchup on Sunday.
Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Gowans Stadium.
The Blue Dragons haven’t played host to a playoff semifinal game since 1995 when HCC defeated Coffeyville 17-16 in overtime. HCC’s last playoff at home was a quarterfinal game against Highland, a 65-0 semifinal victory. Continue reading
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The SXU Cougars are riding high right now. They’re 10-0 with the regular season about to end this coming Saturday against the University of St Francis. They’re ranked 3rd in the nation in the NAIA and their players have been setting individual and team records almost on a weekly basis. With the playoffs just over the horizon I figured it would be a good time to let Balladeer’s Blog’s readers get to know some of the SXU stars a little better. To that end I temporarily shelved my campaign to get them to change their name to “The Saint Xavier Cougats” (I’m kidding!) and with the kind cooperation of the SXU athletics administrators got answers to some questions that have been keeping Americans up late at night. The players’ names are familiar to regular readers of this blog so without further ado (Or Freddie Adu for that matter) let’s dive in.
Anthony Kropp
Position: Quarterback
Official Balladeer’s Blog Nickname: Continue reading
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Indianapolis, Ind.—-The NCAA Division II Football Committee has released this year’s first super regional polls. Wingate (6-2 overall) is the number four team in the Super Regional Two top 10 poll. Albany State (Ga.) University is the number one team at 9-0 overall.
Valdosta State University is number two at 7-1 overall. Catawba College is third at 6-2 overall. The remainder of the poll includes the University of North Alabama (7-2 overall), Morehouse College (7-2 overall), Fort Valley State University (8-1 overall), Delta State University (6-3 overall), Carson-Newman College (6-3 overall) and Henderson State (Ark.) University (6-3 overall).
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Number One Takes A Fall – NCAA Division 2’s Number One-Ranked team, the Grand Valley State Lakers, were upset yesterday 20-17 on the road against the Continue reading
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Tonight’s games in the divisions Balladeer’s Blogs follow will be kicking off before too much longer. Here’s the rundown:
Washington and Lee Generals @ Catholic Cardinals
The next two games are being played at the Metrodome:
Minnesota-Morris Cougars vs MacAlester Scots
Greenville Panthers vs the Crown Storm
In the Jayhawk Conference:
Garden City Broncbusters @ Independence Pirates
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Yes, the headline is a play on the Kansas Jayhawks’ traditional chant “Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk”. It’s the final week of the regular season in the Jayhawk Conference so they get priority for this week’s gridiron preview. Teams will see action tonight and tomorrow except for the conference’s and the nation’s #1-ranked JUCO team, the Butler Grizzlies, who have their bye week, which in this case allows them to rest up and get healthy for the start of the playoffs next week.
The 7th-ranked Hutchinson Blue Dragons will be hosting the 14th-ranked Coffeyville Red Ravens in a very “colorful” matchup Saturday at 7PM local time. The Red Ravens come into the game boasting a 6-2 record and the Blue Dragons come in at 7-1, with their 1 loss coming last week against Top-Ranked Butler.
The Dodge City Conquistadors are hosting the AFP Huskies at 1:30PM local time on Saturday. The Huskies have racked up 6 wins so far but the Conquistadors are trying to avoid ending the season without a single win. Will it be an early Halloween “Treat” for the home team, or will they face an ending as downbeat as the one in the Conquistador movie Aguirre, The Wrath Of God?
The Garden City Broncbusters (that’s not a typo – they go by Broncbusters without the “O”) take it on the road against the Independence Pirates. It will either be the Pirates who claim the win as their booty or the Broncbusters who end their season in a happier mood than Jack Palance had when his series Bronk was canceled. (I’ll admit it. A reference to an obscure 70’s detective show in a post about the Broncbusters is a new low even for me.) This game kicks off at 7 tonight.
The Highland Scotties play host to the Fort Scott Greyhounds in a real dogfight that could be called The Great Scott Bowl. Well, it IS Halloween season so I figured a reference to the “Great Scott” bit in The Rocky Horror Picture Show wasn’t out of line. This game starts at 1PM on Saturday. Readers of Balladeer’s Blog will recognize the fact that 5 of the teams mentioned here made my list of the 20 Coolest-Named JUCO Sports Teams. For the whole list click here: https://glitternight.com/2010/10/18/the-20-coolest-named-juco-sports-teams/
And to follow these games on line click here: http://www.kjccc.org/mobile/
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There’s only one game tonight in the divisions Balladeer’s Blog covers, and it’s in NCAA Division2. Both teams are ranked and they both play in the Gulf South Conference, often called the SEC of D2. The road team is coached by THE Terry Bowden, the only member of the Bowden coaching family that is still a head coach.
#20 NORTH ALABAMA LIONS @ #15 DELTA STATE STATESMEN (On ComCast SportsNet)
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Eastman Has Career Day – Sioux Falls Cougars QB Jon “Jonny East” Eastman had a career day as USF decimated the Dakota Wesleyan Tigers 63-3. (In any Sioux Falls game it’s best to put the over/under in the 60’s or 70’s) Eastman went 20 of 30 for 360 yards and 6 touchdowns. The Top-Ranked Cougars are now 8-0 and have extended their NAIA-record winning streak to 37 games in a row. USF has a bye next Saturday and will resume its quest to Threepeat as National Champions on Nov 6th against the Dordt Defenders.
Top 25 Upsets – NAIA – The 16th-ranked McKendree Bearcats upset the 11th-ranked William Penn Statesmen 24-14 for the Statesmen’s 1st loss of the year … In a very slight upset rankings-wise #13, the Dickinson State Blue Hawks defeated #12, the South Dakota Mines Hardrockers, in their own house by a score of 24-14 … The 18th-ranked Kansas Wesleyan Coyotes were upset at home as well, losing to the unranked Sterling Knights 22-21 in a spoiled Homecoming for the Kansas Wesleyan faithful … The team at #20, the Black Hills State Yellow Jackets, also lost to an unranked team, the Minot State Beavers, in a 17-14 Instant Classic.
Top 25 Upsets – NCAA Division 3 – Just one Top 25 team in D3 suffered an upset yesterday. The team with that dubious distinction was the #19 St John Fisher Cardinals who fell to the unranked Alfred Saxons 42-31.
Top 25 Upsets – NCAA Division 2 – The 4th-ranked California (PA) Vulcans were defeated on the road by the Mercyhurst Lakers 31-21 … The #7 Hillsdale Chargers also lost on the road to an unranked team, the Wayne State (MI) Warriors by a score of 14-9 … THE Terry Bowden’s 9th-ranked North Alabama Lions fell to the Ouachita Baptist Tigers in overtime on a failed extra point attempt, 23-24 … #13 fell to #15 as the West Texas A&M Buffaloes defeated the Midwestern State Mustangs 42-29 and the 23rd-ranked Missouri Western Griffins will likely fall from the Top 25 after losing to the unranked Missouri Southern Lions by a score of 23-6.
St Francis (IN) And Peru State Rule The World – Two NAIA teams defeated higher division opponents yesterday. The 7th-ranked St Francis (IN) Cougars routed NCAA Division 2’s Missouri S&T Miners 41-14, and the Peru State Bobcats defeated D2’s Lincoln (MO) Blue Tigers 41-33.
Putting Another “W” In Lindsey Wilson – The Lindsey Wilson College Blue Raiders, in their very 1st year of intercollegiate football, have already notched their program’s 3rd win. Yesterday they won in Double Overtime by a score of 40-37 over the Kentucky Christian Knights.
These Teams Are Anything But Rank – The Millsaps Majors won on the road yesterday over the Centre Colonels 30-18.
Oh Yes They Call It The Streak – The 5th-ranked Northwest Missouri Bearcats continue adding to their MIAA conference winning streak, topping the Washburn Ichabods in a 41-40 nailbiter at Washburn. Ichabods coach Craig Shurig could have gone for just a one-point conversion to send the game in to overtime after his team scored a touchdown making the score 41-40. Shurig went for the win instead of planning on OT but the 2-point pass attempt was broken up by the Bearcats in the endzone. The streak now stands at 43 conference wins in a row.
“Win One For Mark Trail” Dept – The Lake Forest Foresters got their 1st win of the season yesterday, defeating the Lawrence Vikings by a score of 35-14. With fellow Midwest Conference bottom-dwellers the Knox Prairie Fire coming up next Saturday the Foresters have a good shot at winning 2 in a row.
And Those Chargers Keep Charging Along – The New Haven Chargers, in just the 2nd year of their revival of football, have just 1 loss on the season and yesterday took sole possession of 1st place in the Northeast 10 Conference by defeating the Merrimack Warriors 27-25.
The Fleeces Stay Perfect – The 11th-ranked Albany (GA) State Golden Rams (I call them The Fleeces for short) and their Dirty Blue Defense won on the road in the final seconds to spoil Homecoming for the 25th-ranked Morehouse Maroon Tigers. The final score was 13-12, keeping Albany State’s record blemish-free so far this season.
We Went To A Football Game And A Baseball Game Broke Out – This week’s game that fits this category was the 6-5 victory the Indianapolis Greyhounds had over the Northern Michigan Wildcats. This was one game A-Rod and the Yankees might have been able to win!
We Went To A Football Game And A Basketball Game Broke Out – No defense? No problem! At least that seemed to be the sentiment held by the Puget Sound Loggers and the Lewis and Clark Pioneers yesterday. The Pioneers came out on top in a 68-64 orgy of scoring.
“Our Division Can Beat Up Your Division” Dept – In the ongoing rivalry between the NAIA and NCAA Division 3 it was all D3 this weekend. The Huntingdon Hawks defeated the streaking Webber International Warriors at their place 35-23. The Newport News Builders took down the Southern Virginia Knights in a 20-18 Instant Classic and the Willamette Bearcats defeated the Menlo Oaks 32-15.
The Lightning Round – In a game that had to be concluded today because of an extended lightning delay yesterday the Austin ‘Roos won a nail-biter over the Rhodes Lynx 17-16.
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“Mountain Lion” Ryan And Sioux Falls Remain Perfect – Wr Jon “Mountain Lion” Ryan starred as the NAIA’s Top-Ranked USF Cougars defeated the 4th-ranked Morningside Mustangs 28-3. The game was Victory Sports Network‘s Game Of The Week. At the start it looked like things would not go the Cougars’ way, especially after the usually automatic “Brassy” Braden Wieking missed 2 early field goals. The Sioux Falls defense (and some excellent punting by Wieking) kept Morningside’s offense scoreless long enough for the offense to start countering the Mustangs’ defensive gameplan. QB Jon “Jonny East” Eastman connected with Mountain Lion Ryan on 3 td’s while RB Chevon “Fire” Walker and the rest of the Cougar offense found their rhythm. The defense was led by Dom “The Studmeister General” Studzinski who had 6 tackles. Up next in USF’s quest to Threepeat are the Dakota Wesleyan Tigers.
Top 25 Upsets – NAIA – The Dickinson State Blue Hawks, ranked #9, suffered their 1st loss of the season at the hands of the unranked Black Hills State Yellow Jackets in a 19-13 Instant Classic … The 13th-ranked Walsh Cavaliers fell to an unranked team for the 2nd week in a row, losing to the Taylor Trojans 21-17 … The unranked Baker Wildcats, who had such high pre-season hopes, have settled into a spoiler role, upsetting the 20th-ranked Benedictine Ravens by a score of 20-14 … #21, the Montana Tech Orediggers, lost to the unranked Eastern Oregon Mountaineers in a beautiful 31-28 game. The Mountaineers will hope to keep this upset mojo going next week when they take on the Frontier Conference’s Fighting Saints in next week’s VSN Game Of The Week.
Top 25 Upsets – NCAA Division 3 – The 6th-ranked Coe Kohawks, obviously jarred by my recent investigative piece linking their mascot to the giant buzzard from outer space in the movie The Giant Claw (I’m kidding!), lost at home to the unranked Wartburg Knights 31-21 … The #19 Alfred Saxons lost on the road to the unranked RPI Engineers by a score of 27-24 … The Washington and Lee Generals, still undefeated in Old Dominion Athletic Conference play, upset the 20th-ranked Randolph-Macon Yellow Jackets 42-28 … The Cortland State Red Dragons, ranked at #23, lost on the road to the Rowan Profs in a 20-17 Instant Classic.
Top 25 Upsets – NCAA Division 2 – In a slight upset rankings-wise, the 6th-ranked West Texas A&M Buffaloes lost to the 10-ranked TA&M– Kingsville Javelinas 28-24 … The 9th-ranked Delta State Statesmen fell to the Harding Bisons (they go by Bisons, not Bison) by a score of 38-35 … The #17 Tuskegee Golden Tigers, in the midst of one of their most up and down years ever, lost again to an unranked team, the Fort Valley Wildcats, in a 26-0 shutout and the 23rd-ranked Wayne State (NE) Wildcats lost at home 17-14 to the Concordia-St Paul Golden Bears.
Hard-Charging Chargers – In this, just the 2nd season of their revival of football, the New Haven Chargers have wracked up an impressive 6-1 record and are an amazing 4-0 on the road. And they’re not playing teams below their own division to do it, either. All of their games have been against fellow D2 teams with their only loss coming against the ever-tough Assumption Greyhounds. Yesterday the Chargers blanked the American International Yellow Jackets 13-0 and are at the top of the Northeast 10 Conference standings.
It Isn’t News If A House Isn’t On Fire Dept – The Top-Ranked and undefeated teams in D2 and D3 won big yesterday. D2’s Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs crushed the Mary Marauders 49-0 and D3’s Whitewater Warhawks devastated the Eau Claire Blugolds 45-0.
We Went To A Football Game And A Baseball Game Broke Out – This week’s game that fits this category just barely qualifies. The UMass-Dartmouth Corsairs defeated the Nichols Bison 9-7. Where have all our 3-0 and 6-3 games gone?
We Went To A Football Game And A Basketball Game Broke Out – This week’s entry for a game in which the defenses seem to have just stayed on the team bus for the whole game is the matchup between the Georgetown (KY) Tigers and the Pikeville Bears, with the Tigers winning 70-58. The 6th-ranked Lindenwood Lions tried to provide a 2nd game for this category this week by scoring 90 points yesterday, but their opponents, the Culver-Stockton Wildcats indignantly refused to play along, putting up only 19 points in return.
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