We were really excited for the games on Saturday, November 29th as we had a record 7 Iowa teams advance to the second round of the NCAA DIII football playoffs and the NAIA Playoffs (Drake advanced to the first round of the FCS Playoffs).
On our weekly podcast pick’em show, we were hoping maybe 3 teams could advance (we thought two out of seven was more realistic).
William Penn, Coe College, and Drake had very tough road games and were heavy underdogs, and Wartburg was a home dog. Morningside and Dordt both had long road trips and had very tough games But were slight favorites) The only “sure thing” was Grandview (30.5 point favorite at Home), but alas, all of the teams we cover except Grandview fell in round two of the playoffs.
Wartburg (in Waverly) Grandview (in Des Moines) and Coe College (at St. Paul) all played in snow globe games that were awesome to watch on the feeds. SGI’s Jordan Cole wrote a great game recap for all seven games yesterday
Jordan Cole’s Recap of the Round 2 playoff games
Bethel 51 vs Coe 26 (Bethel Covered 18.5)
Coe won time of possession 34 mins to 26 mins. But that’s a testament to Bethel’s ability for quick scores. They put up 500 yards and were too much for Coe to handle. I do want to give a quick shoutout to Kohawk CJ Johnson. He got hurt during the Central game, and there was speculation it was a serious elbow injury that would require surgery. He came out and led the Kohawks with 10 tackles. A very impressive season from the Kohawks as they get knocked out of the playoffs for a 2nd straight year by Bethel.
The effort that the Wartburg Community put into removing over a foot of snow pregame was amazing. A big thank you to our friend Jeff Hilleman (his son is a junior for the Knights) for interviewing John Cochrane Wartburg AD before the game.
Wartburg 24 vs Wheaton (Illinois) 28 (Wartburg Covered the 5.5 points )
This was a pretty evenly matched game. Wartburg’s rush defense was as advertised, but ultimately Wheaton’s passing attack was the deciding factor. They moved it easily down the field on the game winning drive after converting a 4th and 1 in their own territory. Wartburg did give themselves a hail mary attempt at the end, but it didn’t come home. It is another impressive regular season from the Knights and they’ll look to stay atop the A-R-C again next season.
Grandview 62 vs Saint Francis 20 (Grandview Covered)
Saint Francis was up 7-6 early in the 2nd but within a blink of the eye it was 41-13 Vikings at the half. Vikings QB Jackson Waring had himself a day with 5 touchdowns through the air and another on the ground. Their rushing defense was elite again only giving up 40 yards on 34 attempts. Grandview will look to continue a deep playoff run against Lindsey Wilson on Saturday.
Marian 26 vs Dordt 18 (Marian Covered)
The Dordt defenders got going a little too late. Down 26-2 until the Defenders were able to find the endzone in the 4th quarter. Ultimately, Dordt put up yards but couldn’t translate that into points. They had 3 drives end on downs in Marian territory and had 3 picks. Not how Dordt envisioned their season ending, but it was impressive nonetheless. With only 16 seniors on the roster they’ll hopefully come back just as strong next season.
Friends 53 vs William Penn 36 (Friends Covered)
This was a game for a majority of the first half. Then Friends whipped out the passing game, got a fumble recovery for a touchdown, and pulled out a trick play and next thing you know it was 42-16 at the break. William Penn didn’t quit as they battled it out until the end. Turnovers were a big part of the result today but that shouldn’t take away from the historic season William Penn had. They’re building that program into a juggernaut on the turf, and I look forward to what they can produce next season.
College of Idaho 37 vs Morningside 19 (College of Idaho Covered)
The Mustangs got themselves into a hole that they couldn’t get out of in time. They battled all the way back making it a one-possession game before they ran out of gas. I thought the Yotes would give the Mustangs fits in the passing game, but Chevy Chevalier from Morningside had a solid game. The rushing attack wasn’t there, but that was a lot to do with the game script being flipped on its head from the jump. It was a great season from the Mustangs, and they will be back, as they’ve shown in the past.
South Dakota 38 vs Drake 17 (South Dakota Covered)
Drake won the FCS Pioneer league which is a non-scholarship FCS conference. So, playing an FCS team that grants athletic like South Dakota on the road from the best FCS Conference in the US (the Missouri Valley Football Conference) is an immense challenge.
The 3rd quarter of this game was the turning point in this one. Once a 17-10 game, at the half, it changed quickly with a couple of scores from South Dakota and two long drives from Drake that ended on downs deep in opponent territory. Drake star running back Herman wasn’t able to get going like he has in recent weeks, and South Dakota was able to move the ball relatively easily. An absolute gauntlet of a schedule from Drake this season will only benefit them in years to come. Drake isn’t an easy out and it was a strong showing from the Bulldogs this season.
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