2004 Around the Nation columns

January 27, 2005 The best and worst of 2004 Fans of Division III football don’t need polls, ratings or crackpot formulas to determine the best team. That’s settled each December in the Stagg Bowl. But what about the best of everything else? Player? Coach? Game? That’s where we come in.

December 17, 2004 From the man who's seen them both In the case of the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, hard data such as a common opponent is nearly unheard of. But in 2004, Willamette saw both national finalists up close and personal.

December 14, 2004 Is the Mount Union dynasty over? Why, now that the grinches from Belton, Texas, have stolen the holiday from the people of Alliance (Dare we call it Whoville?), a serious question has arisen. Is the Mount Union dynasty dead?

December 2, 2004 What to do when you're stuck at home If you’re stuck at home, like I was last weekend, there is hope for the Division III football junkie. And I do mean junkie, because you have to be pretty darn addicted to do what I did last weekend: listen to all eight playoff games via webcast.

November 24, 2004 Wish they all could be like this In California last week, I discovered that the folks marooned on SCIAC island were acutely aware that the rest of the nation thumbed its nose at their brand of football, mostly because a conference team hadn’t won a playoff game since 1985.

November 18, 2004 Our playoff surprises, disappointments Keeping in line with our yearly tradition, three of D3football.com’s staffers (we really don’t want to use the word “experts”) provide our surprises, disappointments and champions from each of the four playoff brackets.

November 11, 2004 Here's what we'd like to see Though we don’t have the benefit of knowing Saturday’s outcomes, we can still give the selection committee our two cents and see if they listen. Here are the five playoff matchups Around the Nation would like to see, and five more first-round games we’d like to avoid.

November 4, 2004 Ranking the conferences Got a friendly bet to settle? Perhaps you’re wondering why certain teams get so much respect in the polls. Maybe you could use a little help speculating which teams might earn Pool C bids, be favored in a playoff matchup or win inter-conference games between teams with similar records.

October 29, 2004 What we're not talking about We've got a lot to get to this week, so I thought I'd start us off quickly, briefing you on six teams with a shot at the playoffs who are currently flying under the radar.

October 21, 2004 So don't be surprised If you follow the national scene at all, Week 7 in Division III was the rough equivalent of getting called into the boss’ office unexpectedly or getting that “we need to talk” setup from your significant other. It was full of surprises.

October 15, 2004 A midseason look at the races What makes the MAC our pick for craziest conference race through five games is that there’s really no end in sight. Not only is the league topsy-turvy, but the only two teams without a conference loss (Moravian and Delaware Valley) don’t meet.

October 7, 2004 All not lost for over-70 club For just about every defensive player, there will come a day where you'll look up at the scoreboard late in some game and shake your head in disbelief.

September 30, 2004 New faces reshape Old Dominion state A little more than five years ago, thinking the winner of the Hampden-Sydney/Bridgewater game becomes the front-runner for the ODAC title would be nothing short of far-fetched. But that game still drew more attention than anything that took place at Christopher Newport or Shenandoah. Neither institution had a football program yet.

September 22, 2004 A different Division III atmosphere Just as we were able to travel last year and give you snapshots of Division III football life in Wisconsin and Mississippi, I decided the couch was no place for me to be last Saturday, even if I had to work later that night. A tolerable trip from home, I thought I’d take in the atmosphere at a Johns Hopkins football game and share it with our national audience.

September 17, 2004 Searching high and low for games If Jay Locey had his druthers, he wouldn't be taking his second-ranked Linfield squad 1,600 miles to Stevens Point, Wis., for Saturday's game with the seventh-ranked Pointers.

September 8, 2004 Saturday was not Witt's end It wasn’t tide-turning. It didn’t put Division III football on its ear. But the margin of Capital’s 49-16 win against Wittenberg was surprising, to say the least.

August 30, 2004 You've got questions, so do we Before referees in Danbury, Conn., and Wayne, N.J., wind their arms to signal the start of the 2004 season on Friday, let’s play 20 questions.