Noah Poskanzer had two interceptions and forced a fumble in Ithaca's Empire 8-clinching win vs. St. John Fisher. Ithaca athletics photo

The path was hardly a straight line, and the ride was anything but smooth.

But after nine games, the Ithaca Bombers find themselves in the same spot as last season -- atop the Empire 8.

At a season's glance, it's not surprising to see Ithaca win its second straight conference title. The Bombers returned many key contributors from last season's team that won a playoff game and finished 9-3 overall. The smart money was on either Ithaca or St. John Fisher to take home the conference hardware.

But after a 4-0 start to the season, the Bombers dropped back-to-back conference games to Buffalo State and Frostburg State, the latter by a single point in overtime. Any momentum the Bombers had built over the first month seemed to have faded completely.

"At that point it was a pretty low point, but just for a very short period of time," Ithaca coach Mike Welch said. "... I felt confident with this group. Then we got back on track and had a great game against Salisbury and that, I think, created a lot of confidence."

Ithaca righted the ship with a lopsided 32-7 win against Salisbury, the class of the conference in 2011-12, and then knocked off Brockport State to set up what essentially amounted to an Empire 8 title game this past weekend against St. John Fisher.

"We weren't going to let this opportunity slip," Welch said. "Our players knew what we had in front of us."

With its 19-8 win against the Cardinals, Ithaca certainly seized its chance. The Cardinals had scored at least 34 points in each of their eight previous games, but Ithaca held them to just two field goals and a blocked extra point return.

Ithaca intercepted St. John Fisher quarterback Tyler Fenti three times, including two by strong safety Noah Poskanzer, and forced five total turnovers while committing none. 

"It's just a tremendous performance by our football team and our defense," Welch said.

Ithaca entered the season with defensive question marks after losing a number of key pieces from last season. But that only set the stage for the emergence of players like senior linebacker Marc Recio (13 tackles vs. St. John Fisher), freshman linebacker Ken Bradley (tied with Recio with team-high 64 tackles) and Poskanzer.

Senior cornerback and return man Sam Carney, who was slowed by injuries early in the season, is in now back in the mix. The defensive line, which includes senior nose guard Joe Ricotta, junior Logan Murphy and sophomore Rob Barbieri, among others, has consistently played well.

Senior quarterback Tom Dempsey has had a steady, often spectacular season, throwing for 2,205 yards, 20 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Senior wide receiver Vito Boffoli, Dempsey's top target in the passing game, leads the team in receptions (48) and receiving yards (476), though he actually threw a touchdown pass of his own to Andrew Tabbert on a reverse against St. John Fisher.

"Vito's a money player, and so is Andrew Tabbert, who caught it," Welch said. "These guys have been great all year, so it was a great connection."

Freshman running back Tristan Brown missed the games against Brockport and St. John Fisher with an injury, but still leads the team with 571 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. Brown is expected back for Ithaca's annual Cortaca Jug game against Cortland State this weekend.

"He was another great surprise for us and he's contributed to where we are right now," Welch said of Brown. "... He's explosive, he's got a gear. He's one of those game-breaking type guys."

Ithaca also still boasts a pair of above-average kickers in senior Garret Nicholson, who handles the extra points and shorter field goals, and junior Max Rottenecker, who handles longer field goals and kickoffs. Rottenecker tied an Ithaca record with his 50-yard field goal as the first half expired against St. John Fisher.

As the season enters its final week of the regular season, seven of the nine teams in the Empire 8 sit over .500. It's a testament to the depth of the conference and across-the-board quality of the teams, a note that is never lost on Welch. 

"I've always believed this, philosophically, from my mentor Jim Butterfield, is if your goals are to go beyond and make a run in the playoffs, you've got to play a tough schedule," Welch said.

Only three Division III football teams (Mount Union, UW-Whitewater, Augustana) have won more national championships than Ithaca (three -- 1979, 1988, 1991), and only Mount Union and Whitewater have appeared in more Stagg Bowls. 

With that kind of history, anything less than the playoffs is a disappointment. The Bombers, unlikely as it might be, are back in the playoffs. The road they took to get there doesn't matter now.

Painting the playoff picture
Empire 8
Automatic bid: Ithaca. For the second straight season, the Bombers won the Empire 8 and earned the conference's automatic playoff bid. Ithaca's defense held St. John Fisher's explosive offense to just eight points in its 19-8 win this past Saturday. The win clinched a return trip for the Bombers, who last reached the playoffs consecutively in 2007-08.

Potential Pool C bid(s): St. John Fisher. The Cardinals have been in this situation before. If they beat Alfred in the regular-season finale, they will finish 8-2 overall and 6-2 in the Empire 8. In the past, that's been good enough to warrant a Pool C bid. It's reasonable to expect the same this season. St. John Fisher ranked fourth in the first East Region regional rankings released last week by the NCAA.

Liberty League
Automatic bid: Hobart. Another season, another Liberty League title for the Statesmen. Hobart edged St. Lawrence, 29-27, to clinch its fourth consecutive conference title. It wasn't easy, though. Will McCool's 32-yard field goal with 1:03 remaining capped a 10-play, 39-yard drive to put Hobart ahead for good. Conner Hartigan rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown, and Pat Conlan passed for 273 yards and two scores. Hobart hasn't lost a conference game since Nov. 5, 2011.

Potential Pool C bid(s): St. Lawrence. The Saints gave Hobart its stiffest test of the season and, assuming they beat Merchant Marine, will finish the season 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the conference. St. Lawrence was ranked sixth in the initial East Region regional rankings released last week.

MAC

Automatic bid: Delaware Valley or Widener. Both teams enter this game with identical 9-0 records. The winner goes to 10-0, with a MAC conference title and automatic NCAA bid to boot.

Potential Pool C bid(s): Delaware Valley or Widener. The loser of this game, however, maintains a great chance of earning a Pool C bid. Delaware Valley and Widener ranked first and third, respectively, in the first East Region regional rankings.

NJAC

Automatic bid: Morrisville State or Rowan. Multiple scenarios are in play for the NJAC in the final week of the regular season. Morrisville State has already clinched at least a share of the conference title, but must wait for Rowan and Montclair State to play its games this Saturday before it knows which team will earn the automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs. If both Montclair and Rowan lose, Morrisville heads to the playoffs. If Rowan defeats TCNJ, it will head to the playoffs. If Montclair wins but Rowan loses, Morrisville gets in. 

Potential Pool C bid(s): Montclair State. The Red Hawks debuted at No. 8 in the East Region regional rankings. If they were to finish 8-2 overall, they would present a reasonably strong case for an at-large bid.

Quick hits

Aaron Wilmer passed for 283 yards and four touchdowns, including two to Rasheed Bailey, in Delaware Valley's 55-7 rout of FDU-Florham. ... Seth Klein passed for 291 yards and two touchdowns, and Chris Wickes scored two of Widener's five rushing touchdowns in a lopsided 55-6 win over King's. ... Connor Canonico rushed for 123 yards and Ryan Jones tossed a pair of TDs to Aarron Moore in Salisbury's 40-28 victory against Brockport State. Chase Venuto passed for 235 yards and four touchdowns in the loss. ... Dante Cioffi passed for 389 yards and six touchdowns, including four to Kyle Reynolds, in Union's 59-32 win against Merchant Marine. ... Dylan Peebles returned a kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown and K.J. Zinermon caught a 55-yard touchdown pass from John Grassi in Cortland State's 26-17 win over William Paterson. ... Anthony Acevedo returned a punt 57 yards for a score and also caught a pair of touchdown passes in Utica's 35-14 victory against Alfred. ... Ryan Umpleby caught 10 passes for 228 yards and three touchdowns, Tyler Jenny passed for 411 yards, and Lycoming edged Lebanon Valley, 30-29, in overtime. ... Tommy Morgan threw two touchdowns, Austin Amery scored on two short TD runs, and RPI routed Springfield, 37-13. ... Anthony Reid caught seven passes for 193 yards and a pair of touchdowns in Stevenson's 33-14 victory against Wilkes. ... Mitch Stevenson passed for 222 yards and four touchdowns as Southern Virginia defeated TCNJ, 28-21, for its first win of the season. ... Ryan Carney caught nine passes for 229 yards and three touchdowns as Buffalo State beat Hartwick, 35-10. ... Andrew Haber kicked a 36-yard field goal in overtime to clinch Rochester's 24-21 win over WPI. ... Chris Dawson rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns as Albright defeated Misericordia, 30-14.

Top 25: Ithaca back in rankings

Ithaca returned to the top 25 in this week's D3football.com poll, checking in at No. 23, one spot ahead of St. John Fisher.

Liberty League champion Hobart slipped one spot to No. 8. Widener and Delaware Valley moved up to No. 12 and No. 16, respectively.

St. Lawrence, Morrisville State and Lycoming each received votes in this week's poll.

Looking ahead

No. 23 Ithaca (7-2, 6-2) at Cortland State (4-5, 4-3), noon, Saturday: Ithaca has already booked its trip to the playoffs. Cortland will not qualify for the postseason this year. None of that matters when these two teams meet up for the Cortaca Jug. This is simply one of the country's best rivalry games, and we get to enjoy it as such.

No. 16 Delaware Valley (9-0, 8-0) at No. 12 Widener (9-0, 8-0), 1 p.m., Saturday: Both teams have played nine games. Both teams have won all nine of them. The result? We're treated to a MAC conference title game. The winner gets the MAC crown and automatic NCAA berth. The loser is a likely Pool C candidate, but that always comes with uncertainty.

Rowan (6-3, 5-1) at TCNJ (2-7, 1-5), 7 p.m., Saturday: The scenario for Rowan is simple -- win and get into the NCAA playoffs. If the Profs lose, the NJAC's automatic bid would go to either Morrisville State or Montclair State.

Other games of note: Union (2-7, 2-4) at RPI (5-4, 3-3), noon, Saturday; Montclair State (7-2, 5-1) at Kean (2-7, 2-4), 1 p.m., Saturday; No. 24 St. John Fisher (7-2, 5-2) at Alfred (5-4, 3-4), 1 p.m., Saturday

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