2004 Around the Great Lakes columns

November 19, 2004 Wooster celebrates first NCAA bid With the exception of one game here in the Great Lakes Region, the 2004 regular season is over in NCAA Division III. The 11th week of action featured some outstanding individual performances, numerous big plays and some last-second victories. In a nutshell, a continuation of what we’ve seen for much of the season.

November 10, 2004 Same old song For the general public, "Decision Day" came Nov. 2. For the Division III community, Decision Day is Saturday, Nov. 13 as the 28-team playoff field is solidified. Right now, only one Great Lakes Region team has a guaranteed berth. That, of course, is Ohio Athletic Conference champion Mount Union.

November 4, 2004 Dark horse is back in the race The ninth week of action in the Great Lakes Region provided plenty of excitement in games that were expected to be exciting. Other games that looked lopsided on paper turned out to be just as exciting, if not more so.

October 27, 2004 Tomcats, Crusaders go presidential, Presidents roll Capital defeated Baldwin-Wallace for the first time in Berea since 1987. Thiel defeated Westminster for the first time since Harry S Truman lived in the White House. And Mount Union almost lost a regular season game for the first time since another two-term Democrat, Bill Clinton, was President.

October 22, 2004 Wooster strikes first in NCAC Hopefully, you’ll find this week’s column worth waiting for. There’s a lot to talk about as all three of last week’s “Games to Watch” turned out as expected.

October 13, 2004 Midseason report card For much of the Great Lakes Region, last weekend served as the halfway point of the 2004 season. The sixth week of play featured many of the same trends that the first five showcased: ridiculous point totals, outstanding offensive performances and few upsets.

October 6, 2004 Answered loud and clear The Purple Raiders' 98th consecutive regular-season victory featured many of the same traits as the other 97: high-octane offense, stifling defense and excellent special teams play.

September 28, 2004 Scoring early and quickly For the second consecutive week, blowouts ruled throughout the Great Lakes Region. Wabash opened the North Coast Athletic Conference schedule with a 46-0 pasting of Earlham. Wooster stayed unbeaten with a 49-7 win over Case Western Reserve while Capital lowered the boom on Heidelberg 38-0.

September 21, 2004 Competitive might be stretching it Last week, I noted that all of the “Games to Watch” for Week Two turned out to be highly competitive games. Well, lightning did not strike twice as blowouts were the theme of Week Three throughout the Great Lakes Region.

September 14, 2004 Spotlighted games do not disappoint The second week of the Division III football season is much like the first, especially in the Great Lakes Region. A number of teams are idle during the second week in preparation for conference play while other squads are beginning the season after byes in Week 1. Inter-conference play is the name of the game for now, and a number of wild and closely contested games highlighted Sept. 11’s action.

September 7, 2004 Conference's strengths on display early Across the nation, Week 1 often provides a good barometer for overall conference strengths as well as some insight as far as what to look for in the upcoming season.

August 26, 2004 2004 regional preview As teams throughout the Great Lakes region enter the 2004 campaign, it is apparent that what is “not” is en vogue at the start of the season.