Just as we expected — one amazing national semifinal and one blowout. Never mind that people generally thought it would be the other way around — not our predictions, by the way, which did not have North Central winning in a blowout.
We talk through the Cortland win against Randolph-Macon, hear the reactions of players Cole Burgess and Jack Winey as told to Keith McMillan, talk about what we learned and whether Saturday’s defensive performance by the Red Dragons is enough to suggest they can slow down North Central.
We also talk through the implications of the North Central’s narrow win, talk through the exciting plays that had the Cardinals on the ropes and the key defensive stops and big offensive plays which won the day. We also talk with quarterback Luke Lehnen about the experience of playing in the cold and wind, on the road, in a big game, and his sense of calm even as the Cardinals were struggling to move the ball.
Plus, let’s be honest. It’s Stagg Bowl L. 50. FIFTY. And it’s back in Salem, Virginia. That requires a special tribute, and Patrick Coleman is glad to provide. Scroll down for lyrics because they fly by pretty fast.
Plus, our listener questions: What do you suggest we do in Salem? We’ll give our insight there plus tackle some other questions, as well as talk about who the loudest fans are and what else is coming up this week on D3football.com
Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas discuss, in this edition of the podcast.
The D3football.com podcast is a weekly in-season podcast by Patrick Coleman and Greg Thomas, which was started in 2007.
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Photos: By Caleb Williams, d3photography.com: Dan Hunter, d3photography.com
The Stagg Bowl 50 Song
Lyrics by Patrick Coleman, music by Billy Joel
Annotations of lyrics in the comments.
50 years of D-III,
We know it’s the place to be.
Salem made it special back some 30 years ago
Playoffs were just 16 teams
And you know what that means
You might not get in them even if you’re 10-0
1999 felt nice,
When the field expanded twice
Automatic bids for all seemed like an awesome plan
Playoffs going five rounds,
Extra week of showdowns
Now at-large teams stay home and we’re back where we began
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
And it’s back in V-A
Everyone say hooray
Purple Raiders on a streak,
Tying Augie’s what they seek,
Entering the playoffs once again as No. 1
Way out on the west coast,
Frosty’s not the type to boast,
They’re still new to D3 and they’re out here having fun.
Rowan’s guys from ACC,
Pluto’s spirit of D3,
Semi goes to overtime,
Smeck to throw just one more time
Sadak says “The record’s gone”
Rowan Profs are playing on.
But the Lutes. Make it moot.
Make the big time where they are.
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
From around the nation
Here for the duration
R.J. Bowers rumbles on. Swarthmore says, program’s gone
Linfield out with a thud; Miracle in the Mud
Stagg Bowl 28, Chenos kicks it through late
Raiders start another run,3 55 opponents stunned
CNU debuts in dance, Stopped clock gives Bridgewater chance
Chuck Moore goes for 95, Raider streak is still alive
Raiders meet the Warhawks, stay off the River Walk
409 for Coach John, Zauhar’s pick, he’s long gone
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
We don’t make the bracket
You don’t have to ask it
Now the Cru enter the chat, Linfield says the heck with that
Beaver, Garcon, Damien Dumonceaux
Warhawks make their first Stagg, Next year’s there’s a second Stagg
In 07 they break through, it’s a run for them, too
Garcon plays on Sunday night, Game Seven is quite a fight
Leipold goes to D-I, one last title so fun
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
If their call sounds half-assed
Listen to our broadcast
Toms awaken, now they’re gone, Kehres’ coaching days are done,
Kevin Burke Gagliardis twice, ’16 title pays the price
Target Field packs ‘em in, Cortaca’s big crowds begin
Stagg Bowl starts to hit the road, local fans are no-shows
Urban, Dietz and Rindahl coach, Kehres’ tree has D-I growth
Cardinals show they’re here to play, Warhawks drawing 20K,
COVID shuts it all down, Wesley, others leave town
Now no purple in the Stagg, Circle back where we began
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
If this game is lame,
Then we all know who to blame, the same, for shame, the same, for shame, the game is lame so lame
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here at Stagg Bowl 50
Had to write a parody
For this anniversary
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Singing for the haters
And the tailgaters
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Played for half a century
As the best of D-III
We’re here for Stagg Bowl 50
Gone five hundred miles
With a thousand smiles
Epic, simply epic. So many nuggets (painful ones too, LOL).
Curious people want to know – who did the backing vocals on the refrain?
All vocals are mine on this one. So far, that’s been the case on all of them, but maybe I’ll have the opportunity to get some production assistance on the songs someday as well.
You might not get in them even if you’re 10-0.
A number of unbeaten teams had been left out of the playoffs just in the few most recent years before the 1999 expansion, namely:
Emory & Henry 1998
Grinnell 1998
Lakeland 1997
1999 felt nice, when the field expanded twice
The playoffs actually expanded twice after the 1998 season. After playing around with a number of playoff format ideas, including one which had three eight-team brackets and no national champion, the Division III membership finally approved a five-week championship, and an expansion to 24 teams was announced. But when D-III members fine-tuned the access ratio of one playoff bid for every certain number of schools sponsoring the sport, it turned out 28 teams was the proper number, and the field expanded twice before a game was played.
Purple Raiders on a streak,
Tying Augie’s what they seek
Mount Union entered the 1999 season and playoffs having won three consecutive national titles, one short of the record four in a row won by Augustana from 1983-1986.
Frosty’s not the type to boast,
They’re still new to D3 and they’re out here having fun.
This is in reference to Frosty Westering, head coach of Pacific Lutheran, whose team was in its second year of D-III membership after coming from the NAIA.
Rowan’s guys from ACC,
Pluto’s spirit of D3
These lines go together. Rowan had two literal transfers from ACC programs playing for them in 1999. Terry Pluto, then a columnist for the Akron Beacon-Journal, appeared to take offense to this, and blasted Rowan’s football program in a column in the paper before the Rowan-Mount Union national semifinal that year. WGLS radio, the student station at Rowan, interviewed Pluto at halftime of that semifinal game, and educated Pluto on the fact that a high percentage of the general student body of D-III was, in fact, transfers, and why would football be any different? Pluto felt that was against the spirit of Division III, and when asked what that spirit was, said he was defining the spirit of Division III. All of this took place next to me that day, as I was seated next to WGLS in the Mount Union press box.
Semi goes to overtime,
Smeck to throw just one more time
Sadak says “The record’s gone”
Rowan Profs are playing on.
Mount and Rowan go to overtime, and Rowan scores first. Mount Union ends up facing a fourth-and-4 on its OT possession and Gary Smeck’s pass is broken up, meaning Rowan won, snapping Mount Union’s 55-game winning streak. John Sadak, then the voice of the Profs, and now the television voice of MLB’s Cincinnati Reds, said “The record’s gone” as part of his call of the play, and that call is heard in the song.
But the Lutes. Make it moot.
Make the big time where they are.
Oh yes, that’s true. Pacific Lutheran defeated Rowan in a big way in the Stagg Bowl. One of Frosty Westering’s biggest sayings, Make the Big Time Where You Are was the title of his book.
Will continue annotating at a later time.
R.J. Bowers rumbles on.
R.J. Bowers played running back for Grove City, and became the first person to rush for more than 7,000 yards in a career in NCAA football. He was the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer and a two-time first team D3football.com All-America pick, in our first two seasons.
Swarthmore says, program’s gone
Swarthmore College made the unpopular decision to drop the sport of football after the 2000 season, a year in which the Garnet went 4-5, their best season in years.
https://www.d3football.com/notables/2000/swarthmore-drops-football
Linfield out with a thud; Miracle in the Mud
The thud is Central’s attempt at a game-winning field goal being blocked by Linfield in overtime in a second-round playoff game in Oregon. The Miracle is the ball being scooped up behind the line of scrimmage by Central center Reid Evans and then advanced by fullback Joe Ritzert for a touchdown to give the Dutch the 2017 win. If you remember the play on which Johns Hopkins defeated Muhlenberg this year, this is that same play — just add mud.
Stagg Bowl 28, Chenos kicks it through late
Right-footed kicker Rodney Chenos booted through a short field goal with 1 second left on the clock to lift Mount Union past St. John’s 10-7 in Stagg Bowl XXVIII.
Raiders start another run, 55 opponents stunned
OK, maybe not all 55 teams were stunned, but Mount Union’s win was the first of another three consecutive championships for the Purple Raiders, a streak which extended to 55 consecutive wins.
CNU debuts in dance
Christopher Newport started football in 2001 and its first-year team set the new standard for such neophyte teams (we see you West Georgia), making it to the NCAA playoffs by winning the automatic bid of the then-Dixie Conference. That conference is now the USA South Athletic Conference.
Stopped clock gives Bridgewater chance
Man, if you don’t know this one, we have a brand new story for you.
https://www.d3football.com/playoffs/salem/bridgewater-after-the-clock-stopped
Chuck Moore goes for 95, Raider streak is still alive
Chuck Moore ripped off a Stagg Bowl-record 95-yard run for a touchdown that was essentially the back-breaker for Bridgewater in the Stagg Bowl in 2001. Record later matched by Nate Kmic in the Stagg Bowl in 2005.
Raiders meet the Warhawks
Before Mount Union and UW-Whitewater met in all those Stagg Bowls, they played a home-and-home in 2002 and 2003.
stay off the River Walk
Trinity (Texas) quarterback Roy Hampton was arrested on the River Walk in San Antonio after the team’s national semifinal win. He was suspended and not able to play in the Stagg Bowl against Mount Union the following week. Unfortunately, Hampton struggled after this and passed away due to an overdose in 2013.
409 for Coach John
In 2003, St. John’s coach John Gagliardi won his 409th game, as the Johnnies defeated Bethel in the second-to-last week of the regular season, making Gagliardi the winningest coach in NCAA football history at any level. We recognize the irony of calling him “Coach John” since he only wanted to be called “John” and not “Coach.”
Zauhar’s pick, he’s long gone
Mike Zauhar intercepted a Jesse Burghardt pass midway through the fourth quarter and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown in the 2003 Stagg Bowl, putting St. John’s up by three scores. SJU won the national title that year, 24-6 over Mount Union. We visited with Zauhar this week:
https://www.d3football.com/playoffs/salem/johnnies-finish-miracle-season
Now the Cru enter the chat,
Mary Hardin-Baylor, the Cru, reach the Stagg Bowl in 2004 …
Linfield says the heck with that
… and Linfield beats UMHB to win the national title.
Beaver, Garcon, Damien Dumonceaux
Top offensive players of the era, Justin Beaver (UW-Whitewater running back, three-time first-team All-American) and Pierre Garcon (Mount Union receiver, two-time first-team All-American) and a top defensive player, St. John’s defensive lineman Damien Dumonceaux (2005 D3football.com Defensive Player of the Year)
Warhawks make their first Stagg, Next year’s there’s a second Stagg
UW-Whitewater plays in the Stagg Bowl in 2005 and returns in 2006.
In 07 they break through, it’s a run for them, too
The Warhawks win in their third trip to Salem and the trips to Salem continue.
Garcon plays on Sunday night,
Pierre Garcon was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts and played multiple times on Sunday Night Football, announcing his alma mater for the world to hear as “Mount Union.”
Game Seven is quite a fight
Whitewater and Mount Union played in seven consecutive Stagg Bowls and split the first six, so we treated that seventh game as a true Game Seven.
Leipold goes to D-I, one last title so fun
UWW coach Lance Leipold announced during the playoffs he was leaving UW-Whitewater to take the head coaching job at Buffalo, but stayed through the postseason run and the Warhawks won one last title under Leipold.
So far it’s the last title for the Warhawks overall as well, but time will tell.
Toms awaken, now they’re gone,
St. Thomas was long seen as a sleeping giant in the MIAC, although they struggled for years under previous coaching. When UST hired Glenn Caruso, however, the giant awoke, and became perhaps the primary power in the conference for a span of several years, including playing in two Stagg Bowls. Now UST is a Division I member.
Kehres’ coaching days are done,
Larry Kehres announced his retirement as head coach at Mount Union in May of 2013, having led the Purple Raiders to 11 titles, all of them in a span of 20 seasons from 1993 to 2012. This could also be read to talk about his son, Vince Kehres, who still coaches, but not at UMU. The younger Kehres coached from 2013 through 2019 and won the program’s other two national titles.
Kevin Burke Gagliardis twice,
Gagliardi as a verb, as in “win the Gagliardi Trophy twice.” Nobody else has ever done that as of this writing.
’16 title pays the price
Mary Hardin-Baylor vacated the 2016 national title as part of the fallout from a coach lending a player a used Subaru.
Target Field packs ‘em in, Cortaca’s big crowds begin
These are tied together. In 2017, St. Thomas and St. John’s played their annual rivalry game at Target Field, the Minneapolis home of the Minnesota Twins, and the game more than doubled the existing Division III football record for single-game attendance, drawing 37,355. The Cortaca Jug rivalry followed suit two years later, selling 45,161 tickets for a Cortland vs. Ithaca game at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the home of the NFL’s New York Giants and New York Jets.
The Tommies and Johnnies were slated to play at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Minneapolis home of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings, but that game was canceled because of COVID. Cortaca was played at Yankee Stadium in New York in November of 2022, drawing 40,232 and making sure the Cortaca Jug rivalry accounted for the two biggest recorded single-game attendance totals in Division III football history.
Stagg Bowl starts to hit the road, local fans are no-shows
Unless the game is in Texas and UMHB is playing in it, it’s hard to say the Stagg Bowl has been a success from an attendance standpoint since the NCAA Division III football committee took it away from Salem.
Urban, Dietz and Rindahl coach,
Jerheme Urban, Brett Dietz and Jace Rindahl are all prominent Division III football players who have gone on to become Division III head football coaches, at Trinity (Texas), DePauw and UW-Whitewater, respectively.
Kehres’ tree has D-I growth
People often talk about a coach’s tree, where a head coach either has players or assistant coaches who go on to other coaching jobs. For Larry Kehres, that list includes Jason Candle (head coach at D-I Toledo), Matt Campbell (head coach at D-I Iowa State), and other coaches at the D-I level, plus such notables as Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni.
Cardinals show they’re here to play,
North Central. Literally here to play in the Stagg Bowl for the fourth consecutive playoffs, in fact.
Warhawks drawing 20K,
UW-Whitewater does not need a fancy off-campus stadium to host a game in order to draw crazy attendance totals.
COVID shuts it all down,
Remember that 202 season? Yeah, neither do we. The fall had a handful of games and the spring had more but no playoffs.
Wesley, others leave town
Wesley is the most prominent program to go under since the pandemic started, but others such as MacMurray and Finlandia have gone under as well.
Now no purple in the Stagg,
Think this is well-covered as well.
Circle back where we began
And we’re back where we began, where we have a Stagg Bowl with no purple team, just like in 1999. And also like 1999, an at-large playoff spot is really difficult to come by. Sigh.
Thanks for reading the annotated version of the song.