2024 St. John's bracket previews
We take you team-by-team through the NCAA playoff bracket!- St. John's bracket | Hardin-Simmons bracket | Salisbury bracket | Cortland bracket
- Download the 2024 playoff bracket | More 2024 playoff coverage
St. John's Johnnies
| Seed: | No. 1, St. John's bracket, No. 1 overall |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 3, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | Collegeville, Minnesota |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1462 |
| Stadium: | Clemens Stadium (8500) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | MIAC |
| Head coach: | Gary Fasching (St. John's) |
| Career record: | 109-19 (.852) |
| Base offense: | Multiple one-back |
| Base defense: | 4-3 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 44-26 (1976-77, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1993-94, 1996, 1998-2003, 2005-09, 2014-19, 2021-22) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | 1976, 2003 |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 460 | 130 |
| How they got here: | Automatic bid: MIAC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | They get just enough running game going to keep opposing defenses from keying on Aaron Syverson in the passing game all the time and the defensive front gets to the quarterback quickly enough that the secondary can cover 1-on-1 more effectively. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | They lose focus at the end of games, or take chances on defense that result in big plays against them, and the offensive unit becomes one-dimensional and can't consistently chew clock because the ground game is missing key components. |
| This season's turning point: | Coming back from last year's disappointment at being left out of the playoffs and garnering two wins against playoff teams by 20-plus points in the season's first three games. |
| NPI (rank): | 80.849 (1) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 139.4/374.0 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 51.1/206.4 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 7.4/4.3 |
| Leading passer: | Aaron Syverson, 355.9 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Caden Wheeler, 91.2 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Dylan Wheeler, 106.5 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Aiden McMahon, 63 (28 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Zach Frank, 8.0 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Westin Hoyt, 3 |
| How far can they go? | They have the talent, especially on offense, to make the semifinals. |
Lake Forest Foresters
| Seed: | No. 2 seed, St. John's bracket (No. 8 overall) |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 25, 2021 final |
| Location: | Lake Forest, Ill. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1683 |
| Stadium: | Farwell Field (1500) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | MWC |
| Head coach: | Jim Catanzaro (Greenville) |
| Career record: | 99-56 (.639) |
| Base offense: | Multiple one-back |
| Base defense: | 4-3 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 0-3 (2002, 2021-22) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 420 | 144 |
| How they got here: | Automatic bid: MWC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | A.J. Jackson's number is being called often. A do-it-all playmaker for the Foresters, when Jackson is at his best, the entire Lake Forest offense tends to be in rhythm. Defensively, the opposing offense will find itself in plenty of third-and-long situations, with a low conversion rate on passing plays against the Foresters' secondary. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The offensive line fails to control the opponent's defensive front, leading to multiple sacks and pressure on quarterback Joshua Gasca. Much of Lake Forest's offensive success is dependent on the passing game, and an inability to contain the pass rush will compound itself across the entire offense. |
| This season's turning point: | Trailing Monmouth by one score in the de facto MWC title game in Week 10, Lake Forest scored twice in a two-minute span, stealing a victory from Monmouth's grasp. The performance on both sides of the ball late in the final quarter said plenty about the Foresters' fortitude and essentially clinched their conference title. |
| NPI (rank): | 74.531 (8) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 170.3/246.1 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 75.4/167.3 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.7/4.0 |
| Leading passer: | Joshua Gasca, 234.11 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | A.J. Jackson, 61.89 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | A.J. Jackson, 77.0 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Jackson Sander, 60 (33 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Jaylen Johnson, 6.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Brandon Henderson, 4 |
| How far can they go? | This is not a good matchup to showcase the power of NPI. |
Wartburg Knights
| Seed: | No. 3, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 1, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | Waverly, Iowa |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1361 |
| Stadium: | Walston-Hoover Stadium (4800) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | ARC |
| Head coach: | Chris Winter (Wartburg '04) |
| Career record: | 42-6 (.875) |
| Base offense: | Multiple pro |
| Base defense: | 4-3 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 17-16 (1982, 1993-94, 1999, 2002-04, 2008, 2010, 2013-14, 2017-19, 2022-23) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 367 | 152 |
| How they got here: | Automatic bid: ARC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | The defense bends, and perhaps bends quite a bit, but it doesn't break. They gave up passing yards in bunches to BVU and Simpson, but held each of them to 21 points and the Wartburg offense had no problem putting up points of their own. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The offense can't move the ball effectively through the air, regardless of which quarterback gets the opportunity to do so. And this is a passing attack which through for more than 300 yards in each of its first two games. |
| This season's turning point: | Cam Stalzer came up with a sack on the final play of the game on Coe quarterback Clay Krousie at the Wartburg 34-yard line, keeping Coe from being able to rally from a fourth-quarter defense. The win was the second close, low-scoring win against fellow ARC contenders, allowing the Knights to return to the playoffs. |
| NPI (rank): | 72.528 (12) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 212.1/200.3 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 52.4/258.5 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.5/4.8 |
| Leading passer: | Carter Markham, 151.67 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Dawson Rud, 86.9 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Carter Henry, 48.7 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Keenan Tyler, 95 (53 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Connor McDonald, 3.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Thane Alexander, 4 |
| How far can they go? | It's hard to know if they have enough offense to last long in a quality Division III football playoff bracket. |
UW-Platteville Pioneers
| Seed: | No. 4 seed, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 7, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | Platteville, Wis. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 5318 |
| Stadium: | Pioneer Stadium (10000) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | WIAC |
| Head coach: | Ryan Munz (UW-Platteville '06) |
| Career record: | 21-10 (.677) |
| Base offense: | Multiple spread |
| Base defense: | Multiple |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 1-2 (2013, 2016) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 381 | 162 |
| How they got here: | Automatic bid: WIAC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | The screen pass is working. The Pioneers have one of the WIAC's most efficient passing attacks, and part of that is because they throw plenty of short, quick passes, including screens. When the receivers block well on the outside, which they typically do, it leads to a sizable gain. And the defense will be well into the backfield just a couple seconds after the snap, forcing the quarterback out of the pocket and into off-balance throws consistently. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The defense is consistently giving up easy completions to the sides of the field on 5-10 yard out routes and crossing routes. That's one reason Platteville allowed 255 passing yards per game in WIAC play, and is one of the few weaknesses the Pioneer defense has had. A day of multiple turnovers for the offense, something that happened four times in the regular season, could also spell trouble. |
| This season's turning point: | Any doubt about Platteville being a playoff-caliber team was put to rest on the first weekend of October, when the Pioneers went on the road to then-No. 3 UW-La Crosse and stunned the Eagles in overtime, 30-27. The fact that it was on the road, and Platteville erased a 24-9 deficit in the fourth quarter instilled an invaluable sense of confidence in what the Pioneers could accomplish further down the road. |
| NPI (rank): | 72.112 (13) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 142.3/289.6 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 92.3/234.0 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.5/4.8 |
| Leading passer: | Michael Priami, 264.9 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Zackary Bothun, 83.3 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Brandt Stare, 74.8 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Will Straka, 69 (40 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Riley Christensen, 6.0 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Harrison Meyer, 3 |
| How far can they go? | The WIAC champ is always a danger and Platteville should be considered a favorite to at least make the quarterfinals. |
Susquehanna River Hawks
| Seed: | No. 5, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 6, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | Selinsgrove, Pa. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 2121 |
| Stadium: | Amos Alonzo Stagg Field at Doug Arthur Stadium (3500) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | LAND |
| Head coach: | Tom Perkovich (Canisius '03) |
| Career record: | 70-21 (.769) |
| Base offense: | Spread |
| Base defense: | 3-4 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 3-8 (1986, 1991, 2009, 2022-23) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 485 | 192 |
| How they got here: | Automatic: Landmark champ |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | QB Josh Ehrlich has time to find open receivers, Rahshan La Mons is clicking in the backfield and the defensive front is helping force three and outs by containing the opposing quarterback. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The opposing quarterback is able to extend plays and extend drives with his feet and the defense can't get off the field, whether it's on third down or even on fourth down. |
| This season's turning point: | Getting a late score to put away Moravian after allowing the Greyhounds to hang around all game, and going into their bye week at 8-1. |
| NPI (rank): | 69.884 (16) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 257.2/280.5 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 96.0/237.3 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 8.1/5.0 |
| Leading passer: | Josh Ehrlich, 240.3 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Rahshan La Mons, 115.6 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Kyle Howes, 96.5 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Garrett Carter, 69 (28 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Jake Schultes, 5.0 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Drew Robinson, Josh Parson, 2 |
| How far can they go? | The River Hawks are still looking for that first playoff win in this run of recent success, and that dream should be realized. |
Hobart Statesmen
| Seed: | No. 6 seed, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 14, 2017 preseason |
| Location: | Geneva, NY |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1529 |
| Stadium: | Boswell Field (4500) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | LL |
| Head coach: | Kevin DeWall (Hobart '00) |
| Career record: | 47-16 (.746) at Hobart; 60-33 (.645) overall |
| Base offense: | Spread |
| Base defense: | 4-2-5 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 9-12 (2000, 2002, 2004-08, 2011-14, 2016) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 273 | 83 |
| How they got here: | Automatic: LL champ |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | The secondary is locked in and making big plays downfield. Hobart's defense has tallied an interception in nine of its 10 games this season, including two interceptions in each of the last four. The Statesmen are allowing just 5.5 yards per passing attempt. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The offense struggles to put together a drive longer than six plays. In the three games in which Hobart's offense put fewer than 20 points on the board, including their lone loss, the Statesmen averaged just 1.66 drives per game spanning eight plays or more. |
| This season's turning point: | Hobart narrowly fell in its first big test at Randolph-Macon, but didn't miss its chance the second time around, facing Ithaca in Week 5. The Statesmen hadn't beaten the Bombers since 2016, and the 16-7 victory not only raised their profile but also gave Hobart an inside track to the Liberty League title. |
| NPI (rank): | 68.841 (20) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 155.9/192.4 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 97.1/146.9 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 5.7/4.2 |
| Leading passer: | Johnny Colombi, 188.33 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | E.J. Taylor, 100.2 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Ahmad Crowell, 61.2 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Jaimen Bliss, 90 (34 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Jaimen Bliss, Vincent Giordano, 2.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Corey Rock, 4 |
| How far can they go? | Back to the playoffs is a good start. Not quite sure this team is ready to keep Susquehanna in check, but if it cane, perhaps there's a chance to advance. |
Bethel Royals
| Seed: | No. 7 seed, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 21, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | Arden Hills, Minn. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1949 |
| Stadium: | Royal Stadium (3500) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | MIAC |
| Head coach: | Mike McElroy (Southern Illinois) |
| Career record: | 8-2 (.800) |
| Base offense: | Spread |
| Base defense: | 3-3-5 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 12-12 (2000-01, 2003, 2006-07, 2010, 2012-13, 2018, 2021-23) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 503 | 150 |
| How they got here: | At-large from MIAC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | It's not just Joey Kidder but also Micah Niewald getting touches and also Aaron Ellingson in the backfield, so that Cooper Drews has enough weapons to draw on to keep the opposing defense from being able to guess right. On defense, Matt Jung is getting his hands on the ball in the secondary and Caden DeWall is getting his hands on the quarterback up front. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | Someone is actually able to run on the Bethel defense, especially if it's a running back and not the quarterback, and the turnover bug strikes the offense. St. John's had five takeaways in the first meeting and four in the second. |
| This season's turning point: | Having a long string of overmatched opponents to allow the team to regroup after a disappointing early-season home loss to St. John's. |
| NPI (rank): | 66.155 (28) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 171.7/303.2 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 19.3/196.8 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.4/3.5 |
| Leading passer: | Cooper Drews, 281.5 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Aaron Ellingson, 70.7 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Joey Kidder, 107.2 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Matt Jung, 77 (44 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Caden DeWall, 15.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Matt Jung, 8 |
| How far can they go? | Actually the favorite to make the quarterfinals out of its section of the bracket. |
UW-La Crosse Eagles
| Seed: | No. 8, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 18, Week 11 2024 |
| Location: | La Crosse, Wis. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 8725 |
| Stadium: | Veterans Memorial Field at Roger Harring Stadium (6200) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | WIAC |
| Head coach: | Matt Janus (UW-Platteville '10) |
| Career record: | 36-10 (.783) |
| Base offense: | Shotgun/11 personnel |
| Base defense: | 4-3 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 19-12 (1983, 1991-93, 1995-96, 1999, 2002-04, 2006, 2021-23) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | 1992, 1995 |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 318 | 202 |
| How they got here: | At-large |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | Gabe Lynch, or someone, is able to provide enough in the ground game to keep the La Crosse offense moving and give Kyle Haas an opportunity to throw with less pressure, especially to Jack Studer. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | They lose focus late in games and let teams rally down the stretch. Or as Matt Janus would say, they lost sight of their goal to play for each other, rather than to play to win. |
| This season's turning point: | Getting back on track after three consecutive losses, including one of them at Division II powerhouse Grand Valley State. The Eagles got through three quality opponents, defeating UW-River Falls, UW-Stout and UW-Whitewater by a total of nine points, to remain in the playoff picture. |
| NPI (rank): | 64.409 (33) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 155.0/267.2 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 106.2/234.3 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.1/5.5 |
| Leading passer: | Kyle Haas, 176.4 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Gabe Lynch, 90.6 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Jack Studer, 103.7 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Ryan Daines, 59 (35 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Ross Gengler, 3.0 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Trent Mullen, 4 |
| How far can they go? | The history of this program would suggest they can get to the national semifinals, even through the top overall seed, but that is last year's Eagles. |
Coe Kohawks
| Seed: | No. 9 seed, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | No. 25, Week 10 2023 |
| Location: | Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1218 |
| Stadium: | Clark (1200) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | ARC |
| Head coach: | Tyler Staker (Coe '06) |
| Career record: | 60-24 (.714) |
| Base offense: | Spread |
| Base defense: | 3-4 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 3-10 (1985, 1991, 1993, 2002, 2005, 2009-10, 2012, 2016, 2-23) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 386 | 121 |
| How they got here: | At-large: ARC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | The run game gets going. Utilizing several RPO-type sets, Coe's threat as a passing team tends to open up gaps in the middle, giving Trenton Barnes plenty of room to run. Once this happens, it seems to really open up Coe's entire offense. To that point on the other side of the ball, the Kohawk defense will look like a stone wall against the opponent's rushing attack, displaying why six of their opponents were held to fewer than 50 yards. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The secondary gives up deep passes over the top. We saw it at times through the regular season where an opposing receiver ran a seam route and got behind the safeties, leading to a long gain. You?ll also see the offense struggling to convert in short-yardage situations, particularly when they opt to go for it on fourth down. |
| This season's turning point: | Clay Krousie hitting Jeron Senters in the right end zone for a touchdown in the second overtime as Coe survived Central, winning 16-13. The Kohawks and Dutch were tied 3-3 at the end of regulation and Coe had only 270 yards before the overtimes started. But that was enough to keep Coe undefeated and gave them the buffer to be able to survive their later loss to Wartburg and still get in the field. |
| NPI (rank): | 65.659 (30) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 225.1/205.6 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 52.4/208.2 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 5.9/3.9 |
| Leading passer: | Clay Krousie, 161.56 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Trenton Barnes, 121.5 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Jeron Senters, 75.2 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Sam Shaw, 64 (39 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Alex Aitchison, 6.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Henry Ryan, Chase Kruse, Mitchell Eckardt, 2 |
| How far can they go? | It's going to be a struggle to find a way to move the ball against Bethel, regardless of who is hosting the game. |
Northwestern (Minn.) Eagles
| Seed: | No. 10 seed, St. John's bracket |
| Last Top 25 ranking: | Never ranked |
| Location: | Roseville, Minn. |
| Enrollment (FT undergrads): | 1372 |
| Stadium: | Reynolds Field (1800) |
| Playing surface: | Turf |
| Conference: | UMAC |
| Head coach: | Matt Moore (Northwestern, Minn. '99) |
| Career record: | 38-35 (.521) |
| Base offense: | Spread RPO |
| Base defense: | 3-4 |
| Record in NCAA playoffs: | 0-2 (2016, 2022) |
| NCAA D-III championships: | None |
• D3football.com team page: Schedule and results, more news
| Points for | Points against |
| 324 | 257 |
| How they got here: | Automatic bid: UMAC |
| You'll know they're playing well if: | Sivert Klefsaas (1,271 yards on the ground in 2024) has room to run and that allows Caden Cantrell to be an efficient passer. The defense is able to keep opposing quarterbacks from throwing downfield and also tightens up in the red zone. |
| You'll know they're playing poorly if: | The offensive line not only can't open holes for the running game, they can't protect the quarterback, either. The defense struggles with quick change and turnovers turn into points. |
| This season's turning point: | The Eagles came out of the locker room and scored 21 points to get a big lead against Greenville in Week 10, then got a defensive stop with 3:06 to play, up by eight points. The Eagles converted on fourth-and-1 to keep the ensuing drive going and was able to kneel it down to secure the win and the UMAC's automatic bid. |
| NPI (rank): | 55.916 (81) |
| Rushing/passing yards per game: | 138.8/236.2 |
| Rushing/passing yards allowed: | 171.7/154.1 |
| Yards per play/allowed per play: | 6.4/4.9 |
| Leading passer: | Caden Cantrell, 229.7 ypg |
| Leading rusher: | Sivert Klefsaas, 127.1 ypg |
| Leading receiver: | Beau Burk, 98.7 ypg |
| Leading tackler: | Jayden Goodwin, 80 (31 solo) |
| Leader in sacks: | Nale Jennings, 5.5 |
| Leader in interceptions: | Luke Malamisuro, 4 |
| How far can they go? | Northwestern has beaten seven UMAC teams and has lost to two MIAC teams and to UW-Stout, by a 56-19 score. Their first-round opponent finished ahead of Stout in the WIAC. |