The Albright College Lions make a surprise appearance in the D3 National Playoff Quarterfinals on Saturday as they visit the defending National Champion Mount Union Purple Raiders in Alliance, Ohio. The Lions were arguably underdogs in each of the first two rounds of the playoffs. In round one, they traveled to and defeated Alfred 35-25. In round two, the Lions avenged an earlier defeat by downing Delaware Valley College 27-3. The Lions threw for over 300 yards in each game, but was ineffective on the ground, averaging less than 100 yards per game. This lack of balance will cost the Lions dearly as they step up to face the most dominant program in Division 3 Football over the past 20 years. Mount Union is strong in every facet of the game and has shown the consistency of a champion since the middle of October. The Albright run ends here: Mount Union 52 Albright 10.
JOHNS HOPKINS AT WESLEY COLLEGE
The Johns Hopkins Blue Jays are another surprise survivor of the round of 16 and into the quarterfinals. In Round One, the Blue Jays turned in a dominating defensive performance in winning at Hampden-Sidney College 23-7. The Blue Jays gained 303 yards through the air and 128 on the ground as they held HS-C to 199 total yards. In the second round Johns Hopkins went on the road again and surprised Thomas More 31-29. Junior kicker Alex Lachman nailed a 43 yard field goal as time expired to give the Blue Jays the win. Johns Hopkins gained 414 yards in total offense, but survived 4 interceptions to gain the last second win. The Wesley College Wolverines enter the game at 12-0 and seeded 1st in the bracket. The Wolverines won their first two games easily, defeating North Carolina Wesleyan 55-23 and Mississippi College 43-9. Wesley College has been dominant all season outscoring their opponents 454-134. The Wolverines have a high powered attack averaging 37.8 points per game. They have amassed 235.6 passing yards per game and 196.7 rushing yards per game. Defensively, they give up a stingy 2.1 yards per carry on the ground and are ball hawks with 21 interceptions. Wesley College is dominant due to superior line play on both sides of the ball. This is likely to wear down the Cinderalla Blue Jays. Wesley College 38 Johns Hopkins 21
WITTENBERG AT UW-WHITEWATER
Much has been written in this blog about this matchup already. Wittenberg brings in the number #1 ranked defense in the nation into Perkins Stadium on Saturday. However, most likely they will not be the best defense on the field against the talented and hard hitting Warhawks. The Wittenberg offense does not have enough to stay with the potent and balanced attack UWW brings to the table. If the Tigers play well, they keep it close for a little over a quarter. If not, things will get real ugly. UW-Whitewater 45 Wittenberg 7.
SAINT THOMAS AT LINFIELD
This is a clash of two different style football teams and is likely to be the most competitive game on the board Saturday. The Tommies come into the game with impressive wins over Monmouth (43-21) and Coe (34-7). The Wildcats are coming off the most impressive win in this year's playoffs so far, a 53-21 dismantling of highly regarded Mary Hardin -Baylor. Linfield beat California Lutheran in the opening round 38-17. The Tommies are a physical, run oriented team who average 257.9 ypg and 6.2 ypc on the ground. In spite of being "ground heavy" the Tommies have averaged an impressive 40.7 points per game. Defensively, St. Thomas completes a great formula for victory by stopping the run extremely well. They have given up only 2.8 ypc on the ground. The Linfield Wildcats come in averaging 42.7 points per game and have not scored fewer than 30 in a contest all year. The Wildcats average 169.5 ypg on the ground and 273.8 ypg through the air. Look for this game to be a lot of fun to watch for fans from both teams. Look for the scoreboard to be lit up in this one:
LINFIELD 42 ST. THOMAS 38.
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