#1 SJU vs #8 Coe

#4 Monmouth vs #5 St. Thomas

#3 Linfield vs #6 California Lutheran

#2 Central vs #7 Mary-Hardin Baylor

These are the first round matchups with the winners playing each other at a home site to be determined (see: Most revenue for the NCAA).  The lack of seeding seems a bit ridiculous for a number of reasons, but this is par for the course with the always unpredictable NCAA.

At first glance you notice that there is the potential for an epic rematch with the Tommies in the 2nd Round as well as another “Miracle in the Mud” game between Linfield and Central.  The West (the NCAA doesn’t officially call it that, but I will because that is essentially what it is) Bracket is loaded with good teams and whomever emerges from it on December 5th will be battle tested.

There are really 5 teams capable of winning the bracket.  They are St. John’s, Central, Linfield, Mary-Hardin Baylor, and St. Thomas.  That is a lot of red and purple.  The darkhorse is Mary-Hardin Baylor who will be on the road for as long as their playoff run goes.  The favorite is probably Linfield or St. John’s. 

The sleeper in my mind is clearly St. Thomas.  I’ve seen the Tommies and Johnnies more than anyone this season.  They replaced their QB (Dakota Tracy taking over for Greg Morse) a few weeks ago and are now hitting on all cylinders.  It would be a really tremendous chess match in Collegeville on November 28th.

Multiple teams have a legitmate shot at winning the West region and playing at either Mount Union or Wisconsin-Whitewater in the National Semifinals.  This may be the 5th consecutive year with the Stagg Bowl matching up the Raiders and the Warhawks in Salem, VA, but one thing is certain.  The team that navigates the West successfully will be ready to give them a helluva battle.  Enjoy the ride!!!

Odds of Winning the West Region Bracket:

#1 St. John’s–                         5 to 1

#2 Central–                            10 to 1

#3 Linfield–                            6 to 1

#4 Monmouth–                      20 to 1

#5 St. Thomas–                    15 to 1  

#6 California Lutheran–     200 to 1

#7 Mary-Hardin Baylor–      8 to 1

#8 Coe College–                 150 to 1

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Thanks for reading and your continued support of JohnnieFootball.com.  Please feel free to email me at touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com with all your questions, concerns, analysis, and rants.  I respond to each email personally.

The Knights, led by Johnnie QB legend Kurt Ramler, are having a tough season after coming within 20 seconds of a MIAC conference title last season.  They have gotten blown out by Bethel and St. Thomas, but also played fairly tight games with the rest of the conference schedule.  The Knight defense is having an especially rough season allowing an average of 27.5 points per game (and that statistic includes a shutout against perennial patsy Macalester).

All this being said, Carleton has shown they can play the Johnnies close in recent years.  You have to believe this is partly to do with Ramler’s extensive knowledge of the Johnnie schemes and ways to counter them.  The Knights may be undermanned and lacking in talent on Saturday in Collegeville, but you know they will be in the right spot to make plays.  They will be well-coached and playing for pride if nothing else.  There is nothing more frightening then playing a team with absolutely nothing to lose.

The Johnnies have plenty to worry about themselves.  Injuries continue to be a consistent theme of the 2009 season.  Another week of rest for QB Joe Boyle’s hand injury would be excellent .  Freshmen QB John Ries stepped in admirably last week against Augsburg albeit with one errant throw that resulted in the only Auggie points of the afternoon.  Another week of practice should do him good along with opening up the playbook a bit more. 

It is critical to get things ratcheted up for the playoffs this weekend.  In order to have success in the playoffs a team must be balanced.  The Johnnie defense has been outstanding again this season steadily improving upon the WIAC non-conference games.  However, the offensive attack has been overwhelmingly reliant upon the running game.  You can’t be one-dimensional in the playoffs and expect to advance deep into the tournament.   The running game has been multi-faceted and quite dominant, but there will come a time in the playoffs when throwing the ball will be mandatory. 

This week the Johnnie offensive line must step up to the challenge and provide Ries with ample time to find the open receivers.  The key to a successful postseason run is the Johnnies’ QB’s ability to scramble and find guys open down the field through the air.  It is absolutely critical to be able to pick up important 3rd down conversions to keep drives moving.  Saturday will be a great day for football!!

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Thanks for reading and your continued support of JohnnieFootball.com.  Please write to me with any questions, concerns, comments, complaints, etc. at touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com.

A pre-game meeting commenced at The Nook (corner of Hamline and Randolph Ave in St. Paul) where I was joined by the venerable Adam Johnson of D3 Around the West fame.  I quickly snagged a spot at the small bar where a Casburger (Cheese, Green Pepper Wheel, and Crispy Bacon) and Flat Earth Brewery Porter were devoured.  We talked a little pigskin and headed our separate ways (me to UST and Adam with a busy day of Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Halloween costume hunting, and wedding invitations).

I didn’t quite make it to St. Thomas before the game started.  In fact, as I was leisurely walking up Summit Ave towards O’Shaughnessy Stadium I heard “Touchdown Fritz Waldvogel” and quickly realized that the speedy little devil had returned the opening kickoff of the game for a TD.  This should tell you plenty about the Auggies special teams play.

After assuming my position around the 20 yard line, I settled in for a blowout as the weather deteriorated from sunny and comfortable to cold and windy (making me question my sanity for leaving the cozy confines of the couch for St. Thomas).  The Tommies were able to do literally anything they wanted against the Auggies.  Run, pass, trick plays, interceptions, fumble recoveries.  You name it and it happened on Saturday at UST.

I was eager to see Auggie QB Marcus Brumm (who transferred in from D-2 Mankato State before the season) and he was less than impressive.  There were five interceptions and numerous “wounded ducks” to WRs who were open.  He had guys open at times, but too often threw the ball behind guys.  Brumm left them “hung out to dry” susceptible to being in an unprotected position leaving them open to take a big hit from a UST DB.  You could try to lay the blame on the cold weather, but St. Thomas’ Dakota Tracy had no issues throwing a tight spiral all over the field.

The Auggies ran their wide open Arena League spread offense all day long.  The key targets in the offensive scheme are Muneer Al-Hameed and Mike Nourie.  They definitely moved the ball at times, but turned the ball over several times deep in Tommie territory.  Turnovers were critical on Saturday as they tend to be in any football game.  You just can’t fumble the ball going into the endzone for a touchdown and expect to be competitive.  I was completely unimpressed by their dedication to the run.  Now this had a lot to do with being behind literally from the get-go, but the Auggies were abysmal with the running game.

On defense, the Auggies appear to be undersized, outcoached, and lacking in talent to compete with UST.  The Tommies ran for 308 yards and were breaking off huge chunks of yardage at a time.  This should be interesting on Saturday at the Metrodome as running the ball is clearly the Johnnies’ bread & butter in 2009.  Augsburg is definitely susceptible to trick plays and were often caught out of position (stay in your lanes, pursue the ball, and don’t get knocked down).

In summation, this is your typical Augsburg Auggie squad.  All offense, no defense.  They want to win 49-45 every week.

Thanks for reading.  Email me at touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com with questions/comments/concerns/hate mail etc.

The tailgate was epic.  There were RVs, buses, No-Name steaks, pulled pork sandwiches, wild rice sausages, Stiftungsfest burgers, and scrambled eggs with the works boiled in a deep fryer.  There was Kool-Aid and plenty of cold bevies to suit anyone’s fancy.  As the smoke billowed from the various grills in the parking lot I took a moment to soak in the scene. 

It was spectacular and everyone seemed to be enjoying the camaraderie.  Tommies and Johnnies were mingling amongst each other.  Was the world coming to an end?  This was a pretty amazing scene and I only hoped the game would live up to it’s expectations for greatness.

The game started and it quickly became clear that the Johnnies were intent on imposing their will on the Tommie defense.  They ran the ball with Jakob Reding and Kellen Blaser right at the Tommie’s front 7.  Nearly every run was between the tackles and the Johnnie offensive line was pushing the Tommies around.  They controlled the line of scrimmage allowing the Johnnie RBs to get 3, 4, and sometimes 5 yards a crack on 1st down.

The Johnnie running game was the key to the game.  Like any good rivalry game, both teams took turns making big plays to grab the momentum from the other.  Even when the Tommies stormed back to tie the score with 2 seconds remaining, you never had the feeling they would win the game.  The Johnnies had run effectively on the Toms all day long and in the overtime period they had worn them down. 

As the postseason draws nearer and the weather takes a turn for the worst, it is critical to be able to run the football.  The Johnnies very effectively controlled the football through their running game and used it to impose their will on the Tommies.

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St. Olaf comes to Collegeville this week where it is Family Weekend.  The leaves should be in their prime, so if the weather cooperates it should be a very picturesque time on campus.  The Oles will be fired up to get revenge for the Johnnies overtime win in Northfield last season. 

Email me at touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com with questions/comments etc.

The day got off to a rousing start.  I joined a good friend of mine and utmost authority on Division 3 football, Adam Johnson, over breakfast at the St. Clair Broiler in St. Paul. The bacon and cheese omelette was outstanding.  As Adam mocked me by wearing his Linfield Wildcats Athletics shirt, a man approached our table.  He asked, “Did you go to Linfield?”  Adam quickly responded, “No but I’ve been out there several times and it is a great place!”  The man then introduced himself as a MIAC referee (who along with his crew had just enjoyed breakfast at the Broiler before their assignment at UST in the afternoon).  He proceeded to tell us his crew had done the 2001 Miracle in the Mud game between Linfield and Central College in the playoffs.  This was generally considered one of the wackier games in Division 3 history.  What a small world.  I had no idea that a MIAC officiating crew had been in McMinnville on that fateful day.

Shortly thereafter, we headed for St. Thomas where Adam informed me that it was their homecoming on Saturday.  I immediately had thoughts of parking nightmares (UST is in the midst of an enormous construction project that sits directly adjacent to O’Shaughnessy Stadium).  However my initial inclination was horribly wrong.  Parking was a breeze and the crowd was tiny.  I would venture to say the stands were never more than 2/3 full. 

This was homecoming.  Is there no pride in thy alma mater at the corner of Cretin and Summit?  Now I certainly realize Saturday wasn’t ideal weather.  It was cold, windy, dreary, and generally miserable.  But this highly optimistic turnout of 3250 was absolutely pathetic and quickly reminded me how lucky we truly are at St. John’s.  I was just flabbergasted, especially having been in Collegeville last week where there was 10 thousand+ people who came back to campus to celebrate Homecoming.

We quickly utilized our credentials to gain field access and assume our position before kickoff.  The Tommies kicked off and Concordia returned the kick 80 yards to the St. Thomas 3 yard line.  As I stood in the South endzone my first thought was, “Holy cow you could have driven a semi-trailer through that hole!!”  It was atrocious special teams kickoff coverage.

The Tommies would respond with effective, long plodding drives.  It sure looked to me like Tommie Head Coach, Glenn Caruso, loves the trick play (which was later confirmed to me by Adam).  Early in the game the Toms called a double reverse to their ultra speedy sophomore WR, Fritz Waldvogel, and it became crystal clear the gameplan was to get the ball in his hands as much as possible.  He made an incredible circus catch on the Toms first drive of the game that would have made Blake Elliott blush.  Clearly these aren’t the Tommies of years past.

My thoughts on the Tommies are as follows:

-QB Greg Morse throws a terrific ball and when given time will pick apart defenses.  However, when he was pressured and forced to scramble he made poor decisions.  I saw him throw across his body and into tight coverage several times during the game.  This resulted in a few interceptions that would be costly in a close game.

-RB Ben Wartman was underwhelming to me.  Both Adam and I concurred that he ran “too tall” and left himself susceptible to taking a big hit by not having his pads lower to the ground.  His numbers on the season are certainly impressive, but from what I saw on Saturday the Toms prefer to put the ball in the air.

-The Tommie defense was impressive.  They really run well and gang tackle to the football.  They did lose containment a few times and appear to play very aggressive.  Delayed draws, screens, mis-direction plays etc. that are designed to take advantage of this over-aggressiveness would be excellent play calls this week from the Johnnies.

-The key cog on the entire Tommie squad is WR, Fritz Waldvogel.  The Toms will do just about anything to get his hands on the ball in space.  He is really shifty, has tremendous speed, and has the ability to break any play for a touchdown.  I saw the Tommies throw the quick bubble screen several times, the slant, a double reverse, a few delayed middle screens, and the down/out/up routes to Waldvogel. 

Email me at touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com with further questions/comments.  It should be quite an atmosphere at Clemens Stadium on Saturday!!!

With all that going on, Saturday seems like a distant memory at this point.  The Johnnies and Royals combined for numerous mistakes which prevented either team from separating themselves from the other.  The Johnnies stormed back to overcome a 14-0 4th quarter deficit including a late missed extra point from Russell Gliadon.  The 49 yarder to win the game with 2.8 seconds left has become a YouTube instant classic with over 42 thousand views.  The spontaneous excitement expressed in the voice of Johnnie Football, Mark Lewandowski, makes this video one you want to watch multiple times as a Johnnie fan.

The Johnnies face Hamline this weekend in St. Paul.  The Pipers have been an annual doormat in the MIAC for a long time.  It is hard to get excited about the game while as a fan having the luxury to look ahead to the Tommies on October 17th.  An enormous crowd (10K+), as always, is expected in Collegeville for that matchup.  Here’s hoping that the Tommies can sneak by the Cobbers this Saturday allowing them to come to St. John’s undefeated!!!!

The formula for Bethel’s recent success is as follows:  Run the ball down your throat and then lean on you with their enormous Offensive Line in the 4th Quarter.  Win the turnover battle and take advantage of the miscues.  Control the time of possession (long plodding drives with the slippery Flannery, QB scrambles, and short dink & dunk passes) which tires out the Johnnie defense while also keeping the potent Johnnie offense on the sidelines.  Add in an occasional huge special teams play or kick/punt return for a touchdown and it is easy to see how the Royals have won the matchup 3 straight seasons.

I’m looking forward to seeing 10,000+ people at Clemens Stadium back at SJU for Homecoming on Saturday afternoon.  I mean this is shaping up to be one of the greatest sports weekends in Minnesota history.  The Border Battle for the Axe at TCF Bank Stadium on Saturday, the final game at the Dome in the midst of an incredible pennant race on Sunday, the Monday Night Football game at the Dome between Favre and his former mates from Green Bay, and the Wild home opener on Tuesday night in St. Paul.  I’ve got tickets to a few of these events, but there is no place I’d rather be on Saturday at 1pm than Collegeville, MN.

FYI: The Johnnie tailgate party will commence around 9am Saturday morning in the Science Center Parking Lot just above the South Endzone.  Grillmaster Veek will be serving Brats/Burgers/Beverages and Johnnie Hospitality in large quantities.  Enjoy the beautiful Fall day in Collegeville!!!

Gustavus has been a MIAC patsy the past few seasons.  They fight and claw for one half of football then lay an egg in the 2nd half.  Or worse lose to Hamline (which they did last year and nearly did last week in double overtime).  However, things have changed.  They have a new head coach, Peter Haugen, who comes from the Minneapolis city conference at Washburn High School.  He has brought in a mostly new coaching staff with a few exceptions.  Reports from Gustavus alumni are mixed on this move.  Many were extraordinarily fond of former head coach Jay Schoenbeck and wide receivers/special teams coordinator Tom Brown (who was subsequently the #2 choice for the new head coaching position).

This means that no one really knows how the new Gustie coaching staff will play the Johnnies.  What defensive front will they show?  What kind of coverage will they play in the secondary?  Will they run the spread offense?  Smash mouth?  The Wildcat formation which is in vogue in the NFL currently?  This uncertainty leads to a difficult task in preparing for a team (similar to that of facing a playoff team whom you’ve never seen before).

It would be easy to predict a blowout St. John’s win, but I don’t think I can do it.  Too many signs point to a closer than expected final score.

See everyone at Patrick’s Bar and Grill in St. Peter at 11am.  The address is 125 S. 3rd Street and the phone number is 507-931-9051.

Freshmen RB Steve Johnson has excelled early in his 1st season at St. John's

These two teams share a mutual respect that simply doesn’t exist between for instance St. John’s and St. Thomas or St. John’s and Bethel for a variety of reasons.  Both teams have always been well coached, prepared for games, and never resorted to cheap shots (which is something ahem…a few of the other MIAC schools can’t claim).  

In recent years, the games have been nailbiters with each team winning in dramatic fashion on the other’s home field.  When the Cobbers successfully kicked a late field goal in Collegeville to win 21-20 in 2004 you would have thought they had won the Super Bowl.  Cobbers head coach Terry Horan was mobbed and immediately interviewed by a reporter from FSN North on the field.  The excitement was tangible and rightfully so.  These games might count the same as a win over Hamline or Augsburg, but the long-term competitiveness of the rivalry puts added emphasis on this specific game each season. 

This week’s 3 Keys to Victory for St. John’s are:

1. Control the line of scrimmage–The team that plays the best on the offensive/defensive lines will win the game.  The Cobbers are always very well coached on both lines with plenty of “country” strong farm boys from outstate MN/ND who are tremendous football players.  It is imperative to at least create a stalemate for the majority of the game.  If Concordia starts to get great pressure on Boyle the afternoon could be a long one for Johnnie fans.
2. Diverse Play Calling–SJU is moving the ball most effectively late in the halves.  This is when they are spreading the field allowing for quick hit passes up the seam to the WR in the slot position, delayed draw plays, shovel passes, and more room to operate the option.  The continued banging of the dive play for one yard on 1st down is ridiculous.  There is no room there (especially this week against the always stout Concordia defensive line).  St. John’s passes to set up the run NOT vice versa. 
3. Big Plays–The Johnnies have shown an explosive offense at times in the first 2 games.  A couple big plays could be enough to break the Cobbers who are not designed offensively to score lots of points quickly.

Big Plays

1. QB Joe Boyle to WR Ben Vanderheyden’s 46 TD reception to pull within 3 points at the half at the end of the 1st half.
2. DE Kyle Schroeder’s sack of River Falls QB Ryan Luessenheide late in the 4th quarter to lock up the win for the Johnnies.
3. Illegal crack back block on UWRF as River Falls was driving the ball late in the game trailing by 4 points.  The crackback negated a critical 1st down reception from UWRF Tight End Ryan Hansen (which was subsequently called back by the penalty).

Top Newcomers

1. Freshman RB Steve Johnson from Mahtomedi had 7 carries for 44 yards and looked like he will be a key cog in the running game for years to come.
2. Freshman DB Alex Powell stepped into the left cornerback spot after Adam Weber had to leave the game with a knee injury.  He looked poised, showed impressive speed, and made several nice pass deflections.
3. Sophmore DE Griffin Hayes had a critical fumble recovery when the Johnnies desparately needed a turnover which led to the go-ahead touchdown.  He was around the football all day long.

Biggest Disappointments

1. The SJU Defense really had a tough day.  River Falls was controlling the line of scrimmage and QB Luessenheide was able to break containment several times creating big plays with his legs and through the air.
2. The Johnnie Offensive Line was pushed around all day by the smallish (by WIAC standards) Falcon D-Line.  Joe Boyle was under pressure most of the day when he dropped back to pass.  Controlling the line of scrimmage is where games are won/lost.
3. Several Johnnies were injured in the game.  DB Adam Weber was carted off by what appeared to be a severe knee injury and then LB Ethan Eid was tended to shortly thereafter.

Keep It Coming

1. The 1 yard dive play is clearly not working.  Spread out the field (hush maybe bring back the Diamond formation) and move Joe Boyle out of the pocket.  The Johnnies had their way with River Falls via the air yesterday.  The options throwing the ball are endless.  SJU isn’t fooling anybody using the dive play like Concordia-Moorhead does.  The Johnnies are a throw 1st team to set up the run.
2. Use depth at positions to keep everyone fresh all the time and which also gets players experience in the case of injuries.  I thought it was tremendous to see so many guys getting playing time at running back.  Clearly no one has stood out to take the #1 reins, but all the guys who got carries (Reding, Blaser, Johnson, etc) showed they are more than capable of filling the role well.
3. The Johnnie crowd attendance at the tailgate/game was outstanding.  I would say it was 3 to 1 Johnnies fans.  It was nice to see people coming early to partake in the tailgating before the game.  Everyone is always welcome and the food/beverages/camaraderie are second to none at the Division 3 level.

Email me with your questions/comments to touchdowntommy@johnniefootball.com.