UMHB played Hardin Simmons in the first round of the Div III playoffs yesterday
Hardin Simmons? Really?
Couldn’t the NCAA do a better job at matching up the playoff brackets?
This what my bro Chris Allman, who’s also a columnist with D3football.com, wrote before the game…
For those who are not up to speed, it shakes down like this. The NCAA used mapping software that had Millsaps College about 490 miles from the University Mary Hardin-Baylor. But their mileage chart had it over 500 miles from Jackson, Miss., to Belton, Texas. The number 500 is significant because it’s is the cut off point between being able to take a bus or take a plane. If they take a bus, it costs the NCAA less. If they take a plane, it costs the NCAA more. You can now see why Hardin-Simmons is driving the 199.3 miles to Belton instead of hosting a game.
UMHB head coach Pete Fredenburg doesn’t like the fact that they have to play Hardin-Simmons — the biggest rival in their brief history — again. But he didn’t whine about it.
“I do think it’s a bad scenario for both programs, and it’s unfortunate that they’ve done this,†Fredenburg told the Temple Daily Telegram. “But we’re in the national playoffs, and I don’t care who it is or where we play. We just have to prepare, rise to the occasion and win the game.
Jimmie Keeling, the head man at Hardin-Simmons, also handled the situation with class.
”They’re a good football team, but so are we,” Keeling said. ”They got the best of us the first time, but we’ll see what happens. We’re thrilled to have a chance.”
Those are professional words from very professional men. Luckily, I am held to no such standard.
So, to the NCAA, I say thank you for depriving us of a phenomenal later-round matchup. Thank you for guaranteeing that half of the ASC playoff teams will be eliminated after week one. Thank you for buying mapping software from Costco. Thank you for cheating the athletes that help fund your crackpot association just because they are Division III. There are a million insults I can toss at you in an unprofessional manner but, instead, I will simply say this.
You got this one wrong…
I don’t mean to be hard on the NCAA though. After all, they are making sure to rid the world of evils such as famine, disease and Native American mascots. They deserve our applause.
As of halftime, UMHB was up 17 to 7. With less than 7 min left UMHB lead 33 to 21.
Well dumb decision by the NCAA or not – UMHB wins… 33 to 21.
UMHB will now play Washington and Jefferson in the D3 quarterfinals next week.
The NCAA will now get to fly the Presidents of Washington and Jefferson to Belton because they can’t figure out how to do a playoff bracket.
The Stagg Bowl is only three rounds away.
