The Cortica Jug is going to be really something this year

[SUFaninNJ]

Well, they did score...

2022 Division III football playoff schedule

Congrats to the Bombers, who will likely face North Central, the #1 ranked team, next. (The Bomers are #10).

North Central (Ill.) football schedule and results

North Central (Ill.) football schedule and results

www.d3football.com

The cardinals were the 2019 national champs and played for the title last year. Of course, the Bombers have played for the title 7 times and won it 3 times but that's before any of these kids were born.

It’s A Great Day To Be A Bomber!

 

[BomberOrange]

It’s A Great Day To Be A Bomber!

You know it!

 

[BomberOrange]

Well, they did score...

2022 Division III football playoff schedule

Congrats to the Bombers, who will likely face North Central, the #1 ranked team, next. (The Bomers are #10).

North Central (Ill.) football schedule and results

North Central (Ill.) football schedule and results

www.d3football.com

The cardinals were the 2019 national champs and played for the title last year. Of course, the Bombers have played for the title 7 times and won it 3 times but that's before any of these kids were born.

Yeah, unfortunately I think this is where the road ends. North Central is strong!! Still it’s good to see IC make the semis for the first time since ‘93 I believe. That was a gut wrenching loss to W &J from what I remember.

 

[SWC75]

Yeah, unfortunately I think this is where the road ends. North Central is strong!! Still it’s good to see IC make the semis for the first time since ‘93 I believe. That was a gut wrenching loss to W &J from what I remember.

this will be a good test of my theory that some schools, beginning with Mount Union, created something more than DIII programs so they would win or contend for the title every year. they can't hand out scholarships, but they can still build facilities and recruit, etc. I think the top teams of the last 25 years or so were probably on a level above the top teams prior to that and that's my Ithaca and other teams from this area haven't been able to break through to the top for years. If the Bombers get blown out, tit will show that there's a Division 2 1/2, (or more). If they can compete well against North Central, either I'm wrong or maybe Ithaca has started to play the same game,

 

[BomberOrange]

NC didn’t blow out their opponent today so there is hope. I thought IC priced themselves out of being competitive but that theory has been shattered this year. Their coach is legit though. I hope they can compete next weekend.
And the facilities thing is legit. My brother in law was the OC at Washburn University a few yrs back, D2 school in KS. He came to visit in 2017 and we got an unexpected tour of SUs Manley facilities from Kyle Fetterly. After the tour, Rob said that Washburns facilities were better than SU’s… we’ve since upgraded but the facility race isn’t just at the D1 level.

 

[SUFaninNJ]

I remember hearing in the mid-late 90s that IC was taking a step back on athletics so they could focus more on academics. They were going to accept fewer students and try to bring enrollment down by being more selective. I'm not sure if this is accurate or not. They also went through a phase where they tried to replace the mascot with a flying squirrel, so who knows what they were thinking.

 

[SWC75]

Ithaca gets crushed by North Central 7-48:

SIDEARMLiveStats

21 yards rushing to 383 tells the story. I was right: there's a gap between the more traditional DIII programs in this area that used to do so well and the current top teams in DIII, who have bult programs that belong either in DII or FCS. I wish we had a system like English soccer, where your designation can change depending on how dominant or uncompetitive you are in your current division.

 

[BomberOrange]

As I thought would happen, IC gets rolled 48-7. Actually had a glimmer of hope down 21-7 early 3rd facing a 4th and 2 in north central territory but called a boneheaded option that lost 4 yds. 4 plays later it was 28-7 and the wheels came off.
Great season though! Go Bombers!!

 

[CousCuse]

Ithaca gets crushed by North Central 7-48:

SIDEARMLiveStats

21 yards rushing to 383 tells the story. I was right: there's a gap between the more traditional DIII programs in this area that used to do so well and the current top teams in DIII, who have bult programs that belong either in DII or FCS. I wish we had a system like English soccer, where your designation can change depending on how dominant or uncompetitive you are in your current division.

At least they scored a TD.

 

[SWC75]

At least the Bombers lost to the champs:

North Central 28-21 Mount Union (Dec 16, 2022) Final Score - ESPN

Game summary of the North Central Cardinals vs. Mount Union Raiders NCAAF game, final score 28-21, from December 16, 2022 on ESPN.

www.espn.com