ATN Podcast 321: Season’s craziness continues in first round

We asked out loud how the Division III football playoff bracket could possibly live up to the 11-week regular season. Are you not entertained? Sure, every first round has its share of blowouts, and this one had four shutouts. But it also had … dare we say, the biggest first-round upset since the Division III football playoffs expanded to five rounds? 2022 Division III football playoff bracket Yes. We dare say that. Aurora coach Don Beebe said his team wanted to get either Mount Union or UW-Whitewater and not only did the Spartans get what they asked for, they made good on it, upsetting UW-Whitewater 33-28. This edition of the podcast is sponsored by the hosts of Stagg Bowl XLIX, and we look forward to seeing all of you in Annapolis, Maryland, for the Division III football championship game on Dec. 16. Wartburg added to the first-round surprises, defeating UW-La Crosse 14-6 and helping knock the WIAC out of the postseason entirely in the first round for the first time since 2002. We chat with Knights head coach Chris Winter about the challenges faced, the defense that helped them face them, and the week ahead. Plus, you hear voices from around the bracket, including the coach in a kilt on the sidelines, the story of the kicker who recovered a fumbled kickoff and helped his team take the lead, the quarterback whose shoulder is the object of many questions. That and more. Pat Coleman and Greg Thomas talk about it all in the latest D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast. The D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast is a regular conversation covering the wide range of Division III football. Hit play, or subscribe to get this podcast on your mobile device. Full episode: [display_podcast] Links mentioned in this podcast: ATN Podcast 235, with Don Beebe Purchase tickets to Stagg Bowl XLIX You can subscribe to the Around the Nation Podcast in Apple Podcasts, and many other places. You can also get this and any of our future Around the Nation podcasts automatically by subscribing to this RSS feed: http://www.d3blogs.com/d3football/?feed=podcast Here’s how to find us on some of the major podcasting apps: Apple Podcasts: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast Google Podcasts: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast iHeart Radio: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast Stitcher: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast Spotify: D3football.com Around the Nation Podcast Theme music: Power 2 by DJmentos. Photos by Mason Wieser, Caleb Williams, Doug Sasse, d3photogrpahy.com