About once a season, Keith McMillan hits the road and files a column about what it's like in a Division III corner of the country that many readers may never have a chance to visit. This is his experience last weekend in Iowa, where the goal was to catch four teams in three hours.

Part 1: Saturday, approx. 7:30 a.m. Central Time
You have no idea how good a warm Cinnabon tastes this time of day. Well, maybe you do. For me at the moment, sitting in the Chicago O'Hare Airport something-or-other restaurant, it's the closest thing to happiness, which right now would be under the covers, at home in our king-sized bed.

When you give up your Saturdays for Division III football, Friday night becomes family time. Early Saturday morning becomes travel time. Sleeping on your own shoulder, at least on those trips that don't involve driving solo, becomes a refined skill.

Believe it or not, readers have actually demonstrated an interest in how all this works. There's no better time to show just how strange you have to be to do this than on this week's trip to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, trying to catch a half a game each at two sites. I prefer to make the column about the games and not us, but for those of you bolted down to a single team and stadium each Saturday, occasionally wondering if it's just as much fun elsewhere in Division III, this week's Around the Nation will share with you our impressions of Cedar Rapids and the IIAC.

Expectations for the Hawkeye State, no matter how hard one tries not to stereotype, involve vast expanses of cornfields. On the IIAC Post Patterns board, which I have frequented this season since doing the conference's preview for Kickoff '06, Cedar Rapids was referred to as "the ghetto." Early in the season, posters had been characterizing the conference's fields, and Coe got that distinction -- leading me to predictably wonder how "ghetto" any part of Iowa can be.

I've done enough traveling to know things never quite turn out to be what you expect, and have sort of learned not to have expectations because of that. (The cornfields and the ghetto stuff, open lay-ups as far as cheap jokes go. Had to take 'em).

It's possible any view of the teams for the weekend was warped by the rain. Photo by Ryan Coleman, D3football.com

What really sparks my curiosity, and begins to explain why a grown man would traverse half the country for college football games between schools he has no connection to, is how the IIAC fits into the Division III landscape. We know what we know based on comparative scores, past playoff performance and the like, but nothing replaces being there. As Pat and I discussed Thursday night, the IIAC is one of the last remaining conferences where I haven't seen a game. (Pat has seen Central and Coe in the playoffs. At some point, we may blog our stadiums- and teams-seen lists and counts. After years of doing this, we have been surprisingly many places, and still have more than enough to go.)

So today I will get a look at Wartburg, Coe and Central to see which will be the IIAC's playoff representative. Cornell is competitive under first-year coach and former star quarterback Matt Dillon, and while I don't want to disrespect the Rams, I didn't come to see them. But that just opens the door for them to surprise/draw attention. And surprises aren't that uncommon in the IIAC.

The big question is whether the conference champ, which will probably enter the playoffs ranked in the teens somewhere, can get out of the first or second round in the West Region. The Northwest Conference champion might be beatable this year, and the WIAC champ might be avoidable. St. John's and Occidental might be unfavorable first-round matchups should the conference champ enter with a loss. So long story short, I'm ready to get a feel for the IIAC on the field, in terms of strength, and off the field, in terms of hospitality. I am encouraged in both directions.

While in line for my Cinnabon (long gone by the way), I got the call from photographer Ryan Coleman. He says he's running late out of the Twin Cities. My flight for Cedar Rapids doesn't leave Chicago until 10, but both of us see dark skies or rain. My amateur meteorology skills tell me that weather moves west to east, but I still have visions of standing on Cornell's sideline, drenched. In the interest of traveling lightly, I went with jeans, sneakers and the Old Navy short-sleeve polo shirt on top, Target-brand Under Armour underneath in case of cold weather.

I did not anticipate rain.

Part 2: At gate C2, 8:20 a.m
More things that came to mind while waiting:

What I was getting at above: Part of my mission today is to see if any of these teams could beat Whitewater. The stock answer is no, of course, as the Warhawks are probably the nationally ranked 1a. in most observers' minds.

But our job is to be ahead of the game, at least a little bit. Last year, before Whitewater beat then-defending champion Linfield and made the Stagg Bowl, Pat and I saw them midseason. We were impressed enough to think they could give Linfield a run in the West bracket.

So today I gauge the IIAC. Find out how good Vance Schuring is, and Central's defense. And Wartburg's defense. And Coe's offense, even if Neil Suckow and Andy TeKippe aren't playing.

I'm surprised I can even think about football at this point. I was fine when I was driving to BWI airport after a midnight-to-2 nap, blasting old-school Ice Cube.

I've never understood why they build moving walkways and then regular sidewalk five times as wide. When I want to stand still and ride the walkway (carry-on bag was hella heavy), everyone wants to pass. I know it's socially acceptable to stand to the right, but I think walkers should use the sidewalk and sleep-deprived lazy people ride the walkways.

You get a nice cross-section of people at the airport. You can't help but overhear some annoying conversations, especially if you wouldn't mind dozing off. And anyway, why do they put Gate C2 all the way at the end of the concourse? Just to mess with you. You see the two and think "great, short walk" and then get there and the way to your gate looks longer than the Mall on Washington?

And I'm so early my gate still says "Pittsburgh."

Football in Iowa seems a long way away right now. So does my bed at home. Sure do miss it.

Part 3: Initial impressions of Iowa

Keith McMillan tries to stay warm on a wet weekend in Iowa. Photo by Ryan Coleman, D3football.com

So I've always been curious about planes and transportation, but I've never heard of the kind of plane I rode to Cedar Rapids: Embraer 170. Then again, I wouldn't expect them to fill a 737 heading to Eastern Iowa.

Although cornfields are the stereotype, Iowa touches Minnesota, so I wonder if evergreens and lakes have sneaked across the border.

I've been to some mid-sized airports (Spokane, Madison, Richmond), but this was more mid-sized than them all. I am the only person renting a car. They didn't even have someone in a booth at the end of the lot checking out rental cars.

On the road to Mount Vernon, home of Cornell, I immediately noticed cornfields and a farmer on a tractor in the rain, but also a state park, some evergreens and the mighty Cedar River. Entering town, there are some oddities, like a full-scale Ford dealership across the street from single-family houses, but once in town, Mount Vernon has the classic Main Street brick-and-churches look of an old Pennsylvania town.

Cornell's campus looked nice even on a rainy day, though the stadium, visible from the street, hardly looks like the same level of football should be played there as at sprawling Perkins Stadium, where I was at the week before watching UW-Whitewater. Parking seems to be on the baseball practice field.

Part 4: Nearing kickoff at Cornell
People love to say before games 'you couldn't ask for a better day.' Today, we could have. It's not just raining here in Mount Vernon, it's a cold rain. But it is, as every coach I ever had used to say, a great day for football.

Cornell wins the toss and defers. Central returns this kick to the 42, and Schuring's first run is for 19 yards, during which he ditches two tacklers. On the second play, no one goes with the tight end, and the Dutch complete a pass to Cody Huisman for 21 yards to the Cornell 18.

Central looks to have the size advantage, especially on the offensive line. (Do they call those guys 'hosses,' everywhere, or just in Virginia?) Again, I'm thinking bigger than today. Can these guys gain yards against St. John's, Whitworth or UW-La Crosse? While I write that sentence, the Dutch score. It's 7-0 at 12:41. I think about heading over to Wartburg-Coe a little early, but only in jest.

I will say this about Cornell: It's a horrible day to be here, and their fans are out, their dance team and cheerleaders are here (although wisely in full-length black sweatsuits, and not normal cheer attire). Purple and white umbrellas dot the bleachers. This may not be a big-time Division III stadium, but I've never had my window squeegeed in any other press box.

Cornell is mounting a decent first drive against Central's vaunted D, mixing in straight-on runs and play-action passing. The Rams have a third-and-2 at the Central 20, and get the first with another rollout and completion in the flat. A Union Pacific freight train passes by in the background, giving a toot -- for the fans, I guess.

Rainy day strategy often involves misdirection runs and short passes. Any way you can get the defense reacting and possibly losing their footing usually proves wise.

Cornell, though, was mostly straight ahead on its run plays, as Travion Hardman finishes a 15-play, 67-yard, 7:43 drive to tie it at 7.

The IIAC can be a pretty even conference on a normal weekend; an upset today wouldn't shock me at all.

We are going to brave the elements and walk the sidelines.

Part 5: In the press box, where it's dry
Yeah, not sure why we did that. Ryan has to shoot photos from the sidelines, but me … days like this are what press boxes are for. I am freezing.

Going down to the sideline did help me opine to Ryan: "Playing in games like this is awesome. Standing here sucks."

No sooner did I also say this had the look of a game in which no one scores for a while after both notched TDs on their first drive, than Central uses a 42-yard screen to Schuring and a 20-yard TD pass to tight end Jon Haugen to go up 14-7.

In all honesty, in these elements, it's hard to tell how good either team is. Sopping wet grass fields tend to slow the game down, negating any noticeable speed advantages or disadvantages. The ball gets weighted down, and fielding punts or completing deep passes are almost completely out of the picture, eliminating a couple measures of a team's strength in comparison to teams I've seen play on dry days.

But we're here, so we might as well get (and give) something out of it.

With the rain and Ryan's car trouble conspiring to slow the trip over to Coe down, I figure we'd better bail with about five minutes left in the first half if we want to see equal parts Coe-Wartburg.

I just now realize (mid-second quarter) that I've got Central playing a purple-clad team in the mud. For someone, this must bring back memories of the Miracle in Mud against Linfield in the 2000 playoffs.

Ryan calls and says he has hot chocolate for me. Plus-1 karma!

On the walk to the car, I see a fan holding a scruffy white dog on a leash. Wait … that's a real Ram, with Cornell shirt on and all.

Part 6: Catching the second half at Coe

Keith spent most of the Coe/Wartburg game on the air with Coe's local radio broadcast crew. Photo by Ryan Coleman, D3football.com

It's 7-7 early in the third when we pull up at Coe, but by the time we get parked and situated in the press box, it's 10-7. There's still about eight minutes left in the third at that point, and little did we know we missed all of the scoring.

I spend most of my time at Coe on the air with Lonnie Zingula and Jerry Kiwala on KMRY. I'm so involved in that, I barely get any insight on the game expect that Suckow is playing and Ashton Northern, Coe's other offensive stud, is much bigger than I expected him to be. Northern finished with 166 yards on 22 carries, including a 65-yard TD run for the Kohawks' only points.

I'm not sure there was much to miss, as teams in the mud -- and the field is in much worse condition here than it was at Cornell -- generally don't resemble themselves on a dry day. No matter how many balls you try to rotate into the game, they become waterlogged. Slants look like shot puts, and deep posts like javelin throws. I'm not sure I saw a spiral at either game.

I sort of feel for the Kohawks, since their passing game was almost completely neutralized. They may have been playoff-worthy, but I make the point on-air that you might get a playoff game in this kind of weather, and good teams have to be able to adapt and win in any condition.

Still, as strong as the Wartburg defense has been this season, I would have liked to see them go head-up with Coe on a dry day. But that's football.

Part 7: Spending the night in Cedar Rapids
There is no postgame press conference, which is probably the case at more than half of the non-playoff games in D3. Of course today, no coaches or players are in the mood to linger very long on the field. I exchange a few works with a very pleased Eric Koehler, the Wartburg coach who still seems to be riding the high from the game.

It occurs to me that I've come all this way, and the football I came to see kind of went by in a blur. Augustana is only about 90 minutes away, as are some other IIAC schools, but alas, there are no night kickoffs.

Coe's campus really impressed me -- it had a more modern feel than a lot of D3 campuses -- and I'm not just saying that because I stayed at their on-campus Alumni House. (By the way, this is a great idea. If your school doesn't have a place where you can both house guests and hold banquets, it should. Then again, maybe my alma mater already does and I've just never made a healthy enough donation to be allowed to see it.)

I get situated in our room, which resembles a classy hotel, and immediately Ryan and I pull out Ethernet cables, get online and check scores. My jaw literally drops when I see that Chris Sharpe scored seven TDs in Springfield's 55-38 win over St. John Fisher.

We rest. We eat, with great hospitality shown by Coe locals, and good food. I even get a taste of home (my real home) when I catch glimpses of Rutgers improving to 7-0 by beating Pitt.

Cedar Rapids isn't so small-town that there's nowhere to go. Granite City Food & Brewery (apparently these are hotspots across the Midwest) is packed. It's early, but I pass on the nightlife. I'm so tired I actually didn't write this part until Wednesday afternoon.

I fall asleep with LSU-Fresno State on TV. I wake up to a Penn State-Illinois replay.

When I head off to the airport, there's not a soul on the city's streets. I see maybe a handful of cars on the 20-minute trip to the airport. Cedar Rapids, as expected, is not very "ghetto" at all.

Part 8: At Eastern Iowa Airport, Sunday 5 a.m.
So here I sit at 5 a.m., until recently just one of three passengers in the airport. Not three waiting for my flight, mind you. Three as in the same number of passengers in the whole place as there were working at the United Express ticket counter. (Note to self: In small Midwestern cities, no need to arrive an hour and a half before departure.)

I figure it's dangerous to judge a city by what you see on the way to and from the airport, so I won't purport to know Cedar Rapids, but it looks like a classic American city on the river. The residential areas don't look all that different from, say, South Jersey. Although I still don't quite get Cedar Rapids' "City of Five Seasons" motto.

So how to wrap up this trip? I didn't really get a feel for the speed of the Coe offense, for example, or star Neil Suckow. At least for backs like Coe's Ashton Northern, Wartburg's Dan Hammes (16 carries, 96 yards Saturday) and Schuring, a muddy day is a time to execute impressively tough runs. For the offensive line and defensive front seven, well, I admit I could barely tell who was who. That's what happens when you do your work in the trenches and the trenches are filled with mud, inches deep.

I didn't get a true feel for game day atmosphere at either school, due to the rain, but I did gain some perspective. When you can pick the brains of the locals, see the games in person, it's definitely a start.

IIAC fans with no connection to Pella are in a tough spot. Do they root for Central to lose (they play Coe Nov. 4) and possibly let their team back into the conference title race, or do they root for the Dutch to run the table, get a home playoff game and bring the conference some more respect in the postseason?

Next week it's Texas on the Around the Nation's Run to the Playoffs.

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