From Catholic at Shenandoah on a Thursday night in August to the Stagg Bowl 160 miles down Interstate 81 nearly four months later, 2006 was more than just another season that ended with Mount Union as champion. The journey was a heck of a ride, and D3football.com was in the house as the season started and finished. There were tons of places we weren't able to be, and players, fans, school employees and parents generally have the same problem: They can only get to one game each Saturday, if they're lucky, and follow one of the 234 teams that played Division III football this year.

So with the help of our crack staff, as well as a few fan suggestions from our blog, The Daily Dose, Around the Nation brings you our fifth annual year in review in three parts:

This week: Great games, plays and statistics
Next week: Great players, coaches and teams
In conclusion: Our awards, In Retrospect (revisiting preseason predictions) and Miscellaneous

We've already named our All-Region teams and All-Americans, and we did a midseason report for the first time in the Oct. 12 Around the Nation. So the year in review focuses on some of the things you may have seen and forgotten about, as well as some of the off-the-beaten path things you might have missed.

The memorable games and plays

Remember the great regular-season 'under-the-radar' games
These are the contests that were overshadowed by games of bigger national or conference significance the day they were played, but shouldn't have been as overlooked as they were, because of how much fun they turned out to be.

Ohio Wesleyan twice makes the list, for giving up crucial TDs with one second left in back-to-back weeks. The Battling Bishops surrendered a tying TD to Catholic and then failed on a two-point conversion in overtime during a 34-33 Sept. 9 (Week 2) loss. The following Saturday, Bethany's Brent Owens found Matt Cruse from 9 yards out in a 34-28 Bison victory. Bethany had previously missed a conversion that would have tied it at 28 with :46 left, but it recovered an onside kick to get a second shot. Ohio Wesleyan, meanwhile, finished 3-7 and two seconds from .500. They may have even had a winning season if, after rallying from down 41-28 against Kenyon on Sept. 30 (Week 5), they hadn't given up a game-winning field goal with six seconds remaining.

Wartburg 20, Buena Vista 13, 2 OT, Oct. 28: The Knights, trying to stay in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference race after an earlier overtime loss to Central, were taking it on the chin from the Beavers, winners of four in a row coming in. The Knights rallied from a 13-3 deficit behind running back Dan Hammes and backup quarterback Nick Yordi to force overtime, when it really got crazy. The Beavers missed a 36-yard field goal wide right, but Wartburg lost a fumble in the first OT. In the second, Yordi slipped and nearly fell during a 6-yard scoring run, and then Josh Faaborg intercepted Buena Vista in the end zone on third down to end the game.

They started the season ranked last among the 234 Division III teams slotted in our Kickoff '06 preseason preview, but after a winless season that included six losses by 40 or more, plus a 28-20 defeat against Crown and a 13-6 loss at Trinity Bible, Principia had a shot at going out with a win. It happened during the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference's annual Dome Day, where the entire conference plays each other, with kickoffs from morning until night at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis. Seeking revenge in second game against the non-Division III Lions, in 2003 the subject of Keeping the Faith: In the Trenches With College Football's Worst Team, Principia fell behind 13-0. Jeff Gibbs blocked and ran 30 yards with a Trinity Bible punt in the third quarter, and Martin Buchanan found Schuyler Onderdonk from 7 yards out in the fourth to tie it at 13 (Trinity Bible had its first PAT blocked, and Principia missed their second one). In OT, with victory near for Division III's Panthers, they threw an interception at the 8-yard line and gave up a 2-yard Trinity Bible TD run. The Lions finished 2-7 with both wins against 0-9 Principia.

Remember the great games during the playoff push
In Week 10, Rowan beat Cortland State 14-7 in overtime, Central beat Coe 31-28 in double overtime and Mary Hardin-Baylor scored in the final minute to prevail against East Texas Baptist 33-28. All three winners made the playoffs, as did Whitworth, which somehow beat Linfield 17-13 despite being outgained 329-85.

In Week 11, Cortland State rebounded to beat Ithaca in an extra period. Dubuque stunned Wartburg in overtime to knock the Knights out of the playoff picture, while Thomas More’s 21-17 win against previously unbeaten Mount St. Joseph probably cost the Lions a home playoff game. Bethel trailed St. John’s 13-0, but scored the first of its four unanswered TDs 12 seconds before the half. That led to a 28-13 victory that clinched the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title and a playoff bid, and pushed the Johnnies into Pool C.

Remember the great playoff games
Other classifications can't seem to figure out the benefits of a playoff system, while we got 10 games decided by a TD or less. UW-Whitewater and Rowan were each victorious in two close games, while St. John's and UW-La Crosse each split a pair of nail-biters. While there’s plenty to argue about with regard to the best playoff games, Around the Nation’s favorites were in the first round. Hobart bypassed a chance to tie Rowan on Nov. 18, getting a Shawn Mizro-to-Matt Duliba two-point conversion to go ahead 18-17 with 1:52 left. The Profs responded with a seven-play, 51-yard march and 32-yard Daniel Roberts field goal with 9 seconds left. Later that day, clear across the country, Whitworth's Joel Clark rolled out on a sprained ankle to throw a 1-yard, game-winning TD pass to Drew Griggs to hand Occidental its only loss of the season, 27-23.

Rowan's improbable second-round win at Wilkes, where the Profs botched a PAT in the final minutes but got another shot because of a fumbled Colonels' snap on their 22, was also noteworthy.

Although we didn't get any of the nailbiting nine (Mary Hardin-Baylor technically beat Washington & Jefferson by three in the second round, 30-27, but the Presidents scored a TD with 5 seconds left, which created the appearance of drama that actually didn't exist) in the semifinals or Stagg Bowl, our national champion won once in the playoffs by just a field goal and the runner-up did so twice, proving that earning your championship in a playoff is the most gratifying way to do it.

The nine nail-biters:
First Round
Rowan 20, Hobart 18; Whitworth 27, Occidental 23; St. John's 21, Central 13; UW-La Crosse 28, Bethel 21

Second Round
Rowan 21, Wilkes 14; St. John Fisher 27, Springfield 21; UW-Whitewater 24, UW-La Crosse 21

Quarterfinals
UW-Whitewater 17, St. John's 14; Mount Union 17, Capital 14

Remember the great rivalry games
On Nov. 11, the Cortaca Jug and Monon Bell games continued to make their cases for Division III's best rivalry. While Williams used Week 11 to manhandle rival Amherst 37-7 in the longest-running rivalry, Cortland State needed overtime to beat Ithaca 23-20, while Wabash retained the bell vs. DePauw by the same score.

The Little Giants outlasted the Tigers in a back-and-forth game with a furious finish in Crawfordsville, Ind., but we give the edge this year to the Red Dragons and Bombers, because of the overtime and the playoff implications. With its top two quarterbacks injured, 15th-ranked Cortland State went to a halfback pass for a 20-17 lead with five minutes left, but 25th-ranked Ithaca tied on a field goal with 36 seconds left. Bill Hauser intercepted the Bombers on the second play of their possession, but Ithaca's defense gave up just three yards, setting up a 40-yard attempt for the win. Junior kicker Matthew Mintz made the field goal for the Red Dragons' second consecutive OT win in the series. The loss was 7-3 Ithaca's third in four games against ranked competition, while at 9-1, the New Jersey Athletic Conference runner-up Red Dragons appeared to have a shot at the playoffs.

Remember the great upsets
Among the Massey Ratings' 10 least likely results across all divisions, the top five were Division III games:

Carleton (4-6) 17, Bethel (9-2) 14, Sept. 23
Susquehanna (2-8) 17, Delaware Valley (8-3) 10, Oct. 21
Ohio Wesleyan (3-7) 17, Wittenberg (7-4) 10, Oct. 21
Shenandoah (2-8) 20, Waynesburg (6-4) 10, Sept. 16
Alma (6-4) 33, UW-Eau Claire (3-7) 30, OT, Sept. 2

The records don't make the Alma-UWEC seem like an upset, especially since Gagliardi Trophy winner Josh Brehm piloted the Scots' victory, but anytime a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference team loses to the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association, the computer ratings consider it an upset. The Wittenberg and Delaware Valley losses cost the Tigers and Aggies playoff bids, while Bethel's Week 11 upset against St. John's meant the Carleton loss didn't cost the Royals theirs.

Other upsets had big impacts on conference races:
Loras 32, Coe 30, Sept. 30 … The Kohawks lost their starting quarterback before the season and still lost by only three each to IIAC powers Wartburg and Central. But the home loss to the Duhawks, who finished 4-6, kept those games from having more influence on the conference title and automatic bid.
North Carolina Wesleyan 46, Christopher Newport 34, Oct. 28 … Battling Bishops scored 22 of the game's final 30 points after trailing 28-24 late in the third quarter; Loss meant Captains had to beat Averett and Ferrum to take USA South automatic bid.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 30, Cal Lutheran, 27 (2 OT), Oct. 14 … In 2005, the Kingsmen went 8-1 with only a loss to Occidental, and they looked to be headed into the Tigers game in Week 9 with both team undefeated, until they stumbled against the Stags in Week 7. C-M-S scored on a 67-yard pass with 2:47 left to tie the game at 20 at the end of regulation.
Guilford 33, Bridgewater 28, Oct. 14 … Eagles' loss broke open race in conference they'd dominated for six years, and later results set up Washington & Lee vs. Emory & Henry on Nov. 4 for the Old Dominion Athletic Conference title.
Millsaps 34, Trinity (Texas) 12, Nov. 11 … Another changing of the guard took place in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, where the Majors, led by former Alabama coach Mike DuBose, broke Trinity's 13-year stranglehold on the conference.

Remember the great comebacks
There were undoubtedly great ones all around the country, but perhaps none saved a season like Occidental's rally to defeat Cal Lutheran 28-27 and eventually win the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title. The Kingsmen scored the first 21 points and led 24-7 at the half, but the Tigers made the halftime adjustments and put together three second-half drives of at least eight plays and 65 yards each to seize the victory.

Remember the great early-in-the-year games
There were a few early in the season that matched national significance and feisty competitiveness. Two West Region games stand out:

On Sept. 23, UW-Stout pitched a shutout for 59:57. But Whitworth scored to cap a 76-yard, final-1:06 drive which led to the visiting Pirates' 14-13 overtime victory and became the foundation for an 11-1 playoff season. The Blue Devils missed three field goals, including one in the first overtime, and its second-overtime PAT.

Also in Week 4, Concordia-Moorhead led St. John's 10-0 early in the fourth quarter and watched the lead go up in smoke in less than three minutes, beginning with another long Kyle Gearman TD reception. Gearman caught a 74-yard pass to beat the Cobbers in Moorhead last season, and caught an 87-yarder on the same field just 35 seconds after Concordia had extended its lead, on the way to the Johnnies' 14-12 victory. The Cobbers, after 21 wins the previous two seasons, plummeted to 4-6.

Remember the wildest regular-season shootouts
Sept. 30 turned out to be National Shootout Day in Division III, as Week 5 gave us the two games that best tested the scoreboard equipment.

Sul Ross State 60, Howard Payne 56
There were no overtimes but 1,115 yards. The Lobos, who hadn't beaten the Yellow Jackets since 1988, trailed by 11 with eight minutes left. It was such a ridiculous back-and-forth, however, that you're better off referring to the press release from that day, lest I take up your entire screen describing the fireworks.

Maryville 50, North Carolina Wesleyan 48 (4 OT)
N.C. Wesleyan took a 24-3 lead into the fourth quarter before Maryville scored 21 points in the final 7:18 to force overtime. The teams each hit 40-yard field goals in the first overtime, scored on short touchdown runs in the second overtime, scored TDs with the required two-point conversion in the third overtime and each scored in the fourth overtime. Battling Bishop (yes, there are two teams with this nickname) quarterback Cedric Townsend threw an incomplete pass on the conversion attempt, while Fighting Scots signal-caller Justin Price kept the ball and scored the winning two-pointer to give Maryville the dramatic win.

For good measure, Alma tossed in a 58-36 win vs. Tri-State that day, Kenyon added its 44-42 victory against Ohio Wesleyan, Monmouth topped Grinnell 51-31 and Dubuque prevailed 51-34 at Luther.

Remember the surprising regular-season blowouts
Ohio Northern was the lone team to beat Mount Union in 2005, winning 21-14 during the regular season in Alliance. The Polar Bears went back to the Purple Raiders' place this season Oct. 7 and were treated like most other Mount Union opponents: They were pummeled, in this case 49-7.

Remember the wildest playoff shootouts
Defense might have been the word in the 32-team field this year, as there was only one game where each team scored 28 or more. And in Wheaton's first-round, 42-28 win over Mount St. Joseph, the Thunder scored the first 35 points and led 42-6 in the fourth, so it wasn't a true shootout. Digging into the ECAC Bowl matchups, however, reveals a shootout between a couple of almost-playoff-worthy teams. Alfred (8-3) trailed Rochester (7-4) in the fourth quarter 34-19 before rallying to tie, then scoring on the first play of overtime to win 40-34. And that came after the Yellowjackets missed a field goal in their half of the extra period.

Remember the great plays
Certainly there were scores of great finishes, and scores finished in great ways each week. Beyond that, there were surely many moments in which something instinctive, or some attention to detail, affected a play, which affected a game, which affected a season.

If there was a play that saved a season, it came to start a game more than 1,100 miles from home against a top 10 opponent, with the team's most prolific player sidelined for weeks with a broken collarbone. Neil Mrkvicka collected the opening kickoff for No. 2 UW-Whitewater at Mary Hardin-Baylor (ranked sixth then, and finished the season ranked eighth), and shot up the middle for a 94-yard kickoff return for a TD. Little did we know then it would be the only points the Warhawks would score that day, or all they would need. UW-Whitewater left Texas with a confidence-building win, knowing it could gut out a W without star running back Justin Beaver, and if needed, with defense. The Warhawks' playoff run included a come-from-behind win against UW-La Crosse, where Mrkvicka again played a key role, catching a 53-yard go-ahead TD pass, and another three-point win against St. John's.

Remember the great individual regular-season rushing performances
Although MacMurray's Peter Ereg had the regular season's high game, with 357 yards against Eureka Nov. 4, rushed for 331 the next week against Blackburn, and had rushed for 278 on Oct. 21 against Greenville, the combined mark of the teams he did it against was 9-23. Two rushing performances against playoff teams stand out clearly as 2006's best:

Springfield option quarterback Chris Sharpe rushed for 272 yards against Hartwick and 268 vs. Union, but it was his 280-yard, seven-TD game on Oct. 21 that was the real jaw-dropper. That day against St. John Fisher, the Pride cemented itself as an East Region force to be reckoned with.

Oct. 14 was nearly UW-Whitewater's day of reckoning, when the Stagg Bowl-bound Warhawks failed to get star back Justin Beaver out of the UW-La Crosse game in time. Beaver piled up 286 yards, but on his final carry of the day, the one on which he set the school record, a hard tackle left him with a broken collarbone. The injury cost him five weeks, but it may have strengthened Whitewater, who finished an unbeaten WIAC season and won at then-No. 6 UMHB without Beaver. The 5-8, 196-pounder returned for the playoffs and rushed for 87 yards in the Stagg Bowl.

Remember the great team rushing performances in the regular season
Kenyon produced three 100-yard rushers (running backs Alby Coombs and Javier Arbolaez and quarterback Rafael Sanchez) in a single game, a 33-30 overtime win vs. Earlham, in which the Lords blocked an overtime field goal attempt then kicked an 18-yarder to win it.

Remember the great individual playoff rushing performances
Mount Union sophomore Nate Kmic topped his 361-yard playoff game against Augustana from last season with a 42-carry, 371-yard day against St. John Fisher in the semifinals. Kmic, who'd had as few as six carries in a game while the Purple Raiders saved him for when he was needed most, produced 238 of those yards on 27 second-half carries. After so many runs, the sophomore said: “It's kind of like hit 'em or get hit. I'd rather be the one giving the blow."

Remember the most impactful play
Jim Migliore's 21-yard overtime TD catch for Rowan vs. Cortland in Week 10 proved crucial on more than just the day it was caught. The Profs eventually won the New Jersey Athletic Conference's automatic bid and played three playoff games, while Cortland -- despite an overtime victory against rival Ithaca without its top two quarterbacks -- missed the playoffs at 9-1. Then, in an ECAC Bowl Game letdown, RPI thumped the Red Dragons 26-7.

Remember the great finishes
There are certainly plenty of nominees here, including any of the few dozen overtime finishes. But Union-Worcester Polytech gets our nod because of the way it suddenly became a crazy game. In the final 9:18, the teams combined for 31 points, and each scored a touchdown and went for two in the final 1:24. WPI coach Ed Zaloom called for his conversion trailing 28-27, but the Dutchmen's Doug Davis intercepted Rob Pantalone to preserve the Liberty League win and Union's playoff hopes.

Remember the worst starts
On Sept. 16, Otterbein trailed Mount Union 34-7 in the second quarter, although the Purple Raiders had run just five plays from scrimmage.

The Cardinals went three-and-out to start, and gave up a punt return to their own 27. On the Purple Raiders' second play, Pierre Garcon caught a 21-yard TD pass from Mike Jorris. Otterbein followed with three first downs, but botched its punt attempt, leading to a fumble recovery for a TD by Mount Union's Matt Kostelnik. The senior safety jumped the Cardinals' first pass after the kickoff and took it back 24 yards for a 21-0 advantage.

Otterbein got three more first downs before punting, and Jorris connected with running back Justin Wray for a 67-yard score on the second play after the punt return. The Cardinals put together an eight-play, 82-yard scoring drive before Jorris hit Garcon for an 82-yard TD on the first play after the kickoff.

When Mount Union is accused of running up scores, games like this 71-14 win are cited. But what is coach Larry Kehres supposed to do when the game is effectively over, and your first-team offense has run five plays? With OAC opponents capable of beating them ahead on the schedule, don't the Purple Raiders need the work against live competition? When are you supposed to toss out the playbook and just run the ball? The Purple Raiders scored four TDs in the second half, three on runs and none shorter than 32 yards. They also attempted a 38-yard field goal in the fourth with the backup kicker, which I know is meant as an effort to not further run up the score, but always seemed to me to be just as effective at rubbing it in.

Remember the creative play-calling
On Sept. 9, Muhlenberg ran two fake punts against William Paterson, and both went for 51-yard gains. The first did not lead to points, but the second was the game-winning touchdown, a pass from Ryan Sassaman to Matt Johnson on fourth-and-7 with the score tied at 17 and 9:12 to play. The Mules won 24-17. Sassaman, a high school Wing-T quarterback who punted for three years for Muhlenberg, finished his career 5-for-5 passing for 178 yards and two touchdowns.

Dickinson isn't known for a stock of gadget plays, but one worked to perfection against Muhlenberg in Week 6. Quarterback Matt Torchia tossed to wide receiver Chris McEnerney on the end around, who then flipped to freshman "receiver" Ian Mitchell (an oft-praised quarterback in his high school days in the Philadelphia area), who proceeded to throw a 55-yard touchdown strike to tight end Ryan Stereatt. It gave Dickinson a 14-0 lead in an otherwise uneventful 24-14 win, but it was a gadget play that worked and there aren't too many plays that send the tight end for 55-yard scores.

Remember the confusing score triangles
UW-Whitewater 7, UMHB 3; Wesley 34, UMHB 20; UWW 44, Wesley 7
When the Warhawks, then No. 2 and destined to repeat as Stagg Bowl runners-up, went to Texas to take on then-No. 6 Mary Hardin-Baylor, we weren't sure what to expect. After all, these were two great rushing attacks and two offenses capable of scoring in bunches. Instead we got an exhilarating 7-3 defensive battle, and Whitewater's lone score came by returning the opening kickoff.

In the playoffs, then-No. 3 Wesley hosted UMHB in the South Bracket final. The Wolverines gave up a score on an early fumble return, but dispensed with the running attack and passed all over the Crusaders (436 yards), building a 28-7 halftime lead that provided the needed cushion when UMHB made it competitive in the second half.

Seeing those two teams play UMHB relatively evenly seemed to logically indicate that Wesley at UW-Whitewater would be a good game, even if the same matchup in last year's semifinals produced a 58-6 result. Wesley was considered to be a year wiser, and the stories of them wearing the wrong shoes on Whitewater's grass field (the irony in the 58-6 game was that the Warhawks had turf shoes on, knowing how Wisconsin weather can freeze their field) were raised and dismissed.

And so were the Wolverines, who fell behind 31-0 in the first 18 minutes on the way to another disappointing end to a great season and long flight back to Delaware.

Other troublesome triangles:
St. John Fisher 34, Ithaca 10 (Sept. 23), Springfield 55, St. John Fisher 38 (Oct. 21), Ithaca 24, Springfield 7 (Oct. 28) … Fisher solved this one with a 27-21 second-round win over Springfield in the playoffs.
Salisbury 32, Washington & Jefferson 14 (Sept. 2), Christopher Newport 23, Salisbury 17 (OT), Washington & Jefferson 27, Christopher Newport 23 (Nov. 18) … Road teams won all three games.

Most emphatic statements
UW-Whitewater 44, Wesley 7, Dec. 9: In this Week 15 meeting of teams ranked No. 2 and No. 3 at the time, it was pretty much a repeat of last year's 58-6 semifinal lashing, to the surprise of some who thought the Wolverines would be a lot more competitive with a year's experience.
Mount Union 38, Capital 12, Oct. 28: In Week 9, the top-ranked Purple Raiders hosted the No. 4 Crusaders, who never got going in the rain, sleet and snow. Nate Kmic rushed for 240 yards while Capital was held to minus-31, but the teams reprised the matchup in the national quarterfinals to the tune of 17-14.
UW-La Crosse 17, South Dakota State 3: The Eagles' Week 1 victory over the Division I-AA scholarship Jackrabbits was the first indication that the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference would have two legitimate playoff teams. The Jackrabbits finished 7-4 and ranked 21st in the College Sporting News Coaches Poll and 22nd in the The Sports Network poll.
Springfield 55, St. John Fisher 38, Oct. 21: Expectations were high for this Week 8 battle of emerging powers in the East, but it's likely no one expected seven TDs and 280 yards from Pride quarterback Chris Sharpe. These teams also got together again in the playoffs, and Fisher's claims that they were missing three key defenders in the first meeting held water, as the Cardinals won 27-21.

Remember the great streaks that ended
Dubuque's 6-4 finish, its first winning season since 1987, may have been the most remarkable. But plenty of streaks fell during the season. Here are some:

Millsaps broke Trinity (Texas)'s run of 13 consecutive SCAC championships.
Williams snapped Trinity (Conn.)’s 31-game winning streak in Week 5, 41-16. The NESCAC’s Bantams don’t participate in the playoffs and hadn’t lost since playing Williams in the second game of 2002.
Concordia (Ill.) broke a 20-game losing streak with 13-3 win against Blackburn in Week 1, then won again later in the month, 41-12 vs. Eureka.
Tri-State snapped a 16-game losing streak with a 21-7 Week 8 win vs. Olivet, then the MIAA’s first-place team..

Remember the great streaks extended
Beyond the dozens of conference and regular-season streaks are others that are truly eye-catching.

Linfield’s 6-3 season may have been a down year for Wildcats fans who’ve grown accustomed to the playoffs, but it extended their streak of winning seasons to 51. Central, meanwhile, last had a losing season in 1960.

Three schools have been ranked in all Top 25s since the D3football.com Top 25 poll began before the 2003 season.

Since we ran this stat midseason, Ohio Northern, Delaware Valley and Ithaca dropped out of the poll after appearing in at least 25 consecutive top 25s. Linfield fell to No. 24 after its loss to Whitworth in Week 10, but remained ranked all season.

Linfield 56
Mary Hardin-Baylor 56
Mount Union 56
Rowan 40 (Last unranked in 2004 preseason poll)
UW-Whitewater 39 (Last unranked in 2004 Week 2)

The memorable statistics
Ohio states its case
Different year, same story for the Ohio Athletic Conference runner-up. Go as far as the bracket will allow before getting eliminated by Mount Union in a rematch. Capital finished ranked third, but was knocked out in the round of eight on a three-point loss to the Purple Raiders for the second season in a row.

Of the 14 champions and runners-up to make the playoffs since 1999, the OAC is 40-9 (.816). Five of the losses are head-to-head defeats against Mount Union, so OAC teams are 35-4 (.897) vs. non-conference playoff opponents.

In that same time frame, OAC runners-up are 11-1 (Ohio Northern 3-0 in '99/'00, John Carroll 3-0 in '02, Baldwin-Wallace 1-1 in '03, Capital 4-0 in '05/'06). That's a .917 winning percentage. Mount Union (vs. Rowan in '99, St. John's in '03 and Mary Hardin-Baylor in '04) has accounted for the other three losses.

Mount Union vs. conference opposition in expanded-era playoffs:
1999: vs. Ohio Northern: Won 56-24 in regular season, 56-31 in quarterfinals
2000: vs. Ohio Northern: Won 48-24 in regular season, 59-28 in second round
2002: vs. John Carroll: Won 35-16 in regular season, 57-19 in semifinals
2005: vs. Capital: Won 42-24 in regular season, 34-31 in quarterfinals
2006: vs. Capital: Won 38-12 in regular season, 17-14 in quarterfinals

Remember the statistical anomalies
Marietta scored 37 points vs. Baldwin-Wallace and 4-6 Otterbein managed 31 against the Yellow Jackets, for a total of 68 points. In Baldwin-Wallace's other eight games, including a 14-0 loss to 15-0 Mount Union, a 13-7 defeat against 6-4 Ohio Northern and a 17-7 win vs. 7-3 Augustana, the Yellow Jackets allowed just 68 more points.

Guilford was 2-0 in games where Josh Vogelbach threw five interceptions (at home vs. Greensboro 36-30, Sept. 30, and at Randolph-Macon 14-6, Oct. 28). Who says turnovers will get you beat?

Biggest disparity between offense and defense
Kenyon's defense allowed a 250-yard rusher three times this season, but the Lords averaged 267.8 rushing yards per game to help offset the run-stopping woes. In all, Kenyon ranked third nationally in total offense with 451.4 yards per game. The defense allowed 458.3 yards, good for 227th among the 229 teams in the NCAA rankings. Not surprisingly, the Lords' won-loss record was fairly balanced too: 4-6.

Most offense, fewest wins
Luther was expected to contend in the IIAC, but instead became one of the season's hard-luck stories, finishing 2-8 with two overtime losses, four by a TD or less and another by 11 points. That rendered the nation's No. 5 offense (445.5 yards per game) rather useless, as it moved the ball like mad on days its defense couldn't stop anyone, and struggled when its defense had good days. The Norse were also just No. 59 in scoring offense at 25.8 points per game, and subtracting a 60-0 win vs. Martin Luther in the opener, averaged 22 points per game.

Least bang for the buck
Coast Guard 3, Maine Maritime 0, Oct. 28: With ties no longer permitted in college football, there's only one way to get a lower-scoring game. An 18-yard second-quarter field goal by junior David Lieberman accounted for this one's only points, but at least rain and severe winds on Ponobscot Bay in Castine, Maine -- one of the northernmost points in Division III -- were a viable excuse. When Mary Hardin-Baylor and UW-Whitewater, each top 10 programs, accounted for only 10 total points on the same Week 9 day, including three by both offenses, they played on a turf field on a clear, warm Texas afternoon.

Other nominees:
Ursinus 6, Susquehanna 0, Sept. 2
Ursinus 6, La Salle 2, Sept. 16
Lawrence 8, Knox 6, Oct. 14
Hamilton 12, Bowdoin 0, Oct. 14
Coe 12, Simpson 3, Oct. 14
Wartburg 10, Coe 7, Oct. 21

Most bang for the buck
We detailed some of our favorites under “Wildest Regular-Season Shootouts," but here a few points about some of our highest scoring tight games:

1. Sul Ross State 60, Howard Payne 56: Tied for the highest combined score in all of college football this year.
2. Hampden-Sydney 46, Guilford 43: A redux of last year's 47-45 Tigers win.
3. Earlham 49, Manchester 35: The point total was dwarfed by last year's 69-62 game, but Justin Rummel threw for 502 yards and another seven TDs.
4. Kenyon 44, Ohio Wesleyan 42: The Battling Bishops scored twice in the final six minutes to go up 42-41, but gave up a 63-yard kick return and lost on a field goal with :01 left.

Contributing: Pat Cummings, Mike Falk (Muhlenberg SID), Dave Walters (Guilford SID), Mike Warwick (Ithaca SID)