It took a re-evaluation of Division III guidelines. And, probably, an explanation of the whole concept of "social media" to the powers-that-be at the NCAA national office. But what it brought this season was an explosion of sorts.

More and more, Division III athletic departments are taking their coverage into their own hands, bypassing the mainstream print media, which won't cover them anyway, and delivering their news directly into your hands.

Or to your phones. At many schools, that's Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, where you can get in-game notes, scoring updates, postgame interviews and highlights directly from the schools, unfiltered.

Keith McMillan has been following the pulse of this trend and checks in with a couple of schools that couldn't be more apart on the Division III football landscape: Mount Union and Mass Maritime. While a game between the two might not be pretty, they both can execute a similar online strategy that begins in the sports information office.

Keith talks to those schools and more in this week's Around the Nation.