True College Football

If you are all caught up in the drama of the Bowl Championship Series, then you are missing out on real college football action. The real football takes place in the I-AA Division, now known as the Championship Sub-division in a sad attempt to make the BCS look better. The I-AA playoffs start this week. Yes, I said playoffs. And this year has more stories than one could ask for. Just let me list a few.

The three undefeated teams are playing and this makes for a wonderful series of potential match-ups. Montana, McNeese St., and Northern Iowa are all looking to run the table and be declared National Champs.

Other first round games have high drama as well. Deleware plays Deleware St. for the first time ever. The traditionally white school plays the traditionally black school for the first time in football. The tension between these two schools is high, and this game is actually going to be on ESPN. Deleware by the way is a traditional powerhouse including one championship in 2003.

Appalachian State plays James Madison in the first round. Appalachian St. is looking for their third straight title, but they are playing James Madison the last team to win other than App St. So, a good battle of previous champions that ought to be on TV.

And of course looking down the road, one could see Southern Illinois get a rematch with undefeated Northern Iowa in the next round. Southern Illinois is 10-1 with their only loss coming to Northern Iowa. This game, if it happens, will be a slugfest.

And of course, my alma mater, Wofford College, is in the playoffs after a good season that saw them defeat Appalachian St., and by virtue of that tie breaker be the Southern Conference Champion. The Southern Conference is the traditional bully in I-AA going all the way back to Marshall’s days as title winners.

I will go ahead and make my prediction. It is not exactly a long shot, but I think Northern Iowa is going to run the table have the undefeated season. North Dakota St. (10-1, but is ineligible because they have not been in the league long enough)has a legitimate complaint about a really bad rule, but in the end it is all Northern Iowa.