Statesmen End Year #13, First Team Left Out of Playoffs
William Penn University Athletics
Oskaloosa–The 2010 Penn football team did all it could do in a magical campaign, but it was not enough to lift it into the postseason as the NAIA’s tenth and final poll was released today.
Although they went 10-1 overall and tied for the Midwest League crown at 6-1, the Statesmen were the first team out of the playoff picture. A 52-27 win by Cumberlands (Ky.) over Cumberland (Tenn.) yesterday gave the Patriots the Mid-South Conference West Division title and propelled them from #26 to #20, which, due to NAIA by-laws, guaranteed the team an automatic spot in the 16-team playoffs.
Cumberlands earned the final spot, popping Penn’s bubble. The Statesmen needed to win, which it did 24-7 over St. Francis (Ill.), but its lone loss to McKendree (Ill.) (24-14 last month) prevented the team from earning the MWL’s automatic berth. Therefore, Penn was fighting for one of the few at-large slots, but its great record and tremendous rushing stats (breaking the NAIA single-season record) was not enough to jump Marian (Ind.), who earned the final at-large berth at #11.
The Statesmen basically had little to no chance of passing the Knights, who defeated McKendree earlier in the year. The MSFA’s Mideast League collects three spots (Saint Xavier, St. Francis-Ind., and Marian), while the Midwest side will be represented by the #12 Bearcats.
For the 26th week in a row, Sioux Falls (S.D.) (10-0) headed the ranking with 417 points and 16 of the 18 first-place votes. The next 15 positions remained the same with Carroll (Mont.), Saint Xavier (Ill.), MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), and Lindenwood (Mo.) rounding out the top five. Carroll and Saint Xavier received the other first-place votes.
The Statesmen end the season as the second-highest team from the state of Iowa behind #7 Morningside.
NAIA Football Championship Series–First Round Pairings
#16 Northwestern Oklahoma State @ #1 Sioux Falls (S.D.)
#18 Azusa Pacific (Calif.) @ #2 Carroll (Mont.)
#20 Cumberlands (Ky.) @ #3 Saint Xavier (Ill.)
#17 Georgetown (Ky.) @ #4 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
#10 St. Francis (Ind.) @ #5 Lindenwood (Mo.)
#12 McKendree (Ill.) @ #6 McPherson (Kan.)
#9 Dickinson State (N.D.) @ #7 Morningside
#11 Marian (Ind.) @ #8 Ottawa (Kan.)
