All Things Come To An End

Both good and bad endings marked the DII semifinal weekend

Dec. 10, 2007

By Brandon Misener

Special to CSTV.com


	Brandon Misener Brandon is the Editor of D2Football.com and writes twice-weekly for CSTV.com. E-mail here!

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. And while that may be true, I think it's generally best to think that all things will come to an end, whether they are good or bad.

The semifinals gave us a chance to see both something good and bad come to an end.

The good? Of course I was referring to Grand Valley State's win streak. Northwest Missouri stopped the Lakers' streak at 40. A streak like that may never be equaled again.

The bad? The days of the Northeast Region being ridiculed and considered a bye for the other region might be gone after California's performance. Although they lost to Valdosta, the Vulcans did themselves proud with their performance.

Valdosta State at California

I have been praising the California football team all season long, saying they looked to be the best team to come out of the Northeast Region in a very long time.

For much of the game, it looked like California would be the first Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference team to advance to the championship game since Bloomsburg in 2000.

A resilient Valdosta State team came back from a 21-7 deficit in the third quarter to take the lead on a 13-yard pass to Zach Parker with just over three minutes left in the game. The 28-24 lead would stand, as VSU intercepted a pass in its own end zone late in game to preserve the win.

Valdosta State is one of the great teams and programs in Division II. Winning games like this, and even advancing to the championship game from time to time, is expected of them. Even with a first-year head coach, no one would have been surprised to see VSU in the championship.

What's not expected, however, is for the representative from the Northeast Region to have a chance to beat a team from a powerhouse conference. That's exactly what Cal did.

There is a real beast of the east. It's time to welcome California and recognize their place among the top teams in Division II.

Grand Valley at Northwest Missouri

I was as wrong about the outcome of this game as I was right about California's level of play. I thought there was nothing that could be done to prevent Grand Valley from winning its third straight championship.

Star Northwest running back Xavier Omon ended the Lakers' quest to tie North Alabama's feat of three championships in a row with a 292 yard rushing performance in Northwest's 34-16 win over Grand Valley. The win must have been satisfying for the Bearcats, who lost the last two championship games to the Lakers

Chuck Martin

Laker coach Chuck Martin gets a lot of flack because people misunderstand him. He talks fast, isn't afraid to give his opinion and even interacts with students from opposing schools who are foolish enough to email him to razz him.

But I saw Chuck Martin do something I've never seen before. During a television timeout, he ran over to the Northwest sideline to tell Bearcat coach Mel Tjeerdsma he would run out the clock and to get the starters out of the game to prevent injury.

I found this to be an incredibly classy move. In fact, I was somewhat overwhelmed by it.

Martin has been on the other side, seemingly in control of a game only to worry about getting his players injured as the other team tries in vain to score. Even worse, an opposing player who took a cheap shot in frustration could hurt one of his players.

So, like the class act he is, Martin instructed his team to run out the clock, which it did.

But like it seems almost anything Chuck Martin does, it was met with some controversy. Some accused him of quitting and setting a bad example for his players. These people are completely misguided and uninformed.

I am a competitive person by nature and I am the last guy in the world that would condone quitting. But in my mind, there is a huge difference between quitting and conceding.

The Lakers were three scores away from tying the game, which would have required a field goal, a touchdown, and a touchdown with a two point conversion. Northwest was clearly in control and time had clearly run out for GV.

I wish more coaches had the class and the respect for their opponents that Martin exhibited in Maryville, Mo. on Saturday.

Title Game

Northwest Missouri will face Valdosta State on Saturday in Florence, Alabama. The kickoff is set for 12 p.m. ET.