Football one step away from playoffs
Nathan McClallen
Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: Sports
"Obviously, Mat is a huge loss to us, being a team captain and our leader on that side of the ball," he said. "We do have a lot of other guys that are ready to step in and go make plays though."
Sophomore David Bakker will step into a starting role beginning with this week's game against Tiffin, and he said he has had a "next-man-in" mentality all season.
"There's an attitude that every person on the team has to be prepared to play at any point, so there shouldn't be much drop-off in preparation," he said.
With one regular season game left, Weatherhead said the team is focused on finishing strong at home against winless Tiffin.
"We're really just thinking about not letting up, playing a full 60 minutes, and just hammering them into the ground," he said.
After the dominating win last week, Hillsdale moved up in the latest AFCA Division II Top 25 poll, to No. 20. It is their highest ranking of the season.
The Chargers playoff prospects rests on the other poll however, the Super Region 3 rankings. They dropped from third to sixth this week; the top six teams from each of four regions make the playoffs.
The way the regional rankings work, teams are measured by the quality of their opponent. Hillsdale did not hurt themselves by winning against a 1-8 team, but they were simply passed in the rankings by other teams who won against a stronger opponent. Given that they play 0-9 Tiffin this Saturday, Otterbein said the chances of getting a home playoff game are practically eliminated.
If the playoffs started today, No. 6 Hillsdale would play at No. 3 Grand Valley State University, and No. 5 Saginaw Valley State University would go to No. 4 Nebraska-Kearney University.
In regards to the possibility that Hillsdale will have to play Grand Valley on the road, Weatherhead said that the team is not scared of anyone.
"We feel like we're playing some of the best football right now, I mean in the whole country," he said.
Otterbein said he is not worrying about who they play, the big hurdle for his team is just getting into the playoffs.
"Once you're in the dance, they're all going to be good, and you just get ready for whoever they tell you to play."
Sophomore David Bakker will step into a starting role beginning with this week's game against Tiffin, and he said he has had a "next-man-in" mentality all season.
"There's an attitude that every person on the team has to be prepared to play at any point, so there shouldn't be much drop-off in preparation," he said.
With one regular season game left, Weatherhead said the team is focused on finishing strong at home against winless Tiffin.
"We're really just thinking about not letting up, playing a full 60 minutes, and just hammering them into the ground," he said.
After the dominating win last week, Hillsdale moved up in the latest AFCA Division II Top 25 poll, to No. 20. It is their highest ranking of the season.
The Chargers playoff prospects rests on the other poll however, the Super Region 3 rankings. They dropped from third to sixth this week; the top six teams from each of four regions make the playoffs.
The way the regional rankings work, teams are measured by the quality of their opponent. Hillsdale did not hurt themselves by winning against a 1-8 team, but they were simply passed in the rankings by other teams who won against a stronger opponent. Given that they play 0-9 Tiffin this Saturday, Otterbein said the chances of getting a home playoff game are practically eliminated.
If the playoffs started today, No. 6 Hillsdale would play at No. 3 Grand Valley State University, and No. 5 Saginaw Valley State University would go to No. 4 Nebraska-Kearney University.
In regards to the possibility that Hillsdale will have to play Grand Valley on the road, Weatherhead said that the team is not scared of anyone.
"We feel like we're playing some of the best football right now, I mean in the whole country," he said.
Otterbein said he is not worrying about who they play, the big hurdle for his team is just getting into the playoffs.
"Once you're in the dance, they're all going to be good, and you just get ready for whoever they tell you to play."
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