Whitworth selected for Division III playoffs, will host Pomona-Pitzer in first round
The Whitworth football team has a second chance.
About 24 hours after its first loss of the season, Whitworth (9-1) learned it’s not only in the NCAA Division III but will play at the Pine Bowl on Saturday against the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens (8-2). Kickoff is at noon.
The Pirates didn’t have to wait long to hear their name Sunday. The selection show began at 2 p.m. and 10 minutes later Whitworth discovered it is playoff bound for back-to-back seasons, a fourth time in 11 seasons under coach Rod Sandberg and sixth time overall.
“Let’s celebrate this,” Sandberg told his team before the announcement as the team gathered in the Weyerhaeuser building’s Robinson Teaching Theater. “We’ll play anybody, anywhere, anytime.”
The NCAA expanded the Division III playoffs this year from 32 teams to 40. Had Whitworth beaten Linfield on Saturday, it would have had a first-round bye. Linfield handled the Pirates 34-7.
Quarterback Ryan Blair admitted he had a restless night’s sleep not knowing for sure if the Pirates would be selected.
“I wouldn’t say it was the best night’s rest that’s for sure,” Blair said. “We had a decent idea (we’d get in the playoffs), but at the same time we had mixed emotions the whole time. There was a little doubt. But we had a good enough season and good enough NPI (NCAA Power Index rating) that we could be in the playoffs.”
Junior running back Luis Salgado said he didn’t lose any sleep.
“Honestly, I slept well,” Salgado said. “Everybody on the team had a sense we would get another opportunity to compete.”
Fifth-year wide receiver Evan Liggett is relieved the Pirates have at least one more game.
“It feels fantastic to still have an opportunity to go out there and prove what we’ve got and prove what we have left in the tank,” Liggett said.
Pomona-Pitzer secured the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference with a 37-34 come-from-behind win over Chapman, which Whitworth defeated 35-28 at home in late September.
The Sagehens also played Pacific in late September, losing 45-14 in Forest Grove, Oregon. Whitworth needed a school-record 365 rushing yards from Salgado to hold off Pacific 39-32 on the road three weeks ago.
“To be back in the Pine Bowl and host a playoff game, that’s pretty special,” Sandberg said.
Sandberg recalled that he was defensive coordinator at Wheaton College (Illinois) in 2008 when he thought the Thunder had missed the playoffs.
“We finished 8-2 and we knew we weren’t going to the playoffs and we had a great team,” Sandberg said. “I’m in my yard Sunday raking leaves because I knew we didn’t get in. I get a call we’re in, and we went to the national semifinals. On the road every single weekend. My point is there are so many good teams in Division III and not many get in. I’m so glad they expanded it this year.”
The loss to Linfield dropped Whitworth from 14th to 22nd in the D3football.com rankings released Sunday.
The winner of Saturday’s game advances to No. 1-ranked North Central College (10-0) of Naperville, Illinois.
In the national final last year, North Central fell 38-37 to Cortland. A week before in the semifinals, North Central downed Wartburg College 34-27. Whitworth’s season a year ago ended in a 42-20 loss to Wartburg.
With the expanded playoffs, first-round teams must win six to capture the national championship. The eight teams with byes must win five to complete the season as the national winner.
This will be the fifth time Whitworth and Pimona-Pitzer have played – most recently in 2011.
Tickets are available through Whitworth’s Hometown Ticketing app. Cost is $12 for adults and $6 for senior citizens, students and children.