DIVISION II PLAYOFFS
Live today: Watch four Minnesota teams in Division II, III NCAA football playoffs
Minnesota State and Bemidji State hit the road for the second round in Division II while St. John's plays at home and Bethel goes to Oregon in Division III.
November 26, 2022 at 2:45PM
Second round
Minnesota State Mankato at Colorado School of Mines, 1 p.m. Saturday:
The Mavericks and Colorado Mines are meeting for the first time. ... Last week, the Mavericks (10-2) pulled away in the second half for a 26-9 victory over Wayne State in Mankato. The teams were tied 3-3 at halftime. … Shen Butler-Lawson, who has rushed for 923 yards and 10 TDs this season, ran for 113 yards as the Mavericks gained 214 yards on the ground. … Colorado Mines, located in Golden, opened the season with back-to-back losses — both by three points — to No. 5 Grand Valley State and No. 7 Angelo State. The Orediggers have won 10 in a row since — including a 45-24 first-round victory over CSU-Pueblo. Michael Zeman has rushed for 1,069 yards and 20 touchdowns, and John Matocha has passed for 3,731 yards and 37 touchdowns for the Orediggers. Matocha, one of the nominees for the Harlan Hill Award (top player in DII), has completed 70.7% of his passes and thrown only five interceptions.
Bemidji State at Angelo State, 1 p.m. Saturday:
Coming off a memorable victory in its first home playoff game in program history, Bemidji State has reached the second round of the playoffs for the second consecutive season. The Beavers (10-2) overcame frigid temperatures — 9 degrees with gusty winds — last Saturday to defeat Winona State 31-7. After a scoreless first half, Brandon Alt threw four TD passes in the second half — each to Brendan Beaulieu — as the Beavers pulled away. Alt, a junior from Cottage Grove, has passed for 3,686 yards and 37 touchdowns this season. … Angelo State (11-0), which had a first-round bye, has the fourth-best scoring defense in DII. The Rams, who reached the quarterfinals of the DII playoffs last season, have allowed only 11.7 points per game and 216.5 yards per game. … Nate Omayebu, a junior, has rushed for 1,065 yards — averaging 5 yards per carry — and Zach Bronkhorst, a senior, has passed for 2,508 yards and 21 touchdowns for the Rams. … The Beavers and Rams are meeting for the first time.
DIVISION III PLAYOFFS
Second round
Wartburg at St. John's, noon Saturday:
Wartburg and St. John's are meeting for the first time since 2014, when Wartburg defeated the Johnnies 21-10 in Waverly, Iowa, in the second round of the playoffs. … Wartburg (11-0) defeated No. 7 Wisconsin-La Crosse 14-6 in the first round. … The Knights are third in DIII in scoring defense, allowing only 6.1 points per game. The Knights have a school-record five shutouts this season. … Hunter Clasen has rushed for 1,261 yards and 16 TDs. … The Johnnies (10-1) advanced with a 49-0 victory over Northwestern (St. Paul) in Collegeville. The Johnnies built a 35-0 halftime lead en route to their fourth shutout victory in the postseason in program history. … Aaron Syverson completed 19 of 23 passes for 204 yards and four touchdowns in the victory.
Bethel at Linfield, 2 p.m. Saturday:
Bethel (9-2) outlasted host Wheaton (Ill.) 34-32 last Saturday to advance. Royals QB Jaran Roste, the MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, has passed for 2,159 yards and 17 TDs and rushed for 388 yards and 4 TDs. … Linfield (10-0), located in McMinnville, Ore., defeated Pomona-Pitzer 51-24 at home in the first round. The Wildcats outscored Pomona-Pitzer 24-0 in the fourth quarter. … QB Blake Eaton, a sophomore, has passed for 2,551 yards and 31 TDs for the Wildcats, who have gone unbeaten in the past two regular seasons. … The Royals and Wildcats are meeting for the first time.
Two offensive linemen from Lakeville, Bryce Benhart and Riley Mahlman, are standouts for Big Ten rivals of Minnesota.
