No. 7 UMHB (8-1, 7-0 American Southwest Conference) can dress as many players as it likes for Saturday’s ASC finale against Sul Ross State (3-6, 2-5) in Alpine, but the Crusaders will be limited by NCAA rule to a 52-man roster for the Division III playoffs that begin next week.
“One of the first things that you have to deal with when looking at the postseason is the number of players you can have,” said Crusaders coach Pete Fredenburg, whose squad has clinched a playoff berth and can claim its fourth straight outright conference title with a win Saturday. “We usually carry about 60, but in the playoffs you’re limited to 52.
“You just can’t imagine how excruciating that is for a coach to try to tell a youngster who’s been traveling and playing some that he can’t.”
In addition to the psychological aspect, the reduced roster also effects personnel packages come kickoff.
“With just 52 players, what you have to do is take some of the younger guys who might be accustomed to just playing a position and push them onto special teams,” Fredenburg said. “When you get into the playoffs, there are no tomorrows. So we have to have 52 warriors ready to go.”
Postseason tickets punched
Of the 23 automatic bids for the 32-team playoff bracket, 14 of them have been set.
Having punched their postseason ticket along with UMHB are Cortland State (N.Y.), Franklin (Ind.), Millsaps (Miss.), Monmouth (Ill.), Mount Union (Ohio), Muhlenberg (Pa.), North Central (Ill.), Occidental (Calif.), Thomas More (Ky.), Trine (Ind.), Wabash (Ind.), Wartburg (Iowa) and Willamette (Ore.).
The remaining automatic qualifiers will be decided by this weekend’s games. The NCAA will select the other nine teams to fill out the bracket, which will be released at 2 p.m. Sunday.
Daniels update
Junior preseason All-America running back Quincy Daniels, who suffered a knee injury on the first offensive play of the season’s second game, is likely done for the year.
The decision had previously been made to try to rehabilitate the knee rather than surgically repair the anterior cruciate ligament, but Fredenburg said that plan might be going out the window.
“(The doctor and trainer) and I will talk with Quincy some time this week to get his feelings on it,” the coach said. “I don’t think he will play this season.”
Daniels can petition the NCAA for a medical hardship, giving him a fifth year of eligibility. Fredenburg said he wasn’t sure if Daniels planned to do so.
Weekly honors
UMHB’s Brenson Bristow was named ASC Defensive Player of the Week and Bryson Tucker was named Special Teams Player of the Week for their performances in last Saturday’s 67-0 victory over Howard Payne.
Bristow, a sophomore end out of Richardson Pearce, had a team-high seven tackles and a sack.
Tucker, a junior running back/kick returner from Caldwell, totaled 104 return yards to include an 81-yard punt return for a touchdown.
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