Wow! That is the only phrase that can make up the thoughts running through the head of most D2 Football fans following the first round of play in the national playoffs.
In fact, there was an advantage to road teams this season, as they took seven-of-twelve contests. Last year, there was roughly the same split, but the upsets were much larger this season as compared to 2016.
Take a look at each regional recap below, and get ready for more D2 playoffs action following some turkey and NFL action in the coming days on Thanksgiving!
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COMPARE: D2 Players | D2 Teams
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Super Region One
Winners: (3) Assumption / (5) West Chester / (7) Findlay
It was good to be an odd seed in SR1 this weekend, with the biggest upset of the entire tournament field happening when Findlay took down Shepherd, the two-time defending regional champion and a potential threat to three-peat.
Findlay took home their first playoff win in their 17-year existence in a big upset of Shepherd (Photo: Findlay Athletics)
The win represented their first ever in tournament play for both the Oilers as well as the G-MAC in UF's first playoff game in their 17-year history. Now, they move on to Worcester, Mass. to take on Assumption who took down California (PA) 40-31.
AC was able to win because of their stingy pass defense, forcing five interceptions of Michael Keir, including a sealing pick-six with about one minute to go when Cal was on a potential game-winning drive. Without those picks, the Greyhounds would be starting the offseason early.
As for West Chester, they will now get a rematch of the PSAC Title Game versus IUP after taking down divisional foe Shippensburg for the second time this season, 27-6. A dominant defensive showing gives hope that the Golden Rams can give the Crimson Hawks another good fight, and maybe spring the upset this time on the road.
After a week of great play, expect much better from SR1 in the regional semifinal round, as we will see two completely different squads in the finals than the last two seasons, giving the idea of parity a great day in college football.
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Super Region Two
Winners: (5) Delta State / (6) West Florida / (7) West Georgia
If we learned anything from SR2 this weekend, it is that the Gulf South still reigns supreme over the entire region when it comes to playoff supremacy. All three winners were in upset fashion, and all of them are affiliated with the GSC.
Delta and UWG both took down CIAA foes, with the Statesmen winning a shootout over Bowie 45-35, and the Wolves holding previously undefeated Virginia State to just nine points in a 35-9 loss.
West Florida had the best showing of all though, blanking Wingate 31-0 in their first playoff game in the team's young two-year history. The Argonauts held one of the best rushing attacks in the country to 140 yards, but intercepted three passes from Dylan Williams to shut down drives.
West Florida celebrates its first playoff victory in their first-ever playoff game in year two of existence (Photo: Jim Wright / West Florida Athletics)
With so many upsets, West Florida now gets a home game for the first time in their playoff tenure, taking on conference foe West Georgia. Delta State will now travel to West Alabama, the GSC champion from the regular season who might have mixed feelings of seeing a known rival come to town off a big win.
In the regular season matchups, West Florida claimed a 34-29 road win in Carrollton, GA while West Alabama also won on the road 29-26.
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Super Region Three
Winners: (3) Ashland / (4) Ferris State / (7) Harding
In the most stacked region of the country, two-thirds of the matchups held serve while another big upset happened in Indianapolis.
Starting with Ashland, the Eagles took out two-time defending national champion NW Missouri State 21-18 in what could be called the game of the day by most. In what I expected to be a close affair, AU was able to build a lead and hold off a resilient Bearcat attack to advance and meet Harding.
Ashland used a late defensive stand to take out the defending champs (Photo: Ashland Athletics)
Speaking of the Bison, Harding attempted just one pass and ran for 349 total yards against a good UIndy team who maybe crumbled under the pressure of being a high seed in the playoffs for the first time in a while. The Greyhounds found some offensive success of their own, but could not keep the Bison's national-best running game from controlling the game.
Ferris State started out shaky, but were able to climb their way back to a 24-19 win over Ouachita Baptist. The Bulldogs were down as much as 10-0 before they woke up and ran for 291 while forcing four turnovers. FSU will now advance to regional host Fort Hays State in a titanic clash of potential national title threats.
Ashland and Ferris State were the matchup of destiny when looking at the region before everything got started, but Harding proved that they can easily mess things up and Fort Hays will be ready. What was definitely the best region in the game just got even better when a little chaos was thrown in.
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Super Region Four
Winners: (2) Minnesota State / (3) Midwestern State / (5) Texas A&M-Commerce
The only region to avoid any major upsets, SR4 saw the best teams flex their muscles en route to regional semifinal berths.
Minnesota State and Midwestern State both held on for close victories, utilizing stingy defensive play to take out CSU-Pueblo and Sioux Falls. Both teams were able to create turnovers, and find success on the ground to spearhead a winning effort. This will definitely create an enticing matchup next weekend, as both have similar strengths to which a low scoring affair may be expected once again.
TAMU-Commerce was the only "upset" of the round, but I genuinely think the Lions were the better team in all honesty. Luis Perez was efficient in his second-consecutive opening round win. The senior preseason All-American completed 28-of-41 passes for 308 yards and 2 scores.
The next matchup for Perez may not be so friendly though as they head to the Northwest to take on regional top-seed Central Washington. CWU finished the regular season with 20 interceptions in 11 games, ranking in the top ten of the country. If the Commerce top-ranked pass attack gets going though, another upset may be in store.
While the games may have been low-scoring and boring compared to the rest of the nation, these will be some of the best contests going forward in one of the most wide-open fields in D2.
