Nov 12, 2017 3 min read

After back-to-back losses to Slippery Rock and Indiana, California University’s chances of making the NCAA Division II football playoffs seemed bleak.

When the final regional rankings were released last week, Cal was ninth and two spots away from postseason inclusion.

But a rash of upsets Saturday not only gave Cal the No. 6 spot in the region, it put the Vulcans into the playoffs. They travel to Worcester, Mass., Saturday to play Assumption. Kickoff is at noon.

Cal wasn’t the only local team to earn a playoff berth. Washington & Jefferson will extend its season by at least one more week, hosting Johns Hopkins in a first-round game.

Cal head coach Gary Dunn said he always believed the Vulcans could be in this position.

“We put our heads down and tried to control what we could control and we’d look up at the end of the season to see where we’re at,” said Dunn. “That’s what they did. We felt pretty good about our chances. Around here, we worry about the next game. We felt if we kept taking care of business and keep winning, we could get in.”

Cal benefited from a wild Saturday among the eight teams ranked ahead of the Vulcans in the region. Four of those teams lost, including Slippery Rock. The Rock was at No. 5 but fell to Kutztown, 42-34. No. 4 Findlay was routed, 49-24, by Ohio Dominican, a team Cal defeated in Week 1. No. 6 West Chester fell to Indiana, 24-7, in the PSAC State Game and No. 8 Notre Dame, out of Cleveland, lost to undefeated Indianapolis, 42-27.

“We don’t know a lot about (Assumption) but our coaching staff is headed to their office to get to work on them,” said Dunn.

IUP (11-0) earned the region’s top seed and first-round bye. West Chester (8-3), the PSAC East Division champion, travels to Shippensburg (10-1); and Findlay (9-2) visits Shepherd (10-0) in the first round.

The Division II championship will be played Saturday, Dec. 16 in Kansas City.

The Presidents, 10-0 and co-champions of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference with Case Western Reserve, are making their 25th appearance in the NCAA Division III playoffs. W&J played Johns Hopkins in the 2012 playoffs.

“I felt it was one of the three teams we could possibly get,” said W&J head coach Mike Sirianni. “Frostburg, Case and Hopkins was what I was looking at. I just know that they are good, always in the playoffs, they beat us in 2012 pretty bad and it’s a school like Carnegie Mellon. They have kids from all over the country.”

After Saturday’s win over Waynesburg, W&J players were more concerned about where they were playing.

“With an undefeated season, we expect a home game,” said wide receiver Jesse Zubik after the game.

“It would be great to play (a home game) again,” said quarterback Jake Adams.

The Division III championship, the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, will be played Friday, Dec. 15 in Salem, Va.