From Washington University Athletics
St. Louis, Mo., November 17, 2013 – The Washington University in St. Louis football team received a Pool B bid to the 2013 NCAA Division III Football Championship, the NCAA Committee announced Sunday. Washington U. was one of three teams (Framingham State, Wesley) that received Pool B bids.
Washington University, who will make its first NCAA appearance since 1999 and second all-time, takes on No. 20 ranked Franklin College Saturday at Noon (ET) in the first round. This will be the first meeting in school history between the two teams.
"What I am most excited about is the grit and determination of this team," said Washington University head coach Larry Kindbom. "We raised our standard of play and performance on the field, which put us in a position to succeed each game."
Washington U. posted an 8-2 mark in the regular season, including a 3-0 record in the University Athletic Association (UAA). The Bears ended the season with seven-straight wins, their first regular-season seven-game win streak since 1948. Washington U. also won its second-straight and 10th UAA championship in school history.
Franklin College (7-3) won its fourth-straight Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) title and earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Division III playoffs with a 59-21 victory over Hanover College Saturday. The Grizzlies began the season with losses to No. 1 Mount Union University (30-27) and Butler University (31-28), before putting together a string of six-straight wins. Franklin's lone conference loss was at Bluffton College (24-17) Nov. 9.
The Grizzlies are making their fourth-straight and sixth overall appearance in the NCAA Championship, all coming in the last seven years. Franklin has 4-5 all-time record in the NCAA Championship and made second-round playoff appearances in 2011 and 2012. The team advanced to the quarterfinals in 2008.