2014 NCAA Division III Football Bracket

BALTIMORE, MD -- The seventh-ranked and undefeated Johns Hopkins football team will host Rowan (NJ) in the first round of the 2014 NCAA Division III Football Playoffs it was announced Sunday evening. The game is scheduled for Saturday, November 22 at Homewood Field and ticket information will be announced on Monday, November 17. Kickoff is set for noon.

The winner of the Johns Hopkins-Rowan game will play the winner of the Hobart-Ithaca first round game on Saturday, November 29. The location of that game will be announced on Sunday, November 23.

Johns Hopkins earned the Centennial Conference's automatic bid to the playoffs, while Rowan earned the automatic bid from the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC). These were two of the 24 automatic bids awarded in the 32-team field.

Johns Hopkins (10-0) is making its fourth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Playoffs and the sixth appearance in school history; all six trips have come since 2005. Highlighting the Blue Jays' five previous appearances is a run to the 2009 NCAA Quarterfinals and a second round showing in 2012. This will be the fourth consecutive year that the Blue Jays host a first round game.

Rowan (7-3) shared the NJAC title and earned the league's automatic bid on a tiebreaker. This is the second straight and 19th overall NJAC title for Rowan, which is making its third consecutive and 16th overall appearance in the NCAA Playoffs. The Profs are 31-15 all-time in the tournament with five trips to the semifinals and five championship game appearances.

This will be the first-ever meeting between Johns Hopkins and Rowan in football. The teams did not share any common opponents during the 2014 season.

Johns Hopkins won its sixth straight and 10th overall Centennial Conference championship this season. The outright title this season is the fourth straight and fifth in six years for the Blue Jays (JHU shared the 2010 title). Hopkins also won the outright title in 2005, when the Blue Jays made their first appearance in the NCAAs.

The Blue Jays enter the playoffs with a balanced team that has been effective on both sides of the ball. Johns Hopkins is currently averaging 40.2 points and 446.2 yards per game, while the Blue Jay defense has been equally effective, surrendering just 14.3 points and 300.2 yards per game.

Senior quarterback Braden Anderson enjoyed an outstanding regular season in his first year as a starter as he was 166-of-250 for 2,118 yards with 20 touchdowns against just six interceptions in 10 games. He also rushed for 381 yards and a team-high nine scores in Johns Hopkins' 10 regular season games.

In addition to Anderson's exploits on the ground, the Blue Jays feature a three-man rotation at running back in sophomores Stuart Walters and Dionisio Roman and junior Brandon Cherry. The trio has accounted for 1,387 yards and 20 touchdowns on just 277 carries.

Anderson's top two targets on the outside are sophomores Bradley Munday and Quinn Donaldson, whose 83 combined receptions have accounted for 1,308 yards and 12 touchdowns. The Blue Jay receiving corps is young as 184 of Johns Hopkins' 187 receptions this season are from players who will return next season.

The Johns Hopkins defense has accumulated 27 sacks and forced 27 turnovers through 10 games. Junior Keith Corliss leads the team with 70 tackles, but it's the deep rotation that Hopkins has used that has proven to be most beneficial. In all, 15 different players have at least 20 tackles on the year, 11 players have at least one interception, 14 players have at least one sack and the opposition has converted just 52-of-159 (.327) third-down chances on the year.

Rowan will come to Homewood Field riding the crest of a three-game winning streak, during which the Profs have allowed a total of just 12 points. After a 1-2 start, the Profs have won six of their last seven with only a 20-16 setback at Montclair blemishing the record since the beginning of October.

The late-season effort of the Rowan defense was no surprise as it excelled throughout the season. Rowan allowed just 13.7 points and 267.0 yards per game and held six of its last seven opponents to 14 points or less. The opposition averaged just 77.5 yards per game rushing and completed just 46.5% of its pass attempts on the year.

Offensively, junior Withler Marcelin is the featured man as he has rushed for 1,311 yards and 11 touchdowns in just nine games played. Junior quarterback Bill McCarty has thrown for 1,003 yards and eight touchdowns and his favorite targets are junior Russ Forchion (34-383-4) and senior Warren Oliver (23-226-2).

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