- National Champion Mount Union Ends 2012 Season at No. 1
National Champion Mount Union Ends 2012 Season at No. 1
No. 1 Mount Union (Ohio) beat No. 2 St. Thomas (Minn.), 28-10, to win their record 11th NCAA Division III National Championship. The Purple Raiders kept their No. 1 spot throughout the season in 2012. Mount Union’s road to the championship was filled with challenges, as four of their five playoff opponents would end in the Top 12 of the final rankings. Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas), Wisconsin-Oshkosh and Linfield (Ore.) round out the Top Five.
Elmhurst (Ill.), with a win over then-No. 10 Coe (Iowa) and a close loss to St. Thomas, jumped up 12 spots to finish the season at No. 9. Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) was the only team to jump into the final poll after spending most of the season receiving votes. The Lutes went out in the first round in a close game against then-No. 4 Linfield to end the season at No. 25.
2012 American Football Coaches Association Division III Coaches’ Poll - December 17, 2012
| Rank | School (1st votes) | Rec. | Pts. | Prev. | Post-season | Head Coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Mount Union (42) | 15-0 | 1050 | 1 | D. No. 3 St. Thomas (Minn.), 28-10, in Stagg Bowl | Larry Kehres |
| 2. | St. Thomas (Minn.) | 14-1 | 997 | 3 | Lost to No. 1 Mount Union (Ohio), 28-10, in Stagg Bowl | Glenn Caruso |
| 3. | Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas) | 13-1 | 974 | 2 | Lost to No. 1 Mount Union (Ohio), 48-35, in semifinals | Pete Fredenburg |
| 4. | Wis.-Oshkosh | 13-1 | 914 | 6 | Lost to No. 3 St. Thomas (Minn.), 28-14, in semifinals | Pat Cerroni |
| 5. | Linfield (Ore.) | 11-1 | 876 | 4 | Lost to No. 6 Wis.-Oshkosh, 31-24, in quarterfinals | Joe Smith |
| 6. | Wesley (Del.) | 10-2 | 855 | 5 | Lost to No. 2 Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas), 32-20, in quarterfinals | Mike Drass |
| 7. | Hobart (N.Y.) | 12-1 | 765 | 7 | Lost to No. 3 St. Thomas (Minn.), 47-7, in quarterfinals | Michael Cragg |
| 8. | Widener (Pa.) | 11-1 | 647 | 9 | Lost to No. 1 Mount Union (Ohio), 72-17, in quarterfinals | Isaac Collins |
| 9. | Elmhurst (Ill.) | 10-2 | 609 | 21 | Lost to No. 3 St. Thomas (Minn.), 24-17, in second round | Tim Lester |
| 10. | North Central (Ill.) | 9-3 | 566 | 18 | Lost to No. 4 Linfield (Ore.), 30-14, in second round | John Thorne |
| 11. | Wittenberg (Ohio) | 10-2 | 551 | 13 | Lost to No. 7 Hobart (N.Y.), 35-10, in second round | Joe Fincham |
| 12. | Johns Hopkins (Md.) | 10-2 | 474 | 15 | Lost to No. 1 Mount Union (Ohio), 55-13, in second round | Jim Margraff |
| 13. | California Lutheran | 8-2 | 459 | 8 | Lost to No. 18 North Central (Ill.), 41-21, in first round | Ben McEnroe |
| 14. | Salisbury (Md.) | 9-3 | 444 | 14 | Lost to No. 9 Widener (Pa.), 28-7, in second round | Sherman Wood |
| 15. | Coe (Iowa) | 10-1 | 421 | 10 | Lost to No. 21 Elmhurst (Ill.), 27-24, in first round | Steve Staker |
| 16. | Wis.-Platteville | 8-2 | 381 | 12 | DNQ Playoffs | Mike Emendorfer |
| 17. | Bethel (Minn.) | 9-3 | 376 | 23 | Lost to No. 6 Wis.-Oshkosh, 37-14, in second round | Steve Johnson |
| 18. | Franklin (Ind.) | 9-3 | 355 | 20 | Lost to No. 2 Mary Hardin-Baylor (Texas), 63-17, in second round | Mike Leonard |
| 19. | Heidelberg (Ohio) | 9-2 | 351 | 11 | Lost to No. 13 Wittenberg (Ohio), 52-38, in first round | Mike Hallett |
| 20. | Cortland St. (N.Y.) | 9-2 | 327 | 17 | Lost to No. 5 Wesley (Del.), 56-6, in second round | Dan MacNeill |
| 21. | Concordia (Ill.) | 10-1 | 243 | 16 | Lost to No. 23 Bethel (Minn.), 24-23, in first round | Lonnie Pries |
| 22. | Wheaton (Ill.) | 8-2 | 239 | 19 | DNQ Playoffs | Mike Swider |
| 23. | Concordia-Moorhead (Minn.) | 8-2 | 163 | 22 | DNQ Playoffs | Terry Horan |
| 24. | Waynesburg (Pa.) | 10-1 | 109 | 24 | D. Carnegie-Mellon (Pa.), 28-14, in ECAC Southwest Bowl | Rick Shepas |
| 25. | Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) | 7-3 | 108 | NR | Lost to No. 4 Linfield (Ore.), 27-24, in first round | Scott Westering |
Dropped Out: Adrian (Mich.) (25).
Others Receiving Votes: Louisiana College, 104; Adrian (Mich.), 69; Rowan (N.J.), 53; Wis.-Whitewater, 32; Wabash (Ind.), 30; Framingham St. (Mass.), 28; Ohio Wesleyan, 24; Washington & Lee (Va.), 23; Baldwin-Wallace (Ohio), 6; Muhlenberg (Pa.), 6; St. Norbert (Wis.), 4; Washington & Jefferson (Pa.), 4; Concordia (Wis.), 3; Huntingdon (Ala.), 3; Otterbein (Ohio), 3; Trinity (Conn.), 3; Lycoming (Pa.), 1.
