For the second consecutive season, Central Washington and Western Colorado will meet in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Football Championship.

This year, CWU again will go on the road to see if it can get the best of the Mountaineers in back-to-back opportunities. 

The Wildcats will head to Mojo Field at Mountaineer Bowl at the Rady Family Sports Complex in Gunnison, Colorado, and the contest will get underway Saturday at 3 p.m. Eastern.

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The 2024 playoff teams were announced Sunday, and Central Washington and Western Colorado are two of the seven teams advancing to the playoffs from Super Region Four. 

The bracket includes 28 teams across four super regions, with the No. 1 team in each super region earning a first-round bye. For Super Region Four, that was Colorado State University-Pueblo.

The CWU Wildcats (8-3, 7-2), who joined the Lone Star Conference for the 2022 season, earned a third consecutive runner-up finish in the LSC, this time finishing behind Angelo State. 

Western Colorado enters the playoffs at 10-1 overall and 8-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. The lone loss was to CSU-Pueblo (44-34 on Nov. 2), which used the victory to catapult to the outright RMAC title. 

Entering Saturday’s game, Western Colorado is ranked No. 10 in the latest American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches Poll, while Central Washington landed at No. 19.

Can Central Washington get past Western Colorado again this year, or is WCU the better team this time? 

Here are some facts about Central Washington football heading into the opening round of the 2024 Division II Playoffs:

How Familiar Are Central Washington And Western Colorado?

Central Washington and Western Colorado are meeting in the first round of the Division II Playoffs for the second consecutive year, with last year’s showdown actually being the first time they’d ever met.

The action on the field at the Mountaineer Bowl last season was relatively quiet through three quarters, with host Western Colorado taking a 3-0 lead into the final period. 

The teams each found the end zone in the fourth quarter – first CWU, then an answer from Western Colorado – before a late field goal from the Wildcats tied the game and sent it into overtime. 

After a field goal by the Mountaineers in OT, Central Washington got the ball and one last chance to extend the season. A 30-yard touchdown pass from Kennedy McGill to Darius Morrison gave the visitors a 16-13 victory and a ticket to the second round of the playoffs.

The win was CWU’s first postseason victory since 2009. 

Central Washington beat Bemidji State in the next round (21-17), before falling to eventual national runner-up Colorado School of Mines in the quarterfinals, 38-14.

McGill still is the man under center for the Wildcats. He threw all but a handful of passes for CWU this year, connecting on 118 of 194 attempts for 1,586 yards and 15 touchdowns. He threw five interceptions during the 2024 regular season.

The redshirt sophomore quarterback also leads the team in rushing this year, rolling up 1,093 yards and 11 touchdowns on 145 carries. 

How Many Times Has Central Washington Been To The Postseason? 

Amazingly, even though the first year of football at Central Washington was 1901, with a few hiatuses early in the program’s history, this year marks just the eighth playoff for the Wildcats at the Division II level. 

Previous visits came in 2002, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2017, 2021 and 2023, and their postseason record is 5-7.

It’s not really as shocking as it sounds, though. The Wildcats didn’t move up to NCAA Division II until the formation of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in 2001. 

CWU actually is familiar with winning it all, as the Wildcats were named the 1995 NAIA Division II co-national champions, sharing the title with Findlay, after the two teams tied in the championship game, 21-21. 

The Wildcats also claimed 11 GNAC titles from 2001-2021, and there could’ve been more, but the conference didn’t sponsor football for the 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 seasons. 

CWU’s eventual departure from the GNAC was because the conference again dropped football after the 2021 season.

What Did Central Washington’s 2024 Season Look Like?

Central Washington (8-3, 7-2) made a run at the Lone Star Conference title this season, but Angelo State (9-2, 9-0) was just too strong. 

UT Permian Basin stood between CWU and the Lone Star title in 2023, while Angelo State was the roadblock in the Wildcats’ 2022 conference debut.

Besides narrowly losing to ASU on Nov. 2 (17-16), the Wildcats were bested by UT Permian Basin nearly a month earlier in another nailbiter, 14-13.

The Wildcats’ third loss in 2024 was a season-opening nonconference loss to San Diego (26-7).

On the field, Central Washington ranked third in the conference in scoring offense (31 points per game) but shined on the other side of the ball and led the conference in scoring defense, giving up just 11.3 points per contest.

CWU was second in total offense (415.8) and rushing (261.2), but the Wildcats struggled through the air. Their 154.6 passing yards was eighth in the 10-team LSC, though they were sacked a league-low six times in 11 games.

Again, the Central Washington defense was stout, leading the conference in rushing defense (83.1 yards per game) and pass defense (127.4 yards per game). 

Senior defensive back Tanner Volk led the Wildcats in the regular season with 57 total tackles, which was among the top 20 players in the LSC. 

How Did Central Washington Perform In The Final Week Of The Regular Season?

Central Washington closed the regular season with a 13-3 win over Western Oregon.

The week before, the Wildcats routed Sul Ross State, 66-0. 

How Did Western Colorado Perform In The Final Week Of The Regular Season?

Western Colorado ended the regular season with a 37-7 win against Colorado Mesa University. 

The week prior, the Mountaineers downed Chadron State College, 21-17.

Both were RMAC games. 

When Are The NCAA Division II Football Playoffs?

• First round: Saturday, Nov. 23
• Second round: Saturday, Nov. 30 
• Quarterfinals: Saturday, Dec. 7 
• Semifinals: Saturday, Dec. 14
• National championship: Saturday, Dec. 21

When Is The NCAA Division II Championship Game?

The NCAA Division II championship game is set for Saturday, Dec. 21 in McKinney, Texas.

NCAA Division II Football Playoff Schedule

First Round: Saturday, Nov. 23

• Slippery Rock vs. New Haven
• Charleston (W.Va.) vs. Ashland
• California (Pa.) vs. East Stroudsburg
• Miles vs. Carson-Newman
• Wingate vs. Virginia Union
• West Alabama vs. Lenoir-Rhyne
• Central Oklahoma vs. Ouachita Baptist
• Grand Valley State vs. UIndy
• Pittsburg State vs. Harding
• Augustana (S.D.) vs. Minnesota State
• Western Colorado vs. Central Washington
• Angelo State vs. Bemidji State

Second Round: Saturday, Nov. 30

• Kutztown vs. Slippery Rock/New Haven
• Valdosta State vs. Miles/Carson-Newman
• Ferris State vs. Central Oklahoma/Ouachita Baptist
• CSU Pueblo vs. Augustana (S.D.)/Minnesota State

AFCA Division II Football Rankings

As of Nov. 18, 2024

1. Valdosta St. (Ga.) (27) 10-0
2. Ferris St. (Mich.) (3) 10-1
3. Kutztown (Pa.) 11-0
4. Harding (Ark.) 10-1
5. Grand Valley St. (Mich.) 10-1
6. Charleston (W.Va.) 11-0
7. Colorado St.-Pueblo 10-1
8. Central Oklahoma 10-1
9. Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) 10-1
10. Western Colorado 10-1
11. Slippery Rock (Pa.) 9-1
12. West Alabama 9-1
13. Pittsburg St. (Kan.) 8-2
14. Indianapolis (Ind.) 10-1
15. Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.) 9-2
16. Angelo St. (Tex.) 9-2
17. Wingate (N.C.) 9-1
18. Colorado School of Mines 8-3
19. Central Washington 8-3
20. California (Pa.) 8-2
21. West Florida 7-3
22. Augustana (S.D.) 8-3
23. Southern Arkansas 9-2
24. Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 9-2
25. Central Missouri 8-3

Dropped Out: Minnesota St. (18), Findlay (Ohio) (22).

Others Receiving Votes: Fort Hays St. (Kan.), 65; East Stroudsburg (Pa.), 45; Virginia Union, 38; Miles (Ala.), 36; Minnesota St., 34; New Haven (Conn.), 21; Findlay (Ohio), 18; Bemidji St. (Minn.), 9; Sioux Falls (S.D.), 4; Davenport (Mich.), 3; Ashland (Ohio), 2; Glenville St. (W.Va.), 1.

To see the D2Football.com Top 25 Poll, click here.

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