RFC Summer Semester--President's Athletic Conference (PAC) Preview (NCAA Division III)

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2012 Final Standings

Looking back: Washington & Jefferson ended Thomas More's run of four straight President's Athletic Conference (PAC) championships, upsetting previously unbeaten Waynesburg in the final game of the regular season to claim the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs in 2012.  The Presidents found themselves in the "one-and-done" department after losing to Johns Hopkins in the first round.

Looking ahead: The burning questions in the PAC for 2013 are these: can W&J stay on top?  Or will Waynesburg seal the deal, and land in the D-III playoffs.  Or can Thomas More return to prominence after a down season?  It'll be interesting to see what happens this fall.

Off the field, the PAC's football membership will grow by two teams in 2014, when Carnegie Mellon and Case Western Reserve will join the league as associate members. 


Predicted order of finish (2012 overall record in parentheses)

1. Waynesburg (10-1):  The Yellow Jackets not only found themselves just one win away an undefeated regular season, but also one win away from a trip to the NCAA Division III Football.  Instead, the loss to Washington & Jefferson in the final game of the regular season forced them to settle for a bid in the ECAC Southwest Bowl, where they outlasted Carnegie Mellon, 28-24.  The Yellow Jackets hope to use the way 2012 ended as motivation in 2013.

2. Washington & Jefferson (8-3):  Fresh off of their program's 22nd overall conference championship in 2012, the Presidents will try to stay on top of the PAC in 2013.

3. Thomas More (7-3):  The Saints will become the hunters instead of the hunted in 2013, as they saw their streak of four straight conference titles fall by the wayside in 2012.

4. Grove City (6-4):  The Wolverines hope that a three game winning streak to end 2012 will carry them into 2013.

5. Bethany (W. Va.)--(3-7):  The Bison will have one of the toughest schedules in the nation, as they'll take on six teams who won at least six or more games last year.  But that's not all, as they welcome a new head coach in Bill Garvey.

6. Geneva (3-7):  The Golden Tornadoes had a down season by their standards, finishing 3-5 in PAC play last season.

7. Thiel (3-7):  The Tomcats hope to improve on last year's 3-5 mark in PAC action

8. Westminster (Pa.)--(3-6):  The Titans face a long uphill battle after a disappointing 2012 season.

9. St. Vincent (0-10):  Just when it seemed like the Bearcats program had turned the corner, it fell back to the bottom of the PAC, suffering their third winless season in six years.  That followed a 6-5 mark in 2011.

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