After defeating Coe, the Simpson men’s football team is heating up. Since defeating Dubuque 50-46 in last second heroics last Saturday, the Storm are on fire.

So are their Twitter accounts.

On Nov. 3, D3football.com released its weekly national top 25 poll through all the games up to Nov. 2. Simpson wasn’t in the rankings, no IIAC team was, but there was one Iowa Conference foe that received seven votes to be considered – Coe.

As you may have guessed, this angered the Simpson faithful and members of the football program, considering the Storm took down Coe and just recently rocked Dubuque. For starters, look at the photo on the left to view a few of the exchanges between @d3football and others…

In an email interview, Pat Coleman, executive editor of D3sports.com, said,

• “Often a particular fan base or members of a particular team will perceive disrespect in the poll. I feel our track record is strong, certainly stronger than the AFCA (American Football Coaches Association) poll, but that doesn’t mean much to a player who only sees their own conference and not the other 230-plus teams.”

Coleman declined to make any further comment in regards to the situation.

Things just got real, but hopefully not too real, considering the Storm are vying for a first place finish in the Iowa Conference standings and ultimately, that’s the only thing that should be on the Storm’s players’ minds here on out.

Who cares about national polls, who cares about other teams receiving recognition and who cares about the numbers.

You’re on a four-game win streak – upsetting the so-called favorite to many in Coe College, and last Saturday in an absolute shootout against Dubuque. You cannot count out final regular season opponents in Buena Vista (2-6, 2-3 IIAC) and Luther (2-6, 1-4 IIAC) with the caliber of play they are capable of bringing to the gridiron.

Anything is possible, and the fact that you’re coming out on top in tough, competitive football games is evident in itself.

I’m not saying either side is right, but I’m also not saying either side is wrong. D3football.com shouldn’t have lashed out via Twitter with the tweets they posted, especially if they want to be considered a well-respected organization as, “Your No. 1 source for Division III football information.’

At the same time, however, the Storm shouldn’t have intervened, because rankings never tell the whole story.

Haters are going to hate.

Keep your eyes on the prize, and bring the hardware home. Stay away from the outside, and stay within yourselves as a unit. Accomplish your team goals you set out from the very beginning, and you will get the recognition you rightfully deserve. Plus, you’ll be proving the doubters wrong along the way.

Simpson will battle Buena Vista Saturday at Buxton Stadium – the Storm’s final home game of the regular season. Kickoff is set to begin at 1 p.m.