Unless you've been through it before, you never know what kind of madness may delay your application and cause you to miss a deadline. Transcripts can be delayed, your computer might break down. Somebody could put anthrax in the mail and mess up the USPS (that's what happened to me last year.)
Another problem is, the busy time for med schools is the second half of the cycle. When applications start pouring in, the admissions committee has to go through them even more quickly. You might have some good qualities to make up for your numbers, but when the guy reading your application is in a rush, he'll probably see the numbers, miss the good stuff, and set your application aside.
I'm not writing this as a discouragement. I'm just saying, make a decision, and then do what you got to do. Don't go into it half-decided. A friend of mine had a 2.75 cum GPA when she applied. The pre-med committee probably looked at her cross-eyed when she still insisted on applying. She got in on her first try, and now nobody cares about her numbers.
I hope that was coherent. Good luck guys, I'm cheering for you.