Quote from: jekelish on February 09, 2010, 06:55:41 PM
I can tell you first hand that Loren Dawson is a great, great guy.  You simply won't meet a guy of higher character.  I was at his press conference today, and listening to him talk, you can see why he's such a good recruiter.  He's very passionate and it's clear he really, truly cares about his players.  Additionally, there are a bunch of kids still in the program who were recruited by Dawson before he left for the School of Mines a couple years ago.

It's a very good hire for AC.

Obviously do not know him as well as Jekelish would, but I would echo and emphasize his sentiment regarding Coach Dawsons "character", and "passion". I would also add "familiarity" as a factor. Clearly he knows and loves Austin College and DIII football. He has a relevant track record. I do not believe the team will loose any ground and in fact may find a spark in this hire.

Nice work by Tim Millerick and the admin! Am eager to hear "roocru's" assesment...

Quote from: roocru on January 21, 2010, 12:51:19 PM
I would like to express my personal thanks to Ronnie for his work in developing the AC football program.  He is a great guy and I truly wish him the best.

I too cannot show enough appreciation of Ronnie Gage and definitely wish the very best for him and Mrs Gage and their family.

It will be interesting to monitor the progress and changes ahead at Austin College. I believe the football program is better - in ways both tangible and intangible - as he leaves, than it was when he arrived.

I have so much enjoyed being part the the community that is this message board, being on the campus of these wonderful schools and getting to know some of the people at Austin College and throughout the conference. But that only a fraction when compared to the enjoyment of watching the games and being around the fantastic young men on the teams of the SCAC.

One of the treats Mrs Rooski and I found in Indy this weekend was the NCAA offices and it's "Hall of Champions". One of the displays in "The Hall" included portions of a quote by President Theodore Roosevelt. When we got home I looked for it so I could share it with the seniors who will play their last football game this weekend  - or soon thereafter. Not all will have been crowned champions somewhere through the years - not all will have been hailed as stars, or seen their names in print or heard it on the PA systems - some will not have played in many games and others perhaps almost none. But all will have been a part of the team, and in their own way will have contributed. And matured . And become better men. To them and their fellow senior trainers and support staff members I offer those words of President Roosevelt which the NCAA saw as a fitting way to honor you.  -  Enjoy!

"It is not the critic who counts;
not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles,
or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,
whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again,
because there is no effort without error and shortcoming;
but who does actually strive to do the deeds;
who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions;
who spends himself in a worthy cause;
who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,
and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly,
so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls
who neither know victory nor defeat."

Quote from: TigerDad on November 09, 2009, 06:56:09 AM
First of all, let me offer my sincere congratulations to the players and coaching staff of the DePauw Tigers football team on their fine season and SCAC championship.  Considering the controversial and difficult beginning of the season (and pages of message board chatter in August), they've done a terrific job!  We wish you all the best this weekend against Wabash and on into the playoffs ... here's hoping you go deep into December and represent the SCAC well.

Secondly, congrats also to the Millsaps Majors ... another excellent year of football in Jackson.  Looks to me like you will have many more successful years to come.  Despite the playoff miss, you are to be commended on a terrific job....

...Ah, so ... it comes down to the last game of the year (and of the seniors' careers) this Saturday up in Sherman.  Both TU and AC had some tough breaks this year and have alot of pride on the line for the season finale.  I'll be picking the Tigers, but the 'Roos will be a handful, that's for sure.  Here's hoping for a great game, no injuries on either side, and a beautiful cool fall afternoon.  If we get that, I'm fine with it no matter what the score.  A little bittersweet, but we're ready to finish up and move on ... some more than others, I'm sure.

Life is a series of endings and new beginnings ... can't wait to enjoy both!  Ah, and lest I forget ... Oh Lord, I thank you for the time in between.  What a blessing.

Not the first time TigerDad has eloquently posted what I was feeling but could not quite put into words. Though I deeply wanted the Kangaroos win on Saturday it was good to be in Greencastle and see DePauw enjoy their banner day and to get to congratulate numerous players and their families on Senior Day.

I am eager to do the same with the TU Tigers and the Kangaroos next Saturday as well.

Quote from: TigerDad on December 24, 2008, 09:40:23 AM
My Christmas gift to all my fellow D3-SCAC message boarders is to pass this most excellent story along to all of you ... in three parts for your reading enjoyment.  The Christmas spirit lives...

...Ladies and gentlemen, it just doesn't get any better than this.  Coach Hogan and Grapevine Faith players, parents and fans ... I SALUTE YOU.

May God Bless You All this season and in 2009.

One of my favorite posts since I've been following this board was this one from TigerDad last Dec, 24th. He provided three links for this terrific high school "football" story. If you got to read them you will remember that it was much more!

Today's Star-Telegram in Fort Worth has a "one year later" follow-up at this link:
           http://www.star-telegram.com/highschools/story/1734436.html

It does not say so here, but a few months ago I also read that there is a movie in the works about this whole story. If you missed this last December I encourage you to go back to TigerDad's post and try the original links. - Thanks again "TD"!

Boy, you guys are great!!! I just wish we were gathered around a tailgate instead of a computer monitor. But I also wish Tyler O. could have played the entire season. No doubt he would have figured heavily in the recent dialogue. And the thing is, we could do this about most any position on the field.

As I've said before - I'm not an expert, but I love this game and our young men who play it!

Looks like great weather for the game Saturday at DePauw. I hope the game is as good as last year's and that the Roo's can give the Tigers all they can handle.

Quote from: INS_Major on November 03, 2009, 10:22:25 PM
With all the talk about SCAC quarterbacks the other day, I decided to do a little research myself and got a little help from the Millsaps SID. I see that Chris Graves has had a very quiet breakout season in his first and ONLY year as a starter. He only had one TD and 200 yards entering this season, and has thrown for 2,222 yards and 28 TDs against only 5 interceptions. I also read that he's thrown for 19 touchdowns and ZERO picks the last six weeks, a stretch of 192 passes without an interception.

Of course I'm bragging on our QB a little, but he deserves it. It will be very interesting come All-Conference voting when you've got Spud Dick, Andy Braly and Graves all in the mix for only one First Team All-SCAC spot.

Go ahead and brag! All great points about Chris. I thought he turned in a gritty performance against AC to start the conference season back in September and it seems he's gotten better and better as the year has gone by. He had some really big shoes to fill and has done a super job.

Quote from: Wes Anderson on November 01, 2009, 10:00:14 PM
Going to put my coach hat on a little bit, then. 

If there's 8 in the box on every play, your playcalling needs to be way less balanced than 27 runs & 31 passes.  I understand the merit of balance, but if they're loading up on the best QB in the conference with one safety back there, you have to make them get out of it.  I haven't had much negative to say about my friend Coach Ward's playcalling, and I didn't even pay attention to any of the football game - I just saw the box after the fact, but that's just my opinion.  Coach Ward probably thinks I'm full of baloney and I'll gladly accept that.

Even so - with 8 in the box, 1.8 ypc is still awfully poor.

This may be a slippery slope, but just for fun let's qualify the "best QB in the conference". Please allow me some latitude and I will explain. Spud is certainly an outstanding QB! No doubt about it!! And I don't know why anyone would not want him on their team. If the QB position is only about passing, then he may be the best {see also Chris Graves}. But if you factor rushing skills and blocking duties I think AC's Andy Braly would deserve some props as well. - And believe me, we see our share of loaded boxes.

First let me acknowlegde that the only stat that really matters is wins and losses and we all know that stat. But hey, they keep all these other stats too, so allow me "use" the numbers to demonstrate my bias a little bit. {I am not a mathemetician or an engineer so I accept any corrections that may follow.}

Using the "conference only" stats on the SCAC site, I calcuated the total offense stats to a "yards per play" average for the three leaders in the catagory and it comes out to :

Spud D. - .1285
Chris Graves - .1544
Andy B.  -  .1380

And the "yards per pass" for the same three came to:

Spud - 8.78
Chris - 7.58
Andy - 9.07

Also Spud and Andy are 1st and 2nd respectively in the passing efficiency catagory. But of these three senior QB's only Andy B is listed in total offense, passing AND rushing top ten lists on the site.

Other stats on the sheet show that the Roos can hold their own offensively this year. DPU and AC have very different expectations of their QB position and I believe they both have the right guy for their teams.

Again, don't take this as any disrespect for Spud. He is awesome and has loads of terrific stats and accomplishments. I am excited about seeing him play again. No one appreciates the work of a QB like a QB's dad. Just thought I'd shine a little light on what Andy and the AC offense have done so far this year. I have seen all the AC games this year and I have never left the stadium wishing we had the "other guy" for our QB.  I am partial though. Andy's my son. So I am looking forward to seeing two of the best QB's in the league this weekend.

Tex talked about parity.

PBrooks talks about interesting.

Here's a "parity" twist of an "interesting" if.

I think I've got this right. If AC and TU win next weekend there will be 4 teams tied behind Millsaps with 2 SCAC losses. And then the winner between AC/TU to end the season would finish in a three way tie for {?}second. {Dang, I wish we'd scored 2 more against the Majors...} And don't rule out these Roo's. The string of tough losses is bound to give way to a marquis win sooner or later.
                                                        ............................ to the hunt ............   

Congrats Roos on your win in Memphis. No turnovers - no problem. Wonder when the Roos last had three TD passes in back-to-back games {I know some SCAC teams do this weekly but it is news in Sherman}. Big day rushing for Hasten as well despite ongoing injury issues.

I really wish we had scored 2 more points at home against Millsaps.

Can't win the SCAC in '09, but could still finish with only two SCAC losses... Now an extra week to prepare for Tiger hunting... Work hard guys! Prepare... Prepare... Prepare...

Ralph,  Thanks for the feedback. I enjoyed the "Reflections" and like Tigerdad said, I would have never run across that.

Tigerdad, I will send you a PM the week of our AC/TU matchup {or is it TU/AC???} to suggest a postgame allergy session location. I hope to get to meet Chris as well.

FBCleatus, We appreciate your kind words about our boy. It really is an honor to be around these Kangaroos - and their families.

Last weekend I sat with Zach Swirczynski's dad at the game. {Most of you know Zach died suddenly one February evening on the AC campus and was a member of the football team.} He and his family are attending the games that Zach would have been a part of until his class graduates. They are close to many of the boys and appreciate the support they have received from the team and the school. What a mighty example of how much these "games" can come to mean to us. And a reminder of what a blessing it is to be able to traverse a season or career with our sons and their teammates.  -  I love this game and these young men. That is why I try to speak with players and parents of the opponents afterward so that they know we are really all in this together - raising sons into quality men.

Quote from: rooski on October 20, 2009, 06:53:11 PM
I fee compelled

I "feel" compelled...

"Randomness" from Rooski

>At the end of last season I {and others} complained about officiating. Don't know if it was addressed during the offseason but it seems to me to have improved. In case the improvement is actual - and not simply my perception - I fee compelled to acknowledge the change. It would be logical to think SCAC reviewed it as there are other clear signs of progress and striving for higher quality in SCAC sports. - Not easy to do when economics are so tight.

>I have seen Centre. I believe they are ready and determined win this conference. But their defense will need to lead them there.

>I hope DPU's Tigers are more concerned with "the bell" than the Roos when we go to Greencastle in November. Obviously, the way for AC to salvage a disappointing '09 would be to 1) hold on to the football, and 2) sneak up on a Tiger somewhere between now Sunday Nov 15th.

>After our trip to Indy I will have been to all the SCAC football venues at least once. {Actually, I think we were the last home game for BSU before they opened their new stadium so we did not see a game in there. And we did get to see a game at Colorado College before they quit.} And I have said it before but I will say it again. Stress to those around your programs the depth that is gained by going to the away games! It has added so, so, so much to our DIII experience. These are great institutions with a variety of history, tradition, settings, asthetics and style - and characters. It means so much to get to share it with your sons. ** If you have not been, find a way and go.

>I wish my son had more than three games left in his football career. I am going to miss watching him play. - I suspect there are other dads one among us with a similar sense.

More disappointment. Jekelish described it. But here's my version.

The team is better than it's been. But, oh the turnovers!!!

Playing at home in perfect weather on Homecoming, the QB throws three TD's and runs for 100yds and another TD, the team has 420 yards of offense, and loses, and it's not really the fault of the defense.  -  ugh...

But I'm still going to Memphis next week.

PS: Our punter/DB Josh Willis will undergo surgery for torn ACL on Thursday. Please keep him in mind.

Quote from: pbrooks3 on October 13, 2009, 06:40:01 PM

Quote from: PrayingColonel on October 12, 2009, 12:08:54 PM
Glad to see Centre cracked the top 25 at #22.
They statistically dominated their game with BSC (yardage, time of possession, etc.) but had trouble finding the end zone. The Defense was outstanding as usual.
Hopefully the bye week will allow them to get healed up and prepare for Millsaps in two weeks.
Go Colonels!

Good to see Centre doing well - it will be a real test in Jackson on the 24th. 

Totally agree. It should be a dandy football game. I saw these two teams in consecutive weeks and cannot easily pick one over the other. I guess the key match-up will be Centre's disciplined, physical defense against Millsaps' explosive offense. I think a low scoring game would favor Centre.
  It's a shame Centre is playing without Tyler O but they will have had some time to blend Conliff back into the starting QB spot. And it sounds like Chris Graves should be okay for this game.
  The week off will likely be a plus for the Colonels since they travel. But playing in Jackson obviously should boost the Majors.
  I'm eager to see how Pinque fares against Millsaps' athletic defenders.
  If it comes down to special teams Milsaps gets the nod - rediculously good return game. And Centre's place kicking isn't it's strength - a missed XP or FG could really hurt them.
  Overall, two outstanding football teams loaded with talent and character - no doubt in part a reflection of their respective head coaches. I wish I could be there.