FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[Schwami]

Yeah, too bad Wooster didn't beat W&J  --- it really helps if your third place team can get regionally ranked.

[nike]

Beating OWU won't help Wabash that much?

[bashbrother]

From a recent text I received......You will see a few of these walking around on Saturday.

[BashDad]

I would not be surprised to see a conference championship on the line next year. 

Next year? Nuh-uh.

[bashgiant]

Sadly, I think Wabash is rather much locked in to where they will be in the RRs even if they lambaste the New Tigers by a badillion. I can't think of how Wabash would leap frog the OAC runner-up, unless the game resembles a game against Marietta or Wilmington.

We could silently root for Elmhurst to do us a solid...

Dag gone I thought it was sounding like Wabash had a pretty good shot of squeaking in.

[BashDad]

They do.

[Schwami]

Yes.  They do.  It mostly depends on which criteria the selection committee decides to emphasize.

[smedindy]

Sadly, I think Wabash is rather much locked in to where they will be in the RRs even if they lambaste the New Tigers by a badillion. I can't think of how Wabash would leap frog the OAC runner-up, unless the game resembles a game against Marietta or Wilmington.

We could silently root for Elmhurst to do us a solid...

Dag gone I thought it was sounding like Wabash had a pretty good shot of squeaking in.

Didn't mean to imply they didn't. They're squarely on the bubble and it depends on the committee when Wabash gets on the board. They'll be against a one-loss team in the South, St. Thomas (probably) and the SJF / Alfred winner, which, so I've learned, has a decent chance for a 2-loss team.

If IWU loses, though, Wabash will be second on the board from the North and another one-loss team goes down. Wabash would have the fourth best resume of one loss teams behind the OAC runner-up, WIAC runner up and PLU. They'd have a better resume than Texas Lutheran (who won't get a B unless Millsaps loses, and then Millsaps becomes a "C" candidate) and Thomas More.

Odds are that Wabash squeaks in, but it's not a sure thing in the least. And the chance that IWU loses to Elmhurst is remote.

[Wabash Hokie]

Below is the link to Wabash's game notes for this weekend's 120th Monon Bell game with DePauw.

http://sports.wabash.edu/documents/2013/11/13/ReleaseNov132013.pdf?id=226

[Joe Wally]

Sadly, I think Wabash is rather much locked in to where they will be in the RRs even if they lambaste the New Tigers by a badillion. I can't think of how Wabash would leap frog the OAC runner-up, unless the game resembles a game against Marietta or Wilmington.

We could silently root for Elmhurst to do us a solid...

Dag gone I thought it was sounding like Wabash had a pretty good shot of squeaking in.

Didn't mean to imply they didn't. They're squarely on the bubble and it depends on the committee when Wabash gets on the board. They'll be against a one-loss team in the South, St. Thomas (probably) and the SJF / Alfred winner, which, so I've learned, has a decent chance for a 2-loss team.

If IWU loses, though, Wabash will be second on the board from the North and another one-loss team goes down. Wabash would have the fourth best resume of one loss teams behind the OAC runner-up, WIAC runner up and PLU. They'd have a better resume than Texas Lutheran (who won't get a B unless Millsaps loses, and then Millsaps becomes a "C" candidate) and Thomas More.

Odds are that Wabash squeaks in, but it's not a sure thing in the least. And the chance that IWU loses to Elmhurst is remote.

Thanks for the info, Smed.  That almost makes sense to me.  I am a simple caveman.

[fantastic50]

I hadn't previously heard this, but Wooster QB Richard Barnes apparently has another year of eligibility remaining, due to missing most of his sophomore season with an injury.  Based on the article linked below, he is undecided on whether he will graduate in the spring or return next fall.  I am not thrilled with the idea of redshirts (even medical ones) in D-III, on principle.  That being said, having Barnes back for another season would be intriguing.  Frank Colaprete has engineered quite a turnaround this fall, and it seems that offensive system changes often fully take root in their second year.  If he came back, might the Scots be realistic contenders for a conference title, as opposed to being a distant 3rd (or worse) behind the other two W's?

http://www.the-daily-record.com/local%20sports/2013/11/15/barnes-in-the-center-of-scots-success

[The_Bishop]

I am not thrilled with the idea of redshirts (even medical ones) in D-III, on principle.

Care to elaborate on this principle, fantastic50?  I would actually like to see more non-scholarship student-athletes at the DIII use medical redshirts as a way to prolong their playing careers and continue to be a part of their college communities for an extra semester or two.

[jknezek]

I am not thrilled with the idea of redshirts (even medical ones) in D-III, on principle.

Care to elaborate on this principle, fantastic50?  I would actually like to see more non-scholarship student-athletes at the DIII use medical redshirts as a way to prolong their playing careers and continue to be a part of their college communities for an extra semester or two.

Redshirts are great when you are on scholarship. When you aren't, it just means paying a boatload of money for one more shot at school glory while taking classes you didn't need in order to get your degree. Unless you have moved on to getting a graduate degree at the same school, this is the absolute essence of "pay to play" with no academic upside. Not exactly what is intended for DIII's student athlete model.

[The_Bishop]

Considering what the "one more shot at school glory" entails at the DIII level I really don't have a problem with the student that wants to shell out a boatload of money to stick around for an extra semester.  I'm probably showing my personal bias by wishing I could strap up the cleats for one more minute of a single game, but it's not like the few instances of 5th-year seniors in the NCAC that have come to light on this board over the past few years are meatheads not making any positive contribution to their programs and schools.  Maybe they are, I guess I don't know the answer to that last part.  I think if you've made it through 4-years of study at an NCAC school you get the benefit of the doubt.

[The_Bishop]

EDIT:  Or any Division III school, not just those in the NCAC.  Heaven forbid someone takes that last comment as a shot across the bow meant to instigate another Battle of the Bachelor's Degrees.