FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[bleedpurple]

On another note?

We're going to have to thank...the Tigers (Old and New) if Wabash wins the league.

Denison's loss to DPU...whew.

If Wittenberg beats Denison and Wabash beats DPU. That's a three-way 7-1 tie and Wabash has beaten both squads. Unless the NCAC tiebreakers are hepped up on goofballs that SHOULD be the tiebreaker? Should.

(Assuming Wabash beats OWU and OWU falls to someone else - but even if OWU is part of a tiebreaker Wabash would have beaten them to make it happen, right?)

"hepped up on goofballs" lol 

[wally_wabash]

If Depauw, Denison, and Wabash all have just one loss at the end of the year as follows -

DePauw over Denison
Wabash over DePauw
Denison over Wabash

then the AQ goes to Denison, right?

I don't know for sure if the NCAC has updated their tiebreak rules in the last few years, but a Wabash/Denison/DePauw tiebreak where these teams all end 7-1 in league play and all lost to somebody in that triumvirate probably breaks for Wabash (via longest win streak- which is what happened for Denison the last time the NCAC had that situation in 2018).  Heavy italics on probably because those rules may have changed.

[Crawford]

As a BASH fan it slightly pains me to say, loved the aggressive defense of play by Depauw at the end of the Dennison game. 

Smed, hopefully OWU or WITT can pull off a win against DEN.  If they do and Wabash wins out, Wabash would at least tie for the conference title.  Wasn't one of the criteria for who represents the NCAC a few years ago, in case of a tie, the school that had been to the playoffs the farthest back in history?

[wally_wabash]

The last time that I saw somebody publish the NCAC tiebreaker, the Springfield News Sun printed the following:

NCAC Tiebreaker System

1. Head-to-Head result(s) between tied teams.

2. Result(s) versus individual opponents examined in descending order, individually, until tie is broken. The first team to have beaten a higher ranked team that is a common opponent wins the tiebreaker. If the tie is not broken in the descending order review, start from the bottom of the standings and examine opponents in ascending order. The first team to have lost to a lower-ranked team loses the tiebreaker.

3. Number of conference wins by the conference opponents you defeated. Team whose opponents they defeated had the highest number of wins breaks the tie.

4. Number of conference wins by the conference opponents you lost to. Team whose opponents they lost to had the highest number of wins breaks the tie.

5. The team with the longest active winning streak in conference games at the end of the season.

6. The team with the best overall record.

7. Coin Toss.

Note: When three or more teams are tied, the same procedure shall be followed until any team emerges or is eliminated by the process. If any teams are still tied, the procedure will be repeated from the beginning until all teams are ranked. If three or more results are arrived at any step, and no ties remain, then teams shall be seeded according to their results.

This was 2018.  I don't know if they've been changed or updated. 

There's no Rose Bowl rule. As I apply these steps, Wabash would win a tiebreak in a scenario where Tension, DePauw, and Wabash all finish with one loss at step 5. 

[WAF5290]

Wabash D has given up 198 points so far this season. DePauw has given up 27 points on the season. Rory Mannering is doing an amazing job this season for the Tigers as their DC. Maybe Wabash could lure him to C-ville next season?

[Whitecarrera]

That would be 39.6 pts and 474 yds total offense per game.

A strange result of all this offensive scoring, is that in five games both teams combined have attempted a total of only three field goals.

[sigma one]

This week in the NCAC---
DENISON (4-1)/OHIO WESLEYAN (2-2):  Denison lost a close one at home last Saturday v. DePauw, 17-13, as the new Tigers shut down the Big Red offense that has scored at least 45 points in each of the first 4 games.  OWU has won its last two, giving up only 7 point in each of those wins.  Denison should bounce back, but the Battling Bishops might be dangerous.  Their early loss to Otterbein is still concerning.
KENYON (1-3)/OBERLIN (0-4):  Kenyon comes off a bye week to face the winless Yeomen.  The Owls (nee Lords) have lost big to Wittenberg and Ohio Wesleyan the last two times out.  Oberlin has lost all their games, the last one v. Hiram--by a surprising 35-7 score.  This week will go big for Kenyon with its prolific passing game.
DEPAUW (5-0)/WITTENBERG (2-2):  DePauw began to cement its way at the top of the conference with a close win against a very solid Big Red last week at night in Granville.  The 9 (!) sacks were impressive as the new Tigers' defense continues to dominate.  Witt lost a shootout at home v. Wabash to drop to .500.  Losing to DPU will eliminate them from conference contention.  I don't see them able to solve DPU's defense, which has been stout against both the run and the pass.  Question:  will this game be competitive--can the Witt offense/defense keep the game close?  Is there an upset brewing here?  I don't think so. (But against the two best teams DePauw has faced thus far their offensive has scored only 17 points in each game.)
HIRAM, WABASH, and WOOSTER all have the week off.

[CollegeGolf18]

At a wedding today (YES, I KNOW) but checked d3fb.com real quick.

Looks like the perfect outcome for Wabash this weekend in the NCAC.

Witt blew out DePauw and OWU is currently up on Denison 34-7 in the 3rd.

Wabash runs the table and they are in.

[CollegeGolf18]

Looks like DePauw's QB went down early with an injury and their backup was 6-16 with 4 picks.

They were also 0-11 on 3rd down which isn't a winning recipe.

[Li'l Giant]

Weirdness abounds today. But it works out well for Wabash. Just have to keep winning. It's good to see DPU's defense look human. They can be scored on. That bodes well for the Bell Game.

[sigma one]

Well, here we are half way through the schedule with a jumble of teams still with a chance to win the NCAC.  I saw the Witt/DPU game today and was shocked at the lopsided outcome.  Sure, DPU lost its starting QB, but the old Tigers rushed for 230 yards.  The new Tigers had been giving up just under 50 YPG rushing.  And Wit totally dominated the second half, outscoring DPU 16-0.   
     After this Saturday's surprises (the OWU/DEN outcome, and particularly the score), everything is still up for grabs.
     Looking ahead, here is what remains for the contenders:
     Denison (2-2) with Wittenberg still to go
     DPU (3-1) with OWU and Wabash in the second half of the schedule
     OWU (3-0) I was wrong in thinking that they would be down a bit this year--so far they are the only team with an undefeated conference     
            record.  On the horizon, however, Wabash, DePauw, and Wittenberg   
     WAB (2-1) The close loss to Denison looms large.  OWU on Saturday and  the Bell Game v. DePauw
     WIT (3-1) Winning today keeps them in contention.  Still to play:  Denison and Ohio Wesleyan
Buckle your seat belts.
         

[Crawford]

OWU and Wabash are the only teams that are in control of their destinies.  Win out and they win the conference. Everyone else needs help.  Going to be fun to see how this all unfolds.  OWU also has to play Wabash and Depauw after both those teams have a bye-week, that's tough.

[wally_wabash]

OWU and Wabash are the only teams that are in control of their destinies.  Win out and they win the conference. Everyone else needs help.  Going to be fun to see how this all unfolds.  OWU also has to play Wabash and Depauw after both those teams have a bye-week, that's tough.

Just as we all expected- Wabash and OWU playing in Week 7 for control of the NCAC. 

Midsemester break week at Wabash which is historically lends itself to weird home games.  But Wabash has struggled at home, so maybe the midsemester reverse juju will set things straight.   

[sigma one]

Saturday's NCAC games---

Denison (4-2) v Hiram (1-4):  The Big Red look to bounce back after a drubbing by OWU last week (41-7).   Hiram comes off a dominating win v Oberlin (35-7).  I don't see the Terriers being much of a threat.
Kenyon (2-3) v Wooster (2-3):  Wooster continues to confound me.  They have lost their 3 conference games by a combined 142-21.  Kenyon has the passing game to maybe keep it close; maybe.  I would not be shocked if the Owls win, but I think it will be the Scots. 
Oberlin (0-5) v Wittenberg (3-2):  Last week, the old Tigers went into Greencastle against unbeaten DePauw and the new Tigers impressive defense and dominated the game, winning 30-7.  The DPU QB went down, but Wit ran the ball all day and played good defense.  What does this say about DPU's early success?   No question about who will win on Saturday; Wit can name the score.
Ohio Wesleyan (3-2) v Wabash (3-2):  This week's key game with the conference title still very much in doubt.  OWU is coming off 3 consecutive conference wins by impressive margins.  Wabash is tough to stop, but they've not stopped anyone except Wooster.  After their off week the LGs should be rested--but the Bishops are on a roll.  After this week, they still have DPU and Wit, so this is the beginning of an important stretch for them.  A close one.
DePauw licks its wounds this week with a major question about the health of their QB.  His replacement was intercepted 4X last Saturday.

Topsy Turvy as the season continues.
   

[WAF-WDE]

OWU and Wabash are the only teams that are in control of their destinies.  Win out and they win the conference. Everyone else needs help.  Going to be fun to see how this all unfolds.  OWU also has to play Wabash and Depauw after both those teams have a bye-week, that's tough.

Just as we all expected- Wabash and OWU playing in Week 7 for control of the NCAC. 

Midsemester break week at Wabash which is historically lends itself to weird home games.  But Wabash has struggled at home, so maybe the midsemester reverse juju will set things straight.   

Delighted to make the drive from Auburn for this game.  The game-time weather will be great for mid-October - low-50s and partly sunny.  Will be tailgating in Mud Hollow with some fraternity bros before the game and will watch some of the Auburn-Ole Miss game on my phone before the Wabash-OWU kickoff at 1 pm ET.  Thank goodness I have an excuse not to watch the whole AU-OM game - I think AU is going to get pummeled.  Hope that the LGs fare better than the AU Tigers.  Wabash Always Fights and War D@mn Eagle!