FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[bashbrother]

Next year, Wooster will be better then they were this year.    That is all I was saying.

Gheny after the meeting they had a halftime of the Bash game....became a different team.  They continued to play this way the balance of the year.

[smedindy]

Kenyon's schedule is the same next year - I wouldn't put a .500 NCAC season past them. Denison and Oberlin have talent as well but need depth.

I have a feeling the NCAC standings won't be the "Big 5 - Little 5" again next year.

[kcreds]

If you think I'm going to be a rearend kisser or a networker to get positive karma, you are sadly mistaken. I'm a football fan, a Bishop fan, and I'm proud of it! To whoever has dealt me the negative karma, don't be a coward and explain your actions.

[Li'l Giant]

I'm trying to figure out what you said that would be offensive enough to smite you.

I'm all for a system that allows posters to figure out who the real jerks are around here but the karma thing is pretty well abused. Maybe if you could only smite one person one time a week or something. Or like the Olympic Boxing, if you had three hits in a minute then it would count as one or something. I don't know, just thinking out loud.

This bourbon is good.

Merry XXX-mas.

[oldguy]

I agree kcreds, the smiting thing is pretty cowardly.  I tried to call out people months ago, but no one bit.  In the end it doesn't matter though.

After this season, it definitely seems the days of easily predicting the NCAC are over.  This means that next season should be very interesting and exciting for every fan.  I, for one, can't wait. 

Happy Holidays to all.

[LoyalSon]

I lurked this season and now make a new year's resolution to post regularly.

I reiterate the congratulations previously posted, to Wabash's fine year, to MUC's continued excellence, and to the bright future of DIII football.  I read many informative posts and some minor trolling, but in whole the posts are enjoyable and make the football season even better.

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and will enjoy a safe New Year.


P.S.
Reality Check, I have been to the greater Lima/Ada metropolitan area, so to your doubt that ONU is on any Wabash man's radar I must inform you ONU is in my memory bank and I wish them all success in their endeavors.

[wooscot]

I love the reference to "smiting."  It sounds so biblical.  Hope all had a Happy Holiday. 

Also, anybody heading out to Temp for the OSU/ND game? 

[DarkSide-D]

Hey everybody,

Wow, seems like I haven't been on here in weeks.  Anyway, some good posts out there.  KCreds, Wesleyan as a Big Three?  One of the W's.  Not a chance.  Wooster had a down year.  That is expected after losing such a large chunk of the team.  I mean, lets be serious, no NCAC team is a Mount.  We can't just reload our guns and get back at it.

I don't think Kenyon will be as good next year.  Yes, they have the talent coming back, but as a great coach once told me, the higher you are up the ladder, the bigger is the target on your ass.  Or something to that point.  I don't think we will have to wait til OWU to see the true measure of Kenyon.  I think we will see that at the Woo game.  Look for the Scots to be extremely angry after last years performance. 

I think next year it will be Witt, rather than Bash.  I hate to say it, but they are due.  Bash will be in the hunt though.  After that, its a toss up.  Gheny is better than they look, but I am sick of saying that.  It seems the last three years people have been saying that about Gheny.  Granted they won the title in 03, but they really need to step up and be more consistent.  OWU is OWU.  Yeah they are good, but typical Bishop football is to choke when the chips are down.  Last year was their year.  It didn't happen.  Therefore, I wouldn't hold my breath.  Wooster is the enigma for this off season.  They have the talent, but lack the experiance.  In that I mean leadership on (and off) the field.  If certain players can step up and take control of the team, Wooster could cause trouble for both Bash and Witt next season.  If not, its another trip down that not so fun slippery slide.  The individuals are in position to take such control, but they really have to want it to take it. 

Wooster has been a one man show lately.  That show was Sutton, and has become Schaf.  He is good, but he needs help.  Besides, lets look at what having one weapon  got Woo last year.   I look for Woo to bring in more of Shepp next season.  As I said a long time ago, Woo has one of, if not the, best Olineman in the conference in Drushal.  He is huge, and exteremely fast for his size.  Its a shame not to utilize his abilities and run the ball.  Look for more of that next season.

Last year I said 06 was Woos season.  They had a major set back last year, but I am still confident they will bounce back.  I look for big things out of them this coming year.

As for the bottom half, I don't really care.  Yeah it would be nice to seem them really come out and compete.  Denison is almost there, as is Kenyon (as stated they still have to prove something this year).  In regards to Oberlin, Hiram, and Earlham, as they say, you can wish in one hand, and...well, you know the rest.

Hope everyone has a safe and good New Year.  Let's go Bucks and the rest of the Big Ten (Thanks alot Michigan!!!)  And here's to a new year of great NCAC Football.

[smedindy]

To me, it looked like Oberlin just needed some depth, and they'd be in the middle.

[formerd3db]

Darkside and Smeds:

Thanks for sharing your comments/opinions about the NCAC for next year.  It would be good to see some of the middle and lower tier teams get better.  As you mention, with some depth, Oberlin could be middle and Kenyon just needs to continue building on the foundation that has been laid this year. Not easy but not impossible.  Certainly OWU and Densison can be seen as promising/optimistic.  The remaining cellar dwellers (H and E) should take hope that if those other schools can improve, they can to (although again, that is obviously not easy in any sense).  Yet, I think parity (or at least striving for it) is a good thing.  In our MIAA, this has really made it exciting the last 3-4 years.  Now the only thing we need to do is make that work better in the non-conference and playoff games i.e. on the regional/national levels.

[formerd3db]

P.S. Darkside:
Michigan did have a little hinderence from the officials!

[bashbrother]

I think the formula for the lower tier teams making it to the middle of the conference standings is:

Number of players + Talent = Depth

If Kenyon wants to make a serious push at being a consistent mid-conference or higher team, they need to grow the size of their team.  This usually takes an increased committment by a schools administration to achieve.

They showed they were a team capable of winning this year, but 1 or 2 injuries and it all changed.  The same when Rummell went down at Earlham.

Having talent is not enough without depth.

[smedindy]

To be fair, those officials didn't cough up two TDs in the fourth quarter.

Oh, and Mr. TE, pitch it back to the fast guy instead of going out of bounds.

[formerd3db]

bashbrother:
I agree with your contention.  It seems that has worked for a good number of other DIII schools in their respective conferences (I could cite several examples, but won't as I'm sure you and the others know of similar instances).

smeds:
My sentiments exactly.  I referred to the same in another post on one of the other boards today.  In regards to part of that, you are right about pitching it to the "fast guy" near him - or the other option was that if Mr. TE just cut back to the middle of the field when he was down near the end on the 15 yard line instead of going towards the sidelines, I think it highly probable he would have scored.  There was only one Neb player left down there who was kind of out-of-position to make an actual tackle and if the cut would have been made, one of those MI teammate down there could have easily screened or blocked the Neb player or Mr. TE could have avoided that last player by just cutting and/or jockeying i.e. the perverbial "cut back against the grain" and still scored I believe.  Oh well.

[wally_wabash]

I don't think I've seen an offciating crew get hammered like that crew from the Alamo Bowl has been since that game.  Every game I've watched since has had multiple mentions of that crew and how bad they screwed up. 

While the officials didn't allow the two fourth quarter NU touchdowns, their incompetence did cost Michigan two timeouts in the second half which would have been the difference between Michigan getting the ball back with two seconds left and getting the ball back with a minute or so left.  That difference, especially in college football, is huge. 

It's really a shame that the officials are the story of what was otherwise a pretty good football game.