FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

Pat Coleman · August 29, 2011, 01:22:20 PM

Quote from: wally_wabash on August 29, 2011, 01:09:59 PM

So I guess my answer to the poll question is...nobody finishes fourth!

+1

BashBacker#16 · August 29, 2011, 05:03:09 PM

A good write-up preview on the 2011 Little Giants in the most recent Bachelor:

http://www.wabash.edu/bachelor/issues/2011f/2011f1.pdf

Regarding Bash being idle in week 1, (you guys have this discussion every single year) and it's the same reason - Wabash does not choose to be open in week 1. It's how it shakes out because DePauw has to be the last game of the year.

Wally - pretty impressive breakdown on the conference.

Pat Coleman · August 29, 2011, 05:41:21 PM

Quote from: BashBacker#16 on August 29, 2011, 05:03:09 PM
Wabash does not choose to be open in week 1. It's how it shakes out because DePauw has to be the last game of the year.

How does that connect, just out of curiosity? I understand that Wabash-DePauw has often been a non-conference game but I am not making the connection as to how that bears on whether Wabash schedules an opponent in the opening week of the season.

bashbrother · August 29, 2011, 05:52:00 PM

16 - It is probably me bringing it up every year. As Pat's last comment mentioned, I don't see how The Bell Game needing to be the last game of the year, effects whether Wabash has a bye in Week 1, 2, 3 etc. I don't know enough about all the scheduling dynamics, but I also do not see the connection.

BashBacker#16 · August 29, 2011, 07:42:24 PM

Pat,

The UAA agreement AND the fact DePauw has to be our last game - that's what I have been told. I'm sorry I can't provide more specifics.

Anyone at the Monon Bell Stag last year, remember Nate Boulais' crack on DPU coach Robby Long (comparing him to Colts LB Gary Brackett) - looks like Coach Long took it to heart... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xevfZlvPfmU&feature=related

Interesting clip.

BB16

Li'l Giant · August 29, 2011, 08:28:00 PM

Quote from: BashBacker#16 on August 29, 2011, 07:42:24 PM
Pat,

The UAA agreement AND the fact DePauw has to be our last game - that's what I have been told. I'm sorry I can't provide more specifics.

The anti-Week 1 thing has been going on long before the UAA agreement and Wabash's membership in the NCAC. Or the ICAC for that matter.

Pat Coleman · August 29, 2011, 09:44:57 PM

Quote from: BashBacker#16 on August 29, 2011, 07:42:24 PM
Pat,

The UAA agreement AND the fact DePauw has to be our last game - that's what I have been told. I'm sorry I can't provide more specifics.

The only thing I can think of is that Wabash has some policy against bye weeks, so if DePauw must be Week 11, then Week 1 must be the bye.

I believe there is one conference that has (possibly had) a rule that says if you play 10 games, you must go without a bye week. In that conference, a couple of teams play 10 but most play nine.

The_Bishop · August 29, 2011, 10:01:30 PM

OWU season preview is up:

http://bishops.owu.edu/2011-12/fb11ovr.html

ADL70 · August 29, 2011, 11:23:29 PM

Latest on the NCAC schedule: 2013 first year of round robin. 2012 still not available.

http://www2.northcoast.org/mediacenter/futurescheds

bashbrother · August 30, 2011, 12:35:14 AM

Nice catch ADL, thanks for posting.

The way that schedule reads, every NCAC team will have their open week either week #1 or week #2. It also seems to show Wabash having "one" game to fill on their schedule. (along with everyone else... except Gheny)

After an initial glance, I like it.

wally_wabash · August 30, 2011, 01:29:55 AM

Quote from: bashbrother on August 30, 2011, 12:35:14 AM
Nice catch ADL, thanks for posting.

The way that schedule reads, every NCAC team will have their open week either week #1 or week #2. It also seems to show Wabash having "one" game to fill on their schedule. (along with everyone else... except Gheny)

After an initial glance, I like it.

Kenyon also has a 10th game scheduled against Earlham. I think the round robin is worth a try for two or four years to see how it plays out. It may be that the league is better served with a 7-game schedule but the only way to find out is to play at least two years with a round robin. I think Witt/Woo should always be a week 11 game.

wabco · August 30, 2011, 08:31:49 AM

Wally

Won't we be busy with the Dannies on Week 11? I would much prefer Witt at Week 9 with Kenyon solidly esconsed on week 10.

Ryan Tipps · August 30, 2011, 10:43:09 AM

Just got my Wabash calendar in the mail. If you other alums haven't turned to November yet, it's worth jumping ahead to see it. Simply awesome......

wally_wabash · August 30, 2011, 11:00:50 AM

Quote from: wabco on August 30, 2011, 08:31:49 AM
Wally

Won't we be busy with the Dannies on Week 11? I would much prefer Witt at Week 9 with Kenyon solidly esconsed on week 10.

Witt vs. Wooster on Week 11 should be a traditional season-ender for those two rivals is what I was getting at. Of course moving Monon Bell off of the last weekend of the season is strictly forbidden.

ExTartanPlayer · August 30, 2011, 11:31:41 AM

Quote from: wab64 on August 27, 2011, 07:02:22 PM
There is no certainty that the UAA can maintain this level of balance, but it would be interesting to continue, particularly if the schedules could be adjusted to match Wabash (and now DePauw) against CMU and CWRU.

I think that the UAA's balance is more likely to continue than you think. Prior to CWRU's three-year run of dominance from 2007-09, the conference was VERY balanced. In fact, the four-year stretch from 2004-07* had four different conference champions (2004 WashU, 2005 Chicago, 2006 CMU, 2007 CWRU). In general, parity in the UAA has been the rule, and CWRU's three-year streak was the exception. I'd expect that the four teams will remain relatively equal, with some year-to-year variation.

*I played for CMU from 2004-07.

Quote from: wab64 on August 27, 2011, 07:02:22 PM
I know the value of continuing the UAA-NCAC agreement will depend on the continuance of the competitivenes of the UAA schools...

I'm sure that you're aware of this, but the UAA schools have been more than competitive with the NCAC schools. A strong argument can be made that all four UAA teams are significantly better than the bottom five NCAC teams, and roughly on par with (or better than) Wooster and Allegheny. The ONLY schools that the UAA teams have struggled to compete with are Wabash and Wittenberg, and as you've pointed out...WashU beat Wabash last year (and WashU didn't even win the UAA...).

I know that all the Wabash/Witt people think that they're somehow above the UAA teams, and they'd rather play a tougher nonconference game. Fair point. But it's pretty clear that the UAA teams are plenty "competitive" with the NCAC.

To be honest, I'm not sure exactly how conference dynamics work, but it seems like a scheduling agreement should be made with the best interests of the entire CONFERENCE, not with the best interests of a single team. And, for the majority of the NCAC teams, the UAA teams are plenty competitive. If the NCAC/UAA agreement is ultimately dissolved for a lack of "competition" then it's pretty obvious that the decision was made by one or two schools, not the entire conference.*

*I would note that there may be other worthy reasons for terminating the scheduling agreement - lack of flexibility, travel, etcet. If the NCAC opts out for one of those reasons, fine. I just think it's a pretty obvious copout to cite "competition" when the UAA has been plenty competitive with the NCAC. I compiled the five-year record sometime last year...I'll see if I can dig it up.