FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[wally_wabash]

Over under on attendance this Saturday at Blackstock:  1750.

Under. 

[wabashcpa]

Under.

[Wabash Hokie]

Over under on attendance this Saturday at Blackstock:  1750.

This will be way OVER - it is Old Gold Day in the Land of Dan.  Scheduling Wittenberg for Homecoming (yes Pat, we know that that this is done way ahead of time) may not be the best way to win friends and influence alumni.  However, if they pull out the victory, the feckless Dannies will set themselves up for even a greater disappointment in November.

[wally_wabash]

They sucked in about 1000 people for Old Gold day last year.  So as recently as last year, people just generally don't care about football down in Greencastle.  I'm ready to be proven wrong on this, but their attendance is embarrassing. 

[bashbrother]

The big question might be.... what will attendance be after halftime?

The early look at the weather conditions for Saturday shows that it is going to be much.. much better conditions for football around the NCAC.   Partly Cloudy and not much wind.   Temp in the low 60's.

[Pat Coleman]

(yes Pat, we know that that this is done way ahead of time)

Thanks for this. Made me smile.

[wabndy]

Maybe DePauw should try an NFL style local blackout of their video stream.

[Wabash Hokie]

They sucked in about 1000 people for Old Gold day last year.  So as recently as last year, people just generally don't care about football down in Greencastle.  I'm ready to be proven wrong on this, but their attendance is embarrassing.

The weather at DPU was unseasonably cold and windy that day.  Attendance at Wabash's homecoming this weekend was significantly down from last year - most likely due to both the forecast as well as the opponent. I remember that attendance at their Homecoming was down last year, and the lead sentence in link you provided is... "On a cold and blustery fall afternoon at Blackstock Stadium"

[Joe Wally]

Over under on attendance this Saturday at Blackstock:  1750.

Under.

[Li'l Giant]

Maybe DePauw should try an NFL style local blackout of their video stream.

I doubt seriously the students who aren't at the game are watching the stream.

[Rotag]

Pick the date, it's a matter of time.  They show no support for the program, Coach Matlack is left twisting in the wind.  Leftist administration is angling toward extinction, just as other small liberal arts schools with impressive academic credentials realize the value of doing whatever it is you do to the best of your ability.  Torture.....

[wabashcpa]

Pick the date, it's a matter of time.  They show no support for the program, Coach Matlack is left twisting in the wind.  Leftist administration is angling toward extinction, just as other small liberal arts schools with impressive academic credentials realize the value of doing whatever it is you do to the best of your ability.  Torture.....

From 8-2 and 7-3 as recently as 2009-10 to one win the last 2+ seasons.  Like you said, no institutional support.  If I was an alum I would be pretty damned upset at that turn of events.  Matlak didn't just forget how to coach all of a sudden, so he isn't getting the caliber of student-athlete he needs to compete.  And I can't imagine there is a shortage in Western PA to select from, so I feel you.  The conference is better with competitive teams.

[wally_wabash]

Pick the date, it's a matter of time.  They show no support for the program, Coach Matlack is left twisting in the wind.  Leftist administration is angling toward extinction, just as other small liberal arts schools with impressive academic credentials realize the value of doing whatever it is you do to the best of your ability.  Torture.....

This exact thing came up a couple of years ago.  Proof, otherwise flinging accusations at a "leftist administration" -whatever that means- while saying that the coach is left twisting in the wind is just the sourest of grapes.  I get that some people are going to pound the table for the coach they played for forever no matter what, but the roster at Allegheny has been trending this way every since the day Matlak started.  We can point to 2009 and 2010 as positive years for Allegheny, but there's a bit of fool's gold there- outside of Wabash and Wittenberg (who were excellent), the NCAC stunk like a foot in those seasons (go ahead, look at the standings).  Maybe there's some administration-to-athletics problems at Allegheny.  But I don't think you can just shrug off the subpar job that's been done by the coaching staff there for a decade now.   So if you're got evidence that the college's administration and/or board are squeezing out football, bring it.  If you're just blindly covering for your coach, well, don't.  He's not done a good job there for a long time now. 

[ExTartanPlayer]

Agree with about 75% of your post, wally.

The only thing I would disagree with is that Allegheny has been "trending this way ever since the day Matlak started."  He took over in 2002 and basically held the fort as an average team (one 3-7 year, otherwise 10 of his first 11 seasons at 5-5 or better...sort of like an NCAC version of Jeff Fisher, always good enough to win half the games, rarely much better).  It's fair to point out that the 2009-2010 teams were really just the same level but benefited from a poor league, but even those teams were clearly far superior to what's on the field now. 

So I'd argue that it wasn't really a subpar job for a decade (unless you feel that stringing together mostly 5-5 and 6-4 seasons at Allegheny represents a subpar job, which you might).  But it's clear that the recent team has taken a total nosedive that's a problem apart from the roster trending the same way that it did since Matlak started.

With that nuance picked apart, I largely agree with the remaining content.  If you actually have proof, or even hearsay, that the "leftist administration" (a hilarious term) is withdrawing support from or actively destructive to the football program, tell us what the deal is.  Otherwise it sounds like a pretty weak defense for a program that's taken a dive.  Blaming the "administration" for the football team's decline is a cop-out that lets you shift blame without actually giving a concrete thing that's happening.  What does it mean that the "leftist administration" is doing?  Are they interrupting film sessions to make the players watch liberal news?  Mandating that the players attend Democratic political rallies during practice?

[Li'l Giant]

Pick the date, it's a matter of time.  They show no support for the program, Coach Matlack is left twisting in the wind.  Leftist administration is angling toward extinction, just as other small liberal arts schools with impressive academic credentials realize the value of doing whatever it is you do to the best of your ability.  Torture.....

I'm a leftist. I like football. Where does this "liberals hate football" thing come from?