FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[aueagle]

kcreds: The COW/OWU game could be very good. Sir Louie is still not 100%, which is too bad. Congrats to Men of Wabash and all LG fans on an outstanding season. You guys deserve the crown and THE BELL. Good luck this week. GO BISHOPS

[Superfoot Wallace]

Oldguy,

I like that perspective as well...  I think it is better to finish the season in house, or in conference so to speak against a top tier team.  Regardless  Alleghenys overall record they are still a top tier team. 

Whether you are heading to the playoffs or staying home for the rest of fall term it is better in my opinion to play a tougher opponent.

First, if your heading to the playoffs I would think it would be better to be playing up in coach speak as much as possible.  (In a sense this might be the scenario for Wabashs coveted Bell game, though, as an aside, it can work two ways with such a rivalry, but Im sure this a is a topic for the Dannos and Waldos to hash out)

Secondly, if the squad is in the situation the Tigers are in this year, then this is the last time to evaluate players.  How a returning starter plays at the end of such a season gives the coaches a better idea as to the teams center of gravity and leadership potential for the next year.  I dont know if playing second or third tier teams in this league gives any semblance of a gutcheck barometer. 

This is the time of year when the mark these seniors made will begin to echo,  Its what the underclassmen decide they want to do with the weeks following up until after Chrsitmas break that will decide their fate.   Make that echo loud gentlemen.

A win at the end of such a year doesnt make you stick your chest out proud but doesnt hang your head low.  It lets you know theres still a little piss in ya.  A loss at the end of such a season could mean heads will roll in the offseason conditioning program or else.

Ive said it before and Ill say it again.  Time to get some candy!!!  This is the time of year identities are born....  Remember they dont care about the labor pains, everybody just wants to see the baby.

[ski]

DOUBLE DD:

I do agree that the O is designed for Shafer.  I give Reiff all the credit in the world for doing as well as he has, even at Witt, as it is tough to play against a D that appears to know your every move.  At Witt, it was like playing against a D that had 22 on the field not 11.  Back to Shafer, much of the O is designed with his ability to run in mind, but putting your QB in harms way can be risky, a risk that Woo has paid for with an injured Shafer on the sidelines. 

I also agree with you about the running game, we do need to establish one.  Woo appears to have some young talent that could make for a real interesting future.  Like anything tagged with young, it must crawl and then walk before it can run.  I just don't see Woo giving the running game the opportunity to grow.  Come this Saturday, I would like to see more of Reiff under center with 34 + 20 in the backfield. 

[BashBacker#16]

Quick hits on this year's Monon Bell game...

http://www.wabash.edu/sports/home.cfm?pages_id=62&news_ID=2973

[joelmama]

Wally I get it as much as any outsider can get it.  You on the other hand don't get what a national championship (one or several) mean.  No you haven't been that close.  You got to MUC played a good game and lost a couple steps short of the final prize.  So I guess you couldn't know what that emans or have a way to compare it to a Bell win.

[Pat Coleman]

Pat:

I was alluding to your post #38 yesterday afternoon on the "Monon Bell" thread.  Your point was that DePauw had more to play for because a win for them on Saturday would most likely gain them a playoff spot.  My point is that, yes, that while that could be true, throw it out the window along with teams' records, season stats, etc. 

Well perhaps we could discuss that on that board, then, in context. Thanks. But since you dragged that over here, I would like to thank you for being one of the few Wabash people to see that that actually could be true. And thanks -- I somehow was not aware that you were supposed to throw records out the window in a big rivalry game. Please tell me more.

[oldgiant]

Wally I get it as much as any outsider can get it.  You on the other hand don't get what a national championship (one or several) mean.  No you haven't been that close. 


Joelmama - Wabash played in the Stagg Bowl in 1977 and lost a close game to Widner.  That's about as close as you can get.   

[oldguy]

Quoting someone's post has more of an effect when you make a comment afterwards.  If it is just a quote, it has no impact since we have already read it before.  It just seems like a waste of space.

[wally_wabash]

The post didn't make it outside of the quote box.  The guy made a formatting error....relax. 

[oldguy]

I wasn't upset.  I was just mentioning it. 

Anyone have a weather report for Meadville this weekend?

[joelmama]

Ok maybe I am not getting somehting here.

Here is a more plausable scenario.  (Wabash fans may not like it but it could happen).

What would you rather have:

A. Wabash wins the bell this week, knocks Depauw out of any chance for the playoffs, and then Wabash loses the next week in the first round of the playoffs.

or

B. Loses the Bell to Depauw this week.  Both teams make the playoffs Depauw gets sent off to another region, both teams win the preliminary games,  meet in the Stagg Bowl, and  Wabash wins the Stagg Bowl with a crushing defeat of Depauw on national television in front of the largest live crowd to ever witness a D3 title game in Salem VA.

[wally_wabash]

Depends on whether or not we get the Bell if we beat Depauw in the playoffs.  If we can get the Bell and beat them down on national tv, then I'd take that.  If the playoff game is going to be a non-Bell game, then I'd pass on that and take the Bell with the playoff loss. 

Bell at all costs.  That's the lesson.  There is no plausible scenario that you can come up with that will provide something more appealing than ownership of the Monon Bell. 

[David Collinge]

As a lifelong University of Michigan fan, if I had a choice between an 11-1 season (including a Rose Bowl victory and national title) and a 1-10 season, with the '1' in each case being Ohio State, I'd take 1-10 without hesitation.  I imagine (or at least hope) the same is true for Wabash fans and the Monon Bell.

[joelmama]

Your quote "Bell at all costs.  That's the lesson.  There is no plausible scenario that you can come up with that will provide something more appealing than ownership of the Monon Bell.  "

I guess I really do not understand.  The Bell is obviously a symbol of something.  But a national championship trophy is something you never have to give back.  If you truly hated Depauw I would think a beat down monkey stomp, with some real humiliation in front of a larger live and tv audience would be more valuable.  I mean a real hurting.  Like 57-0.

[joelmama]

As a lifelong University of Michigan fan, if I had a choice between an 11-1 season (including a Rose Bowl victory and national title) and a 1-10 season, with the '1' in each case being Ohio State, I'd take 1-10 without hesitation.  I imagine (or at least hope) the same is true for Wabash fans and the Monon Bell.

What if the natiaonal championship game was won against Ohio State?