FB: North Coast Athletic Conference

[WAF78]

Oh yeah...one more thing...who are the coaches voting in the AFCA Div. 3 poll? I mean...Mt. St. Joseph gets more votes than Franklin...after Franklin beat them..and Franklin's only loss being to #9 Wabash. I mean...do these guys have a clue? Kudos to the D-3 guys...thanks for the work. It's great to have a site that truly covers D-3...and not just from an anecdotal point of view.

[seinfeld]

Do any Scot fans know why when Bryan Albani came back, he was put at cornerback, instead of his natural position of safety? It seems a little odd that you would take a pre-season All-American (Jeff Geffert) and put him in a different position (safety), and also move Albani, who the team expected to be a major impact player, and move him to a position he hasn't played in college? I understand Geffert moving to safety when Albani was out, but now that he is back, seems to be a little odd that he hasn't moved back to corner. Maybe this is contributing to some defensive backfield issues.

Also, can anyone who was at the Allegheny-Wooster game provide some details about the last pass of the game? Nothing I've read describes the play at all. Which is odd, considering this is the second year in a row Wooster threw a pass into the end zone on the last play of the game.

[BashJB49]

My only point in using the stats was to illustrate what each team needed to do to win.  I think examining stats helps provide us with possible strengths and weaknesses of teams relative to other teams. And, I totally agree, the best team on paper doesn't always win (Yankees).

Have any other Bash fans ever asked Brent Harris why Wabash hasn't taken the initiative to stream home games?  I do enjoy listening to the games every Saturday but watching them would be a much better experience for those of us that can't get back Crawfordsville to catch them in person.  I would think that sufficient funding exists to support such an endeavor. Can't wait for Saturday!!!

[ScotLass]

Woo has had a shoulda, woulda, coulda season at times, not because of statistics, but because of failure to execute and capitalize on opportunities that were there. Things like blowing a 28-7 halftime lead against Waynesburg and not scoring on 2 red zone opportunities at Gheny come to mind.

Wooster's primary problem has been like of production by both lines. The O-line has been sluggish at best. The offense was productive at Gheny in great part because the O-line finally gave Holter some time to pass and gave the backs an occasional opportunity to run. While the DB's may be suspect, the D-line has not produced. I think some stats do reflect this problem. Last year Woo had 3 line members in the top 8 tacklers, 2 in the top 5 with a combined total of 36 TFL and 19 sacks. So far this year, there's only 1 line member in the top 10 tacklers and the top 3 on the line have 10 TFL and 8 sacks. Not getting after it makes for a long day for your DB's.

Finally, nothing but being there and watching, shows the will and cohesiveness of the team. At Gheny, Woo finally played, as a team, hard until the end. They didn't get down as a team because they were down on the scoreboard. So, remote as the possibilities may be, when the O-line shows up, the D-line gets aggressive, and they play hard as a team until the end, the Woo that played at Gheny reflects a much better team then the one that has struggled previously. At the end of the day, no matter what the Wabash score, THAT shows positive progress and some hope for better days ahead.

seinfeld:

On that last possession at Gheny Woo tried to bite it all off in big chunks instead of doing what they had been doing well all day, hence lots of defenders in the backfield. While there wasn't a lot of time left, there was enough time to get there without trying to force it. On the final play they went for broke when they didn't need to do that, and alas, there were a lot of defenders in the end zone. At least that's my unenlightened perspective.   

[bashbrother]

[ScotLass]

        

[wally_wabash]

My guess is that Wabash will be looking to air it out against Woo. If the Woo D-backs can upgrade their performance, it could get interesting against Wabash. But that's a big IF. 

I would doubt that you'll see Hudson stand in the pocket and sling it 50 times on Saturday.  The establishment of a respectable run game is huge...Wabash would not have won at Allegheny without that.  Wabash will be committed to the run game as the offense continues to grow and improve.  I think if Hudson throws much more than 30 passes Saturday, it'll be because the run game failed which would be a step backward for the LGs.   

[nike]

Appears that there may be showers on Saturday, which should hinder passing a bit and favor a running game. And from the reports of Wooster's play last Saturday and Shepperd's stats, we might have  something to talk about. In past years Wooster's field gets pretty sloppy when very wet as I remember.

[ScotLass]

Indeed, weather may play a factor. The team practiced in mud yesterday......rain is predicted almost every day, with heavy rain Friday and rain to continue on Saturday. I do love those cool days and watching mud wrestling....

[wally_wabash]

Unless the field is a bog resembling Allegheny's field in 2003, I don't think it will bother CC's game plan too much.  Wabash threw very effectively on a bad field as recently as last year's Bell game.  Rainy and wet conditions haven't bothered the Wabash passing game in the CC era nearly as much as strong winds have.

[ScotLass]

Unless the forecast changes, boggy will be the field. The area has had very heavy rain already. There was standing water on the track, the normal practice area next to the field was a mud bowl and couldn't be used yesterday, so practice was on the quad which quickly became a muddy mess as well. The entire team was wearing brown within 30 minutes of practice starting. Nasty, nasty conditions in Scot land.

[nike]

Must admit I do like the artificial fields at some of the campuses. A long way from Astro-turf. 

[ski]

WAF78 - Stats don't mean anything when you win, but if you notice, Woo hasn't enjoyed a lot of winning this year, ( the 2 teams they beat have 2 wins combined although OW has played some competative football) When you are loosing, stats can be a roadmap to problems.

Scotlass - I do agree that the D and O lines have not done their part, but what bothers me with the D-bakfield (and that inludes the linebackers) is the seperation that opposing receivers are getting early in their routes. Also, the fact that receivers are getting behind our coverage and our covers not playing the ball. When you are 3 or 4 seconds into a play and your man is looking back, turn and contest the ball. I hope that you are right about good things for the future. GO SCOTS!

[ScotLass]

Scotlass - I do agree that the D and O lines have not done their part, but what bothers me with the D-bakfield (and that inludes the linebackers) is the seperation that opposing receivers are getting early in their routes. Also, the fact that receivers are getting behind our coverage and our covers not playing the ball. When you are 3 or 4 seconds into a play and your man is looking back, turn and contest the ball. I hope that you are right about good things for the future. GO SCOTS!

Oh I do agree with those DB issues. I spend a good deal of time yelling "turn around". That's a fundamentals problem. Gaining some speed would help too. It is what it is, but having the D-line step up would reduce the # of times we'd have to get burned there while working on improving. The linebackers overall have done a pretty decent job. Coach them boys up I say.....deep down I am an evil taskmaster......

[ScotLass]

Do any Scot fans know why when Bryan Albani came back, he was put at cornerback, instead of his natural position of safety? It seems a little odd that you would take a pre-season All-American (Jeff Geffert) and put him in a different position (safety), and also move Albani, who the team expected to be a major impact player, and move him to a position he hasn't played in college? I understand Geffert moving to safety when Albani was out, but now that he is back, seems to be a little odd that he hasn't moved back to corner. Maybe this is contributing to some defensive backfield issues.

I dunno.....

I do have a question myself though that I have pondered for a while. Have to formulate it....brb......