FB: American Rivers Conference

[sportsknight]

Speaking of churches, that nutjob church from Kansas apparently is coming out to Oregon to protest the politics of a town near Salem. Silverton elected an openly transgender mayor, and they are happy with their choice. I don't get why those Kansas wackos feel the need to bring their hatred out here to demonstrate about it.

Can't the rest of you put a fence around them?

You're best off not paying them too much attention.  Mostly, they're just a lot of bluster.  There have been a couple of events here in Iowa in the past year that they said they were going to show up for, and then nobody did.  They are only after the notoriety and getting some headlines for their craziness, so paying them no mind is the best approach.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Speaking of churches, that nutjob church from Kansas apparently is coming out to Oregon to protest the politics of a town near Salem. Silverton elected an openly transgender mayor, and they are happy with their choice. I don't get why those Kansas wackos feel the need to bring their hatred out here to demonstrate about it.

Can't the rest of you put a fence around them?

You're best off not paying them too much attention.  Mostly, they're just a lot of bluster.  There have been a couple of events here in Iowa in the past year that they said they were going to show up for, and then nobody did.  They are only after the notoriety and getting some headlines for their craziness, so paying them no mind is the best approach.

They are supposedly coming to Michigan to picket a high school for performing "The Laramie Project" (apparently they favor torturing and murdering gays).  But as you say, they claim they'll be a whole lot more places than they actually go.

A part of me would love to see the justice system step aside for a few minutes while mourners at a soldier's funeral create a few more funerals in Kansas, but your suggestion of ignoring them is no doubt the wiser one.

[sportsknight]

Another question, and this is a football one, is about Coach Willis. What's with the comments about him being the guy people love to hate? There seems to be some controversy about him, and why he didn't get COY. Other people seems to think it's a no-brainer that he didn't get it.

Personally, I haven't like Willis since i was recruited.  He was quite arrogent about the whole process, and said some harsh things about the program and coach (Raeburn and Willis hated eachother) i ended up choosing (Coe).  I had heard of multiple examples of this after being on campus and sharing my experience with Willis.  As far as teh COY this year - Anderson from BV did more with the talent and expectations people in the conference had about that team.  Wartburg was expected to be number 1 - BV was expected to finsih probably 6th.  Thats just the way things fall sometimes.  Wartburg won the conference this year true, but they didnt exactly run away with it or go undefeated.  the voting probably would have been different had they gone undefeated.

I guess Willis just rubs some people the wrong way.  He definitely has a confidence and intensity that is all his own.  Some people take that for arrogance; that's up to them.  He wants nothing more than to have the best football (and now athletic) program in the Iowa Conference, if not the entire country.

TME, I have a very hard time believing that Willis was the only coach that spoke ill of another program during your recruiting process.  Being a Cornell alum, he has a natural dislike for Coe, but I doubt he is far from the first or last coach to use that tactic in recruiting.  And compared to some of the stories I've heard about the dirty tricks used by Coe coaches over the years, Willis is pretty tame.

[sportsknight]

A part of me would love to see the justice system step aside for a few minutes while mourners at a soldier's funeral create a few more funerals in Kansas, but your suggestion of ignoring them is no doubt the wiser one.

I actually saw a story last week where they had showed up at a high school in Omaha to protest something or other, and when school let out the students started pelting them with water bottles and other small objects.  It got to the point where the police told the Westboro Baptist folks that they wouldn't be able to control the crowd and couldn't ensure that the WBC nutbags would be safe if they stuck around.  So they turned tail and took off.

[Walston Hoover]

OK time to put the Pointer win behind us and focus on the Scots. No one will care about that first win if we can't take care of business in Illinois.

[Klopenhiemer]

Another question, and this is a football one, is about Coach Willis. What's with the comments about him being the guy people love to hate? There seems to be some controversy about him, and why he didn't get COY. Other people seems to think it's a no-brainer that he didn't get it.

Personally, I haven't like Willis since i was recruited.  He was quite arrogent about the whole process, and said some harsh things about the program and coach (Raeburn and Willis hated eachother) i ended up choosing (Coe).  I had heard of multiple examples of this after being on campus and sharing my experience with Willis.  As far as teh COY this year - Anderson from BV did more with the talent and expectations people in the conference had about that team.  Wartburg was expected to be number 1 - BV was expected to finsih probably 6th.  Thats just the way things fall sometimes.  Wartburg won the conference this year true, but they didnt exactly run away with it or go undefeated.  the voting probably would have been different had they gone undefeated.

I guess Willis just rubs some people the wrong way.  He definitely has a confidence and intensity that is all his own.  Some people take that for arrogance; that's up to them.  He wants nothing more than to have the best football (and now athletic) program in the Iowa Conference, if not the entire country.

TME, I have a very hard time believing that Willis was the only coach that spoke ill of another program during your recruiting process.  Being a Cornell alum, he has a natural dislike for Coe, but I doubt he is far from the first or last coach to use that tactic in recruiting.  And compared to some of the stories I've heard about the dirty tricks used by Coe coaches over the years, Willis is pretty tame.

No doubt coaches can use some stupid tactics for trying to gain recruits.  I will say that I feel the same as TME does and did have a similar experience during my recruiting process.  2 people do not make a majority, but I am sure others out there do feel the same.  No doubt there are people out there who think that Anderson is scum as well.  I on the other hand think is a great coach/person. 

[Klopenhiemer]

OK time to put the Pointer win behind us and focus on the Scots. No one will care about that first win if we can't take care of business in Illinois.

I know nothing about Monmouth except that the Knights have had recent success against them.  What does Monmouth run for an offense, what can the Knights expect to see as defensive wise.  What is the strength of Monmouth to be undefeated at this point.  Please do not say a weak schedule either , going undefeated is a feat in itself. 

[DutchFan2004]

Well I would agree that going undefeated is an accomplishment.  The MWC conference champ has been undefeated in conference play since 2002.  Lakeland was 8-1 in the conference at that time.  They do not usually play this late in the year.  This is kind of uncharted waters for them.  Having said that any team left has to be decent.  Should be a good game. 

[formerscot4]

Well, I'll help you out a little with what they do, since it is nothing the Knights staff won't know already. They like to spread the field. Can run or pass. Passing game has been successful with QB and a deep receiving corp. If you do not honor the run though they can do that as well. The difference in this years team I think has been the defense. Good defensive front experienced LB's and a couple real DB's.

Now how about the Knights? What can we expect.

[D O.C.]

Thanks for bringing  the board back to pigskin and not Pig's Kin, Walston.
That coco guy and his rants are always stirring up a commotion. Postulating preachers! Mayor of Silverton! Indeed!

[Charlie Kohawk]

All I know is Joe Freitag came from Monmouth, and he's a solid guy. Still, for the conference, go Knights!

[Charlie Kohawk]

I guess Willis just rubs some people the wrong way.  He definitely has a confidence and intensity that is all his own.  Some people take that for arrogance; that's up to them.  He wants nothing more than to have the best football (and now athletic) program in the Iowa Conference, if not the entire country.

TME, I have a very hard time believing that Willis was the only coach that spoke ill of another program during your recruiting process.  Being a Cornell alum, he has a natural dislike for Coe, but I doubt he is far from the first or last coach to use that tactic in recruiting.  And compared to some of the stories I've heard about the dirty tricks used by Coe coaches over the years, Willis is pretty tame.

I could flip the same argument on you. I was never a player, though I saw Fred Jackson play back then and today!, I had a great personal relationship with Coach Raeburn and Liz. I wish them well, and I wish people would stop taking shots at him now that he's gone. But I can control that no more than people can harbor ill will at Willis.

But to bring Cornell into this? Come on! Try winning one first.

[warthog]

coco:  Take what TME says with a grain of salt.  I'm not sure what his beef is with Coach Willis, but I'm confident he is in a minority with his thoughts.  Coach is intense and he is demanding, but what good leader isn't?  Ask his former players (both the All-Americans and the reliable back-ups) and they will tell you playing for Coach was a great experience.  You were a principal long enough to know that there are teachers & coaches who have a reputation as being tough and unreasonably demanding.  Years later, students will tell you having that teacher or coach was the best thing that ever happened to them.  Generally these teachers and coaches aren't really unreasonable, they just have high expectations and will push students to meet those high expectations.  These type of teachers and coaches generally have those reputations because they are as demanding of themselves as they are of their students and players.  They work hard at their craft because they truly want what is best for the young people they teach and coach.  They want the young people to excell not only in the classroom and on the football field, but also in life.  All they expect is for these students and athletes around them to exhibit a willingness to give their very best.  I know because I am married to a teacher like that.  Little Warthog would tell you that he played for a coach like that at Wartburg.

This weekend while the IIAC COY was putting up Christmas decorations around his house and walking the aisles of Fareway picking up Thankgiving fixins', the IIAC championship coach was winning a first round football playoff game and planning strategy for the second round game.  My guess is Coach Willis would prefer the playoffs to buying a turkey.

[warthog]

Charlie Kohawk is correct.  Coach Raeburn is gone, so just leave him lone.  He did a good job making Coe and contender and a championship team.  Now let him ride off to his next adventure.

I've never coached more than Little League, but I doubt if many truly successful coaches can afford to waste time have a vendetta against one other team.  I would think it is a stretch to say a coach at college"A" would harbor a strong dislike of college "B" because he went to college "C" twenty years earlier.   

[coco]

Interesting comments.

There are some strong feelings (both ways) about Coach Willis, and also Coach Raeburn, it appears. I'm aware of the legendary Coach Schipper from Central as well.

The idea of a little vigilante justice for those Westboro freaks doesn't sound all that bad to me. From what you guys say, their cruelty to other people is appalling. I hadn't planned to go over to Silverton to give them an audience, and maybe they'll do everyone a favor and not show up, as one of you mentioned.

Don't listen to anything D O.C. says. He's one of those California surfer dudes.