FB: American Rivers Conference

[Pat Coleman]

Better because they threw to him more often? Check out yards per catch, too.

Koors: 17.3
Zweifel: 13.7

[doolittledog]

So basically, YPC is what gets you 1st team status

It's not like Zweifel had every play going through him at Dubuque.  Dubuque also had the 4th leading receiver in the IIAC as well as the 2nd leading rusher in the conference.  Zweifel also caught pretty much everything thrown at him, no matter how many defenders he had draped on him.  You still have to catch all those balls thrown towards you and get yourself open to have the opportunity to catch those passes.   

Then again, it's kind of nice to have everybody think that Zweifel isn't actually very good...it's just that Dubuque does nothing but throw the ball towards him.  He's average at best and nobody else on the Dubuque offense deserves any attention

[Pat Coleman]

So basically, YPC is what gets you 1st team status

No. A good combination of everything does.

Having the fourth-leading receiver doesn't mean much if that guy has 37 total catches and 67.7 yards per game. It just means the IIAC didn't have a lot of prolific receivers.

You can spin your stats however you want. The fact is Dubuque completed 208 passes last year, 111 of them to Zweifel.

Normally I wouldn't dignify this type of sarcasm with a response, but I don't want other people reading your post and actually believing it. You see, we do not name players that aren't actually very good to the All-American team at all. I am sure that there are many, many receivers who would love to be very good enough to make second team All-American.

[doolittledog]

Yes, I probably am too sarcastic. 

I wouldn't be upset if you named Zweifel to your honorable mention team because I respect your knowledge of D3 football.  There has just been a lot of talk on here...including from you...that keeps going back to "Zweifel just gets the ball thrown to him a lot." If you had just put in the comments from your last post in some of your earlier posts, then other people could better see where you are coming from.  But it comes across from your comments that YPC mean a lot more to you. 

I'll take a chill pill (beer actually) and attempt to tone down my sarcasm...it will probably take awhile though...it's in my DNA!!!

[DutchFan2004]

I was in Wellsburg today for work.  At the house I went to they had a SUV with orange Wartburg plates.  He told me he was a Wartburg alum, but the problem with Wellsburg is everyone around there were Central Fans

Well that is Coach McMartin's home town and where he went to high school so I am thinking they like supporting the home town boy. 

[Kohawk Krazy]

Really thought we'd see Frank Weymiller, an honorable mention postseason D3football.com all-american last year on the preseason team this year.

[Purple Heys]

...It just means the IIAC didn't have a lot of prolific receivers.

Meaning, perhaps:  In comparison, the SCAC MUST have a lot of prolific receivers...

Let's examine that hypothesis...

Total catches, Total Yards and YPC of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th leading receivers of the SCAC:
2:  63, 651, 65.1
3:  54, 529, 52.9
4:  52, 575, 57.5

Total catches, Total Yards and YPC of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th leading receivers of the IIAC:
2:  59, 716, 71.6
3:  50, 538, 59.8  (9 Games)
4:  49, 710, 71.0

I'm no Math Major...wait, actually I kind of was...your logic isn't holding up...the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th leading receivers of the IIAC posted more yards and better YPC's than their SCAC counterparts...using that as rationale, the IIAC arguably had better receivers.

I appreciate the process of trying to develop candidates and name a team is an inexact endeavor...the best you can hope for is that it stimulates more interest and debate.  Folks will always feel slighted.

My observation: That Zweifel kid is a helluva good little ballplayer...I am certain Koors is no slouch himself, you don't put up numbers like that in a good league like the SCAC unless you have some skills.

But preseason is just that...let's see how this plays out after 10 games.

[Pat Coleman]

...It just means the IIAC didn't have a lot of prolific receivers.

Meaning, perhaps:  In comparison, the SCAC MUST have a lot of prolific receivers...

No, because I did not rely on Koors' or any of his teammates' ranking within his conference to make my point at all.

[Pat Coleman]

Really thought we'd see Frank Weymiller, an honorable mention postseason D3football.com all-american last year on the preseason team this year.

If you count the number of other All-American underclassmen last year at his position you will see why someone couldn't make the preseason cut.

[footballdaddy]

...It just means the IIAC didn't have a lot of prolific receivers.

Meaning, perhaps:  In comparison, the SCAC MUST have a lot of prolific receivers...

No, because I did not rely on Koors' or any of his teammates' ranking within his conference to make my point at all.

Pat, I went through this last season. Not taking anything away from Zwiefel, because he is a very good receiver, he SHOULD put up good numbers since so much of their offense runs through him. I made the point that there are other receivers who could flourish in the same scenario and that seemed to insult some Spartan supporters. I'm glad you in a small way support my opinion.

[footballdaddy]

I meant to quote this post.

So basically, YPC is what gets you 1st team status

No. A good combination of everything does.

Having the fourth-leading receiver doesn't mean much if that guy has 37 total catches and 67.7 yards per game. It just means the IIAC didn't have a lot of prolific receivers.

You can spin your stats however you want. The fact is Dubuque completed 208 passes last year, 111 of them to Zweifel.

Normally I wouldn't dignify this type of sarcasm with a response, but I don't want other people reading your post and actually believing it. You see, we do not name players that aren't actually very good to the All-American team at all. I am sure that there are many, many receivers who would love to be very good enough to make second team All-American.

[badgerwarhawk]

Pat, yards per reception is the only significant stat in which Koors exceeds Zweifel.  I don't mean to minimize it's significance but the rest of the numbers (i.e. a good combination) clearly favor Zwieifel.   Perhaps I should have stated it but I never meant to imply that Koors wasn't a good choice.  Obviously there are a lot of talented receivers and only two can make the first team.  It's a tough call and I know you had your reasons for selecting Koors over Zweifel.  Just as I have my reasons for feeling Zweifel should have been on the first team.  

But like PH said let's wait and see how it plays out over 10 games.  I would think IIAC defenses would put a priority on controlling Zweifel just as SCAC defenses will Koors.  

BTW, thank you for the recognition given to the WARHAWKS selected.  

Looking forward to another great season of DIII football.  It can't happen soon enough for me.

[footballdaddy]

I would think that like last year the IIAC will let Zweifel win some battles but let the Spartans lose the war.

[badgerwarhawk]

So are you suggesting the defenses in the IIAC simply let Zweifel do whatever he wants knowing that they can beat the Spartan defense often enough to win the war?  That's how Zweifel puts up the numbers he does.  The rest of the league doesn't scheme to control him.

[Purple Heys]

One interesting point:  It appears that both Koors and Zweifel will be breaking in new QB's.

Hansen graduated from Dubuque and, unless I am off my mark, Spud Dick is gone from DePauw.  Both seemed to be outstanding and accurate passers.  Spud Dick completed over 70% of his passes?!?!

Highly unlikely their replacements will duplicate their feats.

How much of a factor does this figure to be?


(That, and I just had to work the name Spud Dick into the conversation)