FB: American Rivers Conference

[TheOne89.1]

Filling in on the weekend shift so I can get next Friday off for a 3-day weekend at Waverly for Homecoming...double header football on CBS provides me with a LONG boring night.

Looking ahead to the next games...Central will have their hands full with UD.  I might have this pick wrong, the Sparatans could upset the Dutch, but in the end Central is one solid football team who will get the win (even if its by less than 7 points).

Loras has an awesome Defense...their stats from last Saturday are full of sacks and TFLs (8 different guys for 12 total TFLs and 4 sacks)  Brock Hall is the real deal, they recover from last weekend and "pound the Beaver" (it never gets old).

Waldorf continues to be subpar as the Norse do with them as they please.  Can anyone out there give me a little history on Waldorf Football?  I stopped by Forest City when I was looking at colleges...I was suprised to hear they even had a team with a campus so small...glad I pick Wartburg.

Cornell gets their first IIAC win this year...all teams in the IIAC avoid goose eggs in the conference win column.  The Storm underestimate the Rams and loss a nail biter.

Speaking of nail biters...the Homecoming game will be a close one.  Hopefully we don't see a repeat of 2002 when Jackson returned the opening kick off 92 yards for a TD.  As long as the Knights coming out scoring early I don't think the Kohawks will be able to over take them, but allow Coe to stick with you and there might be an interesting twist to the Conference title.

Good luck to all teams this weekend...good luck to the high school coaches who are approaching post season play.  Hope to see some of you Knight fans out and about around Waverly (golf tournament, Walston Hoover stadium, Oktoberfest, etc.) next weekend.

[Pat Coleman]

If I recall, Waldorf is a relatively new program.

[doolittledog]

Without looking it all up.  I believe Waldorf was a junior college that slowly switched to a 4 year school.  I think they switched their sports from JC to NAIA in like 2001 or 2002. 

So new to playing schools like us but they have had football teams since at least the 1960's.  I think I saw a press release recently where their long time coach had retired. 

[DutchHawk]

If Coe beats Wartburg that puts the Central vs Dubuque game as the de facto "Conference Championship Game"....who would have thought that 4 or 5 years ago...

[DutchFan2004]

Dutchhawk,

I beg to differ with you on the Coe Victory.  If Coe beats the Knights and if Central beats the Spartans the Knights can still get the AQ if they beat the Dutch.  This week's games do weed out some teams but nothing is settled at all. 

[DutchFan2004]

Floyd, 

I think that Central's ability to replace Schuring's production has not been by accident.  Connell and the receiving corp have stepped up their play.  Josh Smith and Cody Huisman have put up some good numbers to help carry that load.  I think that is the sign of a good team.  Winners pick up the slack when others go down.  David Zachery while not having Schuring numbers have sparked the running game somewhat.  Connell has and if he stays healthy will have rewritten Central's record book for QB's.  He broke the all time TD passes records for a career last Saturday.  This week needs like 5 completions to set a new career record, 250+ yards to set a new record there.  Needs 5 TD passes to set a new season record.  That is why they have been so successful at replacing the MVP from the last two years.  When you talk about the QB getting records they really are not his records.  That is due to the receivers he has, the lineman that block for him, and how well he performs.  So for Schuring to be replaced it took a team effort not just one guy.  It would be nice to have a back like him to replace him but without him having the whole team step up is a good thing.

[DutchHawk]

Dutchhawk,

I beg to differ with you on the Coe Victory.  If Coe beats the Knights and if Central beats the Spartans the Knights can still get the AQ if they beat the Dutch.  This week's games do weed out some teams but nothing is settled at all. 

You are correct, I forgot that Wartburgs loss was to Augsburg. As for replacing a guy like Schuring...hes the type of back that cant be replaced, but they have done a good job in filling in in his absence.

[DutchFan2004]

Dutchhawk,

I think any player can be replaced,  The caliber of player that Schuring is takes a great player to replace him.  I think there are only two running backs in the league this year that have the caliber.  Vance is one and Sherden is the other.  I think that you are right though there is no one on the Dutch team of Schuring's talent.  He has speed , size, power, and heart  Four things that in combination make a great back. 

[Old Dutch]

Lets not forget the Dutch need to beat DBQ, Cornell AND Wartburg to be outright champs, wouldn't want to pull a Wartburg!   

BTW - Connell did have another great game Saturday, he keeps that up for 3 more games he should be MVP.   I don't htink that team is into the individual awards though, the team succcess is the focus.

[DutchFan2004]

Old Dutch,

+k  well said.  The only game to worry about is the UD game this Saturday.  One at a time.  I think you are also correct.  No one on the Dutch team cares about the individual awards. 

[davedevine]

Warthog, who got married from WB? 

The last homecoming game I was able to make was the Coe debacle, so maybe it's a good thing I won't be there this Saturday.  KR for TD, and 2 blocked punts I think?  It was shock and awe.

Having a punt blocked I think is the single biggest momentum swing in a college game.  Any school with really strong special teams have most of their starters on the units.
Do most of the IIAC schools have their starters on them or do they make a bunch of changes?

There's nothing better than blocking a punt or taking a kick/punt to the house. 

[Airborne Dutch]

Congrats to the Dutch and all the victors and to a relatively major injury free Saturday. Thumbs up to the Dutch for pulling themselves out of a hole and getting the victory. My dad old man commented on the game and mentioned how much Connell has improved since he took over the starting role. ENP (if I'm not mistaken) primarily ran an option offense that didn't require too much throwing. You could tell that he had worked on it the first couple of years, but the sharpness was quite there yet. Now, he is putting passes where no one but the receiver can grab it. I think that is really reflected in the TD/INT ratio. Good to see Schuring back on the field. Granted, it was in a limited role, but it sounds like it was an emotional boost. Only good things can happen when a lot of your playmakers start to get healthy again.

Looking forward to the Dubuque game. Just a hunch, but this is going to have a major playoff atmosphere. While Dubuque has knocked off Wartburg, it has been a while since they beat Central and if they do, I believe it makes their season and gives justification that they are now a league contender. Its gonna be an interesting game to watch.

[dbljay21]

Some observations from Decorah this weekend:
1. The Norse O-line and D-line are very physical...very impressive efforts by both units on Saturday.  The Norse can win a lot of football games by running the ball and being more physical than there opponents.  The second half from Saturday was perfect example of this.

2. #44 for the Beavers is a very good running back.  He has great vision and is very elusive.  He never took a solid hit and he was always going forward.  He will be fun to watch as the season progresses and as his career progresses.

3. The Norse D is improving every week.  The Defense couldn't make any stops in the first 3 games of the year.  During the 3 game win streak, the Norse are forcing turnovers and are scoring points.  Turning point of the game on Saturday was in interception by Mike Tangen after the Beavers had forced a fumble with the Norse moving the ball.  Beavers tried to go up top and Tangen made the interception and put the Norse offense right back on the field with good field position.

4. Hawkins looks much better throwing shorter routes than deep routes.  When the Beavers threw the ball on slants, crossers, outs or any short, timing routes Hawkins was deadly.  On deeper dropbacks, he looked uncomfortable in the pocket and he isn't mobile enough to avoid the pass rush.

5. The offensive imbalance of the Norse worries me.  The Norse only threw for 69 yards on Saturday and with the success Sherden was having running the ball, the passing game should have been more effective.  The offense needs to be more balanced to continue to have success.

All in all, it was a good weekend.  Good to see guys like Jaeger, Romens, Scheetz, Bear and Albers at the game.  It was even better to see the Norse get another victory 

[MNbeev]

As from what I know about the Waldorf program is that they are improving each year.  From my experience with them, I will say the same thing.  Bv has played them the last three years, and is winning 2-1 over the Warriors. 

2004 - BV 62 - Waldorf 21
2005 - BV 14 - Waldorf 3
2006 - BV 17 - Walfdorf 20 OT

Over the last 3 seasons the IIAC holds a pretty good record over Waldorf.  3-1 record.
Simpson Played them in 05 and won 48-13

But with the attitude they played with last year and the improvements they have every year, Luther could be in a dog fight.  Crazier things have happened but I choose Luther. 
And from the looks of it, Waldorf still has some pretty large individuals.

[sc_stormchaser]

Waldorf has one win this year over a currently winless Iowa Wesleyan team. It sure doesn't seem like they're lighting the world on fire.

2004: 3 wins
2005: 2 wins
2006: 2 wins