FB: American Rivers Conference

[doolittledog]

I miss the old days, when there were quite a few Central posters on here.  They might be able to answer some questions I have. 

Dubuque brought in 2 Central transfers.  One is a senior that got 7 starts on the O-line last season for the Dutch.  The other is a sophomore DB that saw action in 5 games last season as a freshman.  Just a case of 2 guys moving on to a better fit? Or is there trouble brewing in Pella?

I also miss all the Wartburg posters.  There would have been quite the conversation of how they could make tailgating work at NWU with no alcohol allowed on campus 

Either way, I'm anxious for play to get underway so we can start to see how things will shake out this year.

Does Pella have a brewery??? 

Admittedly I don't know the city that well so it took me two visits to find a bar.  Those of us from Wisconsin are unaccustomed to that extensive of a search.

If you can't find a bar in Pella...bring the bar with you 



That might work for trips to NWU as well.  As soon as you see the rent-a-cops heading your way you put the roof back down, tell them you don't have any alcohol, but you think you saw some way over on the other side of the parking lot 

As for Wisconsin, my wife didn't believe me when I told her that in Wisconsin, pretty much any time you get two county black tops meeting each other, you will find a supper club/bar on the corner.  After 1 drive through the back roads of Wisconsin, she said she wouldn't doubt me again!

[HansenRatings]

As for Wisconsin, my wife didn't believe me when I told her that in Wisconsin, pretty much any time you get two county black tops meeting each other, you will find a supper club/bar on the corner.  After 1 drive through the back roads of Wisconsin, she said she wouldn't doubt me again!

There's a bar in Platteville that serves 32 oz Long Islands in to-go cups, complete with a plastic lid and a straw.

[emma17]

I miss the old days, when there were quite a few Central posters on here.  They might be able to answer some questions I have. 

Dubuque brought in 2 Central transfers.  One is a senior that got 7 starts on the O-line last season for the Dutch.  The other is a sophomore DB that saw action in 5 games last season as a freshman.  Just a case of 2 guys moving on to a better fit? Or is there trouble brewing in Pella?

I also miss all the Wartburg posters.  There would have been quite the conversation of how they could make tailgating work at NWU with no alcohol allowed on campus 

Either way, I'm anxious for play to get underway so we can start to see how things will shake out this year.

Does Pella have a brewery??? 

Admittedly I don't know the city that well so it took me two visits to find a bar.  Those of us from Wisconsin are unaccustomed to that extensive of a search.

Dang BW, you could've died.

[doolittledog]

Iowa Conference coaches poll released.

http://www.iowaconference.com/news/2016/8/25/FB_2016CoachPoll.aspx

1.   Dubuque (5) 58   
1.   Wartburg (2) 58   
3.   Central (2) 55   
4.   Coe 36   
5.   Loras 33   
6.   Simpson 32   
7.   Nebraska Wesleyan 24   
8.   Luther 16   
9.   Buena Vista 12   

[HansenRatings]

I would like to see the range of where the coaches slotted NWU.

[doolittledog]

I would like to see the range of where the coaches slotted NWU.

I think NWU will be better than some on here think.  They've been traditionally about a .500 team.  They beat 2 nationally ranked NAIA schools last year.  My thoughts are the NAIA is similar to D3 talent wise.  Morningside at the top of the GPAC stands out and is comparable to UW-Whitewater, you then have a noticeable drop down from there.  The rest of the top tier in the GPAC is similar to the IIAC top tier, the GPAC bottom feeders are probably worse than the IIAC bottom feeders.  I could see NWU as a sub .500 team, but making everybody work for it to get their W. 

I'm also not convinced Loras has made a jump up the IIAC standings.  The Duhawk offense got a lot of press last year, but in the end, in conference scoring, they scored 1 more point than 4th place Central.  And I think they snuck up on teams last year.  This year that won't happen.  The Duhawk defense hasn't shown improvement yet that I can see.

Is Simpson, with a new coach, a year away from moving up the standings?  Or, with most of the players returning, will the new coach jump right in and the Storm move back up into the top half of the standings this year?

Luther doesn't have a huge roster numbers wise, but with 3 years experience running the option, and a ton of 3 year starters on the roster, will they be in the hunt for more wins this year?

I hear no news about BVU.  Anything of note going on there?

Coe, replaced one Staker, with another Staker.  Back to the 09-12 glory days?  Or is this a project that might take 2-3 years to fully get going?

Central, Dubuque, Wartburg at the top of the conference?  Does 1 or more of them take a tumble? Does 1 or more of them separate and become more elite than the others?       

[HansenRatings]

I do think NWU will be more competitive than Cornell and William Penn were, it just seems like last year was a bit of a down year for them. I think they'll actually be more in the mold of UIU back in the early '00s. Interestingly enough, NWU beat UIU back-to-back years in UIU's last two seasons in the IIAC:
http://static.iowaconference.com/custompages/statistics/fb/2001/HTML/uiu.htm
http://static.iowaconference.com/custompages/statistics/fb/2002/HTML/uiu.htm

[hazzben]

@Doolittledog (or other posters in the know)

Any hot takes on the Bethel vs. UD matchup week one?

Bethel brings back almost every skill position player (they're a loaded bunch) and two QB's who shared time due to injuries. One's a SR and the other's a SO, the latter has a good deal more upside IMO (actually could be a stud), but he's coming off a torn ACL. A lot depends on if he's 100% and good to go, but early signs out of camp are that he's looking good.

We had loads of injuries along both lines last year. Guys are healthy again and have more experience, so that should serve us. We lose a lot in the secondary. Linebackers graduated some players, but there were a couple of freshman that played a lot and started last year who should break out.

Kickoff has Bethel slotted around 26 and UD 36ish (off the top of my head). In my book, that means this game is basically a toss up. Very interesting week one matchup. I think Bethel will be good on Offense, a young D is gonna have to play well and grow up quickly.

What's your take?

[doolittledog]

I think for UD, a lot will depend on how the O-line develops.  Without a strong line, it doesn't matter all that much how talented your skill players are. 

UD graduated 4 of 5 O-line starters from last year.  The upside is the 1 returning starter was 1st team all-conference, and UD brought in a transfer from Central that started 7 games on their O-line last year. 

The Spartans lost their QB, but the heir apparent got 1 start last year and guided UD to a win @ Coe, so he has some experience.  He will be a junior this year.   

UD returns their RB and FB, as well as their all-conference TE.  They lost their top WR from last year but bring back 3-4 WR's that have a lot of experience.

On the D-line they lose 2 of 4 starters.  Word is they brought in a recruiting class heavy in D-line talent to try to fill in.  LB lost all 3 starters to graduation.  The secondary lost an all-conference DB to graduation, but return another DB that was all-conference and both of their safeties.

I think overall, UD has the talent to compete.  How the O-line gels, how team chemistry goes, and if the Spartans can stay free of the injury bug should determine how they end up this year. 

As for the Bethel game, I like that it's a home game for UD.  I think it will be close, and will be decided in the 4th quarter.  In a close game, I like the home team.     

[HansenRatings]

Average MOV from all computer ranking systems has UD favored by ~3 points, but almost all of those don't factor in returning starters/injured players. My model has Bethel by 4. Seeing how it usually takes young O-lines a while to coalesce, I think I like Bethel in this one.

[doolittledog]

Are there any cross conference scrimmages this week?  Always interesting to see who chooses who for a preseason test.

From twitter...

https://twitter.com/UWLCoachSchmidt/status/769154633705017345

UW-Lacrosse scrimmages at Loras today.

And from this video...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0I6W6AM9Ag

It looks like Dubuque scrimmaged UW-Oshkosh this week ...which I believe they have scrimmaged almost every year since this coaching staff arrived. 

[5 Words or Less]

We wet 

I just saw a picture of the Luther baseball field (the outfield) under water.  Didn't look too far away from Carlson Stadium.

Carlson Stadium high & dry damp

Drone footage of Decorah flood     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7p08Wr6jxs

[doolittledog]

Baseball and softball fields were underwater.  Flood stopped juuuuuusst short of the football field.  How did this compare to 2008?

[5 Words or Less]

Baseball and softball fields were underwater.  Flood stopped juuuuuusst short of the football field.  How did this compare to 2008?

The Upper Iowa flood crested 2 feet higher at the College Drive bridge in 2008 following a 6 inch rain event that was spread over 20 hours. The rain in 2008 also dumped extensive rain across northern Iowa whereas the 2016 event seems to be more localized. Tuesday's thunderstorm dumped 7.58 inches of rain over 6 hours at the official weather station located at the airport.  Unofficial gauges had up to 12 inches south of Decorah which flooded Trout Run downstream of Decorah.  That caused the river to rise in Freeport to a level higher than 2008.  A lot of the flooding that occurred in Decorah may be attributed to streams and waterways draining into the valley after the rain stopped. The river did not overtop the levees, but the incoming stream water had no where to drain once it hit the levees. Decorah/US Army Corps of Engineers planned for this and keeps retainer contracts with manure pumping contractors to pump/spray the water over the levees at designated ponding sites. You can see several of these in the drone video.  The College's athletic fields were pumped dry within a day or two, so the grass has a chance of surviving.

As long as I've exceeded my word limit ... I might as well report that Luther's scrimmage on Friday was relocated to UWSP.  From what I hear, it went well.

[Spurrier]

Next to the beautiful vistas viewed from Chalmers field...decorah was my second favorite place to play...