FB: American Rivers Conference

[Floyd in Iowa City]

          Floyd

I guess he come forward after the Soph. was injured in camp. He has one heck of a leg. Distance will not be his issue. I miss the numbers on the helmets also.
The bye week coming here probably does help the offense, as they need to figure some things out. I'm sure some of the play calling early had a lot to do with just getting the QB settled in, but didn't show much imagination. In the first half, it wouldn't have mattered who you handed the ball to, there just wasn't anything there. I'm glad they did start having some success late in the game and have a few things to build on.
The defense just looked a little slow to me. From what I've heard, it's not for lack of conditioning! For as bad as it was, and it was worse than the score or stats would indicate, a defensive stop here and an offensive conversion there and we're whistling a different tune. They will need to improve a bunch in two weeks to compete with the Spartans.

Thanks Thunderbolt!  Was the sophomore kicker hurt doing kicking stuff or is he still playing some DB as well?

[LCNorse]

          Floyd

I guess he come forward after the Soph. was injured in camp. He has one heck of a leg. Distance will not be his issue. I miss the numbers on the helmets also.
The bye week coming here probably does help the offense, as they need to figure some things out. I'm sure some of the play calling early had a lot to do with just getting the QB settled in, but didn't show much imagination. In the first half, it wouldn't have mattered who you handed the ball to, there just wasn't anything there. I'm glad they did start having some success late in the game and have a few things to build on.
The defense just looked a little slow to me. From what I've heard, it's not for lack of conditioning! For as bad as it was, and it was worse than the score or stats would indicate, a defensive stop here and an offensive conversion there and we're whistling a different tune. They will need to improve a bunch in two weeks to compete with the Spartans.

Thanks Thunderbolt!  Was the sophomore kicker hurt doing kicking stuff or is he still playing some DB as well?

Still playing DB...just can't kick which is too bad...he had a heck of a leg

[Floyd in Iowa City]

Congrats to the Dutch, Knights, Storm and Spartans on their wins. My sympathies to the Beavers and Rams on their gut wrenching losses. No such problem in Decorah yesterday.
The Norse offense in the first half, was more anemic than even the most skeptical poster could have guessed. One first down and around thirty yards of offense. The special teams were not very special, missing two field goals, bouncing a long snap off the punters personal protecter, and giving up a long kick off return. The defense looked pretty good in the first half, but could get no help from the offense and special teams what so ever.
The offense and special teams played better in the second half, but the defense reverted to their old ways, of not being able to get off the field in 3rd down situations or making key red zone stops. Add it all up and you lose handilly to an average team.
At the end of the day, I think I'm more disappointed in the defense than the offense. They only gave up 260 yards of offense but, this was not the Ole offense of the past few years. It's was probably, in hind sight, fair to expect the O'line to struggle adjusting to a zone blocking scheme and a new offense.
There were some bright spots and things to build on, just not many come to mind at the moment. The Freshman QB has talent, and may turn into a very good one. Starting a Fresman QB is like going on a series of blind dates. You never know when you are going to get the good, the bad or the ugly. You just know that eventially you will get all the above.

Thunderbolt,

Any news why Barclay is handling the kicking duties?  Was he better in camp than the returning sophomore?  I never have heard much news about kickers over the years.  I hope Barclay has a nice year for the Norse Wrestlers!

I did not go to Saturday's game, but it sounded disappointing as the Ole Offense is way down (according to some around Northfield).  The photos of the game also don't look good, as I don't see the player numbers on the side of the helmets. 

The coaching staff can't always control what players decide not to return, but they sure can control how the helmets look!  To screw with the Norse Football uniforms is just dumb.  The uniforms were not the problem with the Hefty regime!

The Norse could use that Waldorf game now as it doesn't appear like they are ready to play Simpson in two weeks.

First off...grim did something to his plant foot and the coaches recruited the ex-soccer player to kick...helmets i guess promoted individuality according to durnin so thats why they took the numbers away, they will also no longer have the little norse stickers on them either. I was also disappointing to not see the Norse head on the 50...Durnin said no to that also...I guess he is trying to change some ways around the program not sure if I agree but what do I know...I thought the defense played pretty welll for being on the field so much...The O had 1 first down in the first half, the D just wore down after a while. Play calling in the first half looked like a junior high game...run run pass...Hopefully we see more of what the 4th quarter looked like. Sounds like all was healthy except Walls the slot receiver and prob one of the more experienced receivers broke his collar bone...The bye week is much needed I think...lots of questions marks in Norseland...how far the program has fallin since the '04 season

Thanks for the info LCNorse!

The number on the helmet is the same as the jersey.  It's not like the player name is on the helmet or the back of the jersey.  The helmets were a classic look.  Are the numbers coming back when the team is less selfish or individualistic?  I guess I thought the problem was a lack of junior and senior talent and experience at certain positions and that the roster is much smaller this year.  Is that the fault of the guys who are still on the team and committed to the program?

I can understand the point a little more with the stickers, as that is more of an individual trophy/award in public thing.  I never had a problem with the stickers either though.

[doolittledog]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

[LCNorse]

Congrats to the Dutch, Knights, Storm and Spartans on their wins. My sympathies to the Beavers and Rams on their gut wrenching losses. No such problem in Decorah yesterday.
The Norse offense in the first half, was more anemic than even the most skeptical poster could have guessed. One first down and around thirty yards of offense. The special teams were not very special, missing two field goals, bouncing a long snap off the punters personal protecter, and giving up a long kick off return. The defense looked pretty good in the first half, but could get no help from the offense and special teams what so ever.
The offense and special teams played better in the second half, but the defense reverted to their old ways, of not being able to get off the field in 3rd down situations or making key red zone stops. Add it all up and you lose handilly to an average team.
At the end of the day, I think I'm more disappointed in the defense than the offense. They only gave up 260 yards of offense but, this was not the Ole offense of the past few years. It's was probably, in hind sight, fair to expect the O'line to struggle adjusting to a zone blocking scheme and a new offense.
There were some bright spots and things to build on, just not many come to mind at the moment. The Freshman QB has talent, and may turn into a very good one. Starting a Fresman QB is like going on a series of blind dates. You never know when you are going to get the good, the bad or the ugly. You just know that eventially you will get all the above.

Thunderbolt,

Any news why Barclay is handling the kicking duties?  Was he better in camp than the returning sophomore?  I never have heard much news about kickers over the years.  I hope Barclay has a nice year for the Norse Wrestlers!

I did not go to Saturday's game, but it sounded disappointing as the Ole Offense is way down (according to some around Northfield).  The photos of the game also don't look good, as I don't see the player numbers on the side of the helmets. 

The coaching staff can't always control what players decide not to return, but they sure can control how the helmets look!  To screw with the Norse Football uniforms is just dumb.  The uniforms were not the problem with the Hefty regime!

The Norse could use that Waldorf game now as it doesn't appear like they are ready to play Simpson in two weeks.

First off...grim did something to his plant foot and the coaches recruited the ex-soccer player to kick...helmets i guess promoted individuality according to durnin so thats why they took the numbers away, they will also no longer have the little norse stickers on them either. I was also disappointing to not see the Norse head on the 50...Durnin said no to that also...I guess he is trying to change some ways around the program not sure if I agree but what do I know...I thought the defense played pretty welll for being on the field so much...The O had 1 first down in the first half, the D just wore down after a while. Play calling in the first half looked like a junior high game...run run pass...Hopefully we see more of what the 4th quarter looked like. Sounds like all was healthy except Walls the slot receiver and prob one of the more experienced receivers broke his collar bone...The bye week is much needed I think...lots of questions marks in Norseland...how far the program has fallin since the '04 season

Thanks for the info LCNorse!

The number on the helmet is the same as the jersey.  It's not like the player name is on the helmet or the back of the jersey.  The helmets were a classic look.  Are the numbers coming back when the team is less selfish or individualistic?  I guess I thought the problem was a lack of junior and senior talent and experience at certain positions and that the roster is much smaller this year.  Is that the fault of the guys who are still on the team and committed to the program?

I can understand the point a little more with the stickers, as that is more of an individual trophy/award in public thing.  I never had a problem with the stickers either though.

I completely agree with that...The plan white helmets looked pretty bad...as far as I know there is no plan to bring any of that back. Not sure what the problem with the norsehead on the field was either...seems that that would just be an all school thing...

[Floyd in Iowa City]

Are you sure you don't have another class to take this year LC? You would be a big help right now. Walls did make a heck of a catch. I assume that was the one he was injured on. I agree with most of what your saying, but you can't allow 3 consecutive fourth down conversions on a nineteen play drive, and blame the offense.

I would love to still be out there...haha...I hear what your saying about the defense...it looks a lot like what I've seen from the sidelines the past 4 years...3rd downs just kills us. It was on that catch that he made over the middle...Hopefully the younger Scheetz might see the field now though too...O line did not look good at all and the RB situation scares me a lot...give Durnin a few years for him to get his guys in there and we might be talking about this team differently...it just is so sad to see how the program looked when this years seniors came in and how it looks now in only four years. I really thought we were building something that could stay in the top half of the conference and we might be lucky to win a conference game this year...

What is too bad about the senior class as well is that they had clear talent when they were recruited.  Two guys that are no longer in the program were Shrine Bowl players (one on each side of the ball) and made strong impacts as freshmen.  In addition to those two, I always liked the DL talent in the class.  Webb and Rickertson are still there, but there was another player who also looked very good a couple of years ago.  The class is still big, but not making the impact at LB, RB, or even possibly QB like I thought from a distance a few years ago.  Klein had a very nice year at LB in 2007, but I would have loved to see a healthy Jaeger back there as well the past couple of years.

I did not think the current juniors or sophomores had the same depth coming in that the current seniors had.  It was probably harder for the coaching staff to recruit on the future during and after the 2006 season.

How did the pass defense look on Saturday?  The Norse have not been a big pass rush team the past 5 years nor have they been a great pass coverage team the past two seasons.

[the_mayne_event]

Yes early season rankings are pretty much good for nothing but to stir up debate amongst the fans.  And this week's got me stirred.  Wabash must have had a spectacular week of practice!!!  (Do I need to ask doolittledog's permission to use the triple exclamation?)

obviously their superb head coach 

[Floyd in Iowa City]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

Regime change does not have to mean uniform change, but I guess some coaches don't see things that way.  The helmets actually remind me more of the Edsel Schweizer era (1952-1977) than the Paul Hefty era.  Uniform changes every few years are for programs that have no traditions.  Tradition is one of the main things that the Norse are barely hanging onto right now.

[LCNorse]

Are you sure you don't have another class to take this year LC? You would be a big help right now. Walls did make a heck of a catch. I assume that was the one he was injured on. I agree with most of what your saying, but you can't allow 3 consecutive fourth down conversions on a nineteen play drive, and blame the offense.

I would love to still be out there...haha...I hear what your saying about the defense...it looks a lot like what I've seen from the sidelines the past 4 years...3rd downs just kills us. It was on that catch that he made over the middle...Hopefully the younger Scheetz might see the field now though too...O line did not look good at all and the RB situation scares me a lot...give Durnin a few years for him to get his guys in there and we might be talking about this team differently...it just is so sad to see how the program looked when this years seniors came in and how it looks now in only four years. I really thought we were building something that could stay in the top half of the conference and we might be lucky to win a conference game this year...

What is too bad about the senior class as well is that they had clear talent when they were recruited.  Two guys that are no longer in the program were Shrine Bowl players (one on each side of the ball) and made strong impacts as freshmen.  In addition to those two, I always liked the DL talent in the class.  Webb and Rickertson are still there, but there was another player who also looked very good a couple of years ago.  The class is still big, but not making the impact at LB, RB, or even possibly QB like I thought from a distance a few years ago.  Klein had a very nice year at LB in 2007, but I would have loved to see a healthy Jaeger back there as well the past couple of years.

I did not think the current juniors or sophomores had the same depth coming in that the current seniors had.  It was probably harder for the coaching staff to recruit on the future during and after the 2006 season.

How did the pass defense look on Saturday?  The Norse have not been a big pass rush team the past 5 years nor have they been a great pass coverage team the past two seasons.

This senior class was the last of 5 years of highly talented incoming classes. The pass defense looked ok, Olaf didn't throw a ton and by no means did they have the players at receiver that they have had the past few years so they didn't test the secondary at all really.

[DutchFan2004]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

Here is one for you.  Do you think that Coach G's replacement at SJU will get rid of that classic look?  I think that you don't mess with tradition.  I think that is more about the coach making his presence felt that starting a new tradition.  I realize that the Luther program has been down lately and I do not know the traditions of their program but If Central was to change their helmets and get rid of the C for another type logo I think that the fans would be upset not to say the former players. 

[Floyd in Iowa City]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

Here is one for you.  Do you think that Coach G's replacement at SJU will get rid of that classic look?  I think that you don't mess with tradition.  I think that is more about the coach making his presence felt that starting a new tradition.  I realize that the Luther program has been down lately and I do not know the traditions of their program but If Central was to change their helmets and get rid of the C for another type logo I think that the fans would be upset not to say the former players. 

I would hope not as there are not many teams left that have that look!  Some teams bring it back on occasion, but very few schools are like Alabama and St. John's where they have had those helmets almost non-stop.  Penn State used to have that look, but I guess Paterno thought that it was too modern and dropped the numbers in the 1970s.

There are so many teams that have changed their look quite often over the years that I like seeing schools that have generally stayed the same for long periods of time (Iowa's helmets since 1979, Ohio State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Nebraska, USC, UCLA, Georgia, Central, Alabama, etc).

It is just as bad or worse at the NFL where there are not too many teams that have stayed mostly the same for very long periods of time (Steelers, Packers, Cowboys, Dolphins, Browns, and Chiefs as examples).  Most of the teams that have stayed the same actually have some tradition.

[oldNorse]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

Regime change does not have to mean uniform change, but I guess some coaches don't see things that way.  The helmets actually remind me more of the Edsel Schweizer era (1952-1977) than the Paul Hefty era.  Uniform changes every few years are for programs that have no traditions.  Tradition is one of the main things that the Norse are barely hanging onto right now.

....Luther uniforms, helmets, logo..

The helmets of the 50's were gold with a Norseman logo on  each side.  The change to white came gradually as they could afford to buy new ones.  Numbers on the helmets came later.
I have never cared for the current logo as was painted on the 50 yard line and is the Norse current logo.  It looks too much like a cartoon character of the comic page.  The U of Iowa changed its logo from a chicken hawk to its current logo.  Good change....shows more aggression.  Luther should do the same instead of being a comic character.

[doolittledog]

That deal with Luther not having the numbers on their helmets sounds like Dernin trying to make a statement that this is his program now and wants nothing to do with the previous regime.  Which is a shame, the Norse had a classic look.  I wouldn't want the Norse, or Central, or Loras to ever change their looks.  The other schools I really don't have a problem if they want to change their looks every so often.  Not that they are really looking for my approval on the matter 

I am getting to the point where I want this coming weekend to get over with.  After this weekend I think we will have a pretty good idea how most teams seasons will play out.  I am finding the older I get the less I like questions out there!!!

Regime change does not have to mean uniform change, but I guess some coaches don't see things that way.  The helmets actually remind me more of the Edsel Schweizer era (1952-1977) than the Paul Hefty era.  Uniform changes every few years are for programs that have no traditions.  Tradition is one of the main things that the Norse are barely hanging onto right now.

....Luther uniforms, helmets, logo..

The helmets of the 50's were gold with a Norseman logo on  each side.  The change to white came gradually as they could afford to buy new ones.  Numbers on the helmets came later.
I have never cared for the current logo as was painted on the 50 yard line and is the Norse current logo.  It looks too much like a cartoon character of the comic page.  The U of Iowa changed its logo from a chicken hawk to its current logo.  Good change....shows more aggression.  Luther should do the same instead of being a comic character.

I think anyone considering writing a book on the Iowa Conference should make their first stop at the home of oldNorse.  I can't think of a better reference guide than him...and that would include the IIAC offices in CR!!!

[corkballrules]

I also agree that the uniform should illustrate the tradition. I like the classic Norse uniforms simply because they are simple, classic and just look good.

[LCNorse]

I happen to like the Norse logo...I wasn't a big fan of the ship that they had before...and before that I'm not sure what the logo was...on another note

LC website has plays of the week on the website...kinda cool...good recruiting tool?

http://sports.luther.edu/men/football/season-2008/plays%20of%20the%20week/playsofweek.html