FB: American Southwest Conference

[Ralph Turner]

Chris,

I think that MissColl is hurt by three things.

1)  Voters go with what they know sometimes regardless of the facts (to some degree).
I am going to pick on basketball (and 2008 may be different).  You popped back into the Top 25, mostly on reputation that Coach Jones will have his team together, get a playoff bid, win 2 games at home in the playoff and lose in the Sweet 16.  That is good for #23 before the opening buzzer.  Miss College has not established that history in football to even get onto the bottom of 2-3 ballots of the 25.

2) UMHB's loss to UWW really hurt the conference.
We are the ASC, but we are isolated.  We rarely play games outside our neighborhood that show great prowess.  The tendency is to assume that the ASC is a good conference at the top, but what about the rest of the conference.  We have had close games. (Something like 15 of 25 games not involving UMHB have been settled by 8 points or less).  However on the national level, UMHB beat a CNU team that is down in an average conference.  HSU lost to a Linfield that is not going to make the playoffs and UW-Oshkosh that is in the middle of the toughest conference in D-3. McMurry lost to a very average Huntingdon who went to Wisconsin and got whupped.  We had no other games on a national stage.  More teams need to schedule D-3 games around the country.  (Millsaps is a great game, they are not there yet either.)

#3 We are at the end of the season when the information that Pat Coleman sends out is voluminous, and has plenty of quality to discern fine points.
  Forty-six teams received votes last week.  I believe that this is due to the new programs that have cycled up in their conferences.  We have very well-known four teams that are contending for the Pool A in the Liberty League.  There are several conferences where the top teams are cycling down and that is more than usual for week #9.  (In 2006, only 37 teams recevied votes.  In 2005, 42 teams received votes in Week #9, but 10 of those were 5 votes are less.)  I think that the HSU loss knocked out any momentum that you had.  The national voters used their one measuring stick, HSU (which seems to be down), and saw that you lost even to them.  Millsaps just hasn't made its case, and the coaching strategy that has been amply discussed on the SCAC board even tarnishes that win.

That being said, I think that Miss College is a Top 20 team next year's pre-season poll.

Let me add 2 more "national" games that we played this year.  ETBU and TLU played Trinity.  Trinity is well-known around the country, and both teams lost by 3 TD's to Trinity.  That doesn't speak well for the conference either.

[golden_dome]

Ralph,
   I would agree with that, particularly #1. Unless a team pulls off a win against one of the nation's top-ranked teams, you have to build up a level of respect which usually takes at least back to back successful seasons. I think the voters do a great job with the poll, it is certainly a tough task with so many teams and little eye witness information.

   The ASC's out of conference record this year will not be good, which I think is partially due to the conference in a rebuilding year after the loss of a couple good quarterbacks last season, and very tough scheduling. I can think of eight out of conference games against Top 25 caliber teams off the top of my head (HSU-Linfield, HSU-LaCrosse, UMHB-CNU, UMHB-UWW, MC-Millsaps, LC-Millsaps, TLU-Trinity, ETBU-Trinity). That's almost half of our 18 out of conference games right there. I'm not sure there are a lot of conferences with as difficult a schedule out of conference.

   Hopefully, UMHB can beat Trinity and make a run in the playoffs to cap off the season for the ASC.

[Ralph Turner]

I can think of eight out of conference games against "Top 25 caliber" teams off the top of my head (HSU-Linfield, HSU-LaCrosse, UMHB-CNU, UMHB-UWW, MC-Millsaps, LC-Millsaps, TLU-Trinity, ETBU-Trinity). That's almost half of our 18 out of conference games right there.

We are counting any appearance in the top 25 this year as "Top 25 caliber".  That makes our record 2-6 as a conference in those games.

Those 8 games comprise almost half of the non-conference games.

Other D3 opponents include LaGrange twice, Austin College and Huntingdon.

We just need to schedule more non-conference games against D3 opponents, and win them!

[etbualum]

Let me add 2 more "national" games that we played this year.  ETBU and TLU played Trinity.  Trinity is well-known around the country, and both teams lost by 3 TD's to Trinity.  That doesn't speak well for the conference either.

Ralph I have heard that trinity is not going to be on the schedule for next year.  I think they have decided to play someone else.

[Ralph Turner]

I think that Trinity is picking up another ASC team for a 2-year contract.  I also believe that the Trinity-TLU game will become an annual event.

ETBUalum, I hope that ETBU can find a quality D3 in-region opponent.

[drinkxs.com]

does anyone know who umhb will schedule for their two non conference games?

does scheduling d2 or naia hurt of help the cru?

[k-hud]

drinkxs, if you just look at Texas DII's (keeping travel budgets in mind, as I think Ralph referred to a few pages back) there are 4 ranked in the top 25 in the coaches poll right now, #4 West Texas A&M, #16 Tarleton, #19 ACU, and #21 Midwestern State (http://www.ncaasports.com/football/mens/polls/polls/divii-afca).  They all play in the Lonestar Conference, and all played either DI-AA or DII teams for their non-conference game(s), so I doubt they would be interested in scheduling a DIII non-conference opponent, even a team the caliber of UMHB.  Non-ranked in-state include A&M Commerce (5-5), A&M Kingsville (2-8), and Angelo State (2-7), but I don't see a whole lot of benefit for the Cru in playing a mediocre/lousy DII team, even if any of those were interested in scheduling us.

NAIA Top 25 doesn't have anyone from Texas (http://www.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/naia1.html).  I am not sure if there are any NAIA teams in Texas at all, but even if there are it doesn't help the Cru's cause to play one that was not ranked pretty highly.  Although they can give scholarships, I think most people would consider NAIA a step down.  When the UMHB football program started in '98, there were still other athletic programs competing in NAIA, but they all made the transition to DIII to start off the '00-'01 school year.

[Ralph Turner]

Very impressive first post, K-hud!  +1 karma!    Glad to have you!

Well-researched, well-documented and you show an understanding of the nature of the problem that UMHB faces.

There are only 2 NAIA schools playing football in Texas now that Paul Quinn [College, in Dallas, TX] has given it [football] up, Texas College and Southwestern Assemblies of God University.

Texas College beat HPU 33-27 in OT this year and SRSU beat SWAG 39-7.  There is no advantage there.


Thanks to D O.C.

[umhb2001]

Guys, how balanced was the CRU offense today?  Did we keep running the ball or did we give Welch a chance to throw the ball 20 times?  I think we have to be a serious threat through the air if we want to move deep into the playoffs. 

I would have to say that it was a very UNIMPRESIVE win.  We were still running the option on 3 and long.  I was getting tired of the same 5 plays we seem to always run.  We never attack the middle of the field with the pass, and it seems as though we are content with how we play even though we struggle against tougher D's who stack the box.  I voiced my concern at the game and this lady said I was being too negative. 

The fact is, we MUST be more balanced, we must attack the middle of the field, and we have GOT to play better 3rd down D.  We are great at forcing 3rd and long, but then we give up the big play.  It has been that way for a few years and nothing has changed.  I hope we make the change by playoffs.

[Bill McCabe]

umhb2001,  How can you complain about success?  They scored 72 points.     I would prefer they continue to do what they do best.

[D O.C.]

Could I possibly have a Memo From Turner on who or what this is....
                                   

Paul Quinn

[Ralph Turner]

Could I possibly have a Memo From Turner on who or what this is....
                                   

Paul Quinn

Hello D O.C.

Paul Quinn College is a HBCU in south Dallas (on the former campus of Bishop College for you 1970's NAIA basketball fans) and a member of the NAIA.

They have not been able to sustain a football program, partly because of travel budget constraints and teams of similar quality.

[k-hud]

thanks Ralph... been reading for a long time and finally decided to register.

umhb2001, I agree that the Cru needs more balance to make another deep playoff run and return to the Stagg.  Running the same few plays over and over works against weaker ASC teams, but against quality opponents such as UWW who boast strong defense, a better passing game would help to open up the run more.  It has sometimes seemed in the past that UMHB is content to continue trying to pound it on the ground even when there are 8-9 guys in the box and we can't get anything going.

[k-hud]

Ralph, from your open dates list it looks like Trinity doesn't have anything that would match up with UMHB's gaps for next season, but do you think they'd consider scheduling UMHB in the future given their recent lack of success against the Cru and the likelihood of them meeting up again in the first round, thanks to the NCAA?  (assuming no pool C from Texas)

[fatboy]

I would say if anyone is to blame for UMHB's simple offense it is the ASC defenses if UMHB does open it up they are accused of running up the score.