FB: American Southwest Conference

[Toby Taff]

I'm at the Coe HSU game. Missed he first half because I had the start time wrong. HSU looks like they always do. Taylor Bird started the game and is throwing lights out. One of the HSU receiver has 265 yds after the first series of the 3rd qtr.

[Toby Taff]

Coe has a good crowd with them.

[Ralph Turner]

Things are hopping at the Alamodome today for UTSA's first game.  They are going to have a record crowd and I wonder what type of crowd there will be for the McMurry game.

Ugly live stats they are using, something called "NeuLion" which I've never heard of.  Give me PrestoSports any day!

EDIT:  And for those still stinging after McM's big loss the other day, consider this:  D-1 FCS UTSA, in their first-ever game, is leading a D2 opponent that was 6-5 last year, returned 17 starters, and won 43-0 last week by a 21-0 count after one.    Northeastern State got their initial first down on the last play of the quarter.

Northeastern State beat Bacone 43-0.  McMurry beat Bacone 41-6 in last season's McMurry opener.

[Bill McCabe]

I was looking for tickets for the game next week in the Alamodome and they have already sold quite a few.  Great start for UTSA today.

[T.Shawn]

Question, why do the northern schools get so much credit over teams in Texas.  Coe finishes second in their confernece last year according to their web site and still gets into the playoffs and returns 23 starters, 21 and 2 speciality personnel, ranked 10th, and basically doesn't show up for the game.  I can pick three maybe four teams from last years conf. that were clearly better than this team HSU faced today.  Texas football doesn't get the respect in my opinion that it deserves or at least true south region football.  I don't consider 14+ teams from Penn. as southern teams even though they are in the south region.  Just wondering why it seems that voters carry weight on at large bids that over rate schools from other regions. 

[Ron Boerger]

Kind of reading a lot into one game, especially when you're talking about an opponent unused to 100-degree temps in the first game of the season. 

Texas schools will get respect when one of them consistently gets to the championship.   Period.  UMHB has more respect than anyone else in the state but they've only made one appearance, that in 2004.

Rankings don't mean squat in D3, anyway.  Make the playoffs and control your destiny regardless of 'rankings.' 

[Toby Taff]

Kind of reading a lot into one game, especially when you're talking about an opponent unused to 100-degree temps in the first game of the season. 

I have to say it was hot today. I'm used to this heat and even though it was cooler than it has been, I was baking in the stands. Add to that a thousand mile bus trip and I'll bet this ain't the same Coe team that finishes the season. Next week HSU makes the long trip; guess we'll see how that affects them. That said, HSU looked pretty stinking good.

[T.Shawn]

easy guys, I am just asking a question, when you limit a state to one bid, and put teams in to the playoffs based upon opinion for the few at large bids, it becomes a little more difficult to control your own destiny.  I agree take care of business and it settles itself.  Just wondering why it seems, and not just HSU, you could put LC in from last year, that some don't take into consideration the competition that for example the ASC brings every saturday.  ETBU and Wesley for example, just from the box score, ETBU gives a top five team all they can handle at their place and if they correct just a couple of the turnovers, it is quite possibly a totally different outcome.  I have been around Texas football a long time.  Played at AC back when Tarelton was still a non scholarship school and you didn't get in the playoffs except by ranking and AC was consistently ranked back in the day.  I respect your insights, and if it is simply consistency at winning national championships, fair enough.  But that still doesn't explain why teams, consistently rankend in the top 25 every year, are overlooked for one of the at large bids just because they don't win their conference.  And you are right, HSU has to travel next week and we will see how they handle that.  At least the team won't be going by bus.  The trip from Sherman to Sul Ross was bad enough back in the day, can't imagine the trip from Iowa.

[Ralph Turner]

Welcome to the Boards, T Shawn.

Most accurately, the NCAA limits it to one bid per conference.

There are 6 at-large bids for the conference teams like ours, and the competition is very tough.  The ASC gets its at-large (Pool C bid) reasonably often.  Almost all of the Pool C bids go to Top 25 teams.  Louisiana College would have earned a Pool C bid in 2010, if they had not lost to Huntingdon, IMHO.  And most definitely, LaCollege knocked HSU out of a Pool C (at-large) bid last season.

You have to understand that D-III has almost twice as many schools as D1 FBS.  The Top 25 in D1FBS is like our Top 50 and the ASC has about 5 schools that are in the quartile of D-III (Top 60).  Buy a copy of Kickoff, the e-zine, to find out what schools are mentioned.

This year, I think that we get an at large bid.  The TLU and Mississippi College wins will help us a lot.

HSU got a great win (one that the committee picking the at-large teams will consider seriously).

ETBU shot themselves in the foot against a nationally respected opponent, again. (Redlands in 2010, etc.)  But you have to admire ETBU for going after the big names.

[crufootball]

There is a very simple but frustrating answer to you T Shawn and it is $$$. The NCAA respect southern teams as much as any other team but it is much cheaper for one of us to play or for us to play each other in the first round of the playoffs. So until someone comes in and sponsors the playoffs we can just expect to see a few more rounds of the Texas Sub Division or something similar.

Congrats to everyone who won today but at least its nice to know even if you lost today you still have the same chance as anyone to win the whole thing.

[Pat Coleman]

Question, why do the northern schools get so much credit over teams in Texas.  Coe finishes second in their confernece last year according to their web site and still gets into the playoffs and returns 23 starters, 21 and 2 speciality personnel, ranked 10th, and basically doesn't show up for the game.  I can pick three maybe four teams from last years conf. that were clearly better than this team HSU faced today.  Texas football doesn't get the respect in my opinion that it deserves or at least true south region football.  I don't consider 14+ teams from Penn. as southern teams even though they are in the south region.  Just wondering why it seems that voters carry weight on at large bids that over rate schools from other regions.

What team last year should have gotten in that didn't? 1-loss teams from the ASC get at-large bids pretty regularly, right?

[dsc]

For starters...either (or both) Louisiana College and/or HSU!  And then place them in another bracket besides UMHB and see how far the ASC goes in the playoffs.


gbrat
(Cowboy fan...I love it when most of the "experts" pick the wrong team as a winner!)    double   
(Coe vs. HSU...first year under a new coach!)  We love you anyway!!!

[Pat Coleman]

For starters...either (or both) Texas Lutheran and/or HSU!  And then place them in another bracket besides UMHB and see how far the ASC goes in the playoffs.

You know I was talking about last year, right?

[TxFight]

ETBU beat Wesley everywhere but the scoreboard Saturday IN Dover, Delaware where Wesley was 40-2 entering the game.  A couple of critical mistakes kept ETBU from winning that came and throwing the D3 football world outside of Texas into a tizzy.  Three of Wesleys TDs came pretty directly off ETBU turnovers (pick 6, interception returned to the 10 when ETBU was in redzone, and an interception returned to about the 30 when ETBU was in a goal to go situation).  If ETBU punches those in for scores then it is a completely different ball game.  Also have to remember that it was 7-0 etbu after 1, 14-7 wesley at half and 20-7 wesley after 3.  I really believe ETBU is very very close to getting over the hump.  The ASC looks like it is going to be a barn-burner this year!!

[CruFrenzy]

Question, why do the northern schools get so much credit over teams in Texas.  Coe finishes second in their confernece last year according to their web site and still gets into the playoffs and returns 23 starters, 21 and 2 speciality personnel, ranked 10th, and basically doesn't show up for the game.  I can pick three maybe four teams from last years conf. that were clearly better than this team HSU faced today.  Texas football doesn't get the respect in my opinion that it deserves or at least true south region football.  I don't consider 14+ teams from Penn. as southern teams even though they are in the south region.  Just wondering why it seems that voters carry weight on at large bids that over rate schools from other regions.

What team last year should have gotten in that didn't? 1-loss teams from the ASC get at-large bids pretty regularly, right?

Ummm, Louisiana College? 7-3 overall, and 4 POINTS away from being 8-0 in confrence. Lost 42-38 to UMHB. Why wouldnt they be in?