FB: Ohio Athletic Conference

[Dr. Acula]

68, I believe Snell was hand picked by his predecessor so I'm sure that carries quite a bit of clout.  That being said, I think with their location and tradition .500 should not be an acceptable standard at BW, IMO.

[Dr. Acula]

One other thing to keep in mind w/ BW, as well as JCU, is the creation of 2 new DII football programs in the Cleveland area in the last couple years (Notre Dame and Lake Erie).  Throw in Case's recent success coupled with their beautiful new facilities and the recruiting picture right now is more competitive than ever up there.  Not an excuse, just food for thought. 

[reality check]

68, I believe Snell was hand picked by his predecessor so I'm sure that carries quite a bit of clout.  That being said, I think with their location and tradition .500 should not be an acceptable standard at BW, IMO.

But being .500 or slightly better than that is something the Yellow Jackets hung their hat on during "the streak".

[JK]

I'm making one more post before I have to go and change my stupid profile picture.

I can't believe one stupid point is potentially keep Cap out of the playoffs.  If Cap finishes third at 8-2 I think they are out.  I think the only conceivable way for the OAC to get 3 teams in is if ONU is 3rd at 8-2 with the win over NCC.  Cap, despite a 7 point loss to the #1 team and a 1 point loss to the #10 team doens't even really warrant consideration unless A LOT of crazy stuff happens over the last few weeks of the season.

I personally think this was Cap's last best shot at the postseason for a while.  I don't know what the Frosh QB fom Ashland has, but I don't see Alexander taking over and leading Cap back to the playoffs next year with what they lose in other places.

We'll see, I guess...

[Mr. Ypsi]

Chin up, JK!  A poster on the CCIW board had to use the moniker "Redman04 Is My Daddy" for an entire year!  A one-month bet is gettin' off light!

[seventiesraider]

I know there have been a few posts congratulating Berg on the W today, but can someone explain what the h*ll is going in Berea these days?  Let's look at a couple things:

--They are currently sitting at 2-5 and staring at road trips to Ada and Bexley still to come.  When was the last time BW went 3-7?  And no offense, but I'm having a hard time counting the Wilmington game as an automatic W considering how inconsistent those two teams are.

--The Jackets have allowed just under 29 points/game this year.  They are allowing a TD more per game in their losses.  What happened to that always solid BW D?  And that goes beyond this year.  It seems to be becoming a trend.

--Since Dan Larlham graduated after Snell's 2nd season he is 30-27 as of today.  Is that where BW is?  A .500 team unless they have a true superstar?  It sure looks like it.

--One stat I didn't see mentioned was the decrease in my self esteem after I threw BW out in the preseason as a possible dark horse for 2nd in the OAC.  I can safely tell you that decrease is substantial and I won't be making any predictions for a while.      

Dr. Acula,

Your post is on target!

B-W's Athletic Dept and Administration need to take a long look at their program. I am not sure who the AD is, but it would require them to determine why they do not seem to be recruiting the enough top players. B-W is a good school with great academics and other competitive sports programs. I wonder where their Board of Trustees are on this, maybe they are not concerned as yet?  

The greater Cleveland is abundant in talent, but that talent must be going elsewhere other than B-W and JCU. Since Mount and B-W are sister schools in the OAC, I would be contacting the right people at Mount as a model, much like UWW did early in the decade just to see  what areas could be improved.

Yea, I know some would argue why help a rival, but it would help the conference if B-W could get their act together. Why not try to learn from the best.

It also begs the question, is the Snell era over, the results certainly are an indicator.

I know when Big Mike was taking over at Heidelberg they were re-evaluting all their sports and facilties. It seems to have paid off because they are fairly compretitive across the board

It's not for a total lack of talent because they have a Frosh QB  from Hopewell-Loudin that sent us home in the okayoff two years in arow

BW did lose their D-Co-ordinator last year and that was the strength that kept them in ballgames. Look at the scores of some of the Mount-BW games in the last decade.

There is talent in Cleveland but not where they are looking (Rocky River and Lutheran West)

[HScoach]

I know there have been a few posts congratulating Berg on the W today, but can someone explain what the h*ll is going in Berea these days?  Let's look at a couple things:

--They are currently sitting at 2-5 and staring at road trips to Ada and Bexley still to come.  When was the last time BW went 3-7?  And no offense, but I'm having a hard time counting the Wilmington game as an automatic W considering how inconsistent those two teams are.

--The Jackets have allowed just under 29 points/game this year.  They are allowing a TD more per game in their losses.  What happened to that always solid BW D?  And that goes beyond this year.  It seems to be becoming a trend.

--Since Dan Larlham graduated after Snell's 2nd season he is 30-27 as of today.  Is that where BW is?  A .500 team unless they have a true superstar?  It sure looks like it.

--One stat I didn't see mentioned was the decrease in my self esteem after I threw BW out in the preseason as a possible dark horse for 2nd in the OAC.  I can safely tell you that decrease is substantial and I won't be making any predictions for a while.     

That's pretty funny.  Don't worry about eating crow on the Jackets.  I thought they were going to be much better than they are too.  I had them higher in my OAC preview and ONU much lower (see below).  Go figure.



1.  Mount Union – The nation will focus on the graduation of Gagliardi Award winning quarterback Greg Micheli and NCAA career rushing leader and All-American running back Nate Kmic, but the OAC will learn that the Raiders are absolutely loaded at every other position on the field for 2009.  The defense will be head and shoulders above the rest of the conference with as deep and talented a defensive line as I can ever remember and the receiving corps is one of the best ever.  The only question mark between having to win the conference on the strength of the defense and running away with it is the hole at quarterback.  But I'm guessing Larry Kehres will find someone more than capable of steering the ship through the conference mine field.

Predicting the top spot is easy.  Now it gets interesting.

2.  Capital – If Marty Assman can stay healthy, the Crusaders have all the pieces to make a run toward an NCAA playoff spot.  They have experience on offense and a good defensive minded head coach. 

3.  Otterbein – I was tempted to pick the Cardinals to repeat their second place finish, but I just can't buy in to a program that has lacked the consistency over the years to live up their potential every year.  They have the talent offensively to earn the second place spot, but the defense is young and they have to deal with the pressure of expectations that they haven't ever had to deal with before.

4.  Baldwin-Wallace – An experienced quarterback and a solid defense should be enough for B-W to stay in the top half of the conference.

5.  Ohio Northern – Inconsistent quarterback play, lack of playmakers at wide receiver and an average defense dooms ONU from climbing any higher.

6.  Heidelberg – Good numbers on both offense and defense allows The 'Berg to climb up the standings.

7.  Wilmington – A four year starter at quarterback and five returning O-linemen help the Quakers continue their steady climb from the cellar.

8.  John Carroll – By name recognition alone, I have a hard time picking JCU this low, but a new quarterback combined with only three defensive starters could be the reason that sends John Carroll streaking even further down the standings.

9.  Marietta – The Pioneers are improving and beat the Muskies last season. 

10.  Muskingum – The line between ninth and 10th is a fine one and the Muskies and Pioneers could easily flip flop.

[HScoach]

Spreads for Week 9  have been posted.

[Ric]

I gotta the share the dumbest sports comment of the day:

"Now we get to see what Brett Faurve is made of against a strong Pittsburgh defense"

We may not know what the hell he's thinking, but I'm pretty sure we know what he's made of. Thank you NBC sports

Second best lne of the day goes to HSCoach: "Tats white wick".

Now off to announce a band show that hopefully none of you will be at

I guess you missed Bob Griese's "taco" comment  during Ohio State's game yesterday.

http://www.examiner.com/x-15343-Jacksonville-Celebrity-Headlines-Examiner~y2009m10d25-Bob-Griese-apologizes-for-his-taco-comment-regarding-Juan-Pablo-Montoya

[OldOtter]

I'm making one more post before I have to go and change my stupid profile picture.

I'm really looking forward to this. I was nervous there for a while!

[rscl70]

Ofcourse JK may not post for the next month.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Wow - are the Bungles for real?

Did anyone see that score against da Bears coming?  The win, maybe, but 45-10?!

[As a Lions fan, I'm undecided whether to be hopeful, or feel "there's another team we won't beat in my lifetime! ]

[HScoach]

I missed the game, but did really enjoy watching the ESPN highlights of cry baby Cutler losing another one

[mtfan]

Wow - are the Bungles for real?

Did anyone see that score against da Bears coming?  The win, maybe, but 45-10?!

[As a Lions fan, I'm undecided whether to be hopeful, or feel "there's another team we won't beat in my lifetime! ]

Not so sure the Bungles are that good or that the Bears have fallen off the map now without Urlacher forcing the defense to play up to their capabilities.  Urlachers presents is one that makes everyone on that defense play better, without him, they are mediocre at best. However, not taking anything from the Bengals, they are finally playing some good ball. We'll see how long that last, probably until Ochocino isn't happy over something like not getting invited to "dancing with the Stars", and the distractions all start again.

[mtfan]

I missed the game, but did really enjoy watching the ESPN highlights of cry baby Cutler losing another one

GOT THAT RIGHT! K+