FB: Ohio Athletic Conference

[Dr. Acula]

MTU Returners from the Stagg Bowl Two Deep (Class this season):

1st Team Offense:
LT  56  Brooks Jenkins  Jr
C   52  Mitch Doraty  Jr
LT  75  Matt Fitchet  So
WR  8 Jordan Hargrove Jr
WR  15 Tim Kennedy Jr

2nd Team Offense:
LT  71 Nick Padrick  Jr
LG  57 Tyler Rentz  Fr
C  53  Cody Shaffer Fr
LT  51  Cole Parrish  So
WR 83 Octavion Wilson So
WR  9 Colin Gilbert So
WR  15 Braeden Friss So
WR/TE 17 Lane Herrington Jr
QB  Nick Peyakov Jr
RB  Bradley Mitchell Jr

Biggest Hole to fill is at QB.  There are enough Lineman returning and Skills guys.  You have Mitchell JR at RB and also Dwane Aaron JR and Jamal Johnson SO returning.  It will also be interesting to see which WR comes in to stretch the field.

1st Team Defense:
DE  44 Durum Alarms So My mistake, Durum was a Sr this year. One more to replace on the D.
NT  99  Mike Vidal  So
SPUR 10 Zach Deerr Jr

2nd Team Defense:
DE  94  Berry Grant So
NT  93  Lane Breyer So
DT  32  Elijah Berry So
LEO  47  Mike Jackson Jr
MLB  42  Charley Dear Jr
SS  20  Austin White  Fr
WS  2  Brian Groves  So
CB  7  Darrell Sullins  Jr
CB  21  Louis Berry   Fr

Lots of guys graduating from the 1st Team Defense who have been mainstays.  I'm looking forward to see who steps up as the leaders of the 2016 group.

Happy Holidays to all!

Strengths:
1)  O line.  With both tackles and an All-Region center back they should be solid up front.  As usual there are several other guys who have also played a lot of snaps.
2)  WR.  Hargrove and Kennedy return.  As does Wilson who played a lot.  Freshman Skyler Scott played some and made a couple big plays.  He and Herrington are big bodies.  Friss played Friday when Hargrove went down.  The key will be figuring out who is the deep threat.
3)  RB.  Mitchell, Johnson and Aaron are all back.  I agree with 68 that they need to try to find at least one bigger back to change up as all three of those guys are not huge.

Questions:
1)  QB.  A glaring question mark.  We haven't seen anywhere near enough to have any confidence in Peyakov or Lowry.  Freshman Grant Klaver got in a game or two and I know he played a lot on JV so they like him too.  Luke Poorman is intriguing, especially if he's coming in January and can go through spring ball.  Bottom line is we're going to go into another year with a QB who has never taken a meaningful snap.  And unlike T. Scott, has never even been on the field for them.
2)  LB.  Spencer and Gonell are gone.  As is LeShawn Luke who played a lot as a run stopper.  I wouldn't be surprised if someone like Stewart moved to a true LB spot.  At 6'2", 215 he's big enough in their scheme.  Stewart and Deerr are going to be key.  They've played the most football of anyone coming back on D.
3)  Secondary.  Replacing the entire unit is going to be interesting.  Louis Berry will be key as I think VK and Kappas view him as the next #1 corner.  Tall order for a soph to be #1 corner, but Jones did it.  Berry definitely looks athletic enough to do it.  I also liked Groves.  He rotated in with the starters and did pretty well. 

I didn't mention D line because I think they'll be okay.  Nowhere near the 2015 edition, but I think Vidal is going to be a stud.  I think Elijah Berry is going to emerge too.  He's quick at 250 lbs.  Overall I think the D is going to be very SO/JR heavy.  They'll be young, but I think they have talent there that should grow up during the season. 

[joelmama]

Thanks for doing this again, always so much fun. And I have to point out that I nailed 23 out of 25 Stagg Bowl points. If not for that blasted 4th round I would've prevailed!

Merry Christmas to all the OAC'ers and other friends of the boards. Always so nice to celebrate with a championship!

My apologies, you did indeed take medalist honors on the last week.  I'll have to edit the page so we can get your name up in lights.

Happy Holidays!

He is incorrect though about the 4th round. If you eliminate the 4th round I would have won.  That is what happens when you get 0 points.

[hsbsballcoach7]

I am in no way a proponent of UMU moving up to play D2 football or implying they will, but I've been seeing people on social media blast Mount for not moving up, so I'm trying to put together some info for those interested, as to what it takes for an academic institution to do so.

Division II institutions have to sponsor at least five sports for men and five for women, (or four for men and six for women), with two team sports for each gender, and each playing season represented by each gender. There are contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling criteria -- football and men's and women's basketball teams must play at least 50 percent of their games against Division II or Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) or Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) opponents. For sports other than football and basketball there are no scheduling requirements. There are not attendance requirements for football, or arena game requirements for basketball. There are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Division II school must not exceed. Division II teams usually feature a number of local or in-state student-athletes. Many Division II student-athletes pay for school through a combination of scholarship money, grants, student loans and employment earnings. Division II athletics programs are financed in the institution's budget like other academic departments on campus. Traditional rivalries with regional institutions dominate schedules of many Division II athletics programs.

Scholarships are noted by each sport.

Men's sports   Women's sports
Baseball   9   Basketball   10
Basketball   10   Bowling   5
Cross country/track   12.6   Cross country/track   12.6
Football   36   Equestrian   15.0
Fencing   4.5   Fencing   4.5
Golf   3.6   Field hockey   6.3
Gymnastics   5.4   Golf   5.4
Ice hockey   13.5   Gymnastics   6.0
Lacrosse   10.8   Ice hockey   18.0
Rifle   3.6   Lacrosse   9
Skiing   6.3   Rowing   20.0
Soccer   9.0   Rugby   12.0
Swimming/diving   8.1   Sand volleyball   5.0
Tennis   4.5   Skiing   6.3
Volleyball   4.5   Soccer   9.9
Water polo   4.5   Softball   7.2
Wrestling   9.0   Swimming/diving   8.1
       Tennis   6.0
       Volleyball   8.0
       Water polo
I think the scholarships speak for themselves, but let assume for minimal purposes that men have football, soccer, basketball, baseball/wrestling(they both use 9 full scholarships) and track/cc for 76.6 full scholarships or $2,910,800 at minimum. Women get soccer, basketball, track/cc, softball and volleyball for 37.7 full scholarships or $1,432,600. Full scholarships based on $38,000 tuition.

So Mount Union would need an additional $4,343,400 just for scholarships for minimum participation, but I bet Mount would go all in 188.8 scholarships for $7,174,400 EVERY year! This doesn't include the pay raises for more full time coaches as well to recruit.

What do you all think? Do you even think it would be probable? Personally I don't think so, I'm just tired of people bashing Mount Union for being successful.

[Bishopleftiesdad]

Schools decide what division they will compete in. MU has chosen. And they chose D3. You have to be all in. So it would need to be all sports. MU over all fits in D3 very nicely. Thats wherevthey will stay.
This is discussed every year. Read through the forums. MU beleves in D3 mission. Student Athlete.

[mr_mom]

Schools decide what division they will compete in. MU has chosen. And they chose D3. You have to be all in. So it would need to be all sports. MU over all fits in D3 very nicely. Thats wherevthey will stay.
This is discussed every year. Read through the forums. MU beleves in D3 mission. Student Athlete.

Thank you!  Very detailed.  I am SO tired of the 'why don't UMU go to D2' question. 

[Jonny Utah]

Schools decide what division they will compete in. MU has chosen. And they chose D3. You have to be all in. So it would need to be all sports. MU over all fits in D3 very nicely. Thats wherevthey will stay.
This is discussed every year. Read through the forums. MU beleves in D3 mission. Student Athlete.

Thank you!  Very detailed.  I am SO tired of the 'why don't UMU go to D2' question.

Plus, why would you want to take a step down to d2?

[USTBench]

UST gets this too. "They win in everything they should go DII." (Bridesmaid in football obviously, but national championships in volleyball, softball, men's hoops, women's hoops, baseball (this is just what I can remember))

DII is the logistical nightmare of D1 (scholarships, etc), the atmosphere of an abandoned tire plant, and the academics of a JUCO. If you're going to jump, jump D1 and flagship a sport. The problem for schools like Mount or UST would be the desire to flagship football, where, we're not necessarily a good fit for a lot of conferences, student body wise, or academically (Missouri Valley, Big Sky, Ohio Valley). The conference that would make the most sense is the Pioneer League, and that's a bunch basketball schools playing non-scholarship football, so, not necessarily a step up (I'd put Mount up against any Pioneer League program). So what you'd be left with, is trying to improve your basketball program (or in UST's case, hockey, potentially) so they could compete with the Butlers, Daytons, Drakes and Valpos of the world, and that would require major facility upgrades, and UST just went through a $500 million campus overhaul. DIII is a good fit. People who don't know anything about DIII and DII are the people making the suggestion. DII is NOT more prestigious, they can't even field programs for lacrosse or ice hockey. There are plenty of nationally recognized universities competing in DIII, Williams, Amherst, University of Chicago, Case Western, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Washington University, Carleton, Macalester, etc. Name one school in DII with the academic profile of any of those institutions.

PS. Tip of the cap to Mount on Friday. Speed kills.

[AO]

I am in no way a proponent of UMU moving up to play D2 football or implying they will, but I've been seeing people on social media blast Mount for not moving up, so I'm trying to put together some info for those interested, as to what it takes for an academic institution to do so.

Division II institutions have to sponsor at least five sports for men and five for women, (or four for men and six for women), with two team sports for each gender, and each playing season represented by each gender. There are contest and participant minimums for each sport, as well as scheduling criteria -- football and men's and women's basketball teams must play at least 50 percent of their games against Division II or Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) or Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) opponents. For sports other than football and basketball there are no scheduling requirements. There are not attendance requirements for football, or arena game requirements for basketball. There are maximum financial aid awards for each sport that a Division II school must not exceed. Division II teams usually feature a number of local or in-state student-athletes. Many Division II student-athletes pay for school through a combination of scholarship money, grants, student loans and employment earnings. Division II athletics programs are financed in the institution's budget like other academic departments on campus. Traditional rivalries with regional institutions dominate schedules of many Division II athletics programs.

Scholarships are noted by each sport.

Men's sports   Women's sports
Baseball   9   Basketball   10
Basketball   10   Bowling   5
Cross country/track   12.6   Cross country/track   12.6
Football   36   Equestrian   15.0
Fencing   4.5   Fencing   4.5
Golf   3.6   Field hockey   6.3
Gymnastics   5.4   Golf   5.4
Ice hockey   13.5   Gymnastics   6.0
Lacrosse   10.8   Ice hockey   18.0
Rifle   3.6   Lacrosse   9
Skiing   6.3   Rowing   20.0
Soccer   9.0   Rugby   12.0
Swimming/diving   8.1   Sand volleyball   5.0
Tennis   4.5   Skiing   6.3
Volleyball   4.5   Soccer   9.9
Water polo   4.5   Softball   7.2
Wrestling   9.0   Swimming/diving   8.1
       Tennis   6.0
       Volleyball   8.0
       Water polo
I think the scholarships speak for themselves, but let assume for minimal purposes that men have football, soccer, basketball, baseball/wrestling(they both use 9 full scholarships) and track/cc for 76.6 full scholarships or $2,910,800 at minimum. Women get soccer, basketball, track/cc, softball and volleyball for 37.7 full scholarships or $1,432,600. Full scholarships based on $38,000 tuition.

So Mount Union would need an additional $4,343,400 just for scholarships for minimum participation, but I bet Mount would go all in 188.8 scholarships for $7,174,400 EVERY year! This doesn't include the pay raises for more full time coaches as well to recruit.

What do you all think? Do you even think it would be probable? Personally I don't think so, I'm just tired of people bashing Mount Union for being successful.

Some D2 conferences place stricter limits on scholarships.  The NSIC has a max of 28 scholarships for football, but on average they only use about 22.  Also, until Title IX is repealed, you're not going to be able to have twice as many men's scholarships.

The only way it makes sense financially is to move up to D1 so you can get into the TV money.  Seems like another reorganization of D1 football is inevitable, maybe conferences will come looking for schools then, but I doubt Mount will be on anybody's short list.  They don't care about how well your teams would actually compete, they're much more interested in what your local tv market is like. 

[raiderpa]

This d2 stuff comes up every year for the winner of the Stagg...WWW was the focal point the last couple years.  The money and scholarship breakdown was fantastic .  7 million bucks?  wow.
Looking at the stats from Stagg, I wanted to know how Mount D was in relation to #23 UST running back.  He had 30 carries and 15 of those were for 2 yards or less. He only had one loss carry. His two biggest carries were  for 22 and 21.  Mount D did an outstanding job on this guy. He was very very good.
Obviously I am a stat freak.

[hsbsballcoach7]

Schools decide what division they will compete in. MU has chosen. And they chose D3. You have to be all in. So it would need to be all sports. MU over all fits in D3 very nicely. Thats wherevthey will stay.
This is discussed every year. Read through the forums. MU beleves in D3 mission. Student Athlete.

I guess that's the best way to be concise with those people. It just bothers me how everyone becomes a professional on NCAA sports for D2 and D3 sports (football mainly). It just bothers me that there seems to be a group of people that want the Mount Union, Whitewater, and St Thomas of the world to move up so they have a chance to win in D3. I always say, recruit better and get better coaches and you'll have your shot. Why do people feel the need to put down successful programs all because they can't beat them?

Anyway, I'm glad VK, Kappas, Dartt, etc were able to take these boys to the next level to win this year. I can't imagine the pressure he felt to succeed after LK. I thought the staff did a great coaching job in training, preparing, and making adjustments throughout the season. I'm looking forward to watching the product they put on the field next year!

[hsbsballcoach7]

MTU Returners from the Stagg Bowl Two Deep (Class this season):

1st Team Offense:
LT  56  Brooks Jenkins  Jr
C   52  Mitch Doraty  Jr
LT  75  Matt Fitchet  So
WR  8 Jordan Hargrove Jr
WR  15 Tim Kennedy Jr

2nd Team Offense:
LT  71 Nick Padrick  Jr
LG  57 Tyler Rentz  Fr
C  53  Cody Shaffer Fr
LT  51  Cole Parrish  So
WR 83 Octavion Wilson So
WR  9 Colin Gilbert So
WR  15 Braeden Friss So
WR/TE 17 Lane Herrington Jr
QB  Nick Peyakov Jr
RB  Bradley Mitchell Jr

Biggest Hole to fill is at QB.  There are enough Lineman returning and Skills guys.  You have Mitchell JR at RB and also Dwane Aaron JR and Jamal Johnson SO returning.  It will also be interesting to see which WR comes in to stretch the field.

1st Team Defense:
DE  44 Durum Alarms So My mistake, Durum was a Sr this year. One more to replace on the D.
NT  99  Mike Vidal  So
SPUR 10 Zach Deerr Jr

2nd Team Defense:
DE  94  Berry Grant So
NT  93  Lane Breyer So
DT  32  Elijah Berry So
LEO  47  Mike Jackson Jr
MLB  42  Charley Dear Jr
SS  20  Austin White  Fr
WS  2  Brian Groves  So
CB  7  Darrell Sullins  Jr
CB  21  Louis Berry   Fr

Lots of guys graduating from the 1st Team Defense who have been mainstays.  I'm looking forward to see who steps up as the leaders of the 2016 group.

Happy Holidays to all!

Strengths:
1)  O line.  With both tackles and an All-Region center back they should be solid up front.  As usual there are several other guys who have also played a lot of snaps.
2)  WR.  Hargrove and Kennedy return.  As does Wilson who played a lot.  Freshman Skyler Scott played some and made a couple big plays.  He and Herrington are big bodies.  Friss played Friday when Hargrove went down.  The key will be figuring out who is the deep threat.
3)  RB.  Mitchell, Johnson and Aaron are all back.  I agree with 68 that they need to try to find at least one bigger back to change up as all three of those guys are not huge.

Questions:
1)  QB.  A glaring question mark.  We haven't seen anywhere near enough to have any confidence in Peyakov or Lowry.  Freshman Grant Klaver got in a game or two and I know he played a lot on JV so they like him too.  Luke Poorman is intriguing, especially if he's coming in January and can go through spring ball.  Bottom line is we're going to go into another year with a QB who has never taken a meaningful snap.  And unlike T. Scott, has never even been on the field for them.
2)  LB.  Spencer and Gonell are gone.  As is LeShawn Luke who played a lot as a run stopper.  I wouldn't be surprised if someone like Stewart moved to a true LB spot.  At 6'2", 215 he's big enough in their scheme.  Stewart and Deerr are going to be key.  They've played the most football of anyone coming back on D.
3)  Secondary.  Replacing the entire unit is going to be interesting.  Louis Berry will be key as I think VK and Kappas view him as the next #1 corner.  Tall order for a soph to be #1 corner, but Jones did it.  Berry definitely looks athletic enough to do it.  I also liked Groves.  He rotated in with the starters and did pretty well. 

I didn't mention D line because I think they'll be okay.  Nowhere near the 2015 edition, but I think Vidal is going to be a stud.  I think Elijah Berry is going to emerge too.  He's quick at 250 lbs.  Overall I think the D is going to be very SO/JR heavy.  They'll be young, but I think they have talent there that should grow up during the season.

I think Hargrove will be the new deep threat with Kennedy in the slot. I REALLY liked what Skyler Scott showed in limited action. He is a matchup nightmare at the D3 level, just like Lane Clark turned out to be. He's a big target with great hands and decent speed. I feel that Scott and Wilson are similar as well. Also, don't forget that they lined up Louis Berry at WR during a couple of playoff games as well. I have a feeling the offense will be less power run and more 4 and 5 WR sets next year if they don't have a bigger running back threat, just to spread those linebackers out of the box. I think Mount recruited very well last year, so with a year of training and college under their belt don't be surprised to see some sophomores stepping up with a nice JV season completed.

[gizzmo13]

So Larry Kehres flew all the way to Florida to see new QB recruit Luke Poorman play a game and hes enrolled early. hmm wonder if he'll pull a Bill Borchert and start as a true freshman or be in the mix?

[Desertraider]

Trolling the NESCAC page and there is some discussion on the outcome of Mount and Amherst. My statement was Mount 63-Amherst 3 (maybe 10). Don't know alot about Amherst but I see them as an Otterbein type football team. Anyone know a bit more?

[jknezek]

Trolling the NESCAC page and there is some discussion on the outcome of Mount and Amherst. My statement was Mount 63-Amherst 3 (maybe 10). Don't know alot about Amherst but I see them as an Otterbein type football team. Anyone know a bit more?

Probably better depending on when UMU put in the backups. Football isn't like the rest of the DIII sports where the NESCAC schools are generally challenging for national titles. You need too many kids. But I've watched some of the NESCAC schools, including Amherst. Amherst would be far from the dregs of the division. I'm thinking more in line with JHU/TMC/Wabash level for Amherst. They are good. They just aren't breaking into the very top tier of DIII. That's my guess at least.

[Dr. Acula]

I would guess that Amherst is pretty good, but I pictured them more in line with a Case than a Wabash.  Perhaps a little better than Case?  But not on par with this year's Wabash or TMC squads.  Not based on the NESCAC games I've seen the last few years.