FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[USee]

another battle worth watching is the all conference (and probably POY) battle at QB this year. The contenders are (listed alphabetically):

Rob Gallik
Jordan Roberts
Spencer Stanek

These guys are all going to win games for their teams and put up some gaudy stats while doing so. These three will likely be the CCIW players of the week most weeks in the league. The key to who wins the awards (and the CCIW title) in my opinion will be who beats whom when they play each other. The POY award will likely come down to that simple result. And if there is a 3 way tie (each team beats each other) it will come down to collective stat lines vs the other 2 (all else being equal).

No matter what we are in for some really good QB play from these teams. The Conway kid from NPU could also sneak in there and if they end up winning a conference game, he will factor into that result.

[AndOne]

North Central's Spencer Stanek and John Focosi are the CCIW offensive and defensive players of the week.

http://northcentralcardinals.com/news/2013/9/16/FB_0916133919.aspx

Typical NCC guy, leaves off the other POW, Sam Cote. Kicker for Wheaton, current owner of the Bell, earned special teams honors for 9 PAT's and a 45 yd FG.

So sorry USee, but please realize I was on the NCC website which only mentioned Stanek and Focosi when I came across the info I posted just before heading off to slumberland for the night. No offense meant to Mr. Cote. In fact-------CONGRATS TO WC KICKER SAM COTE, THE CCIW SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK! 

[USee]

Now that's what I'm talking about! Let's not discriminate against the kickers.

[Gregory Sager]

And an article on IWU's large senior class...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/football/big-iwu-senior-class-eager-to-close-out-with-special/article_a3b47e58-06f4-11e3-b2e7-001a4bcf887a.html

Q brought up this article a few weeks back that shows IWU with 32 people in their SR class. Obviously we all know that you win the CCIW with upper classmen and good teams with a strong senior class are almost always in contention for league titles in all sports, but surely in CCIW football. This is a big reason why IWU has such high aspirations for the current season.

I took a look at the CCIW schools, and in particular the projected top 3. I looked at how many seniors are returning and how many of them are regular contributors on the field in terms of playing time for meaningful parts of games.

(seniors/contributors)
IWU 30/15
Wheaton 26/19
NCC 21/13

Augie 25/13
Elmhurst 17/7
Millikin  14/7
NPU  17/7

I have a pretty good feel for the top 3 plus Elmhurst of how many are "contributing" the other schools are partly informed and part guesses. A couple observations:

IWU and Wheaton are threats to win the conference title because of their incredibly strong senior classes and experience. I think this stat shows why there is separation amongst the top 3 as much as anything else.

-Augie is surprisingly strong in their senior class. It does matter how good those seniors are and I think what we have seen is they don't have enough senior All CCIW type players to compete with the top 3. This stat makes me think they will be in the top half of the league this year though.

-NPU has as strong a senior class as they have had in some years (GS has previously mentioned this). Makes me think they can compete this year with the likes of Millikin and Carthage. It wouldn't be a total shock to see 2 conference wins from NPU......heresy you say? We will see

This is a good post, Obi-Wan. I generally agree with you about the importance of seniors, but I especially appreciate that you went out of your way to give a nod to quality as well as to quantity as far as seniors are concerned with respect to Augie. (I watched quite a bit of the Augie vs. Central game online on Saturday prior to NPU's start at Benedictine an hour later, and I was stunned at how bad the Dutch made Augie look.)

It is in that respect that I want to address your comments about NPU's senior class. First, there's actually 13 seniors who are getting extensive playing time for the Vikings, not seven. Second, while I have stated that this is North Park's largest senior class in a long time, I've also gone on record as referring to their quality as well as their quantity -- and not in an entirely positive way.

In one sense this is as high-quality a senior class as North Park has had in ages, and that's with respect to their work ethic. Mike Conway asked the young men who chose to return to the football team in spite of the coaching change to redouble their efforts in terms of weightlifting, running, and off-season unit work on Helwig Rec Center's practice field. They've done that; these guys voluntarily worked much harder than they were asked to work during the previous regime, and they are to be commended for that. They are not coasting their way to graduation. They are hungry, and as Mike Conway has said in the weekly NPU sports webcasts, they believe in themselves in a way that they haven't before, and in a way that one would not expect from guys who've been beaten down by so much losing over the past three seasons.

But in terms of sheer athleticism, this is not a high-quality class by CCIW standards. Don't get me wrong; there are some pretty good athletes in this class. Anyone who would deny Tyler Krebs' athleticism, for example, hasn't been watching CCIW football over the past three years. But, taken as a whole, this group does not have CCIW-level quickness. As the now-departed defensive coordinator lamented last year, North Park suffers speed-wise from having safeties playing cornerback and from having linebackers playing safety. The skill-position players lack separation speed; the defenders lack gap-closing speed. Anyone who has watched NPU play in a CCIW game has seen the Vikings attempt a lot more arm tackles than their opponents. It's not because they don't anticipate well, have poor technique, or aren't coached well. It's because they simply aren't fast enough to close down on a ball-carrier in space.

I'm not singling out this particular class, either. The difficulty in recruiting players who are up to CCIW specs in terms of athletic ability has been one of the three basic factors that explain NPU's 89-game conference losing streak. (The other two are the generally high standards of the league as a whole and the Park's traditional retention difficulties with regard to football players, although this large senior class is testament to the possible disappearance of that third factor -- I dearly hope so.) This senior class is very much in keeping with NPU classes before it in terms of the athleticism of the players. To put it frankly, NPU just hasn't been able to recruit, much less keep, the kind of athlete that it takes to win CCIW football games in the quantity necessary to do so.

If heart and devotion and leadership in a senior class wins ballgames, then this cadre of North Park seniors can win a couple of CCIW games this year. But, alas, it takes more than that. I dearly hope to be proven wrong, but I just don't think that the Vikings have the horses to win a CCIW game this year.

This senior class can and will be remembered fondly. I wish them all the luck in the world. But this is a very unforgiving league to those who are just a quarter or an eighth of a step too slow to match up with the guy in the different-colored uniform.

Again, I'm keeping my expectations modest and, I think, realistic.

[USee]

And an article on IWU's large senior class...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/football/big-iwu-senior-class-eager-to-close-out-with-special/article_a3b47e58-06f4-11e3-b2e7-001a4bcf887a.html

Q brought up this article a few weeks back that shows IWU with 32 people in their SR class. Obviously we all know that you win the CCIW with upper classmen and good teams with a strong senior class are almost always in contention for league titles in all sports, but surely in CCIW football. This is a big reason why IWU has such high aspirations for the current season.

I took a look at the CCIW schools, and in particular the projected top 3. I looked at how many seniors are returning and how many of them are regular contributors on the field in terms of playing time for meaningful parts of games.

(seniors/contributors)
IWU 30/15
Wheaton 26/19
NCC 21/13

Augie 25/13
Elmhurst 17/7
Millikin  14/7
NPU  17/7

I have a pretty good feel for the top 3 plus Elmhurst of how many are "contributing" the other schools are partly informed and part guesses. A couple observations:

IWU and Wheaton are threats to win the conference title because of their incredibly strong senior classes and experience. I think this stat shows why there is separation amongst the top 3 as much as anything else.

-Augie is surprisingly strong in their senior class. It does matter how good those seniors are and I think what we have seen is they don't have enough senior All CCIW type players to compete with the top 3. This stat makes me think they will be in the top half of the league this year though.

-NPU has as strong a senior class as they have had in some years (GS has previously mentioned this). Makes me think they can compete this year with the likes of Millikin and Carthage. It wouldn't be a total shock to see 2 conference wins from NPU......heresy you say? We will see

This is a good post, Obi-Wan. I generally agree with you about the importance of seniors, but I especially appreciate that you went out of your way to give a nod to quality as well as to quantity as far as seniors are concerned with respect to Augie. (I watched quite a bit of the Augie vs. Central game online on Saturday prior to NPU's start at Benedictine an hour later, and I was stunned at how bad the Dutch made Augie look.)

It is in that respect that I want to address your comments about NPU's senior class. First, there's actually 13 seniors who are getting extensive playing time for the Vikings, not seven. Second, while I have stated that this is North Park's largest senior class in a long time, I've also gone on record as referring to their quality as well as their quantity -- and not in an entirely positive way.

In one sense this is as high-quality a senior class as North Park has had in ages, and that's with respect to their work ethic. Mike Conway asked the young men who chose to return to the football team in spite of the coaching change to redouble their efforts in terms of weightlifting, running, and off-season unit work on Helwig Rec Center's practice field. They've done that; these guys voluntarily worked much harder than they were asked to work during the previous regime, and they are to be commended for that. They are not coasting their way to graduation. They are hungry, and as Mike Conway has said in the weekly NPU sports webcasts, they believe in themselves in a way that they haven't before, and in a way that one would not expect from guys who've been beaten down by so much losing over the past three seasons.

But in terms of sheer athleticism, this is not a high-quality class by CCIW standards. Don't get me wrong; there are some pretty good athletes in this class. Anyone who would deny Tyler Krebs' athleticism, for example, hasn't been watching CCIW football over the past three years. But, taken as a whole, this group does not have CCIW-level quickness. As the now-departed defensive coordinator lamented last year, North Park suffers speed-wise from having safeties playing cornerback and from having linebackers playing safety. The skill-position players lack separation speed; the defenders lack gap-closing speed. Anyone who has watched NPU play in a CCIW game has seen the Vikings attempt a lot more arm tackles than their opponents. It's not because they don't anticipate well, have poor technique, or aren't coached well. It's because they simply aren't fast enough to close down on a ball-carrier in space.

I'm not singling out this particular class, either. The difficulty in recruiting players who are up to CCIW specs in terms of athletic ability has been one of the three basic factors that explain NPU's 89-game conference losing streak. (The other two are the generally high standards of the league as a whole and the Park's traditional retention difficulties with regard to football players, although this large senior class is testament to the possible disappearance of that third factor -- I dearly hope so.) This senior class is very much in keeping with NPU classes before it in terms of the athleticism of the players. To put it frankly, NPU just hasn't been able to recruit, much less keep, the kind of athlete that it takes to win CCIW football games in the quantity necessary to do so.

If heart and devotion and leadership in a senior class wins ballgames, then this cadre of North Park seniors can win a couple of CCIW games this year. But, alas, it takes more than that. I dearly hope to be proven wrong, but I just don't think that the Vikings have the horses to win a CCIW game this year.

This senior class can and will be remembered fondly. I wish them all the luck in the world. But this is a very unforgiving league to those who are just a quarter or an eighth of a step too slow to match up with the guy in the different-colored uniform.

Again, I'm keeping my expectations modest and, I think, realistic.

All this, and still no update on the NPU kicker! 

[iwu70]

But, very good sober analysis by Greg.  I admire his honesty. 

On Gallik, Roberts and Stanek, I think this will be a great set of duels, with the conference crown coming down to who of these guys has the big game, the decisive game against the other.  Hope all can stay healthy and show us all what great D3 football players they are.

CCIW season starts very soon now.

Happy Mid-Autumn (harvest moon) festival to all my friends and comrades on D3 chat.  With warm greetings and delicious virtual mooncakes to each of you from Hong Kong.  We all love D3 sports under the same glowing moon. 

IWU70

[79jaybird]

I noticed the change in quality vs. quantity with Elmhurst during the Journell era.  He focused more on recruiting quality players both on the field and in the classroom.  The rest of the dominoes began to fall into place for EC once this point of emphasis changed.

[NCF]

And an article on IWU's large senior class...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/football/big-iwu-senior-class-eager-to-close-out-with-special/article_a3b47e58-06f4-11e3-b2e7-001a4bcf887a.html

Q brought up this article a few weeks back that shows IWU with 32 people in their SR class. Obviously we all know that you win the CCIW with upper classmen and good teams with a strong senior class are almost always in contention for league titles in all sports, but surely in CCIW football. This is a big reason why IWU has such high aspirations for the current season.

I took a look at the CCIW schools, and in particular the projected top 3. I looked at how many seniors are returning and how many of them are regular contributors on the field in terms of playing time for meaningful parts of games.

(seniors/contributors)
IWU 30/15
Wheaton 26/19
NCC 21/13

Augie 25/13
Elmhurst 17/7
Millikin  14/7
NPU  17/7

I have a pretty good feel for the top 3 plus Elmhurst of how many are "contributing" the other schools are partly informed and part guesses. A couple observations:

IWU and Wheaton are threats to win the conference title because of their incredibly strong senior classes and experience. I think this stat shows why there is separation amongst the top 3 as much as anything else.

-Augie is surprisingly strong in their senior class. It does matter how good those seniors are and I think what we have seen is they don't have enough senior All CCIW type players to compete with the top 3. This stat makes me think they will be in the top half of the league this year though.

-NPU has as strong a senior class as they have had in some years (GS has previously mentioned this). Makes me think they can compete this year with the likes of Millikin and Carthage. It wouldn't be a total shock to see 2 conference wins from NPU......heresy you say? We will see

This is a good post, Obi-Wan. I generally agree with you about the importance of seniors, but I especially appreciate that you went out of your way to give a nod to quality as well as to quantity as far as seniors are concerned with respect to Augie. (I watched quite a bit of the Augie vs. Central game online on Saturday prior to NPU's start at Benedictine an hour later, and I was stunned at how bad the Dutch made Augie look.)

It is in that respect that I want to address your comments about NPU's senior class. First, there's actually 13 seniors who are getting extensive playing time for the Vikings, not seven. Second, while I have stated that this is North Park's largest senior class in a long time, I've also gone on record as referring to their quality as well as their quantity -- and not in an entirely positive way.

In one sense this is as high-quality a senior class as North Park has had in ages, and that's with respect to their work ethic. Mike Conway asked the young men who chose to return to the football team in spite of the coaching change to redouble their efforts in terms of weightlifting, running, and off-season unit work on Helwig Rec Center's practice field. They've done that; these guys voluntarily worked much harder than they were asked to work during the previous regime, and they are to be commended for that. They are not coasting their way to graduation. They are hungry, and as Mike Conway has said in the weekly NPU sports webcasts, they believe in themselves in a way that they haven't before, and in a way that one would not expect from guys who've been beaten down by so much losing over the past three seasons.

But in terms of sheer athleticism, this is not a high-quality class by CCIW standards. Don't get me wrong; there are some pretty good athletes in this class. Anyone who would deny Tyler Krebs' athleticism, for example, hasn't been watching CCIW football over the past three years. But, taken as a whole, this group does not have CCIW-level quickness. As the now-departed defensive coordinator lamented last year, North Park suffers speed-wise from having safeties playing cornerback and from having linebackers playing safety. The skill-position players lack separation speed; the defenders lack gap-closing speed. Anyone who has watched NPU play in a CCIW game has seen the Vikings attempt a lot more arm tackles than their opponents. It's not because they don't anticipate well, have poor technique, or aren't coached well. It's because they simply aren't fast enough to close down on a ball-carrier in space.

I'm not singling out this particular class, either. The difficulty in recruiting players who are up to CCIW specs in terms of athletic ability has been one of the three basic factors that explain NPU's 89-game conference losing streak. (The other two are the generally high standards of the league as a whole and the Park's traditional retention difficulties with regard to football players, although this large senior class is testament to the possible disappearance of that third factor -- I dearly hope so.) This senior class is very much in keeping with NPU classes before it in terms of the athleticism of the players. To put it frankly, NPU just hasn't been able to recruit, much less keep, the kind of athlete that it takes to win CCIW football games in the quantity necessary to do so.

If heart and devotion and leadership in a senior class wins ballgames, then this cadre of North Park seniors can win a couple of CCIW games this year. But, alas, it takes more than that. I dearly hope to be proven wrong, but I just don't think that the Vikings have the horses to win a CCIW game this year.

This senior class can and will be remembered fondly. I wish them all the luck in the world. But this is a very unforgiving league to those who are just a quarter or an eighth of a step too slow to match up with the guy in the different-colored uniform.

Again, I'm keeping my expectations modest and, I think, realistic.

All this to say, NPU will most likely not win a conference game this year.....at least that's what Carthage and Millikin hope.

[79jaybird]

I would say, and Greg correct me if I'm wrong, but the immediate goal for NPU is to play with more consistency on a weekly basis and focus on getting better regardless of who you're playing.  I think trying to recruit players who are interested in a 4 year commitment to helping the program take the next step, is key.

[blue_jays]

Wheaton posted its highlight video from the beatdown of Albion. It's basically a "Look how awesome Jordan Roberts is" reel. The fact he's running like that again after his ACL tear makes him the most dangerous weapon in the region. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=X2iL9Fc_ZbU

[NCF]

I would say, and Greg correct me if I'm wrong, but the immediate goal for NPU is to play with more consistency on a weekly basis and focus on getting better regardless of who you're playing.  I think trying to recruit players who are interested in a 4 year commitment to helping the program take the next step, is key.

While consistency is great, they need to start winning some games, any games, to interest recruits who want to step in help the program take the next step.

[79jaybird]

Yes but look at Elmhurst who for 4-5 years struggled to get past the 6-4 mark.  Winning is not easy, especially when you are a "minority" and not (historically) AC/IWU/WC/MU

[NCF]

Yes but look at Elmhurst who for 4-5 years struggled to get past the 6-4 mark.  Winning is not easy, especially when you are a "minority" and not (historically) AC/IWU/WC/MU

But you were at least winning some games every year. That's the difference. You've got to be able to get some wins every year.

[79jaybird]

In conference play.  I agree that you need to show that you are capable of winning against your peers in conference. My point was that it is hard to climb the ladder into the elite (top 3) of the conference. THEN be able to stay in that top 3 slot consistently.   

[79jaybird]

BTW- NCF-  I saw your footnotes.  Just out of curiosity- why have you omitted NC's '46, '47 and '60 championships?