FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Mr. Ypsi]

Article on the Titans as they prepare for Wartburg...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/football/iwu-veterans-look-to-erase-taste-from-first-round-loss/article_c7af63c4-5233-11e3-b3ef-001a4bcf887a.html

Fortunately, Wartburg does not have an Alex Tanney.

I am NOT taking them lightly, but that was a once-in-a-lifetime (if you're lucky!) quarterback.

[iwu70]

Tanney was special, though the Titans play well against Monmouth and should have won the game -- Gallik fumbling at the goal line, then M getting the winning score on a run in overtime as I recall it. 

Should be a good one on Saturday.  I'm sure Wartburg will be pretty good.

IWU70

[Gregory Sager]

Big congratulations to NPU head coach Mike Conway on winning CCIW Coach of the Year. The honor is further magnified by the fact that it's the first time the award has been given to a coach whose team didn't win the league title since J.R. Bishop of Wheaton won it in 1991 after his team tied for second behind Augustana.

I interviewed Mike at halftime of the NPU basketball game on Tuesday night, and he indicated that he had voted for his old friend John Thorne. There's not a single doubt in my mind that John Thorne returned the favor by voting for Mike.

I also want to congratulate the four Vikings who were named to the All-CCIW team: Sophomore WR Dakota Conway to the first team, and freshman QB T.D. Conway, senior LB Bennett Dettlinger, and junior CB Phil Pendleton to the second team. NPU hadn't had four players named to the All-CCIW team since 2000. Dakota Conway also becomes the first Viking to be named to the first team in four years, and the first North Park position player to make first team All-CCIW since WR Brandon Watts back in 2006. I was pretty excited about that, because, in a sense, it must have been difficult for Dakota to have spent the fall in his little brother's considerable shadow. Quarterback is the marquee position in football, as everybody knows, and I'm sure that Dakota is as well aware of that as anybody. But it's nice to see an extra bit of glory come his way for a change.

All in all, the awards were a nice cap to a very satisfying season for NPU football. And, again, special congrats to Mike Conway upon his nearly-unprecedented COY award.

[wartknight]

Article on the Titans as they prepare for Wartburg...

http://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/football/iwu-veterans-look-to-erase-taste-from-first-round-loss/article_c7af63c4-5233-11e3-b3ef-001a4bcf887a.html

Fortunately, Wartburg does not have an Alex Tanney.

I am NOT taking them lightly, but that was a once-in-a-lifetime (if you're lucky!) quarterback.

He was definitely a good one. The Knights faced & got the W a couple of times against Tanney & Co.

[iwu70]

Congrats to NPU Coach Conway on Coach of the Year Honors.  He certainly has things at North Park football moving in the right direction.

Congrats to all the All-Conference football honorees -- first team and second.  IWU has quite a gaggle this year -- and those guys, mostly seniors, all worked very very hard to move the Titan program forward, get to 9-1 and enjoy the fruits of their labour in the form of a post-season game at high noon on Saturday vs. the Warthogs. 

Another great weekend of sport around The Shirk and Tucci Stadium, upcoming.  The basketball women are at home this weekend for their tip-off event vs. Cornell, then WI-SP.  The men roundballers are away in Iowa this weekend to play Coe, then Loras, the team that just beat Wheaton.  Seemingly some pretty stiff competition all 'round for the men and women Titans this weekend. 

IWU70

[izzy stradlin]

I don't know if it has been mentioned, but I think Scott Pethtel deserves a lot of credit for North Park's season.  As has been said many times:  "It's not about the X's and the O's, it's about the Jimmys and the Joes".   Recruiting/retention is the most important factor for success in college athletics.  Of course Conway's two kids were very good, but for the most part, these were Pethtel's guys.   

[USee]

Looking at Wartburg they have had some mixed results this year. They come into Btown 8-2. They beat Central (who lost 4 games by a total of 12 pts, including close games to UWOshkosh and a solid wins over Augie) and Carthage (27-10), but they lost by 3 to Luther (who Wheaton destroyed) and got manhandled by Bethel (30-0 when subs took over). They have 7 of 11 defensive players on the all conference team inclduing their best Defender, Ryan Billings, an OLB. They have a very good corner and safety and their front 4 led the IIAC in sacks with 35 over 10 games. Offensively they bring in a 3 WR, 1 TE and 1 RB spread set. They have a senior QB who was honorable mention (although they played 2 qbs in 9 of 10 games and seem to split time between the two) and an RB who was 2nd team all conference. Their best WR was 1st team all conference (#1 Miller). They were +4 in 10 games in the TO/Takeaway category.

IIAC is a solid conference (better than the MIAA but not as good as the MIAC) and their conference winner is usually very good. Wartburgs offense is about 60% run and 40% pass (out of a spread set). In games they scored less than 25 pts (their average is 30) they went 3-2 including losses to Bethel and Coe. They gave up 25 or more pts just 2x this year and were 1-1 in those games. I think IWU is a 7.5pt favorite but this will be a well coached, hard playing team. If IWU can score 24+ they will win in my view. Wartburg should have trouble with IWU's defense. Turnovers, of course, are always the wild card in these games.

I see IWU prevailing 21-17

[USee]

NCC will be facing an Albion team that lost early this year 66-0 to Wheaton. They should not be mislead by that result. Albion has some very good players. One of those is their QB, Dominic Bona, who played in every game, except vs Wheaton. I expect NCC is significantly better than Albion but the Britons have a solid QB, 2 very good WR's and a very capable RB with some speed. NCC will likely win handily but this team would have been better than all but Wheaton and IWU in the CCIW this year in my opinion. NCC will be prepared but it won't be a pushover if they are expecting a similar score to the Wheaton game.

[bleedpurple]

Looking at Wartburg they have had some mixed results this year. They come into Btown 8-2. They beat Central (who lost 4 games by a total of 12 pts, including close games to UWOshkosh and a solid wins over Augie) and Carthage (27-10), but they lost by 3 to Luther (who Wheaton destroyed) and got manhandled by Bethel (30-0 when subs took over). They have 7 of 11 defensive players on the all conference team inclduing their best Defender, Ryan Billings, an OLB. They have a very good corner and safety and their front 4 led the IIAC in sacks with 35 over 10 games. Offensively they bring in a 3 WR, 1 TE and 1 RB spread set. They have a senior QB who was honorable mention (although they played 2 qbs in 9 of 10 games and seem to split time between the two) and an RB who was 2nd team all conference. Their best WR was 1st team all conference (#1 Miller). They were +4 in 10 games in the TO/Takeaway category.

IIAC is a solid conference (better than the MIAA but not as good as the MIAC) and their conference winner is usually very good. Wartburgs offense is about 60% run and 40% pass (out of a spread set). In games they scored less than 25 pts (their average is 30) they went 3-2 including losses to Bethel and Coe. They gave up 25 or more pts just 2x this year and were 1-1 in those games. I think IWU is a 7.5pt favorite but this will be a well coached, hard playing team. If IWU can score 24+ they will win in my view. Wartburg should have trouble with IWU's defense. Turnovers, of course, are always the wild card in these games.

I see IWU prevailing 21-17

I think this is a good analysis. If you look at Wartburg's conference rankings they are actually pretty close to the middle of the pack both offensively and defensively. I do think the strongest unit on the field Saturday will be the IWU defense. But those statistics of Wartburg's do make me think they are well-coached and hard playing, as you say. That makes them pretty dangerous because they could be hard to finish off and then anything could happen in the fourth quarter. I like your pick. I'm guessing it will be an exciting game.

[bleedpurple]

NCC will be facing an Albion team that lost early this year 66-0 to Wheaton. They should not be mislead by that result. Albion has some very good players. One of those is their QB, Dominic Bona, who played in every game, except vs Wheaton. I expect NCC is significantly better than Albion but the Britons have a solid QB, 2 very good WR's and a very capable RB with some speed. NCC will likely win handily but this team would have been better than all but Wheaton and IWU in the CCIW this year in my opinion. NCC will be prepared but it won't be a pushover if they are expecting a similar score to the Wheaton game.

OK,I'm not going to follow you around with all your predictions, promise! I just saw that message "there was one reply.." when I posted my previous response. 

Agree very much with your analysis of Wartburg/IWU. This one, not so much.

NCC by as much as they want. 

[Gregory Sager]

I don't know if it has been mentioned, but I think Scott Pethtel deserves a lot of credit for North Park's season.  As has been said many times:  "It's not about the X's and the O's, it's about the Jimmys and the Joes".   Recruiting/retention is the most important factor for success in college athletics.  Of course Conway's two kids were very good, but for the most part, these were Pethtel's guys.

That's a good point, and I definitely agree with it to a degree. But I think that every one of Scott Pethtel's players who stuck around and played for Mike Conway this year will tell you that he was a better player for the coaching change. That's not to take anything away from Scott at all, because he improved the caliber of recruit that NPU was getting both on the field and in the classroom from his predecessor. But the players worked much harder this past off-season than they'd ever worked before, and I think that that's a major reason behind NPU's breakthough. The players certainly seem to think so. You win next fall's games in the preceding winter, spring, and summer, and the off-season work ethic for North Park football has clearly been ratcheted up.

[formerd3db]

I don't know if it has been mentioned, but I think Scott Pethtel deserves a lot of credit for North Park's season.  As has been said many times:  "It's not about the X's and the O's, it's about the Jimmys and the Joes".   Recruiting/retention is the most important factor for success in college athletics.  Of course Conway's two kids were very good, but for the most part, these were Pethtel's guys.

That's a good point, and I definitely agree with it to a degree. But I think that every one of Scott Pethtel's players who stuck around and played for Mike Conway this year will tell you that he was a better player for the coaching change. That's not to take anything away from Scott at all, because he improved the caliber of recruit that NPU was getting both on the field and in the classroom from his predecessor. But the players worked much harder this past off-season than they'd ever worked before, and I think that that's a major reason behind NPU's breakthough. The players certainly seem to think so. You win next fall's games in the preceding winter, spring, and summer, and the off-season work ethic for North Park football has clearly been ratcheted up.

So if that is the case (and I'm not doubting your assertion at all), then do you know the specific reason(s) why the players decided to work much harder this year?  Was if just because of the coaching change i.e. a new enthusiasm for the new coach and new system or something else?  I can certainly understand the former, since a change can generate enthusiasm, yet at the same time, that would possibly seem to suggest that the previous coach and staff were somehow just not "enlightening" the players to give 100%.  The latter can obviously occur, yet, at the same time then, the players share in some of the blame for less performance.  That said, we all know that sometimes, it does take a coaching change to bring a new attitude and turn a program around.  Just curious as to your further thoughts/opinion, additional explanation.  Thanks.

[Gregory Sager]

I don't know if it has been mentioned, but I think Scott Pethtel deserves a lot of credit for North Park's season.  As has been said many times:  "It's not about the X's and the O's, it's about the Jimmys and the Joes".   Recruiting/retention is the most important factor for success in college athletics.  Of course Conway's two kids were very good, but for the most part, these were Pethtel's guys.

That's a good point, and I definitely agree with it to a degree. But I think that every one of Scott Pethtel's players who stuck around and played for Mike Conway this year will tell you that he was a better player for the coaching change. That's not to take anything away from Scott at all, because he improved the caliber of recruit that NPU was getting both on the field and in the classroom from his predecessor. But the players worked much harder this past off-season than they'd ever worked before, and I think that that's a major reason behind NPU's breakthough. The players certainly seem to think so. You win next fall's games in the preceding winter, spring, and summer, and the off-season work ethic for North Park football has clearly been ratcheted up.

So if that is the case (and I'm not doubting your assertion at all), then do you know the specific reason(s) why the players decided to work much harder this year?  Was if just because of the coaching change i.e. a new enthusiasm for the new coach and new system or something else?  I can certainly understand the former, since a change can generate enthusiasm, yet at the same time, that would possibly seem to suggest that the previous coach and staff were somehow just not "enlightening" the players to give 100%.  The latter can obviously occur, yet, at the same time then, the players share in some of the blame for less performance.  That said, we all know that sometimes, it does take a coaching change to bring a new attitude and turn a program around.  Just curious as to your further thoughts/opinion, additional explanation.  Thanks.

My insights into this are pretty limited, since we're talking waaaay-inside kinda stuff here, stuff that even the broadcaster usually doesn't know. But my suspicion is that it was twofold:

1) a more thorough, more demanding, and more systematic off-season regimen of lifting, running, and using the indoor practice facility at Helwig Rec Center instilled at the very start by the new coaching staff, with more accountability put upon the players in terms of checking in and registering their presence at those captain's practices and lifting sessions, all of which was readily agreed to by the returning players; and

2) Mike Conway just inspired those guys to get more out of themselves. It's a bit hard to describe if you've never met him. He has tremendous personal charisma, and the sort of vision and relentless energy that just pushes forward at all times, and seems to push others forward along with him. Back in early October on this board I quoted at length from the Chicago Tribune article about him that was published the day before NPU beat Carthage to end the 89-game losing streak. One of the seniors who'd been through three miserable seasons until Mike arrived, safety Taylor Simental, took part in Mike's initial job interview a year ago, along with several other players. This was the quote in the Trib article from Simental about that interview:

"In the first five minutes after we met him during the interview process, he made me and the rest of the guys want to put on pads and helmets and play right then," Simental said. "Within 10 minutes, you felt so deeply that he wanted to help us get out of this thing. You just knew how much he cared about us."

That pretty much describes it. He got them to play at a higher level because, in some hard-to-quantify way, he made it apparent right from the outset that he empathized with their plight and made their desperate crusade to have some fun and earn some respect his own. It sounds corny, I know. But he is nothing if not sincere, and it really all derives from his faith in Jesus Christ and his fervent belief that the only way to glorify God is to give 100% of yourself to others in everything that you do.

A lot of people aren't going to buy into that kind of thing. We live in a cynical age. But I'm hoping that there will be some football-playing high-school seniors out there who do buy into it, enough to make a difference on the football field for NPU over the coming seasons.

[iwu70]

I'll say NCC over Albion 48-7 and IWU over Wartburg 31-17.  I'm hoping the CCIW will rock and roll this weekend.  Good luck to North Central in the first round.

USee, thanks for the analysis, your sense, your appraisal of Wartburg.  Their probably pretty solid, so could be a closer game than my prediction above.

It's gonna be real cold, clear and no rain at all, likely 20-25 F at kickoff.  Even colder up at NCC.

We can all go inside and get warm, for a great game -- women's basketball -- IWU vs. WI-SP, at 4 p.m. after football @The Shirk.  Point is currently #23 in the D3hoops national ranking.

GO TITANS!

IWU70

[Mr. Ypsi]

Some IWU players who could break school records in the Wartburg game:

Rob Gallik, career passing yards - needs 155, is averaging 214.9
Devonte Jones, season rushing yards - needs 74, is averaging 100.6
Chris Simms, season solo tackles - needs 4, is averaging 6.3

Gallik already holds the career record for pass completions; if they win Saturday, he may have an outside chance at the season record for passing TDs against Bethel (he needs 6 to tie, is averaging 2.4).

That's one titanic Titan!