FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Mugsy]

Elmhurst & Millikin going to OT.  Elmhurst's defense is just not very good.  They've given up ~540 yards to Millikin today.  In 4 CCIW games, Elmhurst has given up 2107 yards, an average of ~525 yards per game.  Any talk of them taking the next step is thoroughly mis-guided based on their defensive play.

You and I are on the same page. 

The only thing Elmhurst fans will point out is that they are still finding ways to win and "who cares about stats, we only care about wins."  I'd point out that against true playoff caliber teams, giving up 550+ yards will result in a lopsided loss, not squeaking out a win (case in point NCC).

We'll see how they do against IWU.

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Granted the backup RB (Jones) went for over 100 yards rushing against Wheaton (89 in the 1st half alone), so he looks more than capable.

[Titan Q]

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Rob Gallik is a JR, not a SR.

The kid who would be IWU's true #2 QB, sophomore Alex Hale, left the team during the preseason.  I have no clue who will replace Gallik.

The Titans are definitely in a lot of trouble now.

[Mugsy]

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Rob Gallik is a JR, not a SR.

The kid who would be IWU's true #2 QB, sophomore Alex Hale, left the team during the preseason.  I have no clue who will replace Gallik.

The Titans are definitely in a lot of trouble now.

My bad.  I DVR'd the game and finished watching it about 45 minutes ago.  I heard the announcers say he was a senior.  Sorry to see Gallik go down on such a freak play.  He was running in the open field.  It looked like he had just a second of hesitation as he was deciding whether to scramble for yards or to head for the sidelines to stop the clock with 40 seconds left.  There wasn't a Wheaton defender within 5-7 yards of him.  Looks like he stumbled and then while trying to gain his balance he came down awkwardly and twisted the knee.

As with last year, I was extremely impressed with Gallik's play.  Here's hoping it isn't as serious as it looked.

Wouldn't be surprised if a few more IWU players are out for next week.  At least 2 of their LB's hobbled off the field in the 2nd half and one of the WR's, Alex Garvey I think, was absolutely lit up on consecutive plays in the 4th quarter - one tough dude.

[izzy stradlin]

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Rob Gallik is a JR, not a SR.

The kid who would be IWU's true #2 QB, sophomore Alex Hale, left the team during the preseason.  I have no clue who will replace Gallik.

The Titans are definitely in a lot of trouble now.

I was wondering what happened to Hale when he didn't come in after the injury.  He was a big recruit for Wesleyan.

Gallik went down in the awkward way where you might expect something in the knee to have torn. He did walk off the field unassisted though, so there is some hope.  He sure is good a QB.   Really good arm and great instincts. 

[Mugsy]

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Rob Gallik is a JR, not a SR.

The kid who would be IWU's true #2 QB, sophomore Alex Hale, left the team during the preseason.  I have no clue who will replace Gallik.

The Titans are definitely in a lot of trouble now.

I was wondering what happened to Hale when he didn't come in after the injury.  He was a big recruit for Wesleyan.

Gallik went down in the awkward way where you might expect something in the knee to have torn. He did walk off the field unassisted though, so there is some hope.  He sure is good a QB.   Really good arm and great instincts.

Not sure I would call it unassisted.  He had one person under each shoulder.  Yes he was walking on his on power, but with 2 people to keep him stable.  It is not uncommon to be able to walk with a torn ACL.

[izzy stradlin]

Looks like the path may have become a bit easier for Elmhurst.  With their best RB (Stinde) out against Wheaton and who knows how much longer and their outstanding senior QB likely out for the rest of the season due to a freak knee injury (Gallik), looks like IWU will need to rely on a backup RB and a freshman QB. 

Rob Gallik is a JR, not a SR.

The kid who would be IWU's true #2 QB, sophomore Alex Hale, left the team during the preseason.  I have no clue who will replace Gallik.

The Titans are definitely in a lot of trouble now.

I was wondering what happened to Hale when he didn't come in after the injury.  He was a big recruit for Wesleyan.

Gallik went down in the awkward way where you might expect something in the knee to have torn. He did walk off the field unassisted though, so there is some hope.  He sure is good a QB.   Really good arm and great instincts.

Not sure I would call it unassisted.  He had one person under each shoulder.  Yes he was walking on his on power, but with 2 people to keep him stable.  It is not uncommon to be able to walk with a torn ACL.

Thanks for the education. You're correct, you can easily walk on a torn ACL. However, if he was examined by a physician on the field and a serious ligamentous injury was suspected, they shouldn't have let him put weight on it right away.  That's all I'm saying.     

[devildog29]

Congrats to the Wheaties on a solid win tonight.  I missed the first half (which from what I was able to piece together, sounded like IWU was the "better" team for that half (please note the quotes as I'm not saying that to be definitive)), but from what I saw in the 2nd half, quite simply, Wheaton executed and made the important plays and IWU did not.  For IWU, if they are to be a CCIW contender and capable of playoff wins, those are the games you have to put away in the 2nd half.  They didn't.  Wheaton did.  Wheaton D holds the Titans to 6 2nd half points, and the Wheaton offense scores 21.  Hiben is a beast.  Not much more to add really.  Something tells me if these 2 teams played 100 times this season, at best, we'd see 51-49, but likely 50-50.  If Gallik and Stinde are both out, might be a long game next week against the Cards.....

[wesleydad]

both teams were fun to watch from an outsiders point of view.  I also hope that the IWU qb is not seriously injured, it was a freak play and a shame.  He runs a nice offense and throws a nice football.  The wheaton receiver as has been mentioned before is really, really good.  the catches he made late in the game were top notch.  good luck to both teams the rest of the season.

[NCF]

Congrats to the Wheaties on a solid win tonight.  I missed the first half (which from what I was able to piece together, sounded like IWU was the "better" team for that half (please note the quotes as I'm not saying that to be definitive)), but from what I saw in the 2nd half, quite simply, Wheaton executed and made the important plays and IWU did not.  For IWU, if they are to be a CCIW contender and capable of playoff wins, those are the games you have to put away in the 2nd half.  They didn't.  Wheaton did.  Wheaton D holds the Titans to 6 2nd half points, and the Wheaton offense scores 21.  Hiben is a beast.  Not much more to add really.  Something tells me if these 2 teams played 100 times this season, at best, we'd see 51-49, but likely 50-50.  If Gallik and Stinde are both out, might be a long game next week against the Cards.....

Followed this game  from Kenosha -seemed like a great one.IWU should come to Naperville with a chip on their shoulders after last year. I expect a battle as both teams need a victory to keep their play-off hopes alive. Hard to believe Milliken is 0-4 in conf. play. Should still give Wheaton all they can handle next week.Lots of exciting football to be played down the stretch!

[USee]

It was a great football game to watch last night at McCully Stadium if you like scoring. Although completely different situation I must say I feel for the Titan players as this felt a lot like last year's game. One team left heartbroken, having had their opportunities, and the other left jubilant, having capitalized on opportunities at key times. Wheaton players and fans, and Titan players and fans, have  been on both sides of that between last year and this year.

I want to also recognize Coach Eash and what he has done over the past several years. As Titan Q pointed out early this week, IWU football was being questioned as dead for about a 5 year stretch. Norm Eash brought that program back and has assembled a CCIW contender year in and year out. The talent the Titans reload with and the level of play they maintain has been impressive. I think Norm's ability to bring in talent to his coaching ranks has been as much of a success factor as anything else. He has done a great job and for all the teasing and criticism he has taken on these boards and elsewhere over the years (some of it from me!) I think it's time to give credit where it is due.

On to the game, I feel horrible for Rob Gallick. He was having a monster year and I am pretty confident he was going to lead his team to a TD on that last drive. Sounds like he is out for at least next week, which is essentially like being out for the season. Rob Gallick is a great CCIW QB. He is old school. Stands in the pocket and drills the ball accurately and on time. IWU has great recievers but their QB makes them even better. On the other side, Jordan Roberts is a great QB for different reasons and I believe his receivers make him better.

This game was decided in the 4th quarter. IWU had over 300 yds at halftime and 28 pts. In the second half they scored just 6 pts and had 140 yds of offense. Their final drives were fumble,INT punt, INT. That sequence came after they had answered a Thunder score with a score of their own followed by a goal line stand, stuffing the thunder at the 1. At that point the game was firmly in control of the Titans. The interception following the goalline stand was the biggest momentum swing of the game. Wheaton has an incredible player in Mark Hiben and their ability to throw it somewhere in his vicinity was the tipping point in the game as he caught 4th quarter TD's.

The 2 blocked Xtra points were huge for Wheaton as it forced IWU to have to score a TD instead of thinking FG at the end. That could have made a huge difference after Gallicks injury in their play selection as the backup QB was picked off on a backside seam route he forced.

As a fan of the winning team this was a gratifying win but it really is bittersweet as it is tempered by the injury to Rob Gallick and the feeling I remember all too well after last year's defeat.

The picture of the CCIW race has changed dramatically in the last 24 hours.

[Titan Q]

It was a great football game to watch last night at McCully Stadium if you like scoring. Although completely different situation I must say I feel for the Titan players as this felt a lot like last year's game. One team left heartbroken, having had their opportunities, and the other left jubilant, having capitalized on opportunities at key times. Wheaton players and fans, and Titan players and fans, have  been on both sides of that between last year and this year.

I want to also recognize Coach Eash and what he has done over the past several years. At Titan Q pointed out early this week, IWU football was being questioned as dead for about a 5 year stretch. Norm Eash brought that program back and has assembled a CCIW contender year in and year out. The talent the Titans reload with and the level of play they maintain has been impressive. I think Norm's ability to bring in talent to his coaching ranks has been as much of a success factor as anything else. He has done a great job and for all the teasing and criticism he has taken on these boards and elsewhere over the years (some of it from me!) I think it's time to give credit where it is due.

On to the game, I feel horrible for Rob Gallick. He was having a monster year and I am pretty confident he was going to lead his team to a TD on that last drive. Sounds like he is out for at least next week, which is essentially like being out for the season. Rob Gallick is a great CCIW QB. He is old school. Stands in the pocket and drills the ball accurately and on time. IWU has great recievers but their QB makes them even better. On the other side, Jordan Roberts is a great QB for different reasons and I believe his receivers make him better.

This game was decided in the 4th quarter. IWU had over 300 yds at halftime and 28 pts. In the second half they scored just 6 pts and had 140 yds of offense. Their final drives were fumble,INT punt, INT. That sequence came after they had stuffed answered a Thunder score with a goal line stand, stuffing the thunder at the 1. The interception following the goalline stand was the biggest momentum swing of the game. Wheaton has an incredible player in Mark Hiben and their ability to throw it somewhere in his vicinity was the tipping point in the game as he caught 4th quarter TD's.

The 2 blocked Xtra points were huge for Wheaton as it forced IWU to have to score a TD instead of thinking FG at the end. That could have made a huge difference after Gallicks injury in their play selection as the backup QB was picked off on a backside seam route he forced.

As a fan of the winning team this was a gratifying win but it really is bittersweet as it is tempered by the injury to Rob Gallick and the feeling I remember all too well after last year's defeat.

The picture of the CCIW race has changed dramatically in the last 24 hours.

That's a really first-class post, Usee, and the kind that makes these boards special.

[Big Blue Boy]

It seems that playing NPU gives a lot of opportunities for Offensive Player of the Week. Three weeks ago it was Carthage's Pete Djurickovic who had the game of his life, gaining over 200 receiving yards and two TDs, and garnered the award. This week I'd put my money on Augie's RB Eric Chandler, even though there's two games left to be played today. He ran roughshod over NPU to the tune of 204 yards on 17 carries -- an 11.9 ypc average -- and three TDs. Much of that was due to the Augie O-line, which opened up a lot of big holes on a pretty beat-up NPU front, but a lot of it was Chandler doing a nice job of showing field vision by running to daylight once he was past the line.

A pretty discouraging day for NPU. The two teams that the Park came very close to beating in CCIW play last year, teams that the Vikes thought they'd have a shot at beating this year, have knocked off NPU by 31-6 and 35-14 scores.

Here's hoping the Millikin QB, Matt Holmes, gets the nod this week.  A few strong rushing performances in the CCIW this week for sure.  However, even with strong stats and tough efforts for two years he has never been awarded the CCIW Offensive Player of the Week.  This week he broke a school record with 475 yards of total offense while accounting for four touchdowns. He finished 28-of-40 (70% with no turnovers) 305 passing yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed 27 times for a team-leading 170 yards and a touchdown. Millikin totaled 557 yards of offense and he had a hand in 85% of the output. 

Unfortunately, it came in a losing effort with an RB fumble on the 1 yard line while going in for the winning OT score.  I will say it again, MU still needs to learn how to win, but they keep playing everyone close, NC excluded.  Two plays in OT and showing up to play in Rock Island and they would be right there in the mix.  I know that is shoulda, woulda, coulda, but still quite frustrating.  However, top tier teams win those games and unfortunately, MU is not quite over that hump yet.  They will play Wheaton hard next week and keep pursuing that missing signature win.

[USee]

Say what you want but Elmhurst controls their own destiny for the post season. They have figured out how to win football games this year. I don't think they will last very long in the post-season but they now have a very real shot at a pool C bid. I don't think they realistically have a shot at the AQ for reasons I will explain. Elmhurst plays vs NPU, @ Carthage and Vs IWU the last three weeks. I don't think the Bluejays will have much trouble with NPU and Carthage as I think neither of those teams can slow down the Bluejay offense. Elmhurst's defense is not good enough to beat really good teams, but at this point they may not face a really potent offense until the post season. That's because IWU lost it's best player last night. Now the Titan's aren't a 1 player offense as they are very talented up front and at WR and if Stinde can come back, they could easily beat Elmhurst in week 11. But Bluejay fans have their best path in 2 decades to the post season right now. We will see what they do.

A 9-1 Elmhurst team is a lock for the post season in my opinion. I don't think they can win the AQ unless NCC loses to Wheaton AND wheaton loses to Millikin or NPU. If Wheaton wins out, their will be a 3 way tie for first (Elmhurst, Wheaton, and NCC---if those others win out) and the AQ would go to either Wheaton or NCC in that situation based on the tie breaker criteria (I think it would come down to point differential and NCC beat Elmhurst by too may points. In fact, I think the AQ would likely go to NCC even with a loss to Wheaton unless the Thunder can beat Elmhurst by more 30, which is virtually impossible. I need to research this some more but that's my current understanding of the way it would work.

It's all speculation now but the reality is Elmhurst is sitting in the drivers seat despite the quality of their wins, they are still 6-1.

[AndOne]

Its really a shame about Wesleyan QB Gallik. He had an absolutely fabulous game throwing for 3 TDs, and running for 2 more. If it is an ACL, with the combination of his young age, and the recent advancements in surgical and rehabilitative treatment, he should be able to come back strong.
When I tore my ACL playing basketball several years ago my surgeon told me that if the patient is under age 30 a 100% comeback is the likely outcome following surgery and rehab, For age 30-39, the results are still excellent with post op recovery of 90-95% of the pre injury level, and often higher. If you're over 40, the road to recovery is tougher and usually results in about an 85-90% pre injury capability. And, as I said, that was several years ago.
Hopefully, luck will come into play, and the injury will prove less serious than originally feared. Good luck to Rob!

On another note, it was reported at the NCC-Carthage game that CC head coach Rucks took ill during halftime, and was then taken to the hospital a short time later. Lets hope examination did not turn up anything serious, and Coach Rucks is able to return to the sidelines next week. Anybody have any updated info on this?

[NCF]

Its really a shame about Wesleyan QB Gallik. He had an absolutely fabulous game throwing for 3 TDs, and running for 2 more. If it is an ACL, with the combination of his young age, and the recent advancements in surgical and rehabilitative treatment, he should be able to come back strong.
When I tore my ACL playing basketball several years ago my surgeon told me that if the patient is under age 30 a 100% comeback is the likely outcome following surgery and rehab, For age 30-39, the results are still excellent with post op recovery of 90-95% of the pre injury level, and often higher. If you're over 40, the road to recovery is tougher and usually results in about an 85-90% pre injury capability. And, as I said, that was several years ago.
Hopefully, luck will come into play, and the injury will prove less serious than originally feared. Good luck to Rob!

On another note, it was reported at the NCC-Carthage game that CC head coach Rucks took ill during halftime, and was then taken to the hospital a short time later. Lets hope examination did not turn up anything serious, and Coach Rucks is able to return to the sidelines next week. Anybody have any updated info on this?

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