FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[robertgoulet]

Norm has been an embarrassment for a long time and seems to be getting worse.  Wish I could make the Augie game but am working on getting over to see NCC and IWU.  He is always well behaved in that match-up.

Yet here we are with him still the HC at IWU and people still clamoring for his firing. Seems like it will never happen

I don't think he'll get fired, which is why I asked when his contract was up. I think they let it run out/hope he retires.

[Jbothe]

Do D3 football coaches have contracts for a certain number of years?  Or are they year to year like high school coaches?

[GusD]

Norm has been an embarrassment for a long time and seems to be getting worse.  Wish I could make the Augie game but am working on getting over to see NCC and IWU.  He is always well behaved in that match-up.

Until he tells the Pantagraph that they beat themselves after a 59-6 drubbing.

I think I remember a NCC fan/poster a couple years ago saying that after NCC pulverized IWU by 55 or 60 points that Norm's comment was something like "They really didn't play that much better than us. A couple of breaks, and we're right there with 'em."

It seems like he has trouble giving opponents credit, and being a gracious loser. 

[Pat Coleman]

Do D3 football coaches have contracts for a certain number of years?  Or are they year to year like high school coaches?

Depends on the school. Lots of places it is year to year.

[GusD]

Do D3 football coaches have contracts for a certain number of years?  Or are they year to year like high school coaches?

I think it's up to the individual institution. Among the approx 240 D3 football schools, there are probably several different variations including, in a few cases, handshake agreements from year to year. I don't think there is any set or "standard" policy.

[CarollFan]

Norm has been an embarrassment for a long time and seems to be getting worse.  Wish I could make the Augie game but am working on getting over to see NCC and IWU.  He is always well behaved in that match-up.

Until he tells the Pantagraph that they beat themselves after a 59-6 drubbing.

I think I remember a NCC fan/poster a couple years ago saying that after NCC pulverized IWU by 55 or 60 points that Norm's comment was something like "They really didn't play that much better than us. A couple of breaks, and we're right there with 'em."

It seems like he has trouble giving opponents credit, and being a gracious loser. 

He may be headed to back to back losing seasons for the first time in like 20 years.

Last year we beat them 70-23 and he came right out and shook our coaches hand. The one thing I noticed different from our game to the NPU game was the celebrating at the end of the NPU game. The pick was the last play of the game. I'm just guessing but wondering if that was the issue. I've been at some games where the winning team is celebrating and what I've seen is the losing team comes right out for the handshake. They are not waiting for anyone's celebration to end.

https://x.com/VikingsNPU/status/1850926960915951896?t=zFa2mtd5dAP-Zx7Qv0ih0w&s=19

[Gregory Sager]

Norm has been an embarrassment for a long time and seems to be getting worse.  Wish I could make the Augie game but am working on getting over to see NCC and IWU.  He is always well behaved in that match-up.

Yet here we are with him still the HC at IWU and people still clamoring for his firing. Seems like it will never happen

Part of me -- the sick part of me, no doubt -- wants Norm to coach the Titans until he's ninety years old.

He is the off-kilter old uncle who always argues and says stupid, insensitive stuff when he shows up at the house for Thanksgiving dinner. The adults dread his knock on the door; the kids snicker and giggle off in the corner.

[USee]

I don't have any inside info on what Norm was thinking, but I read somewhere that Butler was celebrating (rightfully so) and went over the cheerleaders and took their pom poms and was dancing with them. I personally think that's awesome but might not have sat well with Eash. I can tell you the one time I was in person and saw Norm react similarly was an end of the game win that Wheaton secured in Bloomington. Our WR got a first down on their sideline to end the game and he celebrated in front of Norm in a way that Norm apparently didn't appreciate. It was nothing outlandish or even inappropriate. Wheaton's Offensive coordinator at the time was former Wheaton head coach JR Bishop and he had turned over HC duties to Mike Swider a couple years prior. Norm got in JR Bishop's face and I can tell you in the 30+ years I knew JR Bishop, who is the absolutely nicest person I have ever known, I saw him get mad 2 times and this was one of them. Whatever Norm said after not shaking JR's hand set Coach Bishop off because he grabbed Norm by the collar, stuck his finger in his face and told him off. That was circa 1998 or so.

[Pat Coleman]

I don't have any inside info on what Norm was thinking, but I read somewhere that Butler was celebrating (rightfully so) and went over the cheerleaders and took their pom poms and was dancing with them. I personally think that's awesome but might not have sat well with Eash. I can tell you the one time I was in person and saw Norm react similarly was an end of the game win that Wheaton secured in Bloomington. Our WR got a first down on their sideline to end the game and he celebrated in front of Norm in a way that Norm apparently didn't appreciate. It was nothing outlandish or even inappropriate. Wheaton's Offensive coordinator at the time was former Wheaton head coach JR Bishop and he had turned over HC duties to Mike Swider a couple years prior. Norm got in JR Bishop's face and I can tell you in the 30+ years I knew JR Bishop, who is the absolutely nicest person I have ever known, I saw him get mad 2 times and this was one of them. Whatever Norm said after not shaking JR's hand set Coach Bishop off because he grabbed Norm by the collar, stuck his finger in his face and told him off. That was circa 1998 or so.

I would wonder if he could even see Butler grab the pom-poms since this was all the way across the field.

https://x.com/VikingsNPU/status/1850926960915951896

[Gregory Sager]

I don't have any inside info on what Norm was thinking, but I read somewhere that Butler was celebrating (rightfully so) and went over the cheerleaders and took their pom poms and was dancing with them. I personally think that's awesome but might not have sat well with Eash. I can tell you the one time I was in person and saw Norm react similarly was an end of the game win that Wheaton secured in Bloomington. Our WR got a first down on their sideline to end the game and he celebrated in front of Norm in a way that Norm apparently didn't appreciate. It was nothing outlandish or even inappropriate. Wheaton's Offensive coordinator at the time was former Wheaton head coach JR Bishop and he had turned over HC duties to Mike Swider a couple years prior. Norm got in JR Bishop's face and I can tell you in the 30+ years I knew JR Bishop, who is the absolutely nicest person I have ever known, I saw him get mad 2 times and this was one of them. Whatever Norm said after not shaking JR's hand set Coach Bishop off because he grabbed Norm by the collar, stuck his finger in his face and told him off. That was circa 1998 or so.

This is absolutely hilarious, because after reading CF's last post I literally started typing a response post that read:

Last year we beat them 70-23 and he came right out and shook our coaches hand. The one thing I noticed different from our game to the NPU game was the celebrating at the end of the NPU game. The pick was the last play of the game. I'm just guessing but wondering if that was the issue. I've been at some games where the winning team is celebrating and what I've seen is the losing team comes right out for the handshake. They are not waiting for anyone's celebration to end.

https://x.com/VikingsNPU/status/1850926960915951896?t=zFa2mtd5dAP-Zx7Qv0ih0w&s=19

Perhaps he took issue with Butler stealing the cheerleader's pom-pons.

Great minds think alike! Thing is, though, I was joking. It never occurred to me that that might be a serious response and a valid guess as to Norm's motives ... but you may actually be right.

Someone who came up into the press box later (not one of our three postgame interviewees, Kyle Rooker, Matt Eck, and Ben Butler) said that he heard that Norm refused to shake hands because some North Park player had said something to him in the handshake line that Norm didn't like. The problem with that theory is that Norm was never in the handshake line at all. After the final whistle he walked onto the field alone a good eight yards away from the handshake line as it formed from the two sidelines. Kyle and his assistants had to go out of their way to approach him rather than meet him by going through the line. I dunno, I'll have to ask Kyle about it. It'll probably annoy him, since he is no doubt focused like a laser right now on his upcoming opponent -- which also happens to be his former employer -- but this is going to gnaw on me until I find out just what Norm was beefing about to Kyle and his assistants after they approached him.

[D3Rookie]

You may already know, but if you click the picture in picture mode button on the right hand side, the Sidearm slider is much better.

Thanks! This is a game-changer.  I struggle with Sidearm ... the picture-in-picture helps a lot!

[Gregory Sager]

I don't have any inside info on what Norm was thinking, but I read somewhere that Butler was celebrating (rightfully so) and went over the cheerleaders and took their pom poms and was dancing with them. I personally think that's awesome but might not have sat well with Eash. I can tell you the one time I was in person and saw Norm react similarly was an end of the game win that Wheaton secured in Bloomington. Our WR got a first down on their sideline to end the game and he celebrated in front of Norm in a way that Norm apparently didn't appreciate. It was nothing outlandish or even inappropriate. Wheaton's Offensive coordinator at the time was former Wheaton head coach JR Bishop and he had turned over HC duties to Mike Swider a couple years prior. Norm got in JR Bishop's face and I can tell you in the 30+ years I knew JR Bishop, who is the absolutely nicest person I have ever known, I saw him get mad 2 times and this was one of them. Whatever Norm said after not shaking JR's hand set Coach Bishop off because he grabbed Norm by the collar, stuck his finger in his face and told him off. That was circa 1998 or so.

I would wonder if he could even see Butler grab the pom-poms since this was all the way across the field.

https://x.com/VikingsNPU/status/1850926960915951896

That occurred to me as well, which is why I was going to make a joke about it.

As the video clip makes apparent, there were also a lot of people -- players, sideline staff, student managers -- who would have screened Butler from the IWU sideline when he broke into his impromptu cheerleader routine, since the cheerleaders were well away from the field.

[WUPHF]

Thanks! This is a game-changer.  I struggle with Sidearm ... the picture-in-picture helps a lot!

You're welcome and yeah, Sidearm is not a great product, but this makes replays easier.

[Cardinal773]

Here's Norm Eash with his right hand on his chest, refusing to shake Kyle Rooker's hand.

I have a theory on this one.  Norm had a cold.  He refused to shake hands out of an abundance of caution and didn't want to get anyone sick.  Hope he gets better soon.

Speaking of caution and personal safety and all, as I write this I am in my classroom overlooking the corner of Foster and Leavitt.  I JUST found out that I'm about 8 blocks from the inner city!  Jeez!

[Gregory Sager]

Here's Norm Eash with his right hand on his chest, refusing to shake Kyle Rooker's hand.

I have a theory on this one.  Norm had a cold.  He refused to shake hands out of an abundance of caution and didn't want to get anyone sick.  Hope he gets better soon.

I love your assume-the-best-in-people vibe. But if he had a cold that precluded handshakes, he should've either worn a mask or stayed home.

Hmm. Maybe he got sick during the game! That would explain why he seemed so angry when he was saying something to Rook. Visiting the inner city made him ill! Who knows ... maybe a lead-paint chip from one of our run-down tenements on campus fell off the building and flew into his mouth when he got off the bus!

Speaking of caution and personal safety and all, as I write this I am in my classroom overlooking the corner of Foster and Leavitt.  I JUST found out that I'm about 8 blocks from the inner city!  Jeez!

You're a Chappell Knight? Cool!

In my other job I work a half-mile southeast of you, on the other side of Winnemac Park.