FB: Northwest Conference

[criswyly]

Tom Brady
You are welcome to  this board...hope to hear more from you....I agree with what your saying...The great thing about freedom is we all get a chance to say what we want.

Great job Cats...can't wait till next Saturday!

[beancounter]

East Coast Lute--

The NWC did exist in 82, 84, etc.  In fact, the NWC has one of the longest runs of continuous athletic competition in the country.   There was a hiatus period for football during the CFA reign...but the conference still existed.    In those years you speak of, conference champions didn't mean much when it came to NAIA playoffs.  In the NAIA days, what mattered was the checkbook more than anything else.  Who will ever forget in 1986 that Linfield had to travel to Tacoma for a playoff game against PLU, despite taking the Lutes to the woodshed in the regular season.

When I remember all the stuff that happened in NAIA, I'm a bit thankful for the change to d3.

[beancounter]

Downtown....I'm kinda with you when it comes to the personal foul on Wales, although the incident wasn't quite like you described.  I rather like it when the kicker gets into it and plays hard after he kicks off.  Some kickers seem to find the sideline.  Some like to make a tackle now and then...like GW.    The incident was more on the amusing side than serious to me.

[wildcat11]

Thoughts on the WOU/Linfield game.....

---WOU is an improved team but they are STILL a WOU team.....always looking for the cheap shot and makes stupid penalties.  These guys seemed so intent on trying to take Elliott out of the game with either a low hit or late hit that they forgot that a football game was going on.  There was so much busch league stuff going on out there.......but was anybody really surprised about that?

---Impressed by WOU's tight end, Kevin Boss...huge target and soft hands.  I was surprised on how much time he spent on the sideline while WOU went 4 wide.  That guy is too good....why not just stick him in the slot if you go to a 4 wide set?

---WOU's run game didn't impress me.  Some WOU people were really talking up the Portland St. transfer, Eliot Vinzant, but I didn't know when he was on the field.  Maybe it was because he only had 26 yards rushing on 8 carries.

---Linfield's offense looked damn good.  Some more wrinkles and as crazy as it sounds, Elliott seems he has even more command of what's going on with the looks the WOU's defense was giving him.  The guys just feed off his confidence.

---Linfield's defense......capitalizing on mistakes of WOU's is what stood out to me.  That is a great sign for things to come for this defense.  Every time WOU made a little bit of a mistake Linfield exploited it in either a pick, fumble, or tackle for loss.  BTW, I don't care how many 6' 4" WR's you run at Chris Boock...you're not going to hit the end zone fade on him.  That's why the dude is a shut down corner.

---Linfield PAT's.....yeah, that needs some work.

Overall, Linfield was just way too much for the Wolves.  While WOU is "better" they still take a gross amout of cheep shots and go right past the line of agressive play and go right into dirty.  The 4 to 5 personal fouls is just plain gross.

[George Thompson]

The Northwest conference is hurting in size.     5 members now and six next year.     Despite the conference Presidents' views, I would like to see E. Oregon, S. Oregon and W. Oregon in this league.     That would make a 7 or 8 game round robin.

With gas and air fuel prices headed up with no end in sight, traveling to Wisonsin, Texas and So. Calif. should be kept to a minimum.

And, unlike L&C, these are reasonably good programs.        Of course, some have down periods but they come back.

So, who do the six NWC schools, counting Menlo, play out of league next year?    They wil each need four non-league games.

So. Calif. colleges?    Some will play the NWC.      Still al ong trip.   

Texas schools?    That is a long, costly way to go.    For most
NWC fans, they can't travel that far.

Midwest schools?   Same problem as Texas colleges.

East coast Div. III?   Even worse travel problems.

Division II?   Maybe, but not good in general.

NAIA schools?  Only E. Oregon and S. Oregon are close.

S. Oregon is in no man's land.    They play colleges in four groups: NAIA, NCAA Div. II, Div. III and even Div. I-AA.
Absurd.

E. Oregon plays NAIA in a Montana league---only because we would not admit them to the NWC.      Again, abusrd.

W. Oregon plays in a tiny 4 member league.      Again, absurd.

These three colleges should logically all join Division III and the NWC.      If only our college Presidents would realize we need them as much as they need us.

We need 2-3 more colleges in the NWC.     

George
 

[beancounter]

Once again George, your argument is a waste of time.    The presidents are not going to allow a state school into the Northwest Conference.  You have as much of a chance to get a date with Jennifer Lopez as state institutions will have a chance to join the NWC.  It has been visited...and rejected.   It doesn't make sense to allow an institution that does not share the values and mission of the conference to join.

But I would encourage you to write one of the conference AD's with your idea instead of wasting your time with it here.     You could persuade every individual who posts here that you are right and it still won't have a chance to go forward.    Write one of the NWC presidents with your thoughts.....and I'm sure if they aren't too busy, they'll set you straight on the issue.

[downtown48]

wc11-

I was shocked watching that game at how dirty those clowns were! 

On Boock, he sees Casey Allen everyday at practice so he definately is not going to be fazed by those skinny bone capone slappy's WOU was trotting out there!

Wales' 15 yarder will be even more amusing in the Stagg Bowl this year when we're up 2 with a minute to go and he gives them the ball on the 50, that will be a knee slapper!   

[beancounter]

Downtown...glad you're around to worry about that kind of thing about the "clown", who has a very bright future ahead of him after Linfield FWIW.   The long snapping deal ought to be a bigger concern....and one I suspect will get straightened out.

In any case, I rather doubt the Wales incident would have happened against anyone else except WOU.   Not many teams go out of their way to mix with the kicker on a kickoff.....it's the sort of thing that is usually reserved for bad high school teams I officiate who think they can intimidate the kicker.

[Lever Street]

Elliott was unreal on Saturday.  3rd down conversion % was fabulous. 

I can't wait to see the Cats this Saturday.  Steven's Point is a good team, but will be whipped by the Cats.  Cat Offense = 10, Cat Defense = 8.  Only weakness appears to be PAT's. 

How a about going for 2 each time?  Elliott would probably hit over 60% of 2-point conversions, thus even more point on the scoreboard.

[jdub7272]

I was interested to see that Daley kicked off in the first half and did a great job...Does anyone know why he didn't continue to kick off in the second half??

  Overall, the Cats looked great.  They still have some things to work on like any team.  I know that the short passes are like runs in this offense, but I hope that in the weeks to come they establish a between the tackles running game.  I also think that when Nick Soo returns to DE, the second half of the Hawiian Punch, it will change things for the D.

 

[downtown48]

What's FWIW mean

[pennstlbu]

What's FWIW mean

For what it's worth.

[wildcat82]

I heard Daily sprained his ankle early on in the week, so that may have been the reason?  Also, the reason the long snapps were a bit off is the WOU was blasting the center, which is illegal and that got flagged on it once, but they were doing it the whole game along with a whole lot of other stuff I saw but care not to comment on.  All I can say is that their new coach needs to bring a whole lot more dicipline and class to the program.  I was really amazed when the second team Offense got it the game with Cruckshank at running back against the WOU starting D and ran the ball down their throat, when the first Offense had such a hard time doing it.  Impressive!  The Surgeon looks unstoppable out of the gun.

[Ralph Turner]

George, your post and the research behind it are solid.  The problem is the number of games, and the state schools don't have to join the NWC to play them.  They just need to be of comparable ability on the playing field, i.e., non-scholarship.

D2 is in a quandary.  I highlighted a speech at the national level on the old Post Patterns about the problems facing D2.  If the Great Northwest AC members decide to split into D1's and D3's, then there is a chance for more football playing members to move to D3.

But the President's and the AD's real question is what to do with all of the sports that they offer.  If they are losing money on football, then giving up football may be the thing to do.  It makes Title IX numbers easier.  Or does the D3 model help them with their goals for student-athletes.  (The question that the ASC faces is what to do with the 2 newest state schools in the conference.  UT-Dallas does not play football, has an international champion calibre Chess team and the academic standards that one would expect.  On the other hand, UT-Tyler does not have nearly the same academic standards, and might be a better fit for the D2 Lone Star Conference.  Sul Ross has been a "charter-charter" member of the conference, even back to the NAIA-2 days in 1976 of the Texas Intercollegiate AA.  They are not really a problem. )

Pool B has always been interesting to me.  I think that the NWC can make Pool B work for itself as long as Pool B is populated by the UMAC's, Husson's, Mount Ida's and even the UAA.  When those weaker Pool B's begin to form their own conference to gain Pool A bids, and the numbers of schools that contribute to the ratio of A vs. B move to Pool A, then the Pool B strategy takes on a different equation.

You need 6 teams to be a formal recognized conference.  Affiliate Menlo helps you there.

Do Pacific and George Fox come online fast enough?

Can you name 7 state schools who might decide to form a new D3 conference (especially for the non-football sports) from the ranks of D2 and the NAIA?  If you have a D3 conference of state schools, then the football playing members might be successful in Pool B for football and make it work, like a Salisbury or a Brockport St.  There would be enough school in the Northwest needing games.

[Pirat]

I noticed in reading the RAT press guide on Saturday, they had the 2006 and 2007 schedules posted. They have Pacific on the schedule for October 20, 2007. I thought that was encouraging but maybe a bit premature.

RATS! Nice job on Saturday. "D" WTG. Nice improvement over last year. I loved the front 7 pressure. Keep working it keep improving.

La Verne will be tough.  Lots of returning starters. Good QB, good receivers, solid run game.  Be ready

GO RATS