FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[lumbercat]

Joe Bag-

Its true those 2 Trinity guys are not back this year but we can't fault NBN. (JB--I see that you are not calling NBN out on this but are merely providing some clarification for the board)

I've seen at least 1 other Trinity preview recently that alludes to those 2 guys as key returners. Trinity is traditionally pretty tight lipped on non returners as these can be sensitive situations. A few years ago when Puzzo missed a year it remained an inside deal essentially until the rosters were printed.

Covering the NESCAC schools is tough- real news is tough to come by. They don't put press releases or media updates. Most teams now are dealing with cuts which is a unique feature to D3 and NESCAC  football. They don't have the communications departments or SIDs to handle this so it's always been a tight lipped deal.

Unless you have an inside connection the final NESCAC rosters are treated like the Bitcoin encryption. Look for final Amherst, Trinity and Middlebury rosters on 9/15, a day before the opener.....Not sure if they want to be sure their cuts clear waivers or if the SID's are merely still on the beach.

It's a tough gig doing these previews long distance but we all look forward to the work of NBN going forward.

[amh63]

A follow up to Lumbercat's last post. 
The Amherst football website has a blank slate.  No schedule, social media football links, etc.  maybe partly due to an overworked assist SID.  The women teams that have games this week have 2017 rosters, etc.  Not much on the men's side.  Amherst lacks a SID presently.
A somewhat political statement....in general the Amherst overall website has been less and less transparent, imho.

[frank uible]

I've had enuff speculation. Play ball!

[amh63]

In between watching weather news of the storms heading towards Florida.....have family and friends on both coasts and in Coral Gables....even watched some college football!
First, my thoughts and prayers to all the Nescac student athletes who have family in the affected region.
Some football comments.  Noticed that the college football helmets on the players appeared different...larger?
Heard on a local TV channel that the NFL was having limited trials of a new design of the Pro helmet...larger and slightly heavier...with major interior design elements.  Any comments by posters wrt CAC player's helmets?
The WSJ last week had a wide spread cover of the number of players playing youth/ HS football. There is a rise in the southern states and a decline generally in other regions...in particular, Vermont.  Seems the Green Mountain state has had to combine several HS teams in places.  On the other hand, there was a story on the interest and growth of girls wanting to play football and playing the game!  Separate teams presently for the "ladies".
Did watch the opening Nescac battles of that other " futbul" game.  Amherst had a good day .

[NESCAC.Football.Observer]

Island Time.... Merritt Island, FL, correct?!?

Good luck today, and stay safe!!

[Grabowski]

Shouldn't nescacman have posted the pre-season power poll by now?

[quicksilver]

The Williams roster is now posted. If my counting is correct (and the roster is complete), the roster looks to be on the modest size at 61 players.

[westcoastDad]

Glad to read all the noble board contributors are back and hopefully doing well. 

Amherst 2018 group of seniors is up to bat to lead the squad.

I'm hearing the offense looks very good and the defense still feeling its way.

QB situation is much better than when the season ended.   

First game against Bates is always tough! 

Safe travels to and from the games and looking forward to future controversail debate lol

[nescac1]

Wow, that is a VERY small Williams roster.  Some positions are perilously thin: (only four tight ends, two of whom are new to the team -- including a soph who played lacrosse lsat year -- and one of whom is a converted QB; offensive line, ten guys, one of whom is a converted defensive player, three of whom are frosh, one of whom is a sophomore who wasn't on last year's roster, and only three of whom saw any meaningful time last year); and defensive tackle (behind the two solid senior starters, is there even one natural defensive tackle?  Presumably a few of the guys listed at DL, who seem undersized, will have to play there).   It does seem that, as reported, a bunch of guys didn't make it through the pre-season.  Two of note: Kent Blaeser, who was a starting OG last year, is not on the roster; nor is Kellen Hatheway, a baseball star who was last year's second-leading receiver.  It does seem likely that a lot of frosh are going to be playing major roles, especially as guys get injured.  Kelton just didn't leave a ton behind, alas, so the Ephs are gonna have to make do. 

There are a slew of positions that seem to be fairly wide open based on the pre-season info that's been released to date.  QB competition seems to be open between John Gannon, Jansen Dunham, and Bobby Maimaron.  I'm guessing at least two see serious time early.  The three tailbacks have the most expeirence of any spot on the team and seem fairly set, and may be bolstered by one of the frosh (perhaps TJ Dozier, he looks interesting).  TE Tyler Patterson could be a star if he stays healthy this year, and I expect the frosh TE may play as well.  There is no FB on the roster so they will likely go three-wide ... but outside of Regensburg, anyone's guess who the other two will be.  My speculation is Moaney at the slot and Soph Mark Byrne (who saw some action last year) at the other wideout, but this is another area will frosh will hopefully help.  OL as others have noted is the biggest ??.  I think Loughran, Subjinski, and Eaton are pretty safe bets for the two tackles and one guard spot.  As for the other guard spot and center, who knows.  Hopefully frosh Pat Watson can man one of those two spots.  Maybe Jeff MacArthur, who didn't play last year but I thought was well-regarded in prep school, frosh John Rooney or Mike Ludwig for the other, but again, those are wild guesses.   No clue if any of them have experience at center.  The line will be a huge adventure early, for sure ..

D looks more predictable.  The entire starting DL is back and should be pretty good but the depth as mentioned looks very very suspect.  Those dudes better stay healthy.  LB, there is Michael Berry and Christian Dumont, who played well at the end of last year, and at least lots of interesting young frosh and sophomores to pick from for the last spot.  DB, Luke Apuzzi and Ben Anthony had strong first-years, and I think will likely be joined by vets Barber and Butler.  DB is a spot where at least one of the three frosh will likely get some time off the bench as well.  Really, outside of TB, the Ephs lack experienced depth EVERYWHERE.  It's gonna be an adventure this season! 

[PolarCat]

The nine game schedule and a thin roster may be a deadly combination, not only for the Ephs, but for the Mules, and maybe the Bobcats as well.  Amherst, Trinity, Tufts and Wes can afford to lose a couple kids early and just reload; the schools with under-70 player rosters won't have that luxury.  I've heard that Bowdoin may have to make cuts this year for the first time in recent memory (maybe ever), so maybe the CBB will be decided by whichever Maine school has the most players left standing come Halloween?

[ColbyFootballDad]

TJ Dozier is certainly very interesting. I know him as a player based on his contributions as a tailback at Georgetown Prep. I am happy to see him playing in the NESCAC. IF he gets an opportunity he will not disappoint. Good Student, An Athlete and a great player with talent and explosiveness.

[ColbyFootball]

Lumbercat - Have you heard anything about Colby? You usually have sources.

[PolarCat]

And has ANYONE heard ANYTHING about Hamilton?  We used to have some Conts parents and fans here, but they seem to have dropped off the face of the earth.  The most recent news on their website is from back in June, and theres no 2017 roster posted.

[lumbercat]

It's been very quiet everyplace in terms of NESCAC Football news. I think the earlier start has caught the SIDs by surprise. Speculation is that many of them are still kicking beach sand out of their cuffs. I think we will see a steady flow of information when everyone comes to the realization that the first game is 5 days away. There should be a number of previews and final rosters hitting the wire in the next couple of days.

Can't believe once mighty Williams with a roster of 61- never thought I would see anything like that. I don't know what is more surprising, the plight of the Ephs or the 9 game schedule. With 27 FYs it looks like they have taken a step in the rebuilding process.

Colby Football- Mules lost a ton of underclassmen from last year. They have roster problems like the Ephs. 4 RBs and 3 QBs on the roster so some of those DBs may have to move. This will be the smallest Colby roster in terms of numbers since the years that Michaels had some guys going both ways.
On the plus side they have a great coaching staff of
experienced and very qualified assistants. They announced another experienced coaching hire about 10 days ago. No rookie coaches in Waterville.

[Pat Coleman]

It's been very quiet everyplace in terms of NESCAC Football news. I think the earlier start has caught the SIDs by surprise. Speculation is that many of them are still kicking beach sand out of their cuffs.

Not many SIDs have a lot of time to spend on the beach.