FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[JEFFFAN]

I have no clue whether the kids at Amherst are any good, but statistically speaking EJ is playing a disproportionate amount of youth.  EJ is NOT a youth kind of coach - he believes that the upperclassmen have earned their time unless there is a discernible difference in talent.    Through six games, of the top thirty players in terms of playing time .... six seniors, ten juniors, ten sophomores, four freshmen.   This is a highly unusual distribution for a Mills coached team.   Very, very young.

Now for us Lord Jeff fans we just have to hope they are young and talented!!!

[jumpshot]

Cards clearly over hyped this year ....or something missing in current chemistry and culture besides inordinate number of unforced errors?

[nescac1]

There are very few silver linings on the Williams season but I have noticed that Raymond seems to be playing more and more first years (something, unlike Mills, he is never adverse to doing)... hopefully the experience will help those guys make a bigger impact in the seasons to come.  Nearly half of the frosh class has played significant roles in recent weeks (Wallace, Papadopoulos, Pang, Oris, Pedatella, McGrail, Jaffee, Maguire), in many cases bypassing more experienced guys.  I imagine that we will see a VERY young Williams team next season, with a lot of frosh and sophomores playing big roles.  Getting Fischetti back 100 percent and keeping him healthy would of course make the biggest impact, and the Ephs will have to figure out whether Dickinson is the man at QB or if they are going to go a different direction. 

[Charlie]

There are very few silver linings on the Williams season but I have noticed that Raymond seems to be playing more and more first years (something, unlike Mills, he is never adverse to doing)... hopefully the experience will help those guys make a bigger impact in the seasons to come.  Nearly half of the frosh class has played significant roles in recent weeks (Wallace, Papadopoulos, Pang, Oris, Pedatella, McGrail, Jaffee, Maguire), in many cases bypassing more experienced guys.  I imagine that we will see a VERY young Williams team next season, with a lot of frosh and sophomores playing big roles.  Getting Fischetti back 100 percent and keeping him healthy would of course make the biggest impact, and the Ephs will have to figure out whether Dickinson is the man at QB or if they are going to go a different direction.

You can make every excuse the bottomline to the 1-5 disasterous Williams season stems from Recruiting the misses in recruiting and to Coaching vacancies. I have heard from numerous people that the Williams Coaching staff unravelled during Trinity game berating players. The staff has lost its composure. Sometimes coaches have to be held accountable. You cant yell at a player unless you first teach them. In addition if the player does not have the talent cant loose it on sidelines. There seems to be complete disorder in program.

The program needs to take a hard look as well as Amherst College football. This could be the sign that there will be a changing of the guard. Unless admissions in these schools drastically changes I fear both will be slowly moving to bottom of league if they are not there already. It is going to take a minimum of three recruiting classes for these schools to recover.

[Charlie]

Cards clearly over hyped this year ....or something missing in current chemistry and culture besides inordinate number of unforced errors?

HC Hammer @ Bowdoin might have saved his job with win over Cards.

[The Mole]

Cards have had a disappointing year. So has Tufts, Amherst and Williams. All the teams have good coaches, recruiting (can be debated and argued) and players. The entire league has improved, top to bottom, there are no gimmes. The Covid year has $%!$ things up in a big way the last two seasons with the transfer portal, red shirting and roster juggling. This is at every level--FBS FCS D2 and D3. It affects team chemistry, recruiting, player development and coaching continuity. For example, last year Cornell had 51 seniors on its roster and finished 2-8. How many young players did not get reps or recruits get offered a spot because of that dynamic? That takes a few years to correct! I will not make any excuses for Wesleyan or any team, the results and record is your resume. These are 18-23 year old kids. They get injured, they get homesick, they miss girlfriends, they have a hard time adjusting to college,  coaching,  academics and the level of play. So many factors that it is impossible to determine.

As a former player and coach, I learned one thing:  it is NOT EASY to win a college football game. The amount of hours these coaches put in is mind boggling. I would not want any of them to "review" my work for a week and then critique it. I would tell them to go pound sand. So, I am not going to throw any coach or staff under the bus based on this play and that play, etc. Players make plays and they need to be accountable. Good lesson in life: do not go into any job interview, presentation, etc. unprepared and do not assume the deal is closed until the check is cashed! Taking the competition for granted or lightly is a recipe for failure. This is what the great sport of football teaches us. In 5, 10, 15 or 20 years plus no one is going to care what you record was or how many TDs you scored, tackles you made, etc. It is the teamwork, preparation, collaboration, resiliency and working towards a common goal that matters. Sorry for the rant, but that is the end game (and a championship along the way makes for good banter)!

I did not see the Wes - Bowdoin game but what a disappointing outcome (if not unsurprising; I did call they would get ahead of themselves and overlook someone between now and Trinity--I just thought it would happen in two weeks against the Ephs). With all the hype and build up entering this season, I don't think we can consider this anything but underperformance and grossly failed expectations.

At this point I think Wes fans--particularly the ones putting the program in the same class as Trinity, Williams, and Midd--need to take a step back and objectively evaluate the last two seasons. With what many considered one of the most loaded rosters with unmatched talent (hell, a couple pages ago people were discussing how many Wes players were going to get NFL looks this year?!), the team has gone 6-3 in 2021 and is now 4-2 in 2022. There are three games left to play this season, a share of the league title is completely out of sight, and the team just lost to Bowdoin. Is this 2006??

Either this roster is not as deep with superlative talent as we've been led to believe, or this team is woefully under-coached. It can be both, but it can't be neither.

[lumbercat]

Could be Charlie

No one will fault the Hammers work ethic. The criticisms I hear of him are relative to his game day management, preparation and play calling. He's a great recruiter though there is some talk of his frustration with Bowdoin admissions following his tenure at green light admissions schools Wabash and Allegheny with acceptance rates over 60%.

Many think BJ should have more W's than Wells at this point in his career.  Though he lost his OC to Dayton (not sure how the kid got a job at that level) he's had some turnover on his staff so the Bear faithful should cut him some slack.

This Wesleyan win is Hammers finest hour. Couldn't believe the score. Need to credit the Black and White. Although the Cards choked mightily and handed the Bears the game, the Bowdoin D held off the Cards surge. I think Coach Dice and the Cards were reading the NESCAMAN press clippings glorifying this group of Wes STUDENT Athletes.

On Hammers future plight note that Bowdoin AD Ryan is a pawn of influential PB Alums. He fired HCOF Wells on their command and his handling of the esteemed and valued Hockey Coach job at Bowdoin is also indicative of the fact that he does not determine the direction of Bowdoin Athletics on his own. Instead, the direction of Bowdoin sports is determined principally by donors. Ryan is a front man for a well heeled group of of stuffy Polar Bear Alums who want to call the shots.

It's all about the endowment in Brunswick. Ryan is given some autonomy as long as he is operating in unison with the almighty Bowdoin endowment.

[The Mole]

Lumber, not trying to split hairs with you on this--But, Cards scored two TDs in final 6 minutes. PBs blocked the extra point after the first TD and stopped the two point conversion to preserve the lead. Repeat, give them credit, but they were hanging on for dear life at the end. They survived and earned the W, but Wesleyan was surging if anything, at the end.

Could be Charlie

No one will fault the Hammers work ethic. The criticisms I hear of him are relative to his game day management, preparation and play calling. He's a great recruiter though there is some talk of his frustration with Bowdoin admissions following his tenure at green light admissions schools Wabash and Allegheny with acceptance rates over 60%.

Many think BJ should have more W's than Wells at this point in his career.  Though he lost his OC to Dayton (not sure how the kid got a job at that level) he's had some turnover on his staff so the Bear faithful should cut him some slack.

This Wesleyan win is Hammers finest hour. Couldn't believe the score. Need to credit the Black and White. Although the Cards choked mightily and handed the Bears the game, the Bowdoin D held off the Cards surge. I think Coach Dice and the Cards were reading the NESCAMAN press clippings glorifying this group of Wes STUDENT Athletes.

On Hammers future plight note that Bowdoin AD Ryan is a pawn of influential PB Alums. He fired HCOF Wells on their command and his handling of the esteemed and valued Hockey Coach job at Bowdoin is also indicative of the fact that he does not determine the direction of Bowdoin Athletics on his own. Instead, the direction of Bowdoin sports is determined principally by donors. Ryan is a front man for a well heeled group of of stuffy Polar Bear Alums who want to call the shots.

It's all about the endowment in Brunswick. Ryan is given some autonomy as long as he is operating in unison with the almighty Bowdoin endowment.

[lumbercat]

Cards have had a disappointing year. So has Tufts, Amherst and Williams. All the teams have good coaches, recruiting (can be debated and argued) and players. The entire league has improved, top to bottom, there are no gimmes. The Covid year has $%!$ things up in a big way the last two seasons with the transfer portal, red shirting and roster juggling. This is at every level--FBS FCS D2 and D3. It affects team chemistry, recruiting, player development and coaching continuity. For example, last year Cornell had 51 seniors on its roster and finished 2-8. How many young players did not get reps or recruits get offered a spot because of that dynamic? That takes a few years to correct! I will not make any excuses for Wesleyan or any team, the results and record is your resume. These are 18-23 year old kids. They get injured, they get homesick, they miss girlfriends, they have a hard time adjusting to college,  coaching,  academics and the level of play. So many factors that it is impossible to determine.

As a former player and coach, I learned one thing:  it is NOT EASY to win a college football game. The amount of hours these coaches put in is mind boggling. I would not want any of them to "review" my work for a week and then critique it. I would tell them to go pound sand. So, I am not going to throw any coach or staff under the bus based on this play and that play, etc. Players make plays and they need to be accountable. Good lesson in life: do not go into any job interview, presentation, etc. unprepared and do not assume the deal is closed until the check is cashed! Taking the competition for granted or lightly is a recipe for failure. This is what the great sport of football teaches us. In 5, 10, 15 or 20 years plus no one is going to care what you record was or how many TDs you scored, tackles you made, etc. It is the teamwork, preparation, collaboration, resiliency and working towards a common goal that matters. Sorry for the rant, but that is the end game (and a championship along the way makes for good banter)!

I did not see the Wes - Bowdoin game but what a disappointing outcome (if not unsurprising; I did call they would get ahead of themselves and overlook someone between now and Trinity--I just thought it would happen in two weeks against the Ephs). With all the hype and build up entering this season, I don't think we can consider this anything but underperformance and grossly failed expectations.

At this point I think Wes fans--particularly the ones putting the program in the same class as Trinity, Williams, and Midd--need to take a step back and objectively evaluate the last two seasons. With what many considered one of the most loaded rosters with unmatched talent (hell, a couple pages ago people were discussing how many Wes players were going to get NFL looks this year?!), the team has gone 6-3 in 2021 and is now 4-2 in 2022. There are three games left to play this season, a share of the league title is completely out of sight, and the team just lost to Bowdoin. Is this 2006??

Either this roster is not as deep with superlative talent as we've been led to believe, or this team is woefully under-coached. It can be both, but it can't be neither.

Mole-

Cmon, this can't be your first bad loss. Come in off the ledge. We feel your pain, losing a game you should win is devastating.

Covid
Girlfriends
18-23 year old kids
Hard to win......

Nothing new

Get that Wesleyan swagger and cockiness back we love to see on the board and win the last 3, including Trinity in the finale!

Sorry you guys lost but something tells me the Cards will be back with a vengeance. A win against the Bants will a great elixir for a great program.

[The Mole]

Not on the ledge. Reminding all the Monday morning QBs that its easy to dissect a coach apart after a bad loss(es). Not just referring to Wesleyan.

Lumber, not trying to split hairs with you on this--But, Cards scored two TDs in final 6 minutes. PBs blocked the extra point after the first TD and stopped the two point conversion to preserve the lead. Repeat, give them credit, but they were hanging on for dear life at the end. They survived and earned the W, but Wesleyan was surging if anything, at the end.

Could be Charlie

No one will fault the Hammers work ethic. The criticisms I hear of him are relative to his game day management, preparation and play calling. He's a great recruiter though there is some talk of his frustration with Bowdoin admissions following his tenure at green light admissions schools Wabash and Allegheny with acceptance rates over 60%.

Many think BJ should have more W's than Wells at this point in his career.  Though he lost his OC to Dayton (not sure how the kid got a job at that level) he's had some turnover on his staff so the Bear faithful should cut him some slack.

This Wesleyan win is Hammers finest hour. Couldn't believe the score. Need to credit the Black and White. Although the Cards choked mightily and handed the Bears the game, the Bowdoin D held off the Cards surge. I think Coach Dice and the Cards were reading the NESCAMAN press clippings glorifying this group of Wes STUDENT Athletes.

On Hammers future plight note that Bowdoin AD Ryan is a pawn of influential PB Alums. He fired HCOF Wells on their command and his handling of the esteemed and valued Hockey Coach job at Bowdoin is also indicative of the fact that he does not determine the direction of Bowdoin Athletics on his own. Instead, the direction of Bowdoin sports is determined principally by donors. Ryan is a front man for a well heeled group of of stuffy Polar Bear Alums who want to call the shots.

It's all about the endowment in Brunswick. Ryan is given some autonomy as long as he is operating in unison with the almighty Bowdoin endowment.

[lumbercat]

No question Mole- you are right, as I said, Bowdoin held off by the skin of their teeth. You guys did put the heat on late.

I was just shocked by the score especially when I reflected on a kind or wake up call issued issued to the Cards on their last road trip to Maine
at Bates last October. Bates handed Wes a 27-24 win late in the fourth quarter on a fumble/interception mistake in Bates territory. Wes walked off with the win but I left Garcelon Field that day thinking the Cards would never let their guard down on their next trip to Maine.

You guys will be back and stronger than ever. I wouldn't want to be on that Amherst team next week.

[SpringSt7]

Serious question for the Wes group: I have always been a huge fan of DiCenzo and what he has done with Wesleyan football but I have to say I am a little underwhelmed with how he and the staff has managed their offensive talent over the last two years. Ashton Scott was, in my opinion, the best throwing QB in the league in 2019 and it goes without saying how transcendent of a weapon David Estevez has been throughout his career as well. Therefore it is hard to wrap my head around how they have ended up at this point where both are super seniors and they have not managed to get the most out of either---although Estevez has still been a good player this year.

Is there a back story to that? I believe Scott has fought through some injuries and if I had to guess Estevez's usage is probably not wholly sustainable and needed to be cut back, but is it fair to place any blame on the coaches for not getting as much out of them as they have? I apologize if this is totally off the mark as I am not overly familiar with the inner workings of the program but from the outside it is a bit of a head scratcher as to how they have ended up at this point.

[The Ghost of John Wesley]

Not on the ledge. Reminding all the Monday morning QBs that its easy to dissect a coach apart after a bad loss(es). Not just referring to Wesleyan.

Lumber, not trying to split hairs with you on this--But, Cards scored two TDs in final 6 minutes. PBs blocked the extra point after the first TD and stopped the two point conversion to preserve the lead. Repeat, give them credit, but they were hanging on for dear life at the end. They survived and earned the W, but Wesleyan was surging if anything, at the end.

Could be Charlie

No one will fault the Hammers work ethic. The criticisms I hear of him are relative to his game day management, preparation and play calling. He's a great recruiter though there is some talk of his frustration with Bowdoin admissions following his tenure at green light admissions schools Wabash and Allegheny with acceptance rates over 60%.

Many think BJ should have more W's than Wells at this point in his career.  Though he lost his OC to Dayton (not sure how the kid got a job at that level) he's had some turnover on his staff so the Bear faithful should cut him some slack.

This Wesleyan win is Hammers finest hour. Couldn't believe the score. Need to credit the Black and White. Although the Cards choked mightily and handed the Bears the game, the Bowdoin D held off the Cards surge. I think Coach Dice and the Cards were reading the NESCAMAN press clippings glorifying this group of Wes STUDENT Athletes.

On Hammers future plight note that Bowdoin AD Ryan is a pawn of influential PB Alums. He fired HCOF Wells on their command and his handling of the esteemed and valued Hockey Coach job at Bowdoin is also indicative of the fact that he does not determine the direction of Bowdoin Athletics on his own. Instead, the direction of Bowdoin sports is determined principally by donors. Ryan is a front man for a well heeled group of of stuffy Polar Bear Alums who want to call the shots.

It's all about the endowment in Brunswick. Ryan is given some autonomy as long as he is operating in unison with the almighty Bowdoin endowment.

Mole,

We likely have a lot in common. I too am a former player and a coach. As you can probably guess from my moniker and the commentary, I am a Wes alum. I know your son is on the current team. Congrats to you and your son on his landing at a fine school and in a great program.

My words are not those of a typical "Monday morning quarterback" but of someone who knows the game from both sides and who has experience in the league we're discussing. I'm also someone who reads these boards regularly (for many years as a "lurker", but only recently as an active poster) and who is therefore privy to an atmosphere of Wes hype that only continues to grow. The hype is not 100% unwarranted, of course. I've been incredibly impressed with how the team has performed in the last decade. The program is a far cry from the Hauser days, and that should be commended.

But the feel I get is that many consider Wes a peer to (or in some cases, superior to) programs like Trinity, Williams, and Midd, all programs who have had undefeated seasons and who have won outright league titles in the last 10-15 years. I'm of the very old school in that I believe record and performance are really all that matter when measuring the success of a sports team against its peers. I also have a personal preference against trash-talking and swagger but understand its place and why some like engage in it and with it. However, I think unequivocal success and performance are necessary conditions for trash talk and bravado (i.e. you need to be able to back it up). One does not call himself king and beg for the crown. If you're king, you know it and so does everyone else.

I admit that I sometimes find the front-running and grandstanding of Nescacman distasteful, and I sometimes suffer vicarious embarrassment when reading his posts. I know Nescacman is a great supporter of the school and team and has done wonderful things with team exposure, fundraising, providing internships to players, etc. I'm not trying to take anything away from those good deeds, nor am I trying to run down hardworking student-athletes or coaches. If you reread what I wrote and pay attention to the tenor of the words, you will realize the audience for my criticism are the Wes fans (on this board and elsewhere) who have gotten far too big for their britches and need to take a big step back and reevaluate the state of the program. Wes is miles from the Hauser days and is a competitive team year-in and year-out, but until the team proves itself with an outright league title it cannot hold itself up against teams like Midd or Trinity as a peer.

[The Ghost of John Wesley]

Serious question for the Wes group: I have always been a huge fan of DiCenzo and what he has done with Wesleyan football but I have to say I am a little underwhelmed with how he and the staff has managed their offensive talent over the last two years. Ashton Scott was, in my opinion, the best throwing QB in the league in 2019 and it goes without saying how transcendent of a weapon David Estevez has been throughout his career as well. Therefore it is hard to wrap my head around how they have ended up at this point where both are super seniors and they have not managed to get the most out of either---although Estevez has still been a good player this year.

Is there a back story to that? I believe Scott has fought through some injuries and if I had to guess Estevez's usage is probably not wholly sustainable and needed to be cut back, but is it fair to place any blame on the coaches for not getting as much out of them as they have? I apologize if this is totally off the mark as I am not overly familiar with the inner workings of the program but from the outside it is a bit of a head scratcher as to how they have ended up at this point.

I agree with your assessment, and it ties to the comment I made Sunday about the Bowdoin loss: Given all that we've heard and seen with the depth of talent on the Wesleyan roster these last two seasons, either the talent isn't as world-beating as advertised or there has been mismanagement from the staff in cultivating said talent. It has to be one or the other (or a combination of both).

[The Mole]

Ghost, I am not going to disagree with you at all. We are on the same page. My message not directed at any one individual. The AD and administration have done a great job allocating resources to the program to elevate it into the top half of the NESCAC. Cards need to win a title. Longshot this year but the Little 3 and knocking off the Bants is still a good year.