FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[The Mole]

https://www.redshirtsports.xyz/2023-fcs-transfer-portal-tracker
'
Here is a link for 688 FCS players in the portal. No sure if there is one that also tracks D2 and D3. Some of these FCS teams have over (gulp) THIRTY players in the portal! You will be shocked when you see the schools and players on here. Many of them grad transfers looking for a 5th year. But still....

What happened to earning your spot and working hard with your teammates to develop esprit de corps? Imagine being the junior or senior that has waited your turn, only to get leapfrogged by a "one year rental". Not a great model for developing talent and culture in a program. The microwave mentality of demanding instant results is more prevalent than ever. Coaches are paid to win, but this is getting out of hand. Throw in NIL and this is turning into a cesspool. ARMY NAVY is perhaps the last bastion of true "student athlete" FBS football. Apologies for the rant....

[lumbercat]

In the case of Gehring it's word of mouth. Many who are close to coaching/recruiting  in the NESCAC are aware of kids like him when they are pursued heavily by higher level programs but express a clear desire to pursue NESCAC opportunities. It's a big win for NESCAC programs when they can find a recruit who places a high value on academics and buys into the whole NESCAC football philosophy.
Going back many years it has typically been Williams/Amherst benefitting from this kind of scenario.

[lumbercat]

https://www.redshirtsports.xyz/2023-fcs-transfer-portal-tracker
'
Here is a link for 688 FCS players in the portal. No sure if there is one that also tracks D2 and D3. Some of these FCS teams have over (gulp) THIRTY players in the portal! You will be shocked when you see the schools and players on here. Many of them grad transfers looking for a 5th year. But still....

What happened to earning your spot and working hard with your teammates to develop esprit de corps? Imagine being the junior or senior that has waited your turn, only to get leapfrogged by a "one year rental". Not a great model for developing talent and culture in a program. The microwave mentality of demanding instant results is more prevalent than ever. Coaches are paid to win, but this is getting out of hand. Throw in NIL and this is turning into a cesspool. ARMY NAVY is perhaps the last bastion of true "student athlete" FBS football. Apologies for the rant....

Not a rant at all, you're right on. Couldn't possibly agree more. This is nuts.

Thanks for posting.

At the big time level I have developed a great of respect for Dabo Sweeney at Clemson. Speaking to your point above I believe he has stated that he is not a supporter of the Transfer process and will not use the portal to bring in a guy to unseat a player who has paid his dues in the Clemson program This hopefully will bode well for Clemson in the recruiting arena and maybe serve as a prototype for others.

[Charlie]

Great info about the transfer portal #'s!

I am not a college FB coach, but I wonder what life is like for the 72% who entered the transfer portal last year and did not find a new home...can they go back to their original school, and if so would they be welcomed or trusted by the coaching staff?

Obviously in cases it makes sense if a player is not getting on the field and is looking for a program which has a specific need at his position or a coaching change it can make a lot of sense, but with only 28% finding new programs last year I question whether players re getting good advice.

And, does the transfer portal become a means for coaches to pressure players to leave if they are injured or not performing to expectations...or if a new coach is "bringing his own luggage" to his new program.

I will go one step further. What happens if a player is having a lights out game from a lower ranked college team and they are playing Alabama and one of the Coaches on Alabama indirectly tells him directly or indirectly through a third party if he enters transfer portal you could be playing for Alabama next year and increase your draft status. I find it hard to believe that this won't happen or accusations are thrown around.

I understand the NESCAC is not Alabama but you could easily see a player at a mid level to below level program in NESCAC transferring to a Trinity , Williams , Wesleyan , Tufts etc.

As I explained in prior emails the NESCAC for years now has not changed their rules much governing football programs. If they want to keep players and attract players they need to bring back some of the old policies like roster limits, implement Spring ball add a game or two or they may start to find programs being diluted of top tier talent with this portal system. I am not saying it is going to happen quickly but will happen at some point.

[nescac1]

Confirmation that Owen McHugh is headed to Williams ... should be a good addition, whether he ends up at QB or safety. 

https://www.patriotledger.com/story/sports/high-school/football/2022/12/06/owen-mchugh-starred-at-quarterback-for-milton-high-football/69698982007/

An interesting name I saw headed to Amherst is Angus Bernstein -- his father, Alex Bernstein, was an absolute monster at Amherst (class of 1997, the group that immediately turned Amherst around from an 0-8 season), before ending up in the NFL.  This makes me feel CRAZY old by the way ...

[Scoops]

There's a lot of really interesting trends in recruiting in the NESCAC this year. Most interesting are certainly Bates, Williams, and Tufts. Bates seems to be going for a complete revamp of the program. Not that it's surprising, given their numbers. But they have some very impressive talent in the class so far. Most interesting is the fact that they have really pushed a national mentality in their efforts. Similarly to Tufts the last few years, Coyne is pursuing out of region players at a high level. And some guys who can really play. No idea if they'll land any of them, but Coach Coyne's effort is very impressive in that sense.

Williams is interesting for all the reasons that have been mentioned. A lot of QBs and interesting offensive players. I haven't seen a lot of defensive players yet, but as was stated earlier, they had a lot of young guys who played this season. Letting them develop is the smart move by Raymond. They don't need to go and bring in a lot of bodies on that side of the ball.

Tufts is interesting, but I'm not sure if it's positive. They clearly tried to get in the game on local kids early after waiting it out and aiming bigger the last few years. But I'm pretty unimpressed with the actual talent they've brought in. Especially losing to Williams on Gherring. It's unfortunate because Tufts seemed to be on a roll in that aspect. Also unfortunate that they've seemingly abandoned their national approach. We've seen what a couple of down years in recruiting can do to a program with the current woes of Amherst. Hope they're able to figure it out.

Rest of the league seems to be status quo so far. Will be interesting to see how the classes develop.

[LochNescac]

https://www.redshirtsports.xyz/2023-fcs-transfer-portal-tracker
'
Here is a link for 688 FCS players in the portal. No sure if there is one that also tracks D2 and D3. Some of these FCS teams have over (gulp) THIRTY players in the portal! You will be shocked when you see the schools and players on here. Many of them grad transfers looking for a 5th year. But still....

What happened to earning your spot and working hard with your teammates to develop esprit de corps? Imagine being the junior or senior that has waited your turn, only to get leapfrogged by a "one year rental". Not a great model for developing talent and culture in a program. The microwave mentality of demanding instant results is more prevalent than ever. Coaches are paid to win, but this is getting out of hand. Throw in NIL and this is turning into a cesspool. ARMY NAVY is perhaps the last bastion of true "student athlete" FBS football. Apologies for the rant....

Rant on!!  I couldn't agree more...Army/Navy makes me smile every year; for a host of reasons.

[NESCACFball24/7]

There's a lot of really interesting trends in recruiting in the NESCAC this year. Most interesting are certainly Bates, Williams, and Tufts. Bates seems to be going for a complete revamp of the program. Not that it's surprising, given their numbers. But they have some very impressive talent in the class so far. Most interesting is the fact that they have really pushed a national mentality in their efforts. Similarly to Tufts the last few years, Coyne is pursuing out of region players at a high level. And some guys who can really play. No idea if they'll land any of them, but Coach Coyne's effort is very impressive in that sense.

Williams is interesting for all the reasons that have been mentioned. A lot of QBs and interesting offensive players. I haven't seen a lot of defensive players yet, but as was stated earlier, they had a lot of young guys who played this season. Letting them develop is the smart move by Raymond. They don't need to go and bring in a lot of bodies on that side of the ball.

Tufts is interesting, but I'm not sure if it's positive. They clearly tried to get in the game on local kids early after waiting it out and aiming bigger the last few years. But I'm pretty unimpressed with the actual talent they've brought in. Especially losing to Williams on Gherring. It's unfortunate because Tufts seemed to be on a roll in that aspect. Also unfortunate that they've seemingly abandoned their national approach. We've seen what a couple of down years in recruiting can do to a program with the current woes of Amherst. Hope they're able to figure it out.

Rest of the league seems to be status quo so far. Will be interesting to see how the classes develop.

I can't speak on Williams or bates but the tufts recruiting strategy has worked pretty well I think actually. Two of their four starting receivers in that passing attack are from Texas and California, and their starting running back Johnson who was 1st team all-conference was from Virginia. Trevon Woodson who they lost to injury last yr was from Louisiana and captain this year Tyler Roach who they also lost to injury was from Georgia. They also had a jr all-league corner who is from Texas. They really have only started to use this strategy with the last two classes and slightly with the 2020 class so this coming year is gonna be more of a real look at how that strategy has worked out for them as those kids will now be juniors and sophomores. I think tufts also has taken longer to showcase some of these out-of-region guys because they had so many 5th yrs come back for them this past season, especially up front.

I have also heard from a couple of people close to the program that this year's incoming class has the potential to be the best they have had since Civetti has been there. I think people get caught up in what kids post on Twitter and a lot of kids just don't post about committing to a NESCAC until they actually get it in which can give a false sense of strength or weakness of a class. Come December 15 when ED1 comes back I think we will all have a better idea of what each school's classes will look like and be able to make a more accurate assessment.

As far as this Gering kid Williams got, he's a pretty good player hence all the offers and a good get for Williams who definitely needs weapons but he was on an 0-10 team in a b league in California. I think this only goes to show that there is more than a wealth of talent in California, Georgia, texas, Florida etc.. that is available if coaches recruit it, especially considering the high academics that the nescac can offer.

[Charlie]

There's a lot of really interesting trends in recruiting in the NESCAC this year. Most interesting are certainly Bates, Williams, and Tufts. Bates seems to be going for a complete revamp of the program. Not that it's surprising, given their numbers. But they have some very impressive talent in the class so far. Most interesting is the fact that they have really pushed a national mentality in their efforts. Similarly to Tufts the last few years, Coyne is pursuing out of region players at a high level. And some guys who can really play. No idea if they'll land any of them, but Coach Coyne's effort is very impressive in that sense.

Williams is interesting for all the reasons that have been mentioned. A lot of QBs and interesting offensive players. I haven't seen a lot of defensive players yet, but as was stated earlier, they had a lot of young guys who played this season. Letting them develop is the smart move by Raymond. They don't need to go and bring in a lot of bodies on that side of the ball.

Tufts is interesting, but I'm not sure if it's positive. They clearly tried to get in the game on local kids early after waiting it out and aiming bigger the last few years. But I'm pretty unimpressed with the actual talent they've brought in. Especially losing to Williams on Gherring. It's unfortunate because Tufts seemed to be on a roll in that aspect. Also unfortunate that they've seemingly abandoned their national approach. We've seen what a couple of down years in recruiting can do to a program with the current woes of Amherst. Hope they're able to figure it out.

Rest of the league seems to be status quo so far. Will be interesting to see how the classes develop.

I can't speak on Williams or bates but the tufts recruiting strategy has worked pretty well I think actually. Two of their four starting receivers in that passing attack are from Texas and California, and their starting running back Johnson who was 1st team all-conference was from Virginia. Trevon Woodson who they lost to injury last yr was from Louisiana and captain this year Tyler Roach who they also lost to injury was from Georgia. They also had a jr all-league corner who is from Texas. They really have only started to use this strategy with the last two classes and slightly with the 2020 class so this coming year is gonna be more of a real look at how that strategy has worked out for them as those kids will now be juniors and sophomores. I think tufts also has taken longer to showcase some of these out-of-region guys because they had so many 5th yrs come back for them this past season, especially up front.

I have also heard from a couple of people close to the program that this year's incoming class has the potential to be the best they have had since Civetti has been there. I think people get caught up in what kids post on Twitter and a lot of kids just don't post about committing to a NESCAC until they actually get it in which can give a false sense of strength or weakness of a class. Come December 15 when ED1 comes back I think we will all have a better idea of what each school's classes will look like and be able to make a more accurate assessment.

As far as this Gering kid Williams got, he's a pretty good player hence all the offers and a good get for Williams who definitely needs weapons but he was on an 0-10 team in a b league in California. I think this only goes to show that there is more than a wealth of talent in California, Georgia, texas, Florida etc.. that is available if coaches recruit it, especially considering the high academics that the nescac can offer.

I know it is tough to grade out curious to know peoples thoughts on who had best recruiting class last year and ranking them !

[NESCACFball24/7]

There's a lot of really interesting trends in recruiting in the NESCAC this year. Most interesting are certainly Bates, Williams, and Tufts. Bates seems to be going for a complete revamp of the program. Not that it's surprising, given their numbers. But they have some very impressive talent in the class so far. Most interesting is the fact that they have really pushed a national mentality in their efforts. Similarly to Tufts the last few years, Coyne is pursuing out of region players at a high level. And some guys who can really play. No idea if they'll land any of them, but Coach Coyne's effort is very impressive in that sense.

Williams is interesting for all the reasons that have been mentioned. A lot of QBs and interesting offensive players. I haven't seen a lot of defensive players yet, but as was stated earlier, they had a lot of young guys who played this season. Letting them develop is the smart move by Raymond. They don't need to go and bring in a lot of bodies on that side of the ball.

Tufts is interesting, but I'm not sure if it's positive. They clearly tried to get in the game on local kids early after waiting it out and aiming bigger the last few years. But I'm pretty unimpressed with the actual talent they've brought in. Especially losing to Williams on Gherring. It's unfortunate because Tufts seemed to be on a roll in that aspect. Also unfortunate that they've seemingly abandoned their national approach. We've seen what a couple of down years in recruiting can do to a program with the current woes of Amherst. Hope they're able to figure it out.

Rest of the league seems to be status quo so far. Will be interesting to see how the classes develop.

I can't speak on Williams or bates but the tufts recruiting strategy has worked pretty well I think actually. Two of their four starting receivers in that passing attack are from Texas and California, and their starting running back Johnson who was 1st team all-conference was from Virginia. Trevon Woodson who they lost to injury last yr was from Louisiana and captain this year Tyler Roach who they also lost to injury was from Georgia. They also had a jr all-league corner who is from Texas. They really have only started to use this strategy with the last two classes and slightly with the 2020 class so this coming year is gonna be more of a real look at how that strategy has worked out for them as those kids will now be juniors and sophomores. I think tufts also has taken longer to showcase some of these out-of-region guys because they had so many 5th yrs come back for them this past season, especially up front.

I have also heard from a couple of people close to the program that this year's incoming class has the potential to be the best they have had since Civetti has been there. I think people get caught up in what kids post on Twitter and a lot of kids just don't post about committing to a NESCAC until they actually get it in which can give a false sense of strength or weakness of a class. Come December 15 when ED1 comes back I think we will all have a better idea of what each school's classes will look like and be able to make a more accurate assessment.

As far as this Gering kid Williams got, he's a pretty good player hence all the offers and a good get for Williams who definitely needs weapons but he was on an 0-10 team in a b league in California. I think this only goes to show that there is more than a wealth of talent in California, Georgia, texas, Florida etc.. that is available if coaches recruit it, especially considering the high academics that the nescac can offer.

I know it is tough to grade out curious to know peoples thoughts on who had best recruiting class last year and ranking them !

Does it say more about the quality of recruiting or the lack of talent on a roster when multiple freshman are getting significant playing time?

[LochNescac]

There's a lot of really interesting trends in recruiting in the NESCAC this year. Most interesting are certainly Bates, Williams, and Tufts. Bates seems to be going for a complete revamp of the program. Not that it's surprising, given their numbers. But they have some very impressive talent in the class so far. Most interesting is the fact that they have really pushed a national mentality in their efforts. Similarly to Tufts the last few years, Coyne is pursuing out of region players at a high level. And some guys who can really play. No idea if they'll land any of them, but Coach Coyne's effort is very impressive in that sense.

Williams is interesting for all the reasons that have been mentioned. A lot of QBs and interesting offensive players. I haven't seen a lot of defensive players yet, but as was stated earlier, they had a lot of young guys who played this season. Letting them develop is the smart move by Raymond. They don't need to go and bring in a lot of bodies on that side of the ball.

Tufts is interesting, but I'm not sure if it's positive. They clearly tried to get in the game on local kids early after waiting it out and aiming bigger the last few years. But I'm pretty unimpressed with the actual talent they've brought in. Especially losing to Williams on Gherring. It's unfortunate because Tufts seemed to be on a roll in that aspect. Also unfortunate that they've seemingly abandoned their national approach. We've seen what a couple of down years in recruiting can do to a program with the current woes of Amherst. Hope they're able to figure it out.

Rest of the league seems to be status quo so far. Will be interesting to see how the classes develop.

I can't speak on Williams or bates but the tufts recruiting strategy has worked pretty well I think actually. Two of their four starting receivers in that passing attack are from Texas and California, and their starting running back Johnson who was 1st team all-conference was from Virginia. Trevon Woodson who they lost to injury last yr was from Louisiana and captain this year Tyler Roach who they also lost to injury was from Georgia. They also had a jr all-league corner who is from Texas. They really have only started to use this strategy with the last two classes and slightly with the 2020 class so this coming year is gonna be more of a real look at how that strategy has worked out for them as those kids will now be juniors and sophomores. I think tufts also has taken longer to showcase some of these out-of-region guys because they had so many 5th yrs come back for them this past season, especially up front.

I have also heard from a couple of people close to the program that this year's incoming class has the potential to be the best they have had since Civetti has been there. I think people get caught up in what kids post on Twitter and a lot of kids just don't post about committing to a NESCAC until they actually get it in which can give a false sense of strength or weakness of a class. Come December 15 when ED1 comes back I think we will all have a better idea of what each school's classes will look like and be able to make a more accurate assessment.

As far as this Gering kid Williams got, he's a pretty good player hence all the offers and a good get for Williams who definitely needs weapons but he was on an 0-10 team in a b league in California. I think this only goes to show that there is more than a wealth of talent in California, Georgia, texas, Florida etc.. that is available if coaches recruit it, especially considering the high academics that the nescac can offer.

I know it is tough to grade out curious to know peoples thoughts on who had best recruiting class last year and ranking them !

Does it say more about the quality of recruiting or the lack of talent on a roster when multiple freshman are getting significant playing time?

24/7,

I see what ya did there.....Hmmmm....the chicken or the egg?

I like that kinda perspective!   

Certainly outliers on both sides of that; team specific to be sure, but as a generalization that's a very interesting debate!!   

What do y'all think?

[The Mole]

Typically takes 2-3 years to determine how strong a recruiting class was/is.  Some play earlier because of need and some out of necessity and others based on sheer talent. The true determination is the 4 year (5 in some cases with Covid recently) look back of how "good" each class performed. Results will vary! Example, Wesleyan's current sophomore class looks strong as 5 offensive lineman, 2 defensive lineman (one all NESCAC), 2 Wide receivers, a running back, a corner back and two linebackers saw starting or rotational roles on a heavily experienced roster this past season. That tells me it was a good class and provides a good nucleus for the next two years. Or, as Charlie is calling---maybe a sign that they stink and it will be a big drop off. I am leaning to the former comment and not the latter

[Charlie]

Typically takes 2-3 years to determine how strong a recruiting class was/is.  Some play earlier because of need and some out of necessity and others based on sheer talent. The true determination is the 4 year (5 in some cases with Covid recently) look back of how "good" each class performed. Results will vary! Example, Wesleyan's current sophomore class looks strong as 5 offensive lineman, 2 defensive lineman (one all NESCAC), 2 Wide receivers, a running back, a corner back and two linebackers saw starting or rotational roles on a heavily experienced roster this past season. That tells me it was a good class and provides a good nucleus for the next two years. Or, as Charlie is calling---maybe a sign that they stink and it will be a big drop off. I am leaning to the former comment and not the latter

I agree with your assessment well almost. While I think you are correct in your ascertion that Wesleyan had a good recruiting class as you outlined. The reason I think they can't win the big one is lack of cosistency in recruiting and Coaching staff. Historically though too many teams have a great recruiting class that is exceptional then sub par recruiting classes after. The likes of solid programs like a Trinity have consistently good recruiting classes then an exceptional recruiting class.

The opposite is true of Amherst and several other NESCAC schools. Coaching is the most important part of the game but if you dont have the horses you simply will not win. You have to have consistency in both to have a successful football program.

[LochNescac]

I love the differing points of view regarding this....I'll make an overly simplistic generalization & offer this.

If this discussion was about Power Five programs; Bama, OSU, UGA, LSU, etc...I'd say that if several Freshman are starting, or seeing considerable snaps;  good recruiting. (your exceptional Jr's/Sr's have probably declared for the draft & already left)

Since this is a NESCAC thread, If freshman are contributing on a large scale, or starting at several positions, I'm far more inclined to say that your program is probably not one of the stronger ones...

Again, a complete generalization, but that's what I'd assume...an opinion only.

Discuss....

[The Mole]

Coaching is important. But the Jimmy's and the Joe's are more important. I have said this before. If you switched around coaching staffs in the league would results change that much? The playing fields in the 10 schools are not level for a variety of factors and reasons.

Totally agree with you Loch, year in and out you cannot RELY upon freshman to make a big impact, at any level. When they do, it is an added bonus.