FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[The Ghost of John Wesley]

I'm not sure what this list is that you are referring to, but at least with respect to Williams, and I suspect with respect to ALL of NESCAC, this is indeed B.S.  If anything, at Williams (and again I doubt it is alone) the academic standards for athletic recruits have risen steadily over the years to the point that there is little difference between athletic recruits and the rest of the student body.  Whenever Williams football recruits post their academic stats to their social media profiles, they always have near-perfect GPAs and astronomical test scores, and almost all are from academically elite high schools as well.  NESCAC schools like Williams, Amherst, and Colby are all now at well below 10 percent acceptance rates, historical lows. 

https://interculturalinsights.com/nescac-schools-ranked-by-acceptance-rate/

I have to agree with Nescac1...Calling BS on this...going the other way in fact.

Not sure the last time Wesleyan's acceptance rate was as high as 19%. Recent years have been as low as 13.9% (Class of 2026) to as high as 17.1% (Class of 2027), as reported by the school itself.

Regardless, NESCAC admissions are positively brutal, and it's only gotten more difficult in recent years (for athletes included). I think there's no chance there's some kind of league-wide downward shift in standards.

http://wesleyanargus.com/2022/04/04/class-of-2026-admissions-results-university-sees-lowest-acceptance-rate-on-record/
https://www.wesleyan.edu/admission/apply/class-profile.html
https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/wesleyan-university-1424/applying

[BigKat]

Thanks! We will definitely have to wait on most of these guys, but I think that the ROY candidate guys can slot in pretty early given their individual team situations.

Matt Diaz gives Wesleyan a potential true #1 RB. They haven't had an effective tailback for the better part of the last decade. They've largely done a committee. I think that kid can be the #1 guy.

Griffin Marshall, as has been mentioned on the board, is likely the most talented QB to come through Waterville in some time. Colby has a couple of decent offensive pieces for him to work with as well. He should take the job there day 1.

Keller Rogers is a very interesting receiver for Tufts. He doesn't look very big, but he's undeniably fast on tape. With Lutz and Richardson gone, Berluti only has Moore as a proven option in the passing game and Moore is more of a chain mover than anything. Have to assume they find a way to work Rogers' speed into the mix.

Nelson Dorsey is more of a longshot ROY candidate from a talent standpoint, but he walks into the best situation. Eden graduated (I believe?), and the only other RB to carry the ball for them was more of a fullback/Tight End. Dorsey could be as good of an option as anyone else on the roster given the situation. Making him at least a potential candidate to win it.

Scoops, love the research!

Really good stuff, great to see the talent roll into the league!

But....honestly we'll have to wait to see most of these guys;  the games this season will be decided by the Sr & JR classes...freshman impact (imo) is negligible with very few exceptions...

Bigger tell may be who has JR's & Soph's that haven't seen meaningful playing time...that's what I'll be watching.

Thanks for your in depth look at the class of '28...seriously appreciate the picks & gonna check out the film!

Luke Watson will be the starter

Been around the program recently, not aware of Justin Keller. If a freshman, really unlikely he sees the field. Jumbos haven't had a legit pass catching TE in years; would be great to see one emerge in the offense for Berluti.

[BigKat]

* keller rogers I meant

[Scoops]

The issue for Tufts is, other than Moore who had a solid year, they have no proven pass catching options returning this year. The only returning receiver who played in all 9 games was CJ Burton who had 15 catches for 93yds. Aside from Burton, Henry Flecker had 13 catches for 192yds in 5 games. Tufts brought in two tight ends in their class, and a handful of receivers. Have to assume that they were looking to rebuild their options in the passing game. Rogers is the most intriguing of their incoming pass catchers due to his speed, but he is certainly no guarantee to see the field.

* keller rogers I meant

[nescac1]

It will be interesting to see just how good Berlutti truly is this year.  I thought he was the best QB in the league over the past few years; his combination of accuracy, poise, and mobility is hard to top, but there is also no doubt he benefited from some high-level OL and TB talent and the most talented group of receivers we've probably ever seen in NESCAC in future D1 players Richardson plus Lutz plus several other very talented guys behind them.  He usually puts the ball on the money, but this year he will have smaller windows plus receivers who aren't a lock to win every 1-on-1 battle for a contested catch. 

[lumbercat]

There is speculation on multiple fronts that Colby will lose their second Coordinator in the past 3 months. DC said to be moving on. Cannot confirm 100% but that's the buzz in couple of places. Seems late for big move like that but I guess time will tell.

[NescacNewbie]

There is speculation on multiple fronts that Colby will lose their second Coordinator in the past 3 months. DC said to be moving on. Cannot confirm 100% but that's the buzz in couple of places. Seems late for big move like that but I guess time will tell.

That is confirmed. Moving on to a D2 school.

[LochNescac]

The issue for Tufts is, other than Moore who had a solid year, they have no proven pass catching options returning this year. The only returning receiver who played in all 9 games was CJ Burton who had 15 catches for 93yds. Aside from Burton, Henry Flecker had 13 catches for 192yds in 5 games. Tufts brought in two tight ends in their class, and a handful of receivers. Have to assume that they were looking to rebuild their options in the passing game. Rogers is the most intriguing of their incoming pass catchers due to his speed, but he is certainly no guarantee to see the field.

* keller rogers I meant

With regard to Tufts WR's....in the words of Aaron Rodgers;  "RELAX".....they'll be just fine.  They recruited guys for the last few seasons that can play.

[lumbercat]

There is speculation on multiple fronts that Colby will lose their second Coordinator in the past 3 months. DC said to be moving on. Cannot confirm 100% but that's the buzz in couple of places. Seems late for big move like that but I guess time will tell.

That is confirmed. Moving on to a D2 school.

Where is he going? We don't get the mass exodus from Mayflower Hill. Dwyer took a lateral step-- or some would say a backward step, from Colby to Hamilton. Now Davis is gone.
Totally baffling considering all the Football and Athletics upgrades at Colby. If Davis is looking to take steps to D1 I get that but the Dwyer move is puzzling.

[lumbercat]

Meanwhile Cosgrove must be unsure whether to s**t or wind his wristwatch. Believe he thought it would be an easy walk in the park taking a nice job at little D3 Colby to ease into retirement. At the end of the day the UMaine job is probably easier at this point.... but we gotta love the NESCAC.
Unless Cos goes 6-3, or maybe 5-4, he's probably gone by his own admission or the new AD.  Everyone in the Pine Tree state assumed Cos would deliver a much higher level of success on Mayflower Hill. When you commit massive capital to athletics as they have done at Colby the Football program cannot continue to be a laggard.

[NescacNewbie]

I think that Cos's health challenges are well known, but admire his grit with trying to fight thru them. However, we have seen the anemic offense that is his, and the mandates to his coordinators are extremely dated and frustrating to them. They are now on their 3rd OC in 4 years. That tells you everything.
He is a great recruiter, but at the end of the day the college is paying for wins.

[Scoops]

I think it's pretty simple in terms of the Dwyer move. The Hamilton coaching staff is apparently one of the highest paid in the NESCAC, and they have a lot of good up and coming young players to work with. Colby can't quite say the same in terms of long term outlook. Especially when you look at the looming head coaching change. I don't see news on where DC Keith Davis is heading, but I assume it's a fairly similar situation in that it's more money/higher level, and he won't have to worry about the next guy coming in. Colby also just lost their AD, and I assume there was no succession plan in place for either Dwyer or Davis in the likely event of a Cosgrove retirement. Both guys seem to have gotten out before they were kicked out. If Colby wanted to keep either one, they likely should have put a plan in place to name one of them the next head coach like the Patriots did with Mayo.

[lumbercat]

Scoops

A lot of really good points- but I'd challenge your contention about the pay scale at Hamilton strongly. As a matter of fact your take on coaching compensation in Clinton, in my experience, is way off.  Maybe Murray has been able to secure some changes for his staff after a number of stagnant years with the Buff 'n Blue.

As for Colby I just don't get it....it's a venue in which they can build a better Football program with facilities as their trump card.
Look at the Mules Hockey program. Bowdoin owned them for years, but not now.
In Basketball they have over achieved in recent years and have been a strong contender.
And last, how about the baseball program- among the best in the NESCAC and now a strong championship contender. One of the very best Baseball programs and facilities in the conference.

The Mules have established a precedent of bringing in high level coacheing:

Football- D1 HC Cosgrove UMaine
Hockey- D1 HC Blaise MacDonald UM Lowell
Baseball- D1 Jesse Woods Notre Dame
Lacrosse- D1 HC Guy VanArsdale Jacksobville U


Other NESCAC ADs are always trying to find the "young, up and coming coaches" they can get on the cheap. In terms of head coaching recruitment Colby has adopted different philosophy in recent years.

[NescacNewbie]

Does anyone have a matrix of the Nescac head coaches by age?

[Charlie]

It will be interesting to see just how good Berlutti truly is this year.  I thought he was the best QB in the league over the past few years; his combination of accuracy, poise, and mobility is hard to top, but there is also no doubt he benefited from some high-level OL and TB talent and the most talented group of receivers we've probably ever seen in NESCAC in future D1 players Richardson plus Lutz plus several other very talented guys behind them.  He usually puts the ball on the money, but this year he will have smaller windows plus receivers who aren't a lock to win every 1-on-1 battle for a contested catch. 

How can you say best in the League over Fetter from Trinity ? I dont think so. In addition when he faced a great defense like Trinity last year they made him look like a Freshman back-up. I think when you win a title you can claim top QB in league. I cant imagine how much more productive Fetter would have been with the Tufts WR's. I am not saying Trinity receiving group was bad but Fetter was defintely best B in NESCAC last few years.