FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[dirtybirds8-0]

Alright, we all know that Trinity does not play any of the top teams in D3, or that they even play any teams outside of the NESCAC.  However, I dont care what anyone else says...the athletes at Trinity could play on some of the top D3 teams....If you could play the starting teams against the starting teams...Trinity would compete at the top of the national rankings.  As an entire team, Trinity would falter and probably finish 24th or 25th if they could go to the playoffs, do to the lack of depth....So in one way I disagree, but in another I do agree.

[formerbant10]

One of the things that always amazed me was Trinity's depth.  To have not one, but two of the top rushers in the league the last two years is amazing....kinda like Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson.  They also have 3 QB's who are all very good and very different.  And sometimes they just say hell with it and don't even play with a QB and ram it down their opponent's throats.  It must be very tough for defensive coordinators to prepare their teams for a multi-faceted offense.  Not to mention their defense has been at an elite level the last few years even when losing players to graduation and injuries.  I think if they got to play in the playoffs, they would do just fine.

[theoriginalupstate]

Also, you failed to mention Springfiled as one of the top teams in New England. In the past few years they have been nationally ranked in the D3football.com top 25 and have reached (to the best of my knowledge) at least the 2nd round of the NCAA's.  Trinity has been at least as good, if not better than Springfield over the past 3-4 years.

The one big problem w/ comparing yourself w/ Springfield is that Springfield actually plays an out of conference schedule with some teams that have traditionally been strong teams in the East Region.  In 2003 alone SC played and beat such teams as Montclair St, Ithaca and Union.  Springfield year in and year out goes out and schedules tough opponents (UW-Stout this year).  I know its not the players faults that they cant participate in the NCAA's, but in order to compare youself to those teams you actually have to play those teams.

[Trin9-0]

Upstate: I wish the NESCAC would expand their schedule to say 10 or 11 games, playing ALL NESCAC teams and one or two out of conference games.  This is what the Ivy league does, why not the NESCAC?

Springfield or Union would be a perfect out of conference game for Trinity.  It would allow everyone to see how NESCAC schools compare with the rest of the country and avoid the possibility of a scenario where two NESCAC teams go undefeated and have to share a title.

Dirty: I agree with Former, how could you question Trinity's depth? The defense that finished 1st in the nation in 2003 graduated 7 starters... the following year they finished 3rd in the nation! They have continued to produce all conference running backs each of the past 4 years. And I cannot think of a team (at any level of football) that has been even remotely successful, nevermind going undefeated, rotating 3 quarterbacks.

[gordonmann]

Just out of curiousity, how many Division III playoff games have the Trinity contingent in here seen?

[Tlm]

I've said this before.  Trinity and some of the other teams in the NESCAC may be very good in comparison with teams outside of the NESCAC.  But we will never know so long as the NESCAC continues to play all their games in college football's version of a biosphere, a "separate self-contained and self-supporting environment."

There is certainly something going on inside the NESCAC biosphere that looks a lot like DIII college football, but we can't be sure so long as no one ever gets in or out.

[frank uible]

Have any of you posters seen an OAC, WIAC or Northwest Conference team play recently? Ever?

[Pat Coleman]

The defense that finished 1st in the nation in 2003 graduated 7 starters... the following year they finished 3rd in the nation!

First in NESCAC nation. Without playing against outside teams, where you stand against Division III teams is really rather meaningless.

BTW, 8-0, the maximum regular-season games in Division III is just 10. You can only play 11 if you're part of a 12-team or more conference with a title game, like Division I-A.

The UW-Stout/Springfield game is a great example. This Stout team is probably the No. 4 or No. 5 team in the WIAC.

Gordon knows -- he is a Trinity grad and has covered playoff games for us for the past several years.

[empire8fan102]

Springfield does go out of its way to play teams out of region and Even paid the way for UW stout to come to SC and play. They want to play out of region and be nationally recognize. SC made it to the East regional Final the farthest and NEw England school ever made it and in 03 they made it second round after a #1 seed in the east ranking. Trinity may have a good defense but if they played some half way decent teams instead of COLBY and HAMILTON wouldthe defense be that good.

I wish they could play an SC or a UNION or Montclair ITHACA and FISHER then the Bantams would see what its like to play competition week in and week out.

[Pat Coleman]

They were seeded into the second round, for the record. They didn't win their way into the second round. The committee hasn't shown a great deal of savvy in picking top seeds for the East.

[empire8fan102]

Correct but they did win 10 games against some good teams and ranked teams to earn the #1 seed so yes they did win their way in maybe not the first round but they did win their way in. 

I realize your not an SC fan pat.

[Pat Coleman]

No. As a member of the media I am a neutral party.

[cruiser]

while i agree that the level of football in the NESCAC is always a hotly debated topic and that many people don't take it very seriously as a football conference, empire8fan seems to not even consider that a team like "COLBY" is actually pretty good this year. despite the rigid and arguably irrational rules the NESCAC has in place regarding playoffs and out of conference play, it is a bit naive to write off all NESCAC teams just because they only play each other. the debate as to how trinity would do against other top northeastern teams could rage forever, but the simple truth is that nobody really knows. everyone can speculate and make reasonably educated guesses, but the truth wont be fully known until the NESCAC allows out of conference games or scrimmages.

[gordonmann]

Frank:

I have, but I suspect you didn't mean me.

[dirtybirds8-0]

I have actually watched Rowan play, I have watched Weidner play, I have watched Albrycht play (cousin played for them), I have watched the D3 championship on TV if that counts?  Anyway, I really feel that Trinity could match up with those teams...however, my comment on the depth of the Trinity team was meant to be interpreted as.....Trinity has depth in the NESCAC, but nationally other teams have better depth in the skill of their players.  I do think that Trinity's starting team and some back ups could play at the top of the rankings....but overall their skill depth would hurt them.