FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[quicksilver]

Amazing stats from Bowdoin-Tufts game:

Bowdoin's Joey Cleary returns one interception 99 yards for the first TD and Bowdoin's Griff Cardew returns another interception 100 yards for the Polar Bears' final TD.

[oldhamfan]

I must agree with NESCAC Insider that Hamilton's offense needs to FINISH the game.

creekboy, I just read the Trin/Ham box score, and no mention of HC QB Eck.  Did he even play? Injured on first play? any idea?  W/out Eck, it's a long season for a team with a freshman QB.  Hope it's nothing serious.

[NESCACInsider]

@quicksilver Was at the Bowdoin-Tufts game, first INT came when the Tufts QB got flushed out of the pocket and probably should have thrown it away, but got hit as he threw (by Cardew, no less). Second one was just a force on 4th-and-goal from the 6, didn't really have any other options given that Tufts was down 20-6 with less than 4 min. left anyway.

Pretty solid first win for Bowdoin. Polar Bears could have had more too; they fumbled in the Tufts red zone and missed an XP and a FG. Then again, missed opportunities were the name of the game for both sides.

[NESCACInsider]

Saw Jordan Eck didn't play against Trinity. Any word about what happened?

[iamhuge]

@quicksilver Was at the Bowdoin-Tufts game, first INT came when the Tufts QB got flushed out of the pocket and probably should have thrown it away, but got hit as he threw (by Cardew, no less). Second one was just a force on 4th-and-goal from the 6, didn't really have any other options given that Tufts was down 20-6 with less than 4 min. left anyway.

Pretty solid first win for Bowdoin. Polar Bears could have had more too; they fumbled in the Tufts red zone and missed an XP and a FG. Then again, missed opportunities were the name of the game for both sides.

I was at the game.  Strong effort by both side.  Weather was great.  Some really bizarre plays.  Cleary is a great player.

[quicksilver]

Here's video of the 2 Bowdoin interceptions - they both happened at close to the same spot on the field and with similar runs down the side lines. A couple of Tufts players had a shot at Cardew on the 100-yard interception but no one had any real shot at Cleary on his 99-yrd interception:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-uUcBjcaQU&feature=youtu.be

Needless to say, Cleary's interception put him in the Bowdoin record books for the longest scoring play in Bowdoin history, only to have his record quickly supplanted by Cardew's scoring play.

What a nightmare for the Tufts' QB as Tufts was on the about 5-yard line on both occasions. . .

[fulbakdad]

Hey Banfan, are you alway's an @##?

I was saying watch Ibe's because I had the enjoyment of watching him two years at the school my son went to.  And DI looks means he had numerous contacts by some decent teams, BC and UConn were a couple.  Then many Ivy's were in the mix, Dartmouth and Brown were there too.

I would have also said to watch the Fullback on your team, Mike Budness.  He played against us and I see he's doing well there too.

I though I was getting away from anonamous board hero's when we left high school ball, guess not.

[banfan]

Nothing anonymous here.

Sorry if I hurt your feelings.

Post away.  Let's hear some football talk.

[PistachioX]

Hamilton's wrap up of the game with Trinity only stated Eck didn't play due to injury.  It didn't specify the nature of his injury or go into any further detail.

http://www.hamilton.edu/news/story/football-falls-in-clash-of-unbeatens

[amh63]

Read/saw that all conference games were played in almost Indian Summer conditions.
Caught a bit of the Trinity-Hamilton game and the Bowdoin-Tufts game online while awaiting the late start of the Amherst-Midd. game.
Some observations and comments of the various games and the Amherst game though the write ups are all on the websites.
I am not a good predictor since the Amherst vs. Midd. game was a shoot out...again this year. Midd.'s QB Foote threw 73 times and 400 yds and almost tied the school record.  With his quick release and Midd.'s big offensive line, Amherst had a hard time stoping Midd. in the first half.  Amherst's all everything DT...K. Ferber did have a forced fumble, and a sack though (and an int. in the second half).  Midd. had more first downs, more yardage and possession time than Amherst.  However, Midd. had only 50 yards on the ground and after getting behind by 13 at the half, Midd. gave up running which led to Foote throwing three picks in the 4th quarter.  Surprisingly, Amherst developed a balanced attack of running and passing. Amherst used three QBs, but settled on the starter and he came up with two long TD passes!  Maybe there is hope here as Amherst goes forward.
The three top running backs in the conference, all had 100 plus games and over 6 plus yards per run.  Amherst's E. Bunker led the way with 130 yards and 4 TDs; Wes.'s FY runner, L. Drew, had three TDs and 114 yds.  Trinity's Bunker had 108 yds and 2 TDs even after sharing the running chores.  One of the reasons that Amherst had less possession time with a strong running game is that E. Bunker broke many long runs.  He ran for a 40 yd TD in the 4th quarter to cap his fine day.
The Wes. vs. Colby game revealed several concerns for me.....since Amherst plays Colby next week in Maine, followed by Wes. at Homecoming.
First, Colby came back to tie Wes. in the second half and lost by a last minute TD by L Drew.  Colby at home can be dangerous.
Second, in the Wes. game, QB M. Goyne emerged to generate 335 yards with his arm and feet for Wes.  The senior QB was a most promising QB at Williams and he followed his coach to Wes.  He was noted for being a running QB with a good arm.  Why he did not shine in Wes.'s first two games is unknown to me.
The win by Bates at Williamstown is a shocker.  It tells me that the difficult time Amherst had in Maine with Bates cannot be solely blamed on an Amherst QB that threw 3 picks in his first start.  Bates has a good team.
The conference seems to be more even this season and more interesting.  The kicking games/special team play will be even more important.
Last comment.  Amherst's backup kicker Nwozu led the conference as a FY last season in putting kickoffs into the end zone...touchbacks , I believe they are called.  In the Midd. game he made several squib-like kicks and most of his kickoffs were to the 10 yard line.  I cannot fathom the reason for this other than the Amherst coaches want Amherst's special teams. to gain more experience in stopping run backs.  I must point out that in the last 2 minutes of the first half, Amherst recovered a fumble by Midd. on a kickoff.  This allowed E. Bunker to run for two TDs within 71 seconds and give Amherst a 13 point lead going into the half.  The Amherst defense would apply more pressure in the second half with such a lead.

[CBB Fan]

Thanks Starter for a nice rundown of yesterdays games.
I'm making my first post. I enjoy the site as a close follower of NESCAC Football for many years.
I have immense respect for Amherst and Williams as 2 of the finest academic institutions in the country who maintain athletic programs that are consistent with their academic excellence. I also greatly repsect Trinity and the great commitment they make to athletics and to Football in particular.
The passion of all the posts made on behalf of these 3 Football Programs makes the site a good source for NESCAC news and discussion. I follow it closely and enjoy it a great deal.
Today, however, I want to give to a tip of the hat to a team who gets little attention on this board, the Bates College Bobcats. No one in the NESCAC has played harder this year. The Amherst game was closer than most may think. They handled Tufts with ease.
Yesterdays game with Williams was not as close as the score may appear. Bates dominated the game. With a 35-14 lead in the fourth quarter Bates made 2 key turnovers. First a fumbled punt by Bates gave Williams the ball at the Bates 19 resulting in a Williams TD. A few posessions later Bates fumbled on their own 18 resulting in another Williams TD making the score 35-26 which is where it ended.
In the post game, coach Kelton lived up to his reputation as a dignified and classy coach when he gave the credit to the Bates team and the effort they brought to Williamstown. Yesterday Bates stuck it to the Ephs and they deserve some accolades. No disrespect to mighty Williams, one of the finest D3 Football programs in the country, but instead a well deserved compliment to an underdog. This post, if nothing else, makes that statement for The Garnet Bobcat.
It's been a well known struggle at Bates for many years. However, with the construction of the new stadium and admissions procedures that are more cosistent with the conference as a whole, they seem to be turning the program around. While the search commences for a new President heres hoping that the new leader will support the ongoing advancements that are underway within the Bates Football Program.

[Pat Coleman]

Welcome to the board!

[quicksilver]

Some fun for the Polar Bears as Bowdoin's 2 very long interception returns in the Tufts game make it as ESPN's Sports Center's #3 (Cardew) and # 4 (Clearly) plays of the day. The Sports Center clip is the second of the 2 clips at the link below:

http://athletics.bowdoin.edu/sports/fball/2011-12/releases/20111009jrieyv

[hamfan88]

Interesting article on Colby frosh Duncklee. He has been having success as an RB this season for the mules.

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/high-school/tag/_/name/luke-duncklee

[amh63]

Welcome aboard Hamfan88!.....nice to have the Hamilton supporters join the fun.  Hope it carries over to the other boards as the seasons and sports changes. 
Your notice wrt the Colby player is interesting to me.  The heart murmur is a concern to the military schools and services.  There is a student at Amherst in another sport that has a condition that caused a Div.1 school to withdraw an offer.  There are several other students that are playing with health conditions that require monitoring.  All are doing well and excelling in their sports to date.