FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[jumpshot]

Current president was, in my opinion and that of some amHerst alums, a surprising hire given the alleged issues at U of Wisconsin. Subsequently, many reported cultural and social problems since at amHerst seemingly far outweighing any significant success. Change coming?

[JEFFFAN]

Good question, jumpshot.   The initial challenge that Amherst faced with the alleged rape issue did not occur during the time that the current president was in office.    This one - the Spanish teaching one - was while she was in office, but it is hard to fathom the action occurring anywhere in a small college environment.  The president gets high grades for her handling of the completely idiotic protest that occurred last Fall as the protesters did her a huge favor by being so outrageous in their claims that she didn't have to do much.   All in all, FAR too much bad publicity for the fairest college but the sense is that the issues do not necessarily reflect negatively on the president.

[nescac1]

A bit off topic, but I think Biddy Martin is a very politically astute President who has done a good job navigating an enormous number of very, very diffcult, high-profile issues, during the first two years of her Presidency.  Consider: there was the national attention Amherst received for its (purportedly) inadequate sexual assault policy which failed to take victims' needs into account, and then more unwanted national attention due to its (purported) overreaction leading to expulsion of some students under questionable circumstances.  There is no right answer to these issues, and they plague lots of campuses, but Amherst has been in the spotlight more than just about any other school due to all the litigation.  There was the issue of the science center disaster, where the original location was poorly-chosen costing the school 20 million in sunk costs.  There is the Lord Jeff controversy and of course the massive sit in and demands from minority students.  All of this in just a few years, and none of these issues (basically all of which were out of Biddy's control or pre-dated her tenure in their origin) have seemed to dent her all that much.  Many college presidents couldn't survive even one of these unscathed, and yet she seems fairly popular on campus due to her gift of assuaging very different campus constituencies. 

Back to football:  the Tampa Bay Bucs unexpectedly fired head coach Lovie Smith.  Mike Bajakian, William '96, may now be looking for a job.  Since he did a great job as the Bucs' QB coach this year, leading Jameis Winston (a very difficult personality) to a tremendous year, if anything he might be in line for a promotion. But perhaps if there is uncertainty, Williams can at least test the waters to see whether he might be interested in coming to the rescue?  Even though he's never been a head coach, going from a high-profile NFL assistant to a NESCAC head coach is a big step down (including, i'd guess, in salary) so he probably would not be tempted, but for love of alma mater, who knows ... 

[AmherstStudent05]

Back to football:  the Tampa Bay Bucs unexpectedly fired head coach Lovie Smith.  Mike Bajakian, William '96, may now be looking for a job.  Since he did a great job as the Bucs' QB coach this year, leading Jameis Winston (a very difficult personality) to a tremendous year, if anything he might be in line for a promotion. But perhaps if there is uncertainty, Williams can at least test the waters to see whether he might be interested in coming to the rescue?  Even though he's never been a head coach, going from a high-profile NFL assistant to a NESCAC head coach is a big step down (including, i'd guess, in salary) so he probably would not be tempted, but for love of alma mater, who knows ...

My former classmate from Amherst, Dave Borgonzi, is on that Tampa Bay staff as well.  I hope that he too will come out of this ok. 

[amh63]

There are Lots of NFL head coaching jobs going around.  Since Co-Owner of the Giants is a Tufts alum, maybe just maybe the Tuft's coach will be a candidate. 

[PolarCat]

I would think the G Men job would be awfully appealing.  Great facility, owners who "get it", an almost-elite QB, and a ton of cap space to build a team in the coach's image.  Much better opportunity than Tampa Bay, the 49ers, the Iggles, etc.  Much as I like Civetti, I think the Giants will find someone with gold-plated credentials, like Shanahan.  Or McDaniels.  Or maybe even Grudin - anything that could get him and his Grinders out of the broadcast booth would be a blessing.

[AUPepBand]

I understand some of the Amherst seniors are preparing for professional play overseas.  Anyone one on the board have experience with kids playing abroad?  Good, bad....?

An Alfred University grad, QB Paul Keeley, played in Europe for a couple of summers. If Pep remembers correctly, Keeley was the best talent on the team and played a pivotal role with the team with which he played. He since got his master's degree at AU and is a school counselor at nearby Canisteo-Greenwood Central School where he's also the head football coach of the Redskins.

Pep believes Keeley would say he had a positive experience.

[CacCorner]

Any news of the Williams coaching search? Leading candidates?

[nescac1]

Happy to see Coach Kelton land on his feet and secure another head coaching job.  Hopefully the decision to move on will work out for both he and Williams.  Been oddly quiet re the Williams coaching search.  Very curious to hear which finalists emerge. 

http://coosavalleynews.com/2016/01/a-new-era-begins-kelton-named-hawks-head-football-coach/

[maineman]

Any news of the Williams coaching search? Leading candidates?

Chip Kelly?

[nescac1]

Any news of the Williams coaching search? Leading candidates?

Chip Kelly?

Pass. 

[TheHerst2and4]

I understand some of the Amherst seniors are preparing for professional play overseas.  Anyone one on the board have experience with kids playing abroad?  Good, bad....?

I played a few seasons in various countries after college. Believe it or not every country has a league, and the champions of those leagues compete in a European champions league known as the Eurobowl. The top 6 teams in Europe however branched off and created their own tournament so the Eurobowl has now become more of the NIT. The competition level, compensation, and popularity vary depending on the country. Each country also has various levels (1st level, 2nd level, etc) so there's plenty of opportuntiy. Each league limits the amount of "imports" you can have on the field at any given time. The definition of "import" varied from someone that has a US or Canadian passport, to someone who doesn't have a European passport, to someone that has played in college or has been payed to play football. Generally it's 2-3 imports on the field at a time. Teams can sometimes skirt these rules using dual passports players. The top leagues right now are Austria, Germany, with Italy and France at the next tier. The teams generally take care of your apartment, your health insurance, gym, food, some form of transportation (an import shared car, subway passes, or a vespa), and then you get tax free monthly salary. You certainly aren't breaking the bank, but it's a great way for a paid vacation through Europe.
The popularity of the sport also varies. In Finland we were lucky to get 500 fans to a game, but in Austria we'd have a packed stadium of about 5,000, for the championship I think we hit 14,000. The games would be broadcast on national television. We had dedicated fan clubs (my personal favorite was the Beerleaders who dressed up in viking gear and made you drink a viking horn full of cold beer immediately after the game) There would be promotional requirements and autograph sessions. They are a soccer culture so the theatrics, chants and dancing were a big part of the game (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ueoed_hSb4Q) and there was no excessive celebration penalty. I once saw a guy score a touchdown on us, hop the advertisements, jump into the back of the on-site ambulance, lie in the bed, have them close the door and throw on the siren/lights...I immediately went from being pissed to impressed
What might be a bit shocking is that the import players in the top leagues tend to be players with division 1 experience and sometimes will have NFL or CFL experience. Our team in Austria had players from University of Hawaii, Oregon State, University of Colorado, Cal, and a receiver that was with the Bills. That being said there was plenty of opportunity for division 3 players (I snuck through the cracks). My first coach over in Finland actually preferred the D3 player because he knew they would enjoy the experience and worry less about money and ego.
The strength of the leagues really rests on the strength of the national players so many countries are making the push to develop their junior programs. It has been amazing to watch the growth of football in Europe over the past years. Kids that were in our junior program are now receiving football scholarships to division 1 schools. A few american players have even spent their time in Europe gathering game film and come back to the states to grab a camp spot with an NFL team.
All in all, it was an amazing experience. Sure my buddies were getting a jump start on their careers, but I wouldn't trade what I got to do for any career advancement. I'm not sure if any seniors check these boards but happy to talk with anyone who is considering playing overseas.

[nescac1]

A slew of NESCAC recruits from CT are listed here (Trinity, Wesleyan, Midd, Hamilton, Williams):

http://www.gametimect.com/football-recruiting-2016-connecticuts-high-school-college-commitments-a-living-list/

[Trin9-0]

A slew of NESCAC recruits from CT are listed here (Trinity, Wesleyan, Midd, Hamilton, Williams):

http://www.gametimect.com/football-recruiting-2016-connecticuts-high-school-college-commitments-a-living-list/

The biggest name on that list is Dario Highsmith from Middletown, CT. He was the Gatorade State Player of the Year last season and had committed to UConn before accepting an appointment to West Point. He did a year at their prep school, I believe, and is apparently now transferring to attend school in his hometown at Wesleyan. Dario played quarterback in high school but I imagine he'll be either a RB or DB at Wes. Great pick up by the Cards. I'm also excited to see that Trinity nabbed Shelby Grant from Darien. He's an electric, if not undersized, receiver for the #1 team in CT this year.

[amh63]

Wow! The gates are opened .  Flood of posts.  Really interested ones and a funny one from maineman.
Maineman, Williams maybe willing to pay Chip Kelly....however I think the coach prefer a place with a QB available...with talent and experience.  That is my thinking.
The surprise on the CT list of players committed to colleges...to me....is the number going to Harvard and none to Yale!   Could it be to Harvard's recent success AND planned new football facility?
Thanks posters all in this quiet period of college football for your posts.