FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

pg04 · March 19, 2016, 02:48:28 PM

Ever been to Savannah, GA on St. Paddy's day? I went there 8 years ago and it was a full weekend of fun. They do it right.

Of course, the weekend of the parade we had a tornado that evacuated the entire downtown party scene and power was lost. It was quite the scene.

IslandTime · March 25, 2016, 09:27:11 PM

I have not been able to post this until my son received his "official" acceptance letter. But he received it today and we are incredibly happy that he has been given the awesome opportunity to attend and play football for Amherst.

As I mentioned a few months ago he visited Amherst, Williams and Middlebury and we were blown away by the athletic facilities that these schools have for the number of students enrolled. We tried to fit in visits to Tufts and Wesleyan who also wanted him to stop by, but on our short 3 day visit in December, we packed in as much as we could. He was able to do an official overnight at Amherst and it sealed the deal and despite the great treatment by coaches at Middlebury and Williams (Coach Kijaun Ware before Kelton's departure), when my son left Amherst.....he just knew. He either went to Amherst or he didn't play football at all and would attend FSU or UCF like his parents.

Very thankful that he has been given this chance and even though he will be a long way from home. I get to watch my boy play football in a league with some of the greatest rivalries in the sport!

Go Amherst!!!!

https://youtu.be/UyzIWo7w7Kk

My son's highlights from Merritt Island High School. The team lost 3 games this year. Playoff game against the eventual 5a Florida State Champs, a regular season game to the runner up in the Florida 6a state champ game and another early game against a final 4 team in the Florida 7a classification. A real over achieving season for his Mustangs but this school finds a way to win and has been to more playoff games more years than any other school in the state of Florida.

Looking forward to talking football with you all for the next few years!

AmherstStudent05 · March 26, 2016, 01:11:17 AM

Fantastic news, IslandTime! Congratulations to your son and your entire family on this wonderful accomplishment. Welcome to Lord Jeff Nation (or whatever nation we may be at the moment)!

Here's hoping that your son is able to keep his winning tradition alive and well up at Amherst!

amh63 · March 26, 2016, 11:16:22 AM

IslandTime...I also welcome your son to the Amherst family! Amherst is fortunate to tap into the huge talent pool of Florida student- athletes...again. Have been to Merritt Island frequently when I had business at the Cape.
Looking forward to you posts here in the Fall. Oh Yes...have friends and relatives in Winter Park that have Gator and FSU flags on their front porches.

amh63 · April 03, 2016, 11:26:36 AM

Something I posted on the baseball board. Yes, I sometimes watch a little baseball

.
There is a freshman kicker on the football team, Ferrero, from the Bay Area of Ca. His HS QB teammate is at Tufts, if I recall correctly. The young man was reported to have had some Div1 offers.
Met his father at a football game. His father mentioned that his son was at Amherst in part to have the opportunity to play baseball.
Fast forward to the baseball. Ferrero came in for an inning in a recent game...no jersey number or pic on the roster. Well, Ferrero, yesterday entered a rain delayed game against Hamilton. Announcer had to go find out his jersey number. It is No. 45. Announcer mentioned he is also on the football team. The young pitcher got his first win! Pitched 2.2 innings in a game that went to 10 innings. Hoped his Dad was watching and got to see the last three innings....it ended before sunset?

IslandTime · April 03, 2016, 07:46:20 PM

Quote from: amh63 on March 26, 2016, 11:16:22 AM
IslandTime...I also welcome your son to the Amherst family! Amherst is fortunate to tap into the huge talent pool of Florida student- athletes...again. Have been to Merritt Island frequently when I had business at the Cape.
Looking forward to you posts here in the Fall. Oh Yes...have friends and relatives in Winter Park that have Gator and FSU flags on their front porches.

Thanks! My son's player host for his overnight was a big O-lineman from Ponte Vedra, FL. Great kid and I am sure one of the many reasons my son knew Amherst was what he wanted.

Interesting part is that Merritt Island played them the previous 2 seasons so these two boys - one a lineman and the other a linebacker on opposing teams - undoubtably smashed into each other a couple times.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Merritt Island won both times

nescacfollower · April 12, 2016, 07:27:16 PM

Does anyone have an updated lists of recruits for next year?

amh63 · April 13, 2016, 09:12:49 AM

Historically, there is rarely a listing of "recruits" at Amherst until the Fall.

Trin9-0 · April 13, 2016, 10:50:45 AM

Quote from: nescacfollower on April 12, 2016, 07:27:16 PM
Does anyone have an updated lists of recruits for next year?

There's a new NESCAC rule that prohibits coaches from publicizing the incoming class until after May 1st. I'm sure we'll see a flood of information at the start of next month once coaches start updating alums with news on the committed players.

I can offer that Conner Suraci LB/RB from my hometown of North Haven, CT will be heading to Bates in the fall. He's a solid player and could eventually contribute. His brother Ethan will be a junior running back at Trinity whose carries wen't down last year as Trin featured more of Chipouras but he has contributed a few TDs for the Bantams.

nescac1 · April 14, 2016, 05:12:58 PM

In the Kelton regime Williams football had a very limited social media presence and for that matter limited communications / dissemination of information / posting of highlights, period. I don't expect any listing of recruits (I've never seen any Williams coach do that), but I have already noticed a significant uptick in use of the football twitter account, including posting videos and such. It's already apparent that the new coach is going to be a lot more engaged, period, than the laid-back Kelton approach, based on everything I've heard.

D3pc · April 14, 2016, 06:59:45 PM

Looks like Blumenaur jumped ship from Bowdoin over to Williams. He re-joins Coach Raymond who had him on staff on St Lawrence for four years. Blumenaur was the OC at Endicott for one year under JB Wells, then followed him up to Bowdoin for last season. Interesting thing is, he is listed as the O-Line coach/recruiting coordinator.

I wrote this for Bowdoin fans about a year ago when he went up there...Blumenaur is a great recruiter and has strong ties to the NY region, specifically Long Island.

This also means Bowdoin will be looking for its third OC in three years. Unless they promote from in house.

nescac1 · April 15, 2016, 09:26:02 AM

Interesting, thanks for the info, D3pc. Also interesting that Coach Raymond has yet to name an offensive or defensive coordinator -- hopefully he has some good names in the hopper. In the recent past, Williams has typically filled those positions with head coaches from other sports who aren't necessarily football guys. Hopefully Coach Raymond will be able to build a staff with a heavy focus on football experience -- Blumenaur looks like a great start. It may not translate into wins and losses right away given the lack of any real star players returning, but I think the team on the field next year will play a more disciplined and a more creative brand of football, which will be a great start towards returning the Ephs to the top of NESCAC! After a few recruiting classes come in, watch out ...

lumbercat · April 15, 2016, 06:07:03 PM

Trin 8-0

Thanks for the update. Believe the younger Suraci was a good get for Bates. I know the older brother was highly touted coming into Trinity.

Good Luck to both coming from a fine program in North Haven.

Assume I am safe in the assumption that neither will be posting their personal highlights on the board.

Trin9-0 · April 18, 2016, 09:30:42 AM

Quote from: lumbercat on April 15, 2016, 06:07:03 PM
Trin 8-0

Thanks for the update. Believe the younger Suraci was a good get for Bates. I know the older brother was highly touted coming into Trinity.

Good Luck to both coming from a fine program in North Haven.

Assume I am safe in the assumption that neither will be posting their personal highlights on the board.

That's a very safe bet.
Conner ran for over 1,000 yards and averaged an astounding 10.7 yards per carry in the very unorthodox singlewing offense. Although, my guess is that he will play LB for the Bobbies (no inside information, purely an assumption). Here's his highlight film which provides defensive clips first:
http://www.hudl.com/athlete/2945855/highlights/321645381
Either way I'm sure he'll be an asset; good kid from a good family. It should make for an interesting Suraci family tailgate on September 24th.
I'll be there, hopefully we can grab a beer.

I also saw a photo of the new turf field installation at Jessee-Miller Field with a caption that states they're installing lights. Looks like we have the possibility of a night game at The Coop in the future.

PolarCat · April 18, 2016, 10:20:47 AM

Quote from: Trin8-0 on April 18, 2016, 09:30:42 AM
I also saw a photo of the new turf field installation at Jessee-Miller Field with a caption that states they're installing lights. Looks like we have the possibility of a night game at The Coop in the future.

It's great to know the field is coming along. We were at Trinity for our daughter's WLAX game on April 2nd, and Jessee Miller Field was just a big old mud pit. I was wondering how they'd have it ready for the opener, let alone graduation and your June and July skills clinics.

Thank you for posting the HUDL clip. The kid's definitely a baller. I hope he sees some action on O. If Harriman sticks with the Triple Option, it looks like young Suraci could contribute, both blocking and running. God knows we needed the help last season.