FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[NESCACGrad]

NESCACGrad, if you are inclined to elaborate re: Williams, I'd be curious to hear your thoughts ...

nescac1.  Their recruiting coordinator is just not impressive.  Son visited earlier this year, and Mr. Creighton was unable to sell the school or the program.  By comparision, many of the other NESCACs were far more articulate in explaining to recruits why they should attend, as well as far more active on the email/phone call/letter front.  Granted, Williams is a dynamite school, but at the end of the day, you can't simply tell recruits,"we're special, we're Williams" and leave it at that.  For $60 grand/year, with no ability to offer athletic scholarships, you would think Williams would at least have talking points as to why a young man should spend 4 years there. 

I will note that the Ivies that my son was recruited by were all about the great opportunities that attending such schools offered - especially the post-grad opportunities.  They have it down to a science. 

Son overnighted at another Little Three school and the other football players he met (not recruits, but students at the school) all had the same story about how ineffective the Williams recruiting effort under Kelton/Creighton was.  It seems very strange to me.

[nescac1]

That is certainly discouraging to hear.  But thanks for sharing.  Williams has a lot to sell, between all the great football traditions and history (Little Three, The Walk, College Gameday, etc.), a tremendous legacy of winning, prominent football alumni, multiple great rivalries, support from the local community, an incredible new facility arriving next fall, a beautiful setting for football, a great athletic program overall, and of course the academic excellence of the school itself.  Hopefully the sales pitch will become more cogent and aggressive now that the rest of NESCAC has stepped up the competition and the powers-that-be realize that things are not headed in the right direction. 

[AlDavis]

....did not any human reading comprehended my song I sang to them the other day....
ITS OVER.....Stick a Fork In IT................. "everyone can see what's going on
they laugh 'cos they know they're untouchable
not because what I said was wrong
whatever it may bring
I will have my own policies
I will sleep with a clear conscience
I will sleep in peace
maybe it sounds mean
but I really don't think so
you asked for the truth and I told you
through they're own words
they will be exposed
they've got a severe case of the Emperor's New Clothes."

[middhoops]

Tough to bet against Wesleyan, as well as they've played this season.  Last week's close call against a better than advertised Eph squad didn't surprise me.  Somehow, Trinity following two last minute losses with a third L seems a stretch.  It's going to be a very good game.

[Nescacman]

Just a taste....my ratings and picks coming soon:

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304448204579186070955295710

[mattvsmith]

Just a taste....my ratings and picks coming soon:

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304448204579186070955295710

The poor WSJ reporter doesn't know his Latin grammatical genders. He calls Amanda Belichik an "alumnus" of Wesleyan. Hope he didn't go to Wesleyan. It would show that his $60K/year was wasted.

[Nescacman]

Week #8 NESCAC Preview and Power Rankings

Welcome to Week 8 in the NESCAC. The last week of another exciting NESCAC season. This week we will once again give our regular weekly preview of the upcoming games and our weekly power rankings for the NESCAC. Let's get it going...

We had a great week picking NESCAC games this week going 5-0. Additionally, we were pretty close with a number of our scores, other than Colby spanking the Jumbo's (Ciero finally did what we have expected of him all year) and Wesleyan (had they converted in the red zone with TDs instead of FGs, we would have been right on). As we expected, we could have gone either way with our GOTW and neither of the two games we considered (Wes/Ephs and LJs/Trinity) disappointed. We were surprised by Colby's dominance of Tufts (not sure why though, Tufts is the worst D3 football team in the world this side of Clinton, NY). Colby is coming on when it counts and can close out the prestigious 2013 C-B-B title (B-B-C in Brunswick) this week against Bowdoin.

As we head into the final week of the 2013 season, there are a few interesting games on the schedule this week. Besides the C-B-B title game (Colby at Bowdoin), we have the battle for second place in the Little 3 between Amherst and Williams. The GOTW has Wesleyan visiting Trinity College. This game has many interesting subplots including the Cardinals having a shot at their first ever outright NESCAC Football Championship and their first undefeated season since 1969. The other subplot here is of course Trinity's amazing 50 game home winning streak, which goes back to 2002. The other games on the schedule are Bates at Hamilton (will the crowd top 100 spectators???) and Middlebury at Tufts (could get very ugly).

Week 8 NESCAC Power Rankings

1. Wesleyan (Last Week #1): An exciting, important, historic win #7 for the Wesleyan Football Cardinals. With that win, Wesleyan won their first Little 3 championship in the modern era (since NESCAC started) and won at least a share of the NESCAC crown for only the second time ever. They are the best team in the NESCAC through 7 games. They are the #1 D3 team in New England in the latest coaches poll, are #6 in the Lambert Meadowlands D3 Poll for best team in East, and they are ranked #31 nationally. Although they did not turn in their past effort of the year (there was a great deal of pressure on this Team and we think they played a little tight), they did just enough to beat Williams for the first time since 1999. They won time of possession (31 minutes to 29 minutes) and turnovers (plus 2 for Wesleyan). Wesleyan is an amazing plus 13 in turnovers and continues to play well on both sides of the ball and special teams. In fact, all-league Wesleyan kicker Sebastian Aguire should have been one of the POTW in the special teams category this week based on his 3 FG (including the game winner), 1 PAT and 10 points scored performance. He leads the league in points scored for a kicker and has already set or tied three Wesleyan season kicking records this season (consecutive PATs converted, PATs made in a season, and field goals made in a season). Two other not so obvious reasons Wesleyan has been successful this year; the play of their offensive line and their secondary led by Senior DB Jake Bussani, week #7 defensive POTW. Wesleyan has yet to throw an interception, they lead the NESCAC in team rushing, and they have only allowed 4 sacks all year. The stellar play of their offensive line deserves credit for those stats. Meanwhile, Wesleyan's secondary has allowed the Cardinals to lead the NESCAC in passing yards allowed per game, passing efficiency against and put them near the top in interceptions.

2. Amherst (LW #2): Amherst pulled out another close one last week with their "bend but don't break" defense. In fact, looking at the game stats, we are trying to figure out how they won. Trinity had significantly more yards from scrimmage, they had more first downs, dominated the time of possession, and held Amherst's ground game in check, yet they lost. Trinity was a missed extra point away from putting this game into OT. This could have been a magical season for the Lord Jeffs if they got a little more consistent play at the QB position (10 TD's, 10 INTs). Amherst still has a chance at a share of the league title and 2nd place in the Little 3 with a win against Williams. That will be an interesting game if Williams HFC doesn't get in the way and lets his players play.

3. Middlebury (LW #3): The Panthers are an example of how you can win with a completely one-dimensional team, if that one dimension is good enough. They can't run the ball (last in the NESCAC in rushing YPG), turn the ball over a lot (even in turnover differential for the season...not what you would expect for a one loss team), and yet lead the NESCAC in passing by a long shot. As expected, they put a wallop on Hamilton and will do the same to Tufts this week to have a shot at a share of the NESCAC title. They will be big fans of the Bantams this week as they need a Wesleyan loss to have a shot at the tie. They will end the season with a more than respectable 7-1 season. Too bad they don't play Wesleyan.

4. Trinity (LW #4): Trinity goes to 0-2 in the serious part of their schedule against Middlebury, Amherst and Wesleyan. Turnovers and not converting third downs were their downfall against Amherst last week. Despite, as noted in previous columns, this is not the strongest Trinity team in recent years; they are 5-2 (however, we are surprised anytime Trinity has a down year given their academic standing vis a vis the rest of NESCAC). This week's game should be interesting as they look to extend their 50 game home win streak against their in-state rival Wesleyan. The game is being broadcast live and a huge crowd is expected in Hartford. Just a warning to anyone planning on attending the game this Saturday, if you have a nice car be careful where you park.

5. Colby (LW#5): Third win a row for them as they beat up on lowly Tufts. Their defense played very well again with their first shutout of 2013 and first since shutting out Bowdoin in the last game of 2012. We now give them a 75/25 chance of ending the year 5-3 and winning the coveted C-B-B title. They head to Brunswick this week to play the Polar Bears for the C-B-B title in what should be an interesting game.

6. Bates (LW #6): Good win for them against Bowdoin this week to get back into the winning column. They combined efficient passing (for a change) and effective running into a winning formula. They will finish the season 4-4 as they wrap up against Hamilton in Clinton (an almost 7 hours bus ride for those Bobcat fans planning to attend).

7. Williams (LW#7): The winning streak comes to an end. Last week we observed the Ephs for the first time in person this year. A couple of observations. They actually have as much talent on this team as any team in the NESCAC. In particular, we like their defensive line, their WR's and their starting RB. Three problems that we see: issues at QB, inconsistent play from their O-line and poor coaching. Last Saturday, they started their third different QB this season turning the ball over to sophomore Pomella (literally and figuratively), who made his first career start in a huge rivalry game against Wesleyan. Our sources tell us that starter Marske was out due to injury. Junior Murphy has also played this year (albeit poorly). The three of them have combined for 5 TDs and 14 INTs. Not sure how a proud program like Williams can go into the season with such a weak complement of signal callers. Frankly, it is shocking to long time NESCAC observers such as myself. Their offensive line has been ineffective allowing 13 sacks on the year and being near the bottom in rushing offense and passing efficiency. As evidence of their lack of effectiveness coaching (besides posts on this board by parents of NESCAC recruits and which are consistent with things we have heard from players we have recruited to other NESCAC schools) I will use one example. HCOF ("Head Coach of Football" NESCACman post neophytes) Kelton called his final timeout with 1:43 left in the game against Wes. By calling the timeout then as opposed to waiting, he allowed Wesleyan to take three kneeldowns in the victory formation to win the Little 3. Had he had better time management, he would have been left with about :20 seconds left with at least a punchers chance of winning the game. Coach Kelton previous job as HCOF at Williams was as Defensive Coordinator at that hot bed of Ivy League Football (2008 and 2009), Columbia (probably, a fifith place finisher in the NESCAC). His combined record during those two years was 6-14 with 465 points allowed (23 points per game). How did this guy end up getting one of the best D3 head coaching jobs in the country? Come on man! I think we all have an idea why. As we noted, there were a few bright spots in recent weeks for the Ephs like DL James Howe. However, their much heralded DL was shut out by the impressive Wesleyan OL. In our mind, they are still the "King of the Scrap Heap". They are second to last in the NESCAC in turnover differential at -11. They pass a lot for a Williams team but, as evidenced by their ranking in passing efficiency, they don't do that particularly well either. In fact, they don't really seem to do anything particularly well. They are going to have a tough time this week against a talented Amherst team.

8. Bowdoin (LW #8): We still think this team is better than their record indicates. They have a decent defense and some talent on offense. The problem is their offensive leadership is just not good (ranked second to last in the NESCAC). Our theory is that it all starts with the QB and in our very humble opinion, QB Caputi is the worst starting QB in the NESCAC (last in the NESCAC in passing efficiency among all QBs). Until they upgrade that position (since Caputi is a junior and "knows" the HCOF pretty well...that's "Head Coach of Football" for neophytes of this blog...that is probably not going to happen until the 2015 season) their offense will languish despite a decent running game. They have a shot to get to 4-4 but it is not going to be easy against their C-B-B (or "B-B-C" as Bowdoiners call it) rivals.

9. Connecticut College (LW #10): Have lost "0" straight.

10. Hamilton (LW #9): An 0-8 season is looking very real. They are last in the NESCAC in scoring offense and scoring defense. With a league worst turnover differential of minus 13, they do not give themselves much of a chance.

11. Tufts (LW #11): 30 in a row and counting. They will complete their third straight season 0-8. I will bet the ranch on a Middlebury win this week. One thing for sure is there will not be a lot of good running offense (#10 and #8 respectively in the NESCASC in rushing offense).


Week 8 NESCAC Preview

Bates College at Hamilton College: A ho hum game. About the only thing on the line for Hamilton is avoid a winless season. Keys to victory for Bates: Run the ball effectively and avoid turning it over. Keys to victory for Hamilton: Hope that Bates is tired and groggy from the ridiculously long bus trip from Lewiston and plays in a slumber.

Bates 28 Hamilton 14
Weather: Showers possible. Highs in the low 40's.

Middlebury College at Tufts University: Worst game on the NESCAC schedule this week. We will bet the house on a Panther win. This has the potential to be very lopsided given the fact that this is QB Foote's last game at the helm of Middlebury and this game is actually important to the Panthers who will tie Wesleyan for the league championship with a win and a Wes loss to Trinity. This will be another loss for the men from Medford. Make it 0-24 for Coach Civetti. Keys to victory for Middlebury: Show up. Keys to victory for Tufts: Foote gets hurt early or Tufts forgets the game is in Medford.

Middlebury 48 Tufts 7
Weather: Not a factor.

Colby College at Bowdoin College: Colby needs this win for the C-B-B title. They are on a 2 game winning streak and have the potential for a 5-3 season. QB Ciero, who we liked a lot last year, finally seems to be putting it together, winning offensive POTW honors last week. Keys to victory for Colby: Ciero continues to play well. Keys to victory for Bowdoin: Run the ball effectively and limit the number of times that QB Caputi has to pass.

Colby 24 Bowdoin 13
Weather: Not a factor.

Amherst College at William College: Last game ever on old Weston Field and on grass. Big rivalry game in Williamstown. We have watched both of these teams play this year on several occasions. Both teams have their flaws, however, Amherst has fewer of them. Despite Amherst's inconsistency at the QB position, they look like to Denver Broncos compared to the Eph's QB situation. They have turned the ball over too much (last in the NESCAC in fumbles lost) but have made up for it with a strong showing from their secondary (17 INTs). Amherst is well coached and has talent on both sides of the ball. Williams has far better talent than their record would indicate, but their coaching ineptitude will not allow them to win this game. Keys to victory for Amherst: Don't turn the ball over, consistent play from their QB and force Williams to pass and turn the ball over. Keys to victory for Williams: Kelton is fired before the game starts, they establish the running game, better play from their QB (whomever that might be) and they finally stop turning the ball over.

Amherst 28 Williams 17
Weather: Not a factor.


NESCAC Game of the Week

Wesleyan University at Trinity College: NESCAC and Connecticut GOTW. Another important game for Wesleyan: 1). They have a shot at ending Trinity's 50 game home winning streak. 2). Wesleyan has only shared in one NESCAC football title in their long history (1997). 3). Wesleyan has never won the NESCAC Football Championship outright since the league was started in 1971, and 4). Wesleyan last went undefeated in 1969. Wesleyan has a chance on Saturday to erase 1, 2, 3, and 4. For Trinity, this has been a disappointing season going 5-2 thus far. As per their Coach, they expect to go 8-0 every year so this season must be a major disappointment. Trinity, like Williams last week, will need to play an almost perfect game to have a shot at an upset. There will be a huge crowd at Trinity to watch this one plus a live TV audience. Keys to Wesleyan victory: win turnover differential, control the ball and the clock and avoid stupid penalties. Keys to Trinity victory: Establish the run and avoid giving up the big play. Do not leave the game in the hands of the first year QB. Trinity scores late to make it interesting.

Wesleyan 17 Trinity 14
Weather: Not a factor.


NESCAC Man's Picks
Last week: 5-0
Season (through seven weeks): 29-6

Next week...final rankings and season review.

Go Team!

[Panthernation]

The Panthers are an example of how you can win with a completely one-dimensional team, if that one dimension is good enough.

If this is your definition of one-dimensional, then pretty much every team in the conference is one-dimensional (with inversed roles). There is an important distinction between difference in role of dimension and difference in relationship between dimensions. I.e. Wesleyan is one-dimensional by this definition because their rushing statistics are far superior to their passing statistics.

[Panthernation]

Around the conference: Week 8

http://sites.middlebury.edu/panthernation/2013/11/09/around-the-conference-week-8/

[iamhuge]

IAMHUGH....enjoyed your posts the past and present years.  I gather your son will get his diploma in May.  Hope you will drop a post once in awhile in future years, especially when Tufts' fortune on the field improve.  In other sports the Jumbos are making their presence known.  Yes, New Jersey produce fine student athletes in Football!...for "CAC " schools.  Since Tufts has Grad schools, can/will your son play another year?

Today is Senior Day. How does a Dad feel when he sees his kid walk onto the field for the last time? After two season ending injuries and four surgeries I guess one would think that there would be a lot of mixed feelings about what could have been, or should have been? Nope.

All I can think about is how unbelievably fortunate I have been. There's not going to be enough room in that stadium to contain the pride I have for my football player.

Go Jumbos!

[iamhuge]

http://bostonherald.com/sports/college/college_football/2013/11/zero_hour_for_tufts_resilient_seniors



Zero hour for Tufts' resilient seniors
Saturday, November 9, 2013 PrintEmail Comments (0)
By:
John Connolly, N.e. Football

If you're looking for a plucky band of underdogs to root for this weekend, look no farther than Tufts (0-7) which is bidding to snap a 30-game losing streak today against NESCAC rival Middlebury (6-1).

The Jumbos' last win was Sept. 25, 2010, when they beat Hamilton, 21-10, at home in the season opener.

Since then, through countless bumps and bruises, and amid a variety of weather conditions on practice and game days, 11 seniors have stuck it out: Cord Deal, Connor Glazier, Nick Kenyon, Jon Sobo, Trevor Barsamian, Matt Johnson, John Dame and locals Sean Harrington (Chelmsford), Nate Marchand (Concord), Ryan Pollock (Reading) and Nash Simpson (Brockton).

The class numbered 27 as freshmen but attrition, for a variety of reasons, whittled that figure down to the 11 survivors. Through thick and thin, mostly thin, the group has persevered.

"In terms of character, hard work, integrity, stick-to-it-ness, all those type of buzz words, they've done that. They're great people and great kids and they continue to persevere that way," said Tufts coach Jay Civetti, who has maintained a professional and courageous stiff upper lip throughout the travails. "It's just frustrating that we haven't been able to turn the corner for them."

Although the wins have not come, no one said sport is easy. Still, life has a way of rewarding the underdogs, often when they least expect it.

"I couldn't recommend a better group of guys," Civetti said. "They'll be fiercely loyal. When others are full of despair and have their heads down, they'll find a way to get it done."

As for today's game, all eyes will be on former Herald All-Scholastic McCallum Foote of Newton. The former Noble & Greenough standout is the reigning NESCAC Offensive Player of the Year and has the Panthers offense clicking along at 425.3 yards per game (343.7 through the air). On the year, Foote has completed 229-of-375 passes for 2,364 yards and 19 touchdowns. He earned a Gridiron Club of Boston Gold Helmet after completing 25-of-29 for 332 yards and five TDs in a 40-13 thumping of Hamilton last weekend.

"They're always a well-coached team and they're incredibly athletic," Civetti said of Middlebury. "We had them on the ropes down here two years ago and he converted a couple of fourth-down passes on us. Their defense is solid and plays with good confidence so they'll challenge in some different ways. They won't be coming in taking us lightly because they're still in the title hunt."

[FightingCards]

Thank you Nescacman for sharing the final 1:43 pf the Wes/Williams game.  It serves the Williams "HCOF" right that he made a major blunder.  The Gods of the Purple Kingdom do remember that in Coach Keltons 1st year at Williams, he called time out near the end of the game to kick a FG while beating  Wesleyan 45-7. And the Whalen Mafia will never forget that....especially when 100 percent of the Williams lineup was recruited by Whalen.  Also thank you for sharing the WSJ article on The Coach Belichick/Whalen relationship.

Loading up the car and heading to Hartford this morning.  hope to see Al Davis there...had the honor and privilege to meet him last week in Middletown. This may be one of the great games of all time....but tough to be more exciting than the last 2 times these teams played....

[FightingCards]

Iamhuge-best of luck today.  I am a closet Jumbo supporter and would love to see the upset of the year with Middlebury today. It certainly is a long shot. I was a former college coach and a part of the late '80's Columbia turn around after losing 44 straight. When the Jumbos win, it will be electric and will erase a lot. Try to be there.  Good luck!

[Panthernation]

Our guide to today's games and what it all means for Middlebury's NESCAC title hopes: http://sites.middlebury.edu/panthernation/2013/11/09/what-it-all-means/

[NCF]

Trinity up 23-3.