FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[Trin9-0]

The importance of facilities in recruiting can't be overstated. The recent commitment to athletics that Amherst, Bates, Wesleyan and Williams have put forth to improving fields, stadia, etc. has, and will continue to, pay dividends.

Trinity recently finished a LONG overdue upgrade to their varsity locker rooms. I know there were plans for an reconfiguration and overhaul of the baseball, softball, and soccer fields but I haven't seen anything publicly released about that project. I don't know of any plans for upgrades to the football facilities. The turf at Jessee/Miller Field will be 13 years old this fall; the typical lifespan for a field turf surface is 8-10 years. Given the financial climate at Trinity I'd be surprised to see a facilities overhaul like those completed at Amherst and Williams in the near future, but hopefully there is money set aside to at least redo the playing surface, which is now also used as the primary practice and game field for men's lacrosse.

I believe Trin was the first NESCAC school to make the switch from a grass field and it coincided with their rise back to the top of the league. I believe, only Tufts, Bowdoin, and Wesleyan still play on grass though I think the Cards have a field turf practice facility. With Andrus doubling as the Wes baseball outfield I doubt they'll ever make the switch to a turf game field. I'm sure this isn't news to anyone on this board, but it bears repeating that the Bants haven't lost a home game since the field turf was installed prior to the 2002 season. It'd be nice to retire the field surface with the home win streak intact.

You know it's time for the season to start when we've resorted to talking about playing surfaces!

[gridiron]

Agreed it is time to start the season.  More info with which to bide time in prep. 

1992 - 2013 (NESCAC Era)         
            W    L   T
Trinity   139   37   0
Williams   138   36   2
Amherst   121   54   1
Middlebury   106   70   0
Colby            88   87   1
Wesleyan    87   89   0
Tufts            61   114   1
Bowdoin   56   119   1
Hamilton   43   133   0
Bates           37   139   0

[frank uible]

No, "sun spots" were omitted.

[amh63]

Gridiron...your time period era of conference games ....starting with 1992.....for those younger posters ....include the time when Amherst football hit bottom.  It was the time when my sons were at Amherst and the losing seasons impacted them...when roommates quit the football teams, etc.   An Amherst alum was hired after Coach "DARP" retired and was fired after one season when AMH went 0-8.  The present Wes OC was hired from WPI to turn the program around.  After four seasons,  he left for the HFC position at Yale.  HFC Mills, the DC then, remained to take over the program...great hire.
A little history to say that the wins and loses for Amherst included some bad seasons.  Coach Mills maybe a lifer, since his sons are young and his wife is a classmate of one of my sons

[gridiron]

Amh63--thanks for the background.

Here's another slice of history--since the time when NESCAC football champions were officially recognized.

2000 - 2013 (Champion Era)      
           W     L
Trinity   94   18
Williams   83   29
Amherst   84   28
Middlebury   71   41
Colby           58   54
Wesleyan   51   61
Tufts           36   76
Bowdoin   33   79
Bates           30   82
Hamilton   20   92

[gridiron]

Numbers were correct but order was not...apologies to Amh63, sorry Frank.

2000 - 2013 (Champion Era)      
   W   L
Trinity   94   18
Amherst   84   28
Williams   83   29
Middlebury   71   41
Colby   58   54
Wesleyan   51   61
Tufts   36   76
Bowdoin   33   79
Bates   30   82
Hamilton   20   92

[gridiron]

And the most recent rolling five year period--confirms trends of those on the rise and those not.

2009 - 2013 (Five Year)      
           W   L
Amherst   35   5
Trinity   34   6
Middlebury   27   13
Williams   25   15
Wesleyan   22   18
Colby           18   22
Bates           15   25
Bowdoin   14   26
Hamilton   7   33
Tufts           3   37

[Trin9-0]

Last night I had dinner with the Trin coaching staff at a former teammate's house. There was some great discussion on NESCAC football and as you would expect they were all champing at the bit to get the season going.

A few items I found interesting:

Trinity has indeed had preliminary discussions about re-doing the football complex but the scale of the project may prevent it from happening in the next few years.

The Bantams will have 99 players report to camp, by far their most since the NESCAC 75 player roster limit was imposed.

I was shocked to find that testing players on their strength and conditioning is now illegal in Div. III unless they forego practice time in subsequent days. Seems like overkill in the name of player safety to me.

[warriorcat]

Release from Bates about recent FB staff changes

http://athletics.bates.edu/sports/fball/2014-15/releases/2014081586fxoo

[Jonny Utah]

Release from Bates about recent FB staff changes

http://athletics.bates.edu/sports/fball/2014-15/releases/2014081586fxoo

So bates runs,the triple option? Is this new?

[lumbercat]

Bates has run the triple option exclusively for the past 2 years. During that timeframe they have averaged over 230 yards per game rushing and led the conference in rushing yards per game in 2013.

On a related CBB note it was recently confirmed on this board that all conference QB Justin Ciero would not be returning to Colby this year......Colby has enrolled an impressive last minute replacement for Ciero this summer.

Transfer from UConn- sophomore QB Michael Ecke- Cheshire, Ct.
Was third or fourth QB on UConn depth chart and listed on their 2014 roster until recently.
Quite a coup for the Colby staff....

Several programs in the NESCAC certainly seem to be recruiting more aggressively and creatively these days.

[nescac1]

This has been the craziest off-season at the QB position that I can recall in NESCAC, with three highly-acclaimed QBs expected to start or contend for starting jobs departing, and two D1 transfers coming in who will challenge for starting jobs.   Summing up the QB situation for each team, based on what has been reported here (for the most part, this does not mention frosh candidates, who could complicate things further):

Amherst: is in very good shape at QB as the Jeffs return the entire unit, but that doesn't mean it won't be interesting as three capable QBs (Lippe, Berluti, and Pieterse) will be vying for time.  I imagine Lippe will likely be the starter with Berluti seeing some time, and then stepping in as an upperclassman next year. 

Bates: star recruit Nick LaSpada leaves the program, leaving the team in the hands of senior Matt Cannone.  More certainty for this year, but less for the future. 

Bowdoin: with Mac Caputi, a senior returning starter (and the son of the HC), and the only returning QB who attempted a pass, the Bowdoin QB situation looks to be settled.  Still, a star frosh could steal some time from Caputi if the passing game is not more productive early in the fall. 

Colby: star QB Justin Ciero leaves program for as-of-yet-unexplained reasons, leaving a massive hole.  D1 transfer Michael Ecke, who previously played at Central Conn, then UConn, seems like the top candidate to step in. 

Hamilton: Chase Rosenberg figures to return to the leading role after starting as a frosh, but Hamilton has surprised with choices at this position in the past, and after another tough season anything is possible. 

Middlebury: all-everything QB McCallum Foote graduates after three record-setting years, leaving Nick Andonian, Eric Bertino, or perhaps a transfer/frosh to fight for the starting position.  Middlebury has been fortunate to have six straight years of incredible QB play, so this season could be a challenge unless another star is waiting in the wings.

Trinity: NESCAC ROY Sonny Puzzo, who looked like a future star, leaves the program (or at least takes a semester off, it's unclear), leaving the QB position in the hands of veteran Henry Foye, who started last season as the starter before giving way to Puzzo, or this year's highly-acclaimed frosh, Spencer Aukamp.  Whoever wins the job will be asked to do more than last season after Trinity graduated its dynamic RB duo. 

Tufts: it's likely that senior Jack Doll will earn the starting nod, but considering that Tufts played four different QBs last year (and two played a lot) and all of them struggled, anything, including a frosh winning the job, is possible. 

Wesleyan: with senior and multiple-year starter Jesse Warren returning, along with Bowdoin, this is by far the most settled / stable QB situation in NESCAC.  With Foote's graduation and Ciero's transfer, Warren is the overwhelming favorite to be the first-team all-NESCAC QB. 

Williams: another team with a ton of uncertainty at the position.  Two guys who started some games, Mark Pomella and Tom Murphy, return but given the overall struggles of the passing game last year, very possible for a frosh or transfer, in particular, Boston College transfer Austin Lommen, to win the starting job.  My totally uninformed guess is that Lommen ends up the starter, Pomella backs him up, and Murphy shifts to another position where his athleticism can be an asset. 

[frank uible]

This guy can find no web or other evidence that Ecke has played in any intercollegiate football game at UConn, Central Connecticut or elsewhere. In 2013 UConn had Ecke and 7 other QBs on its roster. He was not in the 3 listed on the depth chart.

[lumbercat]

Frank-
Never said Ecke took a varsity snap at UConn- he played in their Spring game in May 2014 and was third or fourth on their depth chart at that time.
He was listed earlier this summer on UConn 2014 preseason but his name was recently removed.

[amh63]

My question to conf. posters...tongue in cheek.....is .....can Mr. Ecke run the triple option offense?  Like some D1 transfers in other sports, it does not mean that one becomes a starter/contributor right away,imo.
Oops...it is Bates that prefer the triple option!  My bad.  It was Lumbercat's post on the Colby transfer that confused me...I know ...poor excuse