FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[lumbercat]

Polbear-

Yes I exaggerated a bit but we agree. I missed the early 70's. I was at Bates during the rebuilding era later under Vic Gatto when things got pretty good but that didn't change the rivalry with Bowdoin. Always a tough game with a ton of emotion and passion on both sides.

[gridiron]

Vic Gatto, the former Harvard star.

[polbear73]

Which added another element to the rivalry as Bowdoin Head Coach Jim Lentz was on the Harvard staff when Vic Gatto played.

[Trin9-0]

yikes. 

so what is the key game of the season for Colby?

The opener against Trinity at home. You have many months to prepare for them. You're at home. And you have a new coach with a "We can beat these guys attitude". Win, and you've pulled off the greatest upset in nescac memory. Keep it close and give them a real scare and you set the tone for your team, and send a message that thing are different on Mayflower Hill. So yes, the opener is the biggest game.

There's nothing wrong with ambition, but that puts quite a bit of pressure on the Mules to perform against a team expected to vie for a title. Colby hasn't beaten Trinity since 1995. Granted they only played every two years over that stretch, but the Bantams have won 75% of their match-ups dating back to 1924 (with Trin holding a 38-13 advantage in the series).

In looking at the Mules schedule they follow the opener with a road trip to Williamstown, then play host to Middlebury and Wesleyan before traveling to Amherst. I'd say that's as touch a stretch of games as you can get to open a NESCAC football season. If the Mules can put a scare into any of those teams they'll be lucky and I would circle October 20th as their first real chance at a win when the Continentals come to town.

It'll be very interesting to see how much of an impact a Cosgrove can have in 9 months.

[PolarCat]

Please, God.  Let that be the first and only reference to Boiled Owl this season.

LC, back in the day we Indians felt the same way about Harvard.  Their alums added bearskin coats to their stadium attire, and we complimented them on the road kill.  When we traveled to Cambridge in 1974 (?) the Boston Globe ran an article about the drunken hordes from the North Country invading Cambridge to rape and pillage.  There wasn't any raping (it was all consensual - God, those Wellesley and Wheaton girls loved having us come to town) and the pillaging was often limited to stealing the statue of John Harvard, and/or painting him Green, but the Globe got the sentiment right.  Our favorite chant was "H with an A, R, V; V with an A, R, D.  Knit one, purl two, Hahvahd YOO HOO!"  Biff and Muffy got apoplectic when we did that.

There is a lot of similarity between the NESCAC of today and the Ivy League of 40 years ago.  But today's students are missing out on one of the great joys of our formative years: the ROAD TRIP to away games.  Yes, a couple dozen Polar Bears will make the 40 minute drive to Lewiston for an afternoon of drinking, (or vice versa), but busloads of frat brothers coming to town for the weekend?  Women's colleges welcoming us with open arms?  Honest to God Marching Bands on the field at halftime, with routines that would get you expelled today?  Yep, those were the days.

[amh63]

Ahh, the 70's, road trips and a little "Animal House" antics too . Yes, the Hordes of Indians...traditional label and NOT political.....arrival to Cambridge was a Big event in my era of the 60's into the early 70's.
A question to PolarCat before I ramble on.  You Indians never went to Radcliffe??  It was one of the 7 Sisters.
First Nescac comment.  Amherst football twitter have 2 pics. First one has a statement "eight days" and has a player with a numerical 8 on his jersey.  Imho, a specific focus to the first game with Bates.
The second pic shows a number of players in their new Under Armour uniforms. No indication of the helmet change, if any.  Like the stripes on the sleeves.  Uniforms are much like the UA uniforms in D1 games last weekend.
When I was at Amherst, l spent my Fall holidays in Cambridge, no funds to go home.  My older brother was at Harvard and put me up in one of the houses.  Studied at the undergraduate library and dined either in Harvard Square or in the House that had its dining hall open for those students on campus.  Had to wear a coat and tie to the meals.  I also spend a number of years in Cambridge as a married student getting several graduate degrees at MIT....late 60's -early 70's.   Got to see a number of Harvard-Yale games and Harvard-Darmouth games....both very big events in Cambridge.  Glad that I was gone before PolarCat and friends arrived.  One of my sons was born at Mt. Auburn Hospital in Cambridge.
Will post later wrt how two D1 quality Amherst football players were...both QBs..."recruited".
Will post later

[Trin9-0]

amh63, thanks for the heads-up on the new Mammoth uniforms. They're sharp but I'm not sure about those grey pants. They just don't feel like Amherst to me. I wonder if a black jersey will be on the horizon. From what I can see it looks like the helmet logo will be the same as last year albeit a different center stripe pattern.


Also, interesting that while the new uniforms are Under Armor seemingly all of the players in the photo appear to still be wearing Nike cleats and gloves. I suppose it will take a while to transition all the gear to UA.

[lumbercat]

Great looking uni's- 2 sets of pants. First class look all the way.

I notice many of todays players especially in skill positions like to fold the pants up above the knee.
That won't be allowed this year in the NCAA- pants have to cover the knee.
Also shirts tucked in and no undershirts hanging out etc.....have to wait and see how strictly they enforce this in the NESCAC.

Trinity usually has some great new uniform looks but haven't seen anything yet.

[ColbyFootball]

yikes. 

so what is the key game of the season for Colby?

The opener against Trinity at home. You have many months to prepare for them. You're at home. And you have a new coach with a "We can beat these guys attitude". Win, and you've pulled off the greatest upset in nescac memory. Keep it close and give them a real scare and you set the tone for your team, and send a message that thing are different on Mayflower Hill. So yes, the opener is the biggest game.

There's nothing wrong with ambition, but that puts quite a bit of pressure on the Mules to perform against a team expected to vie for a title. Colby hasn't beaten Trinity since 1995. Granted they only played every two years over that stretch, but the Bantams have won 75% of their match-ups dating back to 1924 (with Trin holding a 38-13 advantage in the series).

In looking at the Mules schedule they follow the opener with a road trip to Williamstown, then play host to Middlebury and Wesleyan before traveling to Amherst. I'd say that's as touch a stretch of games as you can get to open a NESCAC football season. If the Mules can put a scare into any of those teams they'll be lucky and I would circle October 20th as their first real chance at a win when the Continentals come to town.

It'll be very interesting to see how much of an impact a Cosgrove can have in 9 months.

The question posed was which Colby game was the "key" game. So I tried to give my reasons why I believe Trinity is the key, or as I put it, "biggest" game.
The late great Vince Lombardi once said, "We would accomplish many more thing if we did not think of them as impossible". I have always coached my players to believe they can beat anyone. Of course, you don't always beat everyone. But in my humble opinion, the first major ingredient to becoming a winner, is believing you can win. When you have that belief, you work and train harder, and you play harder. So, the Trinity game is the key game. It will hopefully reinforce a we can beat anyone attitude.

[PolarCat]

Biggest complaint the Bobcat players had when my son was there was the prior coaching staff "mailing it in" during the first half of the season and only getting uber serious about competing when the CBB rolled around.  When the Cats jumped out to an early lead against Midd in 2016 , or kicked a 43 yard FG to lead Wes at halftime last year, the coaches were the most surprised folks in the stadium.

I am 99.999% sure Coach Hall doesn't suffer from that affliction.

[gridiron]

The Colby Mules have always have the most difficult first have opponents of the season. Have heard that will be changing in future seasons.

[gridiron]

Without question the biggest game for the Harvard Crimson during the 70s was Yale, with Dartmouth being second. Both were great events for players and fans alike.

[ColbyFootball]

The Colby Mules have always have the most difficult first have opponents of the season. Have heard that will be changing in future seasons.

The nescac has decided on a rotating schedule going forward. Not sure if it's to begin next year or the year after. But, they will retain timing of important rivalries, i.e. Williams-Amherst. This is so long overdue, and should really help teams like Colby.

[amh63]

Good to hear that the Nescac is trying to "even the schedule' while retaining the key ones stable like the Amherst-Williams and hopefully the Trinity-Wesleyan one.
The weather in the D.C. area is still very unstable with flood watches all around.  There is a Little Three X Country Championship event today at Amherst.  The weather is cool thankfully for the runners.
Anyway, some Amherst football "recruiting stories from the past.
Have a classmate from Iowa that played football...now deceased .  His brother-in-law was a talented QB.  He was recruited by my late classmate to play at Amherst.  In a game against the NE top rated team at the time by the Boston papers...Tufts...in Medford (1970)?...this Iowa QB hindered by a leg injury that limited his running...blew the Jumbos out.  There were several young Amherst pro bound WRs that helped .  The Boston papers investigated the QB and the stories that followed...paraphrasing here...Amherst QB turned down scholarships to IOwa and Iowa State to play
at Amherst.  Medical doctor father pays costs for son to attend Amherst.  The QB, now a MD himself, still practices medicine in Ct. presently, I believe.  His son, who attended Taft school in Watertown Ct., went on to play QB at Amherst...Nick Kehoe'07.
2nd story.....deals with Amherst QB, Marsh Mosely'05.  Marsh, from New Orleans, La., is slight in statue..about 5'10"...backed up Eli Manning in HS.  Yes, the top private school in New Orleans where the Manning brothers played.  Marsh was recruited by Princeton as a DB.  Marsh wanted to play QB in college.  Amherst HFC, Mills gets a phone call from the father of Eli Manning wrt to Marsh Mosely desires.  Yes, Coach Mills replied....Marsh could compete for the QB position if he is admitted to Amherst.  Marsh on Nov. 13, 2004 on Pratt Field helped beat Williams in a Homecoming game.  It was a rare victory for Amherst at the time over Williams.  Amherst finished 6-2for the season with Marsh at QB.  Marsh teammates loved him.  Seems Marsh's father rented a place in Amherst for the season and brought his own Chef with him.  Marsh's teammates loved the Cajun type food cookouts for the team.  Maybe the food was as good as that provided by PolarCat...different type of shellfish and seafood though.

[WesCardPlayer]

amh63: http://www.middlebury.edu/newsroom/archive/2018-news/node/591348

Middlebury finally posted news of their first-years' arrival. 660 fall enrollees and another 104 in February. Middlebury's 764 is about Wesleyan's normal class size (Wes over-enrolled this year like some other NESCAC schools).

One week to go until the first slate of games:

Williams @ Bowdoin - is this the year Williams makes the jump back up to the upper echelon of the league?
Middlebury @ Wesleyan - quarterback duel; the losing team has a tough climb for a title
Tufts @ Hamilton - can the Jumbos continue their recent winning ways?
Amherst @ Bates - new coach hosting perennial power
Trinity @ Colby - new coach hosting perennial power