FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[D3FLETCH]

When Tufts loses to Bowdoin next will they be the best 0-6 team in the country? Tufts is an underachieving football program for the past 15 plus years. They did have good years in 2016 and 2018. I believe Kelton could have produced those results.

WOW....quote off the year!!! Where are all the Jumbo fans when you need them???....maybe HCOF Kelton will be the next coach of the Jumbo's after he finishes his reign of terror at Howard U.!!!

I have funny feeling a year from now the same conversations will be made about the fall of Middlebury and Amherst. The rumors are they they each do not have good recruiting classes. Amherst bet on 5 or 6 top propsects from the Brown football camp and all have chosen Ivy League schools or different directions. So going to be a long cycle of depression on the gridiron for those schools.

I have more confidence in Ritter/Mills turning it around if they had a bad recruiting cycle. Seems unlikely that a bad 2021 incoming freshman class would account for the falloff of Middlebury. Amherst was 4-5 in 2019. Middlebury is the head scratcher. Graduated a ton of players, but still have the QB.

[lumbercat]

I respect your opinion NM - If Wes can stop anybody you might be right. Either way there will be some good football to enjoy.

[polbear73]

No one seems to have mentioned the pandemic and the fact that a complete season was lost to NESCAC football. I'm sure that it affected all schools differently and may be a factor for the deviation from norm in the relative performances of some teams. If that's the case, it won't take Coaches Mills and Ritter long to figure it out.

[nescac1]

For Midd, everything went right to go 9-0 in 2019. They were not a dominant team by any stretch.  They went a remarkable 6-0 in one-score games including winning four games by a total of 13 points.  They hosted Trinity, Williams, and Wesleyan, which was a perfect schedule, caught Trinity in its one relatively down year, and caught the Ephs early in the year before they really found their footing.  They also had remarkable luck with health for their key players.   Sure, Midd lost a great group of players to graduation, especially at WR/TE, but the overall talent level on the roster is not dramatically different.  This year, however, Midd has been far less fortunate - losing its star TB (a critical guy for them) during the first practice, suffering an injury to its starting QB, losing a game to Amherst where it badly outgained the Mammoths (the type of game it would win last year).  Football is weird and sometimes a combo of a small downgrade in talent plus a huge swing in fortune - including a lack of stability at QB - - can account for a very different record, especially when you account for momentum and confidence.   Meanwhile, many of the teams on its schedule to date - arguably all but Amherst - are more talented than they were in 2019, contributing to a huge swing in outcomes.  (Hamilton and Tufts are also down from 2019 levels, but Midd has yet to face them). 

Amherst is a different story, as its level of talent has clearly been trending down from
2018 to now.  A big part of that is that it doesn't have any remaining classes of players from the Kelton era, when it could steal all sorts of guys it used to have to share with Williams.  That doesn't account for all of its issues (the overall talent level at the offensive skill positions seems weirdly down from nearly anytime in the Mills era, missing offensive dynamism, clearly a few guys just did not pan out) but certainly is a big factor ...

[Nescacman]

For Midd, everything went right to go 9-0 in 2019. They were not a dominant team by any stretch.  They went a remarkable 6-0 in one-score games including winning four games by a total of 13 points.  They hosted Trinity, Williams, and Wesleyan, which was a perfect schedule, caught Trinity in its one relatively down year, and caught the Ephs early in the year before they really found their footing.  They also had remarkable luck with health for their key players.   Sure, Midd lost a great group of players to graduation, especially at WR/TE, but the overall talent level on the roster is not dramatically different.  This year, however, Midd has been far less fortunate - losing its star TB (a critical guy for them) during the first practice, suffering an injury to its starting QB, losing a game to Amherst where it badly outgained the Mammoths (the type of game it would win last year).  Football is weird and sometimes a combo of a small downgrade in talent plus a huge swing in fortune - including a lack of stability at QB - - can account for a very different record, especially when you account for momentum and confidence.   Meanwhile, many of the teams on its schedule to date - arguably all but Amherst - are more talented than they were in 2019, contributing to a huge swing in outcomes.  (Hamilton and Tufts are also down from 2019 levels, but Midd has yet to face them). 

Amherst is a different story, as its level of talent has clearly been trending down from
2018 to now.  A big part of that is that it doesn't have any remaining classes of players from the Kelton era, when it could steal all sorts of guys it used to have to share with Williams.  That doesn't account for all of its issues (the overall talent level at the offensive skill positions seems weirdly down from nearly anytime in the Mills era, missing offensive dynamism, clearly a few guys just did not pan out) but certainly is a big factor ...

Agree with all of the above eph1...a few minor points to add to your analysis...MID also lost arguably the best offensive lineman in the league who was the glue of that group...they lost a ton of talent at WR/TE, some would say the best all around group in the 2019 NESCAC...the loss of the offensive rookie of the year TB was huge drop-off in talent from 2019 to 2021 (btw, our understanding is that he did not get injured...he decided football was not for him anymore)...they also lost key players at other positions but they do have back lots of talent back from 2019 including both the offensive (Jernigan) and defensive (Pistorious) players of the year...we think it would be a mistake for any team to take the PANTS lightly....they could come to life at any time...

As far as the Lord Mammoths, we believe you hit the nail on the head as far as their relative demise...during the HCOF Kelton era, HCOF Mills was winning most, if not all, of those recurring battles with the Ephs...now that the Ephs have a competent coach and are back to their winning ways, EJ is having a tougher time finding talent, particularly at the skill positions...could Amhurt's attitude towards athletics and how the school handled the pandemic also be a factor as to why they are having problems recruiting???

[BigKat]

Great analysis folks but let's remember the majority of NESCAC starters and even two deep on these squads are pre pandemic recruits. So very premature to flush out what the last year or so of recruits looks like. Also, it's super disappointing these AD's aren't scrambling to put Fresh/JV games against other schools or even preps. I know there has been one or two random games but I mean a 4/5 game schedule with plenty of time to have planned it. Bloated rosters with kids getting minimal practice reps doesn't help develop the younger kids at all.

[nescac1]

Two more points on Amherst.  First, it appears that Duborow and Kelly didn't play vs. Bowdoin.  If Amherst is down its two all-league defensive players for any more than a week, that's trouble for the M's.  Second, Amherst has one of the more veteran teams in the league this year, so I'd be worried as a Mammoth fan about what the future holds.  In addition to Duborow and Kelly, a lot of its other top players are fifth-year seniors: Field, Ayyub, Goodson, Albino, Bates, and most of its TE / receiving core (Immerman, Masterson, Garland, Clementi).  Other than maybe Tim Swope or perhaps an offensive lineman, I think its likely that Amherst ends up with zero all-league guys returning to next year's squad ...   

[Trin9-0]

Lumber....we are very objective....

There are 1,223 pages of NESCAC football discussion on this board and this is the single most hilarious thing ever written on these pages.

[JEFFFAN]

Lumber....we are very objective....

There are 1,223 pages of NESCAC football discussion on this board and this is the single most hilarious thing ever written on these pages.

Yeah, I am with you on this one!  This group might be the most wonderfully subjective and thus non-objective group of sports fans out there.  It is what makes this site so charming.   

[polbear73]

Charming? That may be the last word I'd use to describe this board!

By the way, Jefffan, with the result on Saturday, I haven't noticed hell freezing over nor have I seen pigs flying

[Trin9-0]

Your Week 5 NESCAC Football Uniform Report:
*There was a dearth of pictures from this weekend's games so I've included links (mostly to videos). Sadly, there were no real stand out combos this week but certainly some missed potential.

Amherst at Bowdoin
Grade C
What a shame that Bowdoin gets their first win since 2018 and they're wearing their dreadful mono-grey look. Mercifully, Amherst seems to have figured it out and we were treated to their sharp purple (on the road!) jerseys with white pants.

Williams at Hamilton
Grade B
Hamilton looked solid in their classic home set. Hopefully, if/when they add a second pair of pants they'll go with buff and avoid the dreaded all blue look. Meanwhile Williams did the best they could with their subpar options (hey, at least there's no black in the Ephs road jersey!).

Wesleyan at Tufts
Grade B
I think the all white is Wesleyan's best combo. It pairs great with the black helmet and the piping on the jersey is less superfluous with the all white pants. As previously noted, I'm a believer that Tufts should be in brown at home and if they need to mix in the powder blue, please do so in moderation. The all Smurf look is not ideal and tarnishes what could have been a beauty of a game.

Middlebury at Colby
Grade B
A perfectly fine looking match-up, but nothing spectacular. Midd looked sharp (as always) even though I prefer the white pants to the navy. This is your weekly reminder that Colby needs to bring back their grey pants. The white britches just don't look right with the grey helmets. The Mules used to have such an iconic look. I wish they'd move back to a more classic uniform.

Bates at Trinity
Grade B+
As always, Bates looks their best on the road when they can avoid the mono-maroon look. Trinity sported their classic navy jersey with white pants combo and the alternating color contrast between the two made for an above average looking game.

[Charlie]

Great analysis folks but let's remember the majority of NESCAC starters and even two deep on these squads are pre pandemic recruits. So very premature to flush out what the last year or so of recruits looks like. Also, it's super disappointing these AD's aren't scrambling to put Fresh/JV games against other schools or even preps. I know there has been one or two random games but I mean a 4/5 game schedule with plenty of time to have planned it. Bloated rosters with kids getting minimal practice reps doesn't help develop the younger kids at all.

Which begs the question why not expand the season to 10 games. Almost every college plays a 10 game schedule excluding playoffs. I am all for a JV team but something tells me NESCAC is going to catch on and bring the roster back to its original limits in no time.

[PolarCat]

Stop.  Just stop.  That's like saying why not expand the week to 8 days or the periodic table of elements to 150.  It's never going to happen in our lifetimes so let's stop derailing the board.

Thank you.

[Charlie]

Stop.  Just stop.  That's like saying why not expand the week to 8 days or the periodic table of elements to 150.  It's never going to happen in our lifetimes so let's stop derailing the board.

Thank you.

I am not saying make it permanent but for the rosters being close to 100 players  , no spring ball I guess projected for this spring. There are no JV games or teams for that matter what would it hurt to temporarily add an extra game (Non League)or pre season game the next season. Even add temporarily a non league game. The Ivy League plays a 10 game schdule I thought the NESCAC was duplicating there schedule. So having a 10th non league game or pre season is not ludicrous

[lumbercat]

Ole Charlie is at it again- Junior must have caught up on his sleep to the point where he's now rested enough to handle another game on the schedule....... and one more hell week getting up at 4:00.

It's the NESCAC folks- get a handle on it. For reference look at what the Ivies do and pull that regimen back by several notches, there won't be a tenth game.

Funny how sentiment and perspective changes from the criticism which followed the bad Colby loss to a totally new perspective following the Mules great win over Middlebury on Saturday.

Based on that great win against Middlebury I'd jump back on the Cosgrove bandwagon if I were you Charlie. Can't remember the last Colby win over Middlebury. Suggest you trust Cosgrove.