FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[nescac1]

Regarding QB, losing a four year starter, POY, and generational talent in NESCAC like Maimaron is never going to be easy no matter WHO is replacing him.  It's hard to expect anyone to produce at his level right away.  But, I also do not expect QB to be a "troubled" position going forward.  I expect that Jack Dickinson and Colin Schofield will battle for the QB position next year (both saw the field in small doses as back-ups this year).  Both are entering their third year on campus, and second year on the roster.  Each has three years of eligibility remaining and I think it's a good bet to expect that at least one will take the extra semester, especially if they are a starting QB, which is probably why Williams hasn't really prioritized recruiting a star QB behind them.  They were both very highly regarded recruits; Schofield was considered one of the best QBs in MA and Dickinson I think had a low D1 offer.  They are both big, strong-armed guys who look reasonably athletic -- not Maimaron of course, but can at least get some yards on the ground.  With two good, veteran options to look to, I'd expect at least one will pan out as an above-average QB in the league.  But this is all just speculation, no way to really know until they put on the pads in the fall!

Williams will have to change its entire style of offense with a new offensive coordinator, no Maimaron, no Stola and no Burke.  To me, the loss of Burke and Stola, both of whom were match-up nightmares, is as big an issue as losing Maimaron.  Williams doesn't have anyone like that to really terrify a defense next year, I'd expect.

It will help the new QB to have three offensive line starters (plus two more guys who started some games as injury replacements) back, and help a LOT to have by a wide margin the best group of running backs in the league, who will certainly carry a heavy load including I imagine more work as receivers out of the backfield, where Dan Vaughn really excels (in fact I'd love to see him play as a receiving-focused FB in a lot of two-back sets).  But without Maimaron, Williams is going to have be, I'd say, LESS conservative on offense, using the run to set up more downfield passing.  Degasperis is at worst a very reliable option and might end up being a borderline all-league WR as the number one guy.  After him, it is a lot of question marks.  Cam Lee I think could end up being a big-play threat, he looked promising but was one of three frosh receivers to suffer season-ending injuries.  How those three guys (Lee, Ledden, and Morrison) develop will be absolutely huge for the offense.  The plus side is, I'm sure they got plenty of reps with whoever will emerge as QB during practice last year.  Will Loffredo is another big target at WR who could be a good possession receiver, and Tyler Spiezio had a big sophomore year at TE, and hopefully will be able to replace at least some of Burke's production, even if he's not the same sort of elite downfield receiver. So there are a lot of options, but all of them are big question marks.   

[lumbercat]

And to reflect a bit on Maimoron he was an exceptional NESCAC QB who landed at Williams when his first choice, Harvard, apparently balked at an earlier deal or delayed on their decision so he chose Williams. I'll bet he has no regrets.

He could have rewritten NESCAC passing records if the Ephs chose to throw the ball 40 times per game but they were committed to winning with a balanced attack. The ultimate team concept and I commend them for that. A great undefeated team.

[SpringSt7]

Maimaron did in fact break the Williams passing TD record with 55. I couldn't find official records on the league site but I believe his 79 total TDs are second only to McCallum Foote. 24 career rushing TDs honestly seems low, Nicholas stole a lot of his red zone TDs and they were also pretty content to keep Maimaron untouched when possible, especially in the 2nd half against mismatched opponents.

He was pretty good.

[lumbercat]

The most telling stat on any of Maimorons passing achievements is the fact that they threw ball less than 20 times a game this year.
The great O line and ground game made the kid better but oh Yes he was pretty good.
At Air Middlebury they would have thrown it 50 times a game with Maimoron and Houdini Ritter at the helm.

[Jonny Utah]

The most telling stat on any of Maimorons passing achievements is the fact that they threw ball less than 20 times a game this year.
The great O line and ground game made the kid better but oh Yes he was pretty good.
At Air Middlebury they would have thrown it 50 times a game with Maimoron and Houdini Ritter at the helm.

Coach Raymond recently spoke at a HS clinic in MA and he talked about Williams play action pass game.  He emphasized how well they have to run the ball and what that does to open up their Sail/Post/Cross concept.  He went on to show lots of video of how that concept worked out of different formations, groupings, etc.  These weren't RPO's either, (although he said they did incorporate many of their RPO's into their offense) but they were play action passes with 7 in to protect.  So in the videos you see how open some of the Williams WR's got but even more interesting is when he talked about how Maimaron would sometimes simply throw to a covered Stola because they (Stola and Maimaron) had worked so much together and had such a mental correction that the coaches wouldn't even say anything because more often than not they would make plays.  Even more interesting to me is looking up Stola and seeing that he only caught 21 passes this year?  Looks like he may have been hurt but either way it was a good clinic from Raymond. 

[nescac1]

Stola missed some time with injury this year (and looked a bit slower in a few games when he came back), but also, Williams just did not throw the ball very much and when they did took advantage of teams shifting coverage towards Stola.  He did make the play of the year for the Ephs when everything was kind of falling apart vs Amherst.  The Ephs will absolutely miss having a guy like that next year ... barring the emergence of someone unexpected!   

Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete.  But with him and Mazzacco that's two versatile guys who should make an impact somewhere on the field and maybe see some time down the line as running QBs. 

[Charlie]

Stola missed some time with injury this year (and looked a bit slower in a few games when he came back), but also, Williams just did not throw the ball very much and when they did took advantage of teams shifting coverage towards Stola.  He did make the play of the year for the Ephs when everything was kind of falling apart vs Amherst.  The Ephs will absolutely miss having a guy like that next year ... barring the emergence of someone unexpected!   

Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete.  But with him and Mazzacco that's two versatile guys who should make an impact somewhere on the field and maybe see some time down the line as running QBs.

Williams has a habit a lot like Trinity of taking kids who were QB and making them athletes. They took a kid from Lincoln Sudbury a a few years QB  O'Connell bulked him up and he is playing TE , I think they same will do the same for his brother who they took in 2022 class. Neither could play QB at next level so maybe they see something else that could be a fit. Trinity has a habit of doing the same. The reason takes so long is that you have players who have thrown the football there entire High school careers and transitioning to new positions. I dont know if that is the exact case for Wallace but that is why they fall of the grid for awhile. They need to bulk up , work on speed or just the overall concept of a new position.

[nescac1]

Yeah, I think Trinity's star TE this year was originally a QB too.  Amherst does the same.  It makes sense - so many high schools just put the best athlete on the roster at QB.  A lot of those dudes can be a big asset at TE, WR or safety. 

[Pat Coleman]

Yeah, I think Trinity's star TE this year was originally a QB too.  Amherst does the same.  It makes sense - so many high schools just put the best athlete on the roster at QB.  A lot of those dudes can be a big asset at TE, WR or safety. 

Almost everyone does this.

[CC_Camels]

 
Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete. 

I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the and could do well quite well for Williams

[Charlie]

 
Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete. 

I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the and could do well quite well for Williams

I was shocked how many QB are being taken by various NESCAC schools in bunches. For example Trinity recruited I think three from 2022 class and had a bunch on their roster while only loosing one to graduation. If Fetter the starter opts to take his 5 th year and probably will the way he is playing and the scheme fits his skill. Then that means a majority of these kids will never see the field unless blowouts until there junior year at best. So the question I have will they shift to AThletic positions and if they do not want to why log jam one team at QB where you could have gone elsewhere to play. Sometimes I do not think these recruits think the future through in their decision making. In addition I have heard not confirmed that the 75 man roster with a potential of expansion to 80 will go back into effect in 2024. Which means these teams with all the QB , extra Kickers and added depth will have to make cuts.

[CC_Camels]

 
Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete. 

I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the and could do well quite well for Williams

Sorry...this should have read:

"I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the responsibility on his shoulders and he could do well quite well for Williams

[Charlie]

 
Speaking of Eph QBs, Jack Wallace, a QB from Kent School, just committed to Williams.  He was Gatorade POY in CT playing for Trumbull in 2019, but I don't see much about him since then.  Not sure if he is viewed as a dual-threat QB or more of an athlete. 

I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the and could do well quite well for Williams

Just heard from source that Bates Will be announcing their new DC next week. They want in place for first spring practice.

Sorry...this should have read:

"I saw Wallace play this year for Kent and on film a bit as well...he is a VERY good athlete, but Kent had a number of injuries and this put a lot of the responsibility on his shoulders and he could do well quite well for Williams

[lumbercat]

I might question that 'source'.
I say this because Bates has already begun Spring practice- They started workouts 3/15.

[Charlie]

I might question that 'source'.
I say this because Bates has already begun Spring practice- They started workouts 3/15.

By next weekend do not be surprised of the announcement. I could not nail down the canidate but would not be surprised if it is Coach Stanley from Wesleyan my assumption. If it is and this staff can stay together for awhile this program will certainly turn the landscape of the NESCAC.