FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[NESCACFball24/7]

Congrats to Tufts for outcoaching, outplaying, outhustling and dominating Wesleyan last night. Very strange year with Bantams blowing out Tufts, Tufts blowing out Wesleyan, but Wesleyan beating Middlebury who beat Trinity. The one game at a time mentality has to be reinforced, it is evident that anything can happen in this league this year!

6 teams with winning records, but 10/21 tilts only features one game between teams that both have winning slates:

Tufts (4-1) @ Amherst (2-3)
Bowdoin (3-2) @ Wesleyan (3-2)
Bates (0-5) @ Middlebury (4-1)
Hamilton (0-5) @ Colby (3-2)
Trinity (4-1) @ Williams (2-3)

Might be time for the nescac to finally come into the 21st century and have a championship game or even.... A playoff 

[lumbercat]

From what I hear the initiatives of NESCAC coaches for a tenth game, playoff eligibility and other changes might be losing some steam. Equity and fairness, cornerstones of the NESCAC philosophy, might be overlooked when it comes to the sport of Football. Our sport is one that is essentially "tolerated" among progressive NESCAC administrators due only to the long Football traditions and the generous donations of countless old guys who played the game. Too bad.

[Charlie]

Tufts Television

One thing I will say is that Tufts does a great job of televising their Football games with pre game talk about the games , replays and interviews after the game  they should handle all the NESCAC football games love the way they televise football. There hype video before last game was great.

[BigKat]

Happy to translate Chaz: He loves the Tufts football game production content. Play by play, post game interviews and social media content are all to his liking.

[LochNescac]

Happy to translate Chaz: He loves the Tufts football game production content. Play by play, post game interviews and social media content are all to his liking.

And....milk just shot outta my nose.

thanks Kat.....

[GroundandPound]

10/21 Picks (5 most confident 1 least confident)
Tufts over Amherst 5
Trinity over Williams 4
Middlebury over Bates 3
Colby over Hamilton 2
Bowdoin over Wesleyan 1

[westcoastnescac]

Tufts Wes film is staggering. Tufts front 7 DOMINATED Wes o line. maybe 1 or 2 clean pockets all game and no run game whatsoever - confidence in the run game was so bad Wes even tried to run a glance rpo on 4th and 1

[The Mole]

I will push back a little on the no run game--RBs actually had 16 for 75, just had to abandon the run so early getting behind by 28, the sack numbers killed the rushing yardage. It was the one area that provided some glimmer of positivity. It was hard to watch

Tufts Wes film is staggering. Tufts front 7 DOMINATED Wes o line. maybe 1 or 2 clean pockets all game and no run game whatsoever - confidence in the run game was so bad Wes even tried to run a glance rpo on 4th and 1

[The Ghost of John Wesley]

I will push back a little on the no run game--RBs actually had 16 for 75, just had to abandon the run so early getting behind by 28, the sack numbers killed the rushing yardage. It was the one area that provided some glimmer of positivity. It was hard to watch

Tufts Wes film is staggering. Tufts front 7 DOMINATED Wes o line. maybe 1 or 2 clean pockets all game and no run game whatsoever - confidence in the run game was so bad Wes even tried to run a glance rpo on 4th and 1

Agreed on the hard to watch part. I haven't seen a Wes team get dominated that completely since the gloomy Hauser days of yore. Outclassed in all facets of the game to an extent where you can't blame it on "the team didn't come to play today." Tufts is just a superior team and apparently a very bad matchup for Wes.

With a resurgent Bowdoin squad coming to town next week (and one that knows it can beat you after last year's game), Wes has its work cut out to salvage the season. Amherst/Williams are down again this year, but you can never discount Little Three rivalry games IMO. And based on this Tufts game, I don't see them matching up well with Trinity at all.

[MammothDad]

Colby over Amherst 3
Williams over Hamilton 4
Tufts over Wesleyan 2
Bowdoin over Bates 5
Middlebury over Trinity 1
(5 most confident 1 least confident)

GroundandPound ...

... How much to get your weekly email on 10 game parlays???  I'll take the lottery # supplement as well!

[Nescacman]

I will push back a little on the no run game--RBs actually had 16 for 75, just had to abandon the run so early getting behind by 28, the sack numbers killed the rushing yardage. It was the one area that provided some glimmer of positivity. It was hard to watch

Tufts Wes film is staggering. Tufts front 7 DOMINATED Wes o line. maybe 1 or 2 clean pockets all game and no run game whatsoever - confidence in the run game was so bad Wes even tried to run a glance rpo on 4th and 1

Agreed on the hard to watch part. I haven't seen a Wes team get dominated that completely since the gloomy Hauser days of yore. Outclassed in all facets of the game to an extent where you can't blame it on "the team didn't come to play today." Tufts is just a superior team and apparently a very bad matchup for Wes.

With a resurgent Bowdoin squad coming to town next week (and one that knows it can beat you after last year's game), Wes has its work cut out to salvage the season. Amherst/Williams are down again this year, but you can never discount Little Three rivalry games IMO. And based on this Tufts game, I don't see them matching up well with Trinity at all.

Indeed, it was an ugly night in Medford this past Saturday. Tufts played very well and Wes did not (obviously). This was the worst loss for Wesleyan since 2010 when we lost to the Whales-recruited, loaded, undefeated Eph team that lit it up on the Cards 45-7. As we all know, Wes got its retribution in 2016. What comes around goes around in the NESCAC and we are confident Wes will have a chance at payback at some point in the future against the Jumbo's.

Wes will have to play better in its last four games to continue their winning season streak. Not to be overlooked is that three of the last four games are home (where Wes is good) and the fourth game is in Williamstown where Wes has played very well recently. So they have that. Looking forward to a big bounce back against the Polars this week.

[SpringSt7]

Wesleyan lost 25-0 and gained 212 total yards in a de facto NESCAC championship game their last time in Williamstown, but other wise, yes, Wesleyan has been very comfortable playing Williams. Only loss in the rivalry since 2012 - the Alex Scyokurka game

[Scoops]

A little push back to your push back Mole. RBs Jennifer and Flynn did indeed run for 75 yards on 16 carries. But according to the stats sheet online, 44 of those yards came in the 3rd quarter where Tufts had pulled their starters. Take that as positivity if you must, but I think the Cards have problems in the trenches. Apparently in the secondary as well. I would expect to see other teams try to capitalize on those weak points going forward.

I will push back a little on the no run game--RBs actually had 16 for 75, just had to abandon the run so early getting behind by 28, the sack numbers killed the rushing yardage. It was the one area that provided some glimmer of positivity. It was hard to watch

Tufts Wes film is staggering. Tufts front 7 DOMINATED Wes o line. maybe 1 or 2 clean pockets all game and no run game whatsoever - confidence in the run game was so bad Wes even tried to run a glance rpo on 4th and 1

[lumbercat]

This board from a Wesleyan perspective in the last 2 days is way out of wack. Everybody teeing off on Wesleyan.  Patron sons the Mole and NM took their medicine and responded with class, but it's one damn game!

Ok, the Cards mailed in a stinker. A terrible loss but moving forward but this is still a good team. Reminds me of the dire, critical posts regarding Tufts after they got pasted by Trinity.......but Tufts came back with a vengeance!- that's what good programs do......Wesleyan still a good program and I say they rebound like Tufts did after they got embarrassed by Trinity.

Bad things happen to good teams on road in this league.

And by the way Middlebury did beat Trinity (in Hartford)......

For Wes it's back home against Bowdoin and they better be careful. They need to bring big pressure on Boel. Boel has won 6 games in his career and in 5 of of those 6 wins opposing defenses sat back in zone coverages and did not pressure him. If Wes lets him sit back in the pocket and sling it they will lose, the kid can throw. He does not handle pressure well- blitz, stunts, games. He's small and not that fast but you gotta make him uncomfortable and don't let him set his feet in the pocket. He will rush throws and will throw the ball to the other team but you gotta bring pressure.

Im sure the Dice man knows this- at least I assume.

[Nescacman]

Wesleyan lost 25-0 and gained 212 total yards in a de facto NESCAC championship game their last time in Williamstown, but other wise, yes, Wesleyan has been very comfortable playing Williams. Only loss in the rivalry since 2012 - the Alex Scyokurka game

Yes, and of course, we're sure you remember 2016...need a reminder Spring?!?