FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[NESCACFball24/7]

A lot of discussion here on Tufts and their outlook for the upcoming year.

First, some history. Civetti is the most dynamic recruiter in the NESCAC. He's got a great situation for incoming recruits at Tufts to sell to any kid across the United States and he is doing just that.........come play football 5 miles from Fenway Park and TD Garden. 7 minutes on the train to downtown Boston.  Not to mention all the cultural and life experiences in the Boston suburbs. He has recruited extremely well and by all reports he's got another great class this year.

In recent years Coach Civs has always has a loaded roster in terms of overall talent but the Jumbos have underachieved on game day. Coach C was not a good OC but he recognized that. In 2022 he stepped down and handed the reigns to ex Cardinal Frankie Hauser. Kudos to Civs for stepping aside but Hauser also underachieved, maybe worse than Civs, with his poor management of the talent laden Tufts offense in the 2022 season.

So in 2023 Civs elevated ex Tufts QB Mike MacDonald to CO-Offensive Coordinator along with Cardinal Frank......and the talented offense underachieved again.

As of this date for the 2024 season it looks like Hauser has been demoted to QB coach as he finally sees the light at the end of tunnel and the end of his NESCAC coaching career.

But the key here is that it's pretty obvious that Civs has groomed MacDonald to be the man to run the Tufts offense. He's the OC for '24.

If you saw MacDonald play you know he was a great one- one of the very best NESCAC QBs in recent years. He ran the Tufts offense on the field with excellence. He took a lot more snaps than Civetti or Hauser ever did and he is now ready to run the Jumbo offense.


I think it's a great management move by Civetti for the Tufts Football Program and believe the Jumbos will be a very strong competitor for the NESCAC tile in 2024. They now have a young guy who will be a very good NESCAC OC.


Watch out for the Jumbos!

Michael MacDonald the OC at tufts played linebacker at Hamilton. He never played quarterback in college much less for Tufts...

[lumbercat]

My bad- totally blew it there- maybe the Tufts critics are right- but even if Civs has an ex Hamilton LB running his offense my opinion would be different.

[lumbercat]

Yes- Ryan McDonald was the great Tufts QB- not a Hamilton LB

[Scoops]

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

[The truth 101]

All this talk about Tufts and Trinity not enough about the ACTUAL NESCAC champs Middlebury throughout this off-season.

[NESCACFball24/7]

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

Well that seems like a weird decision given that all of their best players the last 3 years outside of berluti(who we acknowledged we all have questions about) have been from outside of New England. Seems like that has been a good strategy for them to get the talent they need. If you really look at it of the losses they have had come down to coaching blunders and not a lack of talent.

[maineman]

All this talk about Tufts and Trinity not enough about the ACTUAL NESCAC champs Middlebury throughout this off-season.

Who will step forward and be Midd's starting QB will be a big part of the equation.

[Charlie]

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

Well that seems like a weird decision given that all of their best players the last 3 years outside of berluti(who we acknowledged we all have questions about) have been from outside of New England. Seems like that has been a good strategy for them to get the talent they need. If you really look at it of the losses they have had come down to coaching blunders and not a lack of talent.

I could not agree with you more. In game Coaching decisions have killed the Jumbos over the years. They have had some talent but have not been put in position to win. No excuse for some of the losses the last few years have to prepare and get your team ready to play.

[Scoops]

I don't claim to know why. I'm just throwing out what I've heard from one of the coaches within the league. It could very well be untrue, but if it is, it's certainly interesting. If I were to guess, he's probably getting pressure from alums/the AD/someone of that ilk to start making more of an effort in their backyard. Again, I think they've been good at bringing in talent from atypical NESCAC areas, and I found that to be a smart and refreshing approach within the league.

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

Well that seems like a weird decision given that all of their best players the last 3 years outside of berluti(who we acknowledged we all have questions about) have been from outside of New England. Seems like that has been a good strategy for them to get the talent they need. If you really look at it of the losses they have had come down to coaching blunders and not a lack of talent.

[LochNescac]

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

Hmmmm interesting approach...(Unless the SEC & B1G have unlocked the hidden secret that is New England HS football dominance???)  Not a slam...just an observation that I would argue is pretty evident...?

[BantChamps]

I didn't expect the conversation to lean so heavily into Tufts, but since it has, I'll throw out this tidbit I got from a NESCAC coach. HC Civetti apparently is not okay that his roster is comprised of non-New England talent, and is trying to reinvigorate the New England recruiting in the 2025 class. Apparently they are shifting to a more typical NESCAC approach going forward. It's a shame since they have been very good at bringing in non-traditional talent. But I can understand the idea given that they haven't been able to win with that talent. Expect to see a more new England based roster from the Jumbos going forward. Curious to see how they do competing against their NESCAC rivals as opposed to their approach the last few years.

Hmmmm interesting approach...(Unless the SEC & B1G have unlocked the hidden secret that is New England HS football dominance???)  Not a slam...just an observation that I would argue is pretty evident...?

Jay Civetti has been making poor coaching decisions on and off the field since he got the job. It is by FAR the easiest Nescac to recruit for, and with the talent they always tend to have it is shocking they have been stuck in mediocrity for as long as they have. It is long overdue for him to get the boot in my opinion.

[GroundandPound]

Just learned about Ethan Brooks today.  Williams DL who played mostly OL in NFL...

http://office.biggerfasterstronger.com/p_magPrint_NoMember.asp?id=350
https://communications.williams.edu/sports-news-archive/2005/10/31/ethan-brooks-1996-8-years-and-counting-in-the-nfl/

[Trin9-0]

Jay Civetti has been making poor coaching decisions on and off the field since he got the job. It is by FAR the easiest Nescac to recruit for, and with the talent they always tend to have it is shocking they have been stuck in mediocrity for as long as they have. It is long overdue for him to get the boot in my opinion.

I feel obligated to defend my former Bantam teammate here. It's not as though Tufts has been a league juggernaut outside of Civetti's tenure in Medford. They have a .483 winning percentage as a program since the NESCAC was formed in 1971.

Only two Jumbo coaches in that span have had career winning records; Vic Gatto had a .634 winning percentage from 1978-'84. He only coached 7 years but did have an undefeated season in '79. Duane Ford had a .563 winning percentage over 9 years with a league best 7-1 record in '86.

Jay has coached Tufts for 13 years. His career winning percentage of .480 is nearly identical to Tufts' overall NESCAC-era figure. However, it's worth noting that since a disastrous first three years at the helm his winning percentage shoots up to .628 and also includes a 7-1 finish.

I understand those first three years still count, but we can all agree he did an admirable job of turning that program around from the worst in the league to contender status. The argument could be made that under Civetti Tufts has performed at or above their traditional standard.

That's not to say he's beyond criticism and I agree there have been games where they appeared to have similar, or even superior, talent and came up short. But he still runs one of the top programs in the league.

[nescac1]

I think compared with the historical standard at Tufts, Civetti is a massive success.  Compared with the contemporaneous level of success of high-profile men's teams sports at Tufts (in particular, men's lacrosse, soccer, and basketball are all national powers over the past decade, with numerous national titles for both soccer and lacrosse), he's less so. 

It's clear that Tufts has a massive advantage over its NESCAC peers in terms of athletic recruiting - the Boston location, the overall size of the school, the broad scope of graduate programs making transfers / fifth-year players much easier to attract / retain, which is particularly useful in the COVID era, as well as, it seems clear, an admissions office that values team sport success to a degree not all NESCAC schools do.  Civetti's best attribute seems to be his recruiting acumen -- it's not like other NESCAC schools have had their graduates play their fifth year at U.S.C.! -- but the question is, is that because of something Civetti has done in particular, or is he just par for the course with the general institutional appeal to, and support for, big-time athletic recruits, and thus any average or better coach would likely attract a similar talent base?

By the way, say if we are talking about over and under-achieving, the Middlebury coaching staff deserves a TON of credit.  Midd is a small, isolated school that has a tough time I would think consistently beating out Amherst, Williams, Tufts and Wesleyan for a good number of its targeted recruits, and yet has outperformed all those schools on the field over the past decade. Just an awesome infrastructure and system than enabled Midd to in most years maximize the talent on hand (not to diminish that talent, Midd's had plenty of stars especially at QB, WR, and DL, but is it materially better than Tufts or Wesleyan, or on par with Trinity, most years?  I don't think so).       

[GroundandPound]

https://x.com/Colby_Football/status/1801226519190110389/photo/1
Colby hires new OC