FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[bantamweight]

We concur with you that it would be nice to get more balanced reporting from around the 'CAC.

We much prefer your reporting where you insult individual players and motivate them to destroy your favorite team on the last week of the season.

[GroundandPound]

Thoughts from last year's Midd v. Wesleyan game...
Wesleyan:
-Candido had several good scramble runs last year and can throw an accurate deep ball
-Wesleyan rushed the ball well (i.e. several 5 plus yd rushes on 1st down) stats may not show that since several short rushes stuffed when Wes trying to burn the clock
-potential match up problem w/ So. WR Jared Lindstrom 6'5" 225 (check out his hudl film: https://www.hudl.com/profile/13393624/Jared-Lindstrom) They also have a 6-5 TE and two 6-4 TEs
Lindstrom did not play in this game last year but a good 6'5" 225 pound WR in the 'CAC can be a real challenge.

Midd
-several times in run situations, Wesleyan outside stunts got RB before he got to LOS
-Midd DL and LBs did a great job getting hands up blocking several passes
-turnovers were costly
Of course, I have no solutions - will leave that to others.

[GroundandPound]

nescacfootballreport.com indicates likely Wes DLINE

Rowan - 265
Welch - 255
Boujoukos - 270
Kasanganayi - 270
Canada-Hunt - 225

[The Mole]

Missed a few other contributors from last year that will factor into the DL rotation. Dean Sokaris 6-5 265, Jake Karmin 6-2 245 and Will Orso 6-2 270 will be in the mix as well. Lots of size, experience and depth in this group.

nescacfootballreport.com indicates likely Wes DLINE

Rowan - 265
Welch - 255
Boujoukos - 270
Kasanganayi - 270
Canada-Hunt - 225

[GroundandPound]

Yes Mole some good length and definitely above-average size for NESCAC DL
Sokaris 6-5 265 (looks like a new edition to team since no photo)
Karmin 6-2 245
Orso 6-2 270
Rowan 6-3 265
Welch 6-2 255
Boujoukos 6-3 270
Kasanganayi 6-3 270
Canada-Hunt 6-0 225

[nescac1]

Miraculously, Williams has updated a good number of positions and heights and weights on its roster.  Although I don't THINK DL Ryan Levault is 5'5 245! But a few of the QBs are now listed at other positions. 

I expect the Ephs to be very big in the trenches on both sides. My guess is that the DL will start seniors Smith, Vilfort, and Osayimwen, who go 6'4 260, 6'1 275, and and 6'1 285, with a very experienced back-up group behind them.  I know the Ephs always go with a 3-4, but DL seems a lot more stacked than LB (after Scott and Landolfi, a bunch of guys in the mix but no sure things) and I wonder if they will consider mixing up the alignments to get more DL on the field. 

On the OL, 6'3 295 Tartaglia, 6'5 280 Forth, and 6'6 305 Ngnombouowo are veteran returning starters.  Other returning vets who should challenge for time are 6'4 275 Takvor, 6'2 275 Sheskey, 6'3 285 Maguire (injured all last year after playing as a FY), and 6'2 290 Shames.  And perhaps some of the MASSIVE FY group who seem fairly highly touted get an early shot. 

Oh and to respond to an earlier comment I was not trying to suggest that for Williams to be validated or have a successful season they need to go 9-0 and even 8-1. Notwithstanding legit questions about offensive explosiveness, I do think the team has enough talent to get into the 6-7 win range, and I think that would be a very successful season.  But at a minimum, anything less than 5-4 would be a disappointing year with such a veteran group up front on both sides of the ball.   

[The Mole]

Sokaris DNP last year, but was on the roster as a freshman in 2022

Yes Mole some good length and definitely above-average size for NESCAC DL
Sokaris 6-5 265 (looks like a new edition to team since no photo)
Karmin 6-2 245
Orso 6-2 270
Rowan 6-3 265
Welch 6-2 255
Boujoukos 6-3 270
Kasanganayi 6-3 270
Canada-Hunt 6-0 225

[lumbercat]

We concur with you that it would be nice to get more balanced reporting from around the 'CAC.

We much prefer your reporting where you insult individual players and motivate them to destroy your favorite team on the last week of the season.

Yikes, another Trinity guy who has a problem conducting himself as a winner from a great program. Where does the anger come from with these guys. Maybe it's the academic insults, I don't know.

If I'm wearing championship ring(s) it would be so easy to resist the noise but some of these Bants have rabbit ears.
 
It's a great, winning culture but there seems to be a lot of paranoia which is not characteristic of  elite programs. Is that the recipe for a bad loss to Middlebury at home in a huge game last year. Not sure, but something seems to be off in that culture.
Doesn't seem to add up.

[Nescacman]

Sokaris DNP last year, but was on the roster as a freshman in 2022

Yes Mole some good length and definitely above-average size for NESCAC DL
Sokaris 6-5 265 (looks like a new edition to team since no photo)
Karmin 6-2 245
Orso 6-2 270
Rowan 6-3 265
Welch 6-2 255
Boujoukos 6-3 270
Kasanganayi 6-3 270
Canada-Hunt 6-0 225

As The Mole knows all to well, the Wes DL was ravaged by injury last Fall leading to the Cards thrusting many sophs and FY's who were expecting to play JV into the Varsity rotation (yes, Wes plays a JV schedule). The upside is that Wes now has experience and depth in the DL room along with the starters who were injured last year. We expect vast improvement upfront which should take pressure off an experienced and deep secondary. Everyone in the secondary is back and they added the all-league transfer safety from Colby into the mix. We expect big things from pre-season All-American Wesley Abraham and Company in 2024. Of course, both starting LBs are also back and should both be in the mix for all league honors in 2024 as well.

We made our annual camp visit to Wes the other day and were impressed by the enthusiasm and esprit de corps of the Mysterious Methodists from Middletown. They have a large, deep, experienced squad who came into camp in shape and ready to go. They appear to relish being the hunter rather than the hunted.   

[monjmafb]

Miraculously, Williams has updated a good number of positions and heights and weights on its roster.  Although I don't THINK DL Ryan Levault is 5'5 245! But a few of the QBs are now listed at other positions. 

I expect the Ephs to be very big in the trenches on both sides. My guess is that the DL will start seniors Smith, Vilfort, and Osayimwen, who go 6'4 260, 6'1 275, and and 6'1 285, with a very experienced back-up group behind them.  I know the Ephs always go with a 3-4, but DL seems a lot more stacked than LB (after Scott and Landolfi, a bunch of guys in the mix but no sure things) and I wonder if they will consider mixing up the alignments to get more DL on the field. 

On the OL, 6'3 295 Tartaglia, 6'5 280 Forth, and 6'6 305 Ngnombouowo are veteran returning starters.  Other returning vets who should challenge for time are 6'4 275 Takvor, 6'2 275 Sheskey, 6'3 285 Maguire (injured all last year after playing as a FY), and 6'2 290 Shames.  And perhaps some of the MASSIVE FY group who seem fairly highly touted get an early shot. 

Oh and to respond to an earlier comment I was not trying to suggest that for Williams to be validated or have a successful season they need to go 9-0 and even 8-1. Notwithstanding legit questions about offensive explosiveness, I do think the team has enough talent to get into the 6-7 win range, and I think that would be a very successful season.  But at a minimum, anything less than 5-4 would be a disappointing year with such a veteran group up front on both sides of the ball.   

It's very possible that the Williams defense may line up with a 4-3 vs. 3-4 given that they are stacked on the DL and light on LBs (something unthinkable in prior years)

[NescacNewbie]

Am I the only one waiting on the official forum projections for this week with anticipation? This weekend can't come soon enough!

[The truth 101]

Congrats to Tufts alum Jaden Richardson for grabbing his first catch as a USC Trojan yesterday. These grad transfers are certainly putting on for the conference!

[Nescacman]

The Logan Tomlinson NFL-draft watch has begun...

Another stellar day for the ex-Cardinal leading the Wildcats to a big win over Holy Cross yesterday (8 catches for 85 yards and 2 IDs). We think he has a shot following ex-teammate Dylan Laube and line-up on Sunday's next year. Too bad he's no longer a fighting Cardinal but we root hard for #5 every Saturday. #rollcards

NM

[Nescacman]

NESCACMAN 2024 Pre-Week 1 Thoughts

Some initial thoughts from NESCACMAN as we head into the week before the 2024 season kick-off...

We expect this to be one of the more competitive seasons in recent memory. Although the top tier teams are unchanged from last year, some of the teams in the lower echelons of the NESCAC are inching closer to the top tier. Unfortunately, as the bottom tier seems to be improving, the better teams are also upping their game. Therefore, we don't see a radical shift in the NESCAC football hierarchy, at least in 2024. We'll be watching closely over the next couple of years. We do expect some future movement as UBates continues to get experience and Williams reloads in in the Post-Maimaron era. 

For 2024, we think NESCAC Football fits neatly into 3 tiers:

Tier 1-Will compete for the 2024 NESCAC Championship (all 6-3 or better): 2023 Defending Champ Middlebury, 2023 Runner-up Hartford State, Tufts, Wesleyan

Tier 2-A notch below, fighting to finish with a winning record (4 or 5 wins with 6 wins not entirely being out of the question): Williams, Bowdoin

Tier 3-Fighting for respect and wins (Probably 1-3 wins with 4 wins being a move in the right direction): Lord Mammoths, UBates, Hamilton, Colby

Middlebury: New QB and lost a bunch of talent on the offensive side of the ball but defense has a ton of talent and HCOF Mandigo seems to have picked up where his successor left off.

Hartford State: Can't underestimate how hard it will be to replace all everything QB Fetter and loss of defensive core but they are loaded at skill positions on offense and always seem to reload.

Tufts: Although they lost talent on offense including on their o-line, they have the best returning QB. Will this be the year they play consistently all year?

Wesleyan: A ton of returning talent including their entire defense coupled with a dynamic QB/WR combo in Candido/Wilson.

Williams: We think they are on the rise but depth due to roster limitations has hindered them in recent years due to injuries. Need to figure out the WR and DB situation which has been a challenge in Williamstown.

Bowdoin: We thought last year was their year. Lost way too much to compete for a league championship but respectability is not out of the question.

Lord Mammoths: Great program tradition and leadership at the HCOF level but tough to win with a dearth of talent at the skill positions.

UBates: A program on the rise. Two strong recruiting classes but lack experience. We think 2025 will be the year of the Bobcat.

Hamilton: Some talent, including Super Sophs QB Kurzum and RB Wildman, but even with improvement, tough to keep up with the teams at the top of the conference.

Colby: With the institutional resources focused on athletics, should be better. Lack of quality skill players is their Achilles heel.

Offensive Player of the Year (Should Win): Chase Wilson, Wesleyan

Offensive Player of the Year (Will Win): Michael Berlutti, Tufts

Defensive Player of the Year (Should Win): Koy Price, Bowdon/Dave Filias, Middlebury

Defensive Player of the Year (Will Win): Tomas Kenary, Middlebury

Surprise Team (Exceed Expectations): Wesleyan

Surprise Team (Not Meet Expectations): Lord Mammoths

2024 NESCAC Champion: Tufts Jumbo's

2024 HCOF of the Year: HCOF Civetti

And a few miscellaneous predictions for 2024:

1.    We'll see several HCOF changes headed into 2025, maybe as many as 3 new HCOFs next year.
2.    Weather will play havoc with this year's season.
3.    NESCAC sends at least two current/former players to the NFL.
4.    Roster limits are imposed for the 2025 season. We expect the number to be between 85-90.
5.    NESCAC schools ban The Wall Street Journal from being sold on-campus.
6.    NESCACMAN will have ANOTHER beer with HS9-o.
7.    Charlie will learn how to properly use "their" and "there".

On deck from NESCACMAN....Week 0 rankings, Week 1 predictions and game spreads and a very important and exciting announcement coming from the NESCACMAN Team that should excite all NESCAC fans.

NM

[Charlie]

NESCACMAN 2024 Pre-Week 1 Thoughts

Some initial thoughts from NESCACMAN as we head into the week before the 2024 season kick-off...

We expect this to be one of the more competitive seasons in recent memory. Although the top tier teams are unchanged from last year, some of the teams in the lower echelons of the NESCAC are inching closer to the top tier. Unfortunately, as the bottom tier seems to be improving, the better teams are also upping their game. Therefore, we don't see a radical shift in the NESCAC football hierarchy, at least in 2024. We'll be watching closely over the next couple of years. We do expect some future movement as UBates continues to get experience and Williams reloads in in the Post-Maimaron era. 

For 2024, we think NESCAC Football fits neatly into 3 tiers:

Tier 1-Will compete for the 2024 NESCAC Championship (all 6-3 or better): 2023 Defending Champ Middlebury, 2023 Runner-up Hartford State, Tufts, Wesleyan

Tier 2-A notch below, fighting to finish with a winning record (4 or 5 wins with 6 wins not entirely being out of the question): Williams, Bowdoin

Tier 3-Fighting for respect and wins (Probably 1-3 wins with 4 wins being a move in the right direction): Lord Mammoths, UBates, Hamilton, Colby

Middlebury: New QB and lost a bunch of talent on the offensive side of the ball but defense has a ton of talent and HCOF Mandigo seems to have picked up where his successor left off.

Hartford State: Can't underestimate how hard it will be to replace all everything QB Fetter and loss of defensive core but they are loaded at skill positions on offense and always seem to reload.

Tufts: Although they lost talent on offense including on their o-line, they have the best returning QB. Will this be the year they play consistently all year?

Wesleyan: A ton of returning talent including their entire defense coupled with a dynamic QB/WR combo in Candido/Wilson.

Williams: We think they are on the rise but depth due to roster limitations has hindered them in recent years due to injuries. Need to figure out the WR and DB situation which has been a challenge in Williamstown.

Bowdoin: We thought last year was their year. Lost way too much to compete for a league championship but respectability is not out of the question.

Lord Mammoths: Great program tradition and leadership at the HCOF level but tough to win with a dearth of talent at the skill positions.

UBates: A program on the rise. Two strong recruiting classes but lack experience. We think 2025 will be the year of the Bobcat.

Hamilton: Some talent, including Super Sophs QB Kurzum and RB Wildman, but even with improvement, tough to keep up with the teams at the top of the conference.

Colby: With the institutional resources focused on athletics, should be better. Lack of quality skill players is their Achilles heel.

Offensive Player of the Year (Should Win): Chase Wilson, Wesleyan

Offensive Player of the Year (Will Win): Michael Berlutti, Tufts

Defensive Player of the Year (Should Win): Koy Price, Bowdon/Dave Filias, Middlebury

Defensive Player of the Year (Will Win): Tomas Kenary, Middlebury

Surprise Team (Exceed Expectations): Wesleyan

Surprise Team (Not Meet Expectations): Lord Mammoths

2024 NESCAC Champion: Tufts Jumbo's

2024 HCOF of the Year: HCOF Civetti

And a few miscellaneous predictions for 2024:

1.    We'll see several HCOF changes headed into 2025, maybe as many as 3 new HCOFs next year.
2.    Weather will play havoc with this year's season.
3.    NESCAC sends at least two current/former players to the NFL.
4.    Roster limits are imposed for the 2025 season. We expect the number to be between 85-90.
5.    NESCAC schools ban The Wall Street Journal from being sold on-campus.
6.    NESCACMAN will have ANOTHER beer with HS9-o.
7.    Charlie will learn how to properly use "their" and "there".

On deck from NESCACMAN....Week 0 rankings, Week 1 predictions and game spreads and a very important and exciting announcement coming from the NESCACMAN Team that should excite all NESCAC fans.

NM

Prediction on what Head Coaches could be moving on ?

Any insight on increased games and potential playoffs I know this was talked about in NESCAC meeting amongst Coaches ?