FB: New England Small College Athletic Conference

[Col. Partridge]

Captain's Week 5 Picks
Home team in CAPS

FAVORITE       SPREAD       UNDERDOG

Hamilton               3                COLBY
Trinity                  7                BOWDOIN     
Amherst               1                WESLEYAN   
MIDDLEBURY         10               Bates
Williams               6.5              TUFTS

I learned wide spreads do not make much sense this season.   If the Wes-Amherst spread seems too narrow, I plan on being in attendance at Andrus Field for Wesleyan's Homecoming, and hopefully that alone will count for some points for the alma mater.

[redtail]

if Eck plays - hammy 28, colby 7,  if no eck - hammy 10 - colby 7

[cruiser]

couldnt disagree more with you, mr. redtail. we'll know tomorrow though for sure.
colby 27 hamilton 9

[nescacftbl]

Capt.

We will be at Andrus in the morning tailgating. Call me!

See you then

[neathDelms]

Let's see if week 5 can compete with week 4!!!

Colby 14
Hamilton 13

I think this is a great match-up.  The home track makes the difference.

Trinity 28
Bowdoin 14

Tough to concentrate with the Banjo band in your ears, but the Bants will make there way back to the "Heartbeat" with a 5-0 record.

Amherst 28
Wesleyan 7

Nothing about this game makes me think that it will be close.

Middlebury 31
Bates 10

Too much offense for Bates to handle.

Williams 28
Tufts 24

I believe that Williams is the 2nd best team in the conference.   

Have a great gameday, NESCACers!

[Trin9-0]

When one shouts that he is the toughest guy in the world but refuses to fight anyone outside of his neighborhood, then his shouts are going to be either ignored or ridiculed by those outside of his neighborhood.

Frank, no one is shouting about being the toughest guy on the block. What I said is a fact and I was merely stating that fact in the hopes that the error would be corrected.


I'll take Colby as a home underdog. They're a different team in Waterville. Hamilton is a young team and may not yet be mentally tough enough to overcome a couple of tough weeks and a LONG bus trip.

Capt, I know you're a former Card but really... Amherst a one point favorite over Wes? They Jeffs easily win by 2 TDs.

Midd blows out Bates in a snoozer.

With appologies to MulesBallgame, Williams-Tufts is the game of the week. Both of these teams could easily be undefeated and it will be a BATTLE in Medford today. I like the Ephs and their high-powered offense to outscore a stingy Jumbo squad. Though I don't think they'll cover the Captain's spread.

As a Trin-fan the Bowdoin game scares me. The Polar Bears always seem to play well at home, especially against big-time opponents (See their upset win over the Ephs last year and a few weeks ago against Tufts).  Trinity looked past Hamilton and almost paid the price. Hopefully the Bants aren't thinking about Middlebury today in Brunswick. I'll take Trinity by 10.

[neathDelms]

When one shouts that he is the toughest guy in the world but refuses to fight anyone outside of his neighborhood, then his shouts are going to be either ignored or ridiculed by those outside of his neighborhood.

Frank,

I have to disagree with you on this one.  These kids are very good football players and DO NOT create their own schedules.  There inability to play a ninth game, an outside the conference opponent, as well enter into the National Playoffs is dictated by the presidents of the NESCAC.   If we can sit here and rank California teams against Ohio teams in a poll, with no common competition, than we have the ability to rank a NESCAC team.  I am not saying that they have earned the right to be in the rankings, but I would not simply avoid ranking a NESCAC team based on your reasoning.

[Trin9-0]

Big win for Tufts. Their game versus Amherst next week should be a great one.

Bants finally win by a comfortable margin. If they can keep the home win streak going they should finish 8-0. Easier said than done though with Midd and Amherst coming to the Coop.

Strong showing by Wes, but like the rest of their season it just wasn't good enough.

It's looking more and more like the Bobbies won't win a game.

Congrats to Colby on being in a surprise tie for 3rd place in the league.

[Col. Partridge]

nescacftbl, nice seeing you...too bad the outcome didn't roll our way.

Wes played Amherst pretty tough.  Wesleyan has been dealt a lot of injuries, but the freshmen are gaining a lot of experience and hopefully this means good things are coming in the future.   I'd rather they win these close games than lose them (as they have this year), but they can improve each week and maybe surprise someone. 

[mariner75]

"Snake-bitten in back-to-back losses to Bowdoin and Trinity by a total of three points in the previous two weeks, Tufts entered the fourth quarter with its 10-point lead against a squad that it hadn't defeated since before most of today's Jumbos were born. The defense continued to hold the Ephs down."

Jumbos 17
Ephs       7

Outstanding defensive effort....... 

[frank uible]

You all can rank who you want where you want, but the fact is that over the years the established rankers of D3 football teams tend effectively to ignore NESCAC colleges in their rankings - and undoubtedly for a reason. I have merely attempted to identify, in logical fashion, what that reason is. You may believe that their reasoning is faulty, but  any such belief apparently does not change their rankings. Shoot the messenger if that makes you feel better.

[Pat Coleman]

If we can sit here and rank California teams against Ohio teams in a poll, with no common competition, than we have the ability to rank a NESCAC team. 

Sorry, these two statements do not compute. That's because those teams at least play someone outside their conference, ever. So while you can't compare the California teams head-to-head with teams from Ohio, you can compare them to teams from Washington, and Washington to Minnesota and Wisconsin, and so on and so on.

[neathDelms]

Pat,

I understand that teams may have a common competitor (through 4 degrees of seperation) and that it does factor into your rankings.  I do believe that speculation plays a roll in this ranking, as well.  With this in mind, I think that we can speculate if a NESCAC team is worthy of a top 25 ranking.  I have not said that they have earned it, but that is no reason to automatically dismiss them from the ranking.

D3 Football Season-Ending Rankings (Week 16)
2003 Trinity: 29th
2004 Trinity: 27th
2005 Trinity: 25th

[Pat Coleman]

And, I think the info you cite proves they are not automatically excluded.

[Trin9-0]

You all can rank who you want where you want, but the fact is that over the years the established rankers of D3 football teams tend effectively to ignore NESCAC colleges in their rankings - and undoubtedly for a reason. I have merely attempted to identify, in logical fashion, what that reason is. You may believe that their reasoning is faulty, but  any such belief apparently does not change their rankings. Shoot the messenger if that makes you feel better.

Sorry to have started this. My only gripe was that Trinity wasn't recognized for it's home winning streak (when oddly enough it was recognized for it's consecutive game winning streak which is far less impressive). I definitely didn't want to start up the old "NESCAC schools should be ranked" argument. It's pointless.