FB: New Jersey Athletic Conference

[phil]

Hey Ralph! We're definitely aware of all those DIII Texas teams and also wish that Rice got with the program and offered softball. In D3, Trinity might be interesting. We'd be thrilled with U. of Chicago if that's where she chose. We were playing in Colorado and the Baylor coach singled out my daughter after she hit two doubles – but he was there to see our pitcher who was throwing 65mph at age 12...

The recruiting wars for softball in D1 is absurd. Like I said, some girls my kid has played with have verballed already (in 7th and 8th grade), with the likes of UCLA, LSU, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Florida. Nothing like choosing colleges based on softball without having a clue whether or not it will eventually offer anything having to do with what you want to do with the rest of your life. At the coach's convention last week, supposedly they vowed to end this early recruiting nonsense in favor of no contact until Sept. 1 of their Junior year of high school.

It's been a very interesting journey since Pat's D3 sports inception. From a sports fan with no kids, to a sports parent dealing with the recruiting process!

[bulk19]

Update on Joe Callahan -

http://www.stevenspointjournal.com/story/sports/2017/12/18/packers-re-sign-qb-joe-callahan-53-man-roster-two-days-after-releasing-him/963075001/

[Teamski]

Mount cannot compete with FCS schools in recruiting. FCS schools can offer 63 full scholarships, no way somebody is turning down a full ride at a d1 school to play at Mount.

Unless some other circumstances make that impossible...academics, conduct, etc, etc, etc.

-Ski

[Teamski]

Update on Joe Callahan -

http://www.stevenspointjournal.com/story/sports/2017/12/18/packers-re-sign-qb-joe-callahan-53-man-roster-two-days-after-releasing-him/963075001/

Thanks for the heads up.  I didn't know that they had released him.  Great to know that he is still on the roster! 

-Ski

[thewaterboy]

Update on Joe Callahan -

http://www.stevenspointjournal.com/story/sports/2017/12/18/packers-re-sign-qb-joe-callahan-53-man-roster-two-days-after-releasing-him/963075001/

Thanks for the heads up.  I didn't know that they had released him.  Great to know that he is still on the roster! 

-Ski

Might be a sign they are shutting down Rodgers since they are out of the playoff hunt. Playing time just might be in Callahan's future!

[WRMUalum13]

Update on Joe Callahan -

http://www.stevenspointjournal.com/story/sports/2017/12/18/packers-re-sign-qb-joe-callahan-53-man-roster-two-days-after-releasing-him/963075001/

Thanks for the heads up.  I didn't know that they had released him.  Great to know that he is still on the roster! 

-Ski

Might be a sign they are shutting down Rodgers since they are out of the playoff hunt. Playing time just might be in Callahan's future!

YES! I've been rooting against Huntley all year, would love to see a d3 qb in the NFL.

[Ralph Turner]

Hey Ralph! We're definitely aware of all those DIII Texas teams and also wish that Rice got with the program and offered softball. In D3, Trinity might be interesting. We'd be thrilled with U. of Chicago if that's where she chose. We were playing in Colorado and the Baylor coach singled out my daughter after she hit two doubles – but he was there to see our pitcher who was throwing 65mph at age 12...

The recruiting wars for softball in D1 is absurd. Like I said, some girls my kid has played with have verballed already (in 7th and 8th grade), with the likes of UCLA, LSU, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Florida. Nothing like choosing colleges based on softball without having a clue whether or not it will eventually offer anything having to do with what you want to do with the rest of your life. At the coach's convention last week, supposedly they vowed to end this early recruiting nonsense in favor of no contact until Sept. 1 of their Junior year of high school.

It's been a very interesting journey since Pat's D3 sports inception. From a sports fan with no kids, to a sports parent dealing with the recruiting process!

Thanks, phil.  I can imagine how it has ramped in the last 15 years. My youngest daughter had 3 players get Soccer scholarships, to Arkansas, LSU and Drury U in Missouri, off her recreational league softball team!  (That team had played rec softball together since elementary school. They had fun!)

[Oline89]

Do any East Region teams regularly recruit in Texas, Florida or California?

Brockport's entire roster is from N.Y. I don't know of any MAC schools that recruit beyond driving distance. I assume the same goes for the NJAC.

Maybe those teams were implicitly set aside since they don't frequently last more than a week or two.

I posted this on the Liberty League board earlier:

So now that we are in the off season, let's talk recruiting.  I just ran some numbers:

National Powers:
Mt Union:  123 on roster, 51 from out of state (41%), 15 states represented
Mary Hardin Baylor: 172(!) on roster, 5 out of state (3%), 4 states represented

Best East teams:
Brockport: 85 on roster, 100% from NY
Del Vall: 142 on roster, 65 out of state (although 50 of these are NJ, 45%), 6 states

LL
Hobart: 106 roster, 59 out of state (56%), 10 states

My take away is that Mt Union can recruit the best athletes on a national level, not on par with FBS teams, but certainly can recruit with the majority of FCS teams.  MHB draws from a  talent rich, top 3 football producing state, those players that don't quite make the cut as high school seniors for UT, TCU, Baylor, A&M, Houston, SMU. Regional East Coast power teams (Wesley, Brockport, Del Val), need to catch lightning in a bottle, where everything lines up at the right time.   Occasionally a school like Johns Hopkins or Hobart can have the ability to pull players from out of the region and make an impact.   Didn't solve the mystery of life here, but obviously it will take a little more than good recruiting for the East to compete with the national powers.  On  a much more positive note, the inter-region fight for the top spots in the East is by far the most compelling and exciting in the country!!

Mount cannot compete with FCS schools in recruiting. FCS schools can offer 63 full scholarships, no way somebody is turning down a full ride at a d1 school to play at Mount.

Don't kid yourself, the grants that D3 players qualify for can be more lucrative than a partial scholarship to a second tier FCS program.  I am sure this has been debated ad nauseam, but I am sure that Mt Union plays at a higher level than many of the FCS programs. 

[Bartman]

Mount cannot compete with FCS schools in recruiting. FCS schools can offer 63 full scholarships, no way somebody is turning down a full ride at a d1 school to play at Mount.

Unless some other circumstances make that impossible...academics, conduct, etc, etc, etc.

-Ski

There are quite a few FCS schools that do not offer any scholarships(Pioneer league as an example) or do not offer the full complement of athletic scholarships due to budget constraints, but still compete. I am sure Mount Union can figure out how to package a good recruit "in need" to compete with the lower performing FCS schools. There is also the  group of recruits that did not pass the D1 academic clearance, and D3 is an option instead of a PG year or Junior College ball. Some of these kids end up being successful academically with the right support and the right major. A high end program needs to evaluate every legitimate source of talent.

[ITH radio]

Saw on Twitter that Matt Gono will be joining Brandon Shed out in Pasadena for the NFLPA bowl. Awesome opportunity for him and makes a nice dynamic duo of D3 athletes out there.

[ITH radio]

Mount cannot compete with FCS schools in recruiting. FCS schools can offer 63 full scholarships, no way somebody is turning down a full ride at a d1 school to play at Mount.

Unless some other circumstances make that impossible...academics, conduct, etc, etc, etc.

-Ski

There are quite a few FCS schools that do not offer any scholarships(Pioneer league as an example) or do not offer the full complement of athletic scholarships due to budget constraints, but still compete. I am sure Mount Union can figure out how to package a good recruit "in need" to compete with the lower performing FCS schools. There is also the  group of recruits that did not pass the D1 academic clearance, and D3 is an option instead of a PG year or Junior College ball. Some of these kids end up being successful academically with the right support and the right major. A high end program needs to evaluate every legitimate source of talent.

Also, MU and several other elite D3FB programs also have the competitive advantage of tuition costs that are about 35-45% less than most NE D3 schools.

[WRMUalum13]

And I guess to contradict my own point, Wesley has beaten bad FCS programs in the past lol.

[Teamski]

Saw on Twitter that Matt Gono will be joining Brandon Shed and Koree Reed out in Pasadena for the NFLPA bowl. Awesome opportunity for him and makes a nice trio of D3 athletes out there.

Great news!  I wish him the best of luck out there.  Matt Gono about as nice and sincere as you can get.  He deserves a shot.

-Ski

[Teamski]

Well the NJAC ends the season with Frostburg ranked 9th and Wesley at 12.  Not too shabby.  I recon that if Salisbury held on to beat Ithaca, they would have been somewhere in bottom half of the top 25....or at least just outside it at worst.

-Ski

[MRMIKESMITH]

Well the NJAC ends the season with Frostburg ranked 9th and Wesley at 12.  Not too shabby.  I recon that if Salisbury held on to beat Ithaca, they would have been somewhere in bottom half of the top 25....or at least just outside it at worst.

-Ski

I believe so, but we all have some work to do if we want to reach the pinnacle. I had a chance to sit and watch the championship game with Wesleydad and the size and speed of both UMHB (defensively) and Mount (offensively) at all positions are on a different level as a whole. Yes, we have players here and there, some teams more than others. However, from a Salisbury stand point, we are going to need some administrative help and some minor schematic changes. Unless our defense grows to be an awesome defense like UMHB had this past season, we are going to continue to lose games by an average of 9 points. We had a solid defense this past year, but the offense was not the best that I've seen in my years following Salisbury. Based upon the returning players can't see it doing any better unless some younger guys commit themselves in the off season by getting stronger/faster and the offense moves from the 93/7 philosophy to closer more of a 70/30. We don't have the hogs/QB to do the 93/7 and win past the 2nd round and maybe 3rd.

As for the NJAC, with the addition of the old ACFC rivals and CNU, it has raised the level of play of all teams and it has been truly  think it is an eye-opening experience for the coaches. You can't continue to just show up with the same thing unless you are truly dominate, you have to adjust quicker during the games and mix it up here and there (and be good at it), because teams know your philosophy (no surprises) and everyone is going to give you their best.