FB: New Jersey Athletic Conference

[jmcozenlaw]

I did not see an 0-7 week for the NJAC, especially with a Wesley-infused William Patterson playing a MAC-bottom feeder in FDU. The game wasn't even close.

I wasn't at the game, but to see Montclair State with only 29 total yards for the game against DelVal was even more stunning. Does Montclair beat anybody other than Kean and Will P. this year?

The Aggies need to get their 2 starting offensive linemen back as well as their best receiver (Aaron Nelson) and better QB play.

I think that I told a certain poster here that DelVal will only go as far as the defense will take them and that the offense is average at best.

I think that I was/am spot on with that assessment.

Stevenson and Widener will give them very good games, especially with the experience on the offensive side of the ball for Widener. Stevenson had seven sacks yesterday against RPI so the DelVal vs. Stevenson game next week could be a 3-2 barn burner!!

[MRMIKESMITH]

Since a few UWW fans wandered over to share their opinions, my two cents:  I didn't think the Gulls were outmatched on either side of the ball.  A couple big plays (the fourth down stop and the 70-yd TD) go differently and the Gulls would have been up in the third.  I think SU just came in with the wrong game plan, and Lanham had a rare day off.  Way too many passes and QB keeps.  Gleason and Gray ended up averaging 7 yards a rush.  I think if SU had done their usual thing this would have been closer. (And I say that as a Union fan, with respect but no love for the Gulls.)

You made some great points unionpalooza and although I don't agree with you in regards to the game plan, your points are well taken and appreciated. As someone who has been around the program and knows how the team has changed since the 90s. Coach Wood took over a struggling Salisbury program in 99 that had much success in the 80s , but struggled in the 90s and hired a great offensive mind in Coach Fleetwood that had great success (Hall of Famer) in the State of MD and was an Eastern Shore native, so it was no brainer decision. They got the team from being a consistent .500 to a national recognized program it is today. I'd say that yesterday play calling was totally different from the past 15 to 20 from my perspective. There was a conscience effort to actually pass the ball, however since this was the first time they actually attempted to be true to passing, the lack of experience from both the players and coaches showed. However, I applaud them for the effort, because they know that they have to be able to do both in the playoffs. Not saying we have to be 50-50 in ratio, but possibly 70-30/75-25. We actually passed 19 times and ran it 30 times, that's a 60-40 ratio. In the past, we probably wouldn't have actually did drop back passes or came out in passing formations (rarely) until 4th qtr, when games were actually out of reach. Would the game have been different if we just forced the option, I don't know, I do know we tried back in 2011 and it didn't work (although I think that UWW was better (IMHO)). However, what I do know is that from someone who wants the program to reach the next level, yesterday assertiveness to become more multi-dimensional was appreciated and what better game to display it in a non-conference game against a national power (a good team no doubt yesterday - see I said it  ). It SHOULD be easier from here on out, however, I don't want to sleep on any team, because we only have 9 games and the NJAC has struggled, see let's add those 10th games R1 & R2 teams  , the NJAC is not that "good" this year. Back to your points unionpalooza, Salisbury has to be able to pass the ball effectively and efficiently and not for just heaven's sake when game is already in doubt, that true addition will make this team go from being a dominant "Triple Option" team to a dominant "Triple, RPO" team that can beat anyone. Again, yesterday was a great step in achieving that. Aside from the offense, the Punt team really has to be better, that was the worst I've seen in some year's, maybe someone was sick or we need to go to the soccer team. Defensively, when running 3-4 front, you have to be aggressive, especially with only 3 down lineman, that's all I want from the defense. I rather lose, knowing the other team was just "more talented" rather than out schemed. Defense played well considering the points aforementioned in my yesterday's post. I'm still proud of way the team played, they weren't overwhelmed, I didn't see any fear in the players faces and again I'm optimistic where the ceiling for this team can be.

[RowanPhan]

Rowan faced an efficient Springfield crew on Saturday. First half was competitive and close - In the second half the Profs were not able to muster much offense allowing the to Pride to 'run away with the game.' Not helping matters the Profs had key guys out for the game including game-changer James Fara.

I'm still optimistic about this Profs team - they now have 2 tough games under their belt and 2 bye weeks over the next 3 weeks. The bye weeks should allow some injured guys to come back to action. It goes without saying that the most important games for the Profs will be the conference games.

[MRMIKESMITH]

Ahhh, it's always good to have a bye week. However, it's always worse after a loss. However, it's an opportunity to get back to basics, work on techniques, and to get healthy. This will be the 1st of two bye-weeks this season for Salisbury, Rowan, TCNJ, and Kean. I understand budget issues, but if UW-W can travel 900+ miles on a bus to play a game, I'm sure some other teams can do the same. These young men deserve a 10th game after Covid. Talk to your athletic directors, captains, and seniors and get that 10th game. Now, back to the bye-week, I expect Salisbury to get healthy over this week. I'm sure the players are disappointed in the outcome, but they have hopes of getting better from this past weekend. They will not dwell on it, but respect the result and learn. Again, better Week 2 than Week 13/14. I believe this team still have high expectations.

Aside from the Gulls, the rest of the NJAC has to do some soul searching as well, 0-7 is not acceptable, i'm sure this is a first for the conference or first in a long time. The good thing is that conference play hasn't started and we have a few more weeks of non-conference games. Willy P, Montclair, and CNU all have that 10th game and on paper appears to be winnable by each.

[CNU85]

Sometimes there is a price to pay for having that 10th game. In the case of CNU, it means the bye week is week 11.

Enjoy the 2 byes mid-season to rest and heal.

[MRMIKESMITH]

Congrats to LB Casey Counts, So., Salisbury for making https://d3football.com/awards/tow/2021/week2 team of the week.

[bleedpurple]

Congrats to LB Casey Counts, So., Salisbury for making https://d3football.com/awards/tow/2021/week2 team of the week.

He really played well.  They did a nice job of timing his blitzes with just a slight delay in attempts to get a free run at the QB. It was a pretty high risk strategy that left them vulnerable at times, but paid off other times. He obviously vacated his normal spot which backfired on certain play calls.  But when they matched that blitz with a medium to deep pass play call, it was money. He got home. Along with the sacks, I thought he did a nice job against the run as well. Congrats to him on the honor!

[MRMIKESMITH]

MAC keep on adding teams, while the NJAC just sitting around like, let us have Stevenson and/or Widener and we can be happy. Or can New Jersey City, Ramapo just add football. I think it's time to look at Newport News Apprentice, wondering if NIL will allow them become full member.

[RowanPhan]

MAC keep on adding teams, while the NJAC just sitting around like, let us have Stevenson and/or Widener and we can be happy. Or can New Jersey City, Ramapo just add football. I think it's time to look at Newport News Apprentice, wondering if NIL will allow them become full member.

Widener and/or FDU would be perfect for the NJAC. Any chance Richard Stockton gets a team? Would be nice for them to add at least one more school.

[JT2]

MAC keep on adding teams, while the NJAC just sitting around like, let us have Stevenson and/or Widener and we can be happy. Or can New Jersey City, Ramapo just add football. I think it's time to look at Newport News Apprentice, wondering if NIL will allow them become full member.

Widener and/or FDU would be perfect for the NJAC. Any chance Richard Stockton gets a team? Would be nice for them to add at least one more school.

Ramapo had some recruiting violations in the early 1990's. School just shut the whole program down. Shame. They had decent teams in the late 80's, early 90's. The make up the Ramapo college admin/board leads me to believe, that hell would freeze over before re-starting football would be considered.

For NJCU, I think it was an expense that the school no longer wanted to have... that and all the sub .500 seasons.

[bman]

MAC keep on adding teams, while the NJAC just sitting around like, let us have Stevenson and/or Widener and we can be happy. Or can New Jersey City, Ramapo just add football. I think it's time to look at Newport News Apprentice, wondering if NIL will allow them become full member.

Widener and/or FDU would be perfect for the NJAC. Any chance Richard Stockton gets a team? Would be nice for them to add at least one more school.

Ramapo had some recruiting violations in the early 1990's. School just shut the whole program down. Shame. They had decent teams in the late 80's, early 90's. The make up the Ramapo college admin/board leads me to believe, that hell would freeze over before re-starting football would be considered.

For NJCU, I think it was an expense that the school no longer wanted to have... that and all the sub .500 seasons.

It would be highly unlikely that Widener would leave the MAC.  Its mostly comprised of Eastern PA teams or teams relatively nearby...

[CNU85]

Well that sucked. 26-19

[MRMIKESMITH]

Another tough weekend for the NJAC, going 1-2 this weekend. I really thought Montclair State was going to comeback and win that game against Salve . Didn't catch the CNU vs. Ferrum game, but it appeared to be competitive and from the box score, the comeback fell short with the turnover on downs midway through the 4th, tough break for a good CNU team. However, congrats are in order for Willie P on getting their first win, hopefully this propels them into next week. 

Looking forward to next week's full slate with WP vs. Suny-Maritime, TCNJ vs. Nichols, Montclair vs. WPI, Rowan vs. Salve Regina, Kean vs. Merchant Marine, CNU vs. Catholic, and Salisbury vs. WNE. Historically, this would appear to be a full sweep for the NJAC. However, this year has been a struggle, but with a good amount of the teams coming off a bye-week, I'd expect at least an above .500 record for the conference. The big eye grabbers are definitely Rowan vs. Salve Regina, Salve being undefeated and just beating pre-season ranked #2 in the NJAC Montclair. Let's see if Rowan can respond after their loss to a good Springfield team. Then, Montclair vs. WPI, I think Montclair found some offensive groove late against Salve that I expect them to try to duplicate into this week contest against WPI. WPI is coming off a tough loss to RPI where they struggled to score. I think if the offense can get creative with Burch and get him to use his mobility to create time for WR to get open, they can win. Next, I think the Salisbury vs WNE has the making of being a good one. WNE suffered a tough loss to a good and undefeated Utica team out of the E8. They played very well. Salisbury is looking to rebound after a tough defeat to the current #3 team in the nation in that of UW-Whitewater. Let's see if they put that game behind them and keep a multi-facet WNE team in check that is not only looking for respect in the NE, but regionally/nationally as well. Lastly, the CNU vs. Catholic game. I think this could be a toss up, Catholic just knocked off formerly 2-0 Endicott team that many expected to beat Catholic. Whearass, CNU will be looking to respond after another close loss.

[RowanPhan]

The big eye grabbers are definitely Rowan vs. Salve Regina, Salve being undefeated and just beating pre-season ranked #2 in the NJAC Montclair. Let's see if Rowan can respond after their loss to a good Springfield team.

My 2 cents. Salve is about a 5 hour drive from Glassboro, NJ. Thus the Profs will take a rare overnight trip for the weekend game. The Profs have already suffered a few key injuries, so it'll be interesting to see if anyone healed up during the bye week and makes a return. My understanding is that the Profs will take a smaller group of players for the road trip, but they benefited from the 2 homes and played a ton of guys especially in the Widener matchup.

The Profs will need 4 consistent quarters to win, but hopefully the Profs are able to notch a victory before heading into yet another bye week.

[MRMIKESMITH]

Game week for Salisbury. I know the players and coaches are very hungry to get back to action this week after coming off a bye and a loss (albeit to #3 team in the nation). I expect the offense to come out strong in the running game to establish dominance and set the tone by utilizing the option run first and foremost. I expect defensively to be more discipline in alignment on man to man play (know down and distances) and have more conscience/smart aptitude on double moves that break zones and setup plays (fake screens/double passes). As far as special teams, I want players on the various teams to own their assignment. Some players don't understand that special teams have a huge influence on the outcome of games and if your a 2nd/3rd teamer, it can help move you up on depth chart.

As far as WNE, I expect them to try to run a lot of RPO and double moves in their passing game. However, I think it starts up front. If WNE is able to run the ball early and have some success, that will definitely open up their playbook. Otherwise, they can take the Union approach and just do PA the whole game with double moves to play on the defensive scheme. Salisbury has much respect for WNE, having played them in 2011. Also, as there is former player whom is the current Defensive Coordinator at WNE, this game has a lot stories and weird connections.

Nevertheless, I'm looking forward to some good injury free football and obviously a W in the Salisbury Column.