FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[57Johnnie]

And it's out. As usual, things are heating up in the MIAC.  http://d3football.com/top25/2017/week2

The Johnnies move up to 7th.
The Tommies fall to 10th.
The Cobbers enter the rankings at 23rd.

From our WIAC neighbors UWW fall out of the rankings and Stout enter at 25th.

Good week for BDB and cornhorn

[corn horn]

The Cobbers have put together a nice highlight video of their victory on the weekend.  They were very stoked.  A couple things popped out at me.  First, they have an offensive lineman, #65, that is about the size of 2.5 normal people.  And it looked like the smallest guy on the CON team was the one that got around the end and tripped up the RB to win the game on the last second goal line stand.

https://youtu.be/yjb7J-LuKZ4

That "smallest guy" is preseason All-American linebacker Alex Berg...listed at 6'0", 205.

[OzJohnnie]

It's on like Donkey Kong!  I've been given permission to fly back for the Johnnie/Tommie game next year.  Oct 13, 2018 here I come.

[art76]

What a brutal week for the MIAC in week two of the 2017 season. As was already posted here on this board, a collective 3 and 6 is all, for a total of 10 and 8 for the season in non-conference play. Yish. As we turn our attention to league play, the results in the first couple of weeks give us a peek into how the season might turn out for the 9 teams in the MIAC this year.

Hamline gets the bye this week.

The first game I'll highlight is St. John's traveling down to St. Olaf. The Johnnies will empty the bench for the third week in a row, in part because everyone on the squad does not travel. And they will score lots and lots of points. Sorry Ole fans, but the Johnnies might get a second shut-out in three weeks.

At the chance of riling up both the Tommie and Johnnie fans, I think it is safe to say that the St. Thomas game down at Carlton is pretty much a rubber stamp of the first game above. They'll win with a lot of points and it might be a shut out. It's going to be a tough afternoon for the home teams in Northfield this weekend.

The third game for the week is Bethel traveling up to Concordia Moorhead. Bethel took quite a licking this past week and the Cobbers are riding high after knocking off a great program in Whitewater. I think Bethel will figure out how to score some points this week, but it won't be enough to beat the Cobbers. I suspect it will be at least a two score spread at the end of the game.

The game of the week has Gustavus traveling up to Augsburg. Gustavus took one on the chin last week from River Falls to sit at 1 and 1. Augsburg is undefeated, but looking ahead, if the Auggies can win this game, they have Carleton next week and could be 4 and 0 at the start of the season for the first time in a long time. The Gusties won't be a push-over, by any stretch of the imagination. While this game is going to be close, I'm inclined to give the edge to the Auggies.

I'll go on record to say that the MIAC teams this year are going to end up shuffled and not end up in the order the coaches pre-season poll had them, which was:
1. St. Thomas
2. St. John's
3. Concordia
4. Bethel
5. Gustavus
6. Hamline
7. Augsburg
8. St. Olaf
9. Carleton

[doolittledog]

It's on like Donkey Kong!  I've been given permission to fly back for the Johnnie/Tommie game next year.  Oct 13, 2018 here I come.

That means you'll have to be on your best behavior for a whole year, or she could take back her permission 

[OldAuggie]

Thanks for your hard work Art. +k.

[sjusection105]

Thanks Art- +K

[SJUrube]

Caught most of the Jays first half on the radio. Sounds like Presentation was big on the OL - 270+ all the way around. I doubt they are as skilled as the bigs in the MIAC but I think that's where there's value in a game like this - letting the defense feel that size that will be there against the better MIAC and hopefully playoff teams. I know Clark left the game early - any word on if it was just precautionary?

Good win for the Cobbers. Sounds like UW-W has had trouble at the goal line their first two weeks. I won't be surprised if they find a way to run the table in the WIAC. What will be interesting is what happens if they drop 1 WIAC game and finish 7-3.

As for the other MIAC upset, at what point does everyone stop being surprised at their personal fouls? Remember what George W Bush told us..."fool me once, I won't get fooled again."

[jim comet]

I am not sure I understand why they penalized #91 for blasting through the line with 30 seconds left? what if Stout biffs the snap? what if he knocks the ball loose and UST recovers it. Ask the Cobbers how much time is needed to get the game winning score. It was a 1 score game and last I remember there are 60 minutes in the football game not 59:30. I could understand if there was a larger score difference. Whats this "victory formation" that no one can attack? Hypothetical, there is 20 seconds left in a basket ball game, The opponents make a basket to come within 1 point. Can the point guard be surrounded by his teammates in a "victory formation" as he dribbles the ball until the time expires and proper edicate say the opposing team cant try and steal the ball? I come from a wrestling background, so if I was in a match with 20 seconds left and I am down by a point I am coming harder than ever. Why would you give up with 30 seconds left when a field goal ties it and a touchdown wins the game. I was at the game and want to say I was impressed with Stouts play. Very fun game to watch. Jim

[OzJohnnie]

That means you'll have to be on your best behavior for a whole year, or she could take back her permission 

Um, wow.  I thought I was being clever starting negotiations a year out.  And super persuasive getting a 'Yes' so soon.  And now I realize she was playing a game three layers deep.  Why do men even try?

[wally_wabash]

Good win for the Cobbers. Sounds like UW-W has had trouble at the goal line their first two weeks. I won't be surprised if they find a way to run the table in the WIAC. What will be interesting is what happens if they drop 1 WIAC game and finish 7-3.

I don't think there would be any intrigue regarding UWW on Selection Sunday in this scenario.  With just five Pool C bids available, I can't envision a scenario where a team with three in-division losses can be invited to play in the tournament.  The Warhawks are in single elimination mode starting right now. 

[57Johnnie]

That means you'll have to be on your best behavior for a whole year, or she could take back her permission 

Um, wow.  I thought I was being clever starting negotiations a year out.  And super persuasive getting a 'Yes' so soon.  And now I realize she was playing a game three layers deep.  Why do men even try?

You should know by now that you can get in trouble at home without even knowing why 

[USTBench]

Post Mortem:

1) BDB could easily be the mayor of Menominie.

2) Stout's defense is legit, and UST helped them look even better. The box scores are all screwed up but here are some things I know to be true. I'm sure Perra was sore on Sunday. UST's offensive line struggled pass blocking, and when they left in an extra tight end or RB to block, the receivers just couldn't get open. Which led to Perra throwing a pick that almost went for 6, or, alternatively, taking off and running, which resulted in him taking some pretty brutal shots.

UST threw about 50% of the time on 1st down. Perra throws a very nice ball, and I know he's the shiny new toy, but I'd rather see 2nd and 6 or 5 than 2nd and 10. When you have Roberts and Trettel, it is unnecessary to throw 41 times. It also affected the play-action. Numerous times Perra would play-action with the o-line and RBs flowing left so he could roll out to the right, only to be decapitated by #56 or whatever OLB was coming off the edge. Stout had the book on that, and it resulted in some bad QB hits, sacks, an intentional grounding and some QB hurries. Tear that play out of the playbook. After about the 6th time they ran that play I was wondering if they were just being masochistic.

Roberts has a ways to go before he's his old-self. I could see from BDB's beautiful-people seats he was missing some lanes you could wheelbarrow a Bennie through. At this point in the season Trettel is the better back IMO. I'm sure that'll change as the season goes on. I would try to get Roberts and Trettel about 20 and 15 touches respectively against Carleton. The line needs to establish its presence and Roberts just needs as many carries as he can get to shake the rust off.

Defensively: UGGGGGH. Very fast and very undisciplined. Apparently on 3rd and long they are under the impression that everything is legal. Double legged dropkicks, nunchcks, I think I saw Dylan Andrew kill a guy with a trident. He might want to lay low for awhile. Needless to say, a few 3rd downs turned into 1st downs, not because Stout made the right play call, but because UST decided to commit a felony assault.

The most fun match up was Mark Dowdle lined up on Brian Sandifer. Sandifer only had two catches but was targeted about 7 times on deep balls. Some great catches, pass break-ups, s**t talk, pass interferences on both guys. I could watch those two do 1-on-1s all day.

All-in-all. UW Stout is probably a 7-3 football team this year. Their defense is lights out, they have a nice RB and the WRs are athletic.

UST has the ability to go 9-1 or 7-3. My heart says UST can turn this into a positive and win out, my head says this is SJU's year unless either Concordia or UST say otherwise. I think if UST just plays a more conservative ball game they'll have a shot at the playoffs.

[miac952]

My $.02 on the weekend... which probably isnt worth that much. I missed much of the action this weekend after the tragedy that hit our neck of the woods with the Wayzata officer being killed on Hwy 12. Can't say I knew him well but we did cross paths with he and his son in youth sports frequently. In those fleeting moments the father son bond was clear. And between being a volunteer coach for the kid and being a police officer, that tells a lot of the story about who he is right there. I have a son of a similar age. This has been a tough pill to swallow to put it mildly. It has been wonderful to see the community rallying and honoring Officer Bill and his family in so many ways though.

On a lighter note.

1. We are starting to see something in D3 that many fans have been yearning for some time. Parity. It started with Stagg last year and is carrying over. This is good stuff. My team was the unfortunate recipient of a defeat however.

2. My Tommies - I must admit that I only caught pieces of the 2nd half. To start Stout deserves much credit. There is a lot of talent on both sides of the ball there. WR is the most obvious place to start. There main target + plus the local kid that got kicked off the gophers and then left River Falls are a great 1 - 2 punch. A well earned and well coached victory all around. Good luck to them the rest of the way.

For the Tommies, I cant say I'm too worried about the defense. They held up very well, given some short fields and positions they were put in. Front 7 looked good, minus a couple breakdowns. I think they are soft at Safety, but they have been for some time. Caruso's early years they had a couple of big All American on the back end in Ervin and Villar. Since then and moving Chinni to Safety from CB, that has been a big hole in the D. Safeties have been undersized, relatively poor at tackling, and have had coverage breakdown with too much frequency.

The offense is very concerning. Haven't looked through game posts or this thread all that deeply. The O line doesn't appear to be physical enough right now. And Perra looks like he is very afraid to make a mistake. Bailing on the pocket soon, throwing away all the time, jittery. Fenske was slinging it last year (UWO notwithstanding) He won't take a chance unless he sees full separation, which the UST receivers aren't getting. I hope the O-line can transition. Is Coach Lepsche leaving a factor? On its face they are fairly talented and experienced so this one is a bit confusing.

At the end of the day this game was eerily reminiscent of the UST UWEC game the first year UST made the national title (2012 maybe?). UST played a terrible game (much worse than this one) and had no business winning it, if not for a completely boondoggle by the BluGolds. Now there is a big difference between a win and a loss, but we will see if UST can rebound the same way they did that year. No panic button just yet. Win out and your in. Seems simple enough. 

3. Will be interesting to see how UST vs. SJU plays out. Will playing teams with some kind of pulse play to UST's favor. Or will the healthy and undefeated Johns walk in with some confidence and pull out a W. Either way it goes I am sure the non - conference scheduling will be a talker post game.

4. Big props to the Cobbers. They won in their style of a game, and closed out in a game like they havent in the past. Might we see the boys from Moorhead on top of the MIAC at the end of the year. If they were to run the gauntlet of UWW, SJU, and UST I would say they would be a signficant playoff threat.

5. What is going over at Bethel. The ship isnt righting itself. It seems to be getting worse. They are precipitously close to becoming a MIAC afterthought. I never thought that would happen with what has been built. I have great respect for what Coach Johnson has done. Hoping to see some signs of improvement.

[miac952]

Did anybody notice that MAC beat Hamline to win the Paint Bucket? If they still played in the MIAC they would have 2 conference wins this season.  Shout out to Snelling and St. Clair avenue...get your ass back in the league for football or just get the hell out all together.

Agree...Agree...Agree