FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[badger1845]

UWO doesn't need a second loss on their record.

They still have Platteville this weekend.  No lock that they will win that or the UW LX game.  As far as a game next year just trying to line teams up.  Both need a game and you know it would draw a crowd. 

[AO]

Erdmann back to practicing, Alvord will get the start on Saturday:

http://www.sctimes.com/story/sports/football/johnnie-football/2016/10/19/sju-blog-midweek-update-erdmann-back-practice/92438392/

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

This is troubling...either MAC needs to get back to playing football in the conference or we need to recruit another team like St. Scholastica.  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

Disagree. SoS is a part of the formula. Adding a team to the MIAC moves the entire leagues SoS closer to .500. The extra non-con games have scheduling hurdles, but they also allow playoff caliber teams to schedule strategically to boost their playoff resume.

I can't imagine any scenario where a 1 loss MIAC doesn't make the playoff field. I know it's been discussed on the boards in the past but I just don't see it. As a result I don't think it matters whether we're a 10 team league playing 9 games or a 9 team league playing 8. I would recommend avoiding a non conference game that you could potentially lose in the event you do slip up in the conference schedule because a two loss teams stands only a small chance of getting in.

If the MIAC has a year without a 3rd team in the regional rankings (if Concordia loses to Augsburg) it could be tough to get in with 9-1 and Buena Vista on your non-conference schedule.  It may have been better in that situation to have been beaten by Whitewater than beat Buena Vista.  You would get a big SOS boost from Whitewater and another result against a regionally ranked opponent.  I think the committee would rightly recognize that your only two losses were to 2 of the top 4 teams in the country and not ding you for having a lower winning percentage than the other 9-1 candidates.

[Boys of Fall]

Quick break in the football action.  Was just reminded that today is the 25th anniversary of Kent Hrbek tagging Ron Gant out at first base in the '91 World Series.  Any of you who saw this know Gant went back to the base too hard and his momentum carried him off the bag.

[hazzben]

Erdmann back to practicing, Alvord will get the start on Saturday:

http://www.sctimes.com/story/sports/football/johnnie-football/2016/10/19/sju-blog-midweek-update-erdmann-back-practice/92438392/

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

This is troubling...either MAC needs to get back to playing football in the conference or we need to recruit another team like St. Scholastica.  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

Disagree. SoS is a part of the formula. Adding a team to the MIAC moves the entire leagues SoS closer to .500. The extra non-con games have scheduling hurdles, but they also allow playoff caliber teams to schedule strategically to boost their playoff resume.

I can't imagine any scenario where a 1 loss MIAC doesn't make the playoff field. I know it's been discussed on the boards in the past but I just don't see it. As a result I don't think it matters whether we're a 10 team league playing 9 games or a 9 team league playing 8. I would recommend avoiding a non conference game that you could potentially lose in the event you do slip up in the conference schedule because a two loss teams stands only a small chance of getting in.

Right, but what if the conference runner up has 2 losses? SoS plays a major role in that team making the field.

More than that, SoS plays a role in Regional Rankings and Seeding. Part of the reason St. Thomas has had a great case for a #1 seed the past few years is they've had a monster SoS, which was boosted by the MIAC playing 2 non-con games and performing well in those games. Beyond just #1 seeds, a strong SoS helps the case of a 1 loss MIAC team staying home week one and potentially week 2.

Believe me, for the quality of football in the MIAC (both statistically and reputation), we don't want Mac or CSS.

9 teams is a great place to be. 8 and you're scrambling to add 3 non-con games. 10 and you just don't have the flexibility to boost your SoS the way you'd like to.

[sjusection105]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

[faunch]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

The only team in that list I would want to play in a non-conference game is North Central.  The others are not worth the risk.

[SagatagSam]

Quick break in the football action.  Was just reminded that today is the 25th anniversary of Kent Hrbek tagging Ron Gant out at first base in the '91 World Series.  Any of you who saw this know Gant went back to the base too hard and his momentum carried him off the bag.

Don't say that in Atlanta.

I had a friendly discussion with an usher at a Braves game become quite heated after the mere mention of the name Hrbek--and that was 20 years after it happened.

[miac952]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

The only team in that list I would want to play in a non-conference game is North Central.  The others are not worth the risk.

I don't know who they have returning next year, but right now North Central is #6 in the country. Plus, you don't get an in-region win if you come out on top.

I would rank them in this order:

Whitewater
.
.
Linfield (especially if its a road trip)
North Central
Platteville
.
LaCrosse

I dont know that any of these are teams you want to play in non con, but UST and SJU do need to find at least middle of the pack teams from upper tier conferences. The hard part about that is predicting there relative strength when you schedule them. LaCrosse, for instance, fell of the calendar a year early for it to be a fun matchup for UST.

The reality this year is that there is a distinct possibility a 1 loss MIAC team might not make it. The combination of a strong WIAC and relatively weak SoS for SJU could hurt them. The 2 non con games arent helping them and the rest of the MIAC's non con performance wasnt great. Where they sit in the computer rankings at this point in the year is much lower than last season. The one thing that could be to there benefit would be chaos in the WIAC in the last few weeks of the season. There are still a lot of key matchups and if everyone beats up each other, SJU will be sitting in a great spot.

If we were to say Concordia is a 1 loss team (since Jamestown is mostly thrown out) and they win against the Johnnies to end the season, I think there mountain to climb is even higher for the MIAC.

[retagent]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

The only team in that list I would want to play in a non-conference game is North Central.  The others are not worth the risk.

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

The only team in that list I would want to play in a non-conference game is North Central.  The others are not worth the risk.

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

I think Lacrosse makes the most sense, just because of travel distance. They also are on the upswing, and it would provide a good test going into the MIAC schedule.

[57Johnnie]

LaCrosse 

[DuffMan]

Was Stretch any better for the Carleton game than it was for the Auggie Tech game?  I'm hoping it works this weekend.

[HansenRatings]

If we were to say Concordia is a 1 loss team (since Jamestown is mostly thrown out) and they win against the Johnnies to end the season, I think there mountain to climb is even higher for the MIAC.

Worth remembering that a few years ago UW-Oshkosh went 6-4, but 6-1 against non-scholarship/DIII schools. They lost to a couple Top 10 NAIA schools, South Dakota State, and Whitewater. If the committee truly doesn't consider out-of division games, it stands to reason a one-loss WIAC team should have gotten in. Oshkosh did not get in. The Jamestown loss was bad (they're 1-6 right now), and I would bet that it will be in the back of the committees' (both regional and national) minds come selection Sunday.

[sjusection105]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

The only team in that list I would want to play in a non-conference game is North Central.  The others are not worth the risk.

As I've learned from '57- don't quote threads over 3 quotes deep so I won't. 

As others have said, SoS makes a difference especially if you are a 1 loss 2nd pace team in the MIAC hoping to get a play-off bid. Playing a UMAC team, MWC or a lower tier IIAC team or even a lower tier WIAC for non-conference doesn't cut it.
What UWW did 15 years ago to build their program to national prominence does make sense...they took nationally ranked teams for their non-conference games to see where they needed to be to complete on a national stage. 2002 they played SJU and Mount Union,lost both,but showed they they were very close and the rest is history.

Don't shy away from competition to pad your record...then you are no better than the Gophers who get a bid to a terrible Bowl and lose but then again I guess getting the "participation trophy" is what really counts anymore.

[wm4]

* "Fasching also said the team has not yet found an opponent to fill the date it has open in week two of its schedule next season."

  Sure SJU could fly a team in from out of state but that would be costly.

The date is September 9,2017. The following schools have openings per D3 Football.com
*Linfield
*La Crosse
*Platteville
*Whitewater
*North Central (Ill.)
All would be interesting match up for SJU.

I would love to see North Central, or even Wheaton get a game with a top MIAC team.  Bethel and North Central played a solid playoff game (in bitter cold) back in 2013, but other than that there's just not much crossover between the two leagues.  Some great match up possibilities, and SJU / NCC would be one of them.

North Central is consistently the best D3 team in the Chicago area.  They get tons of kids from the strong western and south burbs high school programs.  North Central has a very good QB who's just a freshman (transfer from Indiana State), and their WR talent is strong too.  They'll be stocked in the coming years.  The made the semis in '13, which I think is about their ceiling, but will be interesting to see how far they go this year. 

[miac952]

Yes. You have to think the Jamestown loss will be a dark cloud in some capacity, even if it is not supposed to be considered.

It's SJU or bust for a 2nd MIAC team. The best guarantee to that would be chaos in the WIAC. If there is a 1 loss WIAC team they will be the top of the heap for Pool C's. Then it might be a mass of teams with a similar argument (a single loss to a top 10 team). SJU, Wheaton, Hardin-Simmons, Thomas More, an NCAC team. A lot can still happen in 3-4 weeks. Will be interesting.