FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[jamtod]

Worthwhile interview with Coach Fasching and Mike Max on WCCO.
Can be streamed here: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/audio/sports-to-the-max-with-mike-max/

Of all the things I have to dislike about St John's, this 98-0 whooping doesn't even register for me. Just an odd mix of events that led to things getting really out of hand. I think I'd be much more concerned about a win like that and how little (plus games against Presentation and Carleton) it will prepare the Johnnies for St Thomas in a few weeks. I've heard a lot of talk about how St John's and Oshkosh both had open weeks for this next week, but I would imagine Oshkosh might not want the back to back of John Carroll + St John's, if SJU was interested in setting that match up. Would be curious to hear the inside scoop on if that game was discussed at all.

[scottyeagle93]

Keep in mind that the reason for the MIAC having two non-conference games is that Macalester fled the conference in football. They said they would come back when they were competitive again. Last time I checked they've won more than a few games each year...even won their conference and went to the playoffs. It might be time for them to come back or get the hell out of the conference altogether...then maybe a school like CSS could join! 

In the 17 seasons since MAC has been out of the league I count that SJU has played WIAC teams 19 times (UWEC, UWRF and UWW)...in addition to Marietta, East Texas Baptist, St. Norbert and Dubuque to name a few. I think it's difficult to find non-conference opponents at this level when they know they're going to get their lunch handed to them. I give credit to Ramler and CSS for taking on that challenge.

You have to admit there would be complaints about having to play Macalester each year if they did rejoin though.  Some teams prefer having two non-conference games on the schedule, and others would be upset with playing an opponent that won't help the conference's prestige and won't make anyone a better team come playoff time.
Additionally, Macalester has had flashes of competitiveness in the MIAC in the past; during the 80's they saw a brief run of around .500 seasons, but we all know what happened in the following decade.  I think Mac wants to make sure their success in the Midwest Conference is consistent and sustained so if/when they rejoin the MIAC, their numbers don't dwindle and they don't have to consider dropping the program again.  This also means the conference will have a team that can contribute positively to the conference's competitive landscape.

[OzJohnnie]

Worthwhile interview with Coach Fasching and Mike Max on WCCO.
Can be streamed here: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/audio/sports-to-the-max-with-mike-max/

Of all the things I have to dislike about St John's, this 98-0 whooping doesn't even register for me. Just an odd mix of events that led to things getting really out of hand. I think I'd be much more concerned about a win like that and how little (plus games against Presentation and Carleton) it will prepare the Johnnies for St Thomas in a few weeks. I've heard a lot of talk about how St John's and Oshkosh both had open weeks for this next week, but I would imagine Oshkosh might not want the back to back of John Carroll + St John's, if SJU was interested in setting that match up. Would be curious to hear the inside scoop on if that game was discussed at all.

Thanks for posting that.  A good interview.  Gary was quite uncomfortable with the whole thing.  I wonder if Ramler has any recorded interviews.  That would be a little painful as well.

[OzJohnnie]

I went over to have a look at Presentation and found some interesting tidbits on their football website.  Their coach, Chuck Miesbauer, is in  his first year of head coaching having replaced the retired long-term Presentation head coach.  But more interestingly he's a successful footballer from Minnesota:

A native of St. Paul, MN, Miesbauer attended perennial prep football powerhouse, Cretin Durham Hall, before playing collegiately at NCAA DII Concordia University-St. Paul. A four-year starter at safety for the Golden Bears, Miesbauer earned several honors and served as team captain. An All-Northern Sun selection on the field and an NSIC all-academic performer in the classroom, he earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and psychology from Concordia in 2007 and went on to earn his Master’s degree from U-Mary in 2012.
Before coaching collegiately, Miesbauer joined the Cretin Durham Hall football coaching staff in 2008 and helped the team win the 2009 state title.

Some folks posting here might know him.

He's only in his second year at Presentation.  His first year, as DC, was quite impressive.  He appears to have some quality coaching skills:

During his first season with the Saints and as the defensive coordinator, the Saints defense saw a great deal of success during the 2016 season. Some of the team’s defensive accolades of the record-setting 7-3 season include:
2nd in NAIA – Turnovers Forced (34)
2nd in NAIA – Opponent Pass Efficient (88.1)
4th in NAIA - Passing Yds Allowed/Game (136.8)
6th in NAIA – Yards Allowed/Game (276.1)
7th in NAIA – Opponent 4th Down Conversion (26.9%)
10th in NAIA – Opponent 3rd Down Conversion (30.7%)
Furthermore, Miesbauer coached AFCA Coaches’ All-American 1st Team defensive end, Jeff Branch, who was the first Saint in program history to earn this prestigious honor.

We may have a surprisingly interesting game on our hands this weekend.

EDIT: Actually, something is strange in South Dakota.  The whole coaching staff is brand new.

* The OC is in his second year at presentation, first as OC.
* Defensive assistant and special teams, second year.
* Defensive assistant and recruiting, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* A young guy, no bio.

I think a little Google investigation is in order.  The whole program turned over in two years it looks like.

EDIT II:  Couldn't find any hot gossip.  The old HC got a good sports admin job at USD.  Can't find what happened to the old assistants.

[faunch]

I went over to have a look at Presentation and found some interesting tidbits on their football website.  Their coach, Chuck Miesbauer, is in  his first year of head coaching having replaced the retired long-term Presentation head coach.  But more interestingly he's a successful footballer from Minnesota:

A native of St. Paul, MN, Miesbauer attended perennial prep football powerhouse, Cretin Durham Hall, before playing collegiately at NCAA DII Concordia University-St. Paul. A four-year starter at safety for the Golden Bears, Miesbauer earned several honors and served as team captain. An All-Northern Sun selection on the field and an NSIC all-academic performer in the classroom, he earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology and psychology from Concordia in 2007 and went on to earn his Master's degree from U-Mary in 2012.
Before coaching collegiately, Miesbauer joined the Cretin Durham Hall football coaching staff in 2008 and helped the team win the 2009 state title.

Some folks posting here might know him.

He's only in his second year at Presentation.  His first year, as DC, was quite impressive.  He appears to have some quality coaching skills:

During his first season with the Saints and as the defensive coordinator, the Saints defense saw a great deal of success during the 2016 season. Some of the team's defensive accolades of the record-setting 7-3 season include:
2nd in NAIA – Turnovers Forced (34)
2nd in NAIA – Opponent Pass Efficient (88.1)
4th in NAIA - Passing Yds Allowed/Game (136.8)
6th in NAIA – Yards Allowed/Game (276.1)
7th in NAIA – Opponent 4th Down Conversion (26.9%)
10th in NAIA – Opponent 3rd Down Conversion (30.7%)
Furthermore, Miesbauer coached AFCA Coaches' All-American 1st Team defensive end, Jeff Branch, who was the first Saint in program history to earn this prestigious honor.

We may have a surprisingly interesting game on our hands this weekend.

EDIT: Actually, something is strange in South Dakota.  The whole coaching staff is brand new.

* The OC is in his second year at presentation, first as OC.
* Defensive assistant and special teams, second year.
* Defensive assistant and recruiting, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* A young guy, no bio.

I think a little Google investigation is in order.  The whole program turned over two years it looks like.

They could learn to spell Derham correctly.

[sjusection105]

I think I'd be much more concerned about a win like that and how little (plus games against Presentation and Carleton) it will prepare the Johnnies for St Thomas in a few weeks. I've heard a lot of talk about how St John's and Oshkosh both had open weeks for this next week, but I would imagine Oshkosh might not want the back to back of John Carroll + St John's, if SJU was interested in setting that match up. Would be curious to hear the inside scoop on if that game was discussed at all.

The 3rd game is actually Olaf, but same same... a Northfield school that will bring little to the table. I've had this concern for years. Lower tier opponents like UMAC schools ,lower level WIAC or IIAC schools. You get the W but does it really tell you where your program is? 

[GoldandBlueBU]

In hind sight, if Bethel would have just kicked the first extra point instead of faking it and going for 2 and failing, or kicking a field goal in the 4th quarter instead of going for 4th and 1 at the 19, they probably would have won the game. Yes, I know, it's not a given he would have made those kicks, but it looks like they have a decent kicker for a change this year, making all his extra point attempts and his other field goal attempt. And I also know the game would have been played differently if those things happened - just saying they would have had a better chance of winning if they would have made the first extra point and/or field goal.

I concur - well said. There was even another missed FG opportunity when BU had about 30 yards out on another fourth down. This game didn't need to go into overtime.

Something I noticed is that on most running plays, the receivers were not running their routes to pull the second and third layer defensive players out of the picture. Many of the runs to the outside had no chance of turning the corner because there were too many bodies close to the line of scrimmage.

All that to say, it was a better game than I expected - which bodes well for their season.

Chiming in late, but that was takeaway as well.  I'd expected them to have a tougher time - new defense, relatively young / inexperienced QB, new RB.  I brought our 3 yr old to her first game and watched the first half there, and the second half online.

The defense did better than I expected overall, but yes, struggled to contain the QB at times, which negated any pressure they were getting.

Marsh looked good overall - his mistakes were those of a young QB, (completely threw the ball up for grabs under duress a couple of times), but I think his ceiling is still high.  His errors were of the correctable variety.

Once it went into OT, I was pretty confident it would go Dubuque's way.  Their senior QB isn't a superstar, but he really didn't make many, if any negative plays for his team.   He was pretty crafty, so it just felt like he was going to find a way to close it out, while Marsh just isn't quite there yet.

Hopefully they can even the W/L column next week!

[AO]

EDIT: Actually, something is strange in South Dakota.  The whole coaching staff is brand new.

* The OC is in his second year at presentation, first as OC.
* Defensive assistant and special teams, second year.
* Defensive assistant and recruiting, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* Offensive assistant, first year.
* A young guy, no bio.

I think a little Google investigation is in order.  The whole program turned over in two years it looks like.

EDIT II:  Couldn't find any hot gossip.  The old HC got a good sports admin job at USD.  Can't find what happened to the old assistants.

The Sunday edition of the Aberdeen American News had the story on the front page.

There were plenty of new faces on campus when classes started at Presentation College this fall.

And not just students.

Since December, three vice presidents and five head coaches have submitted their resignations at the Catholic school on the north side of town. The list includes:

• Cynthia Whitney, vice president of advancement.

• Michelle Metzinger, vice president of academics.

• Cathy Hall, vice president of finance, who is resigning this month.

• Women's soccer head coach Jacob Plocher.

• Men's soccer head coach Willie Brasel.

• Baseball head coach Jesse Eikum.

• Football head coach Andy Carr.

• Softball head coach Erin Dickhausen.

There are eight athletic programs at Presentation, meaning the majority of coaches are new to the college this year — a considerable and even concerning amount of turnover.

"I think it's all for the better for us that that happened," Presentation President Margaret Huber said. "I think the school benefited."

She concedes that two of the coach departures were less than amicable.

One was Eikum, who moved to the Twin Cities, where he grew up, and has a job as a part-time assistant coach.

"I guess I left a full-time head coaching job for a part-time assistant coaching job," Eikum said. "That should say a lot right there.

"It was time for a change in my life and it coincided with —" he said, trailing off. "It wasn't just one thing, it was multiple things put together. Obviously, I didn't want to leave the guys and the players I recruited to come to Aberdeen, but it was probably the right time for me to get out and start something new."

Some of those who left went on to take bigger and better positions. Others haven't found better jobs, or even new jobs.

That includes Dickhausen. She was the last of the coaches to resign, doing so in August.

"It was time for a change, period," she said when she quit.

Asked if it was as simple as that, she replied: "No, but that's how simple I'm going to keep it."

[USTBench]

What'd SJU do for an encore? Take turns kicking a service animal?

JK  (Just remember how everyone lost their mind when UST scored 80+ on Hamline. But when SJU wins 98-0 they do it sooooo classily) Seriously though, there should probably be some discussion, or perhaps an unofficial policy among the MIAC higher-ups about scheduling the UMAC for football. The WIAC is ALWAYS looking to fill out their non-conference schedule. The IIAC is usually competitive. I realize NAIA and DII schools do nothing for your regional ranking, but I doubt beating the tar out of a UMAC does much for it either, so it can't hurt going that route. The NSIC has lifted their moratorium on scheduling outsiders, and I know Concordia is looking to get MSUM back on the schedule. I'd rather see how UST matches up with Duluth or Winona and maybe losing, than watching two non-conference snoozers. Personally, I'd like to see, one tune-up game, and one game where you play a little bit above your head.

CSS is a perennial contender for the UMAC title and this is the best product they can put on the field against kids Fasching probably didn't even know were on the team. I fail to see the point of this game.

[SJUrube]

Congrats to Illinois Wesleyan for locking up a playoff birth and their league title after one week of the season.

Who SJU schedules for their non conference is of no concern to me. With John, and more importantly now with Gary, they've proven to be competitive at the national level (though longer post season runs are expected).

Frank Rajikowski of KSTP, and formerly of the SCTimes, summed up my thoughts on the game, and the background of the matchup, pretty well (I do disagree with splitting up D3 - we're not the MSHSL after all). http://kstp.com/sports/division-three-college-football-st-johns-no-intention-of-running-up-score-blowout-of-st-scholastica/4593977/#.

The result was unfortunate and there's probably some level of embarrassment on all sides. Though to echo Frank's column, SJU was/is justified with scheduling the game. The distinction I see in comparison to other blowout victories that have been discussed on this board is there was never a moment of intentionally embarrassing CSS.

[miac952]

The scheduling conundrum becomes even more difficult the better you get. For one reason or another SJU didnt line up with UW Oshkosh open dates or another WIAC school. Looks like Williamette is looking for an early season opponent next season. Football scoop posts open dates for teams frequently. That would be a nice test, but travel budget obviously is a factor.

WIAC schools seem so hungry for out of conference games they take the mentality of anyone, anywhere.In Caruso's early years it was easier to get a team like St Norberts to say yes to a home and home. While UST beat them handily both years they at least met the test physically, and presented challenges in some aspects. You know you will get that from even the bottom tier of the WIAC even as well. There is such physical mismatch with the UMAC that it does no good, as is evidence of the scores from the MIAC / UMAC games this weekend.

While I like the non conference variety I have a real frustration, like many others, with MAC. It was one thing when they wanted to get back on their feet to step away as an independent, but now they have affiliated themselves with a different conference. They have their feet under them. Their facilities are better than or equal than a number of MIAC schools. Both Carleton and St Olaf face the same academic rigors. Its time to be all in or all out. I understand its more complicated than that. The MIAC isnt going to kick out the school with a gigantic endowment and lofty academics, but some pressure needs to be put on them.

Inter conference contracts would require a lot of buy in, but it would be fun to see a week 1 or week 2 MIAC / IIAC , MIAC / WIAC, or MIAC / CCIW challenge.

[DuffMan]

Worthwhile interview with Coach Fasching and Mike Max on WCCO.
Can be streamed here: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/audio/sports-to-the-max-with-mike-max/

Thanks for sharing that.

[USTBench]

From Frank's column:

"I'd still argue it's better all-around to avoid if possible scheduling teams from leagues like the UMAC, or even an NAIA opponent like Presentation (S.D.) whom the Johnnies face next week. Though that game was added only this past spring after a long search for a 10th contest."

Shennanigans!

UWO is playing something called Virginia-Lynchburg, when SJU and UWO both had open weeks. UWO has two full bye weeks to get right before UWW, and SJU could've licked their wounds beating the tar out of St. Olaf before they had to play UST. If playing an NAIA team does nothing for you, losing a close one to UWO isn't going to hurt you. An 8-2 SJU makes the tournament, if the losses are to UST and UWO. SJU will easily be 9-1 this year, and quite possibly 10-0 (if a miracle happens  ). There was no reason not to schedule the Titans after playing the Little Sisters of the Poor. UWO, with only 9 games, quite possibly could've been the team to turn down SJU, but judging from the fact that they've scheduled teams like John Carroll and Robert Morris in the last few years, I doubt it.

[art76]

Week 2 MIAC 2017

The MIAC went 7 and 2 in the first week of non-conference games, and had a real chance of going 8 and 1, as Bethel lost in double overtime.  There's been a lot of chatter about this past week's games and I won't rehash any of it. Let's all just face it, the UMAC consistently gets thrashed by the MIAC whenever the two conferences line up against one another.

This first game of week two, for me, will be a yawner. Presentation will be at St. John's and there is the real probability that the Johnnies could get another shut-out and get close to triple digits in their score. The only way I see this as being an even interesting game would be for St. John's to start their freshman/fourth string and leave them in until Presentation scores. But that is unlikely to happen.

St. Thomas travels down to UW Stout, who also won last week in defeating the Simpson Storm. I do not think that the Blue Devils will be able to slow down the Tommies much, but should make it a more interesting game than the Johnnie/Saints conflict.

The third game this week has Augsburg hosting Concordia Wisconsin. Building off of their win last week at Northwestern, the Auggies should win this game. I suspect that the Falcons will give them a good game, but they will leave MN with a 1 and 1 record, while the Auggies start their season 2 and 0.

The fourth game to be highlighted this week is the only game that I think the MIAC will lose, and that is Carleton traveling down to Lake Forest. The Foresters won their game last week against Beloit. The Knights might surprise us, but last year Lake Forest beat Macalester, who the Knights lost to last week.

The other Northfield team, St. Olaf, travels down to Luther College in Iowa for the fifth MIAC game this week. The Norse also lost last week, so one of these teams will leave with a .500 record and the other starts their season at 0 and 2. Does anyone know if these two Lutheran schools have considered a traveling trophy? Perhaps a bronzed model of the 95 Theses nailed to the Wittenburg Door? But I digress. The Oles stand a chance in this game, coming off a decisive win against Grinnell this last week.

Game six has Gustavus traveling to UW River Falls. This is the second of three games against the WIAC conference this week, and this one, at least in my mind, is another toss-up.  This is also the second game this week where the MIAC opponent team name is the Falcons. River Falls lost a squeaker last week and Gustavus won easy. This is the first of two night games this week, so another chance to take in two full games this Saturday if you so desire.

Game seven this week is another good match-up between Bethel and Carthage.  The Royals travel this year to the Red Men's field in Kenosha, WI, hopefully to return the favor of a close loss to the visiting team, like Carthage handed Bethel last year. Carthage won their game last week, but I do think BU can win this contest giving both teams 1 and 1 records.

Game eight is the annual Paint Bucket game between Hamline and Macalester. The Scots have the home field advantage, but Hamline looks to be a team on the way up the MIAC standings this year. I think the Pipers win this one by at least 2 scores. This is also the second night game in the MIAC this week.

The game of the week has to go to the UW Whitewater at Concordia Moorhead tilt. The Warhawks lost a tough one last week that cost them 12 positions in the D3 Top 25 poll. The Cobbers posted a solid win last week, and will have to have their A team on the field 100% of the time to pull off a win against a perpetually always ranked Top 25 Whitewater team. On the weekly D3 podcast, Pat and Keith compared Concordia Moorhead to Illinois Wesleyan, who the Warhawks lost to last week. If the Cobbers do win this game, it would really put the Warhawks in a tough position for the remainder of their season. I really hope the Cobbers can do it, but I am not going to hold my breath.

To recap, I think the MIAC should lose one game, win 5 and have a chance in the final 3. This week's games definitely look more competitive compared to the match-ups last week.

[OldAuggie]

Nice job Art.