FB: USA South Athletic Conference

[hasanova]

narch, will you be at the GCQ game in Fayetteville on the 12th?  If so, I'd like the opportunity to say hello again. 

[Hawks88]

Excellent effort from the Hawks against Louisiana College today. The offense was in mid-season form from the beginning and the defense made many good plays to get off the field. There were a couple of breakdowns to give up big plays but that tends to happen with the speed LC has at receiver and a good QB. We were mostly able to keep good pressure on the QB to limit his effectiveness over all.
Probably the best thing from the game was that with the heat we were subbing pretty liberally from early in the game and the backups performed well for the most part. That will help with developing depth as the season goes on. 4 different running backs had carries in the first quarter and all looked good. That was helped by the O-line pretty much dominating the line of scrimmage.
If we can get this effort from week to week and take it one game at a time we could be a tough team to beat.
On to Birmingham-Southern next week. Go Hawks!

[Scots13]

MC over Berry big today 43-17. Shoulda coulda woulda been worse if MC took care of the ball, but I'm sure Hayes and Co. are pleased.
I was surprised it wasn't more of a game since Berry had a roster full of juniors with 2 seasons of experience. On to East Tennessee State.
Other than MC and Huntingdon, USAC is looking poor. Methodist shut out Apprentice 18-0...thought it would be a larger margin of victory.

[Scots Dad 92]

MC did seem to sputter out in the second half but I think Berry made some nice adjustments. The touchdown Berry got in the second half was purely a blown coverage. Other than that Berry had no answer for MC defense.  It was over all a great experiences to attend my first MC football game as a parent and a fan. 

[Scots13]

The next 2 weeks will show what kind of team MC has. Yes, ETSU is a first year team, but they've had 2 years of practice and a little thing called scholarships. E&H the next week will be a very, very tough game. I did notice in the box score of their game with Ferrum, FC turned the ball over 6 times. That makes the 55-7 score a little less shocking.
Overall, the USAC is down more than expect with the departure of CNU. MC and Huntingdon are clearly the front runners.

[DGPugh]

Scots
I'd say MC- Huntingdon- Murrvul all in the same boat right now

keep the faith & Go Hawks

[Hawks88]

DGP,
Saw the boy at the game Saturday. He said you and the missus were at the beach. Hope you had a good anniversary trip and that you make it over to see the Hawks at some point this season.

Go Hawks!

[Scots Dad 92]

Watched the East Tennessee game last night. They have some big boys but doesn't seem that they put it all togeather yet and play as a unit. I think MC has a great shot at beating them. Only thing that worries me is Rader knowing MC tendencies tendencies.

[Scots13]

Watched the East Tennessee game last night. They have some big boys but doesn't seem that they put it all togeather yet and play as a unit. I think MC has a great shot at beating them. Only thing that worries me is Rader knowing MC tendencies tendencies.

I wouldn't worry about it too much. They have a week to get ready for MC and I don't think Rader and Brummett can coach all the tendencies in that time. Remember, we're talking about a bunch of freshmen and redshirt freshmen. FCS or not, they are still pups learning the college game. Can they beat MC on athleticism alone? They probably could. That's why ETSU threw money their way. But is that likely? Probably not. ETSU has the athletes, but do the athletes have the mental side of the game where they know how to study an opponent and know how he plays? I can't answer that. We'll have to see tomorrow night.

At any rate, I hope ETSU thinks they can walk the dog on MC. If they do, MC is going to embarrass them.

I don't know who will win, but I think it's a 6-10 point game either way.

[jknezek]

Wesley played UNC-Charlotte their first year playing competitive football and eeked out a win. Last year, year two, they had a very competitive loss. This year UNCC opened with a win versus FBS (although no one knows why) Georgia State. I wouldn't be real enthused about Maryville's or E&H's chances but I also know nothing about ETSU.

[Scots13]

ETSU literally had to schedule MC, E&H, College of Faith, etc. to keep from going 0-10. Kennesaw State also played their very first game (last week against ETSU winning 56-13) and are playing a full SoCon schedule.
They (KSU) recruited a FCS team of freshmen and got a lot of good transfers. ETSU is lacking.

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if we won by 2 scores or lost by 2 scores (or more). This is miles different when we played Tennessee Tech a few years ago knowing we would not win. We lost that game 56-7. A week after TTU played Iowa. TTU also went on to win the OVC. (They didn't call the dogs off until late in the game as I recall. Went for it several times on 4th down, had a Hail Mary score at the end of the 1st half, had a receiver fumble, kick the ball in the end zone and recovered by another receiver. Moral of the story- they didn't play the JV team.)

[jknezek]

I hear you. For me, it's just a lost game. I get the paycheck and I hope both schools put it to good use.

[Scots13]

Speaking of paychecks...do you hear Florida paid NM State a cool million for the game last week?
A MILLION DOLLARS. $1,000,000

[jknezek]

Speaking of paychecks...do you hear Florida paid NM State a cool million for the game last week?
A MILLION DOLLARS. $1,000,000

Michigan paid App State that last year. Nebraska paid FAU the same last year. A little ridiculous, but the best is the $975K Florida paid Idaho last year for a game that was cancelled by lightning.

[Scots13]

And TTU and ETSU (probably) are paying MC and E&H $25k for the game. $25k at our level is nothing to laugh at, but comparing budgets is always fun.
By the way, ETSU is playing Tennessee in 2018. Can't wait to see the digits on that check.