FB: USA South Athletic Conference

[Wild Horse Rider]

I don't want to count all of Belhaven's chickens before they are hatched but I believe they have a realistic shot at the first 10-0 season in USAC history (since 2001).  They do have both Maryville and Brevard left on the schedule.  They get a mini bye with Methodist coming to town this weekend (I would put the spread at 50) before traveling to Maryville.  That QB is the real deal but I think that they will have a tough time protecting him and Belhaven should be able to run the ball at will.  There is another mini bye when they go to SOVA then Brevard comes to town the last weekend of the year.  At that point Brevard will be coming off of the Huntingdon game and could be playing for the AQ but my gut says that the Hawks beat them the week prior and they will be playing spoiler at best.  To Brevard's credit I love some of the changes that they have made to their offense and their SO QB along with Maryville's should be fun to watch in 2024 & 2025.

There are currently 16 undefeated teams left in D3.  Johns Hopkins/Muhlenberg have yet to play along with Linfield/Whitworth in their respective conferences which brings the total down to 14.  I know the level of the competition is rightfully questioned but it is so hard to show up week in and week out with the expectations to win.  Hopefully 10-0 gets a home playoff game in round one and with the age/experience the Blazers have I give them a reasonable chance to advance (I reserve the right to change this opinion based on the matchup). 

[Blazers1]

We need your weekly analysis Wild Horse Rider! I look forward to it every week!

[DGPugh]

Go Hawks. All we can do is try to win the rest  of our games.

Wild Horse

Id sure like to see Huntingdon slip in..................but i am also pulling (oddly) for Belhaven to run the tables and go deeper into the playoffs then USAC teams seem to be able to go.

Still... Go Hawks, Keep the faith

[Wild Horse Rider]

3 weeks left.  The Hawks are on a bye.  On the slate we have winless Greensboro traveling to SOVA and winless LaGrange hosting Brevard.  I know that there are three weeks left in the season but I just realized that the Pride and the Panthers do not play this season.  So not only does the conference have a shot at it's first undefeated team there is a chance at 2 winless teams.  Now they both get to play Methodist who may not let that happen.  Of note in Tennessee this weekend when the Blazers come to town you have the top rushing offense at 292 per game going up against the top rushing defense at 65 yards allowed per game.  I think much like the Huntingdon game the size and experience of Belhaven's O-Line will be what wins the day but it is something to keep an eye on.  The Monarchs host the Battling Bishops under the lights in Fayetteville for Homecoming.  I know that the records are in favor of NCWC but they have also beaten what I believe to be the three worst teams in conference already.  Now Methodist can certainly be in that group but I am still a little confused as to the season given some of the returning talent.  I also look and see that NCWC gave Belhaven it's "closest" game of the year with only a 21 point margin of victory. 

[BSCpanthers]

So much for the undefeated team, Belhaven goes down to Maryville 20-7 in OT.

[Wild Horse Rider]

I believe I may have screwed it up by putting it out there in the universe but I'm sure I was not the only one to notice the Blazers record going into last game.  We were hosting a Halloween party so I was not able to watch the game like I wanted but man what a defensive battle in Tennessee.  Here is what I dug out from looking at the box score and play by play.  There were a total of 8 three and outs in the game.  Maryville's QB was sacked 6 times yet still rushed for almost 80 yards.  The Maryville defensive unit absolutely shut down the Belhaven Rushing attack to the tune of 2.7 yards per rush (If you take out Blount's run of 27 yards you are looking at 2 YPC).  The Scotts missed a FG in the 4th quarter from 21 yards out.  When it mattered most the Blazers came up with a 12 play drive covering 69 yards (it was actually more since the first play of the series there was a 15 yard tripping penalty).  It looks like Belhaven won the coin toss going into OT and held the Scotts to 4&10 from the 25 yard line.  It seems like the missed FG was a thought and Maryville went for it on 4th and got a pass interference call out of the play.  Two plays later and the Scotts QB was in the end zone.  When Belhaven got their turn they also were held to 4&10 and that is when the pick 6 happened.  Can't blame the QB at that point because if he didn't throw it they didn't have a chance.  I can imagine the coaches on Maryville's side yelling like crazy initially to get down until the defender broke out of the pack racing towards the opposite end zone. 

Well here we go.  Brevard controls their own destiny as do the Blazers.  The Tornados get Huntingdon at home this weekend before going to play Belhaven in week 11.  Based on comparative scoring the Hawks should be the favorite in the mountains of NC this weekend but I give the Tornados as good a chance as anyone.  If Huntingdon wins they will be the biggest Brevard fans in the world the following weekend.  On a different note Greensboro dog walked SOVA to get their first win of the season.  LaGrange gets a chance to get in the win column in Fayetteville this weekend against Methodist.  The Monarchs did not have a good showing on homecoming on Saturday and are at a point in the season where I'm sure it is hard to find motivation.  There are a handful of super seniors who I am sure do not want to leave the program in this condition when they leave and I hope the returning players want to find a way to spring into the offseason with something to build on.

[Ralph Turner]

Belhaven to Southern Virginia, 795 miles

Belhaven to Sul Ross State, 908 miles

[DGPugh]

Go Hawks
Maybe Brevard can pull an upset next week
If not, then Plan B is for Belhaven to go deep into the playoffs
keep the faith y'all

[Hawks88]

Was getting nervous when it was 14-0 and ready to panic when it went to 21-0 and we had run 6 plays on offense(two 3 and outs) but our Hawks never quit, made adjustments, and clawed their way back in it to get the crucial win.
Now we become Brevard fans for one week.

Go Hawks!

[Ralph Turner]

Brevard is playing for co-champioship rings!

It should be a great game.

[Wild Horse Rider]

Final week of the regular season with actual stakes on the line.  If I am reading the USAC website correctly the Belhaven game will actually kickoff an hour prior to the Huntingdon game which means the Hawks could know their postseason fate by the early part of the second half.  I think that the game shapes up in Belhaven's favor even more so than the Maryville game when they were upset in OT.  The Tornados run defense is not as formidable as the Scotts and Blount and Company should have success.  I would expect the Hawks to get a win against the visiting Battling Bishops even if the post season is not on the line.  Maryville should easily handle SOVA.  And I am not happy even as I type this but I think that Greensboro beats Methodist under the lights at their stadium.  If those predictions are correct we are looking at a finish like this

1st Belhaven 9-1 7-1 in conference (picked 2nd in the preseason poll)
2nd Huntingdon 8-2 6-1 in conference (picked 1st in the preseason poll)
3rd Brevard 5-5 5-2 in conference (picked T-4th in preseason poll)
4th Maryville 8-2 5-2 in conference (picked 3rd in preseason poll)
5th NCWC 4-6 4-3 in conference (picked 6th in preseason poll)
6th Greensboro 2-8 2-5 in conference (picked 9th in preseason poll)
7th Methodist 2-8 2-5 in conference (picked T-4th in preseason poll)
8th SOVA 1-9 1-6 in conference (picked 8th in preseason poll)
9th LaGrange 0-9 0-7 in conference (picked 7th in preseason poll)

Post Season awards will likely be dominated by Belhaven.  They usually vote the conference champ as the coach of the year and I can't see them changing it this year even though both Huntingdon and Maryville's coaches would be good picks.  I think that the RB Blount from Belhaven will be the Offensive player of the year though the QB Rollins from Maryville would be a fine pick as well.  The biggest difference in my opinion is opportunities.  Blount has a combined 133 rushes, catches, kick returns, and passes for a combined 1,215 yards and 15 TDs.  Rollins is 205/323 passing for 2,489 yards and 16 TDs to go along with 117 rushing attempts for 347 yards on the ground and 12 TDs.  It is hard for me without watching all the film to hold it against Blount for lesser production since Belhaven has other options.  It seems as Rollins goes so goes the Scotts.  On the defensive side there was no one who truly stood out from a statistical standpoint but the DL Brown from Belhaven has 43 total tackles, 13 TFLs, 6.5 sacks, 3 FF, 5 PD, 1 FR, and 1 blocked kick.  I would imagine given what he has been in the past that is the type of player that when the opposing coaches turn on the film say, "if we don't block that kid it will be a long day".  The Specialist of the year will likely come down to the punter Norton from Belhaven who is averaging 43 YPP, 12 downed inside the 20 YD line, and 12 fair caught and the punt returner from Huntingdon England who is averaging 14 YPR and 1 TD on the year.  The kick returner from Methodist is creeping up on 800 return yards but that is in large part due to the amount of chances each game.  As far as the rookies the conferences website no longer lists the years of the players so this is a uneducated guess based on kids that have one rookie of the week at some point this season.  Drumgoole a FR WR from NCWC has 504 receiving yards and 2 TDs on the season.  Larry Jones is a FR DB with Greensboro who has 44 tackles on the season, 2 picks, and a pick 6.

[Wild Horse Rider]

Also of note in the Methodist program RS-Senior QB Brandon Bullins will see his career come to a close this Saturday.  Off the field he is involved in a lot of the community service projects that the program does.  In 2021 he was one of the school's Male Scholar Athletes of the year with a 4.0 GPA in both the fall and spring semesters.  Following the 2022 season he was a CSC Academic All-District.  On the field he is a 2 time all-conference player though I do not think he will add to that list given the level of play of some of the other QBs in the conference.  He now owns or is tied for the lead in every passing statistical category in the conference.  He will have played in 44 games after this weekend and here is where his numbers will likely be:

Passing Yards- 11,127 Yards (previous record 9,231 yards)
Passing Attempts- 1,611 (previous record 1,356)
Passing Completions- 968 (previous record 787)
Passing TDs- 83 (the record is 81 and he is tied currently)
Total Yards- 11,179 Yards (previous record 10,324)

I know that I previously predicted a Pride win on Saturday but for Brandon's sake (and the rest of the team) I hope I am wrong.

[DGPugh]

Go Hawks. End of a good season. 

Congratulations to Belhaven. I hope y'all can go deep into the playoffs. Good luck.

Keep the faith

[Blazers1]

Belhaven getting the defending national champs in round 1. Might as well test yourself early! Very unfavorable draw, but not surprised by it.

[Wild Horse Rider]

Defense and run game travel come playoffs,  Fortunately it looks like the weather will not be bad.  It will be a tall task but for the Blazers sake I hope that they can keep it close going into the 4th and see where it goes from there.  This weekend it will have been 701 days since N. Central last lost a game and in that time only one game has been a single digit scoring difference.