FB: Empire 8

[fisheralum91]

I love all the chatter about the SU - Fisher matchup- but can we please get thru the courage bowl first.
I dont know about my other fellow alums but this one has me a bit twitchy.
Brockport has traditionally played us tough and I really dont want to look past a team that plays smashmouth football!

That said......This IS Fisher's year to finally put the stakes in the steaks?!!!! 

[AUPepBand]

As has already been said on these boards, Fisher usually struggles to get through the Empire9 gauntlet unscathed but Pep believes the Cardinals have the depth and talent to get it done this season (and perhaps the Bills being 2-0 is a telltale sign!). Fisher has never lost a Courage Bowl. Salisbury is down from what WesleyDad says (and he knows his stuff!) But there are no cupcakes in the E9, which means a Fisher team that goes 10-0 will already be "playoff tested," as every E9 team will be aiming for that target plastered all over the team at the top of the heap.

(Legendary) Alfred Coach Alex Yunevich was always cautious when the Saxons were playing the role of Top Banana...because of the target that comes with it. Watch out for Frostburg State.

On Saxon Warriors!

[Bombers798891]

My E8 Power Rankings, Week 2:

1. Fisher— Still tops. Have to be loving their chances at 10-0 now, even though I know you guys are always nervous about any game
2. Ithaca— Homer pick perhaps, but still here until someone makes a statement
3. Alfred— The Tyler Johnson show rolls on, but there have to be defensive concerns, as a late RPI penalty might have been the difference
4. Buffalo State— The offense was unreal for the 2nd week in a row. Three different players had a 40+ yard run, and three different players had a 40+ reception.
5. Brockport— I don't really know what to make of these guys, but that game against Cortland was awful. Like, one of the worst you'll see. The B-port special teams were a disaster, both teams took dumb penalties, and Cortland botched the ending spectacularly.
6. Frostburg— How about these guys? Actually playing some defense this year!
7. Utica— A nice 2nd half comeback against Union, but looked like a game filled with turnovers and bad penalties all around. There's not a lot separating 4-7 on this list, so take that into account
8. Salisbury— Perhaps this is too low, but you can't get waxed like that at home, IMO. Two poor defensive showings
9. Team Boltus-- Should have won, but man, what a lousy defensive showing after two pick-sixes. Left a TON of points on the board with a disaster of a kicking day.

[Bombers798891]

As has already been said on these boards, Fisher usually struggles to get through the Empire9 gauntlet unscathed but Pep believes the Cardinals have the depth and talent to get it done this season (and perhaps the Bills being 2-0 is a telltale sign!). Fisher has never lost a Courage Bowl. Salisbury is down from what WesleyDad says (and he knows his stuff!) But there are no cupcakes in the E9, which means a Fisher team that goes 10-0 will already be "playoff tested," as every E9 team will be aiming for that target plastered all over the team at the top of the heap.

(Legendary) Alfred Coach Alex Yunevich was always cautious when the Saxons were playing the role of Top Banana...because of the target that comes with it. Watch out for Frostburg State.

On Saxon Warriors!

I think there's a lot of pressure on Fisher too, because they're kind of the standard bearer for the East right now. (Sorry, Hobart!) Fair or not, the East's gotten a lot of flak for not getting a #1 seed and breaking through to the Final 4 recently. Fisher represents the best shot. The E8's a very well-respected conference, but they've failed to take care of business in the regular season, leading to some upset losses and poorer playoff seeding, leading to earlier losses, and so on and so forth. Their strength as a conference exists in spite of their recent ability to make a major splash nationally, not because of it.

The Cardinals have a shot this season to make some noise unlike anything we've seen from the E8 since maybe the 2006/2007 glory days when Fisher was a Stagg Bowl contender and you had a bunch of teams in the rankings at one point or another. Sure, they need some help at the top (I'm looking at you, College of Faith), but if they get a break or two, running the table could mean a #1 seed, avoiding the Big 3-4 for an extra round...

I gotta say guys, I'm sort of rooting for Fisher. It's impossible not to respect the program, and personally, I loathe the hold that the top 6-7 teams seem to have on the sport, even though it's earned and well-deserved. Getting a new team in there is a good thing for D-IIII football IMO, and if someone's going to do it, it might as well be Fisher.

(By the way, all you Fisher guys should be rooting for the Bombers for the next 7 weeks. We're your best shot—right now anyway—at a marquee win.)

[fisheralum91]

GO IC.....except on Nov 8!
There ....I said it!!!

[boobyhasgameyo]

I root for any E8 team come any out of conference or playoff game.  I root for Ithaca on all conference games except against Fisher.  It makes the matchup more exciting that way. 

[fisheralum91]

Im kind of a Utica College homer only because of proximity and knowing Blaise.
If i had to choose IC or UC......

This year has to be IC....
Sorry goofy moose....Need a qual win.....

[Bengalsrule]

I've learned to never get too excited about non-conference play here at Buffalo State. That's why I haven't posted until now. But now its E 8 time, and I'm excited! This is when the games count for league supremacy! My beloved Bengals are off to a 2-0 start and Alfred is coming to Coyer field for homecoming! The pre-season 4th place vs the preseason 6th place (coaches prediction). Plus I get to see "Pep" in his regal colors!! Coach Boyes has the team feeling real good about themselves. If they can keep the scoring up ( 55.5 pts per), and lessen the opponents scoring (giving up 40 pts per), then anything is possible.

Go BENGALS!!

See you Saturday Pep!

[Bombers798891]

If they can keep the scoring up ( 55.5 pts per), and lessen the opponents scoring (giving up 40 pts per), then anything is possible.

Reminds me of a great exchange. In 1990, two Reds relievers were being interviewed after the team's hot start, and one said, paraphrasing: "If we score 8-10 runs a game, we're going to win a lot of games, and if we start out by winning our first 10-15 games in a row, we're going to be in first place." The other reliever laughed and said: "I agree."

[sjfcards]

I love all the chatter about the SU - Fisher matchup- but can we please get thru the courage bowl first.
I dont know about my other fellow alums but this one has me a bit twitchy.
Brockport has traditionally played us tough and I really dont want to look past a team that plays smashmouth football!

That said......This IS Fisher's year to finally put the stakes in the steaks?!!!! 

This may be the part of me that is always looking for Fisher to blow it, but I see a ton of potential hiccups on the schedule. I don't feel great about Buff State, and Frostburg always plays Fisher tougher than others (see last years game). Fisher was down 20 to UC last year, Salisbury Salisbury, and IC is no joke. AU has played spoiler many times as well.

I love the respect Fisher is getting, but we have a long way to go. Take care of SatERday on Saturday, and move to the next one.

[D3viewer]

Pretty nice Courage Bowl X preview video here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaT_BicVCYs

[AUPepBand]

I've learned to never get too excited about non-conference play here at Buffalo State. That's why I haven't posted until now. But now its E 8 time, and I'm excited! This is when the games count for league supremacy! My beloved Bengals are off to a 2-0 start and Alfred is coming to Coyer field for homecoming! The pre-season 4th place vs the preseason 6th place (coaches prediction). Plus I get to see "Pep" in his regal colors!! Coach Boyes has the team feeling real good about themselves. If they can keep the scoring up ( 55.5 pts per), and lessen the opponents scoring (giving up 40 pts per), then anything is possible.

Go BENGALS!!

See you Saturday Pep!

Pep would love to be there except Pep is "Second Best Man" for an Oct. 4 wedding and the groom and company have a bachelor's camp out Friday night and Saturday. Pep has yet to hear whether AU can muster a band but the drummer is a Buffalo boy and plans to be there with his folks for AU Family Weekend. Perhaps a few instrumentalists will tag along....

Or, on second thought, perhaps Pep will take dem boys hostage and drag them off to Buffalo for a football game! Who gets married during football season, unless, of course, the ceremony is on the field during halftime?

On Saxon Warriors!

[Saxon73]

AU's Tyler Johnson named E9 Offensive Player of the Week.

[AUPepBand]

Recalling discussion of Rochester newspaper coverage of local college football...no mention of Alfred University's game in the Sunday D&C....except of course listed in the alphabetical list of Saturday's college football scores. Not exactly sure why there's no Saxon coverage in the D&C when AU gets a good nucleus of players from the ROC. Might help recruiting with some ink.

Then, in the UR vs. Alfred State game write-up (glad they called the Pioneers "Alfred State" in the story to avoid confusion), but the box score had UR and "Alfred," which is incorrect. The box score should say "Alfred State." Would a box score for a game between Northwestern and Michigan State list the Spartans in the box score as "Michigan"?

Just sayin'....

[82 cardinals]

As long as fisher plays smart and doesn't get stupid penalties because of their mouths fisher should have a good day saturday