FB: Empire 8

[AUSaxons]

Right you are Pep! This is a great university full of great kids, many of whom used to play football! I truly do "bleed" Purple and Gold, it's not about that. If a kids priority is football, and a coach brings him into a situation like that to boost numbers, I don't think it's in the kids interests. The winning, the great fan support, the stud names guys from sections 5 and 6 hear are committed to Alfred year after year after year, it's hard to turn that down if you're all about football. And if a coach recruits you then you have to expect he believes you can play....but if you're bringing in 101 kids you cannot have that expectation of all of them, so after a while bringing them in like that gives the kid a false idea about what is a major part of his college decision. I understand that if the rules are like this it's a coach's job to do everything he can to ensure success for their football program, but I'm saying I think the recruiting limits are a good thing for this reason. I don't mean to imply anything bad about Alfred University or especially the football program. Both are fantastic organizations whom have affected the community in such a positive way. I only quibble against the lack of rules regarding recruiting in the E8, because they do not serve the interests of the student athlete.

Pep attended the wedding a month ago of a Pennsylvania kid who was recruited to play football at Alfred. His recruiting visit sold him on the university where he majored in mechanical engineering and chose NOT to play football. He worked for Pep at the library for four years. His high school sweetheart, a year ahead of him, was attending Houghton College, which is also located in Allegany County, which helped them maintain their relationship. Now she is in grad school in Baltimore, MD, where he has landed a job in his field.

Pep also knows of a young man who was recruited to play football at AU who didn't see playing time until his senior year and, quite frankly, sparingly. Yet the kid worked his butt off for four years and is a better man today because of it. Now he's in grad school and Pep is thinking he's got a promising future.

Then there's the QB who was recruited to play football at AU and put in four years of hard work but never started and only emerged as back-up as a senior, when he held for PATs and field goals. A nicer kid Pep may never meet. Hard-worker who was a real encouragement to all his teammates. Was a real contributor to campus life. A solid citizen. He graduated and Pep believes he is employed by the U.S. Border Patrol.

They were all recruited to play football at Alfred. There was something about Alfred that they liked or they would have gone elsewhere. At Alfred, they were, as Coach Muray often says, "great kids." Football may have been the means by which they came to Alfred, but it wasn't the end. Alfred offered them the opportunity to continue to play football while acquiring a quality education that prepares them for promising futures. That may mean four years of junior varsity ball without emerging as a starter--but that opportunity to play remains.

Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!

On Saxon Warriors!

[Jonny Utah]

I mentioned this on another board a while back, but the advantqage of recruiting a large number of kids at the d3 level, is that you have a better chance of one of those kids becomming a good football player.  If you recruit 100 kids, there is a chance that 5% of the bottom 50 will contribute to your team as seniors and really help your team, even by starting.  If you recruit 40 players, then that 5% has less of a chance of helping your based on numbers alone.

One thing I always noticed is that some of your best high school football players are going to play linebacker on defense, and if that player is serious about lifting in high school, he is going to look a lot better than he actually is on the field.  When that player gets to college, he finds out that within two years, everyone has caught up to him and his speed is going to be more of a factor.  My first year at Ithaca we probably had about 60 freshman football players on the JV team, and only two that were on the varsity roster and played (that was just the way they did it back in the 1990s).  We played a 3-4 with 4 linebackers.  I remember about 24 linebackers of that 60 on the JV team and 20 of the 24 of them were all conference in high school.  Of those 24, probably only 5 played as seniors.  The others either lost interest in football when they realized they couldn't start, a few of them transferred when they realized they couldn't play at Ithaca, and some of them weren't really that serious about football in the first place.

[AUPepBand]

Gotta spread some love around....so nice to have a discussion about football taking place here!

+K to all

On Saxon Warriors!

[AUSaxons]

AU Wide Reciever recruit Christian Smith did very well in the WNY allstar game, leading his team to victory.
http://www.buffalonews.com/sports/high-schools/article503595.ece

[AUPepBand]

Just taking another look at the AU schedule and, while the Saxons have the advantage of playing six games (including Salisbury State) at home, Pep believes the Saxons will need to be on their game all ten weeks and get some breaks along the way to go unscathed through a tough slate.

Here's what the 2011 opponents did in 2010:

RPI (6-4), beat AU 27-24 on last second field goal after AU had rallied from a wind-aided 24-0 deficit. Lost in ECAC bowl.
St. Lawrence (5-6), nearly climbed out of a 21-0 hole in losing to Saxons, 24-16. LL champ and NCAA participant.
Springfield (9-2) with 7-point loss to AU and 9-point loss to Ithaca. ECAC bowl champ.
St. John Fisher (9-2) with 11-point loss to AU and 6-point loss to Springfield. ECAC bowl champ.
Hartwick (4-5) Hawks stayed out of E8 cellar with 24-21 win over Utica.
Salisbury State (7-3) NCAA participant, 3 pt. loss to Wesley, 4-pt loss to Hampden-Sydney and 11-pt loss to Del Valley in NCAAs
Frostburg State (2-8) Bobcats smoked a couple of Newports last year.
Rochester (4-5) It was a Tale of Two Seasons...highlighted by a 24-14 upset of Saxons.
Ithaca (6-4) Saxons have not won on South Hill since 1982, year after AU's first NCAA appearance.
Utica (5-5) unbeaten out of conference, winless in E8, but getting closer with Blaise.

Easiest game for Saxons appears to be Frostburg State, but that's also AU's longest road trip.

A Saxon fan (and retired professor) tells Pep the Saxons will finish 8-2, losing to Fisher and Ithaca.

Saxons arrive in Mayberry on August 16. The countdown begins...

On Saxons Warriors!

[Ralph Turner]

But what if that 101st recruit at Alfred could have played at Becker? Or Anna Maria? Or West Conn? Yeah, they're crappy football teams, and the skill level is undeniably far lower and it is, therefore, likely to accept players who would otherwise be Alfred's worst. Maybe they would have gotten their 4 year experience of college football, got a chance to play a decent amount and learned all of those same lessons tenfold (as those teams work as hard as anyone, the talent level is just so low). That's my point, this is not done in the interest of the student athlete. Not even close. It's a somewhat dishonest way of expanding your enrollment.

Part of the responsibility of the institution is the help the student-athlete negoatiate the time when one's athletic talent has carried the student-athlete as far as s/he will get.

When it is time to hang up the cleats, then the institution is there to re-focus the student's interests and efforts. The leadership and discipline aspects learned in athletics can then be applied to other interests.  At a D-III school where there are multiple opportunities to try numerous things, that becomes a major function of D-III schools, that may not be possible on a campus of 5,000 or 45,000.

A high percentage of the top leaders at McMurry are "former" athletes, whose talents have been bested at the D-III level.  There is no shame in giving 100% and finding that someone's 100% is better.  Understanding when to move on is a great lesson to learn by your early 20's.

Almost certainly that 101st Alfred football "recruit" will be a talented individual who will leave Alfred better than when he arrived.

Thanks for the response. I am sure that you will agree that Alfred coaches only go after student athletes for whom an Alfred education (as opposed to another school) is beneficial to the student.

In that case, the 101st student-athlete is still an excellent candidate to attend Alfred.

[AUSaxons]

Well, Mr Turner, the flaw in that is that EVERY student can benefit from an Alfred education  . Haha, I understand what you are saying, but if I'm that 101st recruit that's a hard thing to be told, know what I mean?

But what if that 101st recruit at Alfred could have played at Becker? Or Anna Maria? Or West Conn? Yeah, they're crappy football teams, and the skill level is undeniably far lower and it is, therefore, likely to accept players who would otherwise be Alfred's worst. Maybe they would have gotten their 4 year experience of college football, got a chance to play a decent amount and learned all of those same lessons tenfold (as those teams work as hard as anyone, the talent level is just so low). That's my point, this is not done in the interest of the student athlete. Not even close. It's a somewhat dishonest way of expanding your enrollment.

Part of the responsibility of the institution is the help the student-athlete negoatiate the time when one's athletic talent has carried the student-athlete as far as s/he will get.

When it is time to hang up the cleats, then the institution is there to re-focus the student's interests and efforts. The leadership and discipline aspects learned in athletics can then be applied to other interests.  At a D-III school where there are multiple opportunities to try numerous things, that becomes a major function of D-III schools, that may not be possible on a campus of 5,000 or 45,000.

A high percentage of the top leaders at McMurry are "former" athletes, whose talents have been bested at the D-III level.  There is no shame in giving 100% and finding that someone's 100% is better.  Understanding when to move on is a great lesson to learn by your early 20's.

Almost certainly that 101st Alfred football "recruit" will be a talented individual who will leave Alfred better than when he arrived.

Thanks for the response. I am sure that you will agree that Alfred coaches only go after student athletes for whom an Alfred education (as opposed to another school) is beneficial to the student.

In that case, the 101st student-athlete is still an excellent candidate to attend Alfred.

[AUPepBand]

Pep is somewhat puzzled by these two transfers but assumes they had at one time been recruited by the Saxon coaching staff, and, after two years at West Conn and W&L, respectively, despite a good amount of PT, were not happy with their college choice:

Jonathan Clemo (5-8, 180), from Salem, VA, played two seasons (2008, 2009) at Washington & Lee, starting as a sophomore in 2010. In 2009, he was a Second Team all-ODAC pick after rushing for 923 yards (third in the conference) and 11 touchdowns. In two seasons at W&L, he ran for 1,017 yards and 12 TDs and caught 13 passes for 104 yards. Clemo played high school football at Salem (VA) High, where he was a district all-star in 2006 and 2007 and a regional all-star in 2007.

Tyler DeRosa (5-8, 195), from Miller Place, NY (Long Island), played the 2009 and 2010 seasons at Western Connecticut. He was the NJAC Rookie of the Year as a freshman in 2009, when he went for 305 yards and three TDs, caught 24 passes for 132 yards and averaged 24 yards on 19 kickoff returns. He was an honorable mention conference all-star last season, his first as a starter at Western Connecticut, when he rushed for 739 yards and four scores and caught 17 passes for 183 yards. DeRosa was a Suffolk County all-star as a junior and senior at Miller Place High School.

Perhaps they heard of the AU Pep Band and wanted to hop on the Bandwagon(?)   

On Saxon Warriors!

[AUKaz00]

Most likely disappointed with the upper-level ceramics offerings at their respective schools...

[Bombers798891]

What if they just wanted to simplify their lives and go to a one-word school and they look good in purple?

On a serious note, what is AU known for academically? Lots of passing references to ceramics, but what sorts of programs do they have that are strong?

[maxpower]

Ceramics.

[Jonny Utah]

They have a good Pottery program too.

[AUPepBand]

What if they just wanted to simplify their lives and go to a one-word school and they look good in purple?

On a serious note, what is AU known for academically? Lots of passing references to ceramics, but what sorts of programs do they have that are strong?

maxpower is right...AU is best known for its NYS College of Ceramics offerings in ceramic engineering and art-n-design (heavy emphasis on ceramic-related art).

In addition to the ceramic engineering and related materials science engineering, there are offerings in electrical and mechanical engineering as part of the Inamori School of Engineering at AU. AU is, Pep believes, the only institution of higher learning in the world that awards a doctorate in glass science.

But that's not all...there's also the College of Business with business administration, marketing, accounting, etc.

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences includes education, psychology, theatre, athletic training, communications, criminal justice....etc.

AU really is a comprehensive university where one can take any number of career paths....or just go undeclared for awhile.

Pep is pleased that Pep Jr.'s bachelor's degree in elementary education from AU, after three years of teaching in an inner city middle school in Charlotte, NC, was enough for him to land a job as an education specialist with NASA at the Goddard Space Center in Washington, DC.

On Saxon Warriors!

[maxpower]

This message board is a great microcosm for owners wondering why their expansion teams don't have any fans; it has little to do with interest in the sport, and more to do with whether the team is, you know, doing well. When I joined the E8 board in 2006, it was mostly IC posters, with some Fisher guys poking their heads in, and one or two mainstays from AU (won't mention any names), plus DC and PG. A couple good seasons for Alfred, some disappointment for Fisher and IC, and look at the dynamic now.

[pg04]

Yeah, I wonder where fisher people like Tags, Upstate, and Superman went.  As well as IC wonders like the hat people and tecmo bowl players...

I stay around because I do care what goes on in Division III football, and enjoy the conversations going on in here.  I don't have much to add on my own undergrad alma mater usually, as I'm now far removed from that.  But I still follow what they are doing. 

My main purpose here is to tell FA91 when he's overreacting (Just kidding).