FB: Empire 8

[sjfcards]

Empire 8 pre-season poll is out:

1 Alfred
2 Salisbury
3 Fisher
4 Springfield
5 Ithaca
6 Utica
7 Hartwik
8 Frostburg

[Bombers798891]

Empire 8 pre-season poll is out:

1 Alfred
2 Salisbury
3 Fisher
4 Springfield
5 Ithaca
6 Utica
7 Hartwik
8 Frostburg

I'm trying to decide if I want to flip 1 and 2...and 3 and 4

Springfield returns their two leading rushers from last season, I think four starting offensive linemen, plus the tight end, who is essentially another lineman. I think the triple option is going to be good. Defensively, they lose some good players, but I think they return enough. Only having four homes games is tough, but they won't have to travel to Ithaca, which is huge for them.

With Fisher losing the QB and, from what I hear, a lot of the o-line depth, I might put the Pride ahead.

Alfred/Salisbury is also tough. I hear nothing but good things about the Gulls, and Alfred losing Thon will hurt, but  teams in the E8 have seen the option. Salisbury  put up a lot of points last year, but many came against mediocre defenses like Frostburg, Husson, Huntington, and Union. They bring back most of the offense, though, so I'd expect improvement.

Eh, may as well give it to the Saxons

1. Alfred
2. Salisbury
3. Springfield
4. Fisher
5. Ithaca
6. Utica
7. Team Boltus
8. Frostburg

[Frank Rossi]

Bombers and I agree on our Top 5 in the E8?!  To keep the theme going, "WE GOTTA SITUATION HERE!"

[Bombers798891]

Bombers and I agree on our Top 5 in the E8?!  To keep the theme going, "WE GOTTA SITUATION HERE!"

I actually keep hearing good things about IC and was tempted to put them ahead of Fisher, but that would require me to either think:

1) Ithaca can beat Fisher, which flies in the face of five years of evidence, as well as my "Prove it first" credo

or

2) That Fisher would somehow drop at least two more other games in the E8 than IC, which strikes me as unlikely.

That said, from discussions I've had with people who know more about the team than me, I think I might have been too harsh in some of my evaluations. I've heard the offense may be better than anticipated and that, (not surprisingly) the team loves the back seven.

Bombers 8-2 this year? Could be my friends, could be

[Cardinal Pride]

After looking at last years roster I believe the Cardinals offensive line will need to be addressed this season.  They appear to have lost not only some starters but also reserves that saw considerable PT last year.

Hello,  I would just like to introduce myself to the board.  I have been reading the posts on this forum for awhile now and decided to join in.  My son will be a member of the Cardinal football team this year.  I have been bringing him to home games and Fisher camps for years so I guess this was bound to be his choice.  I probably won't post alot because I have noticed that there are far more knowledgable fans on this board than me.  I enjoy the insight many of you have regarding the game as well as the league.   I can't wait for the season to begin.

Welcome to the boards CP. It is always nice to have another Fisher poster along for the ride.

I feel like I have been away from the boards forever, and I am way behind on my typical pre-season research. I know Fisher has some weapons returning on offense (Kramer, Francis, Forum), but I have no clue on Defense or at the QB position. Any information out there? How about Kramer at QB this year?

[gordonmann]

Isn't Springfield due for one of those eye-popping 10-0/9-1 seasons where they score 50 and run for 500 yards every game? 

And what happens if Salisbury has that season first?  Or if they both do it simultaneously in the same conference?

[Frank Rossi]

The E8 NY teams will hire Kordell Stewart to attend practices in 2012.

[Bombers798891]

Isn't Springfield due for one of those eye-popping 10-0/9-1 seasons where they score 50 and run for 500 yards every game? 

And what happens if Salisbury has that season first?  Or if they both do it simultaneously in the same conference?

After two good years in a row, I think they're more due for the 4-6 type season where they can't stop anyone and only run over cruddy teams?

[fisheralum91]

Just for those of us who are a little slow with these things.... Kramer is no relation to a certain former "Stranger Danger" QB of SJF lore, is he?



Okay, okay, I'm sorry I said it.... stop looking at me like that!

?
?max that is robs younger brother. No kidding

[Pat Coleman]

Isn't Springfield due for one of those eye-popping 10-0/9-1 seasons where they score 50 and run for 500 yards every game? 

And what happens if Salisbury has that season first?  Or if they both do it simultaneously in the same conference?

After two good years in a row, I think they're more due for the 4-6 type season where they can't stop anyone and only run over cruddy teams?

Usually that 4-6 season coincides with a new quarterback starter. So if there's an injury, I'd say it's possible, but otherwise the trend points the other way.

[bomber3]

Bombers79 - love the optimism from you re: the 8-2 record.  We should take an optimistic post when we can get it because I know they can be tough to come by.  To play devil's advocate, would you stand by that estimation when it means that, as of today and according to the E8 poll/top25 rankings, it would require them to win all the games they are supposed to as well as 3 of the 5 they are not supposed to?  With the schedule they have, 8-2 will be tough.  Also, are you trying to provoke me to start politicking for a Pool C bid already for an IC 8-2 record?  There are a lot of obstacles in the way from 8-2 but I will go on the record and say they would deserve the bid as of 8/11 

[Frank Rossi]

Bombers79 - love the optimism from you re: the 8-2 record.  We should take an optimistic post when we can get it because I know they can be tough to come by.  To play devil's advocate, would you stand by that estimation when it means that, as of today and according to the E8 poll/top25 rankings, it would require them to win all the games they are supposed to as well as 3 of the 5 they are not supposed to?  With the schedule they have, 8-2 will be tough.  Also, are you trying to provoke me to start politicking for a Pool C bid already for an IC 8-2 record?  There are a lot of obstacles in the way from 8-2 but I will go on the record and say they would deserve the bid as of 8/11 

This is not Ithaca-specific, but again, it's been four years since any X-2 team has had an opportunity for a Pool C bid.  With the greater number of teams out there now and the lesser number of Pool C bids, there are too many teams with one loss that will be available for Pool C selections.  So, unless a team plays an eight-game schedule (just to be thorough here), one loss will trump two losses about 98% of the time based on NCAA criteria.  I'm NOT endorsing this.  I'm simply explaining something that has to be known by now based on the history of the process and discussions we've had over the last four years with the committee chairs themselves.  Essentially, it means that a team must win ALL out-of-conference games to be eligible.  From there, they can only lose one conference game and not win the Pool A bid.

[Bombers798891]

Bombers79 - love the optimism from you re: the 8-2 record.  We should take an optimistic post when we can get it because I know they can be tough to come by.  To play devil's advocate, would you stand by that estimation when it means that, as of today and according to the E8 poll/top25 rankings, it would require them to win all the games they are supposed to as well as 3 of the 5 they are not supposed to?  With the schedule they have, 8-2 will be tough.  Also, are you trying to provoke me to start politicking for a Pool C bid already for an IC 8-2 record?  There are a lot of obstacles in the way from 8-2 but I will go on the record and say they would deserve the bid as of 8/11 

Bomber-- Yeah, but can't you talk yourself into most of those "They shouldn't win them" if you wanted?

Alfred-- Like Springfield minus the triple option, they stink on IC's grass.

Cortland-- Last year, facing a good Cortland team with it's worst team in 15 years, Ithaca lost by three points thanks almost entirely to two special teams screw-ups. This year team figures to be much better

Springfield or Salisbury-- Bomber LB's are way too good to lose to two option teams.

As for a Pool C, doubt that, but I'd take 8-2

[Old IC Voice]

As an IC alum, I'm very excited for the Salisbury game. Should be a great matchup; that Salisbury offense against a very strong, seasoned group of linebackers. Here's hoping Ithaca's offensive line has gotten better from last year.

To me, the intrigue surrounding Ithaca is whether or not they can sustain the streak of 40 consecutive winning seasons. Looking at the schedule, here's how I see it:

Brockport: Win (Golden Eagles were only voted sixth in the NJAC)
Salisbury: Toss-up, leaning to loss (need to see IC's offense)
Union: Win (Chris Coney's gone, thank goodness)
Hartwick: Win (although The Cage is a tough environment; IC lost there in '07 and got a game from a mediocre Hawks team in '09)
SJF: Loss (Bombers79 and I share the "prove it first" belief)
Springfield: Toss-up, leaning to win (standard logic says the way to stop the option is with skilled linebackers, and IC has that)
Utica: Win (Utica's defense is still a big question mark)
Frostburg: Win (might be a tough first year in the E8 for the Bobcats)
Alfred: Toss-up, leaning to win (on paper, Alfred's probably the better team, but they sure don't travel to the South Hill well)
Cortland: Toss-up, leaning to win (Pitcher and Giuliano are both gone, but IC will need to stop Autera, who had a big sophomore season)

Predictions: Worst-case, 5-5 and the streak ends. Best-case, 9-1, although that'd be some coaching job by Welch and company to win that many toss-up games. I'll say a likely record is somewhere in the neighborhood of 7-3, with anything better than that being a pleasant surprise.

[AU52]

Hello everyone, I'm new to posting on the boards, but have been reading them for years.  I'm looking forward to another season of division 3 football, and hopefully another great season for the saxons.