FB: Empire 8

tecmobowler · August 27, 2007, 09:54:33 PM

Orangehat-

Your Phillies pick make indeed come true. J.D Durbin has always had good stuff, and he becomes a strong #5 if he can harness like he has tonight.

Certainly a Mets/Chicago series would bring endless excitement (and potential misery) to the'hats, and lineback on this board. I'm just happy both teams are finally decent at the same time. Goodness knows the Cubs stunk in the nineties, and just as they started to improve began what I call the "Jason Phillips" era in New York. Those poor teams were just rough. Wright and Reyes of course have provided a great "in house" punch, as have Theriot, Fontenot, and Marmol for the Cubs (though to a varying degree of course).

boobyhasgameyo · August 27, 2007, 09:58:58 PM

Well I haven't smited anybody for cubs talk, but I have tried starting football topics a few times the past few days....Nothing has caught on though.

I can see how Pat thought you were insinuating he wasn't doing his job properly, and I can see where you are coming from as well Tecmo. Good move to just end it with that last post. +k to try and get you back towards your desired karma total.

Can't wait until Saturday, Kings should be a good test early. Also can compare scores between how Fisher does against Kings and then Ithaca the next week. I know it doesn't mean much but it makes for fun discussion. "We beat them by 14, you only beat them by 3!" Notice how I didn't specify which team beat them by 14 or which by 3 lol.

boobyhasgameyo · August 27, 2007, 10:00:32 PM

that is to say if either team beats Kings, don't want to Smack the MAC across the face.

tecmobowler · August 27, 2007, 10:02:11 PM

Ha, sorry Portgrad... rough timing.

Backed up with some football talk:

Three keys to the Bombers season-

1.) Can the team adjust to new offensive and defensive coordinators? Both were brought in seemingly late in the summer. No longer having a bye Week 1 sure makes that opener come up soon. Coach A leaving the offense was a blow two years back, and the defense just made the transition to the 3-4, only to have its two coordinators leave. Can the learning curve be quick enough?

2.) Lots of youth on the defensive side, but very talented youth. Can names like Cheir, Scalice, and Goetz make the Bombers the feared defense they once were in the late ninties? There's not a ton of depth on the defense, so folks must stay healthy. The road to the playoffs goes through Springfield and Fisher. We have seemed to figure out the triple option, but Fisher will be the test. Lots of folks seem to forget that arguably the two best defensive players for the Bombers last year were inactive, and standing next to me in the (lame) Fisher tailgaiting section before the game. Maybe the defense doesn't overpersue, and then collapse with Blumenauer and Stephens in the game. Can the defense still be at full strength come Week 4?

3.) Dan Juvan. Like I mentioned last night, the Bomber have been blessed with maturity and good decisions at the QB position for the past ten years. Can DJ relax in the pocket and turn the corner into a complete quarterback? If not, he may have Grastorf knocking at his door, and no one wants a QB controversey going into the E8 portion of the schedule.

pg04 · August 27, 2007, 10:06:08 PM

Quote from: boobyhasgameyo on August 27, 2007, 10:00:32 PM
that is to say if either team beats Kings, don't want to Smack the MAC across the face.

I'm glad you said it before I had to respond with it!!

tecmobowler · August 27, 2007, 10:07:53 PM

Thoughts on Fisher (having only admittedly seen them a few times over the past couple years).

-James Reile is not Mark Robinson. Robinson had the ability to turn the corner, and always fall forward for an extra three years. I'm sure Reile is good, but more in the way the Ronald McDonald Meyers kid was a few years back.

-Fisher's offensive line is enormous. They could probably make a medicore back look formidable. They're really impressive.

-Losing Lang seems like it may hurt more than some of our Fisher friends seem to believe. It seemed like he was in on every single tackle last year.

-They keep recruiting as long as the Bills are there. Some have pointed to Brockport being a power for a couple years, and warning the Fisher folks not to get too excited, but I don't see it. Who doesn't want to share a locker room with the London Fletcher's of the world? It's pretty awesome for a 17-18 year old to picture, I'd imagine. It doesn't hurt Ithaca's recruiting too bad, as much of the talent has been coming from Jersey, Conn., and PA these days, but dang, it can't be good at all for Brockport or Buff State.

boobyhasgameyo · August 27, 2007, 10:41:02 PM

Again I'm going to have to refute the statement we will keep recruiting as long as the Bills are there. Initially yes I will definitely give that credit, but I think the lure of the facilities and the state of the football program are the main draws now, the Bills is an added feature. It just feels like when people say that they are kind of giving Fisher a backhanded compliment.

Reile isnt as good as Robinson but I think he had a down year last year, if he returns to the form of 2 years ago Fisher's running game will be fine.

Missing Lang definitely hurts because he was there on almost every tackle, but so was Fox before him. It seems like the trend of good running backs in recent history for Fisher is also true for linebacker. So overall Fisher did lose it's best offensive and defensive player but I just think the overall talent just keeps getting deeper and more cohesive. If they can just get the mentality that playing on their A game they cant be stopped by any team including the Mount Union's of the world then they will be a scary team. I think that's the type of mentality all great teams have, I know Mount Union has it, and I know Ithaca has it still. I'm not sure if Fisher has it, but they should.

Tags · August 27, 2007, 10:42:28 PM

Wow, it's like a war zone in the E8 right now - I'll need to post & duck.

RE: Lang's departure

I think that will hurt more than people realize. You can't forget Pyz & Maggio being gone either, they made it possible many times for him to get into play.

They've got a good group coming back, and I think Gottlieb (sp?) will be able to come up big to help fill the void. Also important is Micah Norton's health.

pg04 · August 27, 2007, 10:48:29 PM

Quote from: Tags on August 27, 2007, 10:42:28 PM
Wow, it's like a war zone in the E8 right now - I'll need to post & duck.

I know, neutral parties like you and I need to stay clear!

Tags · August 27, 2007, 10:48:41 PM

Quote from: boobyhasgameyo on August 27, 2007, 10:41:02 PMI think he had a down year last year, if he returns to the form of 2 years ago Fisher's running game will be fine.

Let me go on record right now on 8/27 & say that Hanson has a more productive year than Reile coming out of the backfield. I think Hanson will surprise a lot of folks and has been overlooked in the last few years for obvious reasons.

Also, while I think the running game will be just fine, the key is the passing game for this year's offense IMHO. Kramer had most of last year to work with his guys, and the entire offseason to work with them - Jackson, Smith, and Harmon will be a great trio to watch this year I think.

pg04 · August 27, 2007, 10:51:05 PM

Quote from: tecmobowler on August 27, 2007, 10:07:53 PM
Thoughts on Fisher (having only admittedly seen them a few times over the past couple years).

-James Reile is not Mark Robinson.

I think windb--- I mean Reile's father might have something to say about this!

boobyhasgameyo · August 27, 2007, 10:52:45 PM

Yeah I remember going into last year having concerns about the passing game due to losing Noah, and while they started out sluggish I think the passing game was extremely efficient and formidable the last 5 or 6 weeks of the season. They reminded me of the Detroit Pistons, no one superstar but just a collection of really good players.

Tags · August 27, 2007, 10:53:22 PM

Quote from: pg04 on August 27, 2007, 10:51:05 PM
Quote from: tecmobowler on August 27, 2007, 10:07:53 PM
Thoughts on Fisher (having only admittedly seen them a few times over the past couple years).

-James Reile is not Mark Robinson.

I think windb--- I mean Reile's father might have something to say about this!

Alas PG, I'm not neutral

pg04 · August 27, 2007, 10:56:20 PM

James Reile is not Mark Robinson.... Maybe he's better!!!....oh wait, no...

OK I will stop. I've gotten it out for the year.

tecmobowler · August 27, 2007, 11:16:26 PM

I guess when I say the allure of the Bills, I include the facilities in with that. Am I correct that the facilities got a major upgrade to lure the Bills there? I hear the locker room is just incredible.

Lots of the talk that the field is going to be revamped as far as the visitor stands go. Sure hoping that's still on. Like I've said a number of times, nothing good comes from fans sitting on the same side.