FB: Liberty League

[Frank Rossi]

OK - Time to get back to my LL roots and give you the low-down-dirty news of what this weekend's LL games mean:

WPI (2-4, 0-4 LL) @ RPI (4-2, 1-2 LL) - 1:00pm
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If RPI wins...

RPI's hunt for an ECAC Playoff berth remains intact.  However, if Union beats SLU, RPI's extremely outside mathematical chance to win the LL is gone, as Union and Hobart would not be able to lose two games -- meaning, at worst, a one-loss team will win the LL.  RPI would also guarantee itself a seventh-consecutive winning season.

If WPI wins...

RPI's hunt for an ECAC Playoff berth would be extremely hard hit, as many two- and one- loss teams may be vying for those six slots in New England and New York.  In addition, RPI would officially be eliminated from LL contention, regardless of other results.  WPI would still have a chance at a winning season with a win in Troy.


St. Lawrence (3-3, 1-2 LL) at Union (5-1, 3-0 LL) - 1:00pm
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If Union wins...

Union is one step closer to the LL Championship, although the Hobart/Union matchup could not be called the "Liberty League Championship Game" because Rochester could still create an issue if Hobart were to beat Union (more on that later).  Yet, Union would know heading into Hobart that a win vs. Hobart would win Union the LL.  Union would win its 12th-straight LL game, 13th-straight regular-season home game and 23rd out of its last 26 games overall.  A Union win would also knock St. Lawrence out of the LL Championship hunt, althought St. Lawrence's chances of winning are the lowest among teams with two losses or less in the LL.

If St. Lawrence wins...

We'd call St. Lawrence the "Giant Killer" of 2006 and ban it from ever using Route 7 again.  That would be because St. Lawrence has already beaten RPI and would put a crack into Union's hunt for an NCAA slot.  YET, Union does not NEED to win this game for the LL Championship.  Having beaten Rochester already this season, Union, with wins over Hobart and RPI, would own the three-way and two-way tiebreakers at one loss.  A loss against St. Lawrence, though, puts the Union/RPI game in play for the LL Championship.  Union's Pool C hopes, however, would become virtually zero, with a loss tomorrow.  St. Lawrence would still also have a very slim chance of winning the LL through a potential four- or five-way tie.


Rochester (5-2, 3-1 LL) at Grove City (1-6, 1-5 PAC) - 1:30pm
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If Rochester wins...

This game means virtually nothing, except for Rochester's chances for an ECAC Playoff berth, should Rochester not win the LL Championship.  The game is considered an in-region game for Rochester, as it is within 200 miles of Grove City, meaning it will have some bearing on the ECAC Committee's read on Rochester's success this season.  However, should it come down to a three-way tiebreaker between Union, Hobart and Rochester at one loss, whereby Hobart beats Union in their matchup and Rochester beats Hobart in their 11/11 matchup, this game would not be used in the third tiebreaker (W/L % vs. teams at or above 0.500) because of Grove City's W/L record this season.  A win would guarantee Rochester a greater-than-0.500 season for the first time since 2000.

If Grove City wins...

Rochester must win the LL Championship for any real hope for a postseason game (ECAC Playoff).  A loss could also hurt the Pool C chances of teams like Hobart and Union, because Rochester is on the cusp of slipping down a category in the Quality of Wins index, potentially costing Union and Hobart both 0.222 in their QoW indices.


Hobart (6-0, 4-0 LL) at Alfred (6-1, 3-1 E8) - 1:00pm
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If Hobart wins or If Alfred wins...

Both Alfred's and Hobart's chances to win an NCAA slot through either Pool A or Pool C would both be enhanced.  First, should Hobart end up in a three-way tiebreaker scenario with Union and Rochester at one loss (whereby Hobart beat Union and Rochester beat Hobart), Hobart would WIN the LL outright through the third tiebreaker by winning this game.  This is because it would have run the table against non-league opponents that are 0.500 or better.  Alfred, on the other hand, must be mindful of its QoW index, should it end up in a three-way tie in the E8 -- as that is a potential (though unlikely) tiebreaker they will face.  While Hobart would not be guaranteed a win of the LL if it beat Union on 11/4, this game would at least give Hobart a little more breathing room when it comes to the 11/11 game against Rochester (of course, Union would be forced to beat RPI if this scenario were to materialize).  As for Pool C, Alfred is in the hunt.  Hobart is in the hunt.  Alfred could still win out its two remaining E8 games.  Alfred would potentially eliminate a second LL NCAA bid (either for Union or Hobart) if it were to beat Hobart.  There is much discussion of potentially three E8 bids this year -- and this game could actually give that argument a lot of teeth if Alfred wins.  It's unusual for a non-league game aside from the Cortaca Jug game to mean so much so late in the season, but this one actually does -- and maybe means more than Cortaca.

[zachattack22]

Hey Rev, make sure we communicate before the Hobart/Union game next weekend.  ZA may try to get out there the night before in order to hit up some homeless people for a winter coat.

Do you want ZA to grab you one?  What size? Let ZA know! The last time ZA was there at Hobart, they were actually checking bags and stuff...Good thing ZA's friend had his coors wrapped up with genuine pepsi labels...worked out nice!!!!

ZA,  my dear old daddy will bring me some winter outergarments to fight off the Finger Lakes chill.  No need to steal from the homeless.  (Anyway, I'm not too sure how many homeless there are in Geneva.)

The Rev shall contact thee.

Rev, ZA would not steal from the homeless, but instead, "hit up" with quantum offer of deniro.....Hope to see you there! Ahh, but first, Union must not take SLU for granted and ZA heard the weather is going to be awful tomorrow in Schenectady!

[theoriginalupstate]

Fantasy Football advice time...

Need to fill 2 spots on the starting lineup
RB, WR/RB

Pick from the following guys (bye weeks are killing me!)
RB W. Lundy vs. TEN
RB M. Jones-Drew vs. PHI
WR M. Muhammed vs. SF
WR. K. Johnson vs. DAL

Ive got a FF question as well.....

Im sitting in a 4 way tie at 5-2 in a 10 team league (playing another 5-2 squad) and Ive got the following RB's:
Dunn vs Cin
McAllister vs BAL
Bush vs BAL
Westbrook vs TB
L. Washington vs Cle

I need 3 as my league has 2 starting RB's and a "flex" WR/RB position....(my WR's are set as I only have 2 that are not on BYE weeks-Wayne and Walker)....

Its a $200 entry fee (10 teams) so its kinda a big deal....

[labart96]

Fantasy Football advice time...

Need to fill 2 spots on the starting lineup
RB, WR/RB

Pick from the following guys (bye weeks are killing me!)
RB W. Lundy vs. TEN
RB M. Jones-Drew vs. PHI
WR M. Muhammed vs. SF
WR. K. Johnson vs. DAL

Ive got a FF question as well.....

Im sitting in a 4 way tie at 5-2 in a 10 team league (playing another 5-2 squad) and Ive got the following RB's:
Dunn vs Cin
McAllister vs BAL
Bush vs BAL
Westbrook vs TB
L. Washington vs Cle

I need 3 as my league has 2 starting RB's and a "flex" WR/RB position....(my WR's are set as I only have 2 that are not on BYE weeks-Wayne and Walker)....

Its a $200 entry fee (10 teams) so its kinda a big deal....

TGP's FF default would be to check rotoworld's "Goal Line Stand" - usually pretty accurate with their rankings/picks on who to start and sit.  Tough draws - Washington vs. CLE is the only slam dunk. 

BTW - you mean Westbrook vs. JAX right?  JAX D is banged up.  Could be a good play!

[Tlm]

It appears that there has been some misinformation (Reno ) relative to the status of Union's All-American WR.

According to the Schenectady Gazette this AM, per Coach Audino, Steve Angiletta has been practicing all week and will be a "game time decision".  Further comments in the article indicate that even if he does not play today, he will likely be on the field for Bart & RPI.

Stay tuned.....

[theoriginalupstate]

Fantasy Football advice time...

Need to fill 2 spots on the starting lineup
RB, WR/RB

Pick from the following guys (bye weeks are killing me!)
RB W. Lundy vs. TEN
RB M. Jones-Drew vs. PHI
WR M. Muhammed vs. SF
WR. K. Johnson vs. DAL

Ive got a FF question as well.....

Im sitting in a 4 way tie at 5-2 in a 10 team league (playing another 5-2 squad) and Ive got the following RB's:
Dunn vs Cin
McAllister vs BAL
Bush vs BAL
Westbrook vs TB
L. Washington vs Cle

I need 3 as my league has 2 starting RB's and a "flex" WR/RB position....(my WR's are set as I only have 2 that are not on BYE weeks-Wayne and Walker)....

Its a $200 entry fee (10 teams) so its kinda a big deal....

TGP's FF default would be to check rotoworld's "Goal Line Stand" - usually pretty accurate with their rankings/picks on who to start and sit.  Tough draws - Washington vs. CLE is the only slam dunk. 

BTW - you mean Westbrook vs. JAX right?  JAX D is banged up.  Could be a good play!

Yup I did, im thinking of going with Washington/Westbrook/Dunn.  The ravens are only allowing 75yds on the ground per game.

[labart96]

Glad to be of service.

For the LL and Bart fans here's some background on Alfred:

Full game notes for today's Ho-Fred Cup match can be accessed at:

http://campus.hws.edu/athletics/hobart/football/2006notes/alf.pdf

SCOUTING THE SAXONS: Alfred sports a record of 6-1 and is riding a four-game
winning streak. The Saxons lone loss came by just a single touchdown to 15th-ranked Springfield. Alfred is averaging 351.0 yards per game (144.1 rush/206.9 pass), while the Saxon defense is holding the opposition to just 215.7 yards per game (109.7/106.0). Alfred is 12th in the nation in pass efficiency defense (83.7) and 16th in total defense. Quarterback Paul Keeley is 19th in the nation in passing efficiency (154.1), having thrown for 1,448 yards and 19 touchdowns. Jared Manzer is his favorite target with 33 receptions for 460 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns. Alfred features the three-headed rushing attack of Elmer Newsome (383 yds, 2 TDs), Vinson Hendrix (255, 1), and Morgan O’Brien (254, 1). Defensively, Nick Gatto boasts a team-high 43 tackles, two sacks, two fumble recoveries, and an interception.

[labart96]

TGP, you watching your special on ABC right now?!

Missed it.  TGP played a gig with his band (we didn't play any Smashing Pumpkins songs though).

['gro]

live stats available for RPI/WPI game...

http://rpiathletics.com/live/football/xlive.htm

[union89]

It appears that there has been some misinformation (Reno ) relative to the status of Union's All-American WR.

According to the Schenectady Gazette this AM, per Coach Audino, Steve Angiletta has been practicing all week and will be a "game time decision".  Further comments in the article indicate that even if he does not play today, he will likely be on the field for Bart & RPI.

Stay tuned.....

Thx for the update TlM.......someone bring me Renos head!!!

['gro]

Engineers of Troy - 10
Engineers of Worcester - 0

halftime.

[res ipsa loquitur]

Hobart 6
Alfred 7

Halftime.   Sounds pretty sloppy.  Should be an interesting finish.

['gro]

4 turnovers for Engineers of Worcester.  Still 10-0.

['gro]

4 turnovers for Engineers of Worcester.  Still 10-0.

make that 5 for the bizzarro'neers

['gro]

is a safety considered a turnover?  RPI 12, WPI 0.

RPI gets the ball back, scores.  R team - 19, W team 0.