FB: Liberty League

[Bartman]

Well ,Oline and Bombers , I haven't a clue except that Union is very good and Rochester is still improving. The scores are a complete WAG after almost 2 years when I witnessed the Statesmen dismantle the Red Dragons in the NY State Bowl in 2019:

Hobart   21    @   Alfred    14        Mostly defense and either a punt or KO return will be critical as Pep bangs                 
                                                 secret offensive signals on his drum
SLU       14     @   Endicott 24        Endicott pulls away in 4th Quarter, Saints look improved

B'water  17     @   Ithaca   27        Bombers start off well as the Cayuga wave rolls at home

Mooville  10    @   Union    41        Mustangs leave with ears ringing from Dutchmen cannon

MSU       24     @  RPI       21         Montclair hits the transistors out of the Engineers in the end

SJF         17     @ Buff ST   10        Both offenses struggle, but Bengals lose at home

CWR       31     @ Uof R      13         Case Western impresses as Yellow Jackets show improvement

Good luck to all of our D3 teams, stay safe and injury free

[@d3jason]

I agree with most of this, except I'll take RPI at home. I find RPI's offense more dynamic than Montclair's offense.

[Ice Bear]

Well ,Oline and Bombers , I haven't a clue except that Union is very good and Rochester is still improving. The scores are a complete WAG after almost 2 years when I witnessed the Statesmen dismantle the Red Dragons in the NY State Bowl in 2019:

Hobart   21    @   Alfred    14        Mostly defense and either a punt or KO return will be critical as Pep bangs                 
                                                 secret offensive signals on his drum
SLU       14     @   Endicott 24        Endicott pulls away in 4th Quarter, Saints look improved

B'water  17     @   Ithaca   27        Bombers start off well as the Cayuga wave rolls at home

Mooville  10    @   Union    41        Mustangs leave with ears ringing from Dutchmen cannon

MSU       24     @  RPI       21         Montclair hits the transistors out of the Engineers in the endCWR

SJF         17     @ Buff ST   10        Both offenses struggle, but Bengals lose at home

CWR       31     @ Uof R      13         Case Western impresses as Yellow Jackets show improvement

Good luck to all of our D3 teams, stay safe and injury free

Ice Bear says he is down with these predictions from the magical Bartman (the LLPP's version of the Swami). He is admittedly lost here with the RPI/Montclair contest. Ice digs on Marinopoulos, as he's a local kid and all. Ice tends to think the Engineers will, "go where he goes..." this season. We shall see.

Ice Bear says he is also rooting bigtime for SLU and Bart. Ice is really hoping Roch cha cha can put in a good showing.

Ice Bear says no injuries ****ing anywhere.

Ice Bear says stay cool

[Ice Bear]

Ice Bear says the Pumpkinheads are looking very good up 28-3, early in the third.

[Caz Bombers]

Hobart absolutely squashed Alfred like a bug. So much for home field advantage. 5 rushing TDs, defense had 4 interceptions.

Are the Pumpkin Boyz title contenders again? Does Alfred maybe suck this year? Still unknown I guess!

[Bartman]

Very happy with the Statesmen tonight. The Oline was better than anticipated, the combo of Denham and Boswell at RB will be awesome this year and Krewson was very efficient at QB and the receivers were better than anticipated and showed some great hands on a few catches. Happy, yet not overconfident.
The Defense was strong , but I'm unsure of the level of talent and experience on the Saxon side, so I'm not ready to crown Hobart a shutdown defense so early in the year. Our star defensive Captains, Emmett Forde and Leake will be awesome this year and showed very well tonight.
Punting game looked good and kicker , although just missing a field goal was 5 for 5 on XP, Snapper a transfer from UMass D1 program looks awesome.
I think Alfred needs a few more games to develop and I would not take this game as a clear indication of performance in 2021, but they have to figure out the QB position. I love playing Alfred especially under a cool September night with the Saxon Warrior trotting around.....they always produce a competitive team and I expect them to pull this young team together for the E8 season
As far as Hobart, I think they are officially in the mix for the LL title, and having a few games under their belt before the Ithaca game will help give the Statesmen a shot at the first win at Butterfield. I'm hopeful that we will be ready to surprise a confident Union squad on 10/30 for the LL title, but lots of Football to play before then.
It was simply joyous to see a Statesmen football game after a 650 day wait,  and hearing the boys sing the Alma Mater after the win makes the world feel a bit more alive again.

[Jonny Utah]

Very happy with the Statesmen tonight. The Oline was better than anticipated, the combo of Denham and Boswell at RB will be awesome this year and Krewson was very efficient at QB and the receivers were better than anticipated and showed some great hands on a few catches. Happy, yet not overconfident.
The Defense was strong , but I'm unsure of the level of talent and experience on the Saxon side, so I'm not ready to crown Hobart a shutdown defense so early in the year. Our star defensive Captains, Emmett Forde and Leake will be awesome this year and showed very well tonight.
Punting game looked good and kicker , although just missing a field goal was 5 for 5 on XP, Snapper a transfer from UMass D1 program looks awesome.
I think Alfred needs a few more games to develop and I would not take this game as a clear indication of performance in 2021, but they have to figure out the QB position. I love playing Alfred especially under a cool September night with the Saxon Warrior trotting around.....they always produce a competitive team and I expect them to pull this young team together for the E8 season
As far as Hobart, I think they are officially in the mix for the LL title, and having a few games under their belt before the Ithaca game will help give the Statesmen a shot at the first win at Butterfield. I'm hopeful that we will be ready to surprise a confident Union squad on 10/30 for the LL title, but lots of Football to play before then.
It was simply joyous to see a Statesmen football game after a 650 day wait,  and hearing the boys sing the Alma Mater after the win makes the world feel a bit more alive again.

Nice recap and all but you didn't mention the TOP stats.

Be better next time.

[unionpalooza]

Union rolling at halftime, 28-7. Bellamy is 14 of 17 for 229 yards and three scores.

[UfanBill]

UNION did everything they were supposed to today in a 48-14 defeat of Morrisville. The Dutchman offense was dominant led by the super confident and extremely effective QB Will Bellamy 20/25 294 yds. 4 TDs, and the equally dominant and athletic efforts of WR Andre Ross Jr. 9 catches for 159 yds. and 2 TDs. Their superiority was none more evident than during a play sequence in the 4th quarter when an officiating mixup let Union run a play in which Ross jumped high over the defender to haul down an apparent touchdown only to have flags fly. A Moorisville defender had run onto the field late and what looked like a simple offsides to be declined became a long officials huddle while they discussed with both coaches what they would call. They decided it was No Play because apparently they had allowed the play to continue without letting the Mustangs sub for a player who had lost his helmet on the previous play. BUT that was not all...there was an additional flag against Ross for unsportsmanship when he spiked the ball. This did not sit well with the Dutchmen, especially Ross and Bellamy, and they showed their dominance 2 plays later when Ross again rose high to catch another TD pass, same play in the same corner of the endzone for a TD that counted. So much for that.     

[stlawus]

I was very happy with SLU's first half performance today, especially on the defensive side of the ball.  A huge chunk of the team didn't make the trip due to covid protocols so depth (or a lack thereof) played a big role in the 2nd half.   Endicott has a good team though, on to the next!

[ITH radio]

Interesting re SLU bc that team is 99% vaccinated from what I understand from speaking to Coach Puck over the summer.

[Bartman]

Interesting re SLU bc that team is 99% vaccinated from what I understand from speaking to Coach Puck over the summer.

Being vaccinated means little with repect to the Delta variant that is highly transmissible, even our own CDC confirms this and the reporting of asymptomatic cases will be quite common I'm afraid. This will, no doubt be a likely issue as the season progresses . I see it on the campus , the students feel pretty safe if they are vaccinated but break through cases are becoming fairly common. Unfortunately, the common cloth masks that most use are of no help. So N95 or KN95 use for the serious. This is my concern for the season , that as glorious as the opening weekend was, teams could easily be bitten by this  and it may have an impact beyond the physical injuries that are unfortunately common. I hope and pray I am wrong.

[Bartman]

The LL went 4-3 this weekend as Union, RPI, Hobart and Ithaca look like the top tier with legitimate thoughts of denying Union the anticipated league crown. That said SLU and Buff State, although losing,  competed very well against decent opponents. The surprise was how well Rochacha played against a team in CWR that scared the pants off of Union two years ago in the playoffs( I assume CWR lost  a few starters from 2 years ago, but still a very good program). I'm thinking that when the LL portion of the season comes up, the coaches will not be able to take any game lightly. Looking forward to a great season. 

[UfanBill]

Congratulations are in order for Union DT Jimaar Edwards who was named to the D3football Team of the Week. While the Dutchmen offense gets all the attention and press it was the defense that brought national recognition. Edwards was outstanding using his strength and quickness while battling the formidable Mustang interior line (the left guard weighs 380 lbs ) holding Moorisville to 38 yards rushing in 27 attempts. Edwards had 5 tackles and a 12 yard QB sack.

[Oline89]

12:00 PM   Union @ Worcester State College   Snoozer by the Q3, 42-6   
12:00 PM   Alfred State College @ Rochester   Rock solid in first win 21-14   
12:00 PM   Stevenson University @ Rensselaer   Engineers keep winning at home 31-24
1:00 PM   Norwich @ St. Lawrence              Saints take out some frustration 42-14
1:00 PM   SUNY Morrisville @ Hobart           Statesmen win, but takes to 4th quarter after sloppy start, 35-21
1:00 PM   Ithaca @ Brockport                      Going for LL sweep, just not the E8 year, 24-21