FB: Liberty League

[Ice Bear]

Ice says let's be clear, after the ****storm five years ago that was the free-****ing-fall the program took from national respectability, Ice is ok and still very much happy to bleed garnet. That was a hell of a winning streak and a hell of a turnaround from ****ing complete obscurity. Ice is proud of the coaching staff and the players that came into Union and completely turned things around. However, Ice has a right to be critical and here it goes.

Ice Bear's thoughts on 2020 season thus far:

-great record with some exciting play
-Ike Irabor is one of the best running backs in all of D3 football
-Union's schedule was quite week and last week, while a win, it was a lucky win against a very good team. Union's true colors in regards to their strength within the league and the nation were revealed (not insulting the team here just being realistic).
-Union has been overrated all season
-Union has become a one dimensional football team. It's Ike vs. the opponent...as great as he is, it's not going to cut the ****ing mustard (someone get hazzben some cheese for his ****ing burger!)
-Something is going on with Will Bellamy and has been all season. Once accurate and poised Will has struggled to throw the ball with accuracy, Ice believes he has an undisclosed injury. It's the only explanation to this constant running of the ball...again, even down three scores in the biggest game of the season...makes zero sense
-Bellamy's struggles are not an excuse. IIBHO Pacatte should have been put in at some point, Bellamy, who Ice believes is a tough as nails player, should have been given rest, etc and Pacatte given the opportunity to develop and get some game experience

Ok, enough out of Ice for tonight. Just his thoughts here and again, he is very proud of this Union team and program! Congrats again to IC and RPI. Hoping the Shoes game will provide some fireworks and a more desperate Union team and aggressive game plan

Ice Ice Baby-

[Bartman]

Ice,
   +k for analysis and honesty, as painful as it may be. Union has a good shot to beat RPI if they address the Bellamy situation, which , I noticed against Hobart(Ross made his yards for Bellamy, especially on the long YAC TD). Ike Irabor is the best every down back(tremendous endurance) in the league. He plays hurt and he never tires. I think Hobart's two backs , taken as a combined weapon(although U was the only team that contained them), are better than Irabor but as a one man show Ike is totally awesome. The Bombers knew this, just as Hobart did but IC did the best job. I think the RPI defense is even better than Hobart or Ithaca and will key on Irabor, so it is critical to get the ball to Ross who can change the game. I think you're right that Bellamy may be hurt, so hopefully Union can resolve this QB dilemma. If you do, I think you're in the NCAA tourney with Ithaca as 2 LL teams(despite what the midwesterners may think). Good luck and be proud, it was a great 21 game run.

[IC798891]

Cortaca! Gonna be nuts as usual! Maybe crazier!

Means nothing for either team in terms of the playoffs. Unfortunately it looks like Ithaca will need Union to beat RPI next week.  Either way it is always a good game.  Comparative scores it looks like Cortland is the best team in upstate NY. 

RPI/SLU in overtime and I don't think the SLU kicker is able to make a FG over 10 yards.

Nonsense. A 9-1 IC is a strong Pool C contender

Yea you might be right......

I'm still a Union fan this week though.

Absolutely. Let's not overcomplicate things and get into Pool C murkiness, regardless of how strong I think IC's resume will be. Get it together, Union.

.

[Jonny Utah]

Cortaca! Gonna be nuts as usual! Maybe crazier!

Means nothing for either team in terms of the playoffs. Unfortunately it looks like Ithaca will need Union to beat RPI next week.  Either way it is always a good game.  Comparative scores it looks like Cortland is the best team in upstate NY. 

RPI/SLU in overtime and I don't think the SLU kicker is able to make a FG over 10 yards.

Nonsense. A 9-1 IC is a strong Pool C contender

Yea you might be right......

I'm still a Union fan this week though.

Absolutely. Let's not overcomplicate things and get into Pool C murkiness, regardless of how strong I think IC's resume will be. Get it together, Union.

.

When you think about it, Ithaca is probably better off if they win next week anyway, regardless of what happens in the Shoes game.  You always want a home game in the playoffs, but if they can beat Cortland and get a pool C they are probably in better shape than if they lose and get the LL title. 

Either way this is a big game and an amazing tradition.

[Oline89]

Not much doubt in my mind that Union will win big this weekend.  The one trend that has held up this year is that the Big 4 win at home.  I guess that the short trip from RPI to Union shouldn't mean as much as Ithaca to RPI, or Hobart to Union/Ihtaca, or Union to Ithaca. However, with such slim differences between each of the top LL teams, home field seems to be consistently important.  Ithaca will run into a buzzsaw at Cortland.  By next weekend we will have one 9-1 team (Union), 3 8-2 teams and 1 team heading to NCAA's (Ithaca). 

[Machiavelli]

Not much doubt in my mind that Union will win big this weekend.  The one trend that has held up this year is that the Big 4 win at home.  I guess that the short trip from RPI to Union shouldn't mean as much as Ithaca to RPI, or Hobart to Union/Ihtaca, or Union to Ithaca. However, with such slim differences between each of the top LL teams, home field seems to be consistently important.  Ithaca will run into a buzzsaw at Cortland.  By next weekend we will have one 9-1 team (Union), 3 8-2 teams and 1 team heading to NCAA's (Ithaca).

That's a pretty strong opinion. I respect it, and I can't even say you'll be wrong, but you never know in this matchup. Records don't really matter when it comes to the Shoes game. I went all the way back to 2000 to see the overall W/L figures Home vs. Away. Since 2000, RPI leads the overall series 11-9, pretty even. RPI is 4-6 in filthy gross smelly city that time forgot Schenectady, while 7-3 in glorious up-and-coming Troy. While homefield plays a part, it's not huge historically. That said, I really don't think home field plays much of a factor at all this week.

Both teams sit at 8-1. Union coming off of such a devastating loss can go either way. They could come out down and flat and RPI could capitalize. They could come out with fire coming out of their a$$es(which could be due to the Ithaca game, or from too many Friday night wings at Druthers). RPI on the other hand, let's face it, they've had some breaks the last 2 weeks with opposing teams' kickers. I still don't understand how kickers can't just kick it up through the goal posts, at any level, since that is all they do, but 'tis reality. On that note, RPI is a cardiac squad. They've won several close, tough, competitive games and have never quit until the last whistle. This team has a little something that I can't quite pinpoint. Will it translate in a rivalry game? Time will tell.

I do NOT believe Union will 'win big'. RPI has given up an average of 13.889ppg this season. Union has given up 15.333ppg. Union has a big advantage in points scored per game at 34(37.375 if you throw out the Ithaca game), while RPI has only 23.111. Neither team had a very impressive OOC schedule, although I'd give RPI a slight edge, even though the combined records are slightly in Union's favor(16-20 vs. 14-22). I just don't think their opponents' levels of competition in their conferences are even, so RPI gets a slight nod from me on OOC.

With all of that junk, as mentioned at the start, I don't think it really matters. Either team could be 1-8 coming in and this would be a battle. Always is. Always will be. I don't think RPI can win a shootout, so they need to stop Union's offense. Ithaca figured it out, I think/hope RPI can too. If they do, they need to figure out a way to score. They only had 7 points against SLU at the end of regulation. That won't be enough. RPI needs at least 21 points to win me thinks. But I also think they need to hold Union under 21 to have a chance.

Should be fun. I wish I could go to Schenectady and heckle all those turds so they can call the cops and get me cancelled. Bunch of soft, sad, woke, wine drinking, cheese eating, Volvo driving douche-cans. But I'll be watching/listening from the far Northeast. Good luck to all on a big and exciting final week! Also hoping Ithaca can take out the gym teaching squad.

[Oline89]

Well, if nothin else, I am happy to have lit a fire under Mach.  Had been an underwhelming LL year for you, until the last post +K.  I got bored of the Hobart game on Saturday, so I watched the last quarter/OT of RPI/SLU.  That was not good football.  I will blame it on the slop of a field the teams played on, but RPI is going to have to score more than one TD to win on Saturday.  On a dry turf field, the Union O will score at least 3 TDs.  Nice that a rivalry game has implications for both teams.

[Oline89]

So, how hard does Cortland play in Cortaca? Do they keep starters in the whole game?  Does 10-0 v 9-1 have any influence on home field playoff games?  Obviously, a win means a lot to Ithaca, they go hard all game.

[IC798891]

So, how hard does Cortland play in Cortaca? Do they keep starters in the whole game?  Does 10-0 v 9-1 have any influence on home field playoff games?  Obviously, a win means a lot to Ithaca, they go hard all game.

Of course they play hard and keep the starters in. Why would any team want to take a loss and hurt their playoff seeding — let alone to a rival?

[Oline89]

So, how hard does Cortland play in Cortaca? Do they keep starters in the whole game?  Does 10-0 v 9-1 have any influence on home field playoff games?  Obviously, a win means a lot to Ithaca, they go hard all game.

Of course they play hard and keep the starters in. Why would any team want to take a loss and hurt their playoff seeding — let alone to a rival?

just posting the question: They already have a home playoff game, why risk an injury to a starter in a "relatively" unimportant game.  What becomes more important, making a dent in the playoffs or beating a rival? Does 10-0 vs 9-1 guarantee 2 home playoff games? Assuming Cortland wins, they would probably meet LL winner in the second round.  I would imagine a 11-1 Cortland would have home field against a 10-2 Union, for instance....

[wally_wabash]

9-1 doesn't guarantee one home game.  There's zero percent chance Cortland mails it in in a rivalry game with a lot to play for beyond the Jug.

[Doid23]

I would think that Cortica is more important to Cortland (and Ithica) than playoff seeding, may in fact be more important than the playoffs.

And 10-2 Union (or any LL team) doesn't get a ticket to the dance.

[IC798891]

I would think that Cortica is more important to Cortland (and Ithica) than playoff seeding, may in fact be more important than the playoffs.

And 10-2 Union (or any LL team) doesn't get a ticket to the dance.

I don't think Cortaca is more important than the playoffs. Teams with playoff aspirations just don't think that way, especially one with a new coach who wants to make his mark. Cortland wants to make an impact in the playoffs and winning Cortaca will help with that.

[Oline89]

I would think that Cortica is more important to Cortland (and Ithica) than playoff seeding, may in fact be more important than the playoffs.

And 10-2 Union (or any LL team) doesn't get a ticket to the dance.

My fault, I meant an 11-1 Union

[Oline89]

9-1 doesn't guarantee one home game.  There's zero percent chance Cortland mails it in in a rivalry game with a lot to play for beyond the Jug.

So if Ithaca wins, both teams end season at 9-1.  If either RPI or Union wins, the winner will be 9-1.  So winner of E8 (Cortland), winner of LL will be 9-1.  No home game for either?