FB: Midwest Conference

[Jester76]

It seems to me that looking at the stats that Monmouth did leave a lot of points on the field.  I mean they had 591 yards of total offense and was approaching 100 plays.  I do not say this to take away from Ripon's offense because it seems like they were very efficient with the opportunities that they received in the second half and it also seemed as if they had wonderful field position the whole second half.

Well enough said, both teams made it a great game.  But I have always heard it said the the great teams find a way to win no matter what and Monmouth found a way to win.  Go Scots...no let downs here on out.

Any early thoughts on who will be representing the west region and who all will be hosting who?

[fightintitan2006]

Jester,

I think regional rankings start this week..if so, this is my best guess for the west

1. UW-Whitewater 6-0
2. Willamette 7-0
3. Occidental 5-0
4. Carleton 5-1
5. Linfield 4-1
6. Monmouth 6-0
7. Wartburg 5-2
8. UW-Stevens Point 5-1
9. Aurora 5-1
10. Concordia Mhead 4-2

St. Johns, Northwestern, Cal Lutheran, Redlands, Buena Vista are in the picture as well.

[scottie]

Okay, Scottie is back from a LONG day of football watchin'.  Would have posted earlier but had to zip back over to Illini-town to catch that game...

Now: Mad props to Ripon.  Regardless of how well the Scots could have played - they played how they played, and Ripon almost took this one back to Cheeseland.  My general impressions are that 1.) The Scots can still move the ball at will.  Air Tanney is a force to be reckoned with the remaining 2+ seasons.  Although his receivers dropped some big passes today, they are usually quite solid.  2.) The Scots/Bricker ran the ball well against a very good defense.  Bricker was a horse. 3.) Ripon seemed to pull some pass plays out of the back of the playbook and I was surprised how attempts they tried.  Kudos for that.

Another key point:  Ripon had two MAJOR penalties late in the game.  A late hit out of bounds gave the Scots much needed field position.  And another unsportsmanlike penalty (on their coach?) added to the final scoring drive.  In my opinion, this falls into the "What were they THINKING?" category, and  I wonder if this an example of a team that hasn't been there in awhile wilting under the pressure.   

Bottom line:  The last few possessions of the game were great examples of clutch time management by the Scots.  They scored quickly, got the ball back quickly, and then drove it down the field again for a score.   While I will argue that the better team won, the difference today was miniscule.

What's left for the team in the driver's seat:  Two middle-of-the-pack teams in Lake Forest and IC, either one in which the Scots will have to avoid the Trap.  Then the Turkey Bowl....and the Scots may put up triple digits in that one. 

M O N M O U T H   F O O T B A L L   I N   2 0 0 8 ! ! !

[MWCfan787]

Jester,

I think regional rankings start this week..if so, this is my best guess for the west

1. UW-Whitewater 6-0
2. Willamette 7-0
3. Occidental 5-0
4. Carleton 5-1
5. Linfield 4-1
6. Monmouth 6-0
7. Wartburg 5-2
8. UW-Stevens Point 5-1
9. Aurora 5-1
10. Concordia Mhead 4-2

St. Johns, Northwestern, Cal Lutheran, Redlands, Buena Vista are in the picture as well.

I think Monmouth will be higher at the end of the season in the regional rankings than whatever they are this week, because some of the teams in front of them might still have potential losses ahead of them while the Scots are going to win out and I don't feel bad guaranteeing it.

[gbpuckfan]

Congrats to Monmouth on the win over Ripon... I still think it will be tough to get a home game, but I hope it happens...

[fightintitan2006]

I have no clue how far or close my rankings will be to the real thing, but I think I pretty well covered all the teams who will be invovled.

These rankings will look significantly different at the end, as I count between 4 and 6 teams listed who still have to play head to head.

[scottie]

Congrats to Monmouth on the win over Ripon... I still think it will be tough to get a home game, but I hope it happens...

Still three more weeks to shake things out in terms of the playoff representatives, pairings, etc.  However, a very reliable source told me on Saturday that it is doubtful that Monmouth would get a home game....something about the ticket revenue monopolization which is not guaranteed due to the various "free" sightlines around the field.  In other words, the NCAA might be more concerned that all fans are paying fans, and that a site with an enclosed stadium is preferrable. 

I hope this is not the case.  For those of you who have seen Monmouth's recent "stadium" upgrades, not to mention the locker facilities, you have to admit that the place is pretty sweet.  (Finishing touches to come in the spring of '09.) It would be a shame for a deserving team not to be able to host a game, simply because some fans get a freebie.

L E T   T H E M   H O S T   I N   2 0 0 8 ! ! !

[piopride10]

Any comments on the CU/SNC game?  Nobody was surprised?  I sure wasn't but I figured I'd hear some chatter about it from the SNC fans.  Great game it sounds like.  Right down to the wire.  How did the game shake out... SNC make mistakes?  CU better than people thought?  Key penalties?  Someone give me the run down.  I knew my guys would be fired up, and although we haven't played well there in the past it was about time a Carroll team showed up and put up a hell of a fight.  Too bad they couldn't get a win but it doesn't take anything away from that team.  Sorry, I'm being a homer but I love those guys and I would have loved for somebody I actually know to beat a SNC team.  I'm not convinced anyone has the MWC locked up yet.  The Scots still need to finish out against some games that have "trap-like" potential.  I got Carroll big this weekend over the fightin fire.  Ripon/SNC is the game of the week.  Which team will bring their "A" game?  Ripon off a tough loss or SNC off a tough win?  Tough to say, no predictions from this guy yet.

[Pat Coleman]

Congrats to Monmouth on the win over Ripon... I still think it will be tough to get a home game, but I hope it happens...

Still three more weeks to shake things out in terms of the playoff representatives, pairings, etc.  However, a very reliable source told me on Saturday that it is doubtful that Monmouth would get a home game....something about the ticket revenue monopolization which is not guaranteed due to the various "free" sightlines around the field.  In other words, the NCAA might be more concerned that all fans are paying fans, and that a site with an enclosed stadium is preferrable. 

Read: required.

Interesting problem that the school has some time to deal with.

[Mr. Ypsi]

The NCAA DOES take the site seriously.  Carthage lost out on a home game 2-3 years ago due to a grossly inadequate pressbox!  (I don't know if there were other problems as well, but that was what got talked about.)

Would temporary fencing be a feasible solution?

[SNCOLDAD]

Very busy weekend and to be honest, did not want to post before.

I will try to be very careful how I word this.
Carroll played a very good game. I am not sure they could have played better. 

SNC played a terrible game. I am not sure they could have played flatter the first half. 

There. I said it. What an ugly win......... but it was a win.

There just seemed to be very little fire in the belly on SNC. Carroll was very pumped up as were their fans. SNC Fans were pretty quiet. I know. I was one of them.

I realized that the fans also feed off the players with enthusiasm as much as the other way around.

Congrats to the freshman who made the interception at the end of the game. The entire defense swarmed him. That was great.

On to the next one. Not going to look back at this one very long.

[scottie]

Thanks for the feedback Pat and Mr. Y. 

I guess "fencing" is not the best word, unless you mean privacy fencing.  Monmouth has plenty of ornamental fencing as it is.  I guess "walls" would be the better word.  Too bad, because I think they've made more than adequate progress on their press box upgrades. 

My only solution for campuses in this situtation would be for the host college to make some sort of financial guarantee to the NCAA. 

I guess revenue is what DIII sports is all about....       (Sorry SNCOLDAD, it had to be done.)

[mc31]

Im sure the school would agree to the revenue idea, because fencing is almost out of the question... It would be a shame to not play the game after all the renevations made this past summer...

what does everyone think about ripon and snc... I think ripon has a good chance... it all depends on how snc stops the option... and if ripon can pass when they need to like last week...

[gbpuckfan]

I know it's not what Monmouth would want, but is there another facility in town (ir a high school field) that would meet all of the NCAA requirements? Or, and I know this will go over poorly, isn't Knox relatively close?

My point being: if your facility is deemed "inadequate" by the NCAA (whether you like it or not), isn't hosting at an alternate site better than no hosting at all? Still more convenient for your fans, less travel, etc...

And, my original point had more to do with the MWC reputation and lack of playoff success than Monmouth's facility. In all of SNC's 10-or-so bids, I think there have been 2 home playoff games. Until the conference - SNC especially, but everyone including apparently Monmouth this year - does better in the playoffs, it will be hard to earn the respect and noterity needed to help earn more home games.

[fightintitan2006]

GB,

I beleieve other programs have hosted home playoff games at other stadiums before, but I am not 100% sure on that...I'm sure Pat knows.

I think Knox is almost completely hill seating and no actual seats, so I'm not sure the NCAA would like that much better. Its probably been 10 years since I was there, so it could have changed.

In the end, if the brackets fall the way of an 8-2 west coast team matching up against Monmouth, I think they would send them fence or fence, rather than change the seedings or make MC travel.