FB: Midwest Conference

hickory_cornhusker · November 29, 2008, 03:29:05 PM

Big 4th down stop by the monmouth d on their own 30. 6 minutes left

hickory_cornhusker · November 29, 2008, 03:36:54 PM

3rd and 6 for the scots inside the knights 20. wartburg is out of timeouts. 1:42 left.

hickory_cornhusker · November 29, 2008, 03:50:57 PM

Wartburg gets a 22 yd TD pass with 7 seconds left. XP gets blocked. Knights win 30-28.

siwash · November 29, 2008, 03:51:24 PM

wow

Scots4 · November 29, 2008, 03:56:29 PM

Absolutely horrific game/clock management by Monmouth. I'm too pissed to say anything intelligent right now. Bye

Wartburg Fan · November 29, 2008, 03:58:04 PM

Monmouth congrats on a great season. You guys have a great football team and the Knights got lucky to pull this one out. But I'm proud of the Evil Empire they never gave up.

02 Warhawk · November 29, 2008, 04:02:44 PM

congrats to Wartburg!!! sounds like it was a good game. Hopefully the 'Hawks can hold on, so everyone can make the trip out to WI next week!

mc31 · November 29, 2008, 04:27:03 PM

Hell of a season SCOTS... dont hang your heads Congrats to wartburg they never gave up...

The Roop · November 29, 2008, 07:19:20 PM

Quote from: hickory_cornhusker on November 29, 2008, 03:36:54 PM
3rd and 6 for the scots inside the knights 20. wartburg is out of timeouts. 1:42 left.

It was 3rd and 1 before the illegal procedure on a PASS play. Run it twice for crying out loud. I was there and still don't know if I believe what I saw.

Other than that it was a nice trip and I enjoyed meeting the Monmouth Faithful. On to basketball now.

wc2viking · November 29, 2008, 07:46:13 PM

I watched the online video. Good work on that, Monmouth. The camera shots were generally good and the video feed was solid. I like having multiple camera angles although I would refrain from the constant camera switching during the actual play. The announcers (students I assume) were professional and made an effort to be unbiased, including criticizing the Monmouth coaching staff's decision-making.

Speaking of making decisions, I really was surprised that MC did Wartburg a HUGE favor by throwing on that the third down late in the game. Running the ball probably would have taken another 40 seconds off the clock and made it that much harder for Wartburg to get the winning score. Although it was hard to tell what defense Monmouth was in for the final drive, it seemed like Wartburg easily found receivers open downfield.

Still, Wartburg stepped up and won the game. Kudos to them. Congrats to the Scots for a great season - the really tough loss shouldn't take that away from them.

mcwaterboy · November 30, 2008, 09:38:09 AM

I'm not gonna sit here and blame the game on coaches or play calling or anything like that. I just wanna say that it was a hell of a season for the Monmouth Fighting Scots. I really hope people around the country give us a little more respect now.

It's been a pleasure to work and be some part of this team. Seniors you will be missed especially #92 Wes Levy. You put your heart and soul into this program and I'm very sorry to see your season end like this. Same with the rest of your seniors.

But don't hang your heads by anymeans. You made history at this school and know that you were one of the best 16 teams in the nation this year and know that you belong in that elite eight!

Scots4 · November 30, 2008, 12:43:10 PM

First off, I have all the respect in the world for Coach Bell and his staff for what he has done to the Monmouth program. However, that play call in the waning minutes was inexcusable. I am a semi-knowledgable football fan without a down of experience to my name and I know that no matter what, you do not throw the football there. If you handoff and run the wrong direction for 10 yards and fall down it is more productive than risking an incompletion. The players were put in terrible spots and the coach made a terrible decision. In turn, the game was handed over like a nice 3-button coat at the Salvation Army. In my years of playing basketball I have never felt as sick to my stomach as I did after that football game yesterday. I saw some of the football players later that night and no idea what to say to them and I couldnt even look at some of them. What do you say to a player that did everything right and then had the game ripped out from under them. You run the football on 3rd and ANYTHING there, let the play clock run down to 1, call a timeout and then do as you feel necessary. Monmouth is not known for their running game, Alex Tanney is their best player, but to not call a run there is a slap in the face to Caleb Pratt and the Monmouth offensive line. That is a common sense call, plain and simple. I am a big fan of Coach Bell and the rest of the Monmouth coaches so I have tried to justify it, but I just cant do it. There is just absolutely no excuse for the atrocious play calling and game management at the end of that game.

Second, how do you not call a timeout before that delay of game penalty? We have three timeouts left.

Now on to the game:

Congrats Wartburg on a very fun game to watch for about 58 minutes. Those were two really good teams going at it on the field. Wartburg tried to establish the pass early and just could not do it against that Monmouth D. Instead, they decided to run the ball and did it very effectively. They maintained a few long drives and put some points on the board. That running back was a ton and I hope his ankle heals up for next weekends game at Whitewater. Kudos to the Wartburg coaching staff for making adjustments at halftime and sending the house on Alex Tanney. He had very little time to throw the ball in the second half and when he did get it off it was a short crossing pattern for minimal games. He had no time to throw the ball down the field and so the safeties could play up. That was a great adjustment.

The Monmouth defense was put in some horrible positions in the second half and came through. That last drive by Wartburg was a great drive and they did everything right. The Monmouth D (at least it seemed) was on the field the WHOLE second half and just couldnt maintain a level of energy. I am tired of seeing the prevent defense as well. Too many times in the NFL, college, and high school I see it just get shredded and it prevents a team from winning. You can not give Yordi that much time to pick apart a defense because he will.

After watching it about 37 times, absolutely horrific call on the Alex Tanney "fumble.". Clearly his arm was moving forward. There is an empty hand rule ref and that was obvious. The Wartburg coach got on the officials in the first half and it seemed that every borderline call went that way the rest of the game. That being said, it had no effect on the outcome of the game so I dont really care about it.

Most of the Wartburg people I met were very nice people and I enjoyed being around them. However, I happened to run into the "few bad apples" that every crowd has. They certainly make the cut for being some of the most arrogant people I have ever met.

Good luck to Wartburg next week when they visit the defending national champions. The Monmouth players played their hearts out and know they had that game wrapped up. Run once and then we come out in the victory formation and battles ova. I am just upset because that Monmouth team was really fun to watch on both sides of the ball. Get this boring basketball stuff out of the way so I can watch again next season.

Walston- Sorry I didnt run into you before or after the game. I was too busy trying to duck and dodge the fascist Monmouth security guards so I could enjoy a Keystone Light. Hope everyone was safe and everything went well.

scottie · November 30, 2008, 01:51:54 PM

That was a mouthful, Scots4, and I've heard many of those points echoed from others.

My "turning point" was the botched snap on the first drive of the second half. The Monmouth offense could not be stopped in the first half, and I think had they continued their momentum right ouf the gate in the second half, they go up 35-14 and I think the game becomes out of reach. Again, the end of the game is now well-documented. Wartburg made a helluva catch at the end of the game and I'm still coming down from my shock.

That said, I think the program will learn from this experience and they bring a lot of weapons back next year.

The Roop: Very nice to meet you. Thanks for making the trip and for defacing a perfectly good Beloit sweatshirt.

The Roop · November 30, 2008, 02:05:13 PM

Masking tape comes off scottie............. Now that it's basketball season I hate Monmouth now. LMAO.

Maverick · November 30, 2008, 06:22:28 PM

Not alot to add onto what's all been said already from here, other than congrats to the Fighting Scots on a great season and take what you've learned this year to make next year even better. Remember what it takes to get to this point and continue to work hard for it in the off-season. I can't wait for next fall to arrive and get the games rolling again.

scottie - I gotta agree with what you said, the botched snap early in the second half hurt and you could definitely feel a momentum shift after that. Was good seeing you at the game this weekend...take care and maybe I'll see you over on the hoops board.

The Roop - Was nice to meet you yesterday and hope you enjoyed the visit to the Maple City. Also, the masking tape "Mt. Monmouth" sweatshirt was great!

coocoo - Your comments and your presence on the MWC board...both are not necessary. Take it on back to the IIAC board.