FB: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

[D3MAFAN]

Good post, jknezek.  I agree that teams at their zenith sometimes regress toward the mean. 

Out of curiosity, I looked at the history of the other 7 teams that made the Quarterfinals in 2001, the year that Bridgewater barely lost the national championship to Mount Union, and discovered that Bridgewater hasn't done as well since 2006 as most of the other teams:

Mount Union - Was often a losing team from the end of World War II until the early 80s.  Coach Kehres arrived in 1986 and the Purple Raiders haven't lost more than 1 game in a season for 18 years straight, with 11 DIII national championships.

Rowan - have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 9 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  However, they haven't made the Playoffs since 2006.

St. John's - have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 9 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  Made the playoffs almost every year through 2009, but not since then.  Currently ranked #25 in the country.

Wittenberg - have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 9 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  Made the playoffs in 3 of the last 4 years.  Currently ranked #18 in the country.

Widener - up and down, but have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 6 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  Made the playoffs 5 of 11 years, including the last two years. 

Ithaca - won 2/3rds of their games in the next 8 years, with 5 playoff appearances, but down a bit in 2010, 2011, and 2012.  Currently 5-1 and getting some Top 25 votes.

Pacific Lutheran - up and down, but have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 8 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  Haven't made the playoffs since 2001.

Bridgewater - have won at least 2/3rds of their games in 9 of the 12 seasons since 2001.  Made the playoffs 4 straight years after their 2001 national championship game appearance, but haven't been to the NCAAS since 2005.

Rowan made the playoffs last year and lost by 8 to Salisbury in the First Round.

[tigerfanalso]

Looks like HSC has the toughest ODAC schedule to finish the season; @ GC, vs. W&L, @RMC.
GC plays RMC & HSC @ home the next two weekends. I would think the Quakers have the upper hand at this point getting those two games at home. Hasa must be very excited.     

[abnrgr]

You guys talk about winning and losing numbers over the years and the info is impressive. I have noticed something also since 2002-03. or when ever I entered the fray sometime ago because my boy was a starter at GC-Q but stayed on because of Iron Mike Ketchum (coach GC-Q).

My observation is:

There has been a slow drop off in smack talk. A drop off in condescending slurs or arrogance towards all othewr teams in the ODAC  Now it is almost non existent. (except when I poke at people to wind them up)  I suggest that the smack talk coincided with the down turn of fortunes for BC and HSC.

I think HASA has been around that long and of course as Cicero would suggest; as the "Sword of Damocles" of this crew: Pat Coleman. They would know or be reflective enough to say either way

"Do you know why they call him Buffalo Bill Clarice?"

[hasanova]

Looks like HSC has the toughest ODAC schedule to finish the season; @ GC, vs. W&L, @RMC.
GC plays RMC & HSC @ home the next two weekends. I would think the Quakers have the upper hand at this point getting those two games at home. Hasa must be very excited.   

Hey, tfa.  It is exciting for me and all Quaker football fans.  Let's face it, at this point in the season, Guilford's historically been "out of it", but the Quakers have been in the chase now late in the season two straight years.  I did notice that GC had 3 out of 4 at home, including both RMC and HSC and the Tigers had both GC and RMC on the road.  The Tigers have had our number for a long time, so I'm definintely approaching the end of the season with "guarded" optimism.  This week, however, is all about RMC ... one game at a time! 

[hasanova]

You guys talk about winning and losing numbers over the years and the info is impressive. I have noticed something also since 2002-03. or when ever I entered the fray sometime ago because my boy was a starter at GC-Q but stayed on because of Iron Mike Ketchum (coach GC-Q).

My observation is:

There has been a slow drop off in smack talk. A drop off in condescending slurs or arrogance towards all othewr teams in the ODAC  Now it is almost non existent. (except when I poke at people to wind them up)  I suggest that the smack talk coincided with the down turn of fortunes for BC and HSC.

I think HASA has been around that long and of course as Cicero would suggest; as the "Sword of Damocles" of this crew: Pat Coleman. They would know or be reflective enough to say either way

"Do you know why they call him Buffalo Bill Clarice?"

I will admit the BC crew has dropped off considerably and, when it comes to "smack" talk, I saw from afar what happened last year (68-24) when someone tried to stir up some with HSC.  If you haven't beaten someone since 1999, perhaps it's best to stay off their radar (and bulletin board) until the clock says 00:00 and the scoreboard says your team has more points.  And I did learn that from surviving many decades of football. 

[jknezek]

I'm sort of a johnny come lately to the board, about 3 years or so now, so I was curious about the early years. I went back and skimmed the first 100 or 200 pages in the spring and was amazed. The board tenor has changed quite a bit. I have to admit, if it was as contentious and as obnoxious as it used to be, I probably wouldn't stick around. Some of the other boards are like that and it just doesn't interest me much.

That being said, every now and then it is fun to see a good zinger...

[tigerfanalso]

Hasa

Remember, I'm wishing you good luck until then, not then. I'm impressed with GC and how they have turned around the program in such a short amount of time. Going into the last week in October and GC is tied at 3-0 with RMC and HSC having to travel to GC back to back weeks. Enjoy !!!

[hasanova]

I'm sort of a johnny come lately to the board, about 3 years or so now, so I was curious about the early years. I went back and skimmed the first 100 or 200 pages in the spring and was amazed. The board tenor has changed quite a bit. I have to admit, if it was as contentious and as obnoxious as it used to be, I probably wouldn't stick around. Some of the other boards are like that and it just doesn't interest me much.

That being said, every now and then it is fun to see a good zinger...

I was born in Virginia and went to public school in Patrick County until age 15.  I went three years of high school in NC, got my BS in NC and then my MBA in SC.  I have lived my adult working life in NC.  So, with that chronology (and geography) in place, I think I have earned the right to repeat the following statement purported made by former NC governor (and Vance County, NC namesake) Zebulon Baird Vance:  North Carolina is "a vale of humility between two mountains of conceit."  It's tough being the only (ok, I know about Catholic) non-Virginia member of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, but civility is definitely better than it used to be.  lol

[hasanova]

Hasa

Remember, I'm wishing you good luck until then, not then. I'm impressed with GC and how they have turned around the program in such a short amount of time. Going into the last week in October and GC is tied at 3-0 with RMC and HSC having to travel to GC back to back weeks. Enjoy !!!

Coach Rusiewicz and his staff were the right men at the right time.

[HSCTiger fan]

I often thought this is the nicest football message board in the world. I'm more smart ass than most. Between JK, Hasa, and TFA it's like contest as to who can give the most respect to the other.  I say it's a 3 way tie! 

[jknezek]

I often thought this is the nicest football message board in the world. I'm more smart ass than most. Between JK, Hasa, and TFA it's like contest as to who can give the most respect to the other.  I say it's a 3 way tie!

I'll hit up a team that isn't playing well, but I try not to do it in a way that calls them out. For example, the stats I posted about Shenandoah's first year in the ODAC (not going much better in the second by the way) were pretty bad. But there isn't a reason to pile on the bad facts with insults. The facts spoke for themselves. The post about Bridgewater a few days ago was the same way in that I tried to show the team not as the dominant force that people with DIII exposure in the early naughts expect, but more as a very mediocre program that had a few dynamite years.

And sometimes, like everyone else, I just get it wrong. I haven't been a big proponent of Guilford this year, regularly picking against them and being wrong, but I respect the wins they keep getting. How can you not? I also try not to justify the fact that I was wrong by diminishing their wins. They keep winning, so it must be my perception that's the problem, not whatever justification I keep coming up with to pick against the Quakers.

In other words, there are ways to be hard on a program, right or wrong, without being a jack@ss... that's the route I try to take when I have an unpleasant point to make. And sometimes I get that wrong as well. For example, during the H-SC / CNU game this year I said something unflattering and even used a players name. After thinking about it, and realizing that it was simply wrong for me to call out a player who is trying his best to win a game and playing for the sole purpose of enjoying the game, I edited the post to remove a comment that shouldn't have been posted.

One of the things this board does real well is keep in mind that these kids aren't playing for anything other than to play. Our entertainment is a byproduct, and if we don't find something entertaining, or we only find it entertaining because a team or player is failing at the job, that says more about us than it does about them...

[HSCTiger fan]

I think you guys are great. No disrespect for any of you. I love reading the opinions that are expressed. It's my daily fix for information related to ODAC football. I can tell by my 16 up and 15 down in the karma ratings that I'm a little less politically correct. That's fine by me. I don't even know how to give or take away karma points. If I did I give all of you a 1000 +.

[jknezek]

I think you guys are great. No disrespect for any of you. I love reading the opinions that are expressed. It's my daily fix for information related to ODAC football. I can tell by my 16 up and 15 down in the karma ratings that I'm a little less politically correct. That's fine by me. I don't even know how to give or take away karma points. If I did I give all of you a 1000 +.

You'll get the ability after 100 posts. It doesn't really measure anything, but it can be fun now and then.

[badcall!]

In reference to the discussion on the rise and demise of the BC program, I don't think there was any bigger impact than that of then BC vice president Jim Benson.  His years of tenure there coincide with the great rise to the top and then drop-off.  No coincidence either that he was in charge of admissions, financial aid and athletics during those years.  Some more info in the link.

http://mmiarchivist.blogspot.com/2009/05/col-james-benson-ceremony-of-lessons.html

[hasanova]

Hey, I'm not a Quaker by religious training, but the beliefs and habits of the Society of Friends have had an influence on me.  While it's tempting to throw a hand grenade over the wall every once in a while, I'll probably live longer if I just make it water balloons because what goes around comes around.  lol  With that said, I try to be a realist about Guilford football ... being a Quaker football fan is not a role you can take without enduring the down years, but, if you do, it sure makes the up years seem even sweeter.

Quakers will "fight" for a victory, but they will also do it with a sense of humor.  I've paraphrased this before, but I have always admired Earlham College's fight song.  To fully appreciate, you need to know two basic tenets of Quakerism:  1) that everyone has something good (their inner light) if you take the time to look for it and 2) the art of consensus versus majority rule.  Here's a paraphrased version of the Earlham Quaker fight song:

Fight, fight, inner light.
Beat them, beat them,
Beat them senseless
Until we all can reach consensus!