FB: Old Dominion Athletic Conference

[HSCTiger fan]

I must have confused another Tiger. There are so any of you Tigers. . If you do not get it;  I quoted the or answered the wrong Tiger

sorry

Get well and have a Merry Christmas!

[odacsuperfan]

Can someone give me an explanation why UWW and MT Union dominate D3 football ? It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that there has to be some sort of advantage for these 2 schools ? They cannot just dominate every single year because of coaching ? How are  they able to do this legally every single year ? I would have to believe if D1 or other scholarship schools were this dominant there would be serious investigations ? Someone explain this dominance please !

[HSCTiger fan]

Can someone give me an explanation why UWW and MT Union dominate D3 football ? It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that there has to be some sort of advantage for these 2 schools ? They cannot just dominate every single year because of coaching ? How are  they able to do this legally every single year ? I would have to believe if D1 or other scholarship schools were this dominant there would be serious investigations ? Someone explain this dominance please !

UWW is a public school in Wisconsin.  It does not cost a lot to go there.  Additionally there's only 1 D1 school in the state.  Meaning that if you want to play college football near home and in state you have to get a scholarship to UW or play D3 football.   

None of this however explains the monumental success Mount Union has year in and year out.  As MU is a private school in a state that has several D1 programs as well as surrounding states that have several nearby by D1 programs. 

A side note - MU certainly did not look like MU of old the last 3 games - giving up 151 points.  Maybe the tides are turning for them.  UWW however returns most of their team next year. 

I'm sure you will hear from a few UWW and MU folks that say "they just work harder".  Maybe so.

[HSCTiger74]

Can someone give me an explanation why UWW and MT Union dominate D3 football ? It doesn't take a rocket scientist to understand that there has to be some sort of advantage for these 2 schools ? They cannot just dominate every single year because of coaching ? How are  they able to do this legally every single year ? I would have to believe if D1 or other scholarship schools were this dominant there would be serious investigations ? Someone explain this dominance please !

UWW is a public school in Wisconsin.  It does not cost a lot to go there.  Additionally there's only 1 D1 school in the state.  Meaning that if you want to play college football near home and in state you have to get a scholarship to UW or play D3 football.   

None of this however explains the monumental success Mount Union has year in and year out.  As MU is a private school in a state that has several D1 programs as well as surrounding states that have several nearby by D1 programs. 

A side note - MU certainly did not look like MU of old the last 3 games - giving up 151 points.  Maybe the tides are turning for them.  UWW however returns most of their team next year. 

I'm sure you will hear from a few UWW and MU folks that say "they just work harder".  Maybe so.

   Adding to what HSCTigerfan wrote about UWW, the school is within easy driving distance of Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago, the last of which is important because the school has the ability to offer Illinois residents in-state tuition rates, adding a huge population to their recruiting base. (This applies to any applicant, not just athletes, and I believe other universities in the UW system have similar agreements with nearby states such as Iowa and Minnesota.)
   As for Mt. Union, while they can't match the in-state tuition deal, I believe they have very generous financial aid packages available (again, for all students not just athletes). They are also within easy travel distance of most of Ohio, much of western Pennsylvania, and even a good portion of western New York, all important HS football areas. And they have even been making great recruiting inroads over the last decade or so in Florida and Georgia, due to a loyal and active alumni base (many of them HS coaches) which is quick to note and recommend potential recruits. Finally, and this is a discussion which was addressed on the E8 board recently, you can't discount the attraction to HS kids that comes with playing for a national championship on an almost annual basis. No other program can tell a recruit that no senior football player since 1992 has graduated without at least one championship ring. 

[jknezek]

And don't forget the coaches. I know you mentioned it, but it can't be discounted. UMU wasn't much of a power until Coach Larry Kehres arrived. We will see if Coach Vince Kehres can keep it rolling. UWW is a different story. Coach Berezowitz was there for a long time and UWW really only got rolling at this level in his last couple years. Coach Leipold has kept it rolling at a crazy pace, but he took over a team that went 14-1 the previous two seasons ('05 and '06). Coach Berezowitz had a much more up and down record until his last 2 years, including a 1-3 playoff record prior to '05. Although it should be noted that he went 158-73-4, which can only be considered "up and down" in the context of Whitewater's more recent form.

I'll simply agree with those before me and in previous comments I've made (and yes, you can find this same question asked and answered dozens of ways in threads throughout the forum). Winning breeds winning, so long as coaches, admin staff, and facilities can support it. UMU and UWW seem to have a ridiculous amount of institutional support for the football teams, beautiful facilities, amazing coaches, winning traditions, and that helps them get outstanding players.

I will say that I find UMU to be the interesting case. It is well known between the "varsity" team and the various JV teams, UMU has about 200 football players on campus in any year. In context of their 2115 student enrollment, that is incredibly significant. It also doesn't happen without significant administrative support and assistance (all within NCAA rules). But you have to make that commitment and it has certainly benefited UMU, whose size and reputation has grown (according to things like US News etc.) over the years the football team has been dominant.

So if I was going to put it in a pot and try to come up with a way to build a championship contender I would start with the administration. They have to buy in that the money for financial aid, academic standards, player assistance, recruiting and facilities has to be available year in and year out. Then I would look for the coach. It takes a great coach to recruit, train, motivate, and strategize, as well as put together a staff that can do the same. If you get those pieces in place, the wins will come. To get over that final hump, well, you need a little luck as well (UMHB falling on the wrong side of the bracket the last two years was unlucky!)...

For a school like W&L I don't see how it is worth doing all these things. It simply costs too much for the benefit implied. But for UMHB, which was a women's college and needed a new reputation, or UMU which was one of dozens of similar type regional schools in the Ohio area, or UWW which will make multiples of tuition on out of state students attracted to the program, football investments can pay off in a big way.

Facts courtesy of D3football.com, UWW's athletic website, and UMU's athletic website

[CNU85]

E&H coach is from CNU's back yard here on the Peninsula. I wonder how it will impact recruiting.

http://articles.dailypress.com/2013-12-20/sports/dp-spt-curt-newsome-1221-20131220_1_head-football-coach-emory-and-henry-curt-newsome

He coached in the Peninsula District for 12 years. Some would say he was in the shadows of powerhouses like Phoebus and Hampton. He was named Coach of the Year for the entire state back in the late 90's (I believe). I think he coached Darryl Blackstock for a year at Heritage HS in Newport News. He was also at JMU when they won a National Championship. He is a winner that's for sure. E&H grabbed an awesome coach!

[jknezek]

I have a friend who is fairly close to the Va Tech program. His take on E&H's new coach is he is a very good and seasoned recruiter and he further expects Va Tech will allow (support?) E&H in trying to cherry pick unwanted or unneeded players (all within the rules he was careful to say, but contacts between coaching staffs this way is somewhat common once a player has a scholarship non-renewed, or is told as a walk-on a scholarship is not coming, or once a student displays a desire to transfer for playing time. It is part of helping find a student athlete a more appropriate situation).

He was also pretty clear that Coach Newsome had some coaching responsibilities reassigned after the last year or two and it was not a surprise he was looking to leave, nor something that Va Tech was going to be overly upset about. Again, that is fairly common with mid-tier coaches when a program like Va Tech has an off year like they had in 2012, if the whole staff doesn't go the mid-tier guys tend to be shuffled or encouraged to find a new situation to show that they are shaking things up. He certainly has some good bona fides and time will tell how he will do at his alma mater. Like most coaching hires, he looks like a very strong hire.

[Scots13]

Scots13, I just don't see it happening. Doesn't seem like a good fit to me. I've been wrong before though, so we'll see.

I wouldn't disagree with you on that. I met Coach Grande on his interview at Maryville and really don't know how to explain the presence he had about him. He seems to me like there's only a few schools that would be a good-to-great fit for him. (Not knocking on him, just the sense I got in half an hour.)

The Averett situation might not be a good fit for him, because let's face it, it's Averett and Danville. AU needs to get in gear and finish the revamp process for football they're in the middle of.



JK,
The first thing I thought of in regards to Newsome's hire was whether or not he'll "cherry pick" off of Tech. Might happen, might not. But if a guy was decent enough to get a walk on spot at Tech, I'd be more than happy to fill him in with all things Emory & Henry, if I were in Newsome's shoes.

[abnrgr]

They are GOODbecause the coaches have access to what is known as "Tiberius's minnows". If you read Matthew Dennison's "the 12 Caesars",  a take on Seutonius's the 12 Caesars. That is not very scientific but if you know anything about Tiberius then you will find this humorous.
JKnezek usually has more profound explanations and Narch does his homework also. Years ago you would have had at least 10 answers to your question but the more hypocritically pious BC Eagles are nowhere to be found. Most of the people on this board have graduated, or the people they know graduate,, become alcoholics like sKoal brother and myself. Or they grow up and get jobs. Myself being retired medically from the ranks of airborne infantry I just hang out to get attention.  The serious side my son graduated in 2004 so I have no contact with GC-Q. at the bottom line is I used to coach high school and NAIA, I played in the 70s so this is my connection to football and of course the very real possibility of being publicly excoriated for making a mistake about any fact . And the final reason is I get a free meal at the caf at Guilford College when I say I know a guy who has a Chevy nova. / I'd ask Coleman.

[tigerfanalso]

HSC finishes 18th in the country with 3 players named to the AA team, two juniors. Hopefully next year will be even better.
Now onto the recruiting battles.

[Scots13]

Looks likes Averett is trading HSC for W&L next year to open the season in Danville.

I wish more schools would post next year's schedule sooner...(talking to you Maryville...)

[jknezek]

Ugh. I hope that is not true. Trading F&M for Averett does not make me happy at all.

[HSCTiger fan]

HSC is not playing them. Non conference next year at Wabash, CNU and Coast Guard.

[wesleydad]

Merry Christmas to all the ODAC fans.  A good showing by HSU shows the league can compete at the higher level.  I am sure I will be in your territory at some point next year.  I always make at least 1 trip to Bridgewater, maybe will make another one to some other venue.

[hasanova]

I know it was an inadvertent error, but HSU's in Texas, HSC's in VA.  Hope everyone had a great Christmas!