FB: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

[CMURyan]

Already posted this on the UAA page, but I'll post it here as well:

I just finished setting up the field with the baseball team.  Field looks great and it's a beautiful day ~45 degrees.  Weather shouldn't be a factor.  Coaches tell me that Mike DuBose was impressed with the field and thinks the campus is nice.  Welcome KMack and let's go Tartans!!

[consultant]

CMU appears to be the better football team today.  CMU up 14-0 over the Majors after 3 quarters of play.

[consultant]

Many congratulations to Carnegie Mellon!  Best of luck next week!  Millsaps never got it going offensively thanks to 4 turnovers (maybe 5 depending on how the last Millsaps' fumble was ruled...not sure whether it was recovered by CMU or whether it was recovered by Millsaps and turned over on downs.) 

Good defense and solid offense by CMU. 

Congratulations to Millsaps for an amazing season!  There is a bright future in store for the Majors!

[scaccommish]

Carnegie Mellon 21, Millsaps 0

Game Box:
http://www.scac-online.org/football/MCNCAA1.HTM

[Ron Boerger]

Congrats to CMU and its fans!  Good luck against Wesley next week!

And congrats to the Majors!  Looking forward to another exciting year in the SCAC in '07!  Do come and play again, Coach DuBose!

[Ron Boerger]

Oops ...   

Who wins?\

Undefeated Carnegie-Mellon "runs" away with it -5 (18.5%)
Millsaps "picks" up where they left off last week -20 (74.1%)
Too close to call -1 (3.7%)
The weather forecasters   -1 (3.7%)
   
Total Voters: 27

[frank_ezelle]

CMU turned the table on Millsaps and won the turnover stat for a convincing win Saturday.  Millsaps had done the same to several SCAC opponents over the course of the season.  Those who listened to the game know that Millsaps stopped the CMU running game early on and then CMU either made adjustments or the Millsaps defense wore down.  My guess is a little of both.  The turnovers by Millsaps certainly kept the Millsaps defense on the field too much as CMU led in time of possession by about 2 to 1.

With this game over, it is easier to be a little more realistic about the last part of the season.  The offense was not the same in the last 4 games of the season.  They looked great against DePauw with lots of yardage, long drives, and everything seemed to be clicking.  At Sewanee the offense put up the yards and the points (4 TDs by offense, 1 TD by defense) but it was a  big play offense with no long drives that resulted in points.  Millsaps got up 28-0 in the first quarter and sputtered home for a 35-18 win. 

At Rhodes it was 1 TD by the offense in a 5 play drive made up primarily of 1 long pass and the other TD was scored by the defense.  Against Trinity Millsaps scored 5 TDs.  Two came on punt returns by the special teams, one was a long interception return, one was a one play drive set up by an interception, and one was a solid 10-play scoring drive.  And finally, there was no scoring against CMU.

Obviously the injuries to Tyson Roy and Nick Namias made a difference.  I also wonder if the team didn't just wear down some at the end because of some lack of depth.  Coach DuBose talked before and after the CMU game about Millsaps needing to build a football program that is good year after year like the baseball team.  A program like that creates depth and I think that was lacking this year, something that started showing up as the season wore on.

But, far from being negative about the last game, it was obviously a great season for the Millsaps team and they laid a strong foundation for building a football program.  They were helped this season by having their key conference games at home and they'll have to prove that they can win those same games on the road next year if they want to retain their crown.  They'll need to be a better team next year if they want to repeat and they seem like the type of guys who will rise up to that challenge.  It was a great season, a lot of fun to be around the program, and now it is on to basketball.

[BDTartan]

From my point of view at the game and being a CMU fan I thought Millsaps gave a great effort and played like they deserved to be there.  0-0 at halftime.  I thought we were in store for a thriller.  Which brings us back to Frank's point about depth at Millsaps.  They had excellent skills players who gave our skills players all they wanted, but I started to notice during the 3rd quarter that the line play is what would turn the tide.  CMU rotates a fair amount on both lines and I saw both of Millsaps lines with their hands on their hips about midway through the 3rd quarter.  That's when I knew if CMU's D could hold off the pass attack then the run game would eventually break Millsaps D line down.

Frank, there was little or no adjustments as far as what plays CMU ran, but perhaps they changed up a few blocking schemes.  Also, CMU's RB's just seemed to get stronger as the game went on.  That may be a case of Millsaps D being on the field for the better half of the game.

[Ralph Turner]

+1 BD, cogent observation.

I thought that Millsaps would have the skill people and team speed.

[scaccommish]

SUWANEE, Ga. – The 2006 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference football season will go down in history as the year that Millsaps College stepped up and ended one the more remarkable streaks in all of Division III.

In a battle of undefeated conference teams, Millsaps defeated Trinity University, 34-12, in the regular season finale for both teams to claim its first outright league title since 1991 and snap the Tigers' 13-year string of SCAC football championships.

That achievement did not go unrewarded as, in exclusive voting by the head coaches of the SCAC, Juan Joseph of Millsaps was selected the league's Offensive Player-of-the-Year and his teammate Chris Jackson was named the Special Teams Player-of-the-Year. Millsaps' head coach Mike Dubose was voted the league's Coach-of-the-Year.

In the same balloting, Dustin Hertel of DePauw University was voted the Defensive Player-of-the-Year.

For the complete release:
http://www.scac-online.org

[exmajor]

I'll add my congrats to the Majors for a fine season.  It has been exciting to watch and I am already looking forward to next season.  Also, congrats to the guys on the all-scac teams, a big accomplishment!

[HunterT]

Congrats to Millsaps on the All-SCAC awards. They deserve them.

Any big controversies in the voting? I can't really see any, especially in the big 4 awards. I think they turned out just the way most people expected.

[evacuee]

Now that the SCAC junkies can look to next year, there's no time like the present to make a prediction:

I predict that one year from today, the South's number one seed will be steam rolling toward a showdown with Mt. Union, with all of Sherman Texas in its wake.  That's right, boys.  Austin College is the new challenger.  Here are a few reasons why:

1.  Look out, Juan Joseph.  Kent Bell is due for a breakout season.  I've never seen a quarterback with more sticktoitiveness or escapability.  Zaq Momot averaged more than 20 yards per catch last season.  'Nuf said.

2.  With the conference trying to figure out a way to stop Ryan Cowley, I think Ross Hasten has the speed to become the dark kangaroo in the conference.  He also has a motor that never shuts off, even if he's carrying a joey in his pouch (metaphor for ball).

3.  Scooter Means is as good a linebacker as there is among those without scholarships.  With Rob Schroeder pushing him for playing time, you know that Scooter's going to have to be at the top of his game all year. 

4.  The little things.  The kangaroos only allowed one fumble to returned against them for a touchdown last year and allowed less than 17 yards per game on punt returns. 

5.  Home field.  Anyone who's taken a bite out of Apple Field knows what I'm talking about.  Just imagine if they had any fans how loud and intmidating it will be.  I would automatically give them five wins. 

After going out on such a positive against Centre, I don't see how anything can stop their momentum.  It scares me to think about how good they can be.  If they can get over the hump in Danville this year, I think they could win out.  Next year is the time, and Sherman is the place.



3. 

[Bill McCabe]

WHAT? 

[exmajor]

I am a little perplexed too Bill, a Trinity guy saying that is strange?