FB: Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference

[D3_DPUFan]

That's not fair to the kids.  Find a 10th game.  Step out of your division.  Step out of D-3 if you have to.  Give the kids 10 games.  Period.  They give it their all during the year, they deserve it.

AGREE!

[DPU3619]

I don't disagree with you Tex, but I'm going to provide two counterpoints.

1)  There are some winnable games in Week #1, but if you're going to go get a game, you better be absolutely certain you can win it.  I understand the fan's perspective, but for a coaching staff, roster, and student body that wants the playoffs more than anything, you better get to 9-1 if you play Game #10.  This 9 game schedule CAN go 8-1 or 9-0 as it is.  Don't cost yourself the playoffs by making it tougher than it has to be. 

On that list that Ralph posted above, I think that only Husson and Lewis & Clark are DEFINITELY winnable games.  I'd be real nervous with Alfred or Delware Valley on the schedule.  Wisconsin-Stout came to Greencastle a couple years ago, and they were in an entirely different league than DPU.  Those are some real cornfed boys up there.  Stout isn't even as good as Eau Claire, either.

Is Senior DePauw Football Player X unhappy he only gets to put that uniform on 9 times instead of 10? Yeah.  Would he be more excited to have a better chance to put that jersey on for a 10th game in the Division III Football Championships than to put it on in the guaranteed 10th game for an ass-kicking by a WIAC school in Week 1?  I'd say that's a definite yes.  I don't think DePauw can find a winnable game that's nearby, which is an excellent segue to point #2.

2)  If you come to grips with point #1, how in the heck are you going to get to Oregon for Lewis & Clark or Maine for Husson?  I guarantee you that DePauw isn't going to put another flight on the books.  I can almost certainly guarantee you that they aren't going to split the cost for either of those teams to come to Indiana, either.  They've already marked the Colorado flight for football off as a expense they can cut.  They'd rather live with the 9 games as a cost cutting measure.

[Gray Fox]

That's not fair to the kids.  Find a 10th game.  Step out of your division.  Step out of D-3 if you have to.  Give the kids 10 games.  Period.  They give it their all during the year, they deserve it.

All the SCIAC teams and many in the NWC play only nine games.  There is probably a budget consideration  going on here as well.

[Hawks88]

For what it's worth, a trophy game between Huntingdon and Birmingham-Southern. The Wesley Cup.

http://www.huntingdon.edu/athletics/athletics_news/july_09/7_1_09_fb


Go Hawks!!

[wally_wabash]

Come on, admit it.  You're just ducking Mount Union.   

Is Senior DePauw Football Player X unhappy he only gets to put that uniform on 9 times instead of 10? Yeah.  Would he be more excited to have a better chance to put that jersey on for a 10th game in the Division III Football Championships than to put it on in the guaranteed 10th game for an ass-kicking by a WIAC school in Week 1? 

QFT.  If DPU wants a 10th game that bad, I think they should go ahead and win that league and play #10 on 11/21.  There's really not a good reason why they shouldn't be able to do that.  Juan-less Millsaps at home...Trinity at home with two weeks to prep.  This is as good a look at the SCAC AQ that DePauw is going to get. 

There just aren't good D-III options out there for a 10th game for DePauw.  I know the open dates site says Eau Claire is open, but their schedule shows a game scheduled vs. Bethel (Tenn.) on 9/5 so I'm not even sure that they are really available. 

[D3_DPUFan]

I don't disagree with you Tex, but I'm going to provide two counterpoints.

1)  There are some winnable games in Week #1, but if you're going to go get a game, you better be absolutely certain you can win it.  I understand the fan's perspective, but for a coaching staff, roster, and student body that wants the playoffs more than anything, you better get to 9-1 if you play Game #10.  This 9 game schedule CAN go 8-1 or 9-0 as it is.  Don't cost yourself the playoffs by making it tougher than it has to be.  

On that list that Ralph posted above, I think that only Husson and Lewis & Clark are DEFINITELY winnable games.  I'd be real nervous with Alfred or Delware Valley on the schedule.  Wisconsin-Stout came to Greencastle a couple years ago, and they were in an entirely different league than DPU.  Those are some real cornfed boys up there.  Stout isn't even as good as Eau Claire, either.

Is Senior DePauw Football Player X unhappy he only gets to put that uniform on 9 times instead of 10? Yeah.  Would he be more excited to have a better chance to put that jersey on for a 10th game in the Division III Football Championships than to put it on in the guaranteed 10th game for an ass-kicking by a WIAC school in Week 1?  I'd say that's a definite yes.  I don't think DePauw can find a winnable game that's nearby, which is an excellent segue to point #2.

2)  If you come to grips with point #1, how in the heck are you going to get to Oregon for Lewis & Clark or Maine for Husson?  I guarantee you that DePauw isn't going to put another flight on the books.  I can almost certainly guarantee you that they aren't going to split the cost for either of those teams to come to Indiana, either.  They've already marked the Colorado flight for football off as a expense they can cut.  They'd rather live with the 9 games as a cost cutting measure.

As always, good points, Wes. And while you (and others) are correct in the need to be strategic about scheduling a "winnable" game, at some point you have to understand why these kids play the game...to compete.

I don't think there are that many "guaranteed" winnable games out there (unless you play in the NCAC...sorry, couldn't resist); finding a game against a competitive team, not  a WIAC team, but a team with a pulse, will only make you a better team (assuming that game is out there). Playing 9 games is not just shortchanging seniors, I think it shortchanges underclassmen and the overall program as well. Players (and coaches) work very, very hard to play in a finite number of games...I, too, hope MORE games are in offing in the post season...but think the school should do everything it can (and I think they are) to find a 10th regular season game...

[D3_DPUFan]

I know DePauw continues to search multiple options and this is probably one of many they are /have looked into...but, what about this scenario:

Greenville College in Illinois has an open date 9/26 (DPU scheduled to play at Sewanee that day)...Sewanee and DPU share Sept. 5 open date.

Move DPU-Sewanee game to 9/5 and DPU plays Greenville 9/26...

Know nothing about Greenville, but looks as though they played Wash U. (L) and Rose-Hulman (W) last season...

[DPU3619]

As always, good points, Wes. And while you (and others) are correct in the need to be strategic about scheduling a "winnable" game, at some point you have to understand why these kids play the game...to compete.

I agree with you. I understand the obligation, but the thing to remember is that this football program went down this exact road not all that long ago.  Inviting Wesley to Blackstock Stadium in 2005 cost that team the playoffs.  That agreement wasn't reached until very, very late in the spring.  DePauw went into the Monon Bell Classic knowing they had to win to get in, and they couldn't do it.  Leaving Week #1 open would have put that group in that year.  Yeah, I know they didn't play Trinity and etc, but that Wesley loss was a back-breaker.

If there's one thing I know about Matt Walker, he's not going to let that happen again.  He's going to give his team the best chance to win.  If he & Page Cotton can't find somebody they want to play and is willing to work out the details, they just won't do it.

[D3_DPUFan]

If there's one thing I know about Matt Walker, he's not going to let that happen again.  He's going to give his team the best chance to win.  If he & Page Cotton can't find somebody they want to play and is willing to work out the details, they just won't do it.

What do you think of the Greenville/Sewanee scenario I presented?

[DPU3619]

I think it's an ideal situation, but it'll only go far if Greenville wants to do it, too.

[D3_DPUFan]

I think it's an ideal situation, but it'll only go far if Greenville wants to do it, too.

True. Whatever happens, I know there's some excitement about the upcoming campaign. 

[Ron Boerger]

According to a post on the ASC board, DPU is ranked 19, Trinity 20 in the USA Today pre-season D3 poll.

[rooski]

A couple of notes from Kangaroo land:

The grapevine reveals "talk" of a possible replacement for the Colorado College game. Not in a position myself to give specifics but wish Jekelish or someone close to the program could update...

Also, with the arrival of the new AC president Dr. Marjorie Hass I thought it would be interesting to look into the state of the football program at her most recent stop - Muhlenberg College in PA. The football program there has been at least a recent DIII success. {I'm sure that if this is relevant some of our posting partners can expand on their football past or present.} While this certainly does not tell us anything about her posture regarding athletic programs and budgets, we can know she has at least seen the impact a successful football program can have on a DIII campus.

An excerpt from the Muhlenburg football website says the following about the 2008 season: "Muhlenburg won its second consecutive Centennial Conference championship, swept the CC postseason awards and climbed to unprecedented heights in the national poll."
"Muhlenberg ended it's season with a 20-0 loss to Wesley in the first round of the NCAA Tournament".

I hope that this somehow translates into good fortune for Austin College and the SCAC in the near and long term.

[D3_DPUFan]

rooski...
any idea who the possible replacement is?

[rooski]

That's not fair to the kids.  Find a 10th game.  Step out of your division.  Step out of D-3 if you have to.  Give the kids 10 games.  Period.  They give it their all during the year, they deserve it.

Yes but I feel I would do better to wait for an official announcement or at least until it is more solid than it is at this point. However, it would be fair to say that facing this opponent would fall into the scenerio Tex put out there earlier this month.