FB: Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference

[SaintsFAN]

no way....35-14 is too big of a spread for this one.  Its going to come down to field position and kicking games (both punting and FG). 

I think MSJ by 2.

[dc_has_been]

I know DC's past few games haven't been against dominant teams, but their all around game is getting better & better each week.  Now the true factor will be how well will DC play against a good team.  Will those weeks of beating up on Anderson & Hanover payoff or will they lose focus thinking they are too good? 
If DC brings their A game & gives MSJ the respect they deserve then DC should control the game.  If DC comes in cocky & thinking they will walk all over MSJ, then it could be a long day.  Hopefully Taylor has them focused & prepared to head back to Defiance w/ a W.

[victorybell_57]

is this dillon guy like the differance maker in the hcac this year or something. i haven't heard anything about him.

obviously, i was joking. yeah, and if msj is to win they'll have to shut that mamma jamma down.

playoffs? we talking about playoffs? yeah, and i think whatever seed the grizzlies get, they will be very pleased with. hey, once you are in, anything can happen. i still think msj would have gone far if their offense could have scored in a few games. just mo, don't hate on me yet sayer. i just know how dominant that defense was, and well, a few more points always helps.

[GrizzlyBall]

lets go griz

[JacketsFan]

Most Unknown, I appreciate that you appreciate my fervor - although it sputtered for awhile - for my team. But, Luke Dillon is just one of the the many nice toys Santa left under the tree this year. Last week, Hanover ganged up on Dillon above and below. Whenever you take away a free safety to help double cover a wideout, you weaken your secondary. The price for doing that is having a run game turned loose on you. DC has two extremely good running backs in Lewis Caralla and David Thornton. Add Scooter Curtis to the mix and suddenly DC has a very deep running game. So Hanover bottled up Dillon last week at the cost of  Caralla running for 198 yards. I think Thornton had about 99 on the ground. But when i say Hanover bottled up Dillon, maybe that's too strong a verb because even being bottled up, he still received for 100 yards. I'll take that.

But that's not all DC's offense has going for it this year. In addition to Dillon at wideout, DC also has two more very capable receivers in Gary Allen and Nate Fitton. This is where things get very dangerous for anyone's defense. If you double up on Dillon, you create a weak link somewhere else. DC's offensive line is very physical and very quick off the ball this year. They're giving Vetter a lot of protection. They're giving him plenty of time for target selection. Gang up on Dillon and Vetter can pass to Allen or Fitton. Blitz Vetter and he's physical and tough enough himself to tuck it and run for five or six yards or a first down. Get too antsy about what Dillon, Allen and Fitton are doing and you've got Thornton, Caralla or Curtis running past you. Key on the running backs and go after Vetter and he can go play action and fling one to Dillon, who can outjump almost anyone. If he catches the ball, he's good for 5-7 yards just from sheer height and momentum.

I think DC finally has a solid, three dimensional offense and I don't believe MSJ's defense is going to be physical and quick enough this year to stop it. DC's offense came out last year and manhandled MSJ. Their own mistakes and miscues cost them the game. But if you go back and look at the stats for that game, it was all DC. No way does MSJ have the caliber defense it's had the past two or three years.  DC's defense is younger and maybe not as formidable as the past couple of seasons, but they're still a force to be reckoned with and they're deeper on D-line this year, which means a constant parade of fresh horses.

As SaintsFAN pointed out, special teams  and field position is going to be big. DC has hard booting and solidly reliable kickers in Alex Bonilla (K) and Tom Foos (P). They will give DC the field position they need to stay in the game. DC is just going to have to fly to the ball on kickoff and level the receiver and not give up valuable yards. I do think they could improve there.

I'm predicting a DC win of 27-17.

Sayer, what's going on with Lovell? He came out of the game against Franklin and didn't play against Manchester from what I hear.

[Adam Sayer]

I didn't even pay attention until I saw the D3football front page, but Illinois Wesleyan, a team who MSJ went on the road and beat 25-15, is 5-2 and tied for first in the CCIW. They still have to beat North Central before they get to Wheaton, but a solid finish by IWU would be big not only for MSJ (if they do go 9-1) but also for the HCAC. Break it down, and the HCAC really has fared well against other conferences. FC loses a tight game to Wabash, MSJ beats, on the road, a contender in the CCIW, Defiance has beat Otterbein who just beat Capital. Maybe the HCAC isn't that bad this year compared to other conferences. Or it's just a little DIII parity Just a thought.

White Out? The PSU Fans must be sniffing White Out if they think they have a chance against the OSU defense.

Bring it in Gill

[Adam Sayer]

Yeah, DC is averaging much on the ground, but 3 their last 4 opponents (Hanover, Anderson, Manchester) technically don't have a defense. They just have players they throw out there to fill spots. MSJ will be the first defensive test they have had. FC did a number on them but other than that game, they have been lights out.

Got no news for ya. Maybe they're keeping him a secret for Saturday. Hopefully he can play. They do have good backups, but Mike does a lot for that offense, not to mention the comfort level of having a 4-year starter in your backfield.

MSJ will hang more than 17 on DC. If DC wants to win, they will have to score 25+ to give them a shot. MSJ's lowest point total this season was against Illinois Wesleyan at 25 and has put up 30+ in 5 of 7 games this year.

MSJ wins 30-21. Joe, I told you to come up this weekend. This game turned out to actually matter a great deal.

[GrizzlyBall]

fact fc did do well against msj. I thought fc could of scored a little more than they did but the offense wasnt clicking in the first half. But again MSJ did have a fumble on the one so who knows both great teams.

[Mr. Ypsi]

Adam,

Glad(?) my IWU Titans could help out MSJ and the HCAC!   But please note that we were picked for 7th in the CCIW.  Our OL consists of 3 sophs and a freshman.  Our qb is a soph who was not the starter at the beginning of the season.  We'd like a rematch, please!  You (and Coe in game one) eliminated us real early from pool C consideration (which was not even a dream at the start of the season anyway), so if we're going to the playoffs we're just gonna have to knock off Wheaton for ya'll!  (Though, actually, that would probably hurt you, since, unless someone else gets to the Thunder too, they'd be a lock to scarf up a pool C bid.)

[victorybell_57]

mr. ypsi is a nice name. i like it.

[Pat Coleman]

You're welcome.

[Mr. Ypsi]

You're welcome.

Nice one, Pat, but I'd bet it went right by 99% of the board!

To explain, 2-3 years ago Pat (sarcastically) referred to the then 'cabonney' as 'Mr. Ypsi'.  When HoF poster sac chimed in that that should be my name (and it, by coincidence, being the first day of the Ypsilanti Heritage Festival), I figured, "Aha - that IS my name!"

[dc_has_been]

Look at that, this board has major history to it!  Look how far this board has gone thus far.  It is awesome considering I'm out in Cali & I get to keep up w/ my school & others in the Midwest.  Go Jackets 

[JacketsFan]

Well holy moley Mr. Y. I've been around the board five years now and I didn't realize you were the poster formerly known as Cabonney. I thought you'd been Mr. Ypsi for at least the last hundred years or so.

Adam, can't disagree with you about the status of the last few teams DC has played. They certainly don't match up to what DC will face at MSJ on Saturday afternoon. That's why I'm calling it a close score but with DC still pulling off the upset.

Eat your heart out, fellas. My boys and I loaded a bushel of fresh local oysters and a few pounds of shrimp right off the boat onto the grill Saturday afternoon and listened to the DC/Hanover game. Kind of like a tailgate party without the tailgate. You'll love this. Later that night, we all went to the county fair. The guys razzed me all afternoon about kicking my ass on the strong man game this year. You know, the one where you sling the sledgehammer and ring the bell. Now, the truth of the matter is, I wasn't looking forward to getting humiliated by a former college defensive lineman who was benching around 500 pounds, nor his construction worker/electrician brother who's been surfing circles around me since I taught him how as a pup. But I've never been able to say no to a challenge.

So there we were, standing in front of the carney and his game. A crowd gathers as the large and beefy Richard wields the mallet like a maniac. Three and out. No bell. Then comes Trey, the older brother, pounding that peg like his life depended on it. Three and out. No bell. By now, the carney is talking some serious smack and the boys are joining in. And old man near me says come on pop, don't let us other geezers down. So I turned to Mrs. JacketsFan, tipped her and wink and yelled, "Remember the stud you married? He's baaaaacckkk!" And then to my boys, "Here's to all the old man jokes, you assholes." And then I brought that sledgehammer up from the bowels of hell and planted it right on the devil's doorstep. Ka-Bam! Dinggggggg! A reverent "Ooooooh" went up from the crowd as I turned to my two hugely humiliated offspring and reminded them that I might be getting a bit long in the tooth, but I brung 'em into this world and as long as there's still blood in my veins, I can still take 'em out.

Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose. Never misunderestimate the elderly. Yeah, baby!

[70_dc_alum]

DC vs MSJ comes down to 1 stat DC rushing vs MSJ rushing.  if DC has success running the ball they will score a bunch becuase it will open up dillon more than he does for himself.  the DC defense has to slow down the MSJ running attack or DC will have to put up 40.

in the recent past MSJ has killed DC becuase the fast start.  DC cant do some dumb things and get behind early MSJ knows how to put a team away when they do this.