The Top 10 West Region teams of the D3football.com Era

[Ralph Turner]

Thanks Pat.

So we've got

99 PLU Won it all
00 SJU Lost to Mount in the Stagg
08 UWW Lost to Mount in the Stagg
07 BU Lost to Mount in the Semis
10 BU Lost to Mount in the Semis

Was the 2004 Linfield team Pool B?  YES

Any IIAC, WIAC, NWC schools I'm missing that should be added to this list?

[hazzben]

So we've got the following teams as the Top Non-AQ West Region Teams in the D3football.com era:

04 Linfield Won it all
99 PLU Won it all
00 SJU Lost to Mount in the Stagg
08 UWW Lost to Mount in the Stagg
07 BU Lost to Mount in the Semis
10 BU Lost to Mount in the Semis

Any others that at least made the Semis?

[WarhawkDad]

Wildcat 11 - I am moving that team that just beat LINFIELD and Mount Union on consecutive Saturdays to the top of your list.

What say you?

1. 2004 Linfield (Champs)
2. 2003 SJU (Champs)
3. 1999 PLU (Champs)
4. 2000 SJU (Just a FG away from Champs)
5. 2005 UWW (Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Runner up)
6. 2006 UWW (Great run but felt the '05 team was better)
7. 2005 Linfield (Would have been Stagg Bowl bound if not for UWW)
8. 2002 SJU (Defeated an excellent 'Cat team but fell short to the River Walk QB)
9. 2003 Linfield (Gave the 03 champs their toughest and closest game of the playoffs)
10. 2000 Central  (Great defensive squad and wanted to mix it up a bit)


Goodbye Central.

"That" team was for sure Whitewater's best ever...I guess that's easy to say since it's the first time they went undefeated. 

I think that DOC needs to pull up a new "Best 10".

I cannot  imagine any non-Stagg participants who should be in the West Region Best 10.

This conversation took place in December of 2010 and the new Best 10 never was established, instead the Board took a turn and worked on the top ten non-AQ teams.    I think it is time we picked up the challenge of establishing a new "West Region Best 10"  that considers where the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Warhawks fit.    Any takers?

[D O.C.]

Sure, they came out of too big, too slow to bully every body. Let's re-do the top 10 all time.

[02 Warhawk]

Here's my ballot

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had.
*6. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
7. 2000 SJU - Just a FG away from Champs
8. 2006 UWW - Same team as 2005, but more experienced
9. 2005 UWW - Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Runner up
10. 2005 Linfield - Would have been Stagg Bowl bound if not for UWW

* Stagg Bowl winners

[BoBo]

Here's my ballot

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had.
*6. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
7. 2000 SJU - Just a FG away from Champs
8. 2006 UWW - Same team as 2005, but more experienced
9. 2005 UWW - Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Runner up
10. 2005 Linfield - Would have been Stagg Bowl bound if not for UWW

* Stagg Bowl winners

Where will the 2011 champion fit in?  With three in a row,  hard not to place it somewhere in the top 3, pushing #10 out of the top 10, IMO.

[D O.C.]

That's fair.
I'll have nightmares of AJ's ramble with the tipped pass being the difference in that game, but so be it.

[hazzben]

Here's my ballot

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had.
*6. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
7. 2000 SJU - Just a FG away from Champs
8. 2006 UWW - Same team as 2005, but more experienced
9. 2005 UWW - Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Runner up
10. 2005 Linfield - Would have been Stagg Bowl bound if not for UWW

* Stagg Bowl winners

Where will the 2011 champion fit in?  With three in a row,  hard not to place it somewhere in the top 3, pushing #10 out of the top 10, IMO.

I think I'd put this years UWW team at #5 actually, if we consider this solely on the basis of 1 season.
I'm just not sure they beat anyone as good as Mount was in 2003. That SJU team was loaded on D and had the all-time gamer at QB in Keating. That MUC team was supposed to have been there greatest ever going into the game and no one was even giving SJU a chance. I think that 2003 Mount team beats this years Mount team handily. So I'll give the nod to SJU 03 over UWW '11, but I'd love to actually see the matchup. And with Elliot under center Linfield was nearly unstoppable in 2004...60ish TD's is just ridiculous.

If we take into consideration the 3-peat, I'd put them at #3. It's remarkable what they've done at UWW this decade. The transition to LL has been flawless and he's got a stranglehold on a very fertile DIII recruiting area (Milwaukee/Chicagoland/Madison). They've got to replace #33 next season, but they just reload at so many positions and this continued postseason success means guys who are SR's have as many as 10-20 extra games under the belt if they are 2+yr starters. That's the kind of experience that has made UMU so good for so long. Those extra games and practices deep into December are invaluable. You give great players that kind of seasoning and it's a lethal combo.

[wildcat11]

And with Elliot under center Linfield was nearly unstoppable in 2004...60ish TD's is just ridiculous.

Ridiculous? Yes it was. http://catdomealumni.com/specials/Numbers_Elliott.html

[02 Warhawk]

Here's my ballot

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had.
*6. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
7. 2000 SJU - Just a field goal away in the Stagg Bowl
8. 2006 UWW - Same team as 2005, but more experienced
9. 2005 UWW - Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Runner up
10. 2005 Linfield - Would have been Stagg Bowl bound if not for UWW

* Stagg Bowl winners

Where will the 2011 champion fit in?  With three in a row,  hard not to place it somewhere in the top 3, pushing #10 out of the top 10, IMO.

I think I'd put this years UWW team at #5 actually, if we consider this solely on the basis of 1 season.

I was thinking #6, that 2007 UWW team beat a REALLY good Mount team in the Stagg Bowl.

My updated list:

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had.
*6. 2011 UWW - Easiest playoff road to Salem they had its seven-year run. 
*7. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
8. 2000 SJU - Just a field goal away in the Stagg Bowl
9. 2006 UWW - Same team as 2005, but more experienced
10. 2005 UWW - Beat #1 on the road, Stagg Bowl Runner up

[02 Warhawk]

Revisiting the top 10 list. I believe UST had the defense to compete with the 2005 and 2006 UWW teams. However, I'm not certain the same can be said about UST's offense. UST didn't have the "star power" like the 05 and 06 UWW offense had (Jacobs, Stanley, Beaver).

I would put this UST team just outside the top 10 (at 11th). However, I have a feeling future UST teams will be making the list of the next few seasons. Seems like it's only a matter of time for them.

[02 Warhawk]

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had (to date).
*6. 2011 UWW - Easiest playoff road to Salem they had its seven-year run. 
*7. 2013 UWW - Best Warhawk defensive team ever; Offense played great when it counted.
*8. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
9. 2000 SJU - Just a field goal away in the Stagg Bowl.
10. 2006 UWW - Same runner's up team as 2005, but more experienced.

It was hard ranking the 2013 team so low, considering they had the fifth largest lopsided win in Stagg Bowl history. However, the team had its fair share of struggles through parts of the season though. As good as the defense was, the offense was almost non-existent in parts of some games. 

[emma17]

*1. 2009 UWW - Rush, Pass, Defend, Special Teams....this team was the best.
*2. 2010 UWW - Beat a Gagliardi trophy winner, won at NCC, at Wesley, and UMU
*3. 2004 Linfield - Best DIII QB ever?
*4. 2003 SJU - Was there anything Blake Elliot couldn't do?
*5. 2007 UWW - Gagliardi Trophy winner and best front seven that program ever had (to date).
*6. 2011 UWW - Easiest playoff road to Salem they had its seven-year run. 
*7. 2013 UWW - Best Warhawk defensive team ever; Offense played great when it counted.
*8. 1999 PLU - Won it as a 7th seed!!!
9. 2000 SJU - Just a field goal away in the Stagg Bowl.
10. 2006 UWW - Same runner's up team as 2005, but more experienced.

It was hard ranking the 2013 team so low, considering they had the fifth largest lopsided win in Stagg Bowl history. However, the team had its fair share of struggles through parts of the season though. As good as the defense was, the offense was almost non-existent in parts of some games.

I like the order. 2013 and 2011 are hard for me to rank because of the offensive performances. IMO the offensive game plans played an abnormally large role for both of these seasons. 2011 had less receiver talent but a more experienced O line and Coppage/Blanchard. The Stagg Bowl game plan was as vanilla as it gets though- so it's hard to know if they were capable of more.
2013 has more talent at receiver and probably less at RB as well as an inexperienced O line. Behrendt was solid but not great throughout season. Then the Stagg Bowl happens and it's like the horses were allowed to run. The difference in game plans between UMHB and Mt was mind blowing.
Ultimately I may rank 2013 higher because of an even better defense, more explosive special teams and an offense with more playmakers.

[HScoach]

Not that you guys probably care one bit about my opinion, but I'd rate the 2011 team above 2013 simply because of the quality of the team they beat in the Stagg.   The 2011 Mount team was very limited offensively due to missing their QB, but the rest of that team was head and shoulders above the 2013 version, especially so on defense.   Looking back at the starting lineups between the 2 Mount teams, the only 2013 starters that would have supplanted a 2011 starter would be:
1.  Kevin Burke over Piloto at QB  (HUGE difference)
2.  Sam Gonnel over Carbonell at ILB (slight advantage to Gonnel due to better pass coverage skills)
Even though the 2013 passing game was effective all season and in the Stagg, the receiving corps was simply good.   The 2011 receiving corps was group of juniors that finished as the deepest/best collection of receivers in Mount history, they unfortunately didn't have someone to throw them the ball.

Put Kevin Burke at QB on the 2011 team and Mount rolls to a title.   Put Matt Piloto at QB on the 2013 team and they finish 7-3 overall (7-2 in the OAC) and don't make the playoffs. 

Also have to factor in the 2011 was coached by LK, not VK in his first year.   Another big advantage toward 2011.

Just my 2 cents.   Use or dismiss it as you see fit.

[02 Warhawk]

I just thought the 2011 team was able to take care of their opponents with a little more ease than the 2013 did. Seems like the 2013 overlooked a few games that got them in trouble. I didn't sense that in 2011. Plus the 2011 team beat Nate Wara on the road.

Not sure if there is a right answer, but it makes for a good off season debate.