TOP 25

[Ralph Turner]

(Now that I am at home and can do the research...)

Bobo's assessment is borne out by these indexes that I have followed in the ASC Pick'ems contest for 9 years.

I have checked the indexes for the current status of the "WIAC bottom feeders".

Lazindex  (showing numerical rankings):

#5 Central IIAC
#22 Coe IIAC
#55 UWEC
#66 UWP
#67 Wartburg IIAC
#72 UWRF
#83 Luther IIAC
#88 Buena Vista IIAC

http://www.lazindex.com/

Bornpowerindex  (showing index rating):  

Central 47.4
Coe   40.3
Wartburg  36.8
UWP  35.5
UWRF  33.2
UWEC  31.6
Loras  27.0
Luther 24.8


http://www.bornpowerindex.com/

And, for you fans of Massey Ratings...

Central IIAC  #336
Coe IIAC  #413
UWEC      #496
UWP        #551
UWRF      #572
Wartburg  IIAC  #595

http://www.mratings.com/rate.php?lg=cf

[DutchHawk]

True we did play Lakeland, sometimes its just hard to schedule. So what is more impressive, SJU beating two bottom feeder WIAC teams (as the standings are now) or Central beating the defending WIAC co-champs and currently tied for 1st place WIAC team.

IMO they kind of even out...the WIAC "bottom feeder" teams (River Falls and Eau Claire) you speak of are not as bad as you think and would be highly competitive with the top 1/2 of the IIAC and prossibly beat many.  And if it wasn't for Stevens Point blowing an 11 point lead, on Central's field, in the last 5 minutes of their first game of the year (Central's 2nd), Central loses big at home and they wouldn't currently be on the same level as SJU, Linfield and UWW (the other defending WIAC Co-Champ  ) in the west region - so in my view, it's a draw. 

UWW at UWSP this week may help to bring the situation into better focus.

Seriously, you think one week goes from a win by Central to a big loss to UWSP? I like your posts but your drinking a bit to much of the WIAC kool aid there. Im not saying Central would guarantee win, but it would be a close game again

[BoBo]

True we did play Lakeland, sometimes its just hard to schedule. So what is more impressive, SJU beating two bottom feeder WIAC teams (as the standings are now) or Central beating the defending WIAC co-champs and currently tied for 1st place WIAC team.

IMO they kind of even out...the WIAC "bottom feeder" teams (River Falls and Eau Claire) you speak of are not as bad as you think and would be highly competitive with the top 1/2 of the IIAC and prossibly beat many.  And if it wasn't for Stevens Point blowing an 11 point lead, on Central's field, in the last 5 minutes of their first game of the year (Central's 2nd), Central loses big at home and they wouldn't currently be on the same level as SJU, Linfield and UWW (the other defending WIAC Co-Champ   ) in the west region - so in my view, it's a draw.  

UWW at UWSP this week may help to bring the situation into better focus.

Seriously, you think one week goes from a win by Central to a big loss to UWSP? I like your posts but your drinking a bit to much of the WIAC kool aid there. Im not saying Central would guarantee win, but it would be a close game again

Call me stupid, but that sentence doesn't make much sense to me.  
Anyway, I was just responding to your question regarding what is more impressive.  I thought they were pretty much even. You don't agree; fair enough.  I've read multiple posts in the past few days, in many different places where you are basically pleading for people to believe in Central or wondering why they would leave Central out of the discussion for potential #1 seed in the west. And I'm the one drinking the kool-aid  .  I don't mean this in a patronizing way, but why do you think Central isn't get the attention you think it deserves?

[DutchHawk]

They are getting all the attention they need, if they do happen to stumble in the next couple weeks well then you can call me out and I will have my foot planted firmly in my mouth.

Was it UWSP blowing a lead or Central outplaying them in the last quarter or 2, depends on your perspective I suppose. We can both drink our perferred kool aid for the time being.

Not necessarily trying to plead my case for a one seed or anything like that, just stating how I see things as well. Not saying either of our opinions are correct but it does all get to be sorted out on the field eventually.

[HSC85]

Three of the top 11 teams have lost so far today.

[redswarm81]

Three of the top 11 teams have lost so far today.

Joined by two more in the top 21.

No. 7 Otterbein's loss might be explained (NOT excused) by their looking ahead a week.

No. 9 North Cenral lost to a clearly underrated Illinois Wesleyan.

No. 11 W&J (an enigma all season long) lost to an undefeated Thomas More, a team that might legitimately claim it deserved to be ranked higher than No. 20.

No. 13 Mississippi's loss to Howard Payne (wasn't he a lieutenant on Hill Street Blues?) is inexplicable.

No. 21 Occidental lost to a clearly underrated Cal Lutheran.

So there will be some shaking going on.

Here's what I still don't understand: St. John's is at No. 4, and Wheaton is at No. 14 (only a week after being at No. 3).  Beth El lost by 2 at St. John's and by 3 to Wheaton, both losses on the last play of their respective games.  Yet there are 4 two-loss teams getting more votes than Bethel.  Next week's St. Thomas at Bethel game could/should be a good one, with lots of Top 25 shakeability.

[retagent]

Just for giggles and grins - Back in the "Dark Ages", some committee of some kind "picked" 4 teams that went to the playoffs. If you had to pick four teams today, Who would you pick? Then compare to the Regional Rankings. One would assume if they correctly assessed which were the best four teams in the country, four of the eight teams that were rated the top two in each region would be in the mix.

[HScoach]

No. 7 Otterbein's loss might be explained (NOT excused) by their looking ahead a week.

They also lost their starting QB (which was already the back-up after Rafferty got hurt in week 2) in the first quarter against Marietta.  Playing with your 3rd string QB on the road isn't easy.  Even against a crap team like Etta.

[Ralph Turner]

No. 7 Otterbein's loss might be explained (NOT excused) by their looking ahead a week.

They also lost their starting QB (which was already the back-up after Rafferty got hurt in week 2) in the first quarter against Marietta.  Playing with your 3rd string QB on the road isn't easy.  Even against a crap team like Etta.

+1!  Thanks for the update !

[SaintsFAN]

No. 11 W&J (an enigma all season long) lost to an undefeated Thomas More, a team that might legitimately claim it deserved to be ranked higher than No. 20.

Agreed... but I think Thomas More has stayed under the radar in 2009 by playing their reserves in the 4th Quarter consistently.  Had they kept their foot on the gas pedal, there would probably have been more awareness of them and the defense before this past Saturday.  They won't claim they should be ranked higher than 20th --- this team doesn't care about rankings... just making some noise in the playoffs.

That said --- I do think W&J deserved to be in the Top 25 ....just not as high.  As things are now (after yesterday's result) some in the W&J program (fans and alums) are really questioning whether the program is what they've been before.  

[Ralph Turner]

No. 11 W&J (an enigma all season long) lost to an undefeated Thomas More, a team that might legitimately claim it deserved to be ranked higher than No. 20.

Agreed... but I think Thomas More has stayed under the radar in 2009 by playing their reserves in the 4th Quarter consistently.  Had they kept their foot on the gas pedal, there would probably have been more awareness of them and the defense before this past Saturday.  They won't claim they should be ranked higher than 20th --- this team doesn't care about rankings... just making some noise in the playoffs.

That said --- I do think W&J deserved to be in the Top 25 ....just not as high.  As things are now (after yesterday's result) some in the W&J program (fans and alums) are really questioning whether the program is what they've been before.  

Respectfully, I think that D3 has changed from the D3 from the eras of the alums.

If they are looking at the W&J's from the 1990's, then that was before the pools.

New D3 conferences include the ASC and NWC. Nearly 20 more teams have added football.  I think that the AQ has brought new focus to winning the conference. 

We have gone from 15 Pool A  conferences in 1999 to 23 in 2009.

http://www.d3football.com/playoffs/99/nov13.htm

Finally, I think that D3football.com has made this whole endeavor better by the exposure that it has given to the athletes.

[PA_wesleyfan]

IMHO It could be time for some teams to start stepping up their non- conference competition. If the only way teams are going to get bids is to win their conference then maybe they should toughen up the non-conference opponents. With the landscape of C bids  possibly changing in 2011 some of the East and South teams are going to have to get some better SOS numbers from outside the conferencs

[Ralph Turner]

IMHO It could be time for some teams to start stepping up their non- conference competition. If the only way teams are going to get bids is to win their conference then maybe they should toughen up the non-conference opponents. With the landscape of C bids  possibly changing in 2011 some of the East and South teams are going to have to get some better SOS numbers from outside the conferencs

But many of the conferences are adding conference games, which takes away a non-conference date that allows you to boost the OWP/OOWP...

NWC -- Pacific has announced 2010 as its resumption date.  GFU is also looking at adding football.  That could make 9 teams in the NWC.

WIAC -- the 8-team WIAC is adding a non-conference intra-conference game.

UMAC -- Presentation and the SLIACer's may give the conference 10 members.

HCAC -- Adding Earlham from the NCAC to make 9 football-playing members.

NCAC -- who knows how they will handle Earlham's departure.  They do have the UAA schools that need games.

E8 -- adding Salisbury and Frostburg to get to 8 teams and to preserve the AQ.

Centennial -- adding Susquehanna from the LL to make a 10-team conference.

SCAC lost Colorado College, but Hendrix is coming on to get back up to 9 teams.

ASC -- Concordia Austin is supposedly adding football in 2011 or 2012 to get to 10 ASC  teams.

ODAC -- adding Shenandoah to get to 8 football members.

Who is still unaffiliated with a conference?  Wesley, Stevenson, Huntingdon, LaGrange, Chapman (who can get games with most of the SCIAC teams) and Macalester. (Finlandia adds football in 2012).

What do you bet the USA South adds Huntingdon and LaGrange to make an 8-team football conference and preserve the AQ?  

[EDIT] -- Hendrix and Concordia-Austin (Texas) have not declared a start date as of today, Feb 7, 2010.

Pacific has finished hiring its coaching staff.  There is no schedule posted yet.

ODAC and Shenandoah discussions are off.

[SaintsFAN]

Ralph, I don't think they are being questioned because of that.. More because they haven't been beaten by the same PAC team in back to back years since Grove City pulled it off before this website existed. 

I still think they make the tournament at 9-1, though

[ADL70]

NCAC -- who knows how they will handle Earlham's departure.  They do have the UAA schools that need games.

For 2010 adding a non-conference intra-conference game (a few schools already had one, so they will now have two.  Each NCAC team is playing two UAA teams.  For 2011 TBA

http://www.northcoast.org/pdffiles/schedules/10NCAC-UAA100209.pdf