118th Monon Bell Classic

[Breckenridgebear]

Just back to my "cave" after a great weekend. Congrats Caveboyzzz, you played a great game and deserve the win. Enjoy it.

As for the weekend, what a great time. Enjoyed seeing all the Depauw alum, fans, and parents who make it out each year.

Hopefully Depauw can look around and fix what is broken. I think they know the problem, they just need to follow through and make things right. 

[Pat Coleman]

"The play is under review..."
"The review is inconclusive. The stream would not stop buffering..."

We have a winner. This is why no replay D-III wide.

[Ryan Tipps]

This is an amazing picture from the gallery of today's game posted on the Wabash website sums up my feelings of the Man you have raised BD84....

Magic!   (click on the pic and enlarge and check out the ball of magic that appears on his hands as he is taking it into the endzone)  priceless photo.... perfect for the office, den,  man cave....... Wabash trophy case!  Bravo!

WAF!

That's me standing on the sideline by the 10-yard-line marker with the green pants and camera.

I posted my photo of the play in this Facebook gallery (you don't need a Facebook account to open the link). Enjoy! And congrats to the Wabash players and coaches!

[BashDad]

I think they know the problem, they just need to follow through and make things right.

If this points toward the headset, I couldn't agree more. The single most embarrassing thing, from my perspective, was the  absence of ANYTHING creative coming from the Depauw sidelines. You all just lined up and played ball as if the talk all week was that your best was good enough to win.

That's stubborn, man. That's stubborn and stupid. You put a great deal of responsibility on your green QB, you tried ONE miserable reverse-pass, you changed nothing, adapted zero, and kicked to Chamblee. If you're kicking to #84, it better be a part of an entire WE'RE GOING FOR BROKE identity. Not just because. Not just because, Depauw! Not just because!!! What, exactly, was the game plan? What was the identity? What were you guys doing?

Here's the problem in the most basic language possible: The Tigers showed nothing on Saturday that Wabash hadn't prepared for. Nothing. Are you kidding?! THAT's the advantage you had, Robby Long! You could be completely off-the-wall! You had NOTHING TO LOSE, remember? ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN! Monon Bell, you idiots! Do something! Diverge from the 500 plays of 4-4 football that Wabash has on tape, morons. Run option the whole game. Put in a bunch-receiver set. Go crazy and turn it into a circus of trick-plays. What, pray tell me, was the risk? Embarrassment? HELLO. Welcome to the monday-after, losers.

So ****ing boring. So mediocre. So non-chalant. Guess what, Robby Long? No more showing up your team with that exasperated bowed head of yours. You know the one. It's the one where you throw your chin into your chest and mutter about how they're not doing what you told them. What you told them was stupid, Robby Long. What you told them was the problem. May they all collectively stand in today's team meeting, while you're talking, and sigh deeply toward their bellies.

I don't know what you guys do from here. You make another head coaching change? I dunno. I'd feel good about that only if it was a part of a larger enthusiasm from the community-at-large to enhance the program at every level. The recruiting pitch now becomes about joining a program that's rebuilding to greatness. That's where you are. You've got to be dedicated to that. And THAT necessitates acknowledging the limitations of the current program. You guys didn't do that the several weeks we've been bickering on here. Time to own up, fellas. You're at risk of losing the war. No-one wants that. Not even me.

Fight back, sissies.

[bashbrother]

Right on 3

http://youtu.be/gBzJGckMYO4

[wally_wabash]

Alright, some game thoughts now.  I still need to review the game that I have recorded at home, so I'm sure there's more I'll notice later.  From my vantage point on Saturday...

- DePauw's offense was absolutely as advertised.  That is not a compliment.   I knew going in that that unit was deficient.  What I wasn't quite prepared for was that they would take it a step further and be blatantly detrimental.  Wabash didn't need to complete passes or make first downs because, frankly, it was going to be easier to sit back and let DPU's offense self destruct and make a catastrophic error.  Whether it was completing passes to Wabash DBs, quarterback fumbling, or being forced to punt to Chamblee, something was always going to happen to hurt DePauw as long as they had the ball.  I'm not saying all of this to pile on, I'm saying it because that's what I saw.  That was as empty an offense as I've seen in a long time...and there have been some bad offenses that I've seen in league play over the years. 

- Some credit was earned by the DPU defense.  One year after getting postively trampled, I think that unit acquitted themselves pretty well on Saturday.  With all of the turnovers and defensive scores and the punt return, it was kind of a quirky game for the Wabash offense to try and establish some rythym.  Maybe they could have been better if they had those extra 4-5 posessions lost to the defense and special teams being greedy (not complaining), but honestly I'm not sure they would have been.  Our pal Wes was on the money in here when he said that defense could hold it's own this year.  It did just that. 

- Some history was made on Saturday...more than some really.  The 24 first quarter points was the most by any team in the first quarter in the series.  Wabash's 92 points in the last two games is the most by one team in consecutive games in the history of the series.  Wabash's 92-7 advantage in the last two games is the biggest two-game margin in the history of the series since Wabash won 47-0 and 41-0 in 1952 and 1953.  All of these things are bad for DePauw.  Maybe we could have called last year's result a one-off fluky kind of thing.  But you just got historically undressed two years in a row.  This isn't a fluke.  Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, and it means your program is way behind that of your rival. 

I was extremely stoked when DePauw finally made their way to the NCAC.  Trading Earlham for DePauw is a major, major improvement for the league and we need it in a bad way.  Unfortunately, right now I feel like we aren't getting quite the upgrade I had expected.  I expected DePauw to come in and immediately be a team that challenges for league championships...instead of one epic NCAC game every year, now we'll get three monster games that will determine a champion between Wabash, Witt, and DePauw.  I've got to put that expectation on hold though, because DePauw, as currently constructed, can be competitive with the squishy Denison/Wooster/Allegheny center of the league, but will be getting their teeth kicked in by Wabash and Witt for a while, unless something changes quickly.  Really need you guys to step your game up. 

[Danny Boy]

Well, it didn't rain and DPU didn't lose 47-0.  That's about all the silver lining I can find.  Wabash won this game in this 1st qtr and there was no competition.  Well done, wallies.

There is a "list" of problems from Saturday's abortion, but two problems keep jogging through my head.  1) 92-7 is completely unacceptable.  Losing consecutive Bells is common (3 in a row now) but 92-7 over the past 2 games is a loud statistic.  Not only did DPU lose but they were absolutely destroyed.  Clearly outmatched.  Not even close.  Big problem.  2) Bear and I watched our players as they walked to Blackstock (yes, it's still sacred despite the crime that just occured) and those guys are small.  I have never seen a college football team with such undersized players.  So WTF has happened to recruiting?  Why are we asking golfers to play for the Tigers?  Even worse, these guys did not look ready to eat a still-beating heart.  They looked like they were walking to a final and just remembered they forgot to study.  I say that falls on the coach. 

Actually agree with bashdad for probably the first time ever.  A coaching change isn't ideal but DPU must stop the bleeding.  Get it over with b/c Long clearly can't handle this job. 

[DPUIrish1]

I honestly, am not sure where to begin.  For the first time, maybe EVER, we ALL agree.  While blowouts in the Monon Bell Game do happen, and are enjoyable to either side that wins, they don't happen often.  One of the several things that have made this rivalry so great is the fact that it's 56-53-9, DeBash....and that's as one sided as it's been for a long time.  The competitiveness of the game is usually fantastic, but what we've seen the last 2 years is down right disgusting. 

DePauw looked lost - and as Danny Boy said it - looked more like they were headed to a final than playing desperate, like it'd be the last time they'd ever put on a uniform.  It's clear, today, that DePauw is overmatched - in most phases.  But, coaching is where we're getting destroyed.  Why do we have only 5 coaches on our entire staff??  DeBash has 9, which is much more accurate to what a good team needs.  The last time I had 5 coaches on a staff, I was 9 playing Pop Warner. 

92-7 is not just a number.  It's reality - and I truly believe that people are taking notice, not just on DeBash's campus.  IF in fact, DePauw feels the need to make another change, I want them to find someone similar with Raeburn's credentials.  Big time success at a program like Mt. Union, committed to turning another school into the next big thing at the D III LEVEL!!  I used to believe that our coach needed DePauw ties, and with Walker we had that.  But, I'm ready to take a swing somewhere else if that's what it takes to getting this thing back to where it should be.  21-17, 27-24, etc.  We can all agree on that.

[sigma one]

We should check to be certain, but the DePauw football site shows eight faces on the coaching staff.  How many of those are "full time" is a question to be answered.  I know that of the nine Wabash coaches only four are "full time" employees in the Athletic Department:  Raeburn, Hammer, Hoeg, and Rogers. The others include three intern assistant coaches, who are hired on short-term appointments and who devote a significant portion their time to football (don't know what fraction) during the academic year, and two others:  one who works elsewhere at the college, and another who is part time for the season only.  All full-time Wabash coaches (football and in other sports) also have other assignments--intramurals, wellness, etc., which they are expected to take seriously.   Many DIII programs follow the Wabash model.  I do not know if DePauw's staff is arranged in a similar manner.

[wabndy]

"DeBash"? Really.  Game's over boys. Never really found that much of a put down or a derogatory name.  Not very funny either,  but hey, whatever.

The two most important games Wabash has played in the last decade were the losses in 2002 and 2007 to the "purple powers" as pat likes to call them.  The hiring of Raeburn was an unmistakeable signal that Wabash wants to contend for a national championship.  (I got the feeling during that search that Wabash would have hired Kehres's groundskeeper if they thought it would help). Actually playing the purple powers deep in the playoffs allowed the administration to see how far the program needed to improve to at least get to a level where they'd have a shot, without sacrificing academic integrity. Hiring a UMU favorite son, major athletic facilities upgrades(during a recession!), even serving as the training base for USA Football are all clear signs that Wabash has been in upgrade mode.

That being said. I'm confident that DePauw will adjust and we will have competitive bell games soon enough.  When Wabash and DePauw left the ICAC/HCAC, both quickly realized that their new conferences were a class above. DePauw knew it had to learn how to beat Trinity. Wabash had to figure out Wittenberg. DePauw has too proud a football tradition to not be competitive within the conference and with Wabash.  Somebody in Greencastle needs to figure out quick if Long is the coach that can do that.

[sigma one]

I left out one detail, and maybe an important one.  Wabash does not teach physical education classes, or whatever is the designation for those classes used at other schools.  Wabash does not offer a major or minor in any physical-education-related area.  I seem to recall that at least some of the DePauw coaches also teach, and that, of course, takes energy and time.  Occasionally, a Wabash full-time coach will "teach" an independent "coaching" study in his area--football, basketball, wrestling, etc. if there is student interest These independent studies do not count as credit toward graduation for the students who enroll in them. One conclusion here is that both the Wabash and DePauw coaches probably do not devote 100% of their time to football, though, of course, it is naive to think that football (and other) coaches are not primarily devoted to their sport both emotionally and in terms of how they spend their time.

[Breckenridgebear]

"DeBash"? Really.  Game's over boys. Never really found that much of a put down or a derogatory name.  Not very funny either,  but hey, whatever.

The game might be over, and yes we know that Dabash won.

The fact of the matter is we will always hate Dabash.

[wally_wabash]

"DeBash"? Really.  Game's over boys. Never really found that much of a put down or a derogatory name.  Not very funny either,  but hey, whatever.

The game might be over, and yes we know that Dabash won.

The fact of the matter is we will always hate Dabash.

How did it feel, Bear?  How did it feel to sit there for the second year in a row and watch Wabash stomp a mudhole in that cold, lifeless thing you call DePauw football?  How did it feel to watch your boys get embarrassed on a national stage for another four quarters?  And because, as of right now, there is no good reason to believe otherwise (anything can happen..derp!), how's it going to feel when Wabash kicks your teeth in again next year? 

[Breckenridgebear]

"DeBash"? Really.  Game's over boys. Never really found that much of a put down or a derogatory name.  Not very funny either,  but hey, whatever.

The game might be over, and yes we know that Dabash won.

The fact of the matter is we will always hate Dabash.

How did it feel, Bear?  How did it feel to sit there for the second year in a row and watch Wabash stomp a mudhole in that cold, lifeless thing you call DePauw football?  How did it feel to watch your boys get embarrassed on a national stage for another four quarters?  And because, as of right now, there is no good reason to believe otherwise (anything can happen..derp!), how's it going to feel when Wabash kicks your teeth in again next year?

It sucked. I felt bad for the players, their families, the team, and the University. Like anyone else on the Depauw sideline and watching across the nation, I feel there is a lot that needs to be done to fix what is broken.

But at the same time, Dewally-Dabash, I won my four bells. I never lost to you low-lifes. I can keep my head up knowing that no matter how bad the current Depauw team gets beat, the guys I played with never lost to you boyzzz. Can you say the same? 

[wally_wabash]

But at the same time, Dewally-Dabash, I won my four bells. I never lost to you low-lifes. I can keep my head up knowing that no matter how bad the current Depauw team gets beat, the guys I played with never lost to you boyzzz. Can you say the same?

So it's all about you and what you did?  118 years of this game and the only thing you really care about is you.  Good to know.  I'm glad we're finally getting to the bottom of what you're all about.  You don't get what this rivalry is about.  Not even close.