Keith deals with it in the Game Day blog post and comments, but Justin Beaver’s injury is a big blow for UW-Whitewater. Remember, fellow All-American Steve Angiletta broke his collarbone in a scrimmage in Week 1 and Union hasn’t gotten him back yet.
Can UWW make the playoffs without Beaver? Definitely, though this upcoming week’s game at Platteville has a different tenor to it. The UMHB game was never a gimme and is less of one now. We’ll know a little more next week.
Cortland State is officially the best team I’ve seen this year. (Competition for that “honor” comes from Wilkes, Hobart, Williams and Delaware Valley.) With Alex Smith they should be a Top 10 team, though I only saw him today for a drive and a half. Ray Miles was pretty decent as a replacement.
“We’re not a Top 25 team”
That’s what one Bridgewater fan communicated to me this afternoon. While I think that’s a bit harsh, I’m not surprised about the loss. Unfortunately, Bridgewater was floating upwards in our poll (and higher in the coaches’ poll) because of the attrition around it. Teams do not float on my ballot, at least not much. I feel pretty happy about the 17 that Bridgewater was at on my ballot and they will probably slide in at about 21 on mine this week.
One of the things I like about our poll is that when it’s not broken, our voters don’t fix it. I expect more of the same this week when voters analyze No. 4 Capital winning by a touchdown at No. 17 Ohio Northern. Doesn’t that prove the poll was pretty accurate, at least relative to those two?
Mt. St. Joseph has never been higher than No. 25 in our poll and has a shot at getting there this week. That would be about right after this week.
The sun’ll come out
There are some lingering questions about Rowan and they’ll be in the spotlight tomorrow at noon against Buffalo State. John McGraw will be there to call the game for D3football.com.
There was good news about injured Alfred player Julio Fuentes, as it was reported he has feeling in his legs. Continued best wishes for his recovery. He was injured back in September against Thiel.
Hmm …
Coast Guard won at Bridgewater State which makes the Bears the favorites in the NEFC Bogan. They did not win a game in two years in the Liberty League before moving. Curry remained unbeaten on the other side of that league.
Also …
Olivet wins at Albion to stay unbeaten in the MIAA. … CCIW could be a two-bid league if Augustana and Wheaton win out. … Similarly the SCIAC if Cal Lutheran beats Occidental, though that seems less likely after CLU’s two-OT loss to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. … Hmm, yeah, more St. Norbert dominance. … Some Oshkosh fans were bemoaning the playoff system on the board and in e-mails to us this week. Those arguments just went Splatteville. … Carnegie Mellon still unbeaten. Waiting for the game at Wash U and the finale with Thiel before we know for sure what the Tartans have.
I don’t think anyone would disagree that Averett and CNU are the top to teams in the USAC this year. However I do think the USAC is down this year. Just look at the over-all records. In past years I would have said USAC was the Strongest Conference in Virginia. THe USAC only has two winning teams this year(so far) last year it had 4 respectable teams. This year I feel the ODAC is stronger with teams like W&L battling Bridgewater for the conference title. I just think Averett should have taken the CNU approach and schedule teams that you have a decent chance at winning. Scheduling Wesley was a good call but Mt. Union for two straight years, bad. As for beating Ferrum and Guilford, I think most observers at D3football.com predicted you would. Ferrum is down this year, Guilford is about as fickle as a team can be and Averett has beat only 1 team with a winning record. I take nothing away from the players who lined up against the Mt. Union but no one thought Averett would come remotely close to winning. Averett would have been better facing Bridgewater or another team of that caliber. Just think if Averett would have faced BC this year and won? I just feel coaches should schedule games that their team has at least some chance of winning or being competitive. Its not being scared its being realistic.
Aggiefan,
Not being a smarta$$ but but REF’03 for the What if. The Raider “D” was better and no passing game leaves you home again after RD 1 or 2.
After the loss to ONU if you want to use the old saying “On a mission” I think that would describe the second half of the Raiders season. They went toe to toe with Capital and Capital gave the Raiders one heck of a game (Rocky’s best) but they still did what they had to do to win that game and beyond.
I do agree I was hoping you guys would win so the Raiders had to travel there. It would have been fun. I would have made that trip ’cause it’s closer. You guys let me down. Throw the “HOOVER”- BALL!
All of this testosterone is making me sleepy (or it might be the drugs from my endoscopy and colonoscopy this afternoon!!). It’s time to go to bed dreaming of a Mount Union – Youngstown State matchup in 2009!! And, for you D3Keith, I’m heading down to Tampa with my buddy Jimmy Cramer…..yes, the Mad Money Cramer for the weekend to cheer on our beloved Iggles!!! As we do everywhere we go on the road, win or lose, we will take the town over!!!
Tell Jim, his show is one of my favorites.
D3Keith,
I might have missed a reply to your observation concerning McMurry’s win over Howard Payne, but no doubt the events surrounding the NCAA’s decision on their nickname fired them up!
lg1970, McMurry and Horrid Pain (as my mother and late father called it from the 1930’s) are old, old, old rivals. I am not sure whom McMurry fans would rather beat…Horrid Pain or Hardened Sinners! Hardened Sinners and Horrid Pain are playing their 59th game since 1917. McMurry and HPU have now played 69 games since 1927.
We had a great Homecoming crowd; the McMurry Marching Band sounded good and loud; and we had great weather to play on our new-style turf surface. We had lost a real heartbreaker at Homecoming last year to HPU. (The loss of Austin College to the SCAC changed the schedules.) The team captain told the Homecoming crowd at Coronation the night before that he wanted to beat HPU before he graduated.
They made good on their desire!
Duke,
I just figured out what finadv stands for. You need to holler at me … and no, not like your boy.
No shock he’s a birds fan though. I knew I liked that guy, I just thought it was because of the upfront and borderline psycho manner in which he talks to people.
Give ’em hell in Tampa. We still owe them for ’02. If you see a Jurevicius jersey, you have my permission to say what you must to the poor fella.
As far as scheduling Mount Union … if you want to be the best, you should play them. It shows the Cougars how far they need to go to win in the playoffs, and yet losing doesn’t/didn’t hurt their chances one bit.
aggiefan,
you make a great point. Rarely has Mount Union had to go on the road in the playoffs, and almost never in the early rounds. Last year was a rare opportunity since they had a regular season loss.
Now sometimes home field doesn’t mean much, but for a team used to turf going to play in slop or vice versa, that can be a big factor, as can extensive travel for teams not used to travelling, etc.
Generally speaking though, I tend to believe what goes on inside the white lines is all that matters. I never once remember being in a game and going “Jeez, we’re never gonna stop these guys. We’re on the road!”
RaiderGuy – You’ld of loved that trip to Doylestown. Missed a chance to see a great D3 quarterback in Adam Knoblauch who pulled out a few football miracles over his career and we had a good “bad field” home field advantage (ask Rowan or St. John Fisher or anyone else who played there). Like I said … What if … But I’ll concentrate on this years team. Hopefully the growing pains of breaking in a new QB are behind us. Young Mike Isgro is maturing before our eyes, getting better every week. Dare I say, ever reminding me of Knoblauch with a couple of comeback wins under his belt, a good arm and some good long runs from scrimmage the past 2 weeks. We’ve a ways to go this year and may need a break or 2 since the OT loss at Wilkes in week 2, but don’t count us out yet. The beauty of the sport is you play the games you’re given, hope the winds at your back, and you’re still standing at the end of the year (for most of us D3 schools). If that road leads us to Mt. Union, I may be hiding my eyes from under my seat, but I’ll be there routing on my team cause you never know… by the way, what’s a “HOOVER” BALL???
Keith – Thankfully, DelVal has new turf this year. It was practically embarrassing how bad or beat up that field was really from the first game of the ’04 season (after the remnants of a hurricane against Juniata, it got destroyed) till the end of last year … indeed a secret homefield advantage!!! Hey, if that’s what it would take, I’ld take it cause after all, we had to play on it too-
Why all the worrying about Mount playing a d1aa or d2 school. Id rather see them play Malone or Walsh maybe build a rivalry up there considering the schools are so close.They give partial scolar ships and are good programs. I think it would be a good idea to scrimmage a d1 team in the pre season.Im sure Big Larry and Jim Tressel know each other.That would be a good learning experiance for Mount.
There are reoccurring problems when discussing Mount Union’s schedule and competition at the DIII level.
1. No one at the DIII level (outside of the OAC) wants to play Mount.
The teams that do rise to the challenge are in Wisconsin, Missouri and Southern Virginia. (All are very long bus rides from Northeast Ohio)
Mount has an extremely difficult time even getting JV games. W&J is reliable… but most teams call and cancel when it’s their turn to visit Alliance. How are we supposed to get Varsity games? We’re lucky we only have to find ONE opponent every two years.
2. People talk about Mount jumping up to D2 or D1AA – But what happens to the rest of the athletics at this college? Though competitive, the other sports are not at the level of the football team and do not excel in OAC/DIII competition. As a whole, Mount Union College is average in athletic competition.
3. Ohio teams like Tiffin (DII), Malone (DII), Walsh (NAIA scholarship)… won’t play Mount. Tiffin played Mount’s JV team in 2002. The Raiders had to travel to Tiffin to get the game and Tiffin didn’t even provide officials. Once Tiffin fell behind… all of a sudden the game needed to be shortened. They don’t see much good from their point of view.
Teams in DII and DIAA competition don’t get much recognition by playing DIII schools. Yes, it would be beneficial for Mount to be challenged in a new sense and I would love the opportunity to watch my school play YSU or a top 25 DII school – but honestly, from their point of view – what good does it bring their program to possibly get beat by a DIII team? – That would be seen as taking a step back for their program. It certainly wouldn’t help recruiting purposes to tell young men that they’re getting beat by a DIII school.
-And power to Averette. Their first year of fielding a program was in 2000 (I believe)… They are an up and coming team. They went 7-3 last year. Their coach is a graduate of Otterbein – who is part of the OAC… Dunleavy understands what it takes. Averette is a program heading in the right direction. The bar has been set and they are reaching for it.
There is a challenge for the rest of the 200 plus DIII schools to rise above mediocrity and except the challenge. Mount Union makes the rest of the DIII competition better. Instead of bashing the Purple Raiders and stating that they should move up and move out; maybe you should be thanking this program for the recognition that they have brought to non-scholarship football – and put pressure on your school to schedule Mount in the future. (If you call, we’ll play…. Problem is, not many call.)
The Mount program is a school of football… Look at all the head coaches across the country that are Mount grads. The rest of DIII is prospering from the hard work Larry Kehres has put in.
Good luck to Averette, the OAC, and the rest of DIII football.
Go RAIDERS
Well said VAraider.
We will see you in Sept. 07 in Alliance. Never been to Ohio and looking forward to it.
Hope you guys have Cracker Barrells up there so I can get some
dumplins and collards. haha
Great post VAraider couldnt agree with you more, but for fun I always use to wonder what it would be like for Mount to scrimmage a DI team see how they match up! like purplephyco said a preseason ohio state match up..crazy
VAraider, I agree with everything you said, but Averett is on the up and coming? Who have they beaten? They most likely will have the same record as last year. Playing Mt. Union during the regular season gives you exposure and thats about it. Averett in my mind is not a playoff team. If any USAC team should have played Mt. Union, CNU was that team. Scheduling Mt. Union almost always gives you an L. Also what good does playing a team like Averett do for Mt. Union? After all the Championship’s I don’t think the coaches, players and fan have forgotten how to drive down to Virginia.
No One in this Blog suggested Mt “move out of D3” – ok?
D3 schools play out of division all the time at the beginning of the year- yet for some reason it’s taboo to suggest Mt Union try it. Have they ever played an out of division game?
Kicker13-
You lost to Mt 64-7 at home – do you expect an improvement on that score next year given the learning experience this year of playing them and Wesley?
RunFerrum,
Averett’s records over the years have been:
2000: 1-9 2003: 5-4
2001: 2-7 2004: 6-4
2002: 2-7 2005: 7-3
And for 2006, Averett will likely be either 7-3 or 8-2. They way that they have improved each year makes me think Averett is the poster child of “up and coming.” Last year and this year have held a few “firsts” for this team, so I believe that strides are being made.
VAraider,
Impressive post. I agree with you all the way.
Averett was referred to an “up and coming team” as opposed to a “cupcake,” which was stated earlier. Averett is not a playoff team – I never suggested that. I was making a suggestion that this team, a relatively new program, AND IS on the rise – essentially heading in the right direction.
RUNferrum, Averett scheduled Mount. not Ferrum – not CNU. Tho, I have heard from dialogue that Coach Kelchner of CNU would like to schedule Mount.
Playing a team like Averett does not do a lot for Mount, other than get a lot of young players game experience which sets up for better future opportunities… If you remember Mount did start a freshman running back in the playoffs… He was slowly given opportunities throughout the season and then excelled when called upon – bringing home #8.
As for Averett playing Mount. It does do good. It sets the bar and it challenges them to rise their level of play.
-pumpkinhead, the notion for Mount to move out of DIII is nothing new to this website – please do not act like it has never been suggested. I was just addressing REOCURRING issues when conversating about Mount football.
Averett has come a long way over the past 6 seasons. It was impressive to see a new program go from 1-9 to 7-3. I am just not ready to jump on the bandwagon. Averett is not like a CNU team when they started their program. Averett is getting better but thats because the program is getting older. Averett will be 7-3 this year and take a step or two back next year. CNU and Bridgewater are the only two teams capable of having a somewhat competitive game with Mt. Union. Just because you play a top notch team does automatically make you better. If the goal was to raise the bar and cofidence what would have been better, Getting completely blown out by the #1 team over the past decade or playing a tight hard fought, with better odds at winning, against a team like bridgewater.
As for Mt. Union, I don’t think they should switch divisions, but as a selfish D3 Football fan, I would love to see them rough up some good Scholarship Programs…Hell even some sorry D1-A school would be nice…Put Duke on the schedule at least then they might have a shot.
HOOVER=DAM or DAMN
Let’s not get crazy here- I doubt very seriously that Mt would beat Duke. Mt scrimmaging Ohio St would be downright comical- maybe if they scrimmaged the freshman team.
VAraider-
You make the statement “Mount Union makes the rest of the DIII competition better.”
How many more championship appearances and victories before the law of diminishing effect kicks in on how Mt Union makes all of D3 football better? In my opinion, I don’t think it’s in D3 athletics best interest to have a dynasty of “this” proportion for too much longer.
Folks- let’s not forget Averett lost 64-7. This was nothing more than a easy warm-up game for Mt. It’s not a stretch to assume Mt will hang 70 on them next year at home. An “up and coming” team in the USAC does not equate to an “up and coming” team on the national stage.
I am a Capital Grad, but grew up near Alliance. My mom was at Mount Union in the late ’60’s, when my dad was playing at Baldwin Wallace. Back then, BW and Wittenberg were THE OAC powerhouses. Mount was TERRIBLE (or so I have been told). People our age (ages 20-45) don’t realize that Mount Union’s success came after many years and many battles within the school. Ken Wable, the coach at MUC before Larry Kehres, had to go to the President of the College and convince him that the term student-athlete wasn’t an oxymoron and that MUC could get quality kids if the school spent a few more dollars on athletics. From that day in the mid 70’s, MUC’s athletics, particularly football, has been on a steady rise. Someone already mentioned the fact that Mount made the playoffs in the 80’s and early 90’s and ran into Auggie and UW-L. They realized what they had to do to get to that level and they did it. Now it is up to someone else to get to their level. I think that a couple of OAC teams, notably ONU and my alma mater Capital, are getting there. We will see if they can sustain it.
That being said, let’s not talk about MUC moving up a division. This has been talked about on Post Patterns for years. If you have ever been to Mount or to Alliance, you would understand why. MUC is a D3 school, plain and simple. It is a small liberal arts school in a small town in Ohio. Let’s not punish the rest of the school because the football team is good.
On the discussion of MUC playing up a division or two, I see no benefit in it. We have also discussed this on Post Patterns extensively. I would love to see them try it, and like many others, I feel like they could hang with or even beat some scholarship schools. Purplephyco mentions NAIA Malone and Walsh, which are both located in Canton, about 20 miles from Mount’s campus. Now that would be interesting, but you are talking about two schools that recruit the same kids from the same area. Can you imagine a school that gives schollies losing to Mount and then trying to convince a kid from the Akron/ Canton/ Cleveland area to come play for them rather than Mount? The same holds true for D2 Ashland, and I might suspect even YSU in a lesser sense. (By the way, I know that LK knows John Heacock, the current YSU coach and Lee Owens, the Ashland coach, both very well). On the Mount Union side, although a win against a bigger school would give them a huge confidence boost, it does little else. The OAC has only ONE out of conference game since it is a 10 team league. WIAC teams, and other schools from conferences with less than 10 teams can schedule a SD St or Williamette because they have dates to fill with other D3 teams which will count towards the playoffs. These is no risk in losing to a bigger school for them, and a win is a huge boost. The risk- reward factor is much different than for Mount because additional games that can’t be scheduled. Think about it this way: MUC loses to YSU and then to Capital, who then loses to ONU. Both Cap and ONU played D3 schools and won in week one. Who goes to the playoffs? My guess would be CAP and ONU, because their records would be 9-1 and MUC’s would be 8-2. Or even more appropriate, what if MUC beat, say, Ashland and then lost to one of the other conference schools who lost to the other. Three 9-1 teams, but the game against a D2 school doesn’t count in the regional rankings, so again, MUC gets left out, maybe. It is all speculative, especailly with the expanded playoffs (I still don’t see a conference, even the OAC, get three in) but I don’t see the benefit.
RunFerrum & pumkinhead – It is obvious because of your loyalties that you for whatever reason hate Averett and nothing anyone can say or do will change that thought process.
One question – if it had been Ferrum or CNU that scheduled Mr. Union and got their butts beat like we did (and I truely believe they would) would you be making excuses, telling everone how stupid an idea it was for your coach to play them, or would you try to find the positive in it and go forward.
Every team in the USA South has had their butts kicked, and in some cases by schools in the same conference. What difference does it make whether you lose 64-7 at the hands of Mr. Union or Methodist. When you lose, you don’t act like some of the D1 schools in Va. and whine about it all week, you learn from the experience and admit that the other team was better and go on about your business.
I don’t hear anyone from Duke, Northeastern or Kent, complaining about having to play Virginia Tech or Rice and Duke having to play Florida State. Crap, Virginia Tech plays the sofest schedule in the country and knows it and still struts around with their chest poked out when they whip up on these little schools and wants everyone to think they are great and mighty. (I didn’t observe that at the end of the Mt. Union game. They were very gracious winners and showed great sportsmanship).
We (Monday Morning QB’s or wannna be’s) don’t know what really takes place in a locker room or practice field after you get your tail whipped unless you have been there. I can tell you this, my son is on that Averett team and he told me that the attitudes on the team improved 120% after those first two games. no one got frustrated, no one quit and no one on the team, Alumni or Averett Staff asked any coach for their key to the locker room back. Everyting was positive and now they feel like they can tango with anyone because they have been on the field and stayed there for 60 minutes with the BEST.
pumkinhead – you ask what Averett will do next year in Alliance…That’s more than a Goose knows and his neck is longer than mine, but I will tell you this…Averett will show up and do the very best that they can. Mike Dunlevy will have them prepared and they won’t be calling up the day before and whinning and not show up. As far as the outcome, we will just have to wait and see. It could be worse or it may be better than this year. But in any case, I and the other parents and Alumni will continue to support the team and coaches. I will also be willing to bet you a coke that win or lose next year, it will make them even stronger in mind, spirit and heart, than they are today.
Enough said, lets go on to other topics.
Im glad you see what Im saying JK. Walsh or Malone would be a good first game and the distance between the schools could creat a sort of rivalry. Mount doesnt need to play d1 or d2 teams we do just fine here in D3. As far as scrimmaging the buckeyes itd be good publicity for d3. So we get beat maybe really bad but the players would probably like the chance to play against a team like that when it doesnt count for anything except for the experiance and parctice. Why not. But lets put the outta division talk to bed Mount is here to stay and dominate. Lets get ready for BW.
pumkinhead- I agree with you that Mt. Union makes the rest of DIII better, does not carry a lot of weight. If anything Mt. Union should have sent their JV team to Danville and let their Varsity squad have the week off. I know teams try to avoid Mt. Union and Averett had a lot of guts to schedule them, but again I just think Averett has hardly anything to gain from playing a simply better team in all facets of the game. Besides an easy win that allows all the freshmen and sophs to get major amounts of playing time, it does not make sense for Mt. Union to travel 500+ miles for a game. As for the Risk-Reward factor, schools should not worry or depend on getting a bid. They should worry about winning the conference. Its the only way to insure yourself a playoff spot. I doubt Mt. Union goes into each year thinking, “I hope we get a bid this year”. If a team does not win their conference then they have only themselves to blame for not making the playoffs. The great thing about D3 is a team,(ie Wesley) could possibly be 4-6 if not worse going into the playoffs and still win the National Championship. Unlikely but possible.
Kicker13- I do not hate Averett, I actually am glad they are playing better. I really hope the USAC can become one of the best conferences in all of D3. To answer your question, I would have called our coach crazy for scheduling Mt. Union. I have already questioned many play calls he has made this year. I feel he did an excellent job in scheduling Bridgewater(a team he felt Ferrum had a chance against). I remember my JV football coach say when I was in 9th grade, “What would we get from playing the Washington Redskins?” the answer was simple, nothing at all. I said it earlier this year. The only interest I had in wanting to see Averett v. Mt. Union was to see how good Mt. Union was against USAC play, not how Averett matched up. I thought (had hoped) the spread would have only been 30-40points not 50+. Again, Outside of Ferrum playing Averett, I only want the best for all USAC teams. The better the conference, the more recognition each team gets. Unfortunelty this year is a down year for USAC…Next year should prove to be better.
RunFerrum, you are clueless. “it does not make sense for Mt. Union to travel 500+ miles for a game.”
Find an opponent that is closer that is willing to play. There are none in Ohio.
What about Mary Hardin Baylor (Texas) traveling to CNU. Or CNU traveling to Rowan(NJ)? Doesn’t make sense to play good competition does it?
I am from Radford, Va and I played at Mount. I follow the ODAC, the OAC, and the USA South.
Keep pointing the finger at Averett… there are 3 fingers pointing right back at you.
What’s Ferrum’s record?
Maybe you should focus on what’s happening in Rocky Mount compared to other places.
I am a newbie to this site but am very interested in the discussion surrounding Mount Union Football and the attending scheduling/competition concerns.
I think you are all on the same page as it relates to your loyalty to D3 football. That being said, it appears that while some want to use Mt. Union as an example of what is good for D3 and command respect from our larger school brethren, others view it as being a “sacrificial lamb”.
The way I see it, we thrive on challenges. I played high school ball but didn’t have the talent to carry it into college at any level. But, in High School, we played a difficult schedule to challenge ourselves to get better each week. It made no sense to schedule patsies early because our coaches worried about complacency. Records were important to be sure but, by the time we entered conference play, we were hardened by the intense competition and were the better team for it.
With the athletic budgets of our schools not being as large as the bigger schools, geography plays a large role in who gets scheduled. That, and the number of conference games. The only way for Mt. Union to expand the level of challenge would be to play more than 10 games or find local competition that would provide the necessary challenge. Will a team like YSU or Tiffin play Mt. Union? I seriously doubt it because they know they have everything to lose and nothing to gain. The larger the school, the bigger the budget and the more important to recruit. By playing Mt. Union, they are providing free recruiting opportunities for the Raiders with the potential of steering possible recruits to Mt. Union and away from them.
In summary, I think all of you have valid points and should be commended for your insight. These are student athletes that play hard week in and week out. The fact that Mt. Union has put together this current dynasty speaks volumes for the work LK, his coaches, and players have achieved.
I hope they provide an impetus for others in D3 to step up and play hard to knock them off the perch. It won’t be easy but what worthwhile endeavors in life ever are?
To Kicker13 – I look forward to seeing you in Alliance next year!
VAraider- Oh my goodness, didn’t realize you played at the Mt. Did you get any real playing time?
Averett fits the category of “good competition” when it comes to scheduling games at Mt?
I’m not buying that Mt couldn’t find a more competitive game with 500 miles of the campus.
Man- the uproar over suggesting Mt find a more competitive non-conference game
Or Linfield to HSU! Or McMurry to Menlo! Or UW-Whitewater to UMHB! Or Huntingdon to Wesley and Brockport St.
Or a conference game like McMurry or HSU or HPU or UMHB or TLU or SRSU to MissCollege! 🙂
VAraider- Clueless…Comparing Mt. Union v. Averett with CNU v. Mary Hardin Baylor or Rowan is quite a stretch. I am betting CNU along with Rowan and MHB felt the game would be competitive. As I said earlier, if a game is competitive then its worth traveling. CNU scheduled the games thinking we have a team that can compete with these teams. Averett scheduled these games knowing they would loose…or at least the odds were extremely…extremely agaisnt them. Just think if Averett had played teams they could actually have a chance at beating, like any ODAC team. Then maybe people would be considering the USAC as a two playoff team. Ferrum’s played a great BC team and took them to overtime, its reasonable to think Averett could have won. I think Averett did more harm in scheduling Mt. Union and Wesley(though not really in Scheduling Wesley) than good. A loss to CNU insures the same fate as Ferrum… a seat in the stands watching Mt. Union play in Salem. As for Ferrum, they are down this year, but with a bunch of young talent. There’s always next year and I know Ferrum will be liking their odds at home against Averett.
RaiderGuy – We did throw the ball … got inside the 20, 1st and 10, 1 min.30 to go … down 6 … just wasn’t meant to be … gotta stop thinking about it.
I guess I am a bit biased but as I posted yesterday, Mt Union has sceheduled a “more competitive” out of conference game. Fisher will be coming to town week 1 in ’08. I know that most of you guys may have a better handle on non Fisher related D3 Football (I kinda just follow them and learn the rest from this BLOG) but would this be the first time a team of Fisher’s caliber outside the OAC takes on Mt Union in the reg. season in recent history?
game of the week Fisher 7-0 vs. Springfield 6-0
I have friends that played at Mt. Union and I have visited Mt. many times. It is absurd to think they could move up a Div. As someone earlier put it, the rest of the school would suffer because of the success of one sport program. As far as I am concerned, until someone comes along to knock Mt. off and take their place as the new dynasty then all we can do is either hate em’ or love em’. Of course I am a Carnegie Mellon fan and have a brother who plays for CMU so I can’t say much about a big-time D3 school.
In terms of top programs hooking up in the pre-season….I can see SJU and Linfield getting together in the pre-season a few years down the road.
Since it keeps coming up every dozen posts or so, please note that there is a discussion board (General Football: Why Mount Union should/should not leave division 3 – or at least a title close to that) which WAS discussing the issue. The board has gone dormant because pretty much everyone agreed that:
a) it WILL never happen (the NCAA doesn’t expel schools just for being too good, and MUC has no desire to leave), so the discussion is moot, and
b) it SHOULD never happen, since (unlike Johns Hopkins in lacrosse or Colorado College in hockey) a school cannot play ‘up’ (or down according to Pat!) in football. All sports would have to play in that division, and MUC is average or below in most other sports.
Mr. Ypsi, these always turn into some other discussion. Not what was intended. This has turned into a Mt. Union discussion when the topic was titled “Immediate thoughts on week 7” which is why I rarely post on here. I just threw my 2 cents in this time because I understand the situation Mt. is in because of my friends who have played there recently. Other than that I pretty much stick to the UAA board in Post Patterns.
I think the whole thing boils down to goals. What as a team are trying to accomplish? Are you just wanting to win your conference on a regular basis? Or are you thinking National Championship at some point. Then you schedule up. Play the Mount Unions or a D1-AA, DII when local DIII schools won’t schedule you.
I haven’t posted on here this year… just been a reader, but this Mt. Union talk kinda upsets me…..
Like other have said, there is no benefit to playing up a division or another division playing down, it doesn’t help anyone… as far as playoff situations.
Maybe alot of people don’t realize that “usually” after half-time that LK has his team kick field goals….. The Raider could easily put 100 points on the board against most teams in division 3… Heck… even against Ohio Northern, which is a good team overall, they were kicking field goals early in the 2nd half instead of getting touchdowns simply running the ball to keep the clock moving. Hell, there first team doesn’t even play the second half and they still run over most teams 1st string…
There have been many of times in a game where the Mt. Union players would purposely fall down at the 3 yard line or run out of bounds so the kicking team could come on the field… scoring 21 points from field goals is amazing… I know the field goal team got alot of practice against Averett and virtually every OAC team… ONU this year for sure….
The point is… when you are the team to beat, you don’t have to get crazy about winning big because it come naturally. LK would be just as happy winning by 14 as he would be with 40+. The fact is that Mt. Union is a football school… I believe a very high % of students play football and what is wrong with that? Many teams in d3 don’t want to play Mt. Union because they don’t want the truth about how they rate against the best.
Only coaches and AD’s with balls will schedule them and those are the coaches and AD’s that want to improve their football program… ex. Averett and Wisconsin WW a few years back… They schedule Mt. to see where they are and where to improve… it really is that simple…
Now, let’s go back to “immediate thoughts on week 7” or “a look at week 8″….. thank you…
” we now return you to your regularly schedule program “…… haha
In light of the tragic events at Alfred, I previously asked D3 to please reconsider the posting on their home page of an image clearly showing a tackle in progress, head down, leading with the crown of the helmet – not only very risky & dangerous, but also a penalty (spearing) and just bad football. How can you hit what you can’t see?
So, once again a similiar image is on the home page:
http://www.d3football.com/images/2006/hobarthoffmanbypc.jpg
I will politley ask again for D3 to please reconsider the use of that image, out of concern that these images basically amounting to the ignoring of the dangers of this type of contact and, subsequently, unintentionally condoning it.
Perhaps the staff of D3 could sort through the thousands of images shot already just this season and see how many times head down, helmet leading contact has been captured on film and make an photo essay of how NOT to initiate contact.
SJFF82,
I would love to know how you found this out, if you can say. As a fellow SJF follower, i would love to see how SJF stacks up vs MUC.
Hopefully Garcon would of left by then because he did torch SJF when he was at Norwich.
Just a quickie…Raiders first opponents since ’91
’91 Wooster???????????Oh my God! was it a forfeit?
92-93 Adrian
94-95-96-97 Defiance
98-99 Albion
00-01 Allegheny
02-03 Wisconsin Whitewater
04-05 Washington University, St Louis
06-07 Averette “Up and coming!” haven’t lost since games 1 & 2.
With the exception of Wash U these are names of teams that are familiar with the playoffs, not exactly roll overs.
Upstate:
I heard from a former teammate of mine, who allegedly heard directly from a very reliable source. Our bags are packed…yours? What is your interest in Fisher? Alum?
Raider: you can add the Cardinals (Fisher) to the list for ’08.
Quick Mount related question. Justin Beaver (UWWW) might warrant a look from the NFL given similar size to Keith Elias who played five years with the N.Y. Giants a decade or so ago.
Does Mount currently have any seniors or underclassmen who will be lining up on the sidelines on Sunday’s in the future?
Buck and spin:
With all due respect and prayers to the Alfred player, lets not focus on things (pictures) that have absolutely nothing to do with the injury that occurred. Perhaps fundraising for his medical expenses would be time better spent.
Football coaches around the country, myself included, teach ‘kids’ how to tackle properly…hopefully… If they unfortunately get injured or committ a penalty (spearing) that is a risk that we all take. Not something however to attribute to pictures on D3’s website.
Please do not take this the wrong way, because I am certain you have nothing but good intentions by your posting, however I just dont think it is fair to shift the burden and pressure to the hard working and football minded staff of d3football.com to ‘teach’ kids how to tackle by not posting otherwise ‘clean’ action photos
As far as I know, with information from my buddies who played at Mt. Union, they had a safety a couple years ago named Kern who got signed by the Lions and played sp. teams for one year and then blew his knee and hasn’t returned to the NFL. Personally speaking, I believe it because I have played a pick-up game with Kern(after the blown knee) and my buddies. I have never seen anyone personally that was faster and more athletic than he was.
As far as right now, my friends all say Garcon could definitely be playing on Sundays. Alot of them don’t know how he slipped through the cracks at D-1A and ended up at Mt. Union.
Garson….. A MONSTER……
SJFF82,
No offense taken, and as a coach myself I too take great lengths to teach the proper, safe, effective way to tackle & run – with eyes up.
I share your sentiments about the staff at D3, but this isn’t the 1st time I’ve seen a blatant, head down, crown of helmet as point of impact picture used on the home page of this site. I am sure there are many, many other images from these games that don’t blatantly illustrate a known & leading cause of catastrophic injury on a football field. I don’t think its unreasonable to ask that, when an image ilike this is captured, to just not use it.
Perhaps the bigger question is why is it even happening? An old adage I bring to every practice is “What You Tolerate You Encourage”. When I see images like this I don’t tolerate it, and really, really hope that no players on these (or any) teams end up being injured as a result of illegal & dangerous contact that was illustrated via other examples of the D3 site.
Would D3 publish an image of that unfortunate impact at the Alfred game? Of course not! Would they publish images of the same type/kind of impact? They have & do, and I am simply asking to please choose images that don’t demonstrate it.
The ’02 Championship team had:
CB Chris Kern – who signed with the Lions. Played in NFL Europe and eventually made the 53 man roster for the Lions until hamstring problems that bothered him throughout his college and professional career. Immense amount of talent.
RB Dan Pugh signed with the Bears and the Buccaneers for short periods of time but never made the 53 man squad. He also started for the Toronto Argunauts in 2004. (He only started one year at Mount, splitting time with Chuck Moore until he was a senior. Pugh also broke Barry Sanders touchdown record with 41.)
QB Rob Adamson (as a starter) never lost a game in high school or college. He signed with the Panthers but never made the squad. Played and started in NFL Europe.
Since ’02 there haven’t been any guys from Mount to sign – and there weren’t any DIII players drafted since ’02. Was there one last year?
I agree about Kern talent wise and I knew he wasn’t a safety that was my bad, but I am pretty positive it was a bad knee that ended his career. At least that’s what my buddy who played with him said.