Quote from: BergAlum2 on October 17, 2026, 09:01:53 AM

Quote from: D3fanboy on October 16, 2026, 01:35:01 PM

Quote from: Kira & Jaxon's Dad on October 16, 2026, 01:18:33 PMHeidelberg is currently ranked higher than NCC in the NPI (34 and 35).

https://stats.ncaa.org/selection_rankings/nitty_gritties/53089

The NPI does not matter one iota until the end of the season.  That being said, Heidelberg needs to handle their business against Rose Hulman this weekend

Little nervous on this one, Rose Hulman seems to be on an upswing from last year.  They might be coming home from Indiana with another L. 

How did Berg end up with an OOC game at this point in the season? That's odd

Quote from: D3fanboy on October 13, 2026, 02:34:48 PMhttps://tarletonsports.com/news/2026/10/13/football-anderson-wins-2nd-uac-offensive-player-of-the-week-honor-brown-named-uac-defensive-player-of-the-week-for-tarleton-state.aspx

former Raider Kaleb Brown is continuing his upward trend.  Conference Defense Player of the Week for the #2 FCS team in the nation.  Leading Tarlton St in sacks (3), TFL (5), INT (1) and throw in a FF.  Super stoked for Kaleb...but...sigh

He had to leave Mount, he was out of eligibility. The only reason he can play D1 as far as I can tell is that he didn't play in enough games at Mount is Freshman year for it to count towards a "Red-Shirt season in D1 Standards"

At least that's the only way I can figure it out based on how long he was at Mount

Quote from: blue_jays on October 12, 2026, 11:04:28 AM

Quote from: WRMUalum13 on October 10, 2026, 09:35:38 PMBased on how this Wheaton vs NCC game is going I'm baffled that we were so close to beating Wheaton in week 1

Why? Week 1 games are rarely sharp, polished affairs. Wheaton had never beaten Mount Union, they had to get over the hump which is hard to do.

Becuase if Mount hadn't played that game, and I only saw the results of their other games I would assume they'd get blown out by any top 5 teams this year, not go toe to toe with the #1 team at their place.

Quote from: BergAlum2 on October 10, 2026, 09:46:04 PMAnd wheaton wins!

If that extra point didn't get blocked, i think ya'll woulda won in OT, be a whole different season, but then to lose to a normally 4th ish place in the OAC Hberg and then this game against Marietta what a weird season

There's some old coaching addage about you should go for two if you're on the road and play for Overtime if you're at home, I was thinking the whole time they should have gone for two

Based on how this Wheaton vs NCC game is going I'm baffled that we were so close to beating Wheaton in week 1

Quote from: pradierguy on October 01, 2026, 04:19:48 PM

Quote from: USee on October 01, 2026, 12:11:39 PMHas anything outside of the HC changed for Mt Union? If so, changing the HC, while its the lowest hanging fruit, may not be the (only) answer.

Yes, the University as a whole has changed significantly. It seems more concerned with diversity and inclusion and less about educational and athletic success. And that is totally and completely fine, no issues with it as long as they realize a significantly large portion of their alum base were athletes, most specifically successful football players. So when they no longer have interest in the school or program, they take their dollars with them.

Taking the program for granted as a cash cow to get butts in classroom seats and to fundraise works great when you're winning 3+ National Championships a decade.

But when you're a "hoping for the OAC playoff spot" quality program, it isn't as attractive.

There was a point in time when Football and winning was priority number one organizationally across campus. It isn't anymore. And again that is totally fine, as long as you're willing to deal with the consequences.

I've heard this take on these boards before and I see little evidence for it, in fact I'd argue the institution has put more emphasis on athletic success over recent years as the higher ed landscape has become more competitive and sports have become a more important enrollment driver.

Since I graduated from Mount in 2013 there have been significant investments in football / athletics by the institution

1) Dom Capers media center (2013)
2) Video replay board (2017)
3) Full turf practice fields (2019)
4) Dom and Karen Capers FOOTBALL coaching center (2020) - yes an entire building for JUST football coaching
5) Locker Room Upgrades (not sure of date, probably 2018ish)
6) New Athletics branding initiative (2025)

Additionally Mount Union has 15 coaches on staff. Which is more than they had in 2019 (I counted 12)

I just don't see any evidence that Mount Union is deemphasizing football or athletics in any way. These are key enrollment drivers that the University is clearly prioritizing.

Additionally I'm not sure why or how DEI initiatives would be antithetical to educational or athletic success. At an institution like Mount Union these types of initiatives would be aimed at making sure students from various backgrounds feel comfortable and are able to succeed, they are designed to improve educational outcomes not take away from them. I'm not trying to get political here, I just don't follow the logic, especially when student athletes tend to be a more diverse group than the general student population.

Debating a hypothetical bowl game invite two months from now is not really at the top of my Mount fan priority list right now LOL

Quote from: D3fanboy on September 26, 2026, 01:53:34 PMjumping around the top 25 team streams today, haven't seen one team that looks like they are showing up to a funeral.  Hopefully that's one of the "changes" that we'll see next week from our Raiders

I have no idea what this means.

Quote from: D3fanboy on September 24, 2026, 01:49:23 PM

Quote from: Desertraider on September 24, 2026, 01:24:18 PM

Quote from: BergAlum2 on September 24, 2026, 01:00:33 PMMaybe not for Mount but already this OAC season seems like its going to be way more fun to watch.  I don't think Heidelberg will get the job done next week against BW, but should be a good game.  Also after that you got BW vs ONU, and along the way Marietta might upset some folks.  Really think we are going to get a 8-0 BW vs. a 6-2 Mount, essentially a playoff game for Mount.  You know BW will be coming into town looking to make a statement. 


Wish that 3:00 kickoff was a 7PM one, a night game would be more electric, plus its long been time for ya'll to have an OAC conference night game again against a good opponent. 

PLAYOFFS? Playoffs? You talking PLAYOFFS??

if things get a little crazy in the OAC, a 3-way tie at the top (likely Berg, BW, Mount all with one conference loss) results in a confidential vote among the other six conference coaches.  A 3-3 split would put the coach of the team with no votes back into the voting pool for a seven coach re-vote.  what would happen with a 2-2-2 vote?  that is not in the OAC bylaws.  There used to be a coin flip final option, but I'm not sure that would be applicable in the nine team OAC era.

That's such a bad option for a tie breaker, just use 1st half point differential. It gives you something a little more objective and it won't result in crazy blowouts.

Quote from: Kira & Jaxon's Dad on September 24, 2026, 01:10:22 PM

Quote from: WRMUalum13 on September 24, 2026, 12:27:15 PM

Quote from: Kira & Jaxon's Dad on September 24, 2026, 09:21:49 AM

Quote from: Desertraider on September 24, 2026, 09:10:53 AMAny hopes Mount comes out of the off week transformed?

I think it needs to start on Defense.  I googled the most points given up by Mount Union in a game:

2013:  (50)  62-59 win vs Wesley in Quarterfinals
2013:  (52)  52-14 Loss to UWW in Stagg
1999:  (51)  57-51 Triple OT win vs John Carroll
2007:  (44)  44-34 Loss to Mary Hardin-Baylor in the Stagg Bowl
2013:  (40)  41-40 win vs North Central in Semifinals
2009:  (38)  38-28 Loss to UWW in the Stagg Bowl
2026:  (37)  37-31 Loss to Hedelberg
2019:  (34)  34-14 Loss to North Central in Second Round
2013:  (34)  42-34 Win vs John Carrol in Regular Season
2016:  (31)  31-28 Loss to John Carroll in Regular Season Finale
2001:  (30)  33-30 win over John Carroll in Regular Season

The majority are in the playoffs or to JCU who was a perennially nationally ranked team.

I can't find a way to justify giving up 37 to Heidelberg.  Especially when we had Five Interceptions on Defense.

That list isn't close to correct, the AI summary did quite a bit of hallucinating, here's a few corrections and additions I noticed:

2019 was 59-52 against NCC , I vividly remember the defense being optional at that one.
2007 Stagg Bowl was against UWW and it was 31-21
2014 Stagg Bowl was a 43-34 loss against UWW
1999 UMU gave up 33 in a W against Augustana
2015 Stagg Bowl was a 49-35 W
2013 UMU had a 70-45 W against Alfred in the playoffs
2013 UMU also had a 44-34 W against Berg

This inspired me to do some digging by hand, here are all the games mount gave up 30+ points in the last 10 years.

for clarity I just put the amount of points given up and the opponent and result

2019 59 NCC        Loss
2016 45 Alfred    Win
2024 41 NCC        Loss
2017 40 UW Oshkosh Win
2017 37 Frostburg  Win
2024 37 JHU Win
2026 37 ONU Loss
2018 35 Centre  Win
2021 35 ONU Win
2021 35 JHU Win
2016 31 JCU Loss
2024 31 JCU Win

We lost to Heidelberg this year, not ONU.   

Now I'm hallucinating!!

Quote from: Kira & Jaxon's Dad on September 24, 2026, 09:21:49 AM

Quote from: Desertraider on September 24, 2026, 09:10:53 AMAny hopes Mount comes out of the off week transformed?

I think it needs to start on Defense.  I googled the most points given up by Mount Union in a game:

2013:  (50)  62-59 win vs Wesley in Quarterfinals
2013:  (52)  52-14 Loss to UWW in Stagg
1999:  (51)  57-51 Triple OT win vs John Carroll
2007:  (44)  44-34 Loss to Mary Hardin-Baylor in the Stagg Bowl
2013:  (40)  41-40 win vs North Central in Semifinals
2009:  (38)  38-28 Loss to UWW in the Stagg Bowl
2026:  (37)  37-31 Loss to Hedelberg
2019:  (34)  34-14 Loss to North Central in Second Round
2013:  (34)  42-34 Win vs John Carrol in Regular Season
2016:  (31)  31-28 Loss to John Carroll in Regular Season Finale
2001:  (30)  33-30 win over John Carroll in Regular Season

The majority are in the playoffs or to JCU who was a perennially nationally ranked team.

I can't find a way to justify giving up 37 to Heidelberg.  Especially when we had Five Interceptions on Defense.

That list isn't close to correct, the AI summary did quite a bit of hallucinating, here's a few corrections and additions I noticed:

2019 was 59-52 against NCC , I vividly remember the defense being optional at that one.
2007 Stagg Bowl was against UWW and it was 31-21
2014 Stagg Bowl was a 43-34 loss against UWW
1999 UMU gave up 33 in a W against Augustana
2015 Stagg Bowl was a 49-35 W
2013 UMU had a 70-45 W against Alfred in the playoffs
2013 UMU also had a 44-34 W against Berg

This inspired me to do some digging by hand, here are all the games mount gave up 30+ points in the last 10 years.

for clarity I just put the amount of points given up and the opponent and result

2019 59 NCC        Loss
2016 45 Alfred    Win
2024 41 NCC        Loss
2017 40 UW Oshkosh Win
2017 37 Frostburg  Win
2024 37 JHU Win
2026 37 ONU Loss
2018 35 Centre  Win
2021 35 ONU Win
2021 35 JHU Win
2016 31 JCU Loss
2024 31 JCU Win

Oh man I forgot about that transfer portal comment. You just can't have that kind of attitude in 2026 college football.

Did we Mount Union have ANY noteable transfers in this year?

Quote from: Desertraider on September 21, 2026, 02:38:29 PMThe article may be factual but that doesnt make it right. It is a snapshot of Mount but it doesnt look at any other specific teams as a comparison. I will concede first year coordinators but the remaining numbers mean little. I mean every school essentially has a lost generation because of Covid but it doesnt seem to have had an impact on NCC, Wheaton, JCU, etc. i guess look at their numbers, show me how they are different from Mount, and then it would have some merit.

I agree, the analysis doesn't really make sense because it's not a factor unique to UMU.

]

Quote from: Desertraider on September 20, 2026, 08:10:30 PMOk what are Pat and the Too 25 voters smoking? I mean I get that its legal and all but really? How is mount still in Top 25 (#24) and how is BW not ranked? I am no Bw fan but - based on this year - they should be ranked.

Wins against Bethany and Alma make you a top 25 team?

And for what it's worth, Massey ratings have mount at 15, and the computer is less biased towards legacy, brand etc.

Quote from: BergAlum2 on September 20, 2026, 02:03:15 PM

Quote from: The Third Division on September 20, 2026, 01:13:02 PMFrank Rossi posted a dissertation trying to explain the difficulties Mount is facing right now. The question is does it have merit, and if not, what?

https://x.com/frankrossi/status/2101697422703403333?s=46

Chatgpt did a good job writing that.

was interesting to read about the loss of experience and the lessening of the number of senior players

It does have some AI quality to it, I think it's the headlines