Hmm... interesting. That play could have been massive, but alas, 90-something yards later...

Some additional context to add a bit to what WLG Old Historian said: I cant speak about anyone else, but I was on that 1st team of Raeburn's tenure. We had just come off the Havercamp game and chief among the things that ER emphasized all year was his philosophy that you have to win your rivalry games... and we got absolutely rolled at home. The next year, we started a streak of 7 straight. Also, with a new head coach comes a new staff. Gilbert was a first time coordinator under that first Raeburn year and even with a couple years experience at this level as a position coach, it's different when you're in that seat. There were definitely times today (and other weeks where I've been able to plug in and watch) where I scratched my head and went "huh," but that happens every time I turn any game on.

Secondly, as to the idea that Wabash has somehow "given up" on football: not only the roster numbers, which are insane, but the transformation that the Armory has undergone has been beyond comprehension. Additionally, some of the upgrades that have been made to the weight room are fantastic.

Today, and the last 3 years, have been a tough watch at times for sure, but I think it's hard to look at what is going on behind the scenes and not be encouraged.

Observations from today's game:

-first half of the first quarter was everything a Wabash fan could want. Long drive that took a ton of time off the clock, score a touchdown, force a 3 and our defensively... then the pick. Which it wasn't even a terrible call per se: just a little under thrown and the DPU kid got a good jump on it and under cut it.

-For the most part, and I know how this sounds when you give up 41 point, I honestly think the defense held up their end of the bargain. 3rd downs, especially 3rd and longs, were a bit of an Achilles heel, but not a ton of big big plays, force them to drive, and they executed.

-Offensively, it honestly doesn't seem to complicated. When we had success on 1st down, we moved the sticks, when we didn't, we didn't.

I hate it for this group of Seniors, but I trust Gilbert moving forward 100%, absolutely no doubt there.

A couple of odds and ends, especially for those who watched from home. Not that any of these changes the outcome:

-WTH was with the 10ish minute delay in the 1st quarter? Seemed like something with DPU headsets? It seemed like their coach was looking down at his comm box a lot during the conversation.

-Just how bad was the fumble recovery that wasn't on the opening kickoff? Looked really bad from the grandstand.

Either way, WAF!

Nervous energy?

Saturday should be a great game... but did I see correctly somewhere that DePauw gives up an average of 10 yards on the ground?  If true, that's a crazy good stat, and I hate giving the Dannies any kind of credit...

Quote from: HCAlum86 on November 03, 2025, 09:13:31 AMWhen was the last time the NCAC had 3 ranked teams?

Don't quote me on this as I only had time to do a quick dive, but I looked at week 11 of all the Top 25 polls available on D3football.com and the only instance I saw of three NCAC teams even being listed was 2016.  In that poll, Witt was #17, and DePauw and Wabash both received votes, though Wabash was listed as having dropped out of the Top 25 (was previously #25).  That was the year DPU won the Bell back in Crawfordsville in a game that saw a wild, and incredibly frustrating, final couple of minutes if memory serves correctly.

I forgot about the expanded field!

This is getting ahead of ourselves quite a bit, but I found myself thinking about this in the wake of the Wabash/JCU result.  It is not unfathomable that the top three in the conference each end up with one loss and a tie (DePauw beats JCU, Wabash beats DePauw): if that happens, I assume the NCAC tie break rule is still "tie goes the team that hasn't been to the playoffs most recently," so would that be automatically JCU even though they are a new member?  Or has the tie-break rule changed to something a little more practical? This also rules out the possibility of the NCAC getting two teams in, which hasn't happened in some time.

Quote from: Crawford on September 27, 2025, 04:56:36 PMWabash's Brody Rucker hit a 50 yard field goal!

And it looked like it had another 5-6 yards, if not more, of distance.

I have coached high school teams that have had as few as 13 healthy bodies going into a Friday night, but Oberlin's situation seems extreme even to me.  I count 9 Seniors on Oberlin's roster, and for their sake I hope the Yeoman can finish this season provided it can be done safely.  For the underclassmen though, how does eligibility work if the school decides at some point to fold the program and they wish to go somewhere else to play?  I would assume that they would retain all their remaining years of eligibility but maybe not?  Regardless, it's a tough situation for all involved.

Quote from: Little Giant 89 on January 27, 2025, 06:32:08 PMSad to report that former Wabash Athletic Director and Dean of Students, Tom Bambrey, passed away over the weekend.  Tom graduated from Wabash in 1968.  He was a three year letterman who ran track under fellow Wabash legend J. Owen Huntsman.  In his time serving the College he was instrumental in bringing Chris Creighton, Erik Raeburn, Brian Anderson and Clyde Morgan to the athletic department.  Tom is a member of the Wabash Athletics Hall of Fame.  He was also a regular contributor on this board under the moniker sigma one.

He will be deeply missed.

Some Little Giant.  I was a student-athlete during his transition from the Dean of Students Office to the Athletic Department, so he will forever be known as Dean Bambrey in my mind.  He was a master story teller:  his accounts of the stories of "Sap" Wilson and Operation Frijoles in particular were the best oral histories I have ever come across.  As you say Little Giant 89, he will be deeply missed.

Huge fan of the Gilbert hire! Anyone who has heard his story of his journey in life cannot help but be impressed and humbled. He brings a passion for building great Wabash men and competitive football team that is unmatched in my mind. I wonder what the day to day dynamics of the team will work with a "coach in waiting" situation though? No doubt Gilbert and Morel will work it out, just curious as to what it will look like.

I can't help but think; what was it like on the Greencastle campus after the various successful heist attempts?  I remember my sophomore year the group of Rhynies guarding the Bell fell asleep and a group of full Sphinx club members taught them a lesson by hiding the Bell behind some of the bushes next to the Chapel before waking them, inducing quite the panic.  It was Thursday morning and the mood prior to Monon Chapel on campus was incredibly morose.  When the Bell was brought into the Chapel it was quite a relief.

Quote from: Breckenridgebear on October 24, 2018, 03:41:09 PM
Also, this never gets old.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/31460010?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0

Nor does this.  "Rex Off Colorado Red" is also a bit more creative than that touchdown celebration...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oII8XFKcJ1w

Really looking forward to Saturday!