Quote from: OzJohnnie on Yesterday at 10:25:23 PMGood luck, BU.  I hope this is your year.

All the best, mate, cheers!

Quote from: Kovo on December 09, 2025, 10:13:36 AMLet's not forget that the NCC's last loss at BW is to Bethel in 2018 (correct me if I am wrong).  I thought that is what Coach Spencer was referring to-----that, and being dismissed from the tournament in the 2nd round!

Correct, the two played in Naperville in 2018 in a game that could've gone either way. To be honest, I'd forgotten about that one and only remembered 2013 when NCC came to Arden Hills and decisively thumped a VERY good BU team on a bitterly cold afternoon.

It will take BU's best performance to get a result, but what a fun occasion and opportunity!

Quote from: art76 on December 06, 2025, 06:19:51 PMSounds like you were at the game today Hazz, or at least could watch it. At one point I wondered if Drews had been knocked out of the game because the stat line showed Rundell throwing the ball a couple of times in a row.

Whoever was generating that live stat fed was on the struggle bus. Had Rundell completing a pass to himself at one point.

Quote from: USee on December 05, 2025, 11:06:32 AM

Quote from: CHUBBS PETERSON on December 04, 2025, 10:16:24 AM

Quote from: hazzben on November 17, 2025, 05:31:52 PMI saw Logan post that Wart got done a diservice, essentially treated like a 2 seed in their own quad. He might be right, but aside from NPI Wartburg just doesn't looke like a very elite 1 seed IMO given the stats above.

That said, the MIAC finds itself in 2 of the 3 toughest quadrants ever according to Logan's numbers. If we get anyone to the quarters or beyond we'll have earned it, great chance to reset the recent national narrative about the conference.

Results so far have done nothing to quiet the discontent with NPI. If anything, this bracket is proving to be even more lopsided than was suspected. NPI loved it some Wartburg, and they didn't survive first contact with a Wheaton team that lost 35-0 to NCC (NPI had Warburg above NCC). Obviously a big obstacle to clear this weekend but if I'm UWRF I can hardly believe my luck with what a mess that quad's turned out to be, and whoever gets out of there gets the winner of the clearly weakest quad in the semifinal.

NPI has its limitations but it also cuts both ways. Under the old system Wheaton is not in this field. Neither is UWlAX and possibly UWW, all 2 loss teams. Wheaton would not have had any regionally ranked wins (the old system) which favored 1 loss teams (win %) over most other criteria. NPI can be tweaked (NCC should NOT be the overall 4 seed) but so far it's an improvement over the subjective rankings of regional committees IMO.

Understand the point, but I'd posit that trading one flawed system for another with different and yet equal flaws amounts to change for its own sake and that further adjustment has been shown to be needed. In the end, outcomes are still being decided on the field rather than committee rooms full of compromised incompetents, so of course it could be infinitely worse.

Quote from: Mister36 on December 04, 2025, 10:57:46 AMIt could always be worse...(looks at FBS). I am fully behind the removal of loud yelling people deciding who gets into playoffs

I don't even want to get started on that; Disney ruins everything it touches.

Quote from: hazzben on November 17, 2025, 05:31:52 PMI saw Logan post that Wart got done a diservice, essentially treated like a 2 seed in their own quad. He might be right, but aside from NPI Wartburg just doesn't looke like a very elite 1 seed IMO given the stats above.

That said, the MIAC finds itself in 2 of the 3 toughest quadrants ever according to Logan's numbers. If we get anyone to the quarters or beyond we'll have earned it, great chance to reset the recent national narrative about the conference.

Results so far have done nothing to quiet the discontent with NPI. If anything, this bracket is proving to be even more lopsided than was suspected. NPI loved it some Wartburg, and they didn't survive first contact with a Wheaton team that lost 35-0 to NCC (NPI had Warburg above NCC). Obviously a big obstacle to clear this weekend but if I'm UWRF I can hardly believe my luck with what a mess that quad's turned out to be, and whoever gets out of there gets the winner of the clearly weakest quad in the semifinal.

Quote from: DuffMan on December 02, 2025, 11:22:57 AM"$hit, these Macalaster guys are good.  They don't just pull guys out of the hallway to play football."

"Uh, Sir? What if I told you that is EXACTLY what they're doing?"

Quote from: sjujohnnie on December 01, 2025, 10:30:21 PMApparently no one's giving St John's a chance whatsoever.

I'd characterize it more as calling UWRF the most formidable opponent SJU has met so far this year, and even through navy tinted goggles I'd not disagree with that assessment. Acknowledging the difficulty of the task ahead and saying it's insurmountable are two different things.

This is also a vestige of the lasting impression Coach Gagliardi (John, sorry) left on his players and fans. He often talked up opponents during the week and then his teams went through said opponents "like ___ through a tin horn" (banger quote from Coach Saban) on Saturday. Austin Murphy mentioned this at least once in his book on SJU.

UWRF is a fashionable dark horse pick to win it all, and rightly so because of how good they are and how other results around them have gone to this point.

Playing in those conditions is hard enough without prior experience and the ability to practice/prepare in them. The end does nothing to diminish a fine season for Chapman!

Quote from: hazzben on December 01, 2025, 08:56:04 AMMIAC Tier 2 looks a bit better IMO coming out of this weekend. Monmouth didn't look any different from a Carleton, GAC, or Concordia. I'd put Tier 2 just behind Coe and honestly probably similar to Central, the Dutch with a better D but better offenses on the MIAC side. GAC played a competitive game with Whitworth and would have been in the thick of things in a down NWC.

Wheaton looked really good. Passing efficiency, a mobile QB, and really solid Oline play are a pretty good recipe for post-season success. I think they'll beat DePauw and if so that'll make for a fascinating offensive matchup with the winner of UWRF and SJU.

SJU v UWRF ... can't wait to dig into this matchup a bit. Early thoughts before I watch the UWRF's game, which D can tip the scales against an elite scoring O?

Agree about Wheaton. That said, watching what NCC did to them makes for sobering viewing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHmthw2EOzU

Quote from: gobigred425 on November 24, 2025, 11:31:12 AMLooking at end of year stats from MIAC this year - MIAC had ZERO 1,000 yard rushers in the conference this year and only one guy with 10+ rushing TDs. Oh how the times have changed...

Tons of passing TD's around the conference. Gustavus freshman QB actually ended with a nice season. Will be a good player for them.

Couple other contributing factors:

1. Bethel and SJU starters played what amounts to nine 2-2.5 quarter games. That's a lot of carries missed.
2. Even with the starters in, Bethel was splitting carries between 2 and even 3 excellent running backs. My hunch is we haven't seen just how good the Manns kid in particular is yet, but we soon will.

Think at least 1 if not both of SJU/BU would've had at least 1 1000 yard RB if they'd been pushed for 4 quarters more often. Yet another hypothetical that we get to see play out going forward.

Quote from: DuffMan on November 24, 2025, 02:43:14 PMYeah, you could also make the case that the MIAC is WEAK this year, which I definitely think it is.

Agree that it's much too early to say this is BU's best team. Wasn't able to see '07 or '13 teams in person, but having seen this one it's easy to imagine that they can get there from here. We get to find out, which should be big fun.

The 3-10 in the MIAC being ~50 points behind the 1-2 is well established. Question is does that mean the 3-10 is bad or that the 1-2 are really strong. I don't see it as either/or, but rather that both will turn out to be true. That assumes both SJU and Bethel don't lose important players to injury.

May end up being completely wrong about this, but I think the hand wringing by both fan bases going into these playoffs about how good their teams are is going to prove as unnecessary as the rather panicky response to SJU's loss to Bethel back in October. Sky wasn't falling then, and still don't see it that way.

Plenty of Alabama White BBQ sauce at the ready in the event I must eat this take come Saturday afternoon. 

A couple mascots of note from this (red)neck of the woods.

The Laurel Hill Hobos

The Cairo (GA) Syrupmakers

For the SJU faithful:

Sorry if I'm rehashing something previously discussed, but genuinely curious about your opinions of the blue, alternate home jersey. I know it's one of the school colors, but it hasn't really had a place in the football uniform until recently.

Quote from: Mister36 on November 17, 2025, 12:07:28 AMNot what I was doing, I was simply hoping that all the rest of us would be blessed by a game where NCC gets a game winning touchdown in the last second just for it to be called back by a holding penalty.

Ugh, too soon...

LOL