FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[Kovo]

I can state thoroughly, definitively, and with complete and utter finality that the rest of the league doesn't give a deuce about your trophy, Kovo. Do you see any other CCIW schools that play trophy games? No. Given that trophy games in general are good publicity and a good rallying point for football programs in terms of the larger campus community, you'd think that the other seven CCIW schools would try to start their own trophy games if the Little Brass Bell game was such a coveted event. But they haven't, and it isn't.

Frankly, I wonder how many people from the other seven schools (six, back then) were even aware of the existence of the Little Brass Bell prior to North Central hiring John Thorne prior to the 2002 season, given that NCC was a perennial also-ran prior to his arrival. Wheaton had won 38 of the 52 Little Brass Bell games (there was one tie) before NCC hired Thorne, and those Wheaton wins were typically by a lopsided margin in the late '80s and the '90s and into the Oughts. Heck, I wonder how many Wheaton people aren't even aware of the Little Brass Bell now, given that a large bloc of the Wheaton campus community has little or no interest in Wheaton athletics whatsoever.

It wouldn't be anything more than a footnote were it not for the fact that the ascendance of North Central under John Thorne has made Wheaton vs. North Central the pivotal game of the season in this league, since those two schools have won outright or shared the last eleven CCIW titles.

I'd probably watch it on Saturday, since NPU has a bye, if I wasn't calling an NPU volleyball match that afternoon instead. But my interest in watching NCC @ WC is only because it promises to be an interesting, well-played game.

Thank you for recognizing that it is MY trophy....but I beg to differ, it belongs to NCC.  And, you had to bring up my playing days as an also ran.  Heck we lost to NPU my sophomore year ---at home!

The Naperville Police must've had you guys on suicide watch after the game.

Not really.  We were pretty accustomed to losing.  As you accurately pointed out, until Coach Thorne arrived NCC wasn't very good---except for the 7-1-1 in 1982.

[Gregory Sager]

Sked:
Millikin @ Augustana, 1 pm
Carroll @ Illinois Wesleyan, 1 pm
Elmhurst @ Carthage, 1 pm
North Central @ Wheaton, 7 pm

North Park has the bye.

Massey:
Millikin 34, Augustana 28 (MU 67%, AC 33%)
Illinois Wesleyan 33, Carroll 3 (IWU 99%, CU 1%)
Carthage 35, Elmhurst 13 (CC 94%, EC 6%)
North Central 31, Wheaton 28 (NCC 59%, WC 41%)

[iwu70]

Ypsi, perhaps we can get ISU to again "lend" us their bell for our 50th class reunion in 2020. 

Looking forward to a glorious Homecoming weekend -- IWU vs. Carroll -- for a good HC game.  Theme is "TITANS Around the World," so I'm sure I'll see lots of old friends, returned study abroad and international students alums returning to campus from far flung places.

Come on Wheaton . . . have your best game of the year and take down NCC! Bell or no bell!

IWU'70

[Mr. Ypsi]

Not quite sure which is more improbable:  #4 NCC losing at unranked Wheaton, or formerly #4 Wheaton losing their third straight game.

[izzy stradlin]

Not quite sure which is more improbable:  #4 NCC losing at unranked Wheaton, or formerly #4 Wheaton losing their third straight game.

Wheaton hasn't lost 3 straight since '97, Swider's 2nd year.  However they also hadn't lost to IWU at home since '96 and hadn't lost to Millikin anywhere since '01.    This is looking to be a year not to remember for obvious reasons, however the bell is still very special and I am sure Wheaton will be playing hard to get it back.

[wally_wabash]

Not quite sure which is more improbable:  #4 NCC losing at unranked Wheaton, or formerly #4 Wheaton losing their third straight game.

The improbable part is already done isn't it?   

[CardinalAlum]

Not sure I’ve ever seen less chatter before an NCC/Wheatie game.   This game should’ve been a game between two top 5 nationally ranked teams.   I have no doubt the turmoil the hazing scandal had a part but injuries have hit Wheaton hard.   Sounds like they may get some of those back this week so that’s something to keep an eye on.   Wheaton will be ready to go and this will still be a great game and the Cards will have to be on their game to survive an always difficult place to play.  Cards have had their own injuries and the loss of WR Ryan Kuhl has been as big as any of them.   I’ve counted as many as 4 freshmen WR’s in the game at a time.   They’ve stepped up and played well but they need to take another big step on Saturday against a very good defense.   I believe the Offensive Line for the Cards is the key to this game.  They struggled against the Wheaton front in the playoff loss last year.  They have hopefully learned from that and will be ready.   I’m expecting a hard hitting and close game.   Cards by 3

[Gregory Sager]

Not sure I've ever seen less chatter before an NCC/Wheatie game.   This game should've been a game between two top 5 nationally ranked teams.   I have no doubt the turmoil the hazing scandal had a part but injuries have hit Wheaton hard.

If injuries are what cost Wheaton the games against Illinois Wesleyan and Millikin, given the sizeable gap that was supposed to have existed between Wheaton and the two downstate teams when the season started, then I would venture to say that Wheaton was not a true top-five team to begin with. I'm well aware that Wheaton's starting lineup was absolutely loaded, and that there were some really outstanding players coming off the bench for the Sonic Atmospheric Disturbance as well. But we sometimes lose sight of the fact that depth is an absolutely vital ingredient to being a successful team, in this sport more than any other because of the high attrition rate caused by injuries. If your two-deep has any holes in it, or if you don't have third-teamers who can step up and see at least intermittent game action without being repeatedly exposed by the opposition, then you most likely don't have the depth necessary to be successful deep into November, which is what being a top-five team is all about.

[AndOne]

Don't know if it will adversely effect Wheaton or NCC more, but Saturday night's Bell Game seems almost certain to be played in a downpour. 90% chance of rain in the afternoon, and 100% in the evening, and this forecast has remained a constant over the last several days so it seems like a pretty good bet.

[79jaybird]

There have some interesting discussions on Elmhurst campus about putting a dome on Langhorst Field.   The Leader, the college's student newspaper had an article on it,  but discussions about this have been ongoing.    Two major factors feeding into this are A)  Other sports can use Langhorst Field (i.e. Baseball) can use the dome all year long, despite the weather conditions.  B)  Doming Langhorst would allow NCAA sports to use the field, while simultaneously allowing intramurals and other activities to proceed on the current gym.    I'm curious to see where future discussions on this wind up heading.  One disadvantage Elmhurst has is being landlocked greatly.

[AndOne]

Aren't most schools landlocked?
I would think something like this would greatly depend on how supportive the EC President and Board are of athletics. I know that at NCC the current President, and even moreso the recent past President, supported athletics very strongly. However, despite their strong support, both took the position that academics come first. Accordingly, for a long time it was basically "the next time we get the money bucket filled, we're building a new (the old one was built in 1070) science hall." Accordingly, the newest building on campus is the the recently opened 125,000 sq foot, $60 million dollar Wentz Science Center rather than placing a dome over the football stadium or replacing the 86 year old Merner Fieldhouse, affectionately referred to by many as "The Hangar."

[Kovo]

Not sure I've ever seen less chatter before an NCC/Wheatie game.   This game should've been a game between two top 5 nationally ranked teams.   I have no doubt the turmoil the hazing scandal had a part but injuries have hit Wheaton hard.   Sounds like they may get some of those back this week so that's something to keep an eye on.   Wheaton will be ready to go and this will still be a great game and the Cards will have to be on their game to survive an always difficult place to play.  Cards have had their own injuries and the loss of WR Ryan Kuhl has been as big as any of them.   I've counted as many as 4 freshmen WR's in the game at a time.   They've stepped up and played well but they need to take another big step on Saturday against a very good defense.   I believe the Offensive Line for the Cards is the key to this game.  They struggled against the Wheaton front in the playoff loss last year.  They have hopefully learned from that and will be ready.   I'm expecting a hard hitting and close game.   Cards by 3

I expect a close game as well.  We should find out if the Cards deserve the lofty #4 ranking. 

5-0 is great but I see lots of questions . Normally I think of the #4 team as a dominant group.  I haven't seen that out of NCC.  There are wins,but some struggles.  Like the second half collapse that almost led to a loss to a bad (1-5) Robert Morris team.  Being down 10-0 at the end of the first quarter to a 1-5 Wash U squad. Needing two offensive pass interference calls to escape IWU. 

With that said, if the Cards can get out of Wheaton with a win, its a great season.  However, the jury is out on whether this is a team that can make a deep playoff run.

[robertgoulet]

Not sure I've ever seen less chatter before an NCC/Wheatie game.   This game should've been a game between two top 5 nationally ranked teams.   I have no doubt the turmoil the hazing scandal had a part but injuries have hit Wheaton hard.   Sounds like they may get some of those back this week so that's something to keep an eye on.   Wheaton will be ready to go and this will still be a great game and the Cards will have to be on their game to survive an always difficult place to play. Cards have had their own injuries and the loss of WR Ryan Kuhl has been as big as any of them.   I've counted as many as 4 freshmen WR's in the game at a time.   They've stepped up and played well but they need to take another big step on Saturday against a very good defense.   I believe the Offensive Line for the Cards is the key to this game.  They struggled against the Wheaton front in the playoff loss last year.  They have hopefully learned from that and will be ready.   I'm expecting a hard hitting and close game.   Cards by 3

I must have overlooked this initially..what happened to Kuhl?

[New Tradition]

Not sure I've ever seen less chatter before an NCC/Wheatie game.   This game should've been a game between two top 5 nationally ranked teams.   I have no doubt the turmoil the hazing scandal had a part but injuries have hit Wheaton hard.   Sounds like they may get some of those back this week so that's something to keep an eye on.   Wheaton will be ready to go and this will still be a great game and the Cards will have to be on their game to survive an always difficult place to play. Cards have had their own injuries and the loss of WR Ryan Kuhl has been as big as any of them.   I've counted as many as 4 freshmen WR's in the game at a time.   They've stepped up and played well but they need to take another big step on Saturday against a very good defense.   I believe the Offensive Line for the Cards is the key to this game.  They struggled against the Wheaton front in the playoff loss last year.  They have hopefully learned from that and will be ready.   I'm expecting a hard hitting and close game.   Cards by 3

I must have overlooked this initially..what happened to Kuhl?

A leg injury that did not look pretty. 

[Gregory Sager]

Aren't most schools landlocked?

Many are. Some aren't. I can remember going up to Mequon, WI a few years ago to call an NPU @ CUW game, and seeing a vast woods behind the football stadium. Olivet's got a whole lotta empty around its athletics fields, too. Those are just two schools that come to mind. Of course, empty land still has to be purchased in order to build athletics facilities on it. But it's typically (although not always) easier to acquire undeveloped land than it is to buy land upon which something's already been built.

And not all developed land is the same. If you're trying to purchase adjacent property in a small town or in a run-down, medium-sized city, you're facing a completely different situation than you would if you were trying to buy adjacent land in some tony suburb, as would be the case for Lake Forest College, or in a highly-built-up residential neighborhood in one of the better parts of a major city (i.e., North Park or the University of Chicago).

I've gotta figure that land around Elmhurst College is fairly pricey, since the EC campus is both bordered by a solidly middle-class neighborhood and by the village's downtown, plus it's very close to one of the primary draws of the village, the Metra station. I think that Elmhurst's best bet is to try to buy up the cemetery next door to Langhorst, because I don't think that the current occupants would complain too much.

I would think something like this would greatly depend on how supportive the EC President and Board are of athletics. I know that at NCC the current President, and even moreso the recent past President, supported athletics very strongly. However, despite their strong support, both took the position that academics come first. Accordingly, for a long time it was basically "the next time we get the money bucket filled, we're building a new (the old one was built in 1070) science hall." Accordingly, the newest building on campus is the the recently opened 125,000 sq foot, $60 million dollar Wentz Science Center rather than placing a dome over the football stadium or replacing the 86 year old Merner Fieldhouse, affectionately referred to by many as "The Hangar."

There's more involved in that equation than simply having a president who "supports athletics", though, because for many schools on the D3 level athletics is more than simply wins and losses -- a lot more. It's also a drawing card for potential and current students, which is especially important at schools with modest unrestricted endowment funds that thus have need of tuition revenue to help maintain the annual budget.