2023 interesting OOC and Quirky games

[caribbeanhen]

Please share some of the out of the box type games

I’m going with Division 2 Champ Ferris State visiting Montana on 9-16

[FUBeAR]

Please share some of the out of the box type games

I’m going with Division 2 Champ Ferris State visiting Montana on 9-16
Massey says the Griz are most likely to take that one 31-21.

Sticking close to FUBeAR’s heart…

Mercer vs. North Alabama (who has transitioned from D2 (or NAIA?) and has been in 7 different FCS conferences in the past 3 years (it seems) while their fans can only decry being NotAlabama or NotAuburn, while playing in a former high school / now municipal stadium, in the FCS Kickoff Classic in Montgomery, AL…

…AND…

…Furman @ Kennesaw, with Kennesaw’s kinda weird, seemingly rudderless FCS to FBS transition AND their F’d up 9 game schedule…

…both feel ‘out-of-the-box’ to FUBeAR.

[caribbeanhen]

Massey says the Griz are most likely to take that one 31-21.

Sticking close to FUBeAR’s heart…

Mercer vs. North Alabama (who has transitioned from D2 (or NAIA?) and has been in 7 different FCS conferences in the past 3 years (it seems) while their fans can only decry being NotAlabama or NotAuburn, while playing in a former high school / now municipal stadium, in the FCS Kickoff Classic in Montgomery, AL…

…AND…

…Furman @ Kennesaw, with Kennesaw’s kinda weird, seemingly rudderless FCS to FBS transition AND their F’d up 9 game schedule…

…both feel ‘out-of-the-box’ to FUBeAR.


good ones

and we get at least one CAA vs Southern match up when Wofford visits William & Mary

[MR. CHICKEN]

good ones

and we get at least one CAA vs Southern match up when Wofford visits William & Mary



................AH'D GO WHIFF CAMPBELL @ CITADEL..........QUIRKY CAMELS....vs....LUGGAGE LUGGERS........DOODLE-DOO-DOO!

[Baron Sardonicus]

Please share some of the out of the box type games

I’m going with Division 2 Champ Ferris State visiting Montana on 9-16

Same theme...NAIA champ Northwestern College visiting Drake on 9-9.

[DFW HOYA]

September 16: North American University vs. Portland State.

[OhioHen]

Same theme...NAIA champ Northwestern College visiting Drake on 9-9.
I'll take Northwestern College and give you seven

[dewey]

Please share some of the out of the box type games

I’m going with Division 2 Champ Ferris State visiting Montana on 9-16

That is an interesting game. I wonder how much Ferris State has coming back from their title team.

Dewey

[clenz]

I'll take Northwestern College and give you seven
7? I'm willing to take NW -16.5

[wapiti]

Quirky game of the season:
North American vs Portland State 9-16

I think PSU had a team pull out of the scheduled game and PSU had a tough time finding a replacement that would play @ PSU.

[WestCoastAggie]

That is an interesting game. I wonder how much Ferris State has coming back from their title team.

Dewey

63 vs 36

Montana State, I suspect, didn't lose that much talent this Spring & Summer. I know Ferris State would steamroll many mid-tier to low-tier FCS programs. However, Montana State should easily cover whatever spread there is.

Now, if someone wants to take a prop bet on a O/U on first half points, that could be good. But I wouldn't place a dime on Ferris State beating that spread.

[OhioHen]

7? I'm willing to take NW -16.5
C'mon clenz, I'm trying to low-ball somebody here!

[clenz]

C'mon clenz, I'm trying to low-ball somebody here!
My bad.

I meant...

You're crazy. Everyone here should take you up on that bet with at least 3 months mortgage on D+.

[crusader11]

Western Oregon, who went 6-5 last season and lost to Weber St 41-5, traveling to South Dakota St.

What’s the story here?

[FUBeAR]

Western Oregon, who went 6-5 last season and lost to Weber St 41-5, traveling to South Dakota St.

What’s the story here?Probably more competitive than this 🧁 dominated by last year’s bunnies…

BUTLER -VS- SOUTH DAKOTA ST.



Team
1
2
3
4
F


BUT
7
0
0
10
17


Winner SDS
14
14
3
14
45



63 vs. 36
vs.
63 vs. 0

[KPSUL]

Maine @ NDSU SEP 9th. Maine may have made a game out of it had they not lost 7 veteran players to FBS teams in the portal. Now the sky's the limit for NDSU in the Fargodome. This has been the plight of Maine since their 2018 Semi-Finals appearance. Lose an absurd amount of talent after the season (players and coaches), start the season slow, build momentum, finish strong, create some optimism and then repeat the whole process.

[Sader87]

Maine @ NDSU SEP 9th. Maine may have made a game out of it had they not lost 7 veteran players to FBS teams in the portal. Now the sky's the limit for NDSU in the Fargodome. This has been the plight of Maine since their 2018 Semi-Finals appearance. Lose an absurd amount of talent after the season (players and coaches), start the season slow, build momentum, finish strong, create some optimism and then repeat the whole process.

That's a tough cycle to break and making it even more difficult to build a solid program....HC hoop has had this problem as well lately.

[hebmskebm]

North American University may sound like a College of Faith redux, but they are an accredited university (albeit one that was founded way back in 2007) and a member of the NAIA, recently gaining conference affiliation. So while not optimal, it's not a total disgrace to be playing them.

[bonarae]

North American University may sound like a College of Faith redux, but they are an accredited university (albeit one that was founded way back in 2007) and a member in the NAIA, recently gaining conference affiliation. So while not optimal, it's not a total disgrace to be playing them.

That's good to know by then.... xdontknowx

As for Lincoln CA, that's another story... xchinscratchx

[FUBeAR]

That's good to know by then.... xdontknowx

As for Lincoln CA, that's another story... xchinscratchx
Virginia University - Lynchburg Dragons … who are scheduled to play the following 6 FCS stalwarts…

Presbyterian
Merrimack
Robert Morris
Delaware St.
South Carolina St.
Kennesaw State

…falls into that Lincoln CA bucket (of slop).

[ST_Lawson]

Not quite as interesting and quirky as some of the FCS vs lower division (or no division) matchups listed, but I see our third game of the season this year as being rather interesting.

WIU hosts Lindenwood...the first ever matchup between the two teams
In our final year in the MVFC, one of our OOC matchups is against a team we'll be playing against in our conference starting in 2024, and a team that could very well become something of a rival in the future, with them only being about 2 3/4 hours down the road from us.

WIU hasn't won a game since October 30th, 2021.
Lindenwood went 7-3 last year, 3 of those wins were against non-DI teams, so really...4-3 against FCS teams.
Massey has WIU at #61 and Lindenwood at #86, but looking at the Massey Composite, WIU was #106 at the end of last year and Lindenwood was #61.
Sagarin had WIU at #210 out of all of DI at the end of last year with Lindenwood at #216.

Considering we open the season at New Mexico State (FBS) and then host Illinois State prior to the game against Lindenwood, it's possible they could be our first win in nearly two years. Massey currently predicts that they're the only game we're favored to win this season.

[caribbeanhen]

Same theme...NAIA champ Northwestern College visiting Drake on 9-9.

I see they beat Kaiser (Ft Lauderdale) in the championship game 35-25

For want it’s worth Lindenwood beat Kaiser 37-3 last year

[clenz]

There are only 4 ISU schools in D1

This season UNI plays

ISU in week 1 - Iowa State
ISU in week 3 - Idaho State
ISU in week 6 - Indiana State
And
ISU in week 9 - Illinois State

All 4 on the road as well

I will go on record and say UNI will become the first program in college football history to play all 4 schools on the road in the same season - and I bet it will never be done again.

I'll go on record further and say UNI is the only team in college football history to play all 4 ISU schools in the same season at all - and it's the second time they've done it in 5 years

[MSUBobcat]

63 vs 36

Montana State, I suspect, didn't lose that much talent this Spring & Summer. I know Ferris State would steamroll many mid-tier to low-tier FCS programs. However, Montana State should easily cover whatever spread there is.

Now, if someone wants to take a prop bet on a O/U on first half points, that could be good. But I wouldn't place a dime on Ferris State beating that spread.

Wrong Montana school. MSU plays Stetson that weekend, which I suspect is a far easier opponent than Ferris State, unfortunately. Our home schedule is putrid, and our away schedule is brutal, all against 2022 playoff teams (SDSU, Weber, Sac St., Idaho and Montana)

[MSUBobcat]

North American University may sound like a College of Faith redux, but they are an accredited university (albeit one that was founded way back in 2007) and a member of the NAIA, recently gaining conference affiliation. So while not optimal, it's not a total disgrace to be playing them.

North American University also plays Incarnate Word the following week.

[caribbeanhen]

N Arizona at N Dakota on September 9th

[Go...gate]

Lafayette at Duke?

[Tribe4SF]

Lafayette at Duke?

There will be a Study Hall at halftime.

[FUBeAR]

We’ve mostly focused on ‘quirky’ here, but on the ‘interesting’ front, FUBeAR always finds the SoCon’s FBS matchups very interesting.



https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_mercer.png?width=30Mercer (http://www.mercerbears.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/olemiss_200x200_02.png?width=30Mississippi (http://www.olemisssports.com/)*
Oxford, Miss.




https://soconsports.com/images/2020/1/2/etsu_logo.png?width=30ETSU (http://www.etsubucs.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/j5.png?width=30Jacksonville State (http://www.jsugamecocksports.com/)
Jacksonville, Ala.


https://soconsports.com/images/2023/5/30/Terriers_StackedWHITE.png?width=30Wofford (http://woffordterriers.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/pitt_logo_200x200.png?width=30Pittsburgh (http://www.pittsburghpanthers.com/)*
Pittsburgh, Pa.


https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_wcu.png?width=30Western Carolina (https://catamountsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/Arkansas.png?width=30Arkansas (http://www.arkansasrazorbacks.com/)
Little Rock, Ark.




https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_citadel.png?width=30The Citadel (http://www.citadelsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/Georgia-Southern.png?width=30Georgia Southern (http://gseagles.com/)
Statesboro, Ga.




https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_furman.png?width=30Furman (http://www.furmanpaladins.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/south_carolina.png?width=30South Carolina (http://www.gamecocksonline.com/)*
Columbia, S.C.




https://soconsports.com/images/logos/VMI_spider_four_color-2015.png?width=30VMI (https://vmikeydets.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/WolfHeadLogo.png?width=30NC State (http://gopack.com/)*
Raleigh, N.C.




https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_samford.png?width=30Samford (http://www.samfordsports.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/auburn_logo.png?width=30Auburn (http://www.auburntigers.com/)
Auburn, Ala.




https://soconsports.com/images/2019/9/23/logo_chatta_91.png?width=30Chattanooga (http://www.gomocs.com/)
https://soconsports.com/images/logos/alabama_logo.png?width=30Alabama (http://www.rolltide.com/)*
Tuscaloosa, Ala.



* 5 Teams Ranked in Top 25 in at least 1 poll
5 SEC
2 ACC
7 P5
2 G5

FUBeAR believes Samford, as well as Mercer and Furman, even though the latter 2 are playing ranked Teams, will provide competitive games versus their FBS P5 SEC opponents. Also, as many members of the Cock Shock ‘82 Team will be celebrated and in attendance in Columbia, SC on 9/9, FUBeAR would not be surprised to see the ‘23 Paladins pull off a reprise scalping.

[caribbeanhen]

Sacramento State at Nicholls State

31 August

how come Im already trending towards Nicholls State in This game

gonna be hot and muggy for California boys

[lionsrking2]

Sacramento State at Nicholls State

31 August

how come Im already trending towards Nicholls State in This game

gonna be hot and muggy for California boys

Don't know about quirky but SLU at Eastern Washington Sept. 16 is different.

[caribbeanhen]

Don't know about quirky but SLU at Eastern Washington Sept. 16 is different.

thats a good one and I like this Southland vs Big Sky deal

How bout Idaho at Lamar

8/31

[lionsrking2]

thats a good one and I like this Southland vs Big Sky deal

How bout Idaho at Lamar

8/31

I like it too. Don't laugh but Lamar should be improved. They have sneaky good talent returning and hired a good staff. May take some time to show up in W/Ls but don't be surprised if they're a problem for some.

[FUBeAR]

thats a good one and I like this Southland vs Big Sky deal

How bout Idaho at Lamar

8/31FUBeAR is goin’ ALL IN on the Southland over the Big Sky in these games.

Calling my guy right now!!

[caribbeanhen]

Weber St @ N Iowa

September 9th

[FUBeAR]

Weber St @ N Iowa
September 9th
Panthers by a million

[caribbeanhen]

Panthers by a million

funny thing is N Iowa not even ranked in several polls, agree they well handle over rated Weber State at home

[clenz]

funny thing is N Iowa not even ranked in several polls, agree they well handle over rated Weber State at home

Can’t wait to still be told how overrated UNI all season long even though I can already come up with the exact reason used against voting for UNI every single week by people who love to hate on voting UNI win or lose until about week 6 when you couldn’t ignore it anymore.

Lose to Iowa State: already unranked, lost to a FBS that is typically bad. Another overhyped UNI team even though there is no hype
Beat Iowa State: Well ISU is without like 8 players because of the gambling issue, including their starting QB. They suck anyway so it's just a fluke

Lose to Weber: See they played a decent FCS team and lost. They aren't that good. Another year of UNI ****ting the bed OOC
Beat Weber: Yeah but weber was overrated preseason and lost their coach and a bunch of players. Means mostly nothing. Your post already sets it up a month and a half before the game even happens

Lose to Idaho State: there's not an argument I have. That would be horrific.
Beat Idaho State: They are trash anyway. Proves nothing

Lose to YSU: YSU is a team on the rise but not great. Just further proof of how far UNI has fallen.
Beat YSU: YSU has been bottom 4 of the Valley for a while and UNI has only lost to them once in 20 years anyway. Of course they won that one

Indiana State: See both options for Idaho State

Then we get to the one you couldn't ignore:

Lose to SDSU: I'm not sure how anyone would/could hold this against UNI as proof of not ranking/highly ranking unless it's an absolute curbing and SDSU hasn't done that to everyone else.
Beat SDSU: yeah, they beat SDSU again in Brookings for the 6th time in a decade but that's just proof they only get up for that game. Doesn't prove anything.

The next two are UND and ISUr - basically insert a combo of YSU and WSU's reasoning here

Western Illinois and Missouri State - see Idaho State and Indiana State

NDSU: see SDSU.

Genuinely with how out of the mind of voters UNI is and how much hate there is yearly for UNI simply for even existing in the teens or 20s at the end of the season I can genuinely see it taking UNI to get to like 6-0 against the FCS before they'd crack the top 10-15 and I would bet at 9-2 (7-1) would be outside of the top 10 and not seeded.

This UNI team at 8-3 is lucky to be top 15.
7-4 with loses to Iowa State, SDSU, NDSU and either UND or WSU isn't ranked and is left home come playoffs.

But holy **** do we need that third SLC or or WAC program in there.

[caribbeanhen]

Can’t wait to still be told how overrated UNI all season long even though I can already come up with the exact reason used against voting for UNI every single week by people who love to hate on voting UNI win or lose until about week 6 when you couldn’t ignore it anymore.

Lose to Iowa State: already uranked, lost to a FBS that is typically bad. Another overryped UNI team even though there is no hype
Beat Iowa State: Well ISU is without like 8 players because of the gambling issue, including their starting QB. They suck anyway so it's just a fluke

Lose to Weber: See they played a decent FCS team and lost. They aren't that good. Another year of UNI ****ting the bed OOC
Beat Weber: Yeah but weber was overrated preseason and lost their coach and a bunch of players. Means mostly nothing. Your post already sets it up a month and a half before the game even happens

Lose to Idaho State: there's not an argument I have. That would be horrific.
Beat Idaho State: They are trash anyway. Proves nothing

Lose to YSU: YSU is a team on the rise but not great. Just further proof of how far UNI has fallen.
Beat YSU: YSU has been bottom 4 of the Valley for a while and UNI has only lost to them once in 20 years anyawy. Of course they won that one

Indiana State: See both options for Idaho State

Then we get to the one you couldn't ignore:

Lose to SDSU: I'm not sure how anyone would/could hold this against UNI as proof of not ranking/highly ranking unless it's an absolute curbing and SDSU hasn't done that to everyone else.
Beat SDSU: yeah, they beat SDSU again in brookings for the 6th time in a decade but that's just proof they only get up for that game. Doesn't prove anythign.

The next two are UND and ISUr - basically insert a combo of YSU and WSU's reasoning here

Western Illinois and Missouri State - see Idaho State and Indiana State

NDSU: see SDSU.

Genuinely with how out of the mind of voters UNI is and how much hate there is yearly for UNI simply for even existing in the teens or 20s at the end of the season I can genuinely see it taking UNI to get to like 6-0 against the FCS before they'd crack the top 10-15 and I would bet at 9-2 (7-1) would be outside of the top 10 and not seeded.

This UNI team at 8-3 is lucky to be top 15.
7-4 with loses to Iowa State, SDSU, NDSU and either UND or WSU isn't ranked and is left home come playoffs.

But holy **** do we need that third SLC or or WAC program in there.

whatever you do just beat Weber St and go from there

[MUHAWKS]

Albany @ Hawaii week 2 seems odd, but the thing is Hawaii was awful. Can The Danes compete if they can handle the time change? Maybe.

[caribbeanhen]

Albany @ Hawaii week 2 seems odd, but the thing is Hawaii was awful. Can The Danes compete if they can handle the time change? Maybe.

I’ve liked the Albany QB from first game I saw him, he’s a playmaker and yes Hawaii was horrible

Poffenbarger is first team CAA pre season QB according to Phil Steele who got it right IMO

https://philsteele.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/2023-FCS-CAA-Team.pdf

[ElCid]

Albany @ Hawaii week 2 seems odd, but the thing is Hawaii was awful. Can The Danes compete if they can handle the time change? Maybe.

Hawaii's 12th man is especially hard for east coast teams to beat. Hawaii usually stinks, but that trip sucks the life out of teams. End of last season they were rated by Massey as being between Jackson St and Princeton, so about #31 FCS. Doable if the trip/time change don't screw with the Danes.

[FUBeAR]

Samford at Eastern Kentucky

September 16th
Not exactly…

Samford @ WCU 9/9
WCU @ EKU 9/16

[caribbeanhen]

Not exactly…

Samford @ WCU 9/9
WCU @ EKU 9/16

nice catch

I’ll get rid of it

[JacksFan40]

Don’t think anyone mentioned this but St. Thomas @ Harvard on September 16th is an interesting match up. Reigning PFL champions in just their 3rd year in D1 going up against an always solid Ivy team.

St. Thomas plays USD the week before but I expect USD to roll them.

[grizband]

One interesting note about Montana's OOC schedule in 2023: the Griz are playing two teams they've never met before (Butler and Ferris State), and one other team they've only played once (Utah Tech).

[FUBeAR]

One interesting note about Montana's OOC schedule in 2023: the Griz are playing two teams they've never met before (Butler and Ferris State), and one other team they've only played once (Utah Tech).
So Montana’s OOC Schedule is…

* a D2
* a Non-Schollie (D3 equivalent) that lost to 3 other non-schollie Teams last year
* a recently transitioned Team that has a total of 4 D1 wins in the past 3 seasons.

Geez - if they can avoid losing 3 Conference games, they should be set up nicely for a Top 4 Seed with that kind of OOC gauntlet!

[MR. CHICKEN]

So Montana’s OOC Schedule is…

* a D2
* a Non-Schollie (D3 equivalent) that lost to 3 other non-schollie Teams last year
* a recently transitioned Team that has a total of 4 D1 wins in the past 3 seasons.

Geez - if they can avoid losing 3 Conference games, they should be set up nicely for a Top 4 Seed with that kind of OOC gauntlet!

.....DUH D-2........LEASTLY......IS UH GOOD'UN...........BAWK!

[Reign of Terrier]

FCS OOC games are a constant reminder than for 98% of the subdivision they exist for the sake of not losing money.

[grizband]

So Montana’s OOC Schedule is…

* a D2
* a Non-Schollie (D3 equivalent) that lost to 3 other non-schollie Teams last year
* a recently transitioned Team that has a total of 4 D1 wins in the past 3 seasons.

Geez - if they can avoid losing 3 Conference games, they should be set up nicely for a Top 4 Seed with that kind of OOC gauntlet!

I will grant you that two of those things are correct. Butler may be non-scholly, but are D-3 comparisons accurate? However, Ferris State is the defending two-time Division 2 national champion, so if we're going to play a D2 school, at least they're the best.

[clenz]

I will grant you that two of those things are correct. Butler may be non-scholly, but are D-3 comparisons accurate? However, Ferris State is the defending two-time Division 2 national champion, so if we're going to play a D2 school, at least they're the best.
Butler, and most of the PFL would get skull ****ed by the top 25-50 of D3 programs. Look what St. Thomas has done in 2 years. That conference is now theirs and they changed literally zero in terms of scholarships or recruiting. That roster was the kids they had at D3 - and they weren't even dominating D3 when they left.

The PFL plays on the road to non D1s...and loses.

[FUBeAR]

I will grant you that two of those things are correct. Butler may be non-scholly, but are D-3 comparisons accurate? However, Ferris State is the defending two-time Division 2 national champion, so if we're going to play a D2 school, at least they're the best.
Had some good exposure to D3’s and PFL during Mercer’s startup. Won’t go as far as clenz to disparage the PFL vs. other D3’s, but…yeah…except when San Diego & Jacksonville were cheating, PFL Teams are D3 level, competitively-speaking.

And, for fun, let’s do some math…

85-63 = 22
63-36 = 27
(27-22)/22 = ~23%

That tells us FCS Teams, in general, have about 23% greater advantage over D2 Teams than FBS Teams have over FCS Teams.

All time, FCS Teams have upset FBS Teams 15% of the time.

23% of 15% is ~3.5 … so, all things being equal, the Griz have a ~90% chance of winning that game…before any other factors are considered.

IOW - All 3 of Montana’s Out of Conference Games are shown below…

🧁🧁🧁

[caribbeanhen]

Butler, and most of the PFL would get skull ****ed by the top 25-50 of D3 programs. Look what St. Thomas has done in 2 years. That conference is now theirs and they changed literally zero in terms of scholarships or recruiting. That roster was the kids they had at D3 - and they weren't even dominating D3 when they left.

The PFL plays on the road to non D1s...and loses.

the only thing debatable about this is the 25-50. 50 sounds high but we’ll never know

[clenz]

Had some good exposure to D3’s and PFL during Mercer’s startup. Won’t go as far as clenz to disparage the PFL vs. other D3’s, but…yeah…except when San Diego & Jacksonville were cheating, PFL Teams are D3 level, competitively-speaking.

And, for fun, let’s do some math…

85-63 = 22
63-36 = 27
(27-22)/22 = ~23%

That tells us FCS Teams, in general, have about 23% greater advantage over D2 Teams than FBS Teams have over FCS Teams.

All time, FCS Teams have upset FBS Teams 15% of the time.

23% of 15% is ~3.5 … so, all things being equal, the Griz have a ~90% chance of winning that game…before any other factors are considered.

IOW - All 3 of Montana’s Out of Conference Games are shown below…
[emoji3164][emoji3164][emoji3164]

The thing about living where I do is I’m extremely familiar with lower level football. Iowa has 3 million people and 34 college football programs. 30 of which are D2 or lower. Well, 31 but D+ gets D1 INO. I also played D3 ball.

The quality varies from really bad D3 to the team I played for in college in the ad3 semis this past season. We have the worst you could imagine NAIA to programs like Northwestern, Morningside, and Grandview who have dominated NAIA for the better part of a decade and a half. Not only that I grew up 30 minutes from Northwestern and an hour from Sioux Falls who dominated NAIA before going D2 and passing the throne to the 3 Iowa schools i mentioned.

The PFL would be a bottom half D3 conference. San Diego and St. Thomas are extreme outliers.

Having said that I’ve been begging for UNO to schedule PFL, SEAC, MEAC, etc like Montana and the Dakotas do for years. It makes it impossible to miss the playoffs if you’re a name program and all you have to do os hit 500 in league play to get to 7 wins be cause of your OOC.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[caribbeanhen]

Delaware brought in a JUCO from the state of Iowa

Zach Marker

You know anything about the player Clenz ?

[clenz]

Delaware brought in a JUCO from the state of Iowa

Zach Marker

You know anything about the player Clenz ?

3rd team all state in his class as a senior. IIRC he completed something like 51% of his passes. Not super great but he ran for about 1000 I think.

Iowa Central is one of the two best JUCOs in Iowa to grab a kid from typically. It’s where UNI lands any juco they go after but they’ve been down for a while now after legendary Coach Twait retired. His dad is one of the best HS coaches in Iowa history. He built ICCC into a power and it fell hard after he left. His son Cal was a 4 year starter and All Conference kid at UNI

Tough to gauge JUCO stats in general because the way they rotate, more so at ICCC than most as they really do try to split time like crazy.

Either you pulled one over in literally every school in the Midwest by taking a kid from Iowa at an Iowa JUCO….or…you wonder why no Midwest school even sniffed around at him. Given his completion numbers and rushing numbers look like Tebow in the NFL you can assume why UNI, ISUr, the Dakotas, etc. didn’t give him much time. Especially since UNIs best basketball player and one of the 3 best players in the Valley was a HS classmate of his. The connection would have been there. A lot can change with systems and aging but 3 years JUCO and his HS stats wouldn’t inspire a ton of confidence if he was my teams #1


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[caribbeanhen]

3rd team all state in his class as a senior. IIRC he completed something like 51% of his passes. Not super great but he ran for about 1000 I think.

Iowa Central is one of the two best JUCOs in Iowa to grab a kid from typically. It’s where UNI lands any juco they go after but they’ve been down for a while now after legendary Coach Twait retired. His dad is one of the best HS coaches in Iowa history. He built ICCC into a power and it fell hard after he left. His son Cal was a 4 year starter and All Conference kid at UNI

Tough to gauge JUCO stats in general because the way they rotate, more so at ICCC than most as they really do try to split time like crazy.

Either you pulled one over in literally every school in the Midwest by taking a kid from Iowa at an Iowa JUCO….or…you wonder why no Midwest school even sniffed around at him. Given his completion numbers and rushing numbers look like Tebow in the NFL you can assume why UNI, ISUr, the Dakotas, etc. didn’t give him much time. Especially since UNIs best basketball player and one of the 3 best players in the Valley was a HS classmate of his. The connection would have been there. A lot can change with systems and aging but 3 years JUCO and his HS stats wouldn’t inspire a ton of confidence if he was my teams #1


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

excellent reply! thank you Clenz

I checked out one of his games and he had just enough talent to make you see why Ryan Carty would want him, but at the same time I wanted to see more. He’s not really fast but tough and savvy, kind of like Sluka in a way so I called him Sluka lite. 😂 Now he’s obviously no Sluka but he’s got something to him. He can make throws on the run and has the athleticism Carty likes. I don’t remember Delaware ever having a QB from the mid west and how Delaware got tipped off about him I have no idea.

Having said all that, not sure if he’s going to win starting job, it’s a close battle. I think Delaware will be playing 2 QBs

[JacksFan40]

Butler, and most of the PFL would get skull ****ed by the top 25-50 of D3 programs. Look what St. Thomas has done in 2 years. That conference is now theirs and they changed literally zero in terms of scholarships or recruiting. That roster was the kids they had at D3 - and they weren't even dominating D3 when they left.

The PFL plays on the road to non D1s...and loses.
St. Thomas had only one season from 2010-2020 where they lost more than 2 games. They weren’t a UW-Whitewater or Mount Union type program, but they were a dominant D3 team. Easily top 10 and debatably top 5 during that timespan. They were routinely winning by massive margins, and only lost to that absolute top teams.

[MR. CHICKEN]

St. Thomas had only one season from 2010-2020 where they lost more than 2 games. They weren’t a UW-Whitewater or Mount Union type program, but they were a dominant D3 team. Easily top 10 and debatably top 5 during that timespan. They were routinely winning by massive margins, and only lost to that absolute top teams.

.....AS WAS....DELAWARE'S......WESLEY COLLEGE......BRAWK!

[caribbeanhen]

Harvard at Holy Cross

9/30

[uni88]

Had some good exposure to D3’s and PFL during Mercer’s startup. Won’t go as far as clenz to disparage the PFL vs. other D3’s, but…yeah…except when San Diego & Jacksonville were cheating, PFL Teams are D3 level, competitively-speaking.

And, for fun, let’s do some math…

85-63 = 22
63-36 = 27
(27-22)/22 = ~23%

That tells us FCS Teams, in general, have about 23% greater advantage over D2 Teams than FBS Teams have over FCS Teams.

All time, FCS Teams have upset FBS Teams 15% of the time.

23% of 15% is ~3.5 … so, all things being equal, the Griz have a ~90% chance of winning that game…before any other factors are considered.

IOW - All 3 of Montana’s Out of Conference Games are shown below…

療療療


I wonder how Ferris State would do in the SoCon?

[DFW HOYA]

So Montana’s OOC Schedule is…

* a D2
* a Non-Schollie (D3 equivalent) that lost to 3 other non-schollie Teams last year
* a recently transitioned Team that has a total of 4 D1 wins in the past 3 seasons.

Geez - if they can avoid losing 3 Conference games, they should be set up nicely for a Top 4 Seed with that kind of OOC gauntlet!


A non-scholarship Division I program is not a Division III equivalent. There are significant differences in recruiting, in coaching, and in S&C. A team like Yale would destroy a Division III team, which is one reason that don't play NESCAC schools.

[caribbeanhen]

A non-scholarship Division I program is not a Division III equivalent. There are significant differences in recruiting, in coaching, and in S&C. A team like Yale would destroy a Division III team, which is one reason that don't play NESCAC schools.

but Yale is a top 25 FCS team (in my poll)

[FUBeAR]

A non-scholarship Division I program is not a Division III equivalent. There are significant differences in recruiting, in coaching, and in S&C. A team like Yale would destroy a Division III team, which is one reason that don't play NESCAC schools.Ivy League is not PFL.

FUBeAR was flagrantly imprecise in his language. Dr. Duncan McArthur and Miss Betsy Rogers would be most disappointed in FUBeAR’s failure to communicate effectively. He has embarrassed their legacy.

Although…wait…now that he is examining the quoted post, he was referencing a specific PFL Team, so, upon further review, he doesn’t feel as if he disappointed his English mentors. Montana’s “Non-Schollie” opponent is, IFBO, a D3 equivalent.

[caribbeanhen]

Dartmouth at New Hampshire

September 16th

[UNHWildcat18]

Dartmouth at New Hampshire

September 16th

Sadly missing the Granite Bowl this year, that being said I think we put a beat down on Dartmouth

[bonarae]

Sadly missing the Granite Bowl this year, that being said I think we put a beat down on Dartmouth

Yes, UNH trending in the right direction and Dartmouth on the other especially with Teevens not on the sideline at least... he'll probably step down for real by the end of the season.

[caribbeanhen]

Holy Cross at Yale

9/16

[OhioHen]

A non-scholarship Division I program is not a Division III equivalent. There are significant differences in recruiting, in coaching, and in S&C. A team like Yale would destroy a Division III team, which is one reason that don't play NESCAC schools.
A team like Yale is technically "non-scholarship" but most of their players are receiving significant aid that functions just like an athletic scholarship.

The Ivies identify as "non-scholarship" but that just makes them part of the alphabet soup. Maybe the I in LGBTQIA+ really means Ivy League.

[Reign of Terrier]

One of the problems of the FCS (maybe it's not a problem so much as it is a weird feature) is that it's hard to put into words and simple categories why some conferences are better/worse. The Ivy league is one of those conferences. Yeah, they don't play in the playoffs. Yeah, they don't technically have scholarships. Yeah, their facilities aren't spectacular at every institution (a Wofford parent told me ours was better, just for one anecdote). So where does that put them?

Because no one on the football team at some of these Ivys, maybe all of them, are paying full sticker price. It's either Harvard or Yale or both, but students whose families are below a certain threshold basically get a free ride, and that includes football players. On one hand, you'd think this is an advantage, but I would imagine academics and extra curricular requirements for these institutions would make it hard for most athletes, regardless of talent and academic prowess, to qualify.

I think any conversation about conference strength needs to abide by this nuance. I think the Ivys deserve to not be thought of as FCS, and honestly same with the MEAC/SWAC (because they prefer to play HBCUS, regardless of division, to FCS teams OOC, to say nothing of not playing in the playoffs), not because they are better or worse, but because they don't really value the same things, don't try to play in the playoffs, and have a lot of off the field commitments that make them a black sheep relative to the rest of the FCS.

None of that is bad! But it's almost like talking about 2 different sports, or, say the G-League in the NBA vs midmajor college basketball. It's not really the same thing, even if it's very similar.

[ST_Lawson]

I wonder how Ferris State would do in the SoCon?

Based on Massey Ratings (so take it with a giant grain of salt)...this would be the results of H2H between Ferris State and the current SoCon members, on a neutral field:
Furman - 28-24 loss
Samford - 31-28 loss
Chattanooga - 27-24 loss
Mercer - 30-27 loss
ETSU - 30-27 win
W Carolina - 34-27 win
Wofford - 31-24 win
Citadel - 28-20 win
VMI - 34-21 win

So, predicted 5-4 in the conference, with most of the games being within one score.

[ElCid]

One of the problems of the FCS (maybe it's not a problem so much as it is a weird feature) is that it's hard to put into words and simple categories why some conferences are better/worse. The Ivy league is one of those conferences. Yeah, they don't play in the playoffs. Yeah, they don't technically have scholarships. Yeah, their facilities aren't spectacular at every institution (a Wofford parent told me ours was better, just for one anecdote). So where does that put them?

Because no one on the football team at some of these Ivys, maybe all of them, are paying full sticker price. It's either Harvard or Yale or both, but students whose families are below a certain threshold basically get a free ride, and that includes football players. On one hand, you'd think this is an advantage, but I would imagine academics and extra curricular requirements for these institutions would make it hard for most athletes, regardless of talent and academic prowess, to qualify.

I think any conversation about conference strength needs to abide by this nuance. I think the Ivys deserve to not be thought of as FCS, and honestly same with the MEAC/SWAC (because they prefer to play HBCUS, regardless of division, to FCS teams OOC, to say nothing of not playing in the playoffs), not because they are better or worse, but because they don't really value the same things, don't try to play in the playoffs, and have a lot of off the field commitments that make them a black sheep relative to the rest of the FCS.

None of that is bad! But it's almost like talking about 2 different sports, or, say the G-League in the NBA vs midmajor college basketball. It's not really the same thing, even if it's very similar.

The Ivies are FCS in name only. Their storied past prevents them from being part of FCS. They would rather remain in no-mans land and pretend they are still at the highest level. To participate in the playoffs would blow up this fantasy. Even if they state it has to do with academics, their participation in other sports playoffs makes that position somewhat questionable. Granted, the football playoffs are a bit more demanding, but the difference in positions between sports is telling.

[Reign of Terrier]

Based on Massey Ratings (so take it with a giant grain of salt)...this would be the results of H2H between Ferris State and the current SoCon members, on a neutral field:
Furman - 28-24 loss
Samford - 31-28 loss
Chattanooga - 27-24 loss
Mercer - 30-27 loss
ETSU - 30-27 win
W Carolina - 34-27 win
Wofford - 31-24 win
Citadel - 28-20 win
VMI - 34-21 win

So, predicted 5-4 in the conference, with most of the games being within one score.

I feel like if we prohibited citing computer rankings, 60% of the content from MVFC posters not named NDSU or SDSU would disappear

[caribbeanhen]

The Ivies are FCS in name only. Their storied past prevents them from being part of FCS. They would rather remain in no-mans land and pretend they are still at the highest level. To participate in the playoffs would blow up this fantasy. Even if they state it has to do with academics, their participation in other sports playoffs makes that position somewhat questionable. Granted, the football playoffs are a bit more demanding, but the difference in positions between sports is telling.

The top Ivies are good and they have no interest in proving it unfortunately

The Ivy OOC schedule is very disappointing once again

[SeattleCat]

That is an interesting game. I wonder how much Ferris State has coming back from their title team.

Dewey

This is a very interesting game. If the griz lose, bobby might not make it out of the stadium with a job.

[SeattleCat]

63 vs 36

Montana State, I suspect, didn't lose that much talent this Spring & Summer. I know Ferris State would steamroll many mid-tier to low-tier FCS programs. However, Montana State should easily cover whatever spread there is.

Now, if someone wants to take a prop bet on a O/U on first half points, that could be good. But I wouldn't place a dime on Ferris State beating that spread.

Bobcats aren't playing Ferris, Gris are. Cats would roll Ferris, score on every possession no match for our O line.

[caribbeanhen]

St Thomas at Harvard
9/16 Saturday

trying to have game moved to Friday night so PWO will see it

[ST_Lawson]

I feel like if we prohibited citing computer rankings, 60% of the content from MVFC posters not named NDSU or SDSU would disappear

I mean...if you've got a better way to compare a top DII football team to an entire FCS conference of teams that they are unlikely to ever play, then I'm all ears.

[FUBeAR]

I mean...if you've got a better way to compare a top DII football team to an entire FCS conference of teams that they are unlikely to ever play, then I'm all ears.
Why, other than to satisfy the sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek, likely rhetorical curiosity of another MVFC fan, would one seek to “compare a DII football team to an entire FCS conference of teams that they are unlikely to ever play?”

Seems akin to striving to provide a scientifically accurate response to the question, “If the Professor on Gilligan’s Island can make a radio out of a coconut, why can’t he fix a hole in a boat?”

[caribbeanhen]

Why, other than to satisfy the sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek, likely rhetorical curiosity of another MVFC fan, would one seek to “compare a DII football team to an entire FCS conference of teams that they are unlikely to ever play?”

Seems akin to striving to provide a scientifically accurate response to the question, “If the Professor on Gilligan’s Island can make a radio out of a coconut, why can’t he fix a hole in a boat?”

Like fixing a whole where the rain gets in?

[ST_Lawson]

Why, other than to satisfy the sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek, likely rhetorical curiosity of another MVFC fan, would one seek to “compare a DII football team to an entire FCS conference of teams that they are unlikely to ever play?”

It's still the offseason, we have weeks to go until games actually start, and some of us are bored.


Seems akin to striving to provide a scientifically accurate response to the question, “If the Professor on Gilligan’s Island can make a radio out of a coconut, why can’t he fix a hole in a boat?”

Because they weren't really "lost", they were in a "Truman Show"-type situation. Most of the people didn't realize it, although the professor was in on it and would build just enough to make it seem like he was trying to get them off the island, but without actually getting them off the island. Periodically the producers of the show would bring in "guest stars" to keep things interesting or promote another show/musician/whatever.

[caribbeanhen]

It's still the offseason, we have weeks to go until games actually start, and some of us are bored.



Because they weren't really "lost", they were in a "Truman Show"-type situation. Most of the people didn't realize it, although the professor was in on it and would build just enough to make it seem like he was trying to get them off the island, but without actually getting them off the island. Periodically the producers of the show would bring in "guest stars" to keep things interesting or promote another show/musician/whatever.

all alone on a desert island
Only Ginger and Mary Anne too see

Being rescued not for me

We’re the Blue Balls
We’re the bluebirds
We’re the Blue Balls

yea yea yea

SPM

[FUBeAR]

It's still the offseason, we have weeks to go until games actually start, and some of us are bored.



Because they weren't really "lost", they were in a "Truman Show"-type situation. Most of the people didn't realize it, although the professor was in on it and would build just enough to make it seem like he was trying to get them off the island, but without actually getting them off the island. Periodically the producers of the show would bring in "guest stars" to keep things interesting or promote another show/musician/whatever.

https://media.tenor.com/XTf52gDvDAMAAAAC/thumbs-up.gif

[caribbeanhen]

Campbell at NC Central

9/30

[caribbeanhen]

Elon at Gardner Webb

9/9

[FUBeAR]

Elon at Gardner Webb

9/9
These 2 Teams will be reprising their 2022 game played just outside of the Burlington, NC metroplex, when the Gardner-Webb playoff-bound Team that the SoCon's Mercer Bears thrashed, on the road, by 5 scores, very nearly cut this top-tier CAA Playoff Team. While the SoCon's Bears led G-W by 3 scores before most of the fans were seated in Boiling Springs and played subs liberally throughout the contest, the CAA's Formerly Fightin' Former Christians just edged ahead of Big South G-W with 5 minutes left in the 3rd quarter and only won by a scant 6 points (30-24).

This should be another close one with these 2 2022 Playoff Teams (how does a Team that absolutely decimated a Playoff Team (that won a Playoff game) not make the Playoffs?) battling it out. Top tier of the Big South vs. Top tier of the CAA is always a tight matchup.

FUBeAR will go with Tre Lamb and the Runnin' Bulldogs, in a close one, 31-27 Gardner-Webb.

[MR. CHICKEN]

32912

......RHODE ISLAND @ TOWSON.......LAST GAME UH REGULAR SEASON.....YA'S KNOW.....DUH ONE DAT...ALWAYS....KNOCKS DUH SHEEP....OUTTAH DUH DANCE..........BAH!

[caribbeanhen]

https://herosports.com/fcs-football-best-2023-non-conference-games-bzbz/

we miss any?

[Ridge1982]

Not quite as interesting and quirky as some of the FCS vs lower division (or no division) matchups listed, but I see our third game of the season this year as being rather interesting.

WIU hosts Lindenwood...the first ever matchup between the two teams
In our final year in the MVFC, one of our OOC matchups is against a team we'll be playing against in our conference starting in 2024, and a team that could very well become something of a rival in the future, with them only being about 2 3/4 hours down the road from us.

WIU hasn't won a game since October 30th, 2021.
Lindenwood went 7-3 last year, 3 of those wins were against non-DI teams, so really...4-3 against FCS teams.
Massey has WIU at #61 and Lindenwood at #86, but looking at the Massey Composite, WIU was #106 at the end of last year and Lindenwood was #61.
Sagarin had WIU at #210 out of all of DI at the end of last year with Lindenwood at #216.

Considering we open the season at New Mexico State (FBS) and then host Illinois State prior to the game against Lindenwood, it's possible they could be our first win in nearly two years. Massey currently predicts that they're the only game we're favored to win this season.

Yeah, I’m looking forward to our meeting too. Macomb is a nice town and I miss going up there when the Rams had their offseason practices at WIU.

[clenz]

https://herosports.com/fcs-football-best-2023-non-conference-games-bzbz/

we miss any?Apparently SEMO and EKU are two of the most "interesting" teams in the country.

It'll be real interesting when neither gets past the round of 16, that's for sure.

[katss07]

No.16 UC Davis at Texas A&M-Commerce (Thursday, 8/31) is a weird, but interesting one. Commerce is in their second year of FCS play and this is their first time hosting a team from a major conference. TAMUC pulled off a few upsets last year.

CH mentioned Idaho at Lamar already.

SFA travels across the border to Natchitoches on 9/16 to play Northwestern State for what is now a non-conference game. Haven’t played since 2019, and this will be the final time SFA plays at Turpin Stadium for the foreseeable future. No scheduled dates after the NWST visit to Nac in 2025. It will also be the first time since 1960 that the Chief Caddo trophy will NOT be on the line in the rivalry game.

[OhioHen]

Apparently SEMO and EKU are two of the most "interesting" teams in the country.

It'll be real interesting when neither gets past the round of 16, that's for sure.
And it appears that Ferris State is now an FCS team.

[Reign of Terrier]

https://herosports.com/fcs-football-best-2023-non-conference-games-bzbz/

we miss any?

My homer answer is Wofford/W&M. Like, you can think I'm totally annoying, but if you told anyone 3 years ago that that was a potential OOC game, anyone would be interested. Any time you get two fully-funded FCS programs in top 5 conferences to play, that should be interesting. But it's not for Herder, because he literally only follows 2 conferences + whomever makes the playoffs the year before. He's kind of regressed IMO

[MSUBobcat]

Apparently SEMO and EKU are two of the most "interesting" teams in the country.

It'll be real interesting when neither gets past the round of 16, that's for sure.

In much the same way that a dude that drinks Dos Equis is the Most Interesting Man in the World.

And who is interested in watching NDSU mop the floor with EWU? Are we thinking EWU made a dramatic turnaround or is it because they are going to play in a cavernous US Bank Stadium?

[caribbeanhen]

My homer answer is Wofford/W&M. Like, you can think I'm totally annoying, but if you told anyone 3 years ago that that was a potential OOC game, anyone would be interested. Any time you get two fully-funded FCS programs in top 5 conferences to play, that should be interesting. But it's not for Herder, because he literally only follows 2 conferences + whomever makes the playoffs the year before. He's kind of regressed IMO

Herder obviously has some contractual obligations that require him to vote for certain teams… now I don’t really know if that is true but if it’s not, he’s the pet FCS rock.

I totally agree with you on the game being a very interesting one and more like it are needed

[MSUBobcat]

My homer answer is Wofford/W&M. Like, you can think I'm totally annoying, but if you told anyone 3 years ago that that was a potential OOC game, anyone would be interested. Any time you get two fully-funded FCS programs in top 5 conferences to play, that should be interesting. But it's not for Herder, because he literally only follows 2 conferences + whomever makes the playoffs the year before. He's kind of regressed IMO

ANY time? Maybe I don't know who your top 5 conferences are with the shakeup, but just looking at the Big Sky schedule: Sac St @ Nicholls St, Idaho @ Lamar, NoCo @ ACU, IWU @ NoCo (NoCo vs ANYBODY, for that matter), UNI @ ISU-o, etc. aren't super interesting IMO. Where those teams are in their respective conference matters to me. Two bottom tier teams facing off, meh. A top tier vs bottom tier, even more meh. Just my personal preference. Normally I'd say Wofford vs W&M wouldn't intrigue me, but now that it may be a sign of whether Wofford is back, my interest is piqued slightly.

[FUBeAR]

My homer answer is Wofford/W&M. Like, you can think I'm totally annoying, but if you told anyone 3 years ago that that was a potential OOC game, anyone would be interested. Any time you get two fully-funded FCS programs in top 5 conferences to play, that should be interesting. But it's not for Herder, because he literally only follows 2 conferences + whomever makes the playoffs the year before. He's kind of regressed IMO

Herder obviously has some contractual obligations that require him to vote for certain teams…Ouch!

https://media.tenor.com/0Zl51hrMZ7kAAAAC/coup-de-pelle-shovel-hit.gif

That shovel to the face acknowledged.

Mr. Herder recently did a podcast that was supposed to cover the "FCS Story Lines of 2023." (FCS - not "Big Sky and MVFC Story Lines"..."FCS Story Lines").

It was 34 minutes long and he talked about SoCon Teams for 1:30 of that 34 minutes. The SoCon has 2 Teams ranked in the Top 10 and 3 or 4 in the Top 25. Should be 3 in the Top 15. 4 in the Top 20 and 5 (includes WCU) in the Top 25...but that's another matter.

FUBeAR didn't time the amount of time he spent on MVFC and Big Sky Teams, but he would guess it far exceeded half of the podcast.

Mr. Herder, though, did find time to complain about the paucity of his podcast listeners located in the South. FUBeAR guesses Mr. Herder finds it odd that Southern listeners don't care to hear 5 minutes each on Sacramento State, Southern Illinois, and UC Davis, while hearing only about 20 seconds each about only 3 or 4 Southern Teams. FUBeAR saw that at least 1 listener 'called him out' on it over social media.

He could argue he's speaking to his listening audience. That's fine, but he shouldn't position himself as THE NATIONAL pundit for FCS then. Gotta acknowledge the 'chicken and egg factor.' Maybe he talks about non-Southern Teams because Southern Fans aren't listening OR maybe Southern Fans aren't listening because he doesn't talk about Southern Teams.

Can't be THE NATIONAL FCS GUY and then all but ignore 2/3rd's of the Nation.

[caribbeanhen]

https://herosports.com/herder-2023-fcs-preseason-top-25-bzbz/

The link is Sams preseason top 25 poll

He’s higher on Furman and Samford than most

North Carolina A&T over UNH… good

He always finds an excuse to rank a few SWAC teams

but Idaho at 6? Why?

25. Florida A&M
24. Gardner-Webb
23. Delaware
22. Northern Iowa
21. Youngstown State
20. Mercer
19. Jackson State
18. Southeastern Louisiana University
17. UC Davis
16. North Dakota
15. Montana
14. New Hampshire
13. North Carolina Central
12. Weber State
11. SEMO
10. Sacramento State
9. Incarnate Word
8. Samford
7. William & Mary
6. Idaho
5. Furman
4. Holy Cross
3. Montana State
2. North Dakota State
1. South Dakota State

[clenz]

but Idaho at 6? Why?


Because they beat Montana, had 7 wins, and lost in the first round of the playoffs in "good" fashion.
I mean, sure the combined record of those 6 other wins was something like 17-49 with one of them being the 8th place PFL team, and group of Big Sky schools that went either 1-10, 3-8, or 4-7 respectively and only beat the other bottom teams of the Big Sky, but that just shows how dominating they are if you really break it down.

[caribbeanhen]

Because they beat Montana, had 7 wins, and lost in the first round of the playoffs in "good" fashion.
I mean, sure the combined record of those 6 other wins was something like 17-49 with one of them being the 8th place PFL team, and group of Big Sky schools that went either 1-10, 3-8, or 4-7 respectively and only beat the other bottom teams of the Big Sky, but that just shows how dominating they are if you really break it down.

Well Ore-Ida then..

if Idaho was to play at Northern Iowa I bet Vegas favors #22 over #6 by 3.5

Idaho does have a dynamic QB/WR tandem that is going to win them some games but Herder seems to brush off Southeastern Louisiana in his poll as well

[Reign of Terrier]

Herder obviously has some contractual obligations that require him to vote for certain teams… now I don’t really know if that is true but if it’s not, he’s the pet FCS rock.

I totally agree with you on the game being a very interesting one and more like it are needed

It's not that he's tanked for the MVFC/Big Sky, so much as he is tanked for Vegas. The Southern Conference, CAA, and whomever you want to call the 5th best conference or below are just not interesting conversation pieces for Vegas because (like most FCS) those games are hard to predict and those teams won't be relevant in December. Hero sports, etc basically exist to keep tabs on storylines/trends for gamblers and the outcome of Charleston Southern v. Gardner Webb doesn't interest them, but the entire Big Sky/MVFC slate does. That's possibly also due to potential listener numbers but it's almost certainly a Vegas angle.

And to be clear I don't want to begrudge the guy. He does really good for a one man shop! But he's still a one man shop, and hero sports, etc could learn from FCS Nation and have individuals covering each conference.


ANY time? Maybe I don't know who your top 5 conferences are with the shakeup, but just looking at the Big Sky schedule: Sac St @ Nicholls St, Idaho @ Lamar, NoCo @ ACU, IWU @ NoCo (NoCo vs ANYBODY, for that matter), UNI @ ISU-o, etc. aren't super interesting IMO. Where those teams are in their respective conference matters to me. Two bottom tier teams facing off, meh. A top tier vs bottom tier, even more meh. Just my personal preference. Normally I'd say Wofford vs W&M wouldn't intrigue me, but now that it may be a sign of whether Wofford is back, my interest is piqued slightly.

So maybe this is my personal preference, but I think all of those games would be really interesting if I were a fan of those conference. Maybe not the Northern Colorado game, but what makes this genre of game interesting is because it could potentially have playoff implications down the road. Like, I can think of a few years back when a random August/September game basically put Samford in the playoffs by beating SELA (I think it was 2016?). Now, I'll admit, I'm less of an FCS Fan In General, as much as I am a Wofford/SoCon fan, but if I'm in a fully-funded conference and someone in my conference is playing another somewhat major conference OOC, I'm interested.


Ouch!

https://media.tenor.com/0Zl51hrMZ7kAAAAC/coup-de-pelle-shovel-hit.gif

That shovel to the face acknowledged.

Mr. Herder recently did a podcast that was supposed to cover the "FCS Story Lines of 2023." (FCS - not "Big Sky and MVFC Story Lines"..."FCS Story Lines").

It was 34 minutes long and he talked about SoCon Teams for 1:30 of that 34 minutes. The SoCon has 2 Teams ranked in the Top 10 and 3 or 4 in the Top 25. Should be 3 in the Top 15. 4 in the Top 20 and 5 (includes WCU) in the Top 25...but that's another matter.

FUBeAR didn't time the amount of time he spent on MVFC and Big Sky Teams, but he would guess it far exceeded half of the podcast.

Mr. Herder, though, did find time to complain about the paucity of his podcast listeners located in the South. FUBeAR guesses Mr. Herder finds it odd that Southern listeners don't care to hear 5 minutes each on Sacramento State, Southern Illinois, and UC Davis, while hearing only about 20 seconds each about only 3 or 4 Southern Teams. FUBeAR saw that at least 1 listener 'called him out' on it over social media.

He could argue he's speaking to his listening audience. That's fine, but he shouldn't position himself as THE NATIONAL pundit for FCS then. Gotta acknowledge the 'chicken and egg factor.' Maybe he talks about non-Southern Teams because Southern Fans aren't listening OR maybe Southern Fans aren't listening because he doesn't talk about Southern Teams.

Can't be THE NATIONAL FCS GUY and then all but ignore 2/3rd's of the Nation.

See my prior comments above. FCS Nation (run by Citdog) is probably the best national rundown of what's going on. And even though Cit Dog (Kevin) is a total homer a lot of times, he definitely likes the whole subdivision. He definitely caters to gamblers too, but his entry point was FCS not the Bizon.


Because they beat Montana, had 7 wins, and lost in the first round of the playoffs in "good" fashion.
I mean, sure the combined record of those 6 other wins was something like 17-49 with one of them being the 8th place PFL team, and group of Big Sky schools that went either 1-10, 3-8, or 4-7 respectively and only beat the other bottom teams of the Big Sky, but that just shows how dominating they are if you really break it down.

Never ask a woman her weight, a man his income, or a Big Sky team how many away playoff games they've played in the last decade (or the record of their opponents)

[aceinthehole]

Central Connecticut will open up the Adam Lechtenberg era on Sep. 2 under the lights at Arute Field vs. American International College. AIC is a D-II program located in Springfield, Mass. and is CCSU's 2nd most played opponent after Southern Connecticut State.

This will be the 48th meeting and the Yellow Jackets lead the series 31-13-3 over the Blue Devils. The teams played 5 times between 1936 and 1948, and annually from 1951 to 1992.

First Meeting: 1936 (CCSU's 2nd varsity season) - Teachers College of Connecticut 0, AIC 6 (at Springfield)
Last Meeting: 1992 (CCSU last D-II season) - CCSU 12, AIC 40 (at Springfield)

[lionsrking2]

It's not that he's tanked for the MVFC/Big Sky, so much as he is tanked for Vegas. The Southern Conference, CAA, and whomever you want to call the 5th best conference or below are just not interesting conversation pieces for Vegas because (like most FCS) those games are hard to predict and those teams won't be relevant in December. Hero sports, etc basically exist to keep tabs on storylines/trends for gamblers and the outcome of Charleston Southern v. Gardner Webb doesn't interest them, but the entire Big Sky/MVFC slate does. That's possibly also due to potential listener numbers but it's almost certainly a Vegas angle.

And to be clear I don't want to begrudge the guy. He does really good for a one man shop! But he's still a one man shop, and hero sports, etc could learn from FCS Nation and have individuals covering each conference.



So maybe this is my personal preference, but I think all of those games would be really interesting if I were a fan of those conference. Maybe not the Northern Colorado game, but what makes this genre of game interesting is because it could potentially have playoff implications down the road. Like, I can think of a few years back when a random August/September game basically put Samford in the playoffs by beating SELA (I think it was 2016?). Now, I'll admit, I'm less of an FCS Fan In General, as much as I am a Wofford/SoCon fan, but if I'm in a fully-funded conference and someone in my conference is playing another somewhat major conference OOC, I'm interested.



See my prior comments above. FCS Nation (run by Citdog) is probably the best national rundown of what's going on. And even though Cit Dog (Kevin) is a total homer a lot of times, he definitely likes the whole subdivision. He definitely caters to gamblers too, but his entry point was FCS not the Bizon.



Never ask a woman her weight, a man his income, or a Big Sky team how many away playoff games they've played in the last decade (or the record of their opponents)

Samford did not beat SLU to make playoffs in 2016. You're thinking of somebody else.

[caribbeanhen]

glad I haven’t started my FCS gambling habit yet

“In 2020, BetMGM acquired the HERO Sports website and its editorial staff. Most of the content team shifted to oversee and grow BetMGM’s blog, The Roar (https://sports.betmgm.com/en/blog/).”

https://herosports.com/about-hero-sports/

[Reign of Terrier]

Samford did not beat SLU to make playoffs in 2016. You're thinking of somebody else.

My bad, in 2016, it was Central Arkansas that they beat (who was also a playoff team). By all accounts it was a completely random game, but it was a quality win that got Samford in the playoffs.

In 2013, Samford played SELA and lost, but got into the playoffs, probably because it was a "quality loss" (they finished the regular season 8-4); it almost certainly helped them when selection sunday came, though they were Southland champs in their own right.

[caribbeanhen]

Albany at Hawaii

9/10

Albany will have played 3 games by September 11 th

[CHIP72]

63 vs 36

Montana State, I suspect, didn't lose that much talent this Spring & Summer. I know Ferris State would steamroll many mid-tier to low-tier FCS programs. However, Montana State should easily cover whatever spread there is.

I didn't read beyond Page 2, but the 2014 Colorado State-Pueblo team would like a word with you.

Montana will likely have their hands full with Ferris State. The Grizzlies probably will win, but that isn't a given. The top D2 teams can probably give all but the top 15-20 DI-AA/FCS teams major fits.

[Reign of Terrier]

So, when it comes to Ferris State and strong D2 against FCS teams, my contention is that it depends on the style of the FCS team. A few years ago, Sam Houston made it to the semifinals the same year they lost to the D2 national champions. Wofford once had a little trouble with North Greenville when they were decent and we were bad, but still won by 3 scores.

I think talent is obviously important as well, but at the end of the day, if you have good fundamentals on defense, the talent will lift you and you'll be okay.

Am I implying that that Sam Houston team didn't have great defensive fundamentals? Kinda? That's not a shot at them, but I think a lot of FCS teams have tried to scheme their way into a championship and it works against other teams about 80% of the time. SHSU (and I think Samford) was traditionally one of those teams, and it wasn't until they went "back to fundamentals" that they won a championship. Thankfully I think the top of the subdivision is collectively swinging more to fundamentals than scheme

[ElCid]

So, when it comes to Ferris State and strong D2 against FCS teams, my contention is that it depends on the style of the FCS team. A few years ago, Sam Houston made it to the semifinals the same year they lost to the D2 national champions. Wofford once had a little trouble with North Greenville when they were decent and we were bad, but still won by 3 scores.



1991, we lost to then D2 Wofford. That year we were 7-4 and beat Army. Went to the playoffs in 1990 and 1992 and ended the 1992 regular season at #1 in the polls. Probably would have gone in 1991 had we not lost that game. We barely lost to championship runner up Marshall as well. Weird thing happen.

[FUBeAR]

Yes - it’s easy to find anecdotal evidence of D2 Teams or NAIA Teams defeating FCS Teams. In 1985, Furman lost to NAIA (now D2) Newberry, then beat NC State by 3+ scores 2 weeks later, and played in the I-AA / FCS National Championship Game…

…and here’s more anecdotes…

North Alabama - 3x D2 National Champions


Years
Record
Percentage


1988–1997
82–36–1
.693


1998–2001
20–21
.487


2002–2008
66–21
.758


2009–2011
29–9
.763


2012–2016
44–15
.746


2017–2022
20–34
.370 - moved to FCS…life got tougher, huh?


2022
0–3
.000



Regardless…Montana / Montana Fans / Big Sky Fans / MVFC Fans (in their roles as Big Sky Defense Attorneys) just need to stop. If the Griz don’t beat FerrisWheel State by >30 we have to question if they even belong in ORV…and if they lose…they definitely do not.

Nothing changes that it’s 63 scholarships vs. 36.

[Reign of Terrier]

1991, we lost to then D2 Wofford. That year we were 7-4 and beat Army. Went to the playoffs in 1990 and 1992 and ended the 1992 regular season at #1 in the polls. Probably would have gone in 1991 had we not lost that game. We barely lost to championship runner up Marshall as well. Weird thing happen.


Yes - it’s easy to find anecdotal evidence of D2 Teams or NAIA Teams defeating FCS Teams. In 1985, Furman lost to NAIA (now D2) Newberry, then beat NC State by 3+ scores 2 weeks later, and played in the I-AA / FCS National Championship Game…

…and here’s more anecdotes…

North Alabama - 3x D2 National Champions


Years
Record
Percentage


1988–1997
82–36–1
.693


1998–2001
20–21
.487


2002–2008
66–21
.758


2009–2011
29–9
.763


2012–2016
44–15
.746


2017–2022
20–34
.370 - moved to FCS…life got tougher, huh?


2022
0–3
.000



Regardless…Montana / Montana Fans / Big Sky Fans / MVFC Fans (in their roles as Big Sky Defense Attorneys) just need to stop. If the Griz don’t beat FerrisWheel State by >30 we have to question if they even belong in ORV…and if they lose…they definitely do not.

Nothing changes that it’s 63 scholarships vs. 36.

This may be a hot or lukewarm take, but the reason why this happened a little more frequently back then is because the game was just so much different than it is today. More running, the game was decided by physicality, and passes were probably more high value because they were more rare. A lot of folks (boomers maybe?) who watched the Socon have fond memories of the triple option and wonder why people didn't run it before the NCAA recently killed it with cut blocking rules, but the reason why is because it was actually relatively innovative in the 90s, but stopped being so when its principles were incorporated into offenses just generally. It's kind of like the West Coast offense in the sense that lots of folks at the college use West Coast principles, like timing, using the horizontal passing game, check downs, etc, but the West Coast proper with foot work, etc is actually very rare.

Anyway, just to illustrate the point, watch random clips from this game and ask yourself "how good are these teams" ? Wofford was probably the second or third best team in 1-aa the year this game happened (Wofford > Colgate til I die). And GSU was only a few years clear of a national title repeat. Watching these teams play on film, it seems crazy doesn't it? Anyway, the game of football emphasizes passing, using space, and zone running more nowadays, and these innovations exasperate talent differences. It's not impossible for lower-level teams to beat higher-level ones, but it's a lot harder. The period for upsets probably peaked in the late 2000s (see: App State over Michigan), but now things have calmed down as pretty much everyone has adjusted to the new norms of football.

https://youtu.be/EUp7JLTp8SI?si=yv9Pt0W127DVjO9F

[caribbeanhen]

St Thomas at Harvard
9/16 Saturday

trying to have game moved to Friday night so PWO will see it

PWO

I forgot why I was interested in you watching this game

I might remember but not sure