JmuSkinsfan
October 13th, 2008, 01:00 AM
Haven't seen any CAA rankings yet this season. Thought it would be fun for discussion.
#1: James Madison (4-0) - Have to be the clear favorites so far to win the conference. Beat #3 UMass at home and #5 Richmond on the road. Plus a big OOC win against #1 ASU. Villanova in 2 weeks, like every game, will be the most important of the season. This is actually the one game I was afraid of coming into the season and predicted us to lose on our way to 9-2 and a seed. Hopefully I'm wrong.
#2: Villanova (2-0) - Knocked off one #1 team in Richmond a couple weeks ago. Will have another shot at #1 in two weeks against JMU. Their defense scares me.
#3: Richmond (2-2) - Their record really doesn't speak for how good they are. Thus far they have lost to the #1 and #2 teams in my power rankings and both games were very close. That is why they don't fall below either of the top two teams from the north.
#4: Massachusetts (2-1) - Have started to play better. When they start getting into the meat of the northern conference they should get that win total up. They will have a very tough outing against Richmond this weekend, and while I like their team, I think UR takes it from them.
#5: William & Mary (1-1) - I really think this team is on its way back to being a conference contender. They obviously have the misfortune of being in the southern conference, where I think they finish 4th, but they are a solid team that could upset a couple more before the year is done.
#6: New Hampshire (1-1) - I think their loss to W&M won't look nearly as bad as the year progresses. I'm not sold on W&M as a playoff team, YET, but they certainly aren't the same Tribe teams we have seen the last couple years. UNH will rebound and I expect them to finish 5-3 in the end.
#7: Northeastern (1-1) - There is something in the water in Boston. I can never quite put my finger on this team. Last year I had them pinned as the worst team in the CAA heading into their game with JMU and was floored by their performance in a close 21-14 loss to JMU at Parsons. They always seem to hang in the middle of the pack and upset a couple top teams each year. Plus they hung in at Georgia Southern which is impressive.
#8: Maine (1-2) - Maybe Maine is really good. Or maybe Delaware sucks. Either way, Maine is a better than average team. I like the way they play defense, but their quarterback (from what I saw when they played JMU) is nothing too impressive.
#9: Delaware (1-2) - I guess we are learning that you can't always succeed with transfers from FBS. I think the folks up in Hens country got spoiled with Flacco. Maybe you will succeed someday with home-grown talent at QB.
#10: Towson (1-2) - Still not seeing much from the Tigers. I haven't seen them play but, as expected pre-season, they are at the bottom of the tough South.
#11: Hofstra (1-1) - They showed me nothing two weeks ago. Honestly, I have no analysis, besides they played awful.
#12: Rhode Island (0-3) - Who was it that said Tim Cassidy is the best team in the conference? Lol. Well, if he is, he needs a lot of help. I am, however, surprised by how "smooth" the transition has been to the new offense. If only they could play defense.
#1: James Madison (4-0) - Have to be the clear favorites so far to win the conference. Beat #3 UMass at home and #5 Richmond on the road. Plus a big OOC win against #1 ASU. Villanova in 2 weeks, like every game, will be the most important of the season. This is actually the one game I was afraid of coming into the season and predicted us to lose on our way to 9-2 and a seed. Hopefully I'm wrong.
#2: Villanova (2-0) - Knocked off one #1 team in Richmond a couple weeks ago. Will have another shot at #1 in two weeks against JMU. Their defense scares me.
#3: Richmond (2-2) - Their record really doesn't speak for how good they are. Thus far they have lost to the #1 and #2 teams in my power rankings and both games were very close. That is why they don't fall below either of the top two teams from the north.
#4: Massachusetts (2-1) - Have started to play better. When they start getting into the meat of the northern conference they should get that win total up. They will have a very tough outing against Richmond this weekend, and while I like their team, I think UR takes it from them.
#5: William & Mary (1-1) - I really think this team is on its way back to being a conference contender. They obviously have the misfortune of being in the southern conference, where I think they finish 4th, but they are a solid team that could upset a couple more before the year is done.
#6: New Hampshire (1-1) - I think their loss to W&M won't look nearly as bad as the year progresses. I'm not sold on W&M as a playoff team, YET, but they certainly aren't the same Tribe teams we have seen the last couple years. UNH will rebound and I expect them to finish 5-3 in the end.
#7: Northeastern (1-1) - There is something in the water in Boston. I can never quite put my finger on this team. Last year I had them pinned as the worst team in the CAA heading into their game with JMU and was floored by their performance in a close 21-14 loss to JMU at Parsons. They always seem to hang in the middle of the pack and upset a couple top teams each year. Plus they hung in at Georgia Southern which is impressive.
#8: Maine (1-2) - Maybe Maine is really good. Or maybe Delaware sucks. Either way, Maine is a better than average team. I like the way they play defense, but their quarterback (from what I saw when they played JMU) is nothing too impressive.
#9: Delaware (1-2) - I guess we are learning that you can't always succeed with transfers from FBS. I think the folks up in Hens country got spoiled with Flacco. Maybe you will succeed someday with home-grown talent at QB.
#10: Towson (1-2) - Still not seeing much from the Tigers. I haven't seen them play but, as expected pre-season, they are at the bottom of the tough South.
#11: Hofstra (1-1) - They showed me nothing two weeks ago. Honestly, I have no analysis, besides they played awful.
#12: Rhode Island (0-3) - Who was it that said Tim Cassidy is the best team in the conference? Lol. Well, if he is, he needs a lot of help. I am, however, surprised by how "smooth" the transition has been to the new offense. If only they could play defense.