Category: Sports

Now We Go: Weekend Preview 10/26

This has been one the most bizarre NESCAC football seasons we’ve had in a while. Realistically, Middlebury iced the league with its win at Amherst in Week 4, and the last two weeks have been an absolute snooze fest. We have had Week 7 circled on our calendars all season and all offseason, and now we have arrived here, and these games have almost no championship implications. But because of the nature of the games—the Little 3 and CBB kicking off, while Trinity takes on Williams, there is still a ton of on field action to get excited about.

Bates (0-6) @ Colby (0-6), Waterville, Maine, 1:00 PM

The collective state of Maine will finally put one in the win column this week as two of its three winless teams face off in Waterville on Saturday. It is very exciting that both of these teams finally have a chance to really compete, and the CBB is a great point of pride amongst these three schools. Realistically, this game is probably the CBB championship as Colby and Bates both seem to be about a step higher than Bowdoin, but obviously anything is possible. While Colby and Bowdoin is considered the biggest rivalry of the three, this game will carry a little extra weight as Colby’s victory over Bates last year ended the Bobcats’ CBB streak at 4 and gave Colby its first since 2005.

This game is all about Colby QB Matt Hersch ’22. Hersch, last season’s co-ROY, should be the best player on the field, but he hasn’t taken quite the jump that most were hoping for—just 5 passing TDs and 7 INTs, while throwing for 207 yards a game, 5th in the conference. Bates is last in the league in allowing 247 passing yards a game, so this will be Hersch’s best chance to put up some numbers and give his team their best chance to win a game. But the Bobcats have talent too—an offense that is trending in the right direction after surprisingly putting up a season high of 388 yards of total offense against a top notch Williams defense on the road. QB Brendan Costa ’21 threw for a career high 241 yards while making some plays on his feet. I had the chance to see this team play in person* and was very surprised by the talent their offense possesses—it is the depth that hurts them. This game should be neck and neck.

*Editor’s note: I took the liberty of finding the article from last year when then-NbN editor Colby Morris made a similar comment after the Bobcats’ visit to Middlebury. Clearly the talent is there with Costa, but consistency is the key.

Picks:
RM: Colby 24, Bates 20
HC: Colby 28, Bates 14
SS: Colby 28, Bates 20
CC: Bates 26, Colby 20
MK: Bates 28, Colby 24

Writers’ Pick: Colby

Middlebury (6-0) @ Bowdoin (0-6), 1:00 PM, Brunswick, Maine

The only snooze fest in an otherwise great slate of games will pit the league’s best vs. the league’s worst. Middlebury is coming off arguably their best performance of the year, a statement win against their only true remaining challenger in Wesleyan, 45-21. QB Will Jernigan ’21 seems like he is improving by the week, a scary thought for the rest of the league who is hoping to see them lose 2 out of their last 3. NESCAC fans should remember Bowdoin RB Nate Richam-Odoi ’20 running for a whopping 288 yards against this team last year in a game that the Polar Bears led at the start of the 4th quarter, before surrendering the final 14 points and losing 37-24. Unfortunately for Bowdoin, this isn’t the same Middlebury team—now rejuvenated by a new QB, new RB, and significantly improved defense. If Middlebury is going to drop a game or two, it certainly shouldn’t be this one.

Picks:
RM: Middlebury 34, Bowdoin 10
HC: Middlebury 41, Bowdoin 14
SS: Middlebury 35, Bowdoin 3
CC: Middlebury 42, Bowdoin 10
MK: Middlebury 38, Bowdoin 7

Writers’ Pick: Middlebury

Wesleyan (5-1) @ Amherst (4-2), 1:00 PM, Amherst, MA

The Little 3 opens up in Amherst this week between two teams who all of a sudden find themselves up against the ropes after both suffering the worst losses of their seasons last week. For Wesleyan it was obviously their only loss of the season but despite the fact that they were obvious underdogs, it was the way they were trounced by Middlebury that really gave some cause for concern. Will Jernigan ’21 and the Panthers carved up Wesleyan’s defense to the tune of 529 yards, allowing big play after big play after big play. For Wesleyan, QB Ashton Scott ’22 didn’t necessarily fail the first test of his career, but he didn’t pass it either—16-31 for 261 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, mostly yards accrued at the end of the game while Midd was content to keep everything in front of them. He and this defense will need to step it up against Amherst.

For Amherst, oof. The Mammoths suffered just their second ever loss to the Hamilton Continentals on a last second Hamilton FG by K Sam Thoreen ’22, a game in which they allowed 14 points in the last 4 minutes, and 11 of those in the final minute. All sorts of mistakes combined to give Hamilton this game from Amherst—bad turnovers, questionable timeout usage, and the nail in the coffin: a blocked punt that gave Hamilton the ball on the AMH 27 with 29 seconds remaining. I think Amherst is better than Wesleyan, but this game will be decided almost entirely mentally. Which team is able to erase last week’s loss and move ahead towards taking the decisive first game in the Little Three.

Picks:
RM: Amherst 28, Wesleyan 17
HC: Amherst 27, Wesleyan 17
SS: Amherst 28, Wesleyan 24
CC: Amherst 27, Wesleyan 21
MK: Amherst 31, Wesleyan 13

Writers’ Pick: Amherst

Hamilton (3-3) @ Tufts (3-3), 1:00 PM, Medford, MA

A huge game for two teams still hoping to end the season with winning records. Both teams end the season with Middlebury and either Bates or Colby, so this game looks to be the difference between 4-5 and 5-4. Both teams come into this game riding high. For Tufts, it was an ungodly 662 yards of total offense in a 49-0 against Bowdoin. Yes, I know it’s Bowdoin but 662 yards is 662 yards. QB Jacob Carroll ’20 seems to have really begun to settle in as a passer, now up to 3rd in the conference with 235 yards per game, and it is showing with his blossoming group of receivers—OJ Armstrong ’21, Frank Roche ’20, and Brendan Dolan ’21 have all continued to put up numbers as the year has gone on.

For Hamilton, as we just touched upon, it was a historic win over Amherst, just their 2nd ever and first since 1992. They have a real chance to end the season with a winning record for the first time since 1996, when they went 5-3. It feels like they are on the cusp of taking the jump into the next echelon of talent in the league. But it just doesn’t feel like we know what team to expect on a week to week basis for the Conts, who were gifted the game by Amherst—outgained 488-326, lost TOP 32:57-26:59. We will find out on Saturday if it was enough momentum to cover over some misleading results.

Picks:
RM: Tufts 27, Hamilton 24
HC: Tufts 27, Hamilton 24
SS: Tufts 17, Hamilton 14
CC: Tufts 31, Hamilton 24
MK: Tufts 28, Hamilton 21

Writers’ Pick: Tufts

Williams (5-1) @ Trinity (4-2), 1:30 PM, Hartford, CT

The two league leaders in total offense, total defense, scoring offense, and scoring defense will face off in Week 7 in a game with almost no championship implications. Yup, you read that right. You could very well make the case that these are our two best teams in the league, a case that Haven laid out quite well in his GOTW preview. This game really is a toss-up—they have both played the same 6 teams, so the stats tell the same story. Williams has the best run offense; Trinity has the best run defense. Trinity has the best scoring offense; Williams has the best scoring defense. A true coin flip. A game like this is going to come down to who makes the most plays and who makes the least mistakes. When it comes to playmakers, they are littered all over the field. Williams’ rushing trio of QB Bobby Maimaron ’21, RB Dan Vaughn ’22, and RB Joel Nicholas ’23 occupy the three best yards per carry in the league, all over 6.5 YPC. At WR, you have OPOY frontrunner WR Frank Stola ’21 and his league leading 125 yards per game and 12 touchdowns going up against the dynamic trio of Girard, Schofer, and Reid, all of whom are inside the top 10 in receiving yards as well, while Reid, Stola, and Girard are 2nd, 3rd, and 4th respectively in yards per catch. 

When it comes to making the fewest mistakes, you have to give the edge to Williams, especially in the QB department. Trinity QB Seamus Lambert ’22 might have the best arm in the league (1st in yards per game) but he is tied for 2nd with 7 INTs, while Eph signal caller Bobby Maimaron ’21 is impressively tied for 11th with 2 INTs, in a 10-team league. I’ll leave the rest of the details to Haven, but this game has all the makings of being the true game of the year—I don’t think you’ll see a better product of football on any field all season in the NESCAC. Williams has a few more injuries, and of course, this game is in Hartford, where the Ephs have not won since 2001. In Williamstown or even a neutral side, I think this game belongs to the Ephs, but on the road, it’s anybody’s call.

Picks:
RM: Williams 34-31
HC: Trinity 31-27
SS: Trinity 24-17
CC: Trinity 24-21
MK: Trinity 24-20 (author’s note: I hate this pick)

Writers’ Pick: Trinity

Game of the Year?: Williams vs. Trinity Game of the Week Preview

This week brings about several games that should provide competitiveness that the league has been mostly lacking over the past few weeks. This includes our Game of the Week, a matchup between the league’s two hottest teams in what could be an absolute classic. Williams has breezed through the competition since their opening week loss at Middlebury, but they’re in some trouble with injuries and they’re about to hit the brutal home stretch of their schedule. Trinity has put up video game-like offensive numbers the past couple of weeks and is leading the league in many statistical categories, but they’ve padded these stats against bad teams and they’re also about to hit their toughest stretch of games. Both teams losing to Middlebury earlier this season hurt their title chances significantly, but Middlebury’s inconsistent play means that both the Ephs and the Bantams will be looking to prove that they’re the best in the league. We’ll be seeing Trinity’s league-best scoring offense against Williams’ league-best scoring defense, and Williams’ top ranked run offense against a Trinity defense allowing the fewest yards per game. It’s homecoming in the Coop between these two blue bloods and it should be a classic. 

Key #1 for Trinity: Contain Frank Stola 

I didn’t think I’d ever be saying these words in my life, but Trinity should take a page out of the Bates Bobcats’ playbook this week. Bates got smoked by Williams last week, but they held Stola to only two catches and his lowest receiving yard total of the season. They also were the first team not to allow him in the endzone. Other guys stepped up for Williams in that game, but Stola is still the likely frontrunner for Offensive Player of the Year due to his ungodly production and scoring ability. Even with Stola, Williams has been running the ball a lot this season; they’re leading the conference in yards per game on the ground with 229, over 40 more than the next most. They are a run first team who just happens to have the league’s best receiver- and they’ve frequently been up by several points without a need to throw the ball. This week, though, they’re facing the league’s best run defense so we will likely see them try to air it out to Stola more frequently…although they’re facing the top pass defense as well. This defense has veterans at every position and should not be to blame for Trinity’s losses this season. Williams is last in the league in passing attempts, so this may be our best chance to see what Bobby Maimaron ’21 can do with his arm- especially if the Ephs are playing from behind. Trinity has to be well aware that Stola is Williams’ top threat, but most of their defensive backs (Matt Patry ’20, Ian McDonald ’20, Matt McCarthy ’21) have been starting for a few years now and they stepped up against Amherst last year in a similarly big game. If Bates can shut down Stola, there’s no reason Trinity shouldn’t be able to. 

Key #2 for Trinity: Limit Turnovers 

This is obviously a key every game, but turnovers are a huge reason Trinity isn’t undefeated despite leading the league in many different categories. QB Seamus Lambert ’22 has looked a lot better in his last two games, but he is still second in the league in interceptions and has thrown six in three games against teams .500 or better. In addition, while RB Tijani Harris ’22 has ran all over defenses since taking over the starting role three games ago, he’s also fumbled twice. Coughing the ball up against the league’s top scoring defense will put a heavy damper on Trinity’s chances of winning. Unlike the teams Trinity has faced the past few weeks, Williams will make you pay for turnovers and they have made many of their games ugly very quickly. If any offense is capable of lighting up Williams’ defense it’s this one, but they have to take care of the ball while doing so. 

Key #1 for Williams: Defensive Line Pressure 

If you want to beat Trinity, a good way to start is by getting after the quarterback. In the Bantams’ two losses, Seamus Lambert ’22 was sacked a combined 11 times. These were his two worst games- he only threw for 116 yards against Tufts and had four picks against Middlebury. On the other hand, last week against Colby, Lambert was only sacked once for one yard and he was able to calmly complete 75 percent of his passes and throw for 2 touchdowns in a 43-7 beatdown. Lambert is a threat to run the ball so defensive ends should be aware of this, but making him leave the pocket is a great way to force him into bad throws and slow down Trinity’s potent offense. If he is able to sit in the pocket and make reads, Lambert will make accurate throws and he has multiple receivers that can take it to the house. 

Key #2 for Williams: Next Man Up 

Just like it did during the second half of last season, Williams’ roster has gotten hit hard by the injury bug lately. Impact players TJ Rothmann ’21 and Joel Nicholas ’23 both left the game early last week and both starting guards did not play. The Ephs were already missing two offensive linemen that got hurt in training camp, so Coach Raymond has moved his starting tackles to guard and filled in new guys at tackle. This has helped Williams to be very effective in running the ball up the middle, but an inexperienced line could get exposed this week as they’ll be facing two first team all-NESCAC defensive ends in Jim Christiano ’21 and Devyn Perkins ’20. However, Williams’ bench players may have the most experience of any team’s backups. They have had several blowout wins this season, and Coach Raymond usually pumps the brakes pretty early and pulls his starters once the game is out of hand. While guys filling in for Williams may have some game experience, it has usually been against weaker teams and they will be facing a very talented Trinity roster that does not fall off much from one guy to the next. The Ephs’ backups will have to play like starters this week if they expect to win. 

Everything Else

Trinity has not lost in the Coop in 20 games, but this is easily their toughest home game of the season. It has the feel of their game vs. Amherst last year, a game where we came in not sure who the better team was until we saw Trinity rise to the occasion and take home the W. I don’t care what the standings say- anyone attending this game will have the pleasure of watching the league’s two best offenses and its two best defenses get after it. Williams was the one team to get the better of Trinity last season after Coach Raymond cooked up a master defensive gameplan, so we know they are well within reach of the three-time defending champions. Frank Stola’s play this season has been nothing short of spectacular and Williams’ run game is capable of putting up a huge week, but their schedule has been awfully soft since they played Middlebury in week one. Trinity has also coasted through the light middle part of their schedule, but they always play better in Hartford and they have stepped up in several late season big games over the past few years. With the home crowd behind them and Williams coming in severely banged up, Trinity takes it in a good one. 

Prediction: Trinity 31, Williams 27

That’s All She Wrote: Stock Report 10/23

Stock Up

Middlebury winning the NESCAC Championship

Well, that about does it for the NESCAC Championship race after the Panthers pummeled the Cardinals last weekend by a tune of 45-21. Will Jernigan ‘21 surprised just about everyone with his success through the air, completing 18 of his 25 passing attempts for a career-high 359 yards and four scores. The defense harassed Ashton Scott ‘22 all afternoon and did not allow him to generate anything on the ground (12 rushes for -16 yards).   The win pushed Middlebury’s record to a perfect 6-0, and closed the magic number needed to secure the NESCAC Championship to just two games. Middlebury would have to trip up against both Hamilton and Tufts (sorry Bowdoin, I’m already penciling that contest as a win for the Panthers) in order to allow Williams and Wesleyan back into the picture. 

Hamilton and Kicker Sam Thoreen ‘22

For all the negativity surrounding NESCAC kickers for their lack of accuracy in recent weeks, major props to Hamilton’s Sam Thoreen. The sophomore nailed not one, but two field goals of 40+ yards. With his team trailing by eleven with roughly four minutes remaining, Thoreen sunk a 44 yarder, the longest kick converted by a NESCAC kicker all year long. More importantly, the kick made it a one possession game. After a wild series of events that allowed the Continentals the opportunity to win the game (more details to come below in the report), Thoreen kept his composure and banged home a 40 yarder en route to Hamilton’s biggest win of the season. He’s quietly been the most accurate kicker in the NESCAC (the only one who has not missed a single field goal) and is second in terms of total points. The Continentals’ gutsy come-from-behind win against Amherst was something sort of like Illinois’ upset of Wisconsin; a traditional power (on the road) failing to close the game against a bottom-tier league opponent. Both games also ended on a game-winning field goal…coincidence? I think not. 

Stock Down

Wesleyan and the Potential for Chaos

Like most people that follow NESCAC football, I would have loved to see Wesleyan knock off Middlebury. Even at 6-0, I still believe the Panthers are not the best team in the league and have been extremely fortuitous in some of their victories. In the overall picture, however, a win from the Cardinals would have blown the league wide open. I hate to say it, but Saturday’s performance showed everyone that the Cardinals were undefeated because of their weak schedule leading up to the showdown with the Panthers.

Hypothetically, let’s say Wesleyan was still undefeated after defeating Middlebury. For the Cardinals, they would most likely have had to win out in order to ensure a NESCAC Championship. But the more likely scenario stemming from an undefeated Wesleyan team would be that they suffer a loss (or two) to Williams, Trinity and/or Amherst; this would open the door for multiple teams to grapple for the top spot. Instead, the Cardinals are currently tied with the Ephs at one loss to the Panthers apiece, and both teams have to pray the Panthers trip up twice. For Amherst, their dream was crushed upon losing to Hamilton, and Trinity would need Middlebury to lose all three of their remaining games in order to have the smallest chance. Unfortunately it looks like the league championship is wrapped up.

Amherst

The likelihood of the Amherst winning the NESCAC Championship was slim after Middlebury’s victory, but the loss to Hamilton ended those hopes completely. The loss itself isn’t as strong of an indictment on this team as one would assume based on their respective records, but it was the manner in which Amherst failed to convert a single opportunity to close the game out. After holding Hamilton to a field goal that saw their lead get cut to eight with 3:59 remaining, Ollie Eberth ‘20 and the offense failed to accumulate a single first down and the Mammoths were forced to punt. The special teams unit failed to corral Continentals’ returner Sam Robinson ‘20, giving the home team great field position inside the Mammoths’ 25 yard line with 2:43 remaining. Twice the Mammoths forced a third down scenario during that drive, and twice the Continentals converted. After David Kagan’s three yard scamper, the offense stayed on the field in order to tie the game on a two point attempt; in the midst of a broken play, Kenny Gray ‘20 found Christian Donahoe ‘20 in the end zone, knotting the game at 28 apiece. One would think that a veteran quarterback would be able to lead his team down the field against what was (and still is) a below-average defensive unit. Instead, Eberth and the offense did not pass the sticks. To make matters worse, the special teams unit let down the team again, this time in the form of a blocked punt. All in all, it was a tough week for the Mammoths, and one that might have cost them a shot at a NESCAC Championship. 

Over the Hump: Week 6 Power Rankings

(1) 1. Middlebury (6-0)

The Panthers have continued to prove that they are a step ahead of the rest of ‘CAC and that showed this past weekend in their 45-21 win over previously undefeated Wesleyan. Will Jernigan ’21 earned himself NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week after lighting the Cardinal D up for over 350 passing yards and 4 touchdowns. Offensive production has not yet been an issue for Middlebury this year, it is the defensive side of the ball where things can get shaky for the Panthers. Letting up 26 points to a struggling Colby defense was certainly a red-flag for Panther fans, but the defense showed once again this week that they will do what they must to give their offense a chance week in and week out. As the only undefeated team left with a fairly soft schedule to round out the season, this is Midd’s conference to lose. Middlebury will almost surely keep their record clean this coming weekend as they face an 0-6 Bowdoin squad.

(3) 2. Williams (5-1)

William’s defensive consistency and lethal passing game has propelled them up to 2nd on our power rankings this week. Frank Stola ’21 seemed to take the day off against Bates, only recording 14 yards on 2 catches, but that didn’t phase the Eph offense whatsoever as Bobby Maimaron ’21 found the back of the endzone 3 times (he now leads the conference with 16 TDs) and Freshman running back Elijah Parks ’23 ran for his first collegiate TD. It is not a shock to see that Williams held the Bobcats to just one score as they lead the conference with just 8.7 points against per game, almost half the points allowed of the next best team. If it were not for the week one battle that they lost to Midd, Williams would surely be sitting atop the power rankings. These final 3 games will be the toughest stretch the Ephs will have to face this year, starting with the Bantams in Hartford next weekend.

(5) 3. Trinity (4-2)

It has been a good past couple of weekends for the Bantams as they have taken a couple of trips up to Maine and outscored their opponents a combined 94-7. Trinity is well known for their CBB-aided stat-padding and their scorlines are finally starting to look like the Trinity of the past. Seamus Lambert ’22 continues to lead the conference in passing yards per game (256.2), QB efficiency (189.9) and completion percentage (65.2%) while being just one passing TD shy of the lead with 15. The biggest problem with the Bantams is that Lambert is essentially their only offensive production. He also leads the team in rushing yards and rushing attempts, showing what a one-horse show this offense really is. Clearly against teams like Colby and Bates this strategy works effortlessly, but better teams can adjust as is shown in the Bantam’s 2 losses.  

(4) 4. Amherst (4-2)

Amherst is lucky to remain at #4 after being upset by Hamilton. It was neck and neck between the two the whole game but a few miracles and a couple of Ollie Eberth interceptions saw Amherst take their second loss of the season. While this loss is a big blow for Amherst lots of credit has to be given to a persistent Hamilton team who has put up good fights against the better teams in the conference this season. Amherst just doesn’t seem to have what it takes to hang with the big dogs in the conference this season and it is for that reason that they have continued to linger outside of the top 3. It is not a surprise to see that as a team, Amherst is 4th in the conference in points scored per game and points against per game. This team just screams slightly above-average and they’ve played that role to a tee this season. Their next contest will be home against Wesleyan where they have a chance to justify their ranking. 

(2) 5. Wesleyan (5-1)

Sorry Wesleyan fans, your time is up and the real schedule has started. Unfortunately for the Cardinals their 5-0 record seems to be more due to strength of schedule than ability, as their defense that had not allowed more than 13 points in a game had Middlebury walk all over them for 45 points. This had to be a painful reality check for the Cardinals and that reality check is reflected in the sharp downward movement in the rankings. Before last weekend Wesleyan had already played all 3 CBB teams as well as Hamilton and Tufts. It is fairly safe to say that this was the softest possible start that Wesleyan could have been given this year and now they have to face 3 more of the best teams in the league. This is where the season will start to get rough for the Cardinals because every weekend from here on out will be a test and their defense just failed the first test miserably. 

(6) 6. Tufts (3-3)

The Jumbos rise back up to .500 after easily taking care of business against Bowdoin in a 49-0 rout. After a week 1 defeat of Trinity the trajectory of the Jumbos season was sky high, but 6 weeks in they face a very different reality. With the clear exceptions of their CBB contest, the Jumbos offense has been lackadaisical at best all season. Even in their win against Trin the Jumbos only recorded 2 scores and in their crushing defeat to Amherst, Tufts could only muster up 8 points. This lack of offensive production couples with their defense’s tendency to allow crooked scoreboards has resulted in an extremely disappointing season for Tufts. The Jumbos will try and salvage what is left next weekend as they welcome a red-hot Continental squad in what could be a defacto 6th place game. 

(7) 7. Hamilton (3-3)

Hamilton is riding high at the moment after shocking Amherst last weekend 31-28. Absolute chaos ensued at the end of the game in which Hamilton was down by 11 with just 7 minutes left in the 4th quarter. Continental kicker Sam Thoreen booted a 44 yarder to make it 28-20 Amherst, then the Contintal defense came up clutch and forced a 3 and out. After the 3 and out the offense drove down the field for a TD and converted a ridiculous 2-point conversion on a broken play to make it an even 28-28. Hamilton was then able to block a punt with 30 seconds left and Thoreen kicked a 40 yarder for the win. The win was a great display of grit and determination and its safe to say now that Hamilton has solidified themselves as an extremely competitive team who can give anybody a run for their money on any weekend. While Tufts is probably the favorite heading into the weekend, I wouldn’t blame anyone riding the wave of momentum that Hamilton is on right now. Another strong performance could allow the Continentals continue to grind their way up this year’s power rankings. 

(8) 8. Colby (0-6)

Colby did absolutely nothing to prove that they were better than the rest of the CBB this past weekend in their 43-7 loss to Trinity, but everyone else in the CBB also got destroyed too so they will stay atop. As a Mule fan, or any CBB fan for that matter, it can be extremely disheartening having 6 straight weekends of losing football. Their tight game against Midd added some spice to what was previously a very bland season, and now the real fun can finally begin for the Mules as they get their first CBB opponent of the season this weekend when they host Bates. QB Matt Hersch ’22 will look to lead the Mules to their second straight CBB championship this year as he sits at 5th in the conference in yards per game (207) but leads the conference in attempts with 201. He will need to reign it in and establish consistency in the passing game as the dual-back system of Chris George ’20 and David Smith ’20 have produced barely over 100 yards of rushing per game combined. A game against Bates at home should be all the encouragement that Colby needs to come out firing this weekend in what is the beginnings of this years’ CBB championship.

(10) 9. Bates (0-6)

Once again Bates and Bowdoin have flip-flopped at 9 and 10 and this week it is because Bates was able to get on the scoreboard in their 35-7 loss to Williams while Bowdoin was given no room to breathe in their 49-0 loss to Tufts. Bates showed us their most impressive performance of the season thus far a few weeks back when they took a close one with Tufts deep into the 4th quarter, eventually losing 33-28. That scoreline contrasted with Bowdoin’s 49-0 scoreline suggests to me that Bates is a more competitive team at this point in the season that Bowdoin. While the gap between the two is slim, Bates has a fantastic chance to blow that gap wide open and propel themselves towards a CBB championship with their game this weekend at Colby. CBB games are almost always a toss-up no matter what so even if the Mules look stronger on paper and have home field advantage, Bates still have more than a fighting chance. When I say Bates, I mean Brendan Costa. The guy is their entire offense and if the Mules can stop him they will lose but if the Mules can’t then it’s all Bobcats. The equation is very simple and that is thanks to the extreme lack of creativity and running game in Bates’ offense. That all being said, Colby is no powerhouse so Bates will certainly have an opportunity to steal one in enemy territory on Saturday.

(9) 10. Bowdoin (0-6)

Last Saturday’s game against Tufts was miserable on both sides of the ball for the Polar Bears as they were manhandled by the Jumbos. Bowdoin’s best offensive weapon, RB Nate Richam-Odoi ’20, could only amass 27 yards on 11 rushing attempts against a Tufts defense that gave up over 40 points to Amherst. While it is obviously not all Richam-Odoi’s fault as the blocking around him was nothing less than non-existent, that is still a disheartening statistic for the player that could separate Bowdoin offensively from the rest of the CBB. The tough weekends will keep coming for the Polar Bears as they welcome undefeated Middlebury on Saturday in what should be another game to forget.

All Eyes on the Championship Game?: Weekend Preview 10/19

We’ve officially surpassed the halfway point in the 2019 season, and yet unfortunately the league championship might come down to Middlebury and Wesleyan on Saturday. A Middlebury win will all but seal the deal in their quest to become NESCAC Champions, while Wesleyan still doesn’t believe it is getting the recognition it deserves for being the only other undefeated team in the conference. The rest of the slate features traditional powers facing inferior opponents, but taking those matchups for granted might eliminate some of the one-loss contenders who are praying for the Cardinals to upset the Panthers.

Bates (0-5) @ Williams (4-1), 1pm, Williamstown, MA

Fellow NbN writer Haven Cutko ripped apart the Bobcats in this week’s Power Rankings, and while you hate to hear your school being repeatedly badgered for its underwhelming performances on the gridiron, I absolutely agreed with him. It’s one thing to play competitive games and lose, but Bates was annihilated 51-0 by a Trinity team that by all accounts has been a massive disappointment this season. Without a doubt, Trinity could have scored 60+ given that they were already ahead 51-0 at the end of the fourth quarter. The offense is completely stagnant with no identity whatsoever; the ‘Cats are dead last in total offense (225 ypg) and feature a passing “attack” that is limited to quick slants and bubble screens. The running game hasn’t been terrible, but against the Bantams, the Bobcats had 26 rushing attempts for…28 yards. All this adds up to an offense that is averaging a touch over 10 ppg, and desperately needs someone to step up. The defense (allowing close to 35 ppg) is feast or famine; it either forces a turnover (5th in the ‘CAC with 8 combined turnovers) or gives up a touchdown. What’s worse is that the defensive line is last in sack production, which correlates to Bates having (by far) the worst pass defense because opposing quarterbacks have all day to throw. 

Bobby Maimaron ‘21 may not be the most prolific passer, but boy does he only need one man to throw to: Frank Stola ‘21. I mentioned a few weeks ago that Stola could very well break multiple single-season records with his performances to date, but the junior has a legitimate case to go down as the greatest wide receiver the league has ever witnessed. With four games remaining this season, Stola is 437 yards away from breaking the record of most receiving yards in a single season, and three touchdowns away from tying the single-season record. Given that he’s averaging 147 ypg and three touchdowns/game, the only thing that will stop Stola and company from wreaking havoc on the Bobcats’ poor secondary is when Coach Raymond pulls his starters midway through the third period with the game so out of hand. I really want to believe in Brendan Costa’s elusiveness and his ability to create something out of nothing, but he just doesn’t have the arm strength for the vertical passing game that I’m sure Coach Hall would love to have. Chalk up another 100+ yard performance for Stola with a couple of touchdowns as the Ephs come out firing from the get-go and cruise to an easy win. 

SS: Williams 42, Bates 7
HC: Williams 34, Bates 6
MK: Williams 35, Bates 0
CC: Williams 41, Bates 13
RM: Williams 42, Bates 7

Writers’ Pick: Williams 

Bowdoin (0-5) @ Tufts (2-3), 1pm, Medford, MA

The Polar Bears may be winless in large part to their atrocious defensive unit (other than their eye-opening performance against Wesleyan) but they’ve shown improvements in their running game. Specifically, Nate Richam-Odoi ‘20 registered his third consecutive 100-yard performance this past Saturday against Amherst; the senior is averaging 5.75 yards per carry over his past three contests, which is good news considering Bowdoin will need their star running back to perform exceptionally against Tufts if they want to spring the upset. The problem with this is that along with the defense, the quarterback position is an absolute mess in Brunswick. After a brutal 2018 season in which he threw just eight touchdowns and 17 interceptions, Austin McCrum ‘21 has shown very little (if any) signs of improvement. He’s only registered two passing touchdowns through their first four games, and after failing to generate any points in the opening quarter against Amherst, McCrum was benched in lue of fellow junior Matthew Marcantano ‘21. Marcantano was not afraid to air it out, but he was careless with the football (two INT’s) and completed just 11 of his 27 passing attempts. 

Whoever Coach Hammer rolls out to start on Saturday will face a Tufts team that is coming off an emotional loss against Wesleyan. Behind a fired-up defense that continuously frustrated Ashton Scott ‘22 and the Cardinals’ offense, the Jumbos took a 10-7 into the fourth quarter. The Cardinals simply had more left in the tank, scoring on three of their four possessions and capped off by a six yard touchdown with six seconds left on the game clock. As valiant of a performance the Jumbos displayed this past Saturday, this is a prime letdown spot for about as inconsistent of a team as there is in the NESCAC this season. They’ve yet to have a game in which both the offense and defense play a complete 60 minutes; against the likes of Trinity and Wesleyan, the Jumbos defense swarmed all over the field, and yet the offense was stuck in the mud. Against Bates, the offense roared out to a sizeable lead, but the defense almost allowed Bates to come from behind and steal a win. Luckily for Tufts, they won’t need a complete performance to beat Bowdoin, but don’t be surprised if this game is closer than the experts think. 

SS: Tufts 28, Bowdoin 13
HC: Tufts 24, Bowdoin 14
MK: Tufts 30, Bowdoin 14
CC: Tufts 34, Bowdoin 14
RM: Tufts 34, Bowdoin 21

Writers’ Pick: Tufts

Colby (0-5) @ Trinity (3-2), 1pm, Hartford, CT

There’s no way to sugarcoat it; Colby should have absolutely beaten Middlebury. It was by far the worst performance the Panthers exhibited all season and it was almost as if they were basically handing the Mules the game, except the Mainers didn’t want it. I’m sure kicker Moises Celaya ‘22 was up all night thinking about how two missed extra points and a missed 32 yard field goal with 22 seconds left cost the Mules their upset bid. Nonetheless, Colby showed improvements on both sides of the ball; signal caller Matt Hersch ‘22 did not have the greatest completion percentage, but he was able to toss a season-high three touchdowns with no interceptions against a very strong secondary. The defense, while allowing Will Jernigan ‘21 to run for 153 yards and three scores of his own, made life miserable in the passing department. Jernigan was held to just 12 completions on 30 attempts, good for a paltry 40%. 

The Bantams marched into Lewiston and put an absolutely whooping on the Bobcats. Seamus Lambert ‘22 tossed for four scores to add to his league-leading 13 touchdown passes, and emerging running back Tijani Harris ‘22 ran for 139 yards and a score of his own. Despite playing in only two games, Harris has surpassed the century mark in both contests and must be viewed as a legitimate weapon on this team. The defense pitched a shutout, although I am more inclined to think that the final score says more about the lack of Bates offense rather than the dominance of the Trinity defense. They did force two turnovers, which was as many as the unit had in their previous four games combined; however, they failed to generate any pressure on the Bates quarterbacks, totaling zero sacks. Given that Trinity has defeated Bates and Bowdoin by a combined score of 112-7, I don’t think the Mules will fair much better come Saturday. I think Trinity keeps the train rolling en route to their third consecutive win, while the Mules continue to lament on what could have been if they had taken down the Panthers last weekend. 

SS: Trinity 38, Colby 14
HC: Trinity 45, Colby 14
MK: Trinity 56, Colby 10
CC: Trinity 42, Colby 7
RM: Trinity 48, Colby 10

Writers’ Pick: Trinity

Amherst (4-1) @ Hamilton (2-3), 1pm, Hamilton, NY

Despite being out-snapped 75-55 by the Polar Bears, the Mammoths glided to a comfortable 36-14 win that saw their defense keep the opposition off the scoreboard until the fourth quarter. Manni Malone ‘22 was impossible to defend, totaling four quarterback hits and a strip sack that resulted in his first touchdown on the season. All in all, Amherst had nine quarterback hits, and the relentless pressure that the front seven brings will force quarterbacks to become jittery in the pocket and lead to errant throws. Ollie Eberth ‘20 had a great performance, completing 71% of his passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns. Not to get lost in the shuffle of great wide receivers, James O’Regan ‘20 is quietly sitting second in the league in receiving yards and touchdowns. He’ll be ready to torch a secondary that just last week allowed Frank Stola to abuse them all afternoon. 

For the Continentals, their success is predicated on their offensive production. In their two wins against Colby and Bowdoin, Hamilton combined for 82 points; even in their loss to Trinity, they scored a respectable 24 points and gave their defense a chance to win. In their two losses, however, Kenny Gray ‘20 and the rest of the unit failed to eclipse 10 points, and the aforementioned quarterback had four combined interceptions. What’s more is that Amherst has the third-best run defense in the ‘CAC, which means tough sledding out there for David Kagan ‘20. If the Continentals wish to defeat the Mammoths, their defense will have to make this a grind and keep them out of the end zone. I actually think this one will be close, as Amherst doesn’t boast a prolific offense nor is it explosive. In the end, however, Amherst’s season is essentially over with a loss, and they still have hope that Wesleyan can usurp Middlebury and make the title race a bit more wide open. The Mammoths sneak out a win, and although both offenses will struggle early, O’Regan will prove to be the difference maker. 

SS: Amherst 28, Hamilton 17
HC: Amherst 31, Hamilton 17
MK: Amherst 28, Hamilton 10
CC: Amherst 31, Hamilton 20
RM: Amherst 27, Hamilton 21

Writers’ Pick: Amherst

Wesleyan @ Middlebury, 1pm, Middlebury, VT

This is our game of the week so I’ll keep it short. Everyone knows that if Middlebury beats Wesleyan on Saturday, the Championship is basically theirs. With remaining games against Bowdoin, Hamilton and Tufts, Middlebury would have to lose two of those three in order to fall out of the top spot. Wesleyan knows that the road ahead is extremely tough even if they end up beating Midd, but a win would shake up the entire conference, something that all of us (including me) wants to see. I really want to take the Cardinals, but after struggling with Jumbos I just don’t think they have the talent to compete for 60 minutes with the upper echelon NESCAC schools. Combined with the wake up call the Panthers received in their scare against Colby, I feel like it’s more likely the home team makes a statement Saturday afternoon. If the Cardinals do pull off the shocker, however, it will be because their defense stymies the Panthers’ ground game and forces Jernigan to throw the ball way more than he would like to. 

SS: Middlebury 28, Wesleyan 21
HC: Middlebury 21, Wesleyan 17
MK: Middlebury 24, Wesleyan 17
CC: Middlebury 27, Wesleyan 24
RM: Middlebury 27, Wesleyan 13

Writers’ Pick: Middlebury

Everything on the Line: Middlebury vs. Wesleyan Game of the Week Preview

Heading into the weekend, there are two undefeated teams remaining in the NESCAC this year. But that number will be reduced to just one after 5-0 Wesleyan takes on 5-0 Middlebury in Vermont this Saturday. For Wesleyan, a win keeps their undefeated season alive, and moves them into first place in the league, but they will be far from the favorites with Williams, Amherst, and Trinity looming in their final three games. For Middlebury, a win takes your chances of winning the league from like 95% to 99%. They would have to lose two out of three to Hamilton, Bowdoin, and Tufts. A loss would mean they no longer controlled their own destiny, but they would certainly still be title favorites. Regardless, there is a lot to be decided once the ball is kicked off.

Key #1 for Middlebury: Get Healthy

In Middlebury’s narrow escape of Colby last week, they were without First Team TE Frank Cosolito ’20, Second Team OL Kevin Woodring ’20, and lost top rusher and ROY frontrunner RB Alex Maldjian ’23 early in the game to a lower body injury. Needless to say, these three are huge pieces for the Panther offense—the best TE in the league, their most experienced lineman, and the man who has been arguably the best running back in the league this year as well. I’m told Cosolito and Maldjian are good to go for Saturday, with no word on Woodring. As is, this offense is not overwhelmingly talented—they are going to need their best players at as close to 100% as possible.

Key #2 for Middlebury: Win the Turnover Battle

It’s hard to believe that despite being 5-0, Middlebury has won the turnover battle in just 1 of their first 5 games—when they picked off Seamus Lambert 4 times in their win over Trinity. They are a -2 on the year in turnover margin—throwing 6 interceptions and fumbling 7 times, while intercepting 9 passes and recovering 2 fumbles. Jernigan alone has fumbled 7 times and lost 5 of them, an issue that could be further exacerbated if Maldjian is unable to shoulder the rushing load. To continue to lose the turnover battle and beat the teams they’ve beat is almost impossible and at some point, you have to wonder if it will catch up to them.  Wesleyan, on the other hand, has dominated turnover margin, a league leading +9, in addition to a league leading 16 sacks, this defense creates havoc all over the field. Middlebury has the talent advantage in this game but it’s not great enough that they can continue to give the other team extra possessions.

Key #1 for Wesleyan: Get Ahead Early

Against the perceived favorite and on the road, this is absolutely crucial. This has been the blueprint against Middlebury all year, it just hasn’t come much to fruition, clearly. Colby gave it the best bid last week when they went up 13-0, but Middlebury responded with 27 unanswered points. Will Jernigan ’21 has greatly improved as a passer, but he is still at his best when he has his full menu of options available—being put in situations where he can run or pass. He will not be able to beat Wesleyan with his arm, they have too many playmakers on the defensive side of the ball. For Wesleyan, they did a poor job of this last week, allowing Tufts to score the only 10 points of the first half before waking up at halftime. They will not have that same luxury against Middlebury. If the Cardinals can score first and hold any sort of a lead for the first half, Middlebury will not be able to run the ball nearly as much as they would like. On the flip side, if Midd strikes first and is able to control the game, it will spell trouble for Wesleyan.

Key #2 for Wesleyan: Let Ashton Scott Loose

Wesleyan’s sophomore standout QB has been reflective of their team as a whole so far through these first five weeks—he’s performed incredibly well, as has his team, but there is still so much we don’t know about him/them due to their weak schedule. Scott is 2nd in the league in completion percentage at 62.9%, tied for 1st with 13 passing TDs, and 3rd in the league in yards per attempt with 8.0, while also being tied for 1st with just 2 interceptions. He has shown the ability to make plays with his feet as well, 10th in the league with 50.2 rushing yards per game, which is tied for 3rd amongst all QBs. The coaching staff has been careful not to ask him to do too much as they have wisely and effectively allowed him to grow into his role, but at this point in the season, he is his team’s most talented offensive player. They have to take the training wheels off and let him win, or lose, this game. 

Everything Else:

This is such a fascinating game for so many reasons. Stylistically, we’ve already highlighted how the turnovers could cause serious problems for Middlebury, but also how they keep winning in spite of them. Wesleyan will come into this game probably has confident as they have been all year, following an under the lights thriller in their first real test of the season against Tufts, won on a 29-yard connection between Scott and WR Matthew Simco ’22 with just 6 seconds left. Middlebury knows they dodged a serious bullet last week between a blocked PAT that would have tied the game with 7 minutes left, and obviously what would have been the game winning FG from 37 yards with 20 seconds left. This could be, in the long run, the best thing to have happened to Middlebury—a wake-up call. Will we see them come out more motivated to correct their mistakes from last week, or will another poor performance build on itself? When it comes to picking a winner, there are so many unknowns, but I know more about this Middlebury team than I do about Wesleyan. No one has won more big games than Will Jernigan this year. Every single week he and this team find a way, and I think they will find a way again.

Prediction: Middlebury 24, Wesleyan 17

Only Two at the Top: Week 5 Power Rankings

(1) 1. Middlebury (5-0)

The Panthers were one missed kick away from being on the wrong end of an Earth-shattering upset at home against Colby last weekend. Midd fans can’t feel good about how close that game was, but the bottom line is that they’ve still beaten our third, fourth, and fifth ranked teams and currently hold the best chances at a NESCAC title- so they remain at the top of our rankings. Will Jernigan ’21 served as a better running back than quarterback this weekend, accounting for 153 yards and three touchdowns on the ground only. On the other hand, he threw an interception and lost two fumbles. Middlebury was very lucky to beat Colby with all those miscues, and they know they cannot put out a similar performance and expect to beat Wesleyan this weekend. Jernigan and other offensive weapons will have to be better on Saturday or Middlebury may find themselves leapfrogged by Wesleyan come this time next week. 

(4) 2. Wesleyan (5-0)

Ashton Scott ’22 and company got their first taste of a real NESCAC opponent this weekend when Tufts came to town for the night game. The Cardinals needed every bit of 60 minutes to survive, as they got a last second touchdown catch by Matthew Simco ’22 to break a 13-13 tie. The game may have been close because Wesleyan had not seen that level of competition, or because they are evenly matched with Tufts- we will find out more on that front this weekend. Scott looked solid again going 19-33 with 2 touchdowns, but the real hero of the day was freshman kicker and Special Teams POTW Mason Von Jess ’23. Von Jess came up huge and did not miss either of his two field goals or extra points, tallying 8 points in a game Wesleyan won by 7. I hope he got the game ball afterwards, because Wesleyan should be thankful for him given that kicking miscues were certainly on the forefront in the NESCAC that day. We will salute Mason as the Cardinals live to see another day, but they still have to finish with Middlebury, Amherst, Williams, and Trinity. Those are the teams that will show you what your squad is really made of, so we’ll see how many wins Wesleyan can manage in that gauntlet. 

(3) 3. Williams (4-1)

Is there a team playing better football right now than the Ephs? WR Frank Stola ’21 continued to make a mockery of his competition to the tune of 4 receiving touchdowns in a 35-10 romp over Hamilton. It will be interesting to see what defenses will throw at him the rest of the season, because not one team has been able to keep him out of the endzone. Stola’s excellence has made QB Bobby Maimaron’s stat lines look unreal as well. 11 for 19 with five touchdown passes. Part of why Williams is so tough to contain is their ability to run the ball as well. Teams have to prepare for Stola, but also for the league’s top rushing offense. On top of Maimaron’s dual-threat abilities, Joel Nicholas ’23 and Dan Vaughn ’22 are solid backs for a unit that put up 400 rushing yards just a few weeks ago. The defense has been just as stellar; they’re still allowing the fewest points in the league at only 9 per game. We all wish the Ephs played Middlebury at the end of the season instead of week one, but this team is playing well enough to handle their tough games in the last few weeks of the season and possibly shake up the championship picture. 

(2) 4. Amherst (4-1)

This is another team that wishes they could have their Middlebury game back, because they have played consistent non-flashy but winning football in all their other games this season. They beat Bowdoin easily enough to avoid a heart attack like Colby gave Middlebury, continuing to win the games they should win. Ollie Eberth ’20 had possibly the best day of any NESCAC QB last weekend. He went 15-21 for 261 yards and two TDs with no picks, again hooking up with his boy James O’Regan ’20 for a score. There is a lot of QB talent in the league this year so Eberth may not get the hype he deserves, but he is right up there with the other guys and is a proven winner. Amherst’s defense has always been a solid unit and this year they have had multiple guys stepping up to fill the void left by Andrew Yamin. DB Ricky Goodson ’21 was all over the field last weekend with four tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, an interception, and a blocked kick. A lot of guys are happy to get one of those achievements once in a season, but this man got all of them in one game- rightfully earning him DPOW honors. The Mammoths make the trek out to Clinton, NY this week before their Little Three games sandwiched around an always-exciting matchup with Trinity. 

(5) 5. Trinity (3-2)

The three-time defending champs had a fun trip to Maine last weekend. If Bates had any momentum from playing Tufts tight the week before, it was quickly put to rest as Trinity easily took a 30-0 lead into halftime and cruised to a 51-0 beatdown. Don’t let Trinity’s two losses distract you from the fact that regardless of the opponent, they are capable on any given Saturday of making you wish you never set foot on a football field with them.Too many Bantams to name were making plays on Saturday, but WR Koby Schofer ’20 deserves recognition for breaking the school record for receiving TDs with 21 (and four more games to play). He has been a top tier WR for the better part of his college career and is just one of many scoring threats on that offense. Trinity has accumulated the most yards of offense and allowed the fewest, so if they can minimize their turnovers and penalties they are still more capable of running the table. While they certainly will not be overlooking Colby this week, Trinity has a great opportunity in the Coop to get more momentum going as they head into their tough Little Three games at the back end of their schedule.

(6) 6. Tufts (2-3)

It was a brutal loss on Saturday for the Jumbos, who hung right with undefeated Wesleyan on Saturday until giving up a touchdown in the final few seconds. I’m still not sure what to think of these guys, because they can look like two completely different teams from one week to the next. One thing they will need to improve immediately is their league-worst run game. You know you’re struggling in a statistic when you’re worse than all 3 CBB teams. This weakness was especially apparent Saturday night. In what was a pretty mediocre offensive effort by both teams, Tufts only accounted for 54 rushing yards and really could have used a good bruising tailback to tire out the Cardinals defense and keep Ashton Scott on the bench. The good news is that they’re still second in passing yards without a big name veteran QB like Eberth or Maimaron. The other good news is that Tufts has played the hard part of their schedule and have Bowdoin, Hamilton and Colby in their next three games. If Coach Civetti can dig up that defense that only allowed Trinity eight points in week 1, the Jumbos will be in good shape to salvage a winning record and give Middlebury all they can handle in the season finale. 

(7) 7. Hamilton (2-3)

After turning some heads with strong performances earlier in the season, Hamilton looks like they’re starting to settle back into their ever-so comfortable 7 ranking. I personally was out of line in ranking Hamilton fifth a few weeks back, because they have shown time and time again that they’re in their own little New York tier above the Maine teams and below everyone else. You have to wonder what Coach Murray tells his guys at the beginning of the season, because in recent history it seems like they’re almost predestined for that 7 slot. Nonetheless, they still have a lot of football left to be played and all of their remaining games are winnable. Hamilton will need RB David Kagan ’20 to revert to his early season form, as his yardage has dipped and he has not found the endzone since September. They also need better performances from a defense that has not allowed fewer than 24 points in a game this season. They’ll be facing a well oiled machine in Amherst this weekend, but the offense has enough talent to keep the Continentals in the game if they play well. 

(8) 8. Colby (0-5)

It’s never easy losing a game on a missed last second field goal, but it hits even harder when you’re a winless team that squandered a prime opportunity to take down the undefeated top dogs. Colby played the best game of their season, but unfortunately that excellence did not extend to special teams. The Mules left five points on the board in missed kicks and wasted a terrific performance by QB Matt Hersch ‘22.  He outplayed Will Jernigan and kept Colby in the game on a day where he was not getting any help from the run game (49 net yards rushing). Hersch, Trinity’s Seamus Lambert ’22 and Wesleyan’s Ashton Scott ’22 are all talented and will be fun to watch for the next two years as the NESCAC’s next batch of stud quarterbacks. LB Marcus Bullard ’21 continued his outstanding season with an absurd 15 tackles, a sack, and an interception. He deserves to be in the DPOY conversation, so hopefully Colby’s record will not prevent him from that. The Mules have a tough task this weekend as they visit a Trinity team that has beat the other CBB schools by 54 and 51 points, but last weekend was a reminder that Coach Cosgrove’s team can compete with anyone. 

(10) 9. Bowdoin (0-5)

It’s honestly usually a toss-up between Bowdoin and Bates for these last two spots until they play each other, but Bowdoin’s winning the battle this week. Yes, they lost 36-14, but that’s a lot better than the 51-0 shellacking Bates took. Bowdoin has also at least been able to establish a consistent offensive threat in RB Nate Richam ’20. Against Amherst, he had his third straight week with both 100+ yards and a touchdown. I have the utmost respect for this guy- he has been a great player on a horrible team for four years now but refused to quit or transfer as many would. Defensive standouts Franny Rose ’21 and Joe Gowetski ’20 also deserve press as they have proven to be solid players in unfortunate circumstances. Bowdoin switched quarterbacks before halftime and gave Matthew Marcantano ’21 some looks, which I cannot disagree with at all because Austin McCrum ’21 has been brutal all year. In appropriate Polar Bear fashion, Marcantano came in and went 11-27 with two picks. Didn’t miss a beat! Jokes aside, the backups should have been given some more chances in blowout games earlier this season. The offense was not exactly humming with McCrum in, and maybe Marcantano would have played better against Amherst if he had more game experience leading up to this point. Either way, let’s hope new coach BJ Hammer brings in some better offensive talent in his next recruiting class, or it’ll be more of the same in Brunswick for the next few years. Who wouldn’t want to play for a guy named BJ Hammer?

(9) 10. Bates (0-5)

It’s one thing to lose games because the other team is just more talented, but we saw some coaching moves out of Bates’ Malik Hall on Saturday that were just straight up questionable. Brendan Costa ’21 is clearly their best quarterback, but for some reason we did not see him until late in the second quarter. Messing around with your lineups and trying new things is all fun and games until you do it against Trinity and find yourself down 30 at halftime. Bates was obviously no powerhouse before Hall took over for Mark Harriman right before last season, but his seat has to be getting warm due to the lack of progress Bates has made during his tenure. I’m not going to sugarcoat it- your team putting up 105 yards of offense and only 28 on the ground is a fireable offense. That being said, Bates has been competitive in a few games this year and still has both CBB teams and Hamilton in their last three games so a win or two is not out of the question. 

Now It’s Getting Good: Stock Report 10/15

Last week’s slate of games offered one more competitive contest than most of us expected. In the 6 o’clock nightcap, Wesleyan’s Matthew Simco ’22 managed a last second 29 yard touchdown catch to take down Tufts in our Game of the Week. This is the second week in a row that the Cardinals have managed a win by a score of 20-13. They’ll need their offense to be more explosive moving forward, as every team remaining on their schedule is better than every team they’ve played so far. This would normally be the most exciting game of any week had winless Colby not played the game of their season. They traveled up to Middlebury having lost every game by at least 14 points with expectations at rock bottom. Something about playing the top dog must have fired the Mules up, though, because they came right out and took an early 13-0 lead. Once Middlebury woke up and realized it wasn’t in their best interest to get blown out by a winless team, they got Will Jernigan ’21 cooking with three touchdown runs in the process of taking a 27-13 lead. Colby would still not back down- they recovered a fumble in the Middlebury endzone with only an extra point needed to tie! However this, extra point was missed…along with a 32-yarder in the final seconds that would have all but won it for the Mules. Two missed extra points and a missed field goal only add to the pain of a one-point loss that could have been easily the biggest upset of the season. While it would have been nice to see one of the two undefeated teams fall in the final seconds last week, last week’s results set up a matchup of these two undefeateds that is sure to be a great barometer for both Middlebury and Wesleyan. 

Stock Up

Williams WR Frank Stola

Stola has easily been the league’s best wideout since the start of the season. He has recorded at least a touchdown every game, and has had only one game with fewer than 100 yards receiving. If that wasn’t impressive enough, he has multiple four-touchdown performances and has averaged at least 18 yards per catch in every game. Not only does he lead the league in receiving yards and touchdowns, he has twice as many TDs as the next guy and averages 147 receiving yards per game while nobody else is even in triple digits. He was most recently seen lighting up Hamilton for 168 yards and 4 touchdowns on his way to NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. Those are the kind of numbers that will vault you into Williams and NESCAC lore for years to come. Expect Stola to have another monster performance this week against a porous Bates secondary. 

Middlebury’s Luck 

I don’t mean to say that Middlebury doesn’t deserve to be on top of the standings right now. They are clearly a much improved team this year; they have played to their strengths and Coach Ritter deserves substantial credit for squeezing this record out of a roster that probably doesn’t have the most talent in the league. They also clearly have a knack for winning close games. But let’s look at some of their wins. They beat a Trinity team that suddenly lost its starting running back the week before the game. They got the ball first in overtime against Amherst and threw an interception on the second play. Even more fortunately, Colby left five points on the board via missed kicks and gave away a win they really should have had this past Saturday. If all those outcomes hadn’t gone Middlebury’s way, the standings would be painting a very different picture right now. Give the Panthers credit, because they still needed to do a lot of things right to beat Amherst, Williams, and Trinity. However, I think they have gotten some bounces in their direction and would not be able to beat all three of these teams twice in a row. We will see if Midd will need to continue to squeak out close games or if they win more convincingly- if the latter happens for the rest of the season, I will be a believer that they are the best in the NESCAC this year. 

Trinity RB Tijani Harris

One of the more perplexing storylines of the season is how Trinity has lost two games despite being ranked first in both total offense and total defense. The answer to that question has a lot to do with penalties and turnovers, but there’s a reason the Bantams continue to dominate a lot of the right categories. Whether or not they win every game, Trinity’s talent just seems to run deeper than other teams year in and year out. Harris is a great example of that. He came in as the third string running back behind fellow sophomores Spencer Lockwood ’22 and Draquan Jones ’22 and barely saw action as a freshman. When both of those guys went down, Harris immediately stepped in and produced against Hamilton with 115 yards and one touchdown in what ended up being a one-touchdown game. He then continued to ball out with 139 yards and another score against Bates this past weekend. Other teams would be in a huge hole if their top two backs went down, but it’s next man up in Hartford. Harris is a great reminder that there are usually guys riding the bench at Trinity, Williams etc that may have been studs (or at least contributors) on weaker NESCAC teams. With Seamus Lambert ’22 playing better and plenty of offensive weapons at his disposal, it will be interesting to see what kind of damage Harris and the Bantams can do against the meat of their schedule at the end of the season.  

Stock Down

Hamilton Defense 

The Continentals have allowed 399, 419, and 380 yards of offense in their last three games. They have also allowed at least 24 points in every game and have played two out of the three CBB teams. Hamilton’s offense has talent, but is not good enough to keep up with some of the crazy totals the defense is allowing. There was talk of All-NESCAC LB Tyler Hudson ’19 returning for a redshirt year after he missed his senior season last year with an injury, but he is gone and the Continentals have continued to feel his loss. Most recently, they allowed four touchdowns to Williams WR Frank Stola ’21. If one guy alone accounts for more than double your entire team’s scoring output, there’s a problem. Hamilton is not yet ranked in the bottom three in total defense thanks to their confidence-boosting CBB friends, but the way they’ve been giving up scores lately has made it tough for the Continentals to stay competitive. 

Kickers

Everyone knows these guys have a high pressure job, but some of the NESCAC’s kickers look like they’re eyeing a tryout for the Chicago Bears. Most obviously, Colby’s Moises Celaya ’22 was 2 for 4 on extra points last weekend and missed his only field goal attempt, a 32-yarder in the final seconds that would have given the Mules a massive first win and the Panthers an even more massive first loss. The fact that all these points were left on the board makes Colby’s loss all the more gut-wrenching for NESCAC fans hoping for the upset. In the other close game of the weekend, Tufts’ Matt Alswanger missed two field goals in another one-score game. This is even tougher to stomach when you consider that his counterpart, Wesleyan’s Mason Von Jess ’23, was perfect on two field goals and two extra points, swinging the game in the Cardinals’ direction. Amherst is 5-10 on field goals this season, and Bates has not even attempted one…the Bobcats are 1 for 5 on extra points, so they may want to get a hang of those before they start going for 50 yarders. Clearly, great kickers are hard to come by in D3 football. But it may be in some of these schools’ best interest to send a football coach to the soccer team’s practices, because a lot of the league’s current kickers aren’t getting it done when it counts. 

The Preseason is Over: Wesleyan vs. Tufts Game of the Week Preview

This week’s Game of the Week coverage features the Wesleyan Cardinals hosting the Tufts Jumbos in what is sure to be a season-defining matchup for both teams. For Wesleyan, their perfect 4-0 start to the season is taken with a grain of salt considering their victories have been against the likes of Hamilton, Colby, Bates and Bowdoin. It doesn’t help that the latter of the bunch was tied with the Cardinals until 3:52 remaining in the fourth quarter in what would have been the biggest upset of the season to date. Defeating Tufts would not be the loudest statement we’ve seen, but it would surely qualify as a step up in competition. For the Jumbos, last week’s 33-28 scare against the Bobcats exhibited (once again) some glaring concerns for a team that some thought of as a conference championship contender after their upset of Trinity. A win on the road against Wesleyan would help rejuvenate this squad and maybe spark a run in the latter remaining weeks. 

Key #1 for Tufts: Start Fast 

In its four games of the season, the Jumbos have scored a total of 25 points in the first half.  Another first half performance that features single digit points will most certainly not cut it against a Wesleyan offense that’s averaging over 30 ppg. In order to set the stage for an upset, it is vital that Jacob Carroll ‘20 and company come out firing and put pressure on the Cardinals defense to make plays. Up until Saturday’s matchup with Bowdoin, Wesleyan had not trailed in 2019; once the Polar Bears took a 7-0 lead, the atmosphere changed and the Cardinals (at times) seemed to tighten up. Carroll has some really dynamic weapons at his disposal, most notably OJ Armstrong ‘21 (29 receptions for 232 yards and a TD) and Brendan Dolan ‘21 (12 receptions for 215 yards and two TD’s). The senior quarterback has to find a way to get his playmakers the ball and quickly, or else Coach Civetti could pull the string and go with true freshman Trevon Woodson ‘23.   

Key #2 for Tufts: Contain Ashton Scott

This one is a real simple concept, and yet this Jumbos’ defense has had an extremely hard time containing dual-threat quarterbacks as of late. Last week, Bates quarterback Brendan Costa ‘21 came on in the second quarter and gave Tufts fits, throwing for 200 yards and rushing for another 62 on just eight carries. Costa played well, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that the junior had never passed for more than 200 yards in a single game in his career until Saturday. The fact that he did so in three quarters…is alarming to say the least. The defense we saw on opening day against Trinity is long gone, and since that 14-8 victory, Tufts is allowing close to 33 and 408 yards per game. Along with Costa, Bobby Maimaron ‘21 and Ollie Eberth ‘20 have combined to rush for 73 yards per game against Tufts, and each of those quarterbacks averaged at least 5.6 yards per carry. Given the fact that Scott leads the Cardinals in rushing attempts, the defense should expect a similar offensive scheme coming their way. 

Key #1 for Wesleyan: Let Scott Loose

With four games under his belt as a starting quarterback in the ‘CAC, Scott gets his first crack at a team that isn’t one of the historical bottom dwellers. While not the football juggernaut we thought this Jumbos team could become after upsetting the Bantams, they have more than enough talent to frustrate the Cardinals and pull off the upset. While the defense hasn’t been spectacular as of late, Tufts has the capability to shut down the run game and force teams to beat them through the air. I believe Coach DiCenzo will allow Scott the opportunity to throw the ball the more after being ultra conservative early on in the season. Other than Williams, no other team has attempted fewer than 100 passes, and you have to consider that because Williams ran out to essentially insurmountable leads against Bowdoin and Tufts, they had the luxury of just running out the clock in the second half.  Scott only attempted 16 passes last week against Bowdoin despite completing 11 of those attempts, and you would have to think Tufts knows that Wesleyan relies heavily on their ground game; I wouldn’t be surprised to see Scott attempt 30+ passes, but in a manner that allows the underclassman to get the ball out quickly and efficiently. 

Key #2 for Wesleyan: Give Scott a #2 Target

If Scott is going to throw the ball more than usual on Saturday, then someone from this young  wide receiver department needs to step up. Matthew Simco ‘22 (14 receptions for 225 yards and two scores) is one of many big play threats on this Cardinals’ offense, but none of the remaining pass catchers have registered double digit receptions. Dario Highsmith ‘20 showed some life and caught two passes for 42 yards and a touchdown last week against Bowdoin, so maybe the only senior out of wide receiver group can build off last week’s successful showing; however, the fact remains that backup running back Charlie McPhee ‘22 is the team’s third leading receiver with a paltry six receptions. Expect offensive coordinator Eric Ludwig to throw the kitchen sink at Tufts, utilizing various routes to get his wide receivers open and instill some confidence in a group that Scott needs to be at their best on Saturday. 

Everything Else:

I think Saturday’s near epic collapse against the Bobcats sent a message to the Jumbos in the sense that this team is not strong enough as a collective unit to just waltz in against a conference opponent and play ok football en route to a win. It was a wake up call for sure, and I reckon this week of practice was geared towards getting the team refocused and ready to roll. I  fully expect Tufts to come out to stack the box and force Scott to beat them with his arm, keeping this game close. When it’s all said and done, however, I just don’t think the Jumbos have enough offense to knock off the Cardinals. With all the focus on running backs Glenn Smith ‘21 and David Estevez ‘22 as well as Scott’s running ability, I believe Wesleyan will come out aggressively in the passing game and jump out to a lead early. They were clearly overlooking Bowdoin last week, and they’ll have their heads on straight in this one. Scott throws for a score while adding another on the ground, and the Cardinals wear down the Jumbos en route to a 5-0 start to the season.

Prediction: Wesleyan 27, Tufts 16

It’s Only Getting Better: Weekend Preview 10/12

Before we get down to it I just wanted to update everyone on the current standings for our writers picking the winners of every game. We’ve been fairly successful, although we still haven’t quite reached the exciting part of the year. Ryan is still the only one to have correctly predicted the final score of any game, as he picked Amherst 27-13 over Bates in Week 1. There’s still a lot of football left to play so we’ve got plenty more to come, but this is where we’re at as of now:

Matt Karpowicz: 16-4
Haven Cutko: 16-4
Ryan Moralejo: 16-4
Cameron Carlson: 15-5
Spencer Smead: 14-6

Colby @ Middlebury, 1pm, Middlebury, VT

This weekend’s slate of games does not offer a ton of intrigue, and it doesn’t help that it includes this matchup of the hottest team in the league playing probably the coldest. Colby was the one CBB team to not finish within a touchdown of their opponent last week in a shutout loss against Williams. Colby’s defense, led by LB Marcus Bullard ’21 who is second in the league in tackles, actually held up pretty well. Only Middlebury has held the Ephs offense to fewer points this season and they forced Maimaron and company to go 2 of 9 on third down. Unfortunately, the offense could not reward their defense’s commendable play and failed to cash in on an advantage in time of possession. The Mules did not turn the ball over, but punted five times and missed two field goals. That’s just extremely uninspiring football. They will need to do better than 237 yards of total offense and especially focus on converting third downs if they expect to have a chance against a strong Middlebury defense. 

The strange thing about Midd’s wild win over Amherst last week was that both teams had clear opportunities deep in enemy territory to just kick a field goal and win, but neither of them could do it. Middlebury is obviously happy being undefeated no matter how they get there, but they have to be thankful that a traditionally-executing Amherst team decided to outdo Midd’s late game miscues with one of their own and help hand the Panthers the win. Middlebury has gotten by this year with strong all-around play more than big names, but RB Alex Maldijan ’23 deserves recognition for coming in as a freshman and putting up 125 yards and 2 TDs in the biggest game of his college career. He currently leads the NESCAC in rushing and will be a big part of Midd’s success for the next few years. Expect him to continue his success against a run defense that allowed 227 yards on the ground last weekend. QB Will Jernigan ’21 has also enjoyed a nice season so far; he made up for a big interception in the first overtime last week by leading the game winning TD drive in the second. Unless the Colby offense wakes up in Vermont on Saturday, don’t expect a close one.

SS: Middlebury 31, Colby 6 
HC: Middlebury 28, Colby 10 
MK: Middlebury 28, Colby 14
CC: Middlebury 35, Colby 10
RM: Middlebury 33, Colby 10

Writers’ Pick: Middlebury

Trinity @ Bates, 1pm, Lewiston, ME

Expect Bates to come out fired up for this one. They’re in the dirty Lew coming off their best offensive performance of the season in a close loss to Tufts, who allowed 20 fewer points to Trinity in week one than they did to the Bobcats. We finally got to see what QB Brendan Costa ’21 can do, as he completed 19 of 28 passes with a touchdown and also ran for 62 yards on the ground. RB Christian Sanfilippo ’21 made the most of his carries, getting 6 for 11 yards…with three touchdowns. Props to Christian, because you’d be hard pressed to find a league where the guy second in rushing touchdowns is 36th in yards. Fullback numbers at their finest! We will see if Bates’ performance is a fluke when they meet a Bantam defense allowing the fewest yards per game in the league. Trinity is also the only team to allow fewer than 100 yards per game on the ground, led by their strong linebacker unit of Sean Smerczynski ‘20, Brian Casagrande ‘22, and Daniel Negron ‘20. Look for guys like DE Jimmy Christiano ‘21 and S Matt McCarthy ‘21 to be making plays on Saturday as they have all season. 

It doesn’t make a lot of sense that Trinity is only 2-2 given that they have dominated in many of the game’s biggest statistics as always. QB Seamus Lambert ‘22 leads the league in passing yards and is tied for the lead in touchdowns, showing that this offense is still as potent as any. On top of that, the Bantams still top the NESCAC in points and yards per game. Bates is also last in pass defense, and that doesn’t bode well coming into a matchup with the best receiving corps in the league. So while Bates may feel like they have a better chance than usual to beat Trinity for the first time since 1975, these cats need to understand that Trinity has been a few turnovers and penalties away from leading the pack as they almost always do. In addition, it’s looking like Trinity’s sophomores are forming the core of the team. Lambert, Casagrande, Devante Reid ’22, and others have a lot of football ahead of them, so don’t expect the Bantams to fall off very far from their usual dominance. Bates has reason to be feeling good about this weekend, but they just haven’t been consistent enough for this to be the year they snap the streak.

SS: Trinity 28, Bates 13
HC: Trinity 35, Bates 13
MK: Trinity 48, Bates 10
CC: Trinity 52, Bates 6
RM: Trinity 44, Bates 16

Writers’ Pick: Trinity

Bowdoin @ Amherst, 1pm, Amherst, MA 

We’re still in the middle part of the season before the best teams and the worst teams start to play each other, and that leaves us with ho-hum matchups like this one. Both teams are coming off games in which a win was very much within reach. Amherst had a late lead and then squandered opportunities in crunch time to beat Middlebury in a classic, while Bowdoin opened some eyes by coming within a touchdown of undefeated Wesleyan. Polar Bears RB Nate Richam-Odoi ‘20 once again carried the offense, accounting for 177 of the team’s 282 total yards. He will need to have a similarly huge performance if Bowdoin wants to have any chance in this game. On the other hand, QB Austin McCrum ’21 has yet to really get going this season and that has really limited Bowdoin’s offensive capability. Amherst’s defense is likely going to focus on stuffing the talented Richam-Odoi, so McCrum should have some opportunities to connect with guys like Greg Olson ‘21 and Bo Millett ‘21 against a pass defense that’s surprisingly second to last in the league. Unfortunately for Bowdoin, their defense may have an even taller task this weekend as the unit that allows the most yards per game will need to figure out how to stop the lethal combo of Ollie Eberth and James O’Regan. 

Amherst has not been a terribly exciting team this season and they err more towards the middle of the pack in most statistical categories, but they make up for it by playing relatively mistake-free football. They are always disciplined and well-coached, so it was surprising to see them let the biggest game of the season slip away as they did last weekend. Nonetheless, we cannot ignore that they were that close to beating the championship front runner, so we have to assume that they will come out firing on their home turf and let Eberth go to work behind a traditionally strong O-line. DL Joe Kelly ’21 has stepped up and done a great job filling the void left by Andrew Yamin; he currently leads the league in solo tackles and sacks. He will help control Richam-Odoi and force Bowdoin to engage their pass game a bit more. I think Bowdoin’s close game last week exposed Wesleyan’s weaknesses more than it did Bowdoin’s strengths. Expect the Mammoths to get back on track at home.

SS: Amherst 28, Bowdoin 10
HC: Amherst 27, Bowdoin 7 
MK: Amherst 41, Bowdoin 6 
CC: Amherst 35, Bowdoin 6
RM: Amherst 27, Bowdoin 7

Writers’ Pick: Amherst

Hamilton @ Williams, 2pm, Williamstown, MA

Williams has looked sharp since their opening week loss at Middlebury, winning the first three games of a five-game stretch in which they are home four times. It’s too bad that they don’t get another crack at Middlebury, because this is a team with the talent to run the table and definitely the chance to beat the Panthers in a future matchup. Alas, all the Ephs can do is take care of business and hope Midd falters. This week they face a Hamilton team that definitely looks improved, but still in their own tier above the CBB teams and below the teams competing for a title every year. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Hamilton did keep up with Trinity on the scoreboard until late, but Kenny Gray ’20 completed fewer than half his passes and RB David Kagan ’20 fell way off from his usual production this season and only managed 18 yards on 14 carries. That’s not going to get it done against the league’s top scoring defense. Given that Hamilton only managed 10 points against Wesleyan and that Williams shut out Colby last week, it’s hard to feel good about their offense on Saturday unless WR Joe Schmidt ’20 comes back and puts up big numbers. 

Williams’ offense did not have one of their better weeks last week, but you can’t blame Coach Raymond for once again taking a run-heavy approach a week after they totaled nearly 400 yards on the ground the week before. They wore Colby down with RBs Dan Vaughn ’22 and Joel Nicholas ’23 each getting 13 carries and averaging 8.5 and 7.1 yards on each carry, respectively. This offensive strategy has gotten Williams wins so far and it keeps Bobby Maimaron safe. Additionally, establishing the run game will open up holes for WR Frank Stola, who is in the OPOY running and leads the NESCAC in receiving yards and touchdowns. While Hamilton looks to be more competitive with non-CBB opponents thus far, their offense has not shown enough promise for anyone to feel good about their prospects against an Ephs defense allowing only 8.8 points per game. Williams has made a habit of finishing in the top 3 without a ring lately, and this season could be looking like more of the same. They could make a great case for the NESCAC to offer postseason play, but that’s a discussion for another day. 

SS: Williams 35, Hamilton 27
HC: Williams 31, Hamilton 10
MK: Williams 31, Hamilton 14 
CC: Williams 31, Hamilton 14
RM: Williams 37, Hamilton 20

Writers’ Pick: Williams

Tufts @ Wesleyan, 6pm, Middletown, CT

It’s fitting that the rare NESCAC night game is also our Game of the Week. The excitement of this game stems from the fact that includes probably the league’s two most perplexing teams thus far. Tufts has been wildly inconsistent, beating Trinity and playing Amherst close but also getting smoked by Williams and barely holding off a late game rally by Bates last weekend. Wesleyan is 4-0, but they have only played the league’s four worst teams and they did not do themselves any favors by only beating Bowdoin by a touchdown (the game was tied with 6 minutes left). That makes this game a tough one to pick- we don’t yet know what the result is when Wesleyan plays a good game against a good team. Another offensive weapon did emerge for the Cardinals, as RB Glenn Smith ’21 scampered for 108 yards and a big touchdown on a day where the talented young QB Ashton Scott ’22 did not have his best day. It’s yet to be determined whether or not kicker Mason Von Jess ’23 will be the next Eric Sachse or Steven Hauschka, but he has been a major special teams asset so far and his kicking ability could end up being a deciding factor in this game. 

Tufts’ offense needed to wake up at some point, and Bates’ horrid defense was their alarm clock. Coach Civetti made himself look like a genius with his two-QB offensive approach. Jacob Carroll ‘20 had a strong game with 223 yards and two touchdowns, and Trevon Woodson ’23 was a sharp 5-6 with another touchdown while also averaging 6.3 yards a carry on the ground. Implementing multiple quarterbacks frequently is a strategy prone to scrutinization, so we’ll see if that will be a pattern continuing this week or if Civetti felt he could experiment a little bit against lowly Bates. Wesleyan is not a defense you want to mess around against, especially with DL Taj Gooden ’21 back in the lineup. This is our Game of the Week so we will have additional coverage, but it should be a good one and everyone else in the league will have finished their games and be able to watch Wesleyan try to keep pace with Middlebury in the race for the title.

SS: Tufts 21, Wesleyan 20
HC: Wesleyan 28, Tufts 21 
MK: Wesleyan 24, Tufts 17
CC: Wesleyan 28, Tufts 14 
RM: Wesleyan 27, Tufts 16

Writers’ Pick: Wesleyan