Weekend Preview
With each passing week the conference standings are getting clearer and clearer. With only 3 games remaining, 3 true contenders remain. Our other 6 are left to fight for the scraps—some for regional pride, some for the sake of nothing but wins and losses, and a few in hopes of a Week 9 Miracle. This week doesn’t appear to have huge implications outside of Amherst and Tufts, but it has implications nonetheless.
Bowdoin @ Wesleyan
Neither of these teams is going to come into this game feeling very good about themselves. Bowdoin, besides the 23 obvious reasons, was served a 48-6 pasting by Trinity, while Wesleyan was downright embarrassed by their Little Three rival Amherst 33-3, on their own turf. Wesleyan obviously hasn’t had the year it was hoping for, unable to account for WR Mike Breuler ‘18’s departure, but I don’t think they’ve dipped to ‘lose to Bowdoin’ levels of bad. Their defense is strong but for Bowdoin it continues to be all about quarterback play. Austin McCrum ’21 just hasn’t been able to get anything going, most notably in last week’s 17-38, 99 yards, and 4 INT performance. You could make an argument to go back to Griff Stalcup ’21, but he’s been their best WR since switching positions. It’s a lose-lose for Bowdoin and as long as these struggles continue, their chances of winning outside of the state of Maine will be stagnant. Wesleyan shouldn’t feel confident enough in themselves to focus all of their energy on their Week 8 visit to Williams, but they can channel that energy into running up the score on Bowdoin in hopes of building some momentum. QB Mark Piccirillo ’19 will look like a better version of himself this week, and the Cardinals will roll.
Final Score: Wesleyan 38, Bowdoin 9
Colby @ Bates
Finally some CBB! Love me some CBB. Two of the three rivals in Maine square off this week as they open up the annual battle for bragging rights and an extra edge in in-state recruiting. Bates is still winless, and Colby grabbed their first win last week behind the increasingly emerging arm of QB Matt Hersch ’22, who is ever so quietly beginning to pop up in the Rookie of the Year conversation. Hersch threw for 288 yards and 1 TD and 1 INT on 27-39 in their 23-21 win over Hamilton, his third straight week of 200+ yards and a score. Colby’s offensive line continues to be porous, allowing another 5 sacks last week. They need to protect Hersch to win this game. It would be easy to take the hot hand and the team that finally won a game, but despite this I’m taking Bates. The Bobcats have owned this rivalry and the CBB as a whole, as last year they became the first team since Colby in 1988-1992 to win it four years in a row. It’s a home game, and these seniors are not going to be the class that ends this streak. I’m not really sure how, but they’re going to find a way to win this game.
Final Score: Bates 27, Colby 20
Middlebury @ Trinity
This could be a fun one. Middlebury has really turned it around the last few weeks, although a one point win against Bates might not show it. The Will Jernigan ’21 train has left the station, and their spread offense has clicked. Jernigan had his best collegiate game as a passer last week, going 17-26 for 266 yards 3 TDs and 1 INT. But opposing them in Hartford is Trinity and the home of the best offense in the league so far. Trinity switched it up under center last week, opting for QB Seamus Lambert instead of Jordan Vazzano ’21, and it worked as well as they could have hoped, with Lambert going 22-29 for 280 yards and 3 TDs. WRs Koby Schofer and Jonathan Girard reeled in a combined 14 of those balls for over 200 of those yards, announcing that they clearly don’t care who’s throwing it to them. I would imagine Lambert’s accuracy is what got him the starting job and it’s going to keep him there. It’s going to be tough to pick a team that allowed 34 points to Bates, and while Midd has turned things around, they’re not going to beat the Bantams in a shootout.
Final Score: Trinity 42, Middlebury 24
Williams @ Hamilton
Is this a trap game for the Ephs? It’s hard to imagine losing two games in a row and still overlooking your next opponent, but after their trip to Clinton, Williams will only have arch rivals Wesleyan and Amherst remaining on the schedule, and their first Little 3 title in almost a decade is all they have left to play for, barring a miracle (I went through all the outcomes in my head and it doesn’t look good). What’s left of this defense is a far cry from the group that held Trinity to 16 points, a feat that is looking more and more impressive by the week. Star LB TJ Rothmann ’21 continues to be on the injury report with a sprained jaw, and they’ve lost DE/LB Austin Thomas ’19 for the season with a concussion. They need some pieces to come together if they want to beat Wesleyan and shock Amherst, but they still have too much talent not to take care of Hamilton, who can’t be feeling great coming off a loss to Colby. Until we know which Kenny Gray ’20 is going to show up for the Continentals, I won’t feel comfortable picking them.
Final Score: Williams 35, Hamilton 10
Fyi regarding Colby’ s quarter back last week. He had a great game and is throwing well.4 of the 5 sacks though happened because he held on to the ball too long and tried to run when he should have thrown the ball away. Colby’s line played pretty well in pass protection.stats don’t always tell the story.