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Post by nycrusader2010 on Nov 25, 2017 23:28:59 GMT -5
If my count is correct, the Pioneer League has now gotten an FCS playoff win in two of the three seasons it was been post season eligible, with USD accounting for all of the NCAA appearances.
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Post by Xmassader on Nov 25, 2017 23:35:59 GMT -5
In D-II playoffs, Assumption and Bob Chesney go to 11-1 with a second round win vs. Findlay. On to the quarter finals next Saturday at 12-0 Indiana Univ. of PA. In the D-III playoffs, St. Thomas of Minnesota moves on with a second round win vs. Berry College (Ga.) and plays in the quarter finals next Saturday on the road at defending national champ Mary Hardin Baylor (12-0).
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Post by hcpride on Nov 26, 2017 6:24:01 GMT -5
If things work out perfectly for our football program, we'll be seeing HC regularly in the FCS playoffs starting in four or five years. As PL champ or at-large. Then it won't be boring at all. I give Lehigh credit. They had a pretty bad season and knew they'd be overmatched but they gave it a shot. Gotta think Lehigh's coach would have preferred to end their sub-.500 season at the conclusion of Patriot League play. [ Is the pl any better w scholarships? IMHO this is the worst Patriot League football season ever and is their fifth year with full schollies. Not one Patriot League team is among the 36 vote-getters in the FCS Coaches Poll - I believe every other FCS conference (including NEC and non-schollie Pioneer League) is represented. This does not directly answer the question, of course. And Patriot League trajectory might be changed next year as hope, as always, springs eternal. Fordham begins a four-year series with Stony Brook next year. A very nice rivalry between two well-regarded NY institutions might be brewing as long as Fordham gets its football act together. Quickly.
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Post by timholycross on Nov 26, 2017 11:17:15 GMT -5
One would think Fordham DID have their football act together. 4 really good years, then they fell off the map this year. What happened?
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Post by deep Purple on Nov 26, 2017 11:44:49 GMT -5
One would think Fordham DID have their football act together. 4 really good years, then they fell off the map this year. What happened? Moorhead left. Breiner is now the head coach.
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Post by hc87 on Dec 2, 2017 17:58:12 GMT -5
UNH 21 Central Arkansas 15 F
UCA was seeded #4.....
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Post by hcpride on Dec 2, 2017 19:10:38 GMT -5
UNH 21 Central Arkansas 15 F UCA was seeded #4..... Nice win for UNH beating 4th seed. 4th place in the CAA regular season and now rolling in the playoffs. That weird FCS scheduling had Stony Brook (2nd Place CAA) playing JMU (1st Place CAA, 1st Seed FCS) today. And SBU goes down 26-7. Both coaches commented how inappropriate the scheduling was.
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Post by hc87 on Dec 2, 2017 20:40:56 GMT -5
UNH 21 Central Arkansas 15 F UCA was seeded #4..... Nice win for UNH beating 4th seed. 4th place in the CAA regular season and now rolling in the playoffs. That weird FCS scheduling had Stony Brook (2nd Place CAA) playing JMU (1st Place CAA, 1st Seed FCS) today. And SBU goes down 26-7. Both coaches commented how inappropriate the scheduling was. The whole thing is a farce...I follow it for s**ts and giggles....basically the brackets are the way they are due to "regionalization" i.e. cutting down the costs of travel as much as possible. Would people really care if HC went down and beat Central Arkansas today? Obviously some would...but the FCS playoffs are met by most (unless you live in the Dakotas) with a collective yawn I believe. A bowl game against the Ivy winner is much more preferable imo.
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Post by hcpride on Dec 3, 2017 5:51:07 GMT -5
Generally, I agree. But I do recall in 1983 with that great team nobody wanted the season to end. Wanted to see how they'd match up against I-AA in other regions especially after the blowout to 1A and nationally ranked BC. So there was a bit of excitement at HC about the playoffs. I think if you've got a hot team in the playoffs it is fun/interesting to follow them. But if your team is not in it - or your team sort of backs in like Lehigh this year - the playoffs are a nothing burger.
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Post by bikeman on Dec 3, 2017 7:49:21 GMT -5
I would be into it and so would most if HC were flyin high into the playoffs.
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Post by unhfan on Dec 3, 2017 10:56:09 GMT -5
I’m surprised that the chance to win a National Tutle doesn’t interest some of Cross Nation.
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Post by hcpride on Dec 3, 2017 12:36:33 GMT -5
I’m surprised that the chance to win a National Title doesn’t interest some of Cross Nation. Trust me, if we had a program like UNH we'd be happy as heck. Year in and year out doing well in a quality league and gunning for a slot in the National Championships. A distant and maybe farfetched goal at this point. It has been a very long time but we may hit the jackpot with this coaching hire. In come the quality recruits and away we go. (I've posted on this board before that I think our goal, given our recent upgrades, is to build a quality and enduring football program like the one UNH runs.)
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Post by gks on Dec 3, 2017 18:05:07 GMT -5
UNH is the standard-bearer for New England FCS. The Wildcats do everything the right way.
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Post by hc87 on Dec 3, 2017 18:09:18 GMT -5
Mehhh.....wouldn't surprise me if the whole format was scrapped in a few years...attendance is awful, no TV etc....
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Post by cmo on Dec 3, 2017 19:33:11 GMT -5
Would have to scrap the moniker FCS 😃
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Post by hc87 on Dec 3, 2017 19:48:22 GMT -5
I like the FCS level but I really wondah about the viability of the level long term. It's a very expensive proposition and the revenue generated by it (attendance, TV rights etc) seem to be dwindling by the year.
Is that level sustainable when average crowds are around 5K? There were only 6,243 at football crazy Arkansas yesterday for the UNH game.
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Post by timholycross on Dec 3, 2017 20:11:06 GMT -5
I like the FCS level but I really wondah about the viability of the level long term. It's a very expensive proposition and the revenue generated by it (attendance, TV rights etc) seem to be dwindling by the year. Is that level sustainable when average crowds are around 5K? There were only 6,243 at football crazy Arkansas yesterday for the UNH game. You can say that about nearly every NCAA championship event. The piece of the pie they take from the big events pays for all the other stuff. If they ditched FCS football they have to ditch a lot of other tournaments.
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Post by timholycross on Dec 3, 2017 20:16:56 GMT -5
Predicted high in Brookings SD on Saturday, 28, low 14. Outdoor stadium with a 2pm start.
Wofford lucks out. Goes to ND State, but it's indoors. My favorite name for an indoor stadium, the Fargodome.
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Post by hc87 on Dec 3, 2017 20:18:32 GMT -5
Probably true....but you have to think that the Title IX regulations are putting a strain on a fair amount of schools at the FCS level.
Matching 60, 63 full scholarships...can't be easy for some schools.
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Post by hc87 on Dec 3, 2017 20:45:03 GMT -5
Attendance for the 2nd round games:
Furman @ Wofford: 5,153 Stony Brook @ JMU: 16,449 Kennesaw St @ JSU: 17,412 UNI @ SDSU: 7,815 South Dakota @ SHSU: 4,401 New Hampshire @ UCA: 6,243 San Diego @ NDSU: 18,067 Weber St @ SUU: 11,811
Some decent crowds....but Colgate at HC in 1983 (and many other games at Fitton in the 1980s) would have outdrawn them all.
Troubling figures imo.....
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Post by rgs318 on Dec 5, 2017 8:43:36 GMT -5
UNH is the standard-bearer for New England FCS. The Wildcats do everything the right way. Including their recent loss to Holy Cross!
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Dec 5, 2017 14:43:15 GMT -5
Attendance for the 2nd round games: Furman @ Wofford: 5,153 Stony Brook @ JMU: 16,449 Kennesaw St @ JSU: 17,412 UNI @ SDSU: 7,815 South Dakota @ SHSU: 4,401 New Hampshire @ UCA: 6,243 San Diego @ NDSU: 18,067 Weber St @ SUU: 11,811 Some decent crowds....but Colgate at HC in 1983 (and many other games at Fitton in the 1980s) would have outdrawn them all. Troubling figures imo..... FCS/I-AA playoff attendance (or lack thereof) has been consistently like this for about 35 years. Nothing jaw-dropping about this year's figures. If anything, these numbers are actually pretty healthy.
Myriad of reasons why playoff attendance figures tend to be lower than regular season:
1) Cold weather games, unlike the entire FBS bowl slate which is played either indoors or in warm climates. 2) Last minute scheduling -- fans don't know if or where their team is playing until a week before. In contrast, FBS fans have up to 50 days to plan a vacation around their postseason destination. 3) Students not on campus -- Thanksgiving break for opening weekend and then the rest of the postseason occurs during finals or winter break. 4) Holiday conflicts - most fans have concrete plans to be with family around this time and are less likely to be able to pick up and go to a game on a whim. 5) NCAA in charge of ticket sales - some speculate schools underreport attendance since NCAA takes a cut - I doubt this is true since they control the host sites. More likely, regular season attendance figures are inflated in the first place because they count all the freebies, youth groups and family getting in free of charge.
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Post by gks on Dec 5, 2017 15:09:54 GMT -5
How do those attendance numbers compare to regular season at these schools?
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Post by hcpride on Dec 5, 2017 16:35:11 GMT -5
As an HC fan I am loath to criticize the FCS playoffs as that would smack of sour grapes.
I did speak to Lehigh fans during the SBU game and they were happy to be in the opening round while at the same time bemoaning the weak state of Patriot league football.
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Dec 5, 2017 21:26:04 GMT -5
How do those attendance numbers compare to regular season at these schools? Playoff attendance falls short of regular season attendance across the board. North Dakota State just about the only exception. Crowds tend to tick up a bit once you get to the semis, though.
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