The two remaining east region teams were eliminated in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division 3 football tournament. St. Thomas pounded St. John Fisher 45-10, while two time defending national champion Wisconsin-Whitewater stopped Salisbury 34-14.
Whitewater built a 17-0 half-time lead in cruising past Salisbury. The Salisbury Gulls had some success running the football, but the option heavy run attack appeared too predictable for the athletic defending national champions. Wisconsin-Whitewater put extra defenders in the box and dared Salisbury to switch to a passing attack, which it did not do while the game was still within reach.
Salisbury's option running game is a ton of fun to watch, especially for old school football fans like me. But you cannot physically overwhelm every football team in the nation. Salisbury's option running game basically states, "We know you know it's coming. You just cannot stop it." That holds true when you are facing a team which is physically slower and smaller. But it back fires against a top tier team. Whitewater prepared to stop the option, and it did.
St. John Fisher's Cinderella playoff run ended in Minnesota to the #4 nationally ranked Tommies of St. Thomas. Ryan Francis had an 85-yard kickoff return for a touchdown for Fisher to pull the Cardinals to within 14-10 late in the first quarter. That was the last time Fisher would score.
St. Thomas looked like a legitimate national championship contender running their record to 13-0. The Tommies have outscored its opponents 131-22 in the 2011 NCAA playoffs. Fisher ran into a buzz saw and did not have enough depth to compete with St. Thomas.
It was a solid run for east teams in the 2011 tournament. Fisher's big win over Johns Hopkins, Kean's destruction of Christopher Newport, and Hobart's near upset of Wesley likely changed a lot of perceptions about the strength of eastern football.
Showing posts with label st john fisher. Show all posts
Showing posts with label st john fisher. Show all posts
D3East Rankings - November 30
The NCAA Division 3 Tournament is down to the Elite 8 quarterfinal round. Last Saturday Salisbury State survived Kean in a triple overtime thriller, while St. John Fisher stunned #1 Delaware Valley and knocked them from the ranks of the unbeaten.
We get few opportunities to compare east conferences during the regular season. So any opportunity we get to run a comparison in the playoffs is much welcome. However we need to remember we are dealing with a very small sample set. The top of the Empire 8 looks great after the Round of 16, but we only have two relevant games to draw this conclusion from.
Let's get past the mumbo jumbo and jump into our latest rankings release:
St. John Fisher exposed Delaware Valley on Saturday. It was the first time someone shut down the Delaware Valley Aggies and controlled the football against them. It would be easy to point to this as proof of the superiority of top Empire 8 teams over top MAC teams. But that would be a mistake. One game is not enough to draw such a conclusion. For now accept that St. John Fisher is ranked one spot ahead of Delaware Valley, and let us see if Fisher can keep their season alive after this Saturday's quarterfinal action.
We get few opportunities to compare east conferences during the regular season. So any opportunity we get to run a comparison in the playoffs is much welcome. However we need to remember we are dealing with a very small sample set. The top of the Empire 8 looks great after the Round of 16, but we only have two relevant games to draw this conclusion from.
Let's get past the mumbo jumbo and jump into our latest rankings release:
- Salisbury State 11-1
- Kean 10-2
- St. John Fisher 10-2
- Delaware Valley 11-1
- Widener 9-2
- Lycoming 8-2
- Cortland 9-2
- Hobart 7-2
- Montclair 8-2
- Lebanon Valley 8-3
St. John Fisher exposed Delaware Valley on Saturday. It was the first time someone shut down the Delaware Valley Aggies and controlled the football against them. It would be easy to point to this as proof of the superiority of top Empire 8 teams over top MAC teams. But that would be a mistake. One game is not enough to draw such a conclusion. For now accept that St. John Fisher is ranked one spot ahead of Delaware Valley, and let us see if Fisher can keep their season alive after this Saturday's quarterfinal action.
Empire 8 Activates Beast Mode
Activate beast mode! The Empire 8 flexed its muscle as the premier football conference in eastern region, advancing two teams to the NCAA Division 3 quarterfinals.
Salisbury held off Kean 49-47 in a thrilling triple-overtime victory, while St. John Fisher defeated Delaware Valley 27-14 to upset the undefeated MAC champion.
Salisbury Holds Off Kean
The Salisbury State Sea Gulls (11-1) rolled up 382 yards rushing the football to stop the upset-minded Kean Cougars (10-2). Randal Smedley rushed for 202 yards on 26 carries, and quarterback Dan Griffin added 70 yards on the ground and 57 through the air on only 5 passes.
Tom D'Ambrisi completed 15-of-26 passes for three touchdowns for the Kean Cougars, but was intercepted three times by the Gulls.
Salisbury built a 34-20 lead late in the game, but Kean roared back behind the rushing of Chris Dimicco (20 carries for 155 yards) and the passing of D'Ambrisi. After cutting the score to 34-27, the Kean defense kept Salisbury in check through the fourth quarter.
D'Ambrisi found Matt Pitarresi for a 16-yard pass play to the Salisbury 2-yard line with just 51 seconds to play. On the next play, Darius Kinney rushed for a 2-yard score to tie the game at 34-34 and send it to overtime.
Both teams missed field goals in the first overtime. Kean had an opportunity to win the football game, but had a 31-yard field goal attempt blocked. Brandon Lemon saved Salisbury's season rejecting the Billy Daniels kick.
The teams traded touchdowns in the second overtime. In the third overtime, Randall Smedley rushed for a 2-yard touchdown to put Salisbury ahead 47-41. A Ross Flanigan rush on the two-point conversion play put the Gulls ahead 49-41.
The game appeared over with Kean trailing by eight, and facing a 4th-and-12 from the Salisbury 27-yard line. But D'Ambrisi rolled out to his right, avoided pressure, and threw toward the end zone. Chris Suozzo made an outstanding leaping grab to shock the Salisbury crowd.
With the score 49-47 in favor of Salisbury, the Gulls defense rallied to force a desperation pass from D'Ambrisi into the back of the end zone. The ball fell incomplete, and Salisbury celebrated a thrilling victory.
Cardinals Upset Aggies 27-14
The St. John Fisher Cardinals (10-2) stopped the Delaware Valley Aggies (11-1) 27-14 to advance to the national Elite 8.
It was the second consecutive week the underdog Cardinals beat an undefeated team on the road. Against high scoring offenses Johns Hopkins and Delaware Valley, the Cardinals yielded only 26 point in two weeks.
Backup quarterback Ahmed Hassanien filled in for injured Ryan Kramer, rushing for 196 yards and passing for 93 yards. Sophomore running back Cody Miller added a career-high 145 yards rushing. Wade Kline had a key second half interception for the Cardinals, thwarting a Delaware Valley drive.
The Cardinals never trailed against the young Aggies.
St. John Fisher may have been the last team to get into the tournament, but it is one of the final eight remaining. The victory over Delaware Valley marks the first time Fisher has been to the NCAA quarterfinals since 2007, when it was defeated by Mount Union.
The combined victories by Salisbury and St. John Fisher make a strong statement for the Empire 8 as the strongest eastern conference. Despite disappointing seasons by Alfred and Ithaca, Salisbury and St. John Fisher carried the conference into the playoffs, and eliminated the top teams from the MAC, NEFC, Centennial Conference, and NJAC to advance to the national quarterfinals.
Salisbury held off Kean 49-47 in a thrilling triple-overtime victory, while St. John Fisher defeated Delaware Valley 27-14 to upset the undefeated MAC champion.
Salisbury Holds Off Kean
The Salisbury State Sea Gulls (11-1) rolled up 382 yards rushing the football to stop the upset-minded Kean Cougars (10-2). Randal Smedley rushed for 202 yards on 26 carries, and quarterback Dan Griffin added 70 yards on the ground and 57 through the air on only 5 passes.
Tom D'Ambrisi completed 15-of-26 passes for three touchdowns for the Kean Cougars, but was intercepted three times by the Gulls.
Salisbury built a 34-20 lead late in the game, but Kean roared back behind the rushing of Chris Dimicco (20 carries for 155 yards) and the passing of D'Ambrisi. After cutting the score to 34-27, the Kean defense kept Salisbury in check through the fourth quarter.
D'Ambrisi found Matt Pitarresi for a 16-yard pass play to the Salisbury 2-yard line with just 51 seconds to play. On the next play, Darius Kinney rushed for a 2-yard score to tie the game at 34-34 and send it to overtime.
Both teams missed field goals in the first overtime. Kean had an opportunity to win the football game, but had a 31-yard field goal attempt blocked. Brandon Lemon saved Salisbury's season rejecting the Billy Daniels kick.
The teams traded touchdowns in the second overtime. In the third overtime, Randall Smedley rushed for a 2-yard touchdown to put Salisbury ahead 47-41. A Ross Flanigan rush on the two-point conversion play put the Gulls ahead 49-41.
The game appeared over with Kean trailing by eight, and facing a 4th-and-12 from the Salisbury 27-yard line. But D'Ambrisi rolled out to his right, avoided pressure, and threw toward the end zone. Chris Suozzo made an outstanding leaping grab to shock the Salisbury crowd.
With the score 49-47 in favor of Salisbury, the Gulls defense rallied to force a desperation pass from D'Ambrisi into the back of the end zone. The ball fell incomplete, and Salisbury celebrated a thrilling victory.
Cardinals Upset Aggies 27-14
The St. John Fisher Cardinals (10-2) stopped the Delaware Valley Aggies (11-1) 27-14 to advance to the national Elite 8.
It was the second consecutive week the underdog Cardinals beat an undefeated team on the road. Against high scoring offenses Johns Hopkins and Delaware Valley, the Cardinals yielded only 26 point in two weeks.
Backup quarterback Ahmed Hassanien filled in for injured Ryan Kramer, rushing for 196 yards and passing for 93 yards. Sophomore running back Cody Miller added a career-high 145 yards rushing. Wade Kline had a key second half interception for the Cardinals, thwarting a Delaware Valley drive.
The Cardinals never trailed against the young Aggies.
St. John Fisher may have been the last team to get into the tournament, but it is one of the final eight remaining. The victory over Delaware Valley marks the first time Fisher has been to the NCAA quarterfinals since 2007, when it was defeated by Mount Union.
The combined victories by Salisbury and St. John Fisher make a strong statement for the Empire 8 as the strongest eastern conference. Despite disappointing seasons by Alfred and Ithaca, Salisbury and St. John Fisher carried the conference into the playoffs, and eliminated the top teams from the MAC, NEFC, Centennial Conference, and NJAC to advance to the national quarterfinals.
2011 Playoffs Second Round
As excited as I am for the second round of the NCAA Division 3 football tournament, I have to admit to feeling a bit disappointed. When the NCAA committee unveiled its wide-open, national bracket, I couldn't help but feel this was the east's big chance to measure itself against the nation.
But instead, all four east survivors will be playing against each other tomorrow. The positive side is two teams will advance, guaranteed. The negative side is, two teams will be gone.
St. John Fisher (9-2) at Delaware Valley (11-0)
Both teams come from solid conferences. Last week Delaware Valley coasted by a Norwich team which may have been the weakest entrant in the 2011 tournament field. St. John Fisher went on the road and took down previously unbeaten Johns Hopkins.
Fisher quarterback Ryan Kramer injured himself in the Hopkins game, with Ahmed Hassanien throwing a touchdown pass as a reliever in his first play from scrimmage.
The importance of the Kramer injury is huge. Even if Kramer goes, one has to expect he will be hampered to run the option as well as he has all season. That takes away a huge dimension from Fisher's offense.
Meanwhile Delaware Valley is steam rolling the opposition, scoring 50 or more points in 5 of its games this season.
I liked Fisher's chances last week, but I think Delaware Valley is too talented to overcome with an injured option quarterback leading your offense.
Kean at Salisbury
Kean is the Rodney Dangerfield of Division 3 football. No respect, I tell ya! (fixes tie)
All they do is win, and it seems all everyone else does is say Kean shouldn't have won. Quite a few pundits scratched their heads wondering how Kean slipped past Wesley and Cortland in back-to-back weeks despite being out gained each time.
Many felt they would fold at Rowan late in the season, and again at Montclair. But they just keep winning, and it looks like Kean is gaining confidence as they prove their doubters wrong. Last week Kean crushed Christopher Newport 34-10 in a game most (this idiot included) figured would go down to the wire.
Guess what? Nobody thinks Kean can beat Salisbury tomorrow.
Salisbury is outscoring opponents 47-13 this season. The option heavy run game averages 6.7 yards per carry, and Kean is hardly dominant against the run (3.6 yards per carry). The Salisbury defense has caused 32 turnovers.
But something tells me this game is going to be a good one tomorrow. I like the Kean defense. I don't think it can shut down the Salisbury run game, but it might be able to limit the big plays and force Salisbury to settle for a few field goals instead of touchdowns. Red zone efficiency for Salisbury will likely win or lose this game.
I like Tom D'Ambrisi a lot at quarterback for Kean. He had a tough game against Montclair, but bounced back against Christopher Newport. If you need to win a big game on the road, you want a talented senior at quarterback.
I'm going with Salisbury because of the home field advantage, and that's the only reason. This is going to be a close call.
Who are your picks to win Saturday?
But instead, all four east survivors will be playing against each other tomorrow. The positive side is two teams will advance, guaranteed. The negative side is, two teams will be gone.
St. John Fisher (9-2) at Delaware Valley (11-0)
Both teams come from solid conferences. Last week Delaware Valley coasted by a Norwich team which may have been the weakest entrant in the 2011 tournament field. St. John Fisher went on the road and took down previously unbeaten Johns Hopkins.
Fisher quarterback Ryan Kramer injured himself in the Hopkins game, with Ahmed Hassanien throwing a touchdown pass as a reliever in his first play from scrimmage.
The importance of the Kramer injury is huge. Even if Kramer goes, one has to expect he will be hampered to run the option as well as he has all season. That takes away a huge dimension from Fisher's offense.
Meanwhile Delaware Valley is steam rolling the opposition, scoring 50 or more points in 5 of its games this season.
I liked Fisher's chances last week, but I think Delaware Valley is too talented to overcome with an injured option quarterback leading your offense.
Kean at Salisbury
Kean is the Rodney Dangerfield of Division 3 football. No respect, I tell ya! (fixes tie)
All they do is win, and it seems all everyone else does is say Kean shouldn't have won. Quite a few pundits scratched their heads wondering how Kean slipped past Wesley and Cortland in back-to-back weeks despite being out gained each time.
Many felt they would fold at Rowan late in the season, and again at Montclair. But they just keep winning, and it looks like Kean is gaining confidence as they prove their doubters wrong. Last week Kean crushed Christopher Newport 34-10 in a game most (this idiot included) figured would go down to the wire.
Guess what? Nobody thinks Kean can beat Salisbury tomorrow.
Salisbury is outscoring opponents 47-13 this season. The option heavy run game averages 6.7 yards per carry, and Kean is hardly dominant against the run (3.6 yards per carry). The Salisbury defense has caused 32 turnovers.
But something tells me this game is going to be a good one tomorrow. I like the Kean defense. I don't think it can shut down the Salisbury run game, but it might be able to limit the big plays and force Salisbury to settle for a few field goals instead of touchdowns. Red zone efficiency for Salisbury will likely win or lose this game.
I like Tom D'Ambrisi a lot at quarterback for Kean. He had a tough game against Montclair, but bounced back against Christopher Newport. If you need to win a big game on the road, you want a talented senior at quarterback.
I'm going with Salisbury because of the home field advantage, and that's the only reason. This is going to be a close call.
Who are your picks to win Saturday?
East Looking Strong in Playoffs
The playoff results from the first round of the NCAA Division 3 football tournament are in, and the scores look very good for east region.
I have long argued that east teams play in deeper, stronger conferences than do many other teams across the country. Evidence of this was provided today, as east teams won 2 out of 3 cross-regional games with only national power Wesley surviving.
For the first time in a long time, the NCAA committee looked past the highly flawed Strength of Schedule metric and evaluated at-large teams based on true merit. For that reason, St. John Fisher made the tournament as a two loss team while Endicott stayed home. The committee was clearly right. Western New England, the team which beat Endicott in the NEFC, gave up 62 points to Empire 8 Salisbury. The Empire 8 runner up, St. John Fisher, upset Johns Hopkins 23-12.
Was the Fisher win truly an upset? Hopkins ran through the weak Centennial Conference with an undefeated record, scoring 83 points against Gettysburg, and outscoring its opponents by better than 30 points per game. Meanwhile Fisher played in the rugged Empire 8, and scheduled Pool C bid Hobart out of conference. Fisher beat Johns Hopkins 23-12 in Baltimore on Saturday, providing more evidence for our argument that a one or two loss season in a tough conference should not disqualify you from the playoffs.
While Johns Hopkins was finding out about the quality of upper echelon east teams, southern power Wesley found themselves in a dog fight with Liberty League champion Hobart. Wesley's only loss on the season came to...you guessed it, an east region team...when Kean beat them in September. It nearly happened again. The Hobart Statesmen trailed Wesley 35-28 late in the fourth quarter today. Hobart drove to the Wesley 5-yard line, where Wesley finally stopped them to barely hold on to their victory.
A few hundred miles to the north, NJAC champion Kean was destroying south region Christopher Newport (CNU). Kean built a 34-7 half time lead, then coasted to a 34-10 victory. Kean picked off five passes and recovered a fumble in dominating CNU. Kean survived the rugged NJAC, and played Wesley to compile an impressive 9-1 record. CNU went undefeated in the USAC, but lost out of conference to Empire 8 champion Salisbury, and Stevenson which was 1-7 in the MAC.
The record speaks for itself. CNU went 8-0 against southern teams, and 0-3 against eastern teams. And one of those losses came to an east team which won only one game in their conference.
Meanwhile, Salisbury took care of business with a 62-24 whipping of Western New England. Delaware Valley remained undefeated, storming past ECFC champion Norwich 62-10.
The ECFC champion has been outscored the last two seasons in the NCAA playoffs 122-10, starting with Alfred's 60-0 destruction of SUNY Martitime in 2010. The ECFC champion gets an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, but it is clear they are not ready.
What was your biggest surprise from the first round of the NCAA tournament?
I have long argued that east teams play in deeper, stronger conferences than do many other teams across the country. Evidence of this was provided today, as east teams won 2 out of 3 cross-regional games with only national power Wesley surviving.
For the first time in a long time, the NCAA committee looked past the highly flawed Strength of Schedule metric and evaluated at-large teams based on true merit. For that reason, St. John Fisher made the tournament as a two loss team while Endicott stayed home. The committee was clearly right. Western New England, the team which beat Endicott in the NEFC, gave up 62 points to Empire 8 Salisbury. The Empire 8 runner up, St. John Fisher, upset Johns Hopkins 23-12.
Was the Fisher win truly an upset? Hopkins ran through the weak Centennial Conference with an undefeated record, scoring 83 points against Gettysburg, and outscoring its opponents by better than 30 points per game. Meanwhile Fisher played in the rugged Empire 8, and scheduled Pool C bid Hobart out of conference. Fisher beat Johns Hopkins 23-12 in Baltimore on Saturday, providing more evidence for our argument that a one or two loss season in a tough conference should not disqualify you from the playoffs.
While Johns Hopkins was finding out about the quality of upper echelon east teams, southern power Wesley found themselves in a dog fight with Liberty League champion Hobart. Wesley's only loss on the season came to...you guessed it, an east region team...when Kean beat them in September. It nearly happened again. The Hobart Statesmen trailed Wesley 35-28 late in the fourth quarter today. Hobart drove to the Wesley 5-yard line, where Wesley finally stopped them to barely hold on to their victory.
A few hundred miles to the north, NJAC champion Kean was destroying south region Christopher Newport (CNU). Kean built a 34-7 half time lead, then coasted to a 34-10 victory. Kean picked off five passes and recovered a fumble in dominating CNU. Kean survived the rugged NJAC, and played Wesley to compile an impressive 9-1 record. CNU went undefeated in the USAC, but lost out of conference to Empire 8 champion Salisbury, and Stevenson which was 1-7 in the MAC.
The record speaks for itself. CNU went 8-0 against southern teams, and 0-3 against eastern teams. And one of those losses came to an east team which won only one game in their conference.
Meanwhile, Salisbury took care of business with a 62-24 whipping of Western New England. Delaware Valley remained undefeated, storming past ECFC champion Norwich 62-10.
The ECFC champion has been outscored the last two seasons in the NCAA playoffs 122-10, starting with Alfred's 60-0 destruction of SUNY Martitime in 2010. The ECFC champion gets an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, but it is clear they are not ready.
What was your biggest surprise from the first round of the NCAA tournament?
D3East Football Rankings - November 16
Here are my Division 3 Eastern Football Rankings for 11/16/2011:
The regular season ended with a heck of a statement from Delaware Valley, which ripped Widener 56-28. Salisbury continued to roll, Kean defeated Montclair to capture the NJAC championship, and Cortland defeated Ithaca 27-3 to keep the Cortaca Jug for 2011.
Montclair may have been better off with Drew Cathey starting at home against Kean, than inserting Tom Fischer. Fischer was the starter prior to an injury at mid season, but it is hard to believe he had enough practice time to get ready for the Cougars. Montclair fell the furthest in our rankings, as we put a lot of stock in quality of quarterback when sorting closely bunched teams.
St. John Fisher shot up the rankings after an easy win, and a surprise invitation to the NCAA tournament. What they do with it is anyone's guess. The Cardinals travel to Baltimore to face Johns Hopkins (10-0), which is destroying its competition and averaging 500 yards of offense per game. However most people believe St. John Fisher plays a more demanding schedule in the Empire 8.
- Delaware Valley 10-0
- Salisbury State 9-1
- Kean 9-1
- St. John Fisher 8-2
- Widener 8-2
- Lycoming 8-2
- Cortland 8-2
- Montclair 8-2
- Hobart 7-1
- Western New England 10-1
The regular season ended with a heck of a statement from Delaware Valley, which ripped Widener 56-28. Salisbury continued to roll, Kean defeated Montclair to capture the NJAC championship, and Cortland defeated Ithaca 27-3 to keep the Cortaca Jug for 2011.
Montclair may have been better off with Drew Cathey starting at home against Kean, than inserting Tom Fischer. Fischer was the starter prior to an injury at mid season, but it is hard to believe he had enough practice time to get ready for the Cougars. Montclair fell the furthest in our rankings, as we put a lot of stock in quality of quarterback when sorting closely bunched teams.
St. John Fisher shot up the rankings after an easy win, and a surprise invitation to the NCAA tournament. What they do with it is anyone's guess. The Cardinals travel to Baltimore to face Johns Hopkins (10-0), which is destroying its competition and averaging 500 yards of offense per game. However most people believe St. John Fisher plays a more demanding schedule in the Empire 8.
Can Fisher upset Hopkins?
St. John Fisher looks to make good on their Pool C bid to the NCAA tournament when they travel to Johns Hopkins for Saturday's first round match up. The Pool C bid to Fisher was one of the biggest surprises of the tournament bracket announcement last Sunday.
The St. John Fisher Cardinals (8-2) will be representing themselves, and all eastern teams, when they take on the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays (10-0). They can only prove they belong in this game if they win.
Learning from Past Mistakes
Johns Hopkins is outscoring its opponents 43 to 12 on average, and generating a mind blowing 500 yards of offense per game.
The set up to this game feels similar to the long trip to Maryland to play Salisbury two weeks ago. Salisbury was destroying league competition with gaudy numbers of its own. In the end, St. John Fisher fell to Salisbury 41-21. But a closer look at the numbers suggests the game was tighter than the final score indicated.
The Cardinals were nearly even in total yardage with Salisbury, but committed two turnovers while not causing one. They also missed a short field goal. But the biggest failing for the Cardinals was scoring just once on five trips inside the Salisbury red zone, while giving up four touchdowns to Salisbury on trips inside the Cardinals red zone.
For St. John Fisher to have a shot at victory, they must take advantage of their scoring opportunities with touchdowns, instead of field goal attempts. Further, they will need to bend but not break against the high powered Hopkins offense.
A Different Challenge
Whereas Salisbury is an option run attack, Johns Hopkins' offense revolves around the passing game. Quarterback Hewett Tomlin has passed for 2459 yards and completed 69% of his passes. The Blue Jays have yielded only 11 sacks in 2011.
One way we see Fisher pulling the upset is if they can get pressure on Tomlin, and force him to make some bad throws. However, the Cardinals sacked the quarterback only 15 times in 2011. They may need to gamble with some blitz packages if they hope to pressure Tomlin. But that may mean getting burned down the field.
It looks like the best chance for Fisher is simply to keep the ball away from Johns Hopkins. Quarterback Ryan Kramer will need to post a big game rushing the ball, and keep the Blue Jays honest with some accurate play action passing. Further, it is important that Fisher wins the red zone battle. That means converting on their offensive red zone opportunities with a higher percentage of touchdowns than Johns Hopkins. If the defense can force Hopkins to settle for field goal attempts, this game will get very interesting.
Our pick to win is Hopkins. We believe Fisher belongs in this tournament, but they will need to play a much more efficient game than they did against Salisbury if they hope to pull off the upset.
The St. John Fisher Cardinals (8-2) will be representing themselves, and all eastern teams, when they take on the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays (10-0). They can only prove they belong in this game if they win.
Learning from Past Mistakes
Johns Hopkins is outscoring its opponents 43 to 12 on average, and generating a mind blowing 500 yards of offense per game.
The set up to this game feels similar to the long trip to Maryland to play Salisbury two weeks ago. Salisbury was destroying league competition with gaudy numbers of its own. In the end, St. John Fisher fell to Salisbury 41-21. But a closer look at the numbers suggests the game was tighter than the final score indicated.
The Cardinals were nearly even in total yardage with Salisbury, but committed two turnovers while not causing one. They also missed a short field goal. But the biggest failing for the Cardinals was scoring just once on five trips inside the Salisbury red zone, while giving up four touchdowns to Salisbury on trips inside the Cardinals red zone.
For St. John Fisher to have a shot at victory, they must take advantage of their scoring opportunities with touchdowns, instead of field goal attempts. Further, they will need to bend but not break against the high powered Hopkins offense.
A Different Challenge
Whereas Salisbury is an option run attack, Johns Hopkins' offense revolves around the passing game. Quarterback Hewett Tomlin has passed for 2459 yards and completed 69% of his passes. The Blue Jays have yielded only 11 sacks in 2011.
One way we see Fisher pulling the upset is if they can get pressure on Tomlin, and force him to make some bad throws. However, the Cardinals sacked the quarterback only 15 times in 2011. They may need to gamble with some blitz packages if they hope to pressure Tomlin. But that may mean getting burned down the field.
It looks like the best chance for Fisher is simply to keep the ball away from Johns Hopkins. Quarterback Ryan Kramer will need to post a big game rushing the ball, and keep the Blue Jays honest with some accurate play action passing. Further, it is important that Fisher wins the red zone battle. That means converting on their offensive red zone opportunities with a higher percentage of touchdowns than Johns Hopkins. If the defense can force Hopkins to settle for field goal attempts, this game will get very interesting.
Our pick to win is Hopkins. We believe Fisher belongs in this tournament, but they will need to play a much more efficient game than they did against Salisbury if they hope to pull off the upset.
Salisbury State Clinches Empire 8
The Salisbury State Gulls have clinched the Empire 8 title with a resounding 41-21 victory over the visiting St. John Fisher Cardinals. Both teams moved the football on offense, but Fisher struggled to finish drives. Quarterback Ryan Kramer threw a key first half interception in the end zone, the Cardinals failed to convert a 4th-and-2 from the Gulls 20-yard line, and Fisher also missed a short field goal.
You can't miss opportunities and hope to keep up with an offensive machine like the Gulls, particularly on their turf. Salisbury did what has done all season - it ran, and ran, and ran. The Gulls rushed the ball 55 times and threw it only 3 times, compiling 329 yards on the ground. The few times Gulls quarterback Dan Griffin passed the ball, great things happened. Griffin connected on a huge 67-yard pass to Juma Richards to put Salisbury ahead 14-0 in the second quarter.
The Salisbury victory clinched a Pool-A bid to the NCAA tournament, and likely a top-2 seed in the East. The final seeding is dependent on Salisbury taking care of business against Frostburg next weekend, and whether or not Delaware Valley is able to run the table in the MAC. We remain convinced that Salisbury can make noise nationally, and that the better team won the Empire 8 this season.
You can't miss opportunities and hope to keep up with an offensive machine like the Gulls, particularly on their turf. Salisbury did what has done all season - it ran, and ran, and ran. The Gulls rushed the ball 55 times and threw it only 3 times, compiling 329 yards on the ground. The few times Gulls quarterback Dan Griffin passed the ball, great things happened. Griffin connected on a huge 67-yard pass to Juma Richards to put Salisbury ahead 14-0 in the second quarter.
The Salisbury victory clinched a Pool-A bid to the NCAA tournament, and likely a top-2 seed in the East. The final seeding is dependent on Salisbury taking care of business against Frostburg next weekend, and whether or not Delaware Valley is able to run the table in the MAC. We remain convinced that Salisbury can make noise nationally, and that the better team won the Empire 8 this season.
Saturday Gameday November 5th
Good morning everyone!
It's a huge week of Division 3 Eastern Region football. Two undefeated teams are in action against traditional rivals, the NJAC title hopes of Montclair State are on the line when they travel to fierce rival Rowan, and the Empire 8 title is up for grabs when St John Fisher travels to Salisbury.
Let's start with the biggest game. #1 Delaware Valley will be on the road to face #8 Lycoming. The Aggies are looking for their fourth consecutive MAC championship, but the Lycoming Warriors stand in their way. The Warriors are yielding only 11.4 points per game, while stuffing opponents' run games at 2.2 yards per carry. Anthony Marascio leads the Lycoming defense with 7 sacks and 19 tackles for losses.
Zach Klinger engineers the Lycoming passing game. The quarterback has thrown only 1 interception in 182 attempts, despite a completion percentage just under 50%. Wayne Oliver is providing big play ability at wide receiver.
The question is, can Lycoming's strong defense stop the Aggies, who average 32.5 points per game? Quarterback Aaron Wilmer is having a huge year at Delaware Valley, having thrown for just shy of 1700 yards with a quarterback efficiency rating of 157.7. The Aggies boast four targets with over 300 yards receiving, so good luck choosing someone to double. And Kyle Schuberth is averaging 6 yards per carry.
This is going to be a great game. As much as I like to pick the home team in games this close, I am leaning toward Del Valley to survive. I think the Aggies defense is comparable to Lycoming's, whereas I don't think Lycoming can win a shoot-out with Del Valley. Look for the Aggies to find a way to win, and keep hope alive for a true eastern team in the #1 seed come playoff time.
Meanwhile #5 St John Fisher travels to #2 Salisbury for the Empire 8 championship. Both teams are 7-1, and undefeated in the Empire 8. Salisbury is coming off a tough 23-14 loss to national powerhouse Wesley. St John Fisher was humbled 56-20 by Hobart in late September. Since then, the Cardinals have been rolling. Fisher has won their last 3 games by a combined score of 130 to 49, and put a 63-36 whooping on a competitive Utica College team last week.
Salisbury has one task to complete: stop Ryan Kramer. The Fisher quarterback rushed for 244 yards and 5 touchdowns, and threw for 156 yards and another touchdown against Utica last week. The offensive output won Kramer the honor of placement on D3Football.com's Team of the Week.
Impressive as Fisher has been lately, Salisbury looks like the favorite in this one. Besides their opponents having to travel from western New York to Maryland to play this game, Salisbury creates some match up issues for Fisher. The Gulls are traditionally an option run attack, and this season they average 6.2 yards per carry. The Fisher defense is yielding 3.4 yards per carry - an above average effort to be sure, but not dominating.
Gulls quarterback Dan Griffin runs a good option, averaging 4.6 yards per carry while having not thrown a single interception in 66 pass attempts. Randal Smedley, Ross Flanigan, and Jonathan Briscoe combine to average over 7 yards per carry. I just don't see the Cardinals being able to stop Salisbury's running game. The Gulls are a team which can make some noise on a national level. I like Fisher, but I don't think they are that team, this season. Look for Salisbury to clinch the Empire 8 title and an automatic birth in the NCAA tournament.
What are your predictions for today's games? Do you see any teams which should be on upset alert?
It's a huge week of Division 3 Eastern Region football. Two undefeated teams are in action against traditional rivals, the NJAC title hopes of Montclair State are on the line when they travel to fierce rival Rowan, and the Empire 8 title is up for grabs when St John Fisher travels to Salisbury.
Let's start with the biggest game. #1 Delaware Valley will be on the road to face #8 Lycoming. The Aggies are looking for their fourth consecutive MAC championship, but the Lycoming Warriors stand in their way. The Warriors are yielding only 11.4 points per game, while stuffing opponents' run games at 2.2 yards per carry. Anthony Marascio leads the Lycoming defense with 7 sacks and 19 tackles for losses.
Zach Klinger engineers the Lycoming passing game. The quarterback has thrown only 1 interception in 182 attempts, despite a completion percentage just under 50%. Wayne Oliver is providing big play ability at wide receiver.
The question is, can Lycoming's strong defense stop the Aggies, who average 32.5 points per game? Quarterback Aaron Wilmer is having a huge year at Delaware Valley, having thrown for just shy of 1700 yards with a quarterback efficiency rating of 157.7. The Aggies boast four targets with over 300 yards receiving, so good luck choosing someone to double. And Kyle Schuberth is averaging 6 yards per carry.
This is going to be a great game. As much as I like to pick the home team in games this close, I am leaning toward Del Valley to survive. I think the Aggies defense is comparable to Lycoming's, whereas I don't think Lycoming can win a shoot-out with Del Valley. Look for the Aggies to find a way to win, and keep hope alive for a true eastern team in the #1 seed come playoff time.
Meanwhile #5 St John Fisher travels to #2 Salisbury for the Empire 8 championship. Both teams are 7-1, and undefeated in the Empire 8. Salisbury is coming off a tough 23-14 loss to national powerhouse Wesley. St John Fisher was humbled 56-20 by Hobart in late September. Since then, the Cardinals have been rolling. Fisher has won their last 3 games by a combined score of 130 to 49, and put a 63-36 whooping on a competitive Utica College team last week.
Salisbury has one task to complete: stop Ryan Kramer. The Fisher quarterback rushed for 244 yards and 5 touchdowns, and threw for 156 yards and another touchdown against Utica last week. The offensive output won Kramer the honor of placement on D3Football.com's Team of the Week.
Impressive as Fisher has been lately, Salisbury looks like the favorite in this one. Besides their opponents having to travel from western New York to Maryland to play this game, Salisbury creates some match up issues for Fisher. The Gulls are traditionally an option run attack, and this season they average 6.2 yards per carry. The Fisher defense is yielding 3.4 yards per carry - an above average effort to be sure, but not dominating.
Gulls quarterback Dan Griffin runs a good option, averaging 4.6 yards per carry while having not thrown a single interception in 66 pass attempts. Randal Smedley, Ross Flanigan, and Jonathan Briscoe combine to average over 7 yards per carry. I just don't see the Cardinals being able to stop Salisbury's running game. The Gulls are a team which can make some noise on a national level. I like Fisher, but I don't think they are that team, this season. Look for Salisbury to clinch the Empire 8 title and an automatic birth in the NCAA tournament.
What are your predictions for today's games? Do you see any teams which should be on upset alert?