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That thud that was heard on Saturday afternoon
was the end of the NE-10 season. Another season ended in playoff disappointment
as both playoff participants were defeated last Saturday.
Playoff Disappointment
The season ended on Saturday with another tough
playoff showing for the NE-10. Despite getting at least two teams into the
playoffs for the fifth consecutive season, they failed to advance a team into
the second round for the first time since 2004.
The NE-10 has been unable to defeat teams from
other conferences in the playoffs. Only one team, CW Post, has been able to win
in the playoffs and they are now a member of the PSAC. The league is now 4-13 in
the playoffs and two of those wins were over fellow NE-10 members. The other two
wins belong to CW Post when they made their run to the regional final in 2005.
It is very disturbing that no current member of
the league owns a playoff win over a team from another conference. Southern
Connecticut and Merrimack both own a playoff win but those came against fellow
NE-10 league members.
Here is the breakdown of the NE-10 against
other conferences since 2002:
Conference Record
NE-10 2-2
PSAC 1-7
WVIAC 1-2
GLIAC 0-2
Total 4-13
It is a step in the right direction that the
league has been able to get teams in the playoffs but those teams need to get
some victories. Southern Connecticut qualified for the playoffs for the fourth
straight season but is just 1-4 in that stretch. Their only victory was last
year when they defeated Bryant 45-28, a NE-10 member at the time. They are 0-3
against the PSAC who has ended their season in three of the past four seasons.
In 2005, they lost to East Stroudsburg 55-33 in
their playoff debut. In 2006, they fell 28-26 at Merrimack in the first round.
They got their first playoff victory last year over Bryant but fell to
California in the second round. They ended this season last Saturday at West
Chester.
The NE-10 teams have been able to host five
playoff games against teams from the GLIAC, WVIAC and PSAC over the past seven
years. They are a measly 1-4 in those games. Bentley hosted eventual national
champion Grand Valley in 2003 and dropped the game 65-36. They hosted again in
2004 and fell to Edinboro 47-44. CW Post came from behind to defeat West Chester
in 2005, 24-20, to get the first NE-10 playoff win in league history. Bryant
fell to West Chester in 2006 and AIC dropped their home game last Saturday to
Seton Hill 14-7.
Only CW Post has been able to win on the road
when they traveled to Shepherd in the second round in 2005, grabbing a 28-21
victory. The league is 1-7 on the road against non NE-10 teams.
The league is also 1-6 against PSAC teams with
CW Post the only team to defeat a PSAC team in the playoffs. No current member
of the league has defeated a PSAC team in the playoffs.
When you take out the NE-10 vs. NE-10 games and
CW Post's playoff history, the current crop of league members are 0-8 in the
playoffs.
With the addition of New Haven to the league
next season, the playoff record will increase with the success of the Chargers
in the 1990's. They own a 7-4 record in the postseason including a run to the
championship game in 1997.
But the NE-10 needs to start winning playoffs
game against other conference in the region. It is nice to get multiple teams
into the playoffs but without winning games, the success of the season is
questioned.
I have proposed more games against the PSAC
during the regular season in the past and I hope that teams with openings for
2009 hammer out a couple of more games against them. I wish that there could be
some sort of opening weekend challenge against PSAC so that the top and lower
tiers of teams in both conferences face off against each other.
The NE-10 conference has made strides in the
past several years but needs to take the next step by beating the PSAC in the
postseason. Without it, the league will be on the lower end of the region for
years to come.
Awards
It is award season again and here are my picks
for the top awards in the league.
Offensive Player of the Year
Travis Poole, WR, AIC
The senior wide receiver from Brooklyn, New
York was an unstoppable force for the AIC offense this year. He finished the
regular season with 66 catches for 1,209 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also had a
rushing touchdown of 40 yards on an end-around against Southern Connecticut in
the final game of the season. Poole was a nightmare for all of the defensive
staffs in the league for his entire career at AIC.
Poole had another six catches for 90 yards and
their lone touchdown in the Yellow Jacket's 14-7 loss to Seton Hill in the first
round of the NCAA playoffs last weekend.
Defensive Player of the Year
Jean Simeon, DL, AIC
The senior defensive lineman from Atlantic
City, New Jersey clogged up the middle of the field for the AIC defense. He
ended the regular season with 49 tackles and had 14.5 tackles for a loss of 69
yards. He also was credited with eight sacks to go along with two blocked kicks.
He was part of a Yellow Jacket defense that was tops in the league this year.
Simeon did his part in the Yellow Jacket's 14-7
loss to Seton Hill in the first round of the NCAA playoffs last weekend. He was
in on eight tackles including 3.5 of them for a loss. He was also credited with
2.5 sacks.
Coach of the Year
Patrick Murphy, St. Anselm
It is not often that a coach with a 2-8 record
would win this award but here is the exception to the rule. Murphy inherited a
team that had lost 29 consecutive games and a senior class that had won only one
game in their three years at St. Anselm. He got the team to buy into a new
philosophy and put all of the negativity behind them.
All of their hard work paid off in October when
the Hawks defeated Merrimack to end the losing streak. The team would go on to
defeat Pace in the final game of the season and there is a different feel now
for the future of St. Anselm football.
Team of the Year
AIC Yellow Jackets
There were high expectations in Springfield
this year for the AIC Yellow Jackets football team but nobody could have
envisioned how the season played out. They won their first nine games of the
season including going a perfect 7-0 in the league. They also qualified for the
NCAA playoffs for the first time in school history and had several
all-conference performers. The team boosted an offense that put up 31.5 points
per game in the regular while allowing just 17.1 points per game on the
defensive side. Coach Art Wilkins did a masterful job getting his team up to the
challenge week in and week out.
Game of the Year
St. Anselm 48 Merrimack 42
This game was an obvious pick for the game of
the year. The date of the game was October 10, 2008 and it will be a day to
remember for the St. Anselm football team. St. Anselm entered the game on a 34
game losing streak. They had lost 35 straight NE-10 games as well as 38 straight
games against Division II opponents.
Both teams put on an offensive clinic as they
took turns driving the ball up and down the field with ease. The teams combine
for 1,200 yards of total offense as both defenses had no answers throughout the
game. The second quarter featured 35 points as the teams traded scores until the
Hawks scored twice in the final three minutes of the half to grab a halftime
lead.
Both teams continued to score at will in the
third quarter as the Hawks extended their lead to 12 before Merrimack made a
comeback. The St. Anselm sideline erupted as their defense held on Merrimack's
final drive to secure the victory. The Hawks spent a lot of time after the game
with their family and friends, soaking up the moment. A lot of photographs were
taken and many of the players felt the weight of the losing streak lifted off of
their shoulders that night.
Any thoughts, questions or disagreements,
please email Paul.
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