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And just like that, the football season ends
for the NE-10 and we are left with an empty feeling in the New England area.
Regional Rankings
The playoff teams were announced last Sunday
afternoon and for the first time since 2001, the NE-10 has no representation in
the postseason. Bentley was the best shot for the league for the playoffs but a
tough loss to Stonehill in the final game of the season was enough for the
regional committee to keep the Falcons out.
West Liberty finished with the best record in
the region and was awarded the top seed. The Hilltoppers have home field
advantage throughout the regional in their first ever trip to the postseason.
The WVIAC champs dropped their opening game at Edinboro before winning their
final 10 games of the season. West Liberty scored at least 30 points in all of
their 11 games this season.
Shippensburg gets the other bye in the region
after they defeated California 42-35 in the PSAC championship game. The Red
Raiders won their final five games of the season after they fell to CW Post on
October 3rd. Shippensburg will have a week off before they play their first
playoff game since 2004.
California got the third seed in the playoffs
after they fell to Shippensburg last Saturday. The Vulcans are the two time
defending regional champions and are ready to defend their crown. They are
making their third straight postseason appearance and have the most experience
of the six teams in the regional.
East Stroudsburg finished fourth in the region
after they handled Slippery Rock last Saturday by the score of 54-28. The
Warriors are making their first appearance in the playoffs since they won the
regional in 2005 behind Harlon Hill winner Jimmy Terwilliger.
Edinboro finished fifth in the region and will
travel to East Stroudsburg for a first round match-up. The Fighting Scots
avoided the dreaded earned access rule this year and are in the playoffs for the
first time since 2004. That year, Edinboro defeated Bentley in the first round
before falling to East Stroudsburg in the second round.
Bloomsburg finished sixth in the region but was
replaced by CIAA champion Fayetteville State in the playoffs. The Broncos won
the CIAA championship over Bowie State last Saturday and vaulted up to seventh
in the rankings. But because of the earned access rule, they replace Bloomsburg
as the sixth seed in the playoffs and get California in the first round.
So, people are wondering why Bentley went from
fourth last week in the regional rankings to out of the playoffs? That is a good
question and something that is properly going to go unanswered.
One theory that I have is the earned access
rule. Most people including yours truly figured that if Bentley lost to
Stonehill, they would drop in the rankings to at worst eighth and still be in
the playoffs this year. But after Fayetteville State's win in the CIAA
championship, the committee must have deemed that win was more impressive than
Bentley's overall resume for the playoffs.
I am not going to complain about earned access
or Bentley being excluded from the playoffs. They were a good team and had a
good record. But with all of the craziness of the region this year, they
controlled their own destiny for the playoffs going into the final game. And for
one minute in last Saturday's game, they let it slip away. Of course, they made
other mistakes in the game but that one minute was too much of a hole for the
Falcons to crawl out of.
The NE-10 didn't deserve to get a team in the
playoffs this year. They struggled out of conference as well beating each other
up at the wrong time. Plus they had a three way tie for the league title so no
team was the clear front runner. Bentley was only 1-1 against the tri-champs
while Merrimack was 2-0. But the Warriors lost to seventh place AIC twice this
year and also didn't have the credentials to make the postseason.
So we go from having three teams in 2006 to
zero in 2009. That is not the trend that the league wanted to portray to the
rest of the country. But since the playoffs were expanded to 24 back in 2004,
the league has had at least two playoffs teams each year. Only former member CW
Post has made any noise in the postseason with their run to the regional
championship game in 2005 and they still remain the only team to defeat a
non-NE-10 team in the playoffs.
The league needs to do a better job of
scheduling quality non-conferences opponents in the future. I know that I have
written this before but it hurt the league this year. Teams are playing too many
Division III schools and we need to get more Division II non-conferences games
on the schedule. Some of the teams have done a good job of scheduling while
others have had a tougher time filling their schedule with those types of games.
If the league is going to become better in the
region, they need to schedule more games against the PSAC and WVIAC. Yes, I
understand the travel budgets are limited but those games are only going to
elevate the league within the region. One overnight trip a season is all that I
am asking since all league games are within driving distance on a Friday or
Saturday night.
Bentley has been a model of scheduling quality
non-conference opponents and it shows with the type of program that they have
built over the years. Next year, they will travel to Carson-Newman after they
hosted them in 2007. You need to play the best if you are going to be the best.
You are starting to see it with New Haven as they will play a tough
non-conference schedule and have a commitment to build up the once proud
football traditional of the Chargers.
So now the coaches of the league have a little
bit of more recruiting time to build their rosters for the 2010 season. We are
just 10 months away from players putting on the pads again and coaches scheming
to get their team into the playoffs.
I am even sure that some coaches have already
started their 2010 preparation.
Playoff Predictions
Not that anyone cares but here are my
predictions for Super Region One and national championship. In the first round,
California will handle Fayetteville State with ease while Edinboro will upset
East Stroudsburg on the road.
In the second round, California will face off
with Shippensburg for the second time in three weeks with the Vulcans exacting
revenge for the PSAC championship game. West Liberty makes their playoff debut a
success as they will avenge their only loss of the season in beating Edinboro to
advance to the regional title game.
In the regional championship for the third
consecutive year, California has the experience and depth to handle West Liberty
on the road and advance to the national semifinals. That is where the ride will
end for the Vulcans as they will most likely face the top seeded team in the
country, Central Washington, out of Super Regional Four.
For the title, I think that North Alabama will
get to celebrate on their home field on December 12th and raise the trophy as
the Division II champion. I have had them ranked # 1 all season long in my poll
until they fell last weekend. But they will rebound nicely in the playoffs and
be crowned champs for the first time since 1995.
Awards Season
So this is a bit earlier than usual but I am
ready to hand out my annual awards for the league for the 2009 season.
Offensive Player of the Year
James Suozzo, QB, Merrimack
The sophomore quarterback had a phenomenal
season for the 7-3 Warriors. Suozzo is a dual threat with his arm and 6'3",
210 pound frame running the ball. He led the league in total offense as he
amassed 3,251 yards on the season. He finished third in the league with 954
rushing yards and scored 15 touchdowns. With his arm, he threw for 2,297 yards
and 23 touchdowns.
Suozzo was part of an offense that averaged
34.9 points per game and nearly 500 yards of offense for Merrimack in 2009. For
all those defensive coordinators in the league that had sleepless nights the
week of the Merrimack game, you will not get too much sleep in the coming years.
Defensive Player of the Year
Matt Zahoruiko, LB, Bentley
The senior linebacker was the backbone of the
Bentley defense this year and a big reason that they were on the cusp of the
playoffs. Zahoruiko was tied for the league lead in tackles with 123 on the
season including 57 of the solo variety. He also was credited with six tackles
behind the line of scrimmage and two quarterback sacks. Zahoruiko also picked
off three passes this year as well as causing general chaos in the backfield of
opposing offenses.
Zahoruiko was part of a defense that allowed
just 16.3 points per game and only 19 trips in the end zone for opposing
offenses. He also helped the 8-2 Falcons to lead the league with 33 takeaways
this season.
Coaches of the Year
Cory Bailey, Assumption and Thom Boerman,
Bentley
This was the toughest award to judge this year
so I needed to recognize two coaches for their outstanding seasons and
turnaround of their respective programs.
Bailey returned to the Greyhounds after a
one-year hiatus and led them to their best record since 1995. Assumption was a
disappointing 1-9 last year but rebounded nicely to 6-4 overall record. He also
overcame the lost of his starting quarterback early in the season to post one of
the most prolific offenses in the league. They averaged just over 30 points per
game and their biggest win of the season was over tri-champ Merrimack on October
10th.
Boerman was a long time assistant at Bentley
before taking over the reigns this season. He helped the team to a
tri-championship in the league and also got the Falcons into the playoffs. His
8-2 record was the best for the Falcons since their playoff team of 2004. He saw
his defense rank as the best in the league as well as the offense near the top
of most categories. But his team showed a lot of resilience as they trailed in
seven of their eight wins this year.
Team of the Year
Bentley Falcons
It is tough to overlook a team that lost two
games by a grand total of four points. They played a lot of tight games and
helped to get a program back to the top of the league this year. The Falcons
were ranked in the top six of the regional rankings all of the weeks except for
the one that mattered the most. But that will not diminish a very successful
season for Bentley. They opened the season 5-0 and share a tri-championship for
the first time since 2004.
Game of the Year
Merrimack 14, Bentley 12
This game was played on October 3rd on a rainy
Saturday afternoon in North Andover, MA. The game featured a Bentley team that
entered the game 5-0 against a Merrimack team that was 3-1.
The game featured two solid offenses that were
slowed down by the opposing defense as well as the driving rain storm that day.
Merrimack got the board first in the second
quarter as James Suozzo found the end zone from five yards out to give the
Warriors a 7-0.
Less than two minutes later, Merrimack would
extend the lead. Cornerback Richard Johnson picked off Bentley quarterback
Bryant Johnson at the Falcon 36. Two plays later, Suozzo found his favorite
target in Chris Laham from 34 yards out to give the Warriors a 14-0 lead.
The Bentley offense woke up in the second half
and was finally able to move the ball. But they were unable to find the end zone
in the game. Behind the leg of Tyler McNamara, the Falcons cut the Merrimack
lead to 14-12 late in the fourth quarter.
After McNamara's school record fourth field of
the game with 3:28 left in the game, Merrimack was unable to gain a first down
and gave the ball back to Bentley.
But the Merrimack defense rose to the occasion.
They stopped Bentley on a fourth and one with 49 seconds at the 42 yard line to
preserve the win.
Merrimack improved their record to 4-1 with the
win while Bentley fell to 5-1.
For all intensive purposes, this was the NE-10
title game played in early October.
Any thoughts, questions or disagreements,
please email Paul.
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