ChampsHistory

It has been a historic season for the Pace Setters and they capped it off with a 33-10 victory over St. Anselm last Saturday. The Setters finish with a program tying seven victories on the season and a record six league wins.

They end the season on a three-game winning streak and tied for third place in the league with Assumption. It is a far cry from the team that was 0-10 for so many seasons and out of the game in the first half.

The offense controlled the game with the running game as they had the ball for nearly 42 minutes in the game. The backs totaled 213 yards and were able to grind out the yards.

The defense did their job as well, limiting St. Anselm to a mere 172 yards of offense and just 2 for 17 on third down.

Pace will lose some players to graduation, but the future is bright for the Setters.

Solid Ending

It was a tough season for the Bentley Falcons, but they ended the season on a high note with a 28-20 victory over American International. Just like the season for the Falcons, it was not an easy victory.

They jumped out to a 28-6 lead in the fourth quarter but allowed a couple of late touchdowns to make it interesting. They picked off a pass in the end zone and overcame a fumble late in the game.

It was not the season that Bentley figured that they would have. They had high hopes coming into the season but were not able to generate too much consistently as the season progressed. They had key injuries and just were not able to overcome them.

They did win three of their last four games but had hoped for much more in 2018.

Second Half Success

After a killer first half schedule, it was nice to see the Merrimack Warriors bounce back in the second half of the season. They won four of their final five games to finish 5-5 on the season in their final season of Division II football.

The Warriors jumped out to a 28-0 advantage last Saturday in route to a 31-14 victory over Southern Connecticut. The young team struggled in the opening games of the season against the iron of the NE-10 before maturing as the season progressed.

More struggles might be in store at the next level for Merrimack but they are well positioned for a bright future in North Andover.

HistoryChanges

There will be a completely different look to the 2019 NE-10 football landscape. As mentioned before, two teams are leaving and one is joining.

Merrimack and LIU Post are going to Division I and becoming members of the Northeast Conference. Post is merging with their fellow campuses to form one athletic program as they are already members of the conference.

Merrimack is elevating all of the programs to Division I to match their hockey program. They have raised a lot of money over the past several years to build the new football stadium and it was a vision from their current President.

The new member of the league will be Franklin Pierce. They are already a member for the league in most of the other sports and will elevate their football program from the sprint level.

It will create some challenges for the league next year with nine teams. Someone will have a bye weekly and will need to fill those gaps with some additional out of conference games.

We still have some 2018 football to watch but changes are on the horizon for the 2019 season.

Playoffs

For the second time in the past three seasons, the NE-10 will have two teams in the postseason. LIU Post is the second seed in the region after an undefeated regular season. They were one of three undefeated teams in the region this year.

The Pioneers will host Slippery Rock Saturday afternoon in a rekindling of their old PSAC days. The Rock lost to West Chester in the PSAC Championship game last Saturday and is the seventh and final seed in Super Region One.

New Haven is back in the playoffs for the first time in six years by virtue of a 8-2 overall record and 8-1 in Division II games. The Chargers are the six seed and will travel to West Chester next Saturday afternoon. The Golden Rams finished the season undefeated and crushed Slippery Rock last weekend in the PSAC Championship game.

Both NE-10 teams earned their spot in the postseason. Post is in their final season at the Division II level and New Haven has been on the verge of the playoffs a couple of times in the past.

With the losses by Tiffin and Hillsdale, it clinched a playoff spot for New Haven. The committee was not going to leave them out with just one loss and so many teams in the region with two losses. All four conferences have a representative in the playoffs and it is put up or shut up time.

I like the balance of the region this year and the first round games will be very competitive. Any of the seven teams in the region can win out and become a regional champ. That is what you like in the playoffs, balance.