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I have been busier than a retired guy should be so I did miss writing the Week 7 Recap so I thought it might be fun to project the end of the season since we are just over halfway done with league play. Below is how I would predict order of finish.
1. Tiffin (11-0, 9-0) Closest game all season has been against Northwood. The Dragons lead the conference in offense and defensive stats and their average margin of victory is 33 points! Not sure what Tiffin did to the D2 Football Top 25 but it was good to see them ranked 23 in the AFCA poll. Under ranked team that can play with Slippery Rock and any playoff team in our playoff region.
2. Ashland (8-3, 8-1) Ashland has 3 straight home games and have both Thomas More and Findlay at home to end the year. I think their defense is good enough to carry them to a runner up finish. After a very tough start to the season the Eagles have responded well. The offense still is struggling and will need to get better to have this type of finish. With a new head coach and new QB I think the Ashland faithful would take this result.
3. (Tie) Findlay (7-4, 6-3) I still hold out hope that the Oilers will prove me wrong and win all their games setting up a Tiffin-Findlay game to end the season for a conference title. If Findlay played Ashland at home I would have picked them to finish in 2nd. If this is the finish to the season I think Findlay will look back on the season and say what could have been. That loss at Northwood really affected how I looked at Findlay, of course that win last week against Thomas More has me thinking they are a very good team so who knows.
3. (Tie) Hillsdale (6-5, 6-3) Yes Hillsdale. I could be way way off on this prediction but if the Chargers beat Thomas More this weekend then this becomes very realistic. They don’t have any games left that they really can’t win and I have been saying it for a few weeks that their offense is a top 3 offense in the league. I actually like them as the 2nd best offense behind Tiffin. The RB and offensive line is tops in the league, with the Tiffin crew, and they are developing some nice young WRs. The offensive coordinator is outstanding. Defense has gotten better and will benefit from not playing any great passing teams from this point forward as they do have the worse secondary, pass defense, in the league. Defensive coordinator needs to play speed and aggressive players in the secondary over the smart/slow/soft guys and maybe they could have competed better with the better teams on their schedule.
5. Thomas More (6-5, 5-4) Even if this is their finish the Saints have to be happy with this season. No one had any expectations for Thomas More except for them. They have played with incredible toughness as most games they are undersized compared to their opponents. The defense has been great for a majority of the season and will need a huge game this weekend against a very talented Hillsdale offense. With a win this weekend the Saints are looking at a possible top 3 finish in the league. Hard to not pick Tiffin’s head coach as coach of the year but the job the staff has done at Thomas More is incredible.
6. Kentucky Wesleyan (5-6, 4-5) The Panthers have played very well to start the year besides the egg they laid last weekend at Hillsdale. KW looked like they didn’t want to be there and the air raid offense struggled in the rain, cold, and wind…who knew. I really like the QB and he has some nice talent at the WR position. KW is getting better and I think they will be even better next season. This fall weather in this area isn’t the best for the passing offense but it’s the defense that will need to improve to push the Panthers into the top 5 in the league next season.
7. (Tie) Ohio Dominican (4-7, 3-6) Wow. Never thought I would be writing those records down when talking about OD. In one of the worse years in recent offensive history the Panthers are only averaging 19 points a game and have struggled in every game. Luckily they have had a great defense all season. In fact the defense is ranked 2nd in the league and has been good enough to win games by themselves. A lot of off season questions at OD unless they turn it around these last 4 games and pull of a surprise or 2.
7. (Tie) Northwood (3-8, 3-6) A very strange year for Northwood. They have beat Findlay and given Tiffin their toughest game of the year and yet here they sit at the 7th spot. When building a team the hardest thing to do is build consistency and that’s what is happening at the Wood. It’s happening though and I see great things ahead and it might start next season. The real question is will Northwood get one more surprise in by the end of this season?
9. Walsh (3-8, 1-8) The record might not show it but Walsh has gotten much better from last season. In fact their defense is a top 4 defense only giving up 19 points a game this season. The offense has struggled mightily and will need to find some speed and game breakers. If the offense takes a step in the offseason this team could be .500 next year.
10. Lake Erie (1-10, 0-9) I hope I am wrong here and the Storm find a league victory this season. Their best chance might be to win a shootout at Hillsdale in a few weeks or KW is possible too. Lake Erie does have some speed and some playmakers on offense but has been very undisciplined all season. They will have a huge speed advantage against the Chargers secondary but the problem is Hillsdale might score 50+ on them. Could be one of the worse teams in all of DII and expect plenty of turnover in the offseason from staff to players.
This has been fun to look ahead and I am almost positive I will be way off but would be interesting to see what order you all see the season ending in. Go GMAC!!
1. Tiffin (11-0, 9-0) Closest game all season has been against Northwood. The Dragons lead the conference in offense and defensive stats and their average margin of victory is 33 points! Not sure what Tiffin did to the D2 Football Top 25 but it was good to see them ranked 23 in the AFCA poll. Under ranked team that can play with Slippery Rock and any playoff team in our playoff region.
2. Ashland (8-3, 8-1) Ashland has 3 straight home games and have both Thomas More and Findlay at home to end the year. I think their defense is good enough to carry them to a runner up finish. After a very tough start to the season the Eagles have responded well. The offense still is struggling and will need to get better to have this type of finish. With a new head coach and new QB I think the Ashland faithful would take this result.
3. (Tie) Findlay (7-4, 6-3) I still hold out hope that the Oilers will prove me wrong and win all their games setting up a Tiffin-Findlay game to end the season for a conference title. If Findlay played Ashland at home I would have picked them to finish in 2nd. If this is the finish to the season I think Findlay will look back on the season and say what could have been. That loss at Northwood really affected how I looked at Findlay, of course that win last week against Thomas More has me thinking they are a very good team so who knows.
3. (Tie) Hillsdale (6-5, 6-3) Yes Hillsdale. I could be way way off on this prediction but if the Chargers beat Thomas More this weekend then this becomes very realistic. They don’t have any games left that they really can’t win and I have been saying it for a few weeks that their offense is a top 3 offense in the league. I actually like them as the 2nd best offense behind Tiffin. The RB and offensive line is tops in the league, with the Tiffin crew, and they are developing some nice young WRs. The offensive coordinator is outstanding. Defense has gotten better and will benefit from not playing any great passing teams from this point forward as they do have the worse secondary, pass defense, in the league. Defensive coordinator needs to play speed and aggressive players in the secondary over the smart/slow/soft guys and maybe they could have competed better with the better teams on their schedule.
5. Thomas More (6-5, 5-4) Even if this is their finish the Saints have to be happy with this season. No one had any expectations for Thomas More except for them. They have played with incredible toughness as most games they are undersized compared to their opponents. The defense has been great for a majority of the season and will need a huge game this weekend against a very talented Hillsdale offense. With a win this weekend the Saints are looking at a possible top 3 finish in the league. Hard to not pick Tiffin’s head coach as coach of the year but the job the staff has done at Thomas More is incredible.
6. Kentucky Wesleyan (5-6, 4-5) The Panthers have played very well to start the year besides the egg they laid last weekend at Hillsdale. KW looked like they didn’t want to be there and the air raid offense struggled in the rain, cold, and wind…who knew. I really like the QB and he has some nice talent at the WR position. KW is getting better and I think they will be even better next season. This fall weather in this area isn’t the best for the passing offense but it’s the defense that will need to improve to push the Panthers into the top 5 in the league next season.
7. (Tie) Ohio Dominican (4-7, 3-6) Wow. Never thought I would be writing those records down when talking about OD. In one of the worse years in recent offensive history the Panthers are only averaging 19 points a game and have struggled in every game. Luckily they have had a great defense all season. In fact the defense is ranked 2nd in the league and has been good enough to win games by themselves. A lot of off season questions at OD unless they turn it around these last 4 games and pull of a surprise or 2.
7. (Tie) Northwood (3-8, 3-6) A very strange year for Northwood. They have beat Findlay and given Tiffin their toughest game of the year and yet here they sit at the 7th spot. When building a team the hardest thing to do is build consistency and that’s what is happening at the Wood. It’s happening though and I see great things ahead and it might start next season. The real question is will Northwood get one more surprise in by the end of this season?
9. Walsh (3-8, 1-8) The record might not show it but Walsh has gotten much better from last season. In fact their defense is a top 4 defense only giving up 19 points a game this season. The offense has struggled mightily and will need to find some speed and game breakers. If the offense takes a step in the offseason this team could be .500 next year.
10. Lake Erie (1-10, 0-9) I hope I am wrong here and the Storm find a league victory this season. Their best chance might be to win a shootout at Hillsdale in a few weeks or KW is possible too. Lake Erie does have some speed and some playmakers on offense but has been very undisciplined all season. They will have a huge speed advantage against the Chargers secondary but the problem is Hillsdale might score 50+ on them. Could be one of the worse teams in all of DII and expect plenty of turnover in the offseason from staff to players.
This has been fun to look ahead and I am almost positive I will be way off but would be interesting to see what order you all see the season ending in. Go GMAC!!
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