UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

[Eagle74]

Well the upcoming new member of the MEC (Football only) UNC Pembroke is going through a building and enrollment boom, and are predicted to be at around 8,000+ students by next Spring. My good friend (a major Braves fan and booster) is now saying that the UNCP Football team will be extremely good this year, and next year, and should be a strong contender in the NCAA D2 playoffs. He said that he's looking forward to also be watching the Braves competing for a MEC conference championship next year.

[Sportsnut]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Isn't that why they are coming to the MEC, pretty much for an automatic bid to the playoffs?

[Ram040506]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Isn't that why they are coming to the MEC, pretty much for an automatic bid to the playoffs?

Nice to get the automatic bid, unfortunately the conference offers very little in terms of preparation for the playoffs in terms of physicality. Sometimes can be a little bit of a shock that the other team might actually hit you back after playing about 70% of this conference.

Notre Dame should have a hell of a team next year if they don't lose anyone to the summer BS.

[ShoNuff]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Well the upcoming new member of the MEC (Football only) UNC Pembroke is going through a building and enrollment boom, and are predicted to be at around 8,000+ students by next Spring. My good friend (a major Braves fan and booster) is now saying that the UNCP Football team will be extremely good this year, and next year, and should be a strong contender in the NCAA D2 playoffs. He said that he's looking forward to also be watching the Braves competing for a MEC conference championship next year.

So a team that was 2-8 this past year should do a 180 degree turn and be extremely good? Guess I have to keep an eye on their season....

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Nice to get the automatic bid, unfortunately the conference offers very little in terms of preparation for the playoffs in terms of physicality. Sometimes can be a little bit of a shock that the other team might actually hit you back after playing about 70% of this conference.

Notre Dame should have a hell of a team next year if they don't lose anyone to the summer BS.

Seems like the MEC schedule has done plenty to prepare the "automatic bid" team over the last five years including four of five Regional Championships:

2018 Notre Dame College, Regional Champion
2016 Shepherd, Regional Champion
2015 Shepherd, Regional Champion
2014 Concord, Regional Champion

Only time over the last five years that a MEC team has not been the SR1 Champion is in 2017.

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

I think the addition of UNCP makes the MEC stronger as will the addition of Frostburg. Both are bigger schools and have a track record of success. Sure, UNCP is up and down from year to year and Frostburg's has been at the D3 level but both have a ton of resources and really good facilities. Particularly in the case of Frostburg, they are in a state with little in-state DII recruiting competition (Bowie) that has produced quality DII players for a number of out of state DII programs. Now these type players will have a less expensive in-state program to go to which should result in Frostburg improving quickly.

[Clydes 'N Rams]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Seems like the MEC schedule has done plenty to prepare the "automatic bid" team over the last five years including four of five Regional Championships:

2018 Notre Dame College, Regional Champion
2016 Shepherd, Regional Champion
2015 Shepherd, Regional Champion
2014 Concord, Regional Champion

Only time over the last five years that a MEC team has not been the SR1 Champion is in 2017.

A semi-impressive note that seems to be lost in memory by many posters on the SR1 board!!:confused:

[Stea1th]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

The dance between the PSAC and the MEC is a funny one. The PSAC is undoubtedly the stronger top-to-bottom conference, and they put a couple strong and battle-tested (or battle worn down) teams into the playoff every year. The MEC seems to produce one team per year that pretty much dominates the conference and then goes on to win the regional. From the PSAC's perspective, that has to be frustrating.

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

A semi-impressive note that seems to be lost in memory by many posters on the SR1 board!!:confused:

Doesn't fit their version of reality so it is ignored.

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

The dance between the PSAC and the MEC is a funny one. The PSAC is undoubtedly the stronger top-to-bottom conference, and they put a couple strong and battle-tested (or battle worn down) teams into the playoff every year. The MEC seems to produce one team per year that pretty much dominates the conference and then goes on to win the regional. From the PSAC's perspective, that has to be frustrating.

Much of the debate centers around the supposed depth of the PSAC. As you state, it is presumed that the PSAC puts in stronger teams while the MEC puts in the best team. Let's look at the first part of that (PSAC puts in stronger teams). The MEC has put in a second team only twice (2015 and 2016) and both times they lost in the first round. For comparison, let's look at the "battle-tested" #2 PSAC teams for comparison. They haven't really covered themselves in regional glory losing in the first round for the last two years and in the second round in 14 through 16.

[Stea1th]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Well, I guess that having team number 2 survive the first round 60% of the time is undeniably better than 0% of the time.

That said, I think that if the MEC was forced to choose between championships or depth, it would choose championships. I know I would.

[Horror Child]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Another consideration - the top seeded team (first round bye, home field throughout) has won the region in 6 of the past 8 years. Only Shepherd in 2016 and West Chester in 2013 won two playoff games on the road to win the region.

BTW, Concord's record since their semi-final appearance in 2014 is 11-32. Reminds me of that one-hit wonder West Liberty team of 2009.

Shepherd had been blocking Notre Dame's path to the playoffs for a while, but a new coach and now a new conference has cleared the path for them.

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Another consideration - the top seeded team (first round bye, home field throughout) has won the region in 6 of the past 8 years. Only Shepherd in 2016 and West Chester in 2013 won two playoff games on the road to win the region.

BTW, Concord's record since their semi-final appearance in 2014 is 11-32. Reminds me of that one-hit wonder West Liberty team of 2009.

Shepherd had been blocking Notre Dame's path to the playoffs for a while, but a new coach and now a new conference has cleared the path for them.

Not exactly. Notre Dame broke through in the MEC in a big way last year and proved their playoff metal and you can make a case that Shepherd did block them in 2017 when they finished #2 in the MEC but they finished 9-2 and #3 in the conf in 2016 and before that, they were basically a middle of the pack team.

Except for Shepherd and to a lesser extent Fairmont, seems like MEC teams have a period of time where they improve and improve until they break through and claim the top spot and then fall off quickly. We'll see if the same happens to NDC this year. Also interesting to see if Shepherd falling last year was a one year blip or if it was the beginning of a downward swing.

[boatcapt]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Well, I guess that having team number 2 survive the first round 60% of the time is undeniably better than 0% of the time.

That said, I think that if the MEC was forced to choose between championships or depth, it would choose championships. I know I would.

Yes it is but it helps improve your odds of success when you always have a second (and third and often fourth) team in the playoffs!!

[Horror Child]

Re: UNC-Pembroke Football / The MEC

Not exactly. Notre Dame broke through in the MEC in a big way last year and proved their playoff metal and you can make a case that Shepherd did block them in 2017 when they finished #2 in the MEC but they finished 9-2 and #3 in the conf in 2016 and before that, they were basically a middle of the pack team.

Except for Shepherd and to a lesser extent Fairmont, seems like MEC teams have a period of time where they improve and improve until they break through and claim the top spot and then fall off quickly. We'll see if the same happens to NDC this year. Also interesting to see if Shepherd falling last year was a one year blip or if it was the beginning of a downward swing.

That's right. I forgot about one-hit wonder Charleston in 2015. When did Fairmont claim the top spot in the MEC?