Tweet
Shepherd had a good season and some really exciting games at the end but its hard to call it a good season when the final game is played the way this one was. In previous years Shepherd lost games against Delta State, North Alabama, Northwest Missouri and probably some others. These were all good teams and Shepherd competed all of those games but Shepherd really looked unprepared against Ferris State. That is something I have not seen from them in all my years of following them. Maybe Ferris State was that good but as a fan it was very disappointing to see them play like that.
-
-
Yep, certainly was. The defensive line on that 2015 team was excellent and the LBs were way more reliable .Originally posted by ironmaniup View Post
I thought that was the biggest disappointment of this year, the defense was a veteran group and are graduating a ton of grad students and seniors. Whenever the Rams needed a stop, they never could get it when it mattered. Thank goodness for Bagent and the offense being able to pick up that slack. All in al it was a great year that ended with a thud unfortunately. Gonna be a busy offseason looking for guys to step up and not only replace but be better than the 29 graduating seniors the Rams have.Comment
-
I thought the year without playing threw the league out of kilter this season (as I'm sure it did other leagues). So many of the teams had a ton of inexperience on both sides of the ball. I think one reason Shepherd and Kutztown did well this year is that they seemed to have more experience across the board than most of the other PSAC teams. The plus side of all of it is that a lot of young players got extensive minutes this year. I'm hoping that will translate into higher quality next season.Originally posted by Ram040506 View PostComment
-
-
This was Shepherd's fourth semi-final appearance in 12 years. Of course Shepherd beat Grand Valley State in 2015 in a thriller, but they also hung in there with Delta State (2010) and North Alabama (2016). In the Delta State game, Shepherd was keeping pace and had momentum until the rains got so bad the officials called for a rain delay due to monsoon-like torrential downpours. Unfortunately Shepherd seemed to come out flat after that, but things were looking pretty good. The North Alabama game Shepherd was hanging around and there were some questionable calls late, but there was a sense of being outmatched in that game--it did come against a team that was moving up to D-1 FCS. All of this to say Shepherd has, and can, compete at that level. I agree with above that the Rams' talent on defense was much better during the '15-'16 campaigns--and "defense wins championships."
Yesterday's game was by far the worse showing on the national stage. I'm not sure why adjustments weren't made to stack the box with 9-11 guys. I'm sure Ferris State's passing game was more than adequate, but why not force the issue. The QB only had three passes in the first half, yet the team had 322 yards rushing at the half-way point. The offense had flashes of ability, but couldn't find consistency. As disappointing as yesterday's showing was, this Rams team provided plenty of great memories during the playoffs. It was a nerve-wracking, yet fun and incredible journey.
Hopefully the season pays dividends for Shepherd in the recruiting effort, with more semi-final appearances to come.Comment
-
-
-
2015 was flat out better all around. 2016 was as well, a lot of the same nucleus. Billy Brown years with a very underrated run game. Defensive line was hellacious as well. 2021 DL was good, but not nearly at that level.Comment
-
Question for Shepherd fans - does the fact Ferris State crushed Valdosta State, a team many people thought would or at least could win the D2 championship game prior to playing the Bulldogs, mitigate the sour taste of the Rams' lopsided loss to Ferris in the semifinals?
Comment
-
-
It should. Ferris Bueller was just above everyone this year. Had Kutztown played them instead they would have had the same result.Comment
Comment