2025 Non-Conference Games

[Horror Child]

But did The Walk Ons make them aware of that situation? I think it’s irresponsible of them to schedule a game that week when there is a certain shot of them being in the State Game. It’s not a great shot but you never know. The Home Office needs to fix the imbalance.

Shhhhhh. It's a secret!

[jrshooter]

It's a tribute to the coaching at the lesser programs. How they compete with 2x or 3x less scholarships is amazing.

That said, how the big programs struggle with teams with 2x or 3x less scholarships is also equally amazing / baffling.

You'd almost have to think that the level of recruiting acumen comes into play at some of these schools.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I think you describe a lot of the selling points of the PSAC. Most teams grind for their record and are so evenly matched games could go either way. But then you also see the better teams having to earn their wins. There's always at least one or two upsets per year in each division. Perennial bottom dwellers are no longer, so 31-0 is becoming more the exception than the rule. As was replied before, a lot of teams have just as much opportunity to win 6,7.8 games as they could lose 6,7,8 games. It would take something quite unpredicted for a team to go 0-11 or 1-10.

So not only will your team be in most games, but mom & dad & girlfriend will be only a couple hours driving from most of your games plus you'll play against a lot of the same guys you played & camped with in high school.

It's a tribute to the coaching at the lesser programs. How they compete with 2x or 3x less scholarships is amazing.

That said, how the big programs struggle with teams with 2x or 3x less scholarships is also equally amazing / baffling.

[EyeoftheHawk]

Do you remember the last time Jr. had his hand-picked, big arm QB?

Things changed in a hurry.

Im just keeping things in perspective. Hope it works out.

I’ve been thinking this but haven’t said anything waiting to see how it goes this fall with the new OC. I’m going to be optimistic that things will be better, but I’m definitely more of a show me don’t tell me kind of guy.

IUP has the potential to be much improved at QB this year. They also have the potential to be much improved at OC. Keeping all that in mind, what has been done to improve the defense and the recent trend of giving games away late? Offense is always the most talked about but as lackluster as it was at times last year, they did put the team in position to win all three games that they lost.

[Fightingscot82]

I'd set the over/under gambllng line for Clarion at 3.5 wins. Not a knock on them but the schedule is challenging. The back half is really tough. Getting Shepherd and ESU in crossover games doesn't help, either. That 3-game road trip mid-season is interesting.

Wheeling is a toss-up but they better win it.
at WVW should be a cake walk.
Ship will be a battle.
Shepherd likely loss.
at Edinboro will be a battle.
at Gannon will be a battle.
at Cal likely loss
Seton Hill will be a battle
at SRU likely loss
IUP likely loss
at ESU likely loss


IUP was the only team to destroy them last year (31-0). I don't know how their QB was still standing after that game. They were in most of their other losses (for the most part).

I think you describe a lot of the selling points of the PSAC. Most teams grind for their record and are so evenly matched games could go either way. But then you also see the better teams having to earn their wins. There's always at least one or two upsets per year in each division. Perennial bottom dwellers are no longer, so 31-0 is becoming more the exception than the rule. As was replied before, a lot of teams have just as much opportunity to win 6,7.8 games as they could lose 6,7,8 games. It would take something quite unpredicted for a team to go 0-11 or 1-10.

So not only will your team be in most games, but mom & dad & girlfriend will be only a couple hours driving from most of your games plus you'll play against a lot of the same guys you played & camped with in high school.

[CUlater]

I'd set the over/under gambllng line for Clarion at 3.5 wins. Not a knock on them but the schedule is challenging. The back half is really tough. Getting Shepherd and ESU in crossover games doesn't help, either. That 3-game road trip mid-season is interesting.

Wheeling is a toss-up but they better win it.
at WVW should be a cake walk.
Ship will be a battle.
Shepherd likely loss.
at Edinboro will be a battle.
at Gannon will be a battle.
at Cal likely loss
Seton Hill will be a battle
at SRU likely loss
IUP likely loss
at ESU likely loss


IUP was the only team to destroy them last year (31-0). I don't know how their QB was still standing after that game. They were in most of their other losses (for the most part).

Ya I’m not sure what the record will be, but I’ll like their chances in every matchup this year with team they are putting out there. Haven’t been able to say that for a Clarion team since the early 2000’s. 2009 team was a total surprise and 2015 was LOADED offensively but weak up front and defensively which cost them against better competition. I think this is the most complete team they’ll be putting on the field in quite some time. With that said the record could be 3-8 just as easily as 8-3. I wouldn’t be surprised by either.

[IUP24]

I still believe firmly Larry had no idea how to use Karst.

Larry called plays on egg shells and was so vanilla and predictable. Karst was the complete opposite style QB than how they used him.

Karst was at his best rolling out, etc. He wasn't a drop-back passer.

Frank Jr. has his hand-picked, big arm QB so hopefully things change in a hurry.

Do you remember the last time Jr. had his hand-picked, big arm QB?

Things changed in a hurry.

Im just keeping things in perspective. Hope it works out.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Na retention and development has been solid. Their significant loss came from Tate after the fall as he moved up to D1 but they’ve addressed that through the portal, all other departures were not significant contributors in 24 and minimal overall. This is as optimistic as I’ve been since 2015 going into a season. By IUP logic this is a team that easily could have won 7-8 games last year…or only two lol. But they return the core of that roster that will now be RS Jr’s and SR’s. Much like everyone else they have a few holes to sure up through the portal over the next couple weeks but I like where they are at right now.

I'd set the over/under gambllng line for Clarion at 3.5 wins. Not a knock on them but the schedule is challenging. The back half is really tough. Getting Shepherd and ESU in crossover games doesn't help, either. That 3-game road trip mid-season is interesting.

Wheeling is a toss-up but they better win it.
at WVW should be a cake walk.
Ship will be a battle.
Shepherd likely loss.
at Edinboro will be a battle.
at Gannon will be a battle.
at Cal likely loss
Seton Hill will be a battle
at SRU likely loss
IUP likely loss
at ESU likely loss


IUP was the only team to destroy them last year (31-0). I don't know how their QB was still standing after that game. They were in most of their other losses (for the most part).

[CUlater]

Clarion may have recruited well but retention is a different subject. Some dawgs left town recently.

Na retention and development has been solid. Their significant loss came from Tate after the fall as he moved up to D1 but they’ve addressed that through the portal, all other departures were not significant contributors in 24 and minimal overall. This is as optimistic as I’ve been since 2015 going into a season. By IUP logic this is a team that easily could have won 7-8 games last year…or only two lol. But they return the core of that roster that will now be RS Jr’s and SR’s. Much like everyone else they have a few holes to sure up through the portal over the next couple weeks but I like where they are at right now.

[IUPNation]

Clarion may have recruited well but retention is a different subject. Some dawgs left town recently.

What could possibly be the selling point to play at Clarion? It’s like telling a car buyer to go buy a Chrysler.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I’ve gotten called negative on here by some fellow IUP posters for trying to be logical, LOL. The current trend for IUP is to do what you said, and that’s put a dominant team on the field every 3-4 years. Nothing wrong with that, but that’s also not being a power. If someone said I’d win $1 million by picking which team between IUP and East Stroudsburg would make more playoff appearances over the next five years, I’d really struggle to pick and I wouldn’t feel good about either choice after I made it.

That’s kind of my point. IUP doesn’t have the advantages it used to. Other programs have gotten better and there’s more parity overall in the conference. Some teams that have historically struggled have improved and recruited very well this year, Clarion being one of them. Slippery Rock and Kutztown have annually made the national playoffs and won when they got there. The same was true of Shepherd not long ago. The only team to give Ferris State a competitive game in the playoffs last year was Slippery Rock. I’m not talking about whether or not IUP is a solid program because it is. That’s far from being what I would describe as a power, at least how I define it anyway. Others will have different definitions.

Clarion may have recruited well but retention is a different subject. Some dawgs left town recently.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Ahh, a discussion all its own but I agree. The one exception being the last two years at QB and I think we can all agree it was a miss and that’s a position you absolutely can’t miss on. When I say that I’m not blaming anyone in particular. A ton of teams wanted him. In his first year IUP’s O-line was awful and he ended up getting hurt. In year two the O-line was better but they couldn’t run the ball consistently and ended up being short handed at WR. Hunter’s game was never about being a drop back passer so he needed a running game to succeed. Larry didn’t do them any favors with his play calling. There were a number of factors that went into it not working.

There were some on here that didn’t like Mak Sexton but I don’t think they realize just how talented that kid was. By most accounts the new kid in town is cut from the same cloth but is a little bigger. That alone has me thinking IUP is good for at least one if not two more wins this year. None of that solves the other consistent problem though of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. That goes deeper than the roster but it’s a big part of the equation that can’t be discounted. Can IUP exorcise that demon? That will be the difference between playing in the post-season or not.

I still believe firmly Larry had no idea how to use Karst.

Larry called plays on egg shells and was so vanilla and predictable. Karst was the complete opposite style QB than how they used him.

Karst was at his best rolling out, etc. He wasn't a drop-back passer.

Frank Jr. has his hand-picked, big arm QB so hopefully things change in a hurry.

[EyeoftheHawk]

It is my honest opinion IUP has not had a 'talent' issue during the past (7) seasons.

I can promise, talent will not be an issue.

Ahh, a discussion all its own but I agree. The one exception being the last two years at QB and I think we can all agree it was a miss and that’s a position you absolutely can’t miss on. When I say that I’m not blaming anyone in particular. A ton of teams wanted him. In his first year IUP’s O-line was awful and he ended up getting hurt. In year two the O-line was better but they couldn’t run the ball consistently and ended up being short handed at WR. Hunter’s game was never about being a drop back passer so he needed a running game to succeed. Larry didn’t do them any favors with his play calling. There were a number of factors that went into it not working.

There were some on here that didn’t like Mak Sexton but I don’t think they realize just how talented that kid was. By most accounts the new kid in town is cut from the same cloth but is a little bigger. That alone has me thinking IUP is good for at least one if not two more wins this year. None of that solves the other consistent problem though of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. That goes deeper than the roster but it’s a big part of the equation that can’t be discounted. Can IUP exorcise that demon? That will be the difference between playing in the post-season or not.

[CUlater]

Dude, I'll see you in September.

Sorry, these days I prefer to just sit back every offseason and watch while ya’ll pump IUP into a regional power just to watch it come crashing down by the likes of Boro, Seton Hill, and Gannon in the fall. Makes for more dramatic melt downs. I’ll let you back to it

[Ram040506]

For the record, the conversation started when the topic was whether the PSAC East was stronger overall than the PSAC West. I posited that the West had 3 "power" teams, i.e. SRU, Cal, and IUP, while the East seems to have Kutztown, although some programs appear to be on the upswing and a couple teams with long traditions are stumbling. In my mind, that was a fair assessment. That discussion will always be based on conjecture, though.

The convo turned to IUP when a Shepherd poster (who thinks that serious NCAA violations are easily swept under the rug) insisted that IUP was no longer a "power." So, regardless of the definition of "power", I think most conference observers see SRU, Cal, and IUP as the dominant programs in the West.

Luckily, this will all play out on the field.

Shepherd poster here... I just pointed out that if the East has only one "power," then the West only has one as well in Slippery Rock. There is next to no difference over the last few years in on field performance by IUP/Cal that ESU/Shepherd haven't been in the same neighborhood. That's all.

Simply calling it as it is and provided actual records for you as to why IUP is not a power in this context, which you disagree with simply because that's your opinion.

And yes, I probably am not taking the NCAA violations too seriously. How can you when the ultimate punishment is 2 years of probation (which means what exactly?) and a $5k fine?