Week #1 Outstanding Athlete of the Week

(Photo credit to Avery Marie Photography)

Normally, we have a quick get to know you interview with each week's outstanding athlete, but this week's selection, QB Brendan Chambers, did not reply to our questions as of yet. We assume he is too busy watching all of his highlights from last week in slow motion and giving himself high-fives. But despite the lack of an interview, we will at least recap his performance during Greenville's victory last weekend over Millikin University.




Coming into this game, Greenville had dropped the last three matchups against Millikin over the last three years by a total score of 128-47 so the chances of victory in this game appeared slim. However, Mr. Chambers and the rest of the Greenville Panthers did not give up hope and ignored the past losses. Entering his 3rd full year as the starter, Chambers used his leadership to keep the Panthers on track through this up-and-down game where they trailed by as much as 21 in the first half before taking a 20 point lead at the end of the third quarter. Despite the fierce fourth quarter comeback by the Millikin Big Blue, Chambers sealed the deal on a 66 yard touchdown to running back Shawn McKnight with 37 seconds remaining to give EMAP Nation a 48-41 victory.


The Numbers

Brendan did it all through the air and on the ground and gained a combined total of 333 yards and 5 touchdowns. He completed just over 50% of his passes for 178 yards and 2 touchdowns while throwing no interceptions. As a dual threat quarterback, he is also very talented with his feet and rushed for 155 yards on just 13 carries for an average of 11.9 yards per carry. His scoring runs were from distances of 63 yards, 0 yards, and 38 yards all coming in a 12 minute stretch spanning the end of the 2nd quarter and the beginning of the 3rd. Look for Brendan to continue his exciting performance throughout the rest of the season, beginning this week as his Greenville Panthers take on a UM-Morris team that allowed 272 yards on the ground this past week.

The Week that Was: Week 1

So this is the part of the week where I write about what happened on Saturday in a humorous and anecdotal sort of way. It might even seem a bit sarcastic at times, but I prefer the term satirical. Try not to take it too seriously friends – learn to laugh at yourself and find some amusement in “the week that was”:

•  It may seem unlikely, but it turns out that there is, in fact, a way to throw for 399 yards and 4 TDs AND rush for 73 yards and 2 TDs and not win UMAC Central’s Outstanding Player of the Week. All you have to do is lose to Maranatha Baptist. I tried to look on Maranatha’s website to find out the last time they won a game but I could not even find it because their website does not record statistics from previous seasons. The UMAC conference may award Rothe the Offensive Player of the Week Award despite the loss, but you won’t see that from us. I know it’s not your fault you lost kid, but we can’t reward you for that. It goes against everything we believe in.
• I never thought I would say this but I am actually looking forward to getting back to hearing our buddy Mr. Miron announce the CSS games. After listening to the St. Olaf announcers butcher the name of Northwestern “The Northwestern University of umm….(paper rustling)  Northwestern College Roseville” I realized how much I missed that guy. I guess it’s true what they say, “You don’t know what you got til it’s gone.” Give me some DNA tests this week big guy!
• Northwestern played pretty well except for the whole kicking the ball thing. Apparently, there’s this new thing in football where you have to kick the ball at certain intervals of the game – say, for example, you have just scored a touchdown you can kick the ball through the yellow y-shaped object for an additional point or maybe you are really close to a touchdown but it is now fourth down you can kick it through those same yellow uprights and get 3 points. Crazy, I know, but I have found that it can really impact the game. Northwestern found this out, too, on Saturday. They should have been leading 24-21 at one point, but after having missed 1 field goal and 3 extra points they found themselves trailing 21-18. Northwestern is currently 0-4 in kicking attempts for a 0% chance at converting a kick. I have done some intense calculations and say, for the sake of argument, that Northwestern has an even 50% chance of making an extra point (probably not) that means that they only have to convert their 2-point conversions at a rate of  >25% to make it worth going for two. Hint: ditch the terrible place kicker and start going for two.
• Hamline will get at least one win this season. So… that’s good news. Thanks Morris!
•  Disclaimer: I am going to be serious for a second. From an outsider's perspective, I was very impressed with two different programs this week with very different results on the field.
• MacMurray, I actually respected the way your team played and the optimism that came out of the game. You played a team that was way better than you but you battled and at the end of the game I saw nothing but encouraging things from your players. I think you have some men of character on your squad and are headed for some good things this year.
• Greenville - big win and classy program. I was very impressed by the way you pulled out a huge victory and followed it up with a classy response. Good leadership from the top down has built a program of success and character. 
• Alright, enough of that stuff… I have decided to include a new section this year entitled “Silly Social Media Posts.” This week’s Silly Social Media Post comes from a Eureka Red Devil.

This nameless players thinks they are halfway to 2-7, which as we already pointed out was our prediction for their conference record so they are actually 0% of the way there. Beyond that, do you really base your team’s goals on what a bunch of bloggers predict you to do? Are you telling me that if you win 3 conference games you will be happy because you proved us wrong? I really hope that you have higher goals than that. Above all that, I couldn’t even find this player’s name on the participation report for Saturday’s game… must’ve been too busy tweeting.

• Finally, it has come to our attention that some of our fans find our writing a bit sarcastic and insulting. We at UMAC Central take our reader’s Facebook complaints very seriously so we will look into that for you. However, if we are going to tone down our sarcasm we are going to need you to take down the offensive pictures on your Facebook.

We found this on your Facebook and had to censor it because it was unfit to go on our blog. We find this insulting and vulgar and do not believe that this is a representative of EMAP football. Take care of this for us and we will see if we can't make our articles less insulting to you.

That does it for “The Week that Was.” Can’t wait til the next one!

Week 1 Power Rankings

Greenville QB Brendan Chambers-Photo courtesy of Avery Marie Photography

First week is in the books. As teams prepare for the first week of conference play, let’s take a gander at how the UMAC performed in their non-conference match ups. In some ways the UMAC really impressed me, but the UMAC still found a way to prove that it’s one of the worst conferences in D3 football. Before I get too carried away let’s get going with these rankings.

    1.      Greenville started guns a'blazin and pulled off what I would consider to be an upset and the best win for the UMAC in a non-conference game since Northwestern beat Malone in the Victory Bowl in 2008. This offense might be more explosive than last year: 624 yards of offense. Oh and by the way, they weren’t playing Maranatha (insert Martin Luther joke here). Brendan Chambers is a stud. Not only did he have run for 155 yards and three TD’s on only 13 carries; he threw for 178 yards and 2 TD’s as well showing improvement as a passer. Manny Gamble was a great RB and will be missed, but it looks like Jacob Stull and Shawn McKnight can handle the load. Sure the defense gave up 41 points and over 450 yards, but the Panthers typically are not a defensive powerhouse and start slowly on that side of the ball. This team looks exactly like our preseason pick #1 team should look like. Congratulations Panthers on a solid non-conference win.

     2.      St. Scholastica was not going to win this football game, but I kind of hoped for a better showing. In all reality, they played a much better football team and Whitworth dominated them in the line of scrimmage. QB Tyler Harper had a rough day throwing 3 interceptions and was replaced towards the end of the game by QB Ian Papenheim who was 4-7 for 53 yards and a TD against Whitworth’s second and third teamers. Will this result in a QB controversy? Probably not, but it’s something worth watching. Another little note is that contrary to previous rumors, RB Jake Jensen played in last Saturday’s game. The Saints welcome Iowa Wesleyan to the UMAC in a much anticipated game this week.

    3.      Northwestern played against a St. Olaf team that is not as talented as years past, but let’s give credit where credit is due. The Eagles were only down three with less than 11 minutes to go in the fourth quarter against what will probably be an average to below average MIAC team this year. That is a major accomplishment especially considering QB Jake Fletcher started his first game ever and performed well throwing for 213 yards and 2 TD’s and only 1 int. His performance is even more impressive because his offensive line struggled throughout the entire day. The defense played well, although the secondary got picked on a little bit. Overall, I don’t think you could ask for much more from this team. This will be a huge confidence builder going into UMAC play.

    4.      Iowa Wesleyan. We still don’t really know too much about the Tigers except that they couldn’t stop the run against Simpson and WR Ridge Hobbs is a baller. Other than that, I don’t think the game against Simpson gives any indication about how the Tigers will fare in the UMAC. The Tigers face a tough first test in a road trip to St. Scholastica which should help us gauge how the Tigers fit into the UMAC puzzle.

    5.      Eureka.  Before you get excited and start talking about us retracting our 2-7 prediction, let’s get a couple things cleared up. First, our 2-7 prediction is for the 9 UMAC games only. Therefore, Eureka has not gotten 50% of our final predicted record, and our 2-7 prediction still stands. Didn’t anyone notice that you play ten games and we are just predicting the UMAC portion of the schedule? Second, yes you won the Abraham Lincoln bowl…against a pretty miserable Knox football team. Congratulations for taking care of business unlike the teams below, but before you get out the UMAC Central blog bashers let’s see how you do in a trip to St. Paul to face a formidable Eagles football team before we start talking about being halfway to getting your predicted record. Ok, now to the ranking. I actually don’t think Eureka is or will be the fifth best team in the UMAC, but I am frankly embarrassed by some of the teams below Eureka. So, enjoy fifth place but don’t get too comfortable.

    6.      Crown actually played pretty well against a decent Macalester team. It appears they have both home and away jerseys this year and the new stadium fits the school perfectly. On the football side of things, QB Wes Safford played one of his better games throwing for 253 yards and 2 TD's, but the offense could not run the football. The game was much closer than the score appears as Crown was only down by three with 13 minutes left in the game. Even though they didn’t win, there might be some good things coming from Crown this year.

    7.      Westminster. We’re creeping closer to our walk of shame, but it’s not all bad for the Blue Jays. First of all, nobody really knows what to think of Hendrix. For all we know, they could end up being a respectable team this year. Also, apparently the Westminster coaches heard our plea for a running game and ran the ball very effectively for over 200 yards. QB Plassmeyer only threw 27 times (gasp) and was fairly efficient. That being said, it was the first game for Hendrix since 1960, and the Blue Jay defense certainly did not play well, allowing over 500 yards of offense. Westminster welcomes Crown for their first UMAC matchup of 2013.

    8.      MacMurray officially begins our walk of shame, but is ranked in eighth because we expected MacMurray to get pounded by a much better football team. In fact, in light of other events in the UMAC, MacMurray could be applauded for scheduling a difficult opponent. I certainly won’t be clapping, but hey it could be the silver lining in what otherwise was a miserable day for MacMurray.

    9.      Minnesota-Morris should be embarrassed. Seriously? 272 yards rushing allowed? This is supposed to be an experienced defense, but it looked awful against a pretty horrendous Hamline football team. I guess experience doesn’t matter when the players are not very talented. In other news, although QB Caleb McClaren played extremely well throwing for 5 TD'

s, Morris still managed go with a 2 QB system and throw another QB in a very tight game. Normally, I would assume it was because of an injury, but with the Cougars you never know.

    

    244.  Martin Luther. Where to start? First of all, congratulations on being ranked the worst football team in America. As well as some of the other teams represented the UMAC this week, the Knights completely erased every inch of progress. The defense is as bad or worse (I’m going with worse) than the offense last year, but hey Luke Rothe had like a zillion yards…and they still lost… to Maranatha.

Week 1 Predictions - Tommy's Picks

Well it looks like it’s that time of year again – time for me to get back on the horse and put my bold predictions on display for all to see. I am looking to bounce back from a somewhat difficult 2012 where I fell ever so short of my counterpart Jay who refuses to let me forget it. But, alas, if Crown and MacMurray can have hope for 2013 then doggonit so can I. This is the one week of non-conference games in the UMAC and teams have taken drastically different approaches to their scheduling. Westminster and Martin Luther have chosen to schedule the two worst teams in all of college football – which, to me, is a no win situation - sort of like playing a girl in basketball. Either you block her shot and everyone scolds you because she is a girl or you let her score and everyone is flabbergasted at how you could possibly let a girl score on you. Scholastica, Greenville, and Northwestern have all taken different approaches and have scheduled what will be probably be their toughest opponents all season – which equates to middle of the pack teams in other conferences. Just another day in the UMAC. Here are my picks:

Maranatha Baptist @ Martin Luther- We were waiting on word from College Gameday to see if Lee Corso and the crew were going to set up shop outside New Ulm for this one but apparently they have decided to go to Ann Arbor instead – typical ESPN. All I can say about this one is that being the lowest ranked team in the lowest level of college football is quite an achievement. It literally means that you are the worst college football team in all of America. I certainly hope Martin Luther can beat the worst college football team in America. I will go out on a limb and say they can. Martin Luther 41 Maranatha 6

Wartburg @ MacMurray- MacMurray has also painted themselves into a no-win situation here but for different reasons than their buddies at Martin Luther. MacMurray literally can’t win this game. Wartburg is sooooo much better than them Wartburg 70 MacMurray 0

Northwestern @ St. Olaf- St. Olaf is a pretty middle of the road MIAC team – which means that they are way better than almost any team in the UMAC. I’d give a team like Scholastica a chance to knock of the Oles, but not Northwestern. Northwestern has lost far too much to beat a team like this on the road – especially in Week 1 of the Jacob Fletcher era. Give me 6 turnovers for the Eagles offense and a game that is not a blowout but not particularly close either.  St. Olaf 28 Northwestern 0

Westminster @ Hendrix- Hendrix has 54 total players on their roster, 44 of whom are true freshmen. This is their first season of football since 1960. And this might be their best shot at winning a game all season. I don’t think Westminster lets it happen, though. If they do… they should have to be like the bottom team in the English Premier League that is demoted to the minor leagues, which I guess would be high school football  in this case. I’m not worried though. Westminster wins easily. Westminster 41 Hendrik 14

Greenville @ Millikin- This is a tough one. Millikin is one of those bottom teams from a really good conference. They blew out Greenville last season 50-17 and played close with some tough opponents like Wheaton and North Central. I had this circled as my upset alert but I just don’t think I can pull the trigger. Millikin is too tough. I predict Greenville plays a lot better to start this season than in past years, but it’s not enough to win on the road. Millikin 35 Greenville 27

Minnesota Morris @ Hamline- Whenever Morris gets a little too big for their britches I like to remind them that they lost to Hamline last year - which is a little pathetic. But fear not Morris fans! Your offensive line has extra motivation this year thanks to UMAC Central.

Apparently, Eric Nelson did not appreciate being referred to as the worst offensive line in the UMAC. Sorry bro, but sometimes the truth hurts. I just wish he hadn’t deleted his FB post so soon - oh well, we still have the evidence to share with the world. This glorified troll predicts that with all this bulletin board material from UMAC Central, Morris cruises to a win over a very bad Hamline squad.  Morris 35 Hamline 7

Knox @ Eureka- Eureka and Knox are both ‘supes pumped’ for this one. In fact, I have a feeling they have actually used those exact words to describe their excitement. Eureka wants to get on ESPN again and Knox has to be embarrassed about what happened last year. What people quickly forget from last year’s game is that Knox almost won that affair. Without Durley this year and with a Knox squad out for revenge, Eureka falls to the Prarie Fire (that’s seriously their name?) What I am most excited for though, is not the game but rather the Civil-War reenactement festivities. Four score and seven years ago... Knox 45 Eureka 35

Simpson @ Iowa Wesleyan- I fear that Iowa Wesleyan has bit off a little more than they can chew with Simpson. As a new DIII program I understand that they probably think they can play with a school like Simpson that is mediocre in the IIAC. But they can’t. Simpson wins this one far too easily. Simpson 42 Iowa Wesleyan 0

Macalester @ Crown- Macalester destroyed Crown last season so I should probably pick them. But I’m feeling a bit risky today. Crown has seniors at QB and RB. Macalester is starting a rookie signal-caller. Crown is at home in the first game at their new stadium. I feel a Storm a brewin’. Crown in a close win in which the students rush the field after the game as if Rudy just made a tackle for Notre Dame.  Crown 28 Macalester 27

Game of the Week

St. Scholastica @ Whitworth- I know last year’s game was a close one and I actually like Scholastica more this year with QB Tyler Harper having a year of experience under his belt. I just can’t pick them to win this one or even play the Pirates particularly close. Whitworth is just too good. They have 18 returning starters from what was an already good team last season and they won’t be taking the Saints lightly. St. Scholastica will have a really cool experience traveling across the country for this one, but will end up with a long flight back home. Whitworth 38 St. Scholastica 10

Week 1 Predictions- Jay's Picks

Jay’s Picks

Welcome back faithful followers of UMAC Central. Division 1 college football week one is in the books, the NFL started Thursday, and D3 college football begins on Saturday. It feels good to be back. After smoking Tommy in the predictions competition last year, I needed a break to relax and recharge the batteries. I’m not even sure Tommy can stay in the same league as me this year, but I want to improve on my 31 out of 38 prediction record from last year. 81% is not bad, but I can do better. This week we have ten games to predict, twice as many as usual. Never fear UMAC Central fans, we will predict them all. The games this week are not normally predictive of how teams will do in the UMAC, but still will give us some information about each team. Ready UMAC fans? Buckle up your seatbelts for UMAC football 2013!

 244^th ranked squad @ Martin Luther- This game will be a bloodbath. Sorry, Martin Luther, I’ll write something extra long next week when you play a real team. Martin Luther 63 244^th 6

Wartburg @ MacMurray- At least the game is a home game for the Highlanders. It really sucks to drive 2-3 hours and get pounded…then again it really sucks to get pounded at home too. Wartburg 56 MacMurray 0

Northwestern @ St. Olaf- Well it definitely could be worse for the Eagles. The Oles lose their coach, QB, and almost their entire defensive backfield. That just means that the Eagles could make the first quarter interesting much like they did against the Johnnies last year, but ultimately the Oles are just too big, strong, and physical; they will manhandle the Eagles at the line of scrimmage. It won’t be like playing against St. Thomas, but the Eagles will gain a nice reminder of how much better the MIAC is. St. Olaf 48 Northwestern 13

Westminster @ Hendrix- It’s nearly impossible to predict how a new team to a conference will perform. It’s virtually impossible to predict how a team will do who hasn’t played football since 1960. However, this is an interesting matchup. Hendrix is starting football for the first time since 1960, and is the ranked 243^rd by our friends at D3football.com. Westminster could really use this game to gain some chemistry on offense. QB Joe Plassmeyer will see a lot of new faces in the huddle, and this is exactly the kind of game that could develop some balance on offense for the Bluejays. Expect a sloppy game, but I think Westminster wins relatively easily. Westminster 28 Hendrik 17

Greenville @ Millikin- This game will be interesting not necessarily because it will be close, although I think it will be closer than last year, but because I will be interested to see who starts at RB since Manny Gamble is no longer with the Panthers. I also will be interested to see if the Panters defense has improved from last year. I fully expect the Panthers to start out slow and lose by 20+, causing the UMAC Central faithful to boldly claim that UMAC Central is “crying in a corner somewhere.” It’s not how you start but how you finish, and the Panthers are the best finishers in the UMAC.  Millikin 42 Greenville 20

Minnesota Morris @ Hamline- Hamline won once last year, and it was against our very own Minnesota Morris Cougars. Just a little embarrassing. Yeah I know they are in the MIAC and all, but come on. The word on the street is that Hamline might even be worse this year. So here is a chance for the Cougars to regain some pride. The real question is how many QB’s will Morris start? No matter the number of starting QB’s, I expect Morris to ride a healthy running game to a victory. Morris 26 Hamline 12

Knox @ Eureka- Let the Hunger games..excuse me..the Civil War activities begin! Personally, I think Knox and Eureka need to have a little Civil War reenactment. They could invite MacMurray and Westminster to play the part of the rebel army. We could get the whole UMAC involved. Boy, this could be mildly entertaining. As for the second installment of the Abraham Lincoln Bowl, I just want to remind Knox to suit up their defense this time. Having 11 players on defense is essential in attempting to win a game. In all seriousness, I don’t expect any Durley-esque moments out of this one, but I do think that Eureka goes 2-0 in the Lincoln Bowl. Eureka 31 Knox 28

Simpson @ Iowa Weslyan- This will be a tough introduction to NCAA D3 college football for the Tigers. Simpson is not a scholarship school, but they are no slouch either and are one of the better football programs in the IIAC. That being said, I have no clue what Iowa Weslyan will look like this year. It seems like they lost everything but the kitchen sink, but who knows, maybe they surprise some people. For my money, I think this will be a rude awekening for the Tigers. Simpson 48 Iowa Weslyan 17

Macalester @ Crown- For all the excitement surrounding the new Klein stadium and the massive recruiting class, it remains to be seen if the 2013 product of Storm football will be any better than 2012. Until the QB play improves, Crown will have a lot of skill players with nobody to get them the ball. I think Macalester physically beats Crown into submission. The Storm will come out loud and boisterous but end the day with barely a whimper. Macalester 42 Crown 27

Game of the Week

St. Scholastica @ Whitworth- Last year, the Saints held their own against a solid Whitworth squad, although Whitworth scored the first 28 points of the game and it was not till late in the game that the Saints were able to muster 13 points. So far I have the UMAC teams gaining non-conference wins against the likes of Hamline, Knox, and Hendrix—assuming they actually win. The UMAC would gain a nice feather in their hat if the Saints can pull of the upset against Whitworth. Of all the UMAC teams playing this weekend, I think the Saints have the best opportunity to win against a quality D3 opponent. QB  Tyler Harper will be much improved, which should make the offense much better; although we are concerned with  rumors spreading that RB Jake Jensen may be unavaible indefinitely. In short, I think the Saints make a good game out of it, but just aren’t quite ready to take on good teams beyond the UMAC. Whitworth 31 St. Scholastica 20