Patriot League 2018 - way way way to early

[RichH2]

UNH makes some valid points. This is a really mediocre League that has not used scholarships to its advantage and has not made any progress in a long, long time. It wouldn't take much for someone - or ones - to take control of this mess. And just who might that be?:

Bucknell - Not a chance. They're just killing time each year until basketball begins.
Colgate - Everyone says these might be the guys, but things just seem to muddle along in neutral.
Fordham - They play by a different set of rules and that gives them a chance.
Georgetown - All the advantages and none of the fortitude. Not a Jesuit prayer.
Holy Cross - New AD and new coach. Could happen.
Lafayette - Same as Holy Cross, but with a power structure that just doesn't want it to happen.
Lehigh - Same problems year after year. No one seems to have a Band-Aid big enough to stop this bleeding.

If only a Bandaid would do the trick.
I expected improvement once our 1st 2groups became upperclassmen. Well that didnt happen. Hindsight, other than some excellent players, PL classes over the 1st 3 years were not much different than preschollie. Last 2 groups have shown a marked improvement at some schools. The current recruits appear so far to be quite good given their other offers. Quite a few more with legit FBS offers. Will we see better next year? Overall no. Gate seems to be the only program poised to break out of its doldrums. LU still needs a D. Dont see one on the horizon. Cross and Pards look to be exciting unknowns in rebuilding mode. Bucknell ?? Hoyas well we have beaten that horse to death repeatedly.

[Lehigh'98]

We don't have those issues in the MVFC

MVFC with FCOA is probably a better conference than Sun Belt and CUSA. Right now, we are moving in the opposite directions. Ashame, considering we recently added scholarships. Why not just increase from 60 to 63? Doesn't seem like much, but even that would help somewhat. We aren't going to bankrupt the schools.

[RichH2]

[QUOTE=Lehigh'98;2602098]MVFC with FCOA is probably a better conference than Sun Belt and CUSA. Right now, we are moving in the opposite directions. Ashame, considering we recently added scholarships. Why not just increase from 60 to 63? Doesn't seem like much, but even that would help somewhat. We aren't going to bankrupt the schools.[/QUOTE

Absolutely. PL , in its arcane academic style, has moved ever so slightly by allowing an additional 3 for true WOs. Next step hopefully will be phasing in of those slots to schollies.When? Pressure has been building. One proposal is to allow those WOs to be recruited prospects receiving need aid . Would give coaches at least a bit more flexibility particularly with high need prospects.

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[QUOTE=Lehigh'98;2602098]MVFC with FCOA is probably a better conference than Sun Belt and CUSA. Right now, we are moving in the opposite directions. Ashame, considering we recently added scholarships. Why not just increase from 60 to 63? Doesn't seem like much, but even that would help somewhat. We aren't going to bankrupt the schools.[/QUOTE

Absolutely. PL , in its arcane academic style, has moved ever so slightly by allowing an additional 3 for true WOs. Next step hopefully will be phasing in of those slots to schollies.When? Pressure has been building. One proposal is to allow those WOs to be recruited prospects receiving need aid . Would give coaches at least a bit more flexibility particularly with high need prospects.

[PAllen]

I still contend it's not the 60 scholarships vs 63. It's the roster limits. I equate it to when I would play club lacrosse against Navy. We'd show up with 20 or so pretty good players on our undefeated team. Navy would have 150+ guys wrapped around the end of the sideline. We may have had better talent than most of them, but every sub had completely fresh legs. We did great for a half, then got smoked in the 2nd as we got tired and were facing guys who'd been chomping at the bit for a chance to get in all game.

[ngineer]

I still contend it's not the 60 scholarships vs 63. It's the roster limits. I equate it to when I would play club lacrosse against Navy. We'd show up with 20 or so pretty good players on our undefeated team. Navy would have 150+ guys wrapped around the end of the sideline. We may have had better talent than most of them, but every sub had completely fresh legs. We did great for a half, then got smoked in the 2nd as we got tired and were facing guys who'd been chomping at the bit for a chance to get in all game.

That is exactly the problem Fred Dunlap told me he saw several years ago when we were up at Colgate. Very prescient.

[RichH2]

That is exactly the problem Fred Dunlap told me he saw several years ago when we were up at Colgate. Very prescient.

Roster cap of 90 is surely a factor but I dont believe a major one. The extra 15-20 players would solve an ongoing problem at Lehigh of having enough bodies to permit live practices. None of these players would see any real PT in games. Over the years I can recall only a couple of players who rose up to make the field. As to caps, I think the 60 , including all aid given to any recruited player, is a much greater obstacle. Combined with the ban on redshirting, they are a formidable barrier to competitiveness. Hell, we played a 17 yr old frosh at Rover last year.
Ideally PL needs to drop roster and schollie caps; permit need aid for WOs and allow at least limited NCAA redshirting. Dont expect PL to be that proactive. Hopefully, they will start with some modifications at this Presidents' meeting . AI will always be with us.

[DFW HOYA]

Hopefully, they will start with some modifications at this Presidents' meeting . AI will always be with us.

The PL doesn't need the AI. It should be scrapped altogether.

[RichH2]

The PL doesn't need the AI. It should be scrapped altogether.

Agree. Dont see Pres Council doing it. Odd, as AI was at the instigation of coaches concerned the Fordham had too big a recruiting advantage. For Hoyas no roster cap.

[Go...gate]

I still contend it's not the 60 scholarships vs 63. It's the roster limits. I equate it to when I would play club lacrosse against Navy. We'd show up with 20 or so pretty good players on our undefeated team. Navy would have 150+ guys wrapped around the end of the sideline. We may have had better talent than most of them, but every sub had completely fresh legs. We did great for a half, then got smoked in the 2nd as we got tired and were facing guys who'd been chomping at the bit for a chance to get in all game.

Yes.

[Gater]

The PL is in the best shape it's been in in years.

The reality of the league is that you've only had three teams (Fordham, Lehigh, and Colgate) trying over the past 7 or so years. That's not a huge margin for error. Lehigh's poor defense and Fordham having some key injuries and a head coach (who should probably be a coordinator) were the only two things that actually went wrong for the league last year. A very young Colgate team played as well as it should have and was a poorly-officiated game away from 8-3. What was going to change at HC? Gilmore is who he is. Lafayette had a new coach with a ton of work to do. Bucknell wins a league title every 20 or so years and that seems OK for them--which is fine, they do well in most other sports. G'town is a great school that's chosen to be good basketball and horrible at football. This will never change until something changes.

The CAA has 12 teams so the sky isn't falling when Bill and Mary goes 2-9. Instead, Elon steps up and the CAA stays a premiere conference. Now, Lafayette and HC have new head coaches. That means five teams trying--giving you a much better chance at having two teams good enough to make some noise in the playoffs.