Game 6 - @ Yale - Sat. 10/13

Go Mercer! Won't matter for my poor Catamounts, but the SoCon needs a decent OOC win.

Interesting commentary on the recent success of Ivy League Football Recruiting in today’s Yale Daily News

BY THE NUMBERS: Rise of Ivy League Football Recruiting

bump - updated "tale of the tape" adding info from Mercer's game notes - a few posts before this one. More changes than expected. Even with the off-week, Mercer seems to be a bit short-handed due to injury (6 Starters OUT - QB Riddle (obviously), OG Robinson, C May, DE Buehler (Captain), ILB Otiwu, SS Jackson (Captain)) - 3 on each side of the ball & all 6 (to borrow a baseball term) "up the middle" Players - NOT Good news!

Not as simple an answer as it would seem...

1) Whichever Team/Players who have the most experience playing on a grass surface, a muddy surface, and one that is mowed at an unusually high height...has a distinct advantage. They will have ‘tuned’ their footwear and their techniques to optimize playing on such a surface. I think the answer to which Team that is...is quite obvious...unfortunately.

2) In general, the Player who ‘knows here he’s intending to go’ has an advantage over the one who is reacting to what another Player does. So, WR’s have an advantage over DB’s, particularly DB’s in Man coverage...but that advantage is compromised because of the timing involved in many/most pass plays. Retrievers may know WHERE they are going, but it still takes them longer to get there than it ‘usually’ does, so the timing of the Play is different for the WR & the QB. Both Teams like to throw it, but 1 is used to the timing of plays on the ‘slop’ and the other isn’t...unfortunately.

3) DLmen sometimes know where they are going pre-snap & sometimes they are playing “read & react.” If they are playing “read & react,” the OL has an advantage. If the DL ‘charge’ is predetermined, then there is no advantage for the OL. I’m not really sure which Team does more of which technique on D...so I don’t really know how that’s going to play out.

4) Shifty RB’s who rely on dramatic 1-foot cuts (as opposed to ‘jump-cuts’) are seriously compromised. The outside zone play, which Mercer ran very effectively vs. VMI, relies on the RB seeing a seam, STICKING A FOOT IN THE GROUND, and bursting into that seam North-South-wise. I doubt we will see Mercer running much outside zone this week. That play is a Tee Mitchell specialty...unfortunately (this week only...very fortunate to have him running it otherwise.)

5) Straight-ahead, downhill RB’s, think Jerome Bettis, have a definite advantage on this kind of surface. I think we may see A LOT of Mercer’s version of “The Bus” - Tyray (“MTA”) Devezin - this week...fortunately.

As you noted, it would SEEM that Mercer has an advantage in overall speed over Yale. I’m not 100% sure that’s true because it’s hard to tell how fast they are running on that muddy track. IF Mercer is faster on artificial turf than Yale is, the Bears will still be relatively faster on mud. BUT, I believe the difference is lessened by the surface. A Ferrari may go from 0-60 in X.X seconds on asphalt, while a family sedan gets to 60 much slower. On mud, if both are able to go at all, the difference in the time they get to 60 will be reduced...I think.

BOTTOM-LINE - It sucks that this game has to be played on this quality of a surface. Yale’s endowment is near $30 BILLION. Mercer’s $329 Million. That field is the ‘front lawn’ of the ‘front porch’ (The Yale Bowl) of Yale University. Have you ever seen a billionaire’s mansion with a front lawn in that condition? Hardly!