Week 8 @ Dayton

[valpofb16]

Valpo comes off a hard fought win @ Morehead and now takes on Landon Fox's previous employer the Dayton Flyers.

Massey is calling for a 27-24 Dayton win. Fox helped call O last season in a Valpo win.

Jeffrey Jackson was offered by Dayton out of high school and looks like he could have a chance to go full circle

Chisholm is still somehow on the roster. Think a winning season possible not sure they get a step closer this week 

24-10 Flyers

[vu72]

Valpo comes off a hard fought win @ Morehead and now takes on Landon Fox's previous employer the Dayton Flyers.

Massey is calling for a 27-24 Dayton win. Fox helped call O last season in a Valpo win.

Jeffrey Jackson was offered by Dayton out of high school and looks like he could have a chance to go full circle

Chisholm is still somehow on the roster. Think a winning season possible not sure they get a step closer this week 

24-10 Flyers

Really?  Butler beat them 31-0!

[valpofb16]

Beacs haven't won at Dayton since 2003 Walk before we can run.

[valpotx]

Valpo 24
Dayton 21

[usc4valpo]

Valpo 28 Dayton 31

[JD24]

Valpo comes off a hard fought win @ Morehead and now takes on Landon Fox's previous employer the Dayton Flyers. Massey is calling for a 27-24 Dayton win. Fox helped call O last season in a Valpo win. Jeffrey Jackson was offered by Dayton out of high school and looks like he could have a chance to go full circle Chisholm is still somehow on the roster. Think a winning season possible not sure they get a step closer this week 24-10 Flyers

Really?  Butler beat them 31-0!

Which appears to be an anomaly from the Dayton side. Dayton just beat Stetson by 3. Stetson lost to Marist by 14 who Dayton beat by 17. Stetson beat Morehead St. by 12 and Valpo had to pull their vs. MSU game out.

[FWalum]

I think this game may depend on who is able to come out of the concussion protocol. Really hope that Appel Jr. will be back, thought he was on fire and that the interception was a little unlucky, but he looked pretty wobbly.

[usc4valpo]

Certainly a winnable game, one to clearly indicate a tour around for the better for the Valpo football program.

[vu84v2]

Just checked on the game...quite a game!  24-24 6 minutes left. Dayton just missed an FG.

[valpotx]

We had been flirting with not being set on defense all 4th quarter, and it bit us in the end.  Did we not also call 2 plays in that last timeout??

[valpofb16]

Tough to win when you spot the other team 14 points in first five minutes.

OL breakdown on last drive.

Very. Very. Questionable PI last drive. Very.

[soapyjeans]

Whose calling these predictable plays?    Valpo can't understand why Dayton figured out every play revolved around Dawson, multiple times in a row.  So Dayton predictably ties Dawson up, he can't get thru.   

[David81]

There's enough talent on this team to now say that every conference loss is "disappointing."

But on another note, Appel seems to have the potential to become the best QB in VU history. That is, if he can stay healthy and claim the job from Kaplan, who also has that potential.

[valpotx]

There's enough talent on this team to now say that every conference loss is "disappointing."

But on another note, Appel seems to have the potential to become the best QB in VU history. That is, if he can stay healthy and claim the job from Kaplan, who also has that potential.

Appel is good, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.  Macchi is the QB benchmark for Valpo Football, and he was an All-American for us.  For those that didn't see Macchi play and feel that since it was 18 years ago and the 'competition wasn't the same,' you need to check yourself, as I saw Macchi and I've seen every QB since that time.  The competition isn't any different in quality/level.

[David81]

There's enough talent on this team to now say that every conference loss is "disappointing."

But on another note, Appel seems to have the potential to become the best QB in VU history. That is, if he can stay healthy and claim the job from Kaplan, who also has that potential.

Appel is good, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.  Macchi is the QB benchmark for Valpo Football, and he was an All-American for us.  For those that didn't see Macchi play and feel that since it was 18 years ago and the 'competition wasn't the same,' you need to check yourself, as I saw Macchi and I've seen every QB since that time.  The competition isn't any different in quality/level.

That's why I said potential to become the best and made no claim about better/worse competition over the years. In no way was I trying to denigrate Macchi's accomplishments. Appel is thousands of yards and dozens of TD passes away from that point.

That said, to see this level of play from a RS freshman -- well, two RS freshman including Kaplan -- is tremendously exciting. I know that stats alone aren't everything, but when you look at Appel's completion % and yards per pass, he's pretty darn impressive. And then there's the simple fact that he can fling the ball. I wondered if someone like Jimmy Seewald was the ceiling of what VU could expect at the QB position (I know, injuries were huge there), but then Appel and Kaplan get their snaps and...wow.

[usc4valpo]

that nice to have decent QBs, but at the end you gotta win these games...

[valpofb16]

Fox is the first coach to win 4 on three consecutive seasons since the late 90s.

I think there is an over estimate on where the program is at and I was weary with playoff talk.

In actuality this is a young college football team still.

QBs are RSFR. 2-4 rushers are freshman and sophomores. Two RSFR start on the OL. Only 4 returning starters.

Defense same deal. 4 freshman or sophomores start. 6 of the front 7 are first year starters.

Last year was first year there was real PFL recruiting wins. Fox needs to maintain that depth and have another good recruiting year.

Fox has certainly done enough to maintain his job. This team on paper should go 6-5.

This was the same point Cecchini went 6-5 year 4. However he bombed in retention outside of the 2014/2015 classes. Off-season will tell more about program than next three games

[usc4valpo]

For the record, Cecchini went 6-5 in his third year and was Pioneer Coach of the Year. He had to take over the Osteen trainwreck.

[valpofb16]

14: 4-8
15: 1-9
16: 4-7
17: 6-5

Cecchini year 1 75+ returning players, Fox around 55 and then had covid in year 2.

Google.com

[David81]

For the record, Cecchini went 6-5 in his third year and was Pioneer Coach of the Year. He had to take over the Osteen trainwreck.

I was still only lurking around this board during the Carlson era, but the exasperation expressed by you all was palpable. I felt bad for the young men who were on the team during those years. I give Cecchini much credit for rescuing the program from that dumpster fire.

I hope Fox stays and is welcomed to stay. I think he's a good match for Valpo right now.

(Sidebar: I looked up VU head coaching records and saw that not since Norm Amundsen in 1976 has anyone left with a winning record.)

[VULB#62]

For the record, Cecchini went 6-5 in his third year and was Pioneer Coach of the Year. He had to take over the Osteen trainwreck.

I was still only lurking around this board during the Carlson era, but the exasperation expressed by you all was palpable. I felt bad for the young men who were on the team during those years. I give Cecchini much credit for rescuing the program from that dumpster fire.

I hope Fox stays and is welcomed to stay. I think he's a good match for Valpo right now.

(Sidebar: I looked up VU head coaching records and saw that not since Norm Amundsen in 1976 has anyone left with a winning record.)

Hello Crusaders, er, Beacons!

Speaking of lurking. FYI, I bailed on Valpo athletics (and this forum) a couple of years ago on philosophic/ethical grounds (those on the board at that time know why), but I have lurked since then and, like it was in my blood, always watched how the FB team was doing.

But 81's going back on FB coaching records prompted me to burst out of my seclusion (😏) to add some previous history. 

I was part of the FB program from 1962-66. Those were Indiana Collegiate Conference (ICC) years. We were in the lower of two NCAA collegiate categories at the time. You were either large college or small college. We were in the latter along with Ball State and Indiana State - schools who were 3-4 times our size at the time and scholarshipped their players.  Valpo offered only grants-in-aid based on need.

Our head coach was, in reality despite what the record book states, Walt Reiner - a wonderful coach and person.  But because Em Bauer was already a "coaching legend" at Valpo, he was given co-HC status. [Perspective:  Em's advice to his baseball players was when they were at bat was to expect a fastball, curve.....  or something else.  At FB practice he was basically a cheerleader with little to add].  We competed on equal footing with the big schools (as did St. Joe's, E'Ville, DePauw, etc.).  We competed every year and won an ICC title within those four years. We sent a number of players to NFL training camps, and a couple made CFL rosters.  Needless to say, a fraternity brother of mine, Fuzzy Thurston, who preceded me by four years, won two Super Bowls with the Packers in 66 and 67.

Though not eye-popping record-wise, those were great Valpo years.  Home FB game crowds were usually in the 6,000 range — 8 mm film supports that. We had a 100+ musician marching band. UG enrollment was around 4,000. MBB was a player in the small college bracket (the Bartow years) and had pre-ARC crowds near 4,000 for every home game in an expanded Hillside Gym.

Oh, BTW, our president was O.P. Kretzman. He was, it seems, at every big sports event, concert, etc. He was so involved with the students and university events. He was a true leader by example and - not just an administrator. He was the living spirit of the university.

Ya know, Padilla has some of those traits.  His passion is clearly visible. I have a warm feeling that this guy might, just might, drag Valpo back to the future.

Namaste/Peace/Out
Bud

[valpotx]

Interesting, I haven't ever heard someone speak ill of Emory G. Bauer before, being a Baseball player where we played on a field with his name on it .  To be honest, I never heard much about him in general while at Valpo, so I don't have much to compare to, but always assumed that everyone held him in very high esteem, due to our field name.

[David81]

For the record, Cecchini went 6-5 in his third year and was Pioneer Coach of the Year. He had to take over the Osteen trainwreck.

I was still only lurking around this board during the Carlson era, but the exasperation expressed by you all was palpable. I felt bad for the young men who were on the team during those years. I give Cecchini much credit for rescuing the program from that dumpster fire.

I hope Fox stays and is welcomed to stay. I think he's a good match for Valpo right now.

(Sidebar: I looked up VU head coaching records and saw that not since Norm Amundsen in 1976 has anyone left with a winning record.)

Hello Crusaders, er, Beacons!

Speaking of lurking. FYI, I bailed on Valpo athletics (and this forum) a couple of years ago on philosophic/ethical grounds (those on the board at that time know why), but I have lurked since then and, like it was in my blood, always watched how the FB team was doing.

But 81's going back on FB coaching records prompted me to burst out of my seclusion (😏) to add some previous history. 

I was part of the FB program from 1962-66. Those were Indiana Collegiate Conference (ICC) years. We were in the lower of two NCAA collegiate categories at the time. You were either large college or small college. We were in the latter along with Ball State and Indiana State - schools who were 3-4 times our size at the time and scholarshipped their players.  Valpo offered only grants-in-aid based on need.

Our head coach was, in reality despite what the record book states, Walt Reiner - a wonderful coach and person.  But because Em Bauer was already a "coaching legend" at Valpo, he was given co-HC status. [Perspective:  Em's advice to his baseball players was when they were at bat was to expect a fastball, curve.....  or something else.  At FB practice he was basically a cheerleader with little to add].  We competed on equal footing with the big schools (as did St. Joe's, E'Ville, DePauw, etc.).  We competed every year and won an ICC title within those four years. We sent a number of players to NFL training camps, and a couple made CFL rosters.  Needless to say, a fraternity brother of mine, Fuzzy Thurston, who preceded me by four years, won two Super Bowls with the Packers in 66 and 67.

Though not eye-popping record-wise, those were great Valpo years.  Home FB game crowds were usually in the 6,000 range — 8 mm film supports that. We had a 100+ musician marching band. UG enrollment was around 4,000. MBB was a player in the small college bracket (the Bartow years) and had pre-ARC crowds near 4,000 for every home game in an expanded Hillside Gym.

Oh, BTW, our president was O.P. Kretzman. He was, it seems, at every big sports event, concert, etc. He was so involved with the students and university events. He was a true leader by example and - not just an administrator. He was the living spirit of the university.

Ya know, Padilla has some of those traits.  His passion is clearly visible. I have a warm feeling that this guy might, just might, drag Valpo back to the future.

Namaste/Peace/Out
Bud

Your impressions of President Padilla are encouraging. I think he's a smart pragmatist as a leader who both enjoys sports personally and appreciates how a strong sports program can enhance institutional life.

Efforts to build enthusiasm and support for the football team, in addition to the team's improved performance, appear to be bearing fruit. There have been some disappointing losses this season, but "disappointing" in the sense that this team is now good enough to play with just about anyone on its schedule.

If VU can keep its current head coach, retain and grow its core young players, and continue to find these super talented 5th year backs in search for an opportunity to get lots of carries, then the future is bright.

[soapyjeans]

Fox is doing great, he's got alot of talented players.  I have no doubts Fox will get Valpo a division championship within a year or two. 

[valpo tundra]

VULB#62 - I was wondering if you were every going to come back! wh is currently on a self-imposed hiatus as well. I always enjoyed reading his sports related posts but his other meanderings were often too abrasive.  On a personal note, I remember alluding to a town gown matter that I was literally in the middle of. Because wh lives close to campus and knew a fair amount on those matters, he wrote defiantly and uninformed about the subject using assumptions. I have chosen to be very judicious about revealing any inside information on this board ever since. Nevertheless, I hope he comes back using his mostly well written responses just as VULB#62 has after an extended absence.