NLCTigerFan07

Quick predictions for tonight:

Concord @ Goshen : Minutemen by 35+ ... Concord can score as many as they want
Wawasee @ NorthWood : Panthers by 35+ ... see above
Plymouth @ Memorial : Rockies by 17... Memorial is a tough squad, but Plymouth is hot
Northridge @ Warsaw : Tigers by 2... Northridge's 3 wins came against opponents with a combined record of 1-11. However, Warsaw is pretty banged up. I expect this to be a great game tonight.

1 hour ago, Fairfield02 said:

Though they may not be truly reflecting where teams are right now...in about week 7 or 8...Sagarin Ratings are VERY accurate.  (They don't take in account injuries though 🙂 )

1 hour ago, MarshallCounty said:

Give Sagarin a few more weeks to be accurate. It doesn't truly get dialed in until sectionals.

Yeah well aware that those ratings are more accurate later/longer into the season. Still just intriguing. It's almost as if his ratings early are inflated by "good" losses (i.e. Warsaw to Plymouth, NorthWood to Cathedral and Concord) more so than the wins themselves!

Hard for me to believe Warsaw and NorthWood are still "ranked" higher than Concord and Plymouth per Jeff Sagarin ratings.
 

Per Coach Curtis twitter account, Warsaw kicker Harrison Mevis has committed to Missouri one day after receiving an offer for a full ride scholarship!

15 hours ago, BTF said:

Warsaw..............that's what I was thinking. I think I heard that scenario with Warsaw and HN before Homestead and Carroll came on board.

@DT and I have continuously smacked heads on this one. There has never been any legitimate thought of Warsaw joining the SAC. Never. Yes, Warsaw is the "big fish" in the NLC size wise. However, they have always received great competition in ALL sports in the NLC. Not a single school dominates across the board in all sports, men's and women's. Warsaw, Northridge, Concord and NorthWood all compete in just about every sport, while Plymouth, Goshen and Wawasee have their spots of competition. Adding Mishawaka will do nothing but enhance the football competition for Warsaw, while providing increased competition across the board. Warsaw to the SAC will never happen and was never a serious possibility in the slightest.

I don’t feel like anyone was hating on Plymouth recently. Just overconfidence in Warsaw. Great win by the Rockies. Scoring first and keeping the lead was big for them in securing the victory. Bart Ball offense is tough to play from behind with.

NLC season should be great. Firmly believe no team will go undefeated in the conference, and Plymouth, Concord, Northridge, NorthWood and Warsaw all will have a chance to win the league.

All of the above in my opinion. Warsaw D just unfortunately gave up a few big plays, and Bart Ball offense is hard to play from behind. I was doing my best to temper expectations after all the hoopla from the victory last week, but I was definitely in the minority there. Good thing is, I firmly believe  Warsaw could still run the table, but Northridge, NorthWood and Concord won’t be push overs.

Quick rundown of week 3:

Memorial (0-2) @ Goshen (1-1) : This could be the last chance before week 9 for the Redhawks to compete for a win. Being at home helps out here, but I believe Memorial is simply the better team. Chargers get their first win of the season.

Wawasee (1-1) @ Northridge (2-0) : The Raiders have completely impressed me so far through two weeks. Impressive victories over NIC foes Adams and St Joe. The Warriors hung tough with a good West Noble team and could keep this one close through the first half. However, I like Northridge to pull away in the second half at home and win comfortably and move to 3-0 before a rough stretch of at Plymouth, at Warsaw and NorthWood at home.

NorthWood (1-1) @ Concord (2-0) : The Panthers got wholloped last week by one of the better teams in the state, suffering their worst margin of defeat since a sectional loss to East Noble in the 2013 season. While the Minutemen are 2-0, I would argue NorthWood has definitely faced the tougher opponents. However, this has historically been a pretty good matchup and it wouldn't surprise me who won either way. Maybe I'm higher on the Panthers than I should be, but I'll take NorthWood in a close one.

Plymouth (1-1) @ Warsaw (2-0) : What I would argue is the game of the week in the conference. The Rockies bounced back after a tough loss week 1 to handle Kokomo last week, while the Tigers pulled off what many are calling a "program defining" win on the road at Michigan City. Head Coach Bart Curtis won the Colts/NFL Coach of the Week as a reward for that victory. It's easy to see what hopes and expectations are currently high in Lake City, however, the Tigers haven't had a bigger thorn in their sides over the past two decades than Plymouth. The Rockies have won 13 of the last 16 match-ups (and the last 5 straight) and since the 2001 season, Warsaw has started the season 2-0 six different times (including this year). Plymouth has ended Warsaw's bid to move to 3-0 all 5 of the previous times (per Roger Grossman's piece in the Warsaw Times-Union). Coach Barron always seems to have his team ready for the Tigers. I'll drink the Kool-Aid and take Warsaw by 10 points.

Per latitude, these are the 5 most northern football playing schools in Indiana:

* stands for "degrees", don't know how to include that

Per longitude/latitude

SB Clay is 41* 43' 55.596" N
Whiting is 41* 40' 53.6844" N

Another school that is more "northern" than Whiting is Fremont at 41* 43' 48.0216" N

* stands for "degrees", don't know how to include that

1 hour ago, WolvesOnTheProwl said:

Heard dude was solid last Friday! Any offers yet?

I believe he has offers from Army, Air Force and Washington State as of right now. He nailed the game winning 51 yard field goal with about 4 minutes or so left in the game with about 3 yards to spare. Absolute cannon for a right leg.

On 8/30/2019 at 2:13 PM, YoungBlood said:

nlctigerfan07 your not giving your team the credit it deserves.  The Tiger's will not lose a regular season game this year.

On 8/30/2019 at 3:46 PM, johnny U said:

nictigerfan07 you are turning into Lou Holtz right before my very eyes.

I picked the Tigers to lose 1 game and get blasted for it. Cry me a river 😂 Very impressive win by our Tigers. I have always believed Michigan City would be Warsaw's toughest opponent this season. While I did pick Warsaw for 2nd place in my preseason conference rankings, that was more out of respect of what NorthWood has done over the last three years than my belief in the Tigers winning the conference. 

On 9/1/2019 at 11:08 PM, LC_Bears_04 said:

I think Warsaw makes it all the way to Semi-State this season.  That defense is really, really good.

Bold prediction after week 2 for a team that has never won a sectional title. However, I firmly believe this year the ceiling is unlimited for Warsaw after what I've seen so far. I truly believe a conference and sectional title should be the goal, and anything after that is just extra, delicious gravy 🤤

On 9/3/2019 at 10:12 AM, YoungBlood said:

I've said it everyweek. 

"Warsaw will not lose a Regular Season game this year"

D is solid!

There* fast and Really stong up front.  (They're)

They have one of the best O Lines in the state! 

Oh and Don't forget there* D1 Kicker. (Their)

Did i miss anything @NLCTigerFan07

I agree, their defense is very good. While undersized, they are extremely disciplined, fast, and execute as a unit. Speaks to the coaching ability of Huber and the defensive staff. The only thing you missed is when to use they're, there, their 😉

Unfortunately cannot make a huge post with my reasonings but here are my picks this week:

Concord over Memorial in a close game
Michigan City over Warsaw by 13-17 points
Wawasee over West Noble in a close game
Elkhart Central over Goshen by 35+ points
Plymouth over Kokomo by 10 points
NorthWood over Chatard by 2 points
St. Joe over Northridge by 3 points
 

20 hours ago, Warren Central Warrior said:

Plymouth's football team is the Rockies. All its other teams are the Pilgrims.

I am fairly certain their wrestling program is also referred to as the Rockies.

Impressive wins by Concord, Northridge and Wawasee in my opinion last night.

Expected wins by Warsaw and NorthWood. Both teams will face their most difficult opponent (outside of their week 8 matchup) next week with the Panthers hosting Chatard and the Tigers making the trip to Ames field against Michigan City.

Goshen's win might be their only victory of the season, but I wouldn't be mad if they proved me otherwise. I don't see them standing a chance next week against Elkhart Central.

Memorial will still be a tough out all year in my opinion. I do not know why I'm so optimistic on them, but wouldn't be surprised if they beat Concord next week.

Plymouth... Far from a bad loss, but definitely a great game that they could have won. When was the last time a Rockie QB threw for over 300 yards?

21 hours ago, YoungBlood said:

@NLCTigerFan07 what is up with the NLC fan's and the forum this year???  Were is everyone??   I have been a long time reader but never posted until this year.

Warsaw- They wont lose a game in the regular season. Warsaw by 21

I think a lot of it is due to having to resign up for the forum with that changes that occurred. I believe it has kept a number of posters away. Also EXTREMELY bold prediction by you on my Tigers this year. I don't see them winning week 2 against Michigan City (legit 5A state champion contender) and could just as easily go 3-4 in NLC play this year as they could go 7-0. An often understated part of last season was how great their defense was. I saw a stat that they were like a top 30 team in Defensive PPG among ALL classes last year, and I think they were top 10 at the end of the season in 6A. They held teams to 14 points or fewer in 7 of their 10 games last season and replace a ton of their defensive front 7.

2 hours ago, Tanka Jahari said:

Which NLC teams have endzone cameras? I have been seeing more of them in recent years. Is this an important tool for coaches?

I know Warsaw has one and as a former coach at the collegiate level, it is an awesome tool for coaches. More specifically for the coaches in the front 7 on both sides of the ball. These endzone cameras do not focus on the entire field. The have a "tight" view that basically looks at Tight End to Tight End. It's great for oline/dline coaches for obvious reasons, as well as running back and linebackers.

Unfortunately doesn't seem like there are many posters from the NLC this year. Each year has felt like there have been fewer. Not a lot of in depth analysis behind my picks for this week:

Concord @ SB St Joe : going with the Indians here. This has been a nice week 1 matchup for these programs the last 4 seasons, and I have to give the nod to St Joe at home. Should be a good game.

East Noble @ Plymouth : This should also be a good game. East Noble is always a strong program, but I'll take the Barron boys winning the opener at the Rock Pile.

Elk Memorial @ Elk Central : final battle for the Mangy Lion. I expect Memorial to hang around and be competitive in a handful of games this year, but they've only won this rivalry once in the last seven years. With @NRRaider2001 hyping up Central's offense, I'm picking the Blue Blazers.

Goshen @ Fairfield : I'm starting to sense a theme that will follow all throughout my picks this week. I am not high on the Redhawks whatsoever, and heard some good things about Fairfield's performance against Bremen in their Jamboree. The Lions handled Goshen, while the Falcons version of "Bart Ball" gave Bremen some trouble on defense. Considering what Warsaw did to Goshen last year running the same/similar style, I'll go with a bit of an upset and Fairfield at home. Could be an ugly game.

Huntington North @ Warsaw : The Tigers open up with a new opponent for the first time since 1996. After 22 straight years of the US 30 battle between Warsaw and Columbia city (in which they sported an 18-4 record), I believe over time Huntington North should prove to be a step up in competition for the Tigers in week 1. However, I do not think that year will be this year. Coach Prescott did a great job turning around the Peru program from an 0-10 first season to an 8-3 record in his penultimate season and should be able to do the same thing in Huntington. Expectations are high in Warsaw after last season's introduction of "Bart Ball", and I believe the Tigers win their season opener at home.

Jimtown @ NorthWood : I could be wrong here, but I believe the Jimmies are projected to have a better year than their last two .500 seasons, while NorthWood has a lot to reload for what has been arguably the strongest program in the NLC the last 4 years. However, NorthWood has won 6 straight in this rivalry, including 2 consecutive shutouts of Jimtown. I'll go with the home team again until proven otherwise.

Lakeland @ Wawasee : this one I do not feel quite as confident in, but I don't think either of these teams will be very good this year. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if a repeat performance of last year's 21 point victory occurred in favor of the Lakers, but I'll take Wawasee at home to kickoff the Coach Reutebuch tenure.

Northridge @ SB Adams : another toss up honestly. I think this should be a good game, but I'll go with the team that has a D1 commit at QB, which also ends up being the home team.

Best of luck to all NLC teams this week and throughout the season (except those weeks you line up against my Tigers 😉 )

11 hours ago, NPFan said:

Yeah they looked good.  Their QB is a big dude at like 220 lbs and their RB moves good for a bigger guy too.  Aggressive fast defense as well.  But speed certainly isn’t anything new for City. Coach Mason and staff do a good job adding accountability and discipline.

Not attempting to hijack the NIC thread, but I'm very excited that the Tigers have picked up Michigan City in the non-conference schedule. After reading that statement though... might be a little concerned about this year's trip to Ames Field!

Warsaw @ Leo

Any idea who is scrimmaging who? I know Warsaw is at Leo tonight.

Also - side note - Warsaw senior kicker Harrison Mevis recently picked up a scholarship offer from Washington State!

8 hours ago, MuleDriver said:

On a side note  does  anyone know how to tag a member instead of quoting their entire post? Seemed like you could do that on the last forum.....

Like this @MuleDriver .... simply type @ before you start typing the members name and it will populate automatically.

2 hours ago, WilELee said:

I'm pretty sure they were 6A based on enrollment. When it looked like Snider was in 5A this year, Warsaw was the smallest 6A school, except for Columbus East. So when Snider went back up, Valpo went down.

@WilELee - http://www.ihsaa.org/Portals/0/ihsaa/documents/quick resources/Enrollments & Classifications/football schools 19-20.pdf

Warsaw is not the smallest 6A school by enrollment. Zionsville, Chesterton, Columbus North and Lafayette Jefferson are all "smaller" than Warsaw, although the bottom 8 schools of 6A are all within 200 students of each other.

I counted 58 in the team picture Concord coach Craig Koehler posted on twitter yesterday

Based on the team photo that was posted to their football twitter account, it looks like there are 65 on the Varsity roster (10th-12th) for Warsaw this season. I counted 19 seniors in their group picture. I cannot confirm, but I believe I heard there was potentially 30-40 on the freshman team roster.

My complete shot in the dark on a prediction:

1. NorthWood - may have lost a lot, but they've got a hell of a thing going. Until they prove otherwise, they're at the top for me. Hell of a program.
2. Warsaw - call this trying to temper expectations... Everyone is hyping up the Tigers this year (and I'm very excited to see how they do), but I just hope these high praises don't go to their heads. But they were only 4 points away from an undefeated regular season last year (don't get me started on the Plymouth "good" field goal), so I see no reason why they can't make a push for the crown this year.
3. Plymouth - They have to go on the road to Warsaw and NorthWood to start and end the NLC season respectively, but the get the other contenders for this spot (Concord and Northridge) at my least favorite spot in the world... the Rock Pile. With the Barrons in charge, I fully expect the Rockies to be in the thick of things.
4. Concord - The Minutemen had a very up and down season last year. I expect them to be more on the upside this season, but think 6-3 is the cap on their record in the regular season. However, they could surprise with NorthWood, Northridge and Warsaw all having to make the trip to Jake Field.
5. Elkhart Memorial - The Crimson Chargers final season in the NLC could be interesting. Their first 3 games are on the road (none outside of Elkhart County) and get Warsaw, Plymouth, NorthWood and Northridge at home. A road trip to Wawasee will be less than daunting... I could see Memorial finish the regular season as high as 6-3 this season, but more realistically closer to .500
6. Northridge - I love the program that Coach Wogoman has build in Middleburry, but I feel like this season might potentially mirror the 2016 season for the Raiders. Adams and St. Joe will be a tough opening slate and NLC road trips to Plymouth, Warsaw, Concord and Memorial... anything more than 4 wins this regular season would be considered a success in my book.
7. Goshen - The optimism that was in the 2015 and 2016 seasons has quickly faded. The only reason I'm giving the Redhawks the nod here is Coach Park is entering his 6th season and they get Wawasee at home to end the season.
8. Wawasee - 3rd coach in 4 years to stalk the sidelines in Syracuse. Best of luck to Coach Reutebuch in his first opportunity as a head coach, but it will take a few years to get the Warrior program headed in the right direction. 6 out of the last 12 seasons, Wawasee has won 3 games or less.

Don't hold me to any of this! Best of luck to all NLC teams this season.

16 hours ago, Temptation said:

Even for the “perennial powers” playing up voluntarily wound be asinine.  It’s still a bit cyclical as even Cathedral went 6-6 last year.

8 hours ago, XStar said:

2.  Cathedral having a mediocre regular season record certainly doesn't make them incapable of postseason success.

To piggy back off XSTar's response, @Temptation no one forced or asked Cathedral to craft and play their schedule they did last year. Cathedral (as an independent) can choose to play whoever they want, and it is typically a very impressive schedule. Just because they were 4-5 in the regular season has nothing to do with how they could/should/and do perform in the class 5A and 6A tournaments.

For example as a 4A "enrollment sized" school, they had a win/loss record of 9-4 over their past 4 postseasons (2 in 6A, 2 in 5A). IMO - if you're winning over 2/3rds of your post season match-ups... I would say you are doing just fine in that classification.