Ramblings of Dannelly

NAIA DI Men's basketball tournament updates

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:22:46 GMT

For all the NAIA Video Updates from College Fanz, check out http://naia.collegefanz.com

Things are pretty hectic so I am not going to get to my longer article until Saturday morning. Until then, follow my updates on Twitter!

www.twitter.com/jdannelly

NAIA DI MBB Tourney Family

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 02:19:38 GMT

The NAIA DI MBB tournament reminds me of a big family gathering. People come from all over the country to meet up once a year to exchange stories, play some hoops and have a little fun. It’s a lot like any modern day American family. There are some members you love to see and can’t wait for them to walk in the door and give them a big hug.

Then there are those family members that you kinda smile through your teeth at and realize they are family and they have every right to be here. You just choose to not talk to them as much as the others. Then you have some of those crazy drunken uncles where you start off thinking this year is going to be different. Then by the end of the night they have embarrassed themselves again and are headed home early.

I don’t say these things to be mean but rather to show you that this tournament is a lot like the modern day family. I don’t love my drunken uncles or weirdo cousins any less or any more. Heck, they are family!

I’ll have a Ramblings Rundown tomorrow sometime in the afternoon. Until then, ENJOY!

Commentary: Berea/IU-Southeast Brawl and the Aftermath

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:58:19 GMT

I am not a fan of the NBA. I never really have been. Sure I loved MJ and I like to see what guys like LeBron and Kobe are up to now. But 95 percent of the games in the NBA I do not care about. When its time for the finals and NBA finals I'll pay attention because I am a sports fan but it takes a lot for me to care about the NBA during the regular season.

I am enough of a sports fan of course to remember the "Malice at the Palace" also know as the Pacers-Pistons brawl. It was a terrible situation with fans fighting players, players fighting player with the end result being fines, suspensions and legal charges to many of the players involved.

The NBA image is certainly not one that is squeaky clean as more fights have happened, players have been suspended for having guns in their locker rooms and a referee has been ousted for betting on games.

But the punishment has fit the crime in nearly every case that David Stern has reviewed. Lifetime bans, year long bans 20 game suspensions and more. The Pacers-Pistons brawl resulted in nine players being suspended without pay for a total of 146games, which led to $10million in salary being lost by the players. Five players were also charged with assault, and all five were eventually sentenced to a year on probation and community service. Five fans were also legally charged.

So in the case of Berea and Indiana University Southeast what the heck are the NAIA and the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference thinking by only handing out a one game suspension?

For those of you who have not seen the video, here is a link:

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/campusrivalry/post/2010/02/video-of-brawl-between-naia-schools-during-game-that-was-called-off-in-first-half/1

Players fighting players, fans fighting players and the game ended out being rules a "no contest." Can anyone show me where this is the least bit different than the Pacers-Pistons?

IU-Southeast coach Tim Gardner was quoted as saying "This is very serious. The commissioner of our league has spoken and suspended these guys. It's a lifelong lesson for these young men."

Really? The hammer of Thor has come down on these guys and given them a mighty one game suspension? Per NAIA bylaws, any players who were involved in fighting or who left the bench during the incident will serve a one game suspension, I get that. This is an extreme incident where a larger suspension should have been handed down. The schools and the conference needed to do more.

There are a lot of questions out there in regards to this incident. I've have sat back and waited patiently to see what the end result of this all would be. Needless to say, I am greatly disappointed.

Last night was the first night of the KIAC conference tournament. IU-Southeast beat St. Louis College of Pharmacy 88-35 with a full roster. The players sat their one game against IU-East and were back for the conference tourney. I guess it just didn't make any sense to set an example and hold these players out of the first round game with the Eutectics, who finished 1-24 on the year.

Berea University was not as fortunate as IU-Southeast as they did not have a regular season game to use up for the suspension. Instead, they had to play their first round game of the KIAC tourney with a short squad as they lost to Cincinnati Christian, 105-89.

Berea Athletic Director Mark Cartmill said officials contemplated forfeiting the conference tournament but the KIAC has a rule that states if that was done they could not participate in next year's conference tournament.

"We didn't want next year's team and new players to be penalized," said Cartmill in an interview with WKYT.

Uh . . . hello? Isn't that the nature of suspensions and sanctions? Two year's ago NW Oklahoma State's football team took a two year suspension because they played an ineligible player on accident. It was the second year in a row it had happened. I would be willing to bet the Rangers would have like a suspension that didn't cause their new players to be penalized either, but that wasn't an option. Much like how it should not have been an option in this situation.

Have some guts. Stand up for what's right and make an example that this sort of thing will not be tolerated, especially at the small college level. A great deal of NAIA institutions pride themselves on being institutions of character.

This entire situation has been botched by all parties involved.

Suspend the players, suspend the teams and send the message this thing will not be tolerated. You can make that decision as a school first, then a conference. People may want to throw the NAIA under the bus on this one – but I don't think that is fair, yet.

Berea and IU-Southeast could handle this sort of thing internally and prove they are institutions and athletic programs of character. The KIAC could have brought together the presidents and ADs to make a decision on how to change their rules to fit this situation.

All of this talk about "we don't want this to affect next year's team" or "it wouldn't be fair to do this to" is a bunch of garbage.

Make sports about more than winning and losing. Make it about doing the right thing and learning a life lesson from it. Particularly that fighting or an all out brawl will get you and those around you in more trouble than a simple slap on the wrist.

Don't ever let people tell you what you are capable of . . .

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:06:30 GMT

(The following is a copy of a recent article I was asked to write about my friend Scott Shanle. Scott is an NFL football player with the New Orleans Saints. He and I are childhood friends and I have the utmost respect for the guy. I know this has nothing to do with "college" sports but it has everything to do with life.)

The first football games I can remember Scott Shanle playing were ones of little significance. Sure everyone in the game thought they were playing in the NFL or were even pretending to be some Husker great in those days. But these games were played on a patch of dirt four and half miles straight east of Saint Edward, Neb. at Bunker Hill elementary school. From the beginning, Scott always said, “I’m going to be a football player. I’m going to start for Nebraska and I will play in the Super Bowl.”

Many would laugh it off as a boyish dream and figure that someday Scott would grow out of his “football phase” and see his way back to the farm or a bank or some other likely career that everyone felt should be his future.

Scott never worried about what others thought he should do. Instead he’s continued to reach his goals and set new ones while others thought his dreams were unattainable.

At the end of a fantastic high school career he was planning on walking on at Nebraska which many people thought was an unwise decision. Nebraska-Omaha was offering a full ride and it was the safe bet by everyone else’s standards. After all, the naysayers said, “At least he’d play at UNO.”

Those of us who knew Scott just laughed the idea of him playing somewhere other than Nebraska. High school buddies Ryan Thompson, Travis Andresen and I were in the St. Edward school library when Scott told us he was going on a visit to UNO. I’m pretty sure we all simultaneously laughed, “Why?” Looking back, I’m pretty sure it was just an excuse to get out of a day of school.

He declined UNO’s offer staying on task with his first goal; start for Nebraska. It would be the first of many goals that he would attain that others said would not be possible. Scott would spend his redshirt freshman season behind Tony Ortiz and Brian Shaw. He felt that season would be a great time to learn from two guys in the system since they were incumbent starters. Nebraska Defensive Coordinator Craig Bohl would go on later to tell Scott that he was disappointed as he felt Scott had the talent that season to potentially leap frog Ortiz and Shaw. It was the first time Scott ever sold himself short on what he could do.

It was also the last time.

Being a friend of Scott’s through the years I paid a lot more attention to what others said about his abilities than he ever did. At least once in college and each season in the pros the talk has been “Who can we bring in to replace Shanle?” And every season Scott stays the course, does his job and proves everyone wrong. This week, Scott said something very poignant that speaks not only to himself but everyone at some point in their life.

“I’ve never paid much attention to what people said I could and couldn’t do. Instead, I’ve spent my time knowing what I can do and taking the steps necessary to get the job done.”

It is one thing to say those words but it’s another thing to actually make it be true. In order to do it, you have to have people around you that encourage you to reach your dreams. The most important thing to his success is not speed or work ethic, although it has certainly helped. Instead it has proven to be the person sitting by his side through the years; his wife Erin. She’s been a rock for Scott and is easily the most supportive person I’ve ever met.

You know that old saying “behind every good man is a good woman.” Erin exemplifies that saying.

Today, you will see a small town Nebraska kid living out his dream that started with a few insignificant games on a dirt playground next to a cornfield. When you flip on the TV to watch the big game, keep an eye out for ‘ole #58 on the Saints. He’s not the most well known NFL player and he is not going to dance around and draw attention to himself. He’ll just be the one that you’ll be proud to have your kids say they want to be like. He’ll be the one you’ll be proud to say is one of your own. And to me; he’ll be the one that I’ve never been more proud of to call a friend.

Well . . . I think I'm gonna write a book

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 15:30:33 GMT

At some point, everyone finds their calling, their duty or their mission. Some people never find it, but along the way they find several things to occupy themselves until the next big thing comes along. I am not going to sit and write to you that I have had this epiphany that has freed my mind of all the wondering of who and what I should be. I am not going to tell you that God spoke to me in a dream and told me what my mission for life will be from this point forth.

But I will tell you of a magnificent encounter I had at the 2010 American Football Coaches Association’s Annual Convention.

You see all of my life I have been the guy who has favored the underdogs while everyone else followed only the top dogs. I played eight-man football at a small D-1 high school in Nebraska with a graduating class of 24. To this day I could name all 24 of my classmates and likely tell you who their parents are and what they did back in the day. No, I’m not bragging about having some fantastic memory (ask my fiance', I do not), I am just telling you how small and simple things were back in good old Saint Edward.

I went to college in Blair, Nebraska at Dana College who had an enrollment of 600, and with a little help I might be able to tell you a little something about everyone who was in my graduation class at Dana in 2002. Again, it was small, we were close knit and we weren’t concerned with all the hustle and bustle that some people immersed themselves into on a daily basis.

Somewhere in those years I fell in love with small college athletics. I’d always check the papers to see how certain small colleges had faired against one another while others memorized the two deep roster of the University of Nebraska. At first I just thought my love of small college athletics was just this irresistible urge to root for the underdog. Then time went on, I started my own business following small college athletics within the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and I continued to soak up all the information I possible could on the NAIA, football at its level and the people that made it so special.

In 2005, the College Football Hall of Fame Announced they would be inducting long time Pacific Lutheran head coach Frosty Westering. Not to some secondary wing or as a favor to the people who cover small college football but to the same Hall that houses the bronze busts of guys like Knute Rockne.

I honestly had never heard of Frosty. I had a few coaches through the years say to me, “Our program follows what Frosty says and we make the big time where we are.”

I always nodded politely and thought that it was a catchy saying. In fact before ever talking to or reading about Frosty Westering I actually adopted the same mantra in my business to “Make the Big Time Where I Am.”

So on a summer day in June of 2005, I called Pacific Lutheran to set up an interview with their newly named national hall of famer. After going through about three different people, I finally tracked down Frosty’s son, Scott, the head coach of Pacific Lutheran. He graciously gave me his father’s number and I proceeded to set up an interview with this coach that so many people talked about. I figured if anything it’d be a nice history lesson.

What I got was a lesson in life. Ninety minutes later I was renewed, invigorated and on a euphoric high larger than that of any drug a person could take. It may sound like I watched a Tony Robbins infomercial or went to see one of those healing preachers, but nothing could be farther from the truth. I had just talked to a living legend as a coach and more so as a man.

Through the years I had talked to hundreds of coaches. From that I had probably talked to 10-15 coaches that were living legends in their own right. Whether I had realized it or not, I had created one of the strongest networks of mentors in the entire country by accident. By just calling and talking with these coaches I opened with a door of endless possibilities.

People will swoon over Joe Paterno, Tom Osborne and the new guys like Urban Meyer. But if you really want to learn something about life and how life can be altered and bettered by playing college football you need to check out guys like Frosty Westering, John Gagliardi and Ted Kessinger.

Fast forward again to the NAIA Hall of Fame banquet on a chilly night in Orlando, Florida in January 2010. Former Sioux Falls head coach Bob Young is being inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame. Prior to the start of the banquet Frosty Westering rises from his chair and saunters over to Bob Young’s table. The two legends hug one another and Coach Young introduces Frosty to his entire family that was in attendance.

The epiphany finally came:

These are two of the greatest football coaches to ever walk the sidelines and no one outside of this small select group of people who follow the NAIA know anything about them.

How much better would the world be if they took five minutes to listen to coach Young? How great would our lives be if we lived by Frosty’s mantra? How much more prepared for the real world would we all be if John Gagliardi talked to us during our graduation speech?

I’m not saying we’d cure cancer or sit around a campfire and sing kumbaya but I am saying that we all might take that extra second to consider those around us when we don’t get our morning coffees quick enough from the drive through. We might bite our tongue instead of create that fight with our co-workers. We might also realize that the person sitting across from us really wants the same things as us.

So at 5:20 a.m. on January 13, 2010 I opened up my laptop in the Orlando Airport and starting typing. I had no plan, I had no roadmap. All I had was a vision of bringing these coaches, the greatest coaches to ever roam the sideline that no one had ever heard of, to the world. Maybe only five people will read this book and I will lose all of my money trying to write it.

But if it changes the lives of those five people then it was worth it.

Off to the AFCA Convention

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 14:44:08 GMT

Well it is that time of year again that I get to spend three days with nearly every college football coach in the country at the AFCA Convention. This year the convention returns to Orlando which was the site of my first AFCA convention a few years ago. The crazy thing is that many of the connections that I made at that convention turned out to be some of the most beneficial relationships I have ever created.

This year I'll have my regular schedule of running to every NAIA meeting possible along with hearing several of the country's top football coaches speak. Lou Holtz, Brian Kelly, Mike Singletary and Tony Dungy are just a few of the big names talking along with some of the best in small college football.

Additionally I'll get to come back with some stupid story of how I likely made a fool of myself in front of a big time college football coach. Someday I will share with you my classic Pete Carroll story. It's not surprising to any of you who know me well . . . mostly because I'm occasionally a big dumb animal.

The NAIA will induct Bob Young of Sioux Falls into the NAIA Hall of Fame this week as well. Coach Young was one of the first coaches I made contact with once I decided to start up my own company a few years back. For every bit of a great football coach that Bob Young is and was he is that much greater of a person. Back in 2002 I was right out of college and Coach Young didn't owe me the time of day. But he went out of his way to talk with me about my business, what my plans were for it and if there was anything he could do to help.

To top it off, Bob Young never forgot me. I'm sure he has met 1000 media people over the years and even more football players. There was no reason that Bob Young needed to remember who I was past 25 seconds past when our conversation ended. But the next time I called him he instantly asked me about the business, Grand Island and how everything was going with me. Bob Young has never looked at me with a distant look of "hmmm who is this guy" in fact he has always made it a point to seek me out and say hello. But I'm not special . . . and this was evident after seeing Coach Young in Georgia at the NAIA championship game. He remembered every single person that walked up to him and say hello whether he saw them earlier that day or if it had been 10 years since he had seen a former player. And it was never "Oh hey Jim." It was always, "Hey Jim, how's Nancy and Jake doing? How are your parents? Is the insurance business good."

Bob Young is the type of coach that everyone I've met that understands the game of football would want to play for. He is a gentleman, he is a role model and he is a true gift to the world of coaching. The NAIA is a better place for having him and inducting him into the hall of fame.

Other stuff:

Check out our live broadcasts today from Sioux City, Iowa as Briar Cliff and Morningside do battle in the GPAC.
Next Thursday we will be live from McKenzie, Tennessee as Trevecca Nazarene travels to Bethel College for men's and women's basketball on College Fanz.

Have a great day folks and we will catch you all soon!

Happy New Year College Fanz!

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:19:24 GMT

I hope 2010 is even better than 2009 for all of you!. I'll be taking a few days away from the computer for the start of the new year, so play nice with one another! Also, be sure to check out our basketball broadcasts this Wednesday and Saturday nights!

Stay Gold Pony Boy

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 16:07:01 GMT

Adam James, son of ESPN anylst Craig James, has single handily destroyed one of the most intriguing football football programs and the reputation of one of the most eccentric and gifted coaches in the country. Mike Leach was fired December 30th. Not for wins, not for losses, not for a bad attitude not even for the situation involving James. But rather for his insubordination in not apologizing and unwillingness to work with the powers of Texas Tech.

Sure there are reports of the tension already between the president and Leach. But I don't think that excuses James inability to be a football player.

Yes, a football player.

Its not my usual small college flavor, although I could say that because Leach started at the NAIA's Iowa Wesleyan that I can make it into my usual category.

You see this story strikes home with me. In 2000 I played my final college football game after my third documented concussion and likely my fifth concussion of my career. I misread a play in the backfield and in an effort to recover follow the play I took a nasty, legal crackback that caused me to forget the entire game included the hyperextension of my elbow that finally got me off the field for the trainers to recognize, "Hey, this guy ain't right . . . more than usual."

Coming from a guy who had a lot of concussions I am not sure why everyone suddenly thinks a rock solid shot that rings a guys bell means he shouldn't sneeze wrong for three weeks or else he'll wind up reading the alphabet backwards the rest of his life. Trust me, I read it backwards all the time while I'm drinking my steak through a straw.

I'm kidding folks.

It there was one beef that Mike Leach had with his team all season long it was their lack of toughness and focus. His comments about his players being more concerned with their "fat little girlfriends" than the team still make me laugh. Leach wanted his team to be "football players" and to have a little toughness, grit and swagger about them.

The message I feel that Leach was trying to send not only to James but to his entire team was "toughen up." Since I was a guy that was often singled out and told to play through things, I get it. I get why coaches will single out a player because they know they can take it. Or because they know it will send a message to the team. Football was never meant to be a game for those without thick skin.

Should James have been locked up in the dark? Probably not. But should this story ever made it out of the Texas Tech camp? No. Football is football and that is what makes it great. The life lessons are endless and sometimes even the most extreme methods of punishment can send a message or teach a lesson to those which it is intended.

The problem here is the person whom it was intended, the young pony boy, did not get it and chose to do what every modern day spoiled brat does when they don't get what they want . . . he ran to mommy and daddy.

In this case one would think the old school football dad would step up and say, "Well, maybe coach thinks you need to toughen up."

But instead the big Pony was there to lick the young colts wounds and tell him it'd be okay and he'd go above the coaches head to the administration.

I am not condoning what Leach did. He probably shouldn't have used this method. But what people are forgetting is he never put the kid at risk. He only made an example of him. The biggest issue is that it should have never left the locker room. It's a team issue. In my opinion, Adam might as well quit football now because I doubt there will ever be another coach that would want to coach him.

I've been at a lot of football practices and I have seen a lot of different disciplinary measures taken. Some by a few of the all time great coaches in the country and I understood what these coaches were trying to do. More importantly the other 110 players on the team understood what the coach was trying to do. I do not always agree with the method but as long as the athletes are not put in harms way I think these issues should be left up to each coach and their style of running their program.

I also find it troubling that people are acting like the players life was at stake here. The kid got embarrassed. If Leach had a Bear Bryant mentality James would have been practicing and playing with a concussion instead of being locked in a dark room.

It is also interesting to me that Leach is the only villian in this situation. What about the athletic trainers that allowed him to do this? Their salary is not paid by Leach and they could have easily stepped in and said, "Sorry Mike, we are not going to allow you to do that. That is not how this injury is treated."

It's hilarious to me that some of the same talking heads that support Bill Parcells taking TVs out of the Dallas Cowboys training room and telling his players, "I don't want to see your a%$&^ in here" are the same ones making this situation look like it was the worse thing to happen to college sports.

It is just another step towards softening this society up to the point where there is no toughness any more. I used to think that football was protected from the softness that was creeping into our society. Unfortunately, it looks as if I am wrong. Mike Leach goes down this week, his administration has no backbone to support him. I'm just waiting for the next great coach and program to come tumbling down.

Hopefully 2010 will be the year that college sports will get their toughness back.

Final Thoughts on Rome and the National Championship

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 22:33:31 GMT

Another year of NAIA football has come and gone. Over 1000 football games were played this year in the NAIA and it all culminated with the University of Sioux Falls defeating Lindenwood, 25-22. The City of Rome and all of the hosts did another fantastic job of making the NAIA National Championship a special event. Unless you have been to Rome and physically attended the championship it is hard to explain what makes the site so special. It's all the little things that Rome does that makes the event a real big time feel. My favorite saying comes from Coach Frosty, "Make the big time where you are." Rome has done that now two years in a row and made this event really special for the players involved.

I've heard from countless people wondering why the game isn't played at another site and how Rome was chosen. Simply put, Rome was and still is the best place for the national championship until someone can prove otherwise. With the addition of turf to Barron Stadium and other renovations taking place I have no doubt that next season you will see another major upgrade in how the national championship will look on television.

I keep hearing from people to put the game in a big city or to put the game in Vegas. While I think these ideas make sense to the untrained observer there is just no way it would ever work for the NAIA. DI football is DI football. What works for them will not work for the NAIA. The same can be said about 6a or 5a football in Texas High Schools. Just because 20,000 people will come watch high school football in Texas doesn't mean 20,000 people will show up to watch the NAIA title game between two teams they have not heard of. People can say "football is football and football fans will come watch." Okay . . . then why in this great state of Nebraska do 80,000 people go to a Husker game and on their off week no one goes to watch the D2 or NAIA schools in the state?

You know why? Football fans are fans of (insert their team here). They don't care if 45 minutes down the road there is a great D2 game going on if they are a fan of a big D1 school. I understand that someone from the message boards is going to jump on here and say "Nuh-uh Jason, I go to such and such games and such and such games." To them I would say you are the exception to the rule. It's not hardcore football guys you have to convince to go to the games. It's football moms, wives of hardcore football guy and girlfriend of nutto football fan you have to get in the seats.

In a place like Rome you have a community that rallies around this event. They want to see it succeed. Barron Stadium has been around since the begining of time. Heck, the first football game in Georgia might have been played there (I'm kidding folks). My point is, they have had plenty of time to add turf to the stadium. After the first championship they said "WOW look at how this impacts our community." Shorter College was ready to go 50/50 with the cost of the turf of the new stadium. Instead, the community stepped up and said "We'll do it all because we want events like this in the community."

This year's championship brought 1.8 million dollars into Rome, $350,000 more than last year. That is a heck of a lot of money to Rome and their residents appreciate all of the LU and USF fans spending money in their community.

Do you really think Las Vegas would care if they sold 300 more hotel rooms? Or made $350,000 more in one weekend?

Did it rain?

Yes.

Can you play football in the rain?

Yes, last time I checked no one was melting.

Would it be nice to play a championship where weather wasn't a factor?

Uhh . . . . . . We are still playing football right? I mean . . . all of the great football videos I see of the past had football games being played in some style of weather conditions. The balls are still made of leather so they do okay.

I get that people want a championship on a true neutral surface where no outside factors can affect the outcome. That's fine. I guess I was always brought up that you had to learn to deal with adversity.

I can already see it next year. . . remodeled stadium, turf on the field and a beautiful 60 degrees.

"Hmm it's a little windy, don't you think?"

At that point I will need to be restrained . . .

Now, some ramblings on the game:

Philip Staback has earned my respect. He played a good game against the NAIA's best defense. His one downfall might have been a botched snap that led to a safety but I honestly don't think that played as much of a part in the outcome of the game as some would think. He threw no interceptions and had a few good balls dropped. I think Staback, Matt Bramow and Denodus O'Bryant could be the deadliest offense in the NAIA next year.
Brandon Gould of Lindenwood is the most underrated DB in the NAIA. No one talked about this kid at all until late in the season. He hits hard and makes a lot of big plays.
Dominic Studzinski had the coolest football name in this year's championship. He played like a Studzinski (I hate puns ) on Saturday and his late sack of Staback helped to seal his award as NAIA Championship Defensive MVP.
Seeing Chuck Morrell and Kalen DeBoer hugging one another after winning an NAIA title never gets old. They were a part of the first ever USF national title and have been the coaching team that has led them to their last three. To think that some guy you played football with in college would be the guy that would be helping you build one of the most dominant teams in NAIA history must be mind boggling.
These were the two best teams in the NAIA. In my opinion it was not a game of one team not making plays because they played bad. Or another team making plays because they played out of their minds. This was a football game played between two evenly matched football teams that deserve to be called the two best in the NAIA. All season long we have thought USF to be head and shoulders above the rest and they were. But no one expected Lindenwood to be just one step behind them. Lindenwood is that good and forced USF to make mistakes. In the end, USF was the better team because they found a way to win.

Have a great week folks! Eat lots get fat (or fatter) and enjoy all the time you get to spend with your family. From mine to yours, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Field Update and Interviews for Friday

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:02:35 GMT

Check out the video update below on Barron Stadium and how the field looks. Additionally listen to the audio reports below that for our interviews with USF's Kalen DeBoer and Lorenzo Brown as well as Lindenwood's Patrick Ross and Philip Staback. Jim Carr, President of the NAIA, also stopped by to talk about Rome and the title game.

Click Here for the Audio Interviews:

http://www.victorysportsnetwork.com/article.php?articleID=10804

Day Two: Waking up to Rain and the Real Reason It Is Raining. . . .

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 17:08:23 GMT

We'll I woke up to a very familiar site for NAIA football championships this morning . . . rain. Every year since 2007 the championship game has seen wet weather. Prior to that the NAIA championship had not seen any significant weather issues since Azusa Pacific win their title in the late 90's. I know a lot of people are complaining about the weather but you have to understand that the case more often than not is that the NAIA championship has been played on a dry field.

Yes it stinks that the championship game might get a little muddy tomorrow. But both teams have the style of play that will be conducive to playing in these type of conditions. For the Lions, we might all get a chance to see what Denodus O'Bryant can do with 20 touches in a football game. It will be interesting to see how LU's gameplan will adjust.

For USF, it will be almost a carbon copy of last year. A lot of Zo, Lowmiller and great defense. If the rain keeps up I will have to change my prediction a little bit, but only to have fewer points on the board. If we are wet tomorrow my prediction will be 34-24 with the Cougars still on top.

WHY IS IT RAINING? Chuck Norris Style . . .

Chuck Morrell wears sun glasses which scares the sun into thinking it is too bright. The sun is scared of angering Chuck anymore so it hides behind the clouds. Proof . . . it was sunny until the Cougars practiced yesterday. Then Chuck showed up in sunglasses. It has been cloudy ever since.

Have a great day, more updates to come!

Day #1 from the NAIA National Championship

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 00:17:49 GMT

Day one has come to an end and I think the initial excitement for both teams getting here has calmed down a bit and they are ready to get to down to business. The one unfortunate thing about this year's championship is again the talk of weather. For the third year in a row there are some concerns about the weather coming into play Saturday. Depending on who you talk to if might rain, snow, both or do nothing.

For me, I am laid back about it because at the end of the day there is still a national title game to be played and both teams are equipped to play in it. The field looks as good as ever and the people of Rome who are responsible for taking care of the field should be proud. I did buck the system and walked on the field today briefly (even though the signs said I was not suppose to). The field is solid and will play very nicely even if the forecasted rain comes on Friday. Overall, the stadium, the field and the players will be ready for anything come Saturday.

Random thoughts for the day:

Both teams seemed very excited as they arrived for their practices today. But after they got the pads on and got to work it was business as usual.
This is indeed a family event and I am happy to seem some of the folks from USF and Lindenwood taking advantage of that. Pat Ross had his son at the NAIA press conference and Willie Sanchez (USF AD) has his grandchildren along. I know as a youngster this would be the type of event that I would have eaten up.
No "Fanatic Friday" this year in Rome. There were plans to have a band and a bunch of outdoor fan events after the NAIA Banquet of Champions but the weather has forced the championship committee to cancel the event this year.
I had Five Guys Burgers and Fries for lunch . . . . it . . . . was . . . . awesome.
There are a lot of great football coaches in Rome right now. Not just Ross and DeBoer thought . . . Dave Dallas of Kansas Wesleyan is here as the NAIA AFCA Coaches Association President and Bruce Wasem of UVa Wise is here as part of the committee. Then add in Phil Jones of Shorter and AD Bill Peterson and you have one heck of a coaching staff not even on the field this Saturday.

That is all for now folks. I'll keep you updated. Check back in the morning for some press conference photos and practice photos.

For audio of the NAIA Pregame Press Conference, Follow this link and click play!

http://naiafootball.collegefanz.com/article.php?articleID=10801

Live from Rome . . . .

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 15:38:52 GMT

I have arrived in Rome, Ga. for the NAIA National Championship! Just wanted to touchbase with all the NAIA fanz out there that are going to be following the National Championship on College Fanz. The flight was slightly delayed coming out of Omaha yesterday but I arrived in Atlanta by about 7:20 ET last night. After I got the luggage and rental car it was off to the home of the championship.

Ate Krystals for the first time last night. It was alright. Kinda seems like a White Castle knock off
Staying just about two blocks from the stadium so I am taking a walk here in a few minutes to get some photos to post on the site.
Weather looks like there could be a shot at some rain tomorrow, but clear and 45 on Saturday.
There is a great lil sports bar in main street in Rome called Jefferson's. They honestly have the best deal on crablegs I have ever seen. So I will be eating 4 lbs of crablegs there tonight.

That is all for now . . . check back a little later today for more!

NAIA Championship Preview by Jason Dannelly

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 02:44:06 GMT

It is title time in Rome, Ga.!!! Today marks the start of one of the most memorable weeks of 200 plus college football players. Everything that happens this week will be etched into their minds as one of the greatest times of their lives, win or lose. Lindenwood and Sioux Falls will make history this Saturday.

Lindenwood . . . . welcome to the national championship. It has been a while since we have had to roll out the red carpets for a first timer in the national title game. Saint Francis (Ind.) was the last one back in 2004. Since then it has been Sioux Falls, Carroll or Saint Francis in the title game. Even prior to that the championship had been dominated by Georgetown and NW Oklahoma State. You have to go back to 1998 for the last time two first timers made it to the title game as Azusa Pacific and Olivet Nazarene made it into the title game.

A new face this year is not a bad deal especially since the Lindenwood fans will bring some spark to Rome, Ga. and the national championship festivities since this is their first time to the dance. That's not to say the USF fans won't have some fire but its kind of like going to an amusement park for the second or third time . . . the rides are a lot of fun and you scream your head off but nothing beats that first time.

The national championship will always bring fond memories to anyone that has ever attended one whether it was in Rome, Ga., Savannah, Tenn., or any of the places it was held previous to having a permanent home. I remember the first year I made it to the title game as a media member and how much fun the entire event was for me.

Lindenwood fans my advice to you: takes lots of pictures, live it up and enjoy where your team has gotten. You can always say "we'll be back next year," but you nothing will ever be like your first time to the title.

The questions that everyone is asking are all in the same wheelhouse. How can Sioux Falls win the title? How can Lindenwood win the title? Both squads are good enough to beat the team across from them if they can play a solid game. There is no doubt that Sioux Falls has grabbed the headlines this year with their out of the park victories and dominance on defense. But consider that Lindenwood has also dominated some of the better teams in the NAIA in the postseason and has also been good enough to go into one of the toughest places in the NAIA and get a win (Carroll College).

How Lindenwood will win the National Title:

Solid defense that can limit what Sioux Falls can do offensively and no turnovers from the Lions offense. It sounds pretty simple but no one has been able to do it against USF since 2007.

It seems like most of the headlines around the Lindenwood offense usually related to their stud in the backfield Denodus O'Bryant or a bevy of wide receivers that all could be the number one wide receiver on other NAIA teams. The person who I really think is the catalyst for the Lindenwood Lions is the man they have under center, Philip Staback. Staback has engineered the Lions high powered offense all season and has put his teammates in position to make big plays. Staback has thrown 34 touchdown passes this season and just six interceptions. On top of that Staback has never thrown multiple interceptions in one game; they have all been one interception or none this season. In the postseason he has thrown nine touchdown passes and just one interception.

Throw all the numbers out and forget about them because Staback brings a lot more to his team than gaudy quarterback numbers. He brings toughness and leadership. He will take a shot and pop back up. He will tuck it and run the ball when the Lions need a first down. He is that gritty, tough quarterback that you need to win a national championship.

O'Bryant is a great athlete. Marcel Thompson, Rudy Flemming, Matt Bramow and Roren Thomas are some of the best wide receivers in the country. But they are all made better by Staback.

Defensively Lindenwood will need to create turnovers. A pick six by someone would go a long ways in this game. If the Lions can get a defensive touchdown I truly think they have a shot at beating the Cougars.

The defensive line is aggressive and can put on pressure. The linebackers are a talented trio led by Logan Wright and Parks Peterson. The secondary has good nice and Brandon Gould can come up and lay the wood on run support.

The biggest thing that Lindenwood will have to do is prevent Sioux Falls from driving up and down the field on them. The Lions have played to somewhat of a bend don't break mentality this season. That will not be good enough this week as the Cougars will take advantage of getting huge chunks of yards.

The Lions have a chance but need to play mistake free football to get their first national championship.

How Sioux Falls will win the National Title:

Great defense, turnovers and the ability to have anyone make a big play. There is no secret that Sioux Falls has been able to win national championships by playing great defense. It is how they won it all last year and it is how they have dominated everyone this year. The Cougars do not just stop the opposition they force them to make mistakes, turn the ball over and give up points to USF when the Cougar offense isn't even on the field.

Trevor Holleman can pull one out of the sky and take it to the house or hit someone so hard that the ball will come flying loose. The entire defense has this sort of mentality that they are going to punish you just for stepping on the field with them. No one gets a break. The Cougars are the number one defense in the NAIA giving up 208 yards per game and 9.7 points per game.

The Cougar defense is far from a one man show. Their defensive line has three MEN anchoring it. Sure you can look at their height and weight and determine that these are some pretty good sized players. But once they line up on Saturday, take a look at how these guys look physically as they are some of the leanest and meanest looking linemen you'll ever see in the NAIA. The linebacker core is led by Dominic Studzinski who is a fantastic run stopper and a group of others that always swarm to the ball.

As scary as the USF defense is, the offense might be equally frightening. Lorenzo Brown has turned into the NAIA's most efficient quarterback. Brown has 40 touchdown passes this year and just four interceptions. Additionally Brown has made it to the end zone 16 times on the ground while rushing for 807 yards this season.

Simply put, Brown is the most explosive player in the NAI A since Patrick Crayton. The scariest thing is Brown is a natural quarterback so passing is second nature to him.

Ryan Lowmiller is a bruising back who can run over anyone in his path. This season it appears as though Lowmiller has added another facet to his game: breakaway speed. I do not ever remember Lowmiller as a sophomore or junior running away from defensive backs but he has done it a few times this season.

Jon Ryan and Alex Anderson are the two main targets of Brown. Both have the ability to stretch the field and make big plays. Ryan has proven to be a little surer handed and have the ability to find the end zone more often. This season Ryan has scored 16 times while averaging 17.4 yards per catch. The most forgotten receiver position for the Cougars is their tight ends. Watch for Brad Thielan or Scott LeBrun to get into the scoring column this week in Rome.

Who will win it all?

Why should I change my prediction now? I thought last year that Sioux Falls would repeat as national champions. I looked at all the teams last summer and predicted that Sioux Falls was still the best team in the NAIA. I picked them to beat North Dakota because I thought they were the better team and I am picking them to win the national title this weekend because I believe they are the best team in the NAIA, hands down.

However, do not take my words to say that I think it will be a cakewalk. It won't. Lindenwood is the most talented team that USF has faced this season and they will need to play their best game of the season in order to get the win. I just feel like on their best day the Cougars are just a better overall squad.

Have a great trip to Rome everyone. I am looking forward to meeting all of the fans walking the streets of Rome, hanging out at Barron Stadium and in the hotels. Please come up and say hello and we will talk a little NAIA football, it's what I love to do!

Final Score: Sioux Falls 42 Lindenwood 30.

Random Thoughts and Other Things Heading Into Championship Week

jasondannelly@yahoo.com — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 14:30:33 GMT

One of the most therapeutic things I used to do was sit down and write the Ramblings of Dannelly. It was how I got the word out about the NAIA and what the latest happens of the affiliation. But today I’m just sitting here with 10 inches of snow in my driveway trying to figure out if I want to be “that guy” in the neighborhood that doesn’t shovel or if I want to die of an exertion heart attack before I hit 30.

Needless to say there isn’t much therapeutic about that, unless I actually knock a little plaque off the artery walls.

News flash: Trevor Holleman hits really hard. Mental note to Phil Stackback of Lindenwood in the National Championship game, don’t leave your wide receivers out to dry with any passes. One shot from Holleman and you will be promptly removed from their Christmas list.
News flash: Denodous O’Bryant is really good. There have not been many backs in the NAIA make as much noise as he in their freshman year as he has. I’ll be interested to see what he does against the best defense he has seen in his short career.
Click your heels together USF and Lindenwood, because there is no place like Rome.
The NAIA will announce their player of the year award during the banquet next Friday night. Can we all just save ourselves a little time and give Lorenzo Brown of USF the award when he gets there on Wednesday?
Grand Valley State takes on NW Missouri State this weekend in the NCAA DII Football National Championship game. I’m picking NW to win this year. Come on Bearcats – break the streak!
I DVR “The Office” every week. They need to do something different or else it will be time to lead them out to the pasture. The show is still funny but there is no direction right now. Pam and Jim are married and pregnant. They’ll have the kid and the show will become full of “newborn” humor. Dwight, while awesome, will still just be Dwight. Where is the rest of the show going? Is the hot secretary going to hook up with someone? Will they bring in a new character? I dunno, I’m starting to lose interest.
Robot Chicken Season 4 out on DVD next week. Give the show a try. It took me a long time to get into it but now I never miss an episode. It’s quirky but hilarious.
Ndamukong Suh will not win the Heisman. He’s a great player . . . but get serious. Plus I don’t know if I’d want to win it and be a bust in the NFL.
Speaking of Nebraska Football, how is Eric Crouch, the biggest Heisman flop of all-time, doing? But I digress
Rome, Georgia’s 10 day forecast involves rain. However this year I am willing to bet that we will have a dry championship this year.

That’s it for this week. Come back next week for the NAIA Championship Preview!