Saturday came and went, and so did another loss.

We flew down to New Orleans and drove to Jackson, Mississippi to play Millsaps, the number four team in the country. We lost 50-6. The loss is especially hard to swallow since they really were not that much better than us. I have now come to believe that there is little difference between an undefeated team and a winless team in Division III, I’m just not sure what that difference is.

It certainly isn’t physical ability, as we were able to move the ball on offense and make stops on defense. Our special teams were not at our usual level, as we had two punts blocked (one for a safety, one for a Millsaps touchdown). For the life of me, I can’t figure out why we haven’t won a game yet. I suppose it is our inability to execute our fundamentals on a consistent basis. Too many times this season, we have defeated ourselves.

We’re 0-8 now, and just saying that feels strange. It’s hard to believe that with all of the talent and confidence we entered the season with, we’ve been unable to win a single game. I feel especially bad for our seniors, who have busted their tails for four years and deserve better. Regardless, going into our last game, the team camaraderie is stronger than ever. If there has ever been a more confident 0-8 team, I certainly haven’t heard of them. We go into every week with confidence and swagger, and we know that one of these Saturdays, it’s all going to come together for us. Time is not on our side, though. We have just one more game this season against Centre, a good team that beat Trinity last week. We’re as confident as ever that we can get that win, and we need it. Our seniors need it. I plan on doing everything in my power to help my teammates this win, in return for all the help they’ve given me. It’s our last chance, and we know we can do it.

Questions? Comments? E-mail me at chris@thed3experience.com All original material copyright © 2008 Chris Jarmon

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Saturday was the most disappointing loss I’ve had in quite a while. We flew up to Indiana to play DePauw, a team that has only lost to Millsaps and Trinity. Our confidence level was extremely high though, because we had just completed a great week of practice and our offense was finally starting to get some swagger.

The game setting was a typical fall Midwestern day: overcast, wet and muddy. We were put in a visitor’s locker room that seemed to have been untouched by the hands of renovation for at least 50 years and largely resembled a dungeon. It didn’t faze us, and neither did DePauw when they scored early in the game. Our offense drove right back and answered with a touchdown. They continued to score, but so did we. Throughout the second half, our defense made some key stops and the offense scored some key touchdowns, but DePauw tied up the game on a fourth down play right at the end to send us to overtime. The defense held DePauw to a field goal, and the offense missed a field goal. The final score was 37-34.

I didn’t play the game that I would have liked to play, mainly because my fundamentals weren’t all there. This week was more difficult to prepare for because I got switched from tackle to guard. Our right guard got hurt, and I had a week to learn the position. Hopefully I can prepare enough mentally this week to be successful, although I’m still not even sure what position I’ll be playing on Saturday.

It’s hard to write about losses like this when you know how many things we could have done differently to win. It’s harder when you know how much that first win means to this team, and the fact that we were so close to achieving it only makes it hurt more. I still feel like this team is confident. In fact, seeing the way that we played against DePauw only makes us more confident that we can come out and beat Birmingham Southern at home this week. We need to have the same level of practices as last week, and if we can do that we’ll be ready to compete for a win on Saturday.

Questions? Comments? E-mail me at chris@thed3experience.com All original material copyright © 2008 Chris Jarmon

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Posting on the site has been practically impossible for the last week, since things were wrapping up with my second block class. I’ve also been sick since last weekend, and trying to balance school, football and being sick leaves little time for blogging.

Last week’s game was without a doubt disappointing. We came out with repeated chances to score, but managed to do so only once, on a fumble return. It’s extremely disappointing as an offensive player to see the other team practically hold the game out in front of you, only to be unable to take it from them. I played a pretty bad game, and my footwork was often wrong, so I have to work extra hard this week to show my coaches that I can continue to shoulder the load of starting.

The week so far has been pretty tough for me, as I’ve still been pretty sick. I went into the campus health center on Tuesday and was told that I am no longer contagious, but that I have bronchitis, an ear infection and a slight case of pink eye (which is in remission). I was unable to get too many reps yesterday during practice, and considering that we’re playing at DePauw this Saturday, I need to get better soon. Luckily the second block finished today, so between practices and meetings I’ll have to focus on getting well.

Questions? Comments? E-mail me at chris@thed3experience.com All original material copyright © 2008 Chris Jarmon

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Saturday was probably one of our most disappointing losses yet. We ran out on the field with the most confidence I’ve seen yet, scoring a touchdown on our first drive. Taking a 10-7 halftime lead into the locker room, we felt like the game was ours for the taking. Well into the fourth quarter, the game remained close as the lead changed hands multiple times. Unfortunately we let the game take a turn for the worse when the referee incorrectly flagged one of our defensive backs. The penalty is detailed on Colorado College’s football website:

“The key play of the drive was made by reserve tight end Zach Koerner, who broke up what should have been an interception by CC cornerback Mike Wendorf. Not only did Koerner commit the infraction, he made it appear as if Wendorf interfered with him despite the CC defender having inside position on the underthrown ball from backup quarterback Travis Zambiasi. Instead of facing a 2nd-and 24 at its own 30, Austin was given a first down at the Colorado College 31.”

A picture of the “infraction” is below, as it appears on the CC Football site:

I hate to blame losses on referees, but this one truly did shift the momentum. We were unable to maintain our attack, as the first play of the next drive Austin returned our fumble for a touchdown. Subsequent attempts by our offense to even the score were fruitless.

One of the things our coaches preach is the ability to overcome adversity. We are told that something will go wrong every game, and that the way we react to it defines our success. I believe that, as difficult as it may be, if we can develop the ability to respond to that kind of devastation, we will be more successful both on and off the field.

On that note, we continue to work on creating a successful season. This week is a bye week, so we have the ability to address problems in technique and assignments that much more. Yesterday we spent extra time on film, and today we came in to get a good lift in so that we’ll be more physically ready to take the field against Rhodes in two weeks. We have improved every week, and we’ll have quite a bit of motivation to beat Rhodes, the closest thing we have to a rival in our second year as a member of the SCAC.

Questions? Comments? E-mail me at chris@thed3experience.com All original material copyright © 2008 Chris Jarmon

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With the advent of a new block, posting this week has been difficult until now. I started the second part of my sociology class, so there was a large amount of reading and homework to do this week. Hopefully things will tone down a little bit as we move into the middle part of the season.

Last week we played Trinity in our second conference game, and the Tigers (the third week in a row we played a team of the same name as us) came into Colorado Springs ranked number 16 in the nation. We showed them early on that the ranking didn’t faze us, getting on the scoreboard early with a field goal. Although we established the tempo, we weren’t able to turn sustained drives into points on offense. Our defense did a good job for the most part, although our offense and special teams were not able to effectively establish a field position game. Trinity’s offense had great field position to work with, as their average starting point for drives was their 47 yard line. We ended the game with a touchdown in the last minute, making the score 35-10 at the final gun.

The most disappointing part about the Trinity game is that we all still honestly believe we could have won. Our ability to drive the ball on offense and hold our own on defense could have carried us to victory without a couple mistakes in crucial moments. If we can play smart each down, we have the talent and work ethic to beat anyone.

Thus, we took our confidence into a tough week of work getting ready for another home game at Austin, which will take place tomorrow at noon. We’ve been able to fine tune enough things and cut down on mistakes; if we can take that input and come out with even more confidence against the ‘Roos, we’ll be happy with what we see on the scoreboard.

Questions? Comments? E-mail me at chris@thed3experience.com All original material copyright © 2008 Chris Jarmon

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