Albion's scheduling pays off
| Chris Greenwood might not be
seeing as many balls thrown his way this season, but he still has
five passes broken up in 2011. Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com |
It was a familiar question that Craig Rundle fielded in the offseason.
“Who in the world does your schedule?” Rundle chuckles, “It's me. I'm the idiot.”
When the schedule was unveiled, the Britons faced the prospects of playing one NCAA Division I FCS non-scholarship team and five more Division III nationally recognized opponents.
Some laughed as the absurdity of a schedule that includes Butler, Wheaton, DePauw, UW-Stevens Point and then Adrian and Trine in conference.
There is a lesson to the seeming lunacy. A method to the madness. The veteran coach explains there is no growth in security. There is nothing to learn from padding your schedule
“It's not about your record, it’s about who you played. We've never looked at the overall season record and compete for the conferrence championship and playoffs.”
The plan has paid off; early-season trials have honed a conference championship and a playoff berth.
Albion, now 5-3, has won five straight conference games, including a 28-14 win over Adrian on Saturday. The victory clinched an automatic qualifier for the postseason and at least a share of the Britons' 34th Michigan Intecollegiate Athletic Association title.
It's the first title since 2005. Albion lost to Wabash 38-20 in the first-round playoffs that season.
“Those games were importgant for us to complete against good teams. Anytime you are competing against teams in divisions above you or are perennial playoff teams you have to step up and play harder. It's good to change yourself early.”
Some teams will hide their weaknesses and then they become magnifed and exposed in the postseason. Rundle says tackling those weeknesses early on give you a chance to build on them and improve.
The Britons were solid in their skilled positions, but the offensive and defensive lines needed special attention. They filled three spots on the defensive line and returned just one starter.
Things weren't easy as Albion opened 0-3 losing 31-17 Butler, 54-34 to then eighth-ranked Wheaton and 14-3 to UW-Stevens Point.
'We weren't getting blown out, we just weren't winning,”...
