Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

[djp73]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

exciting matchup, looking forward to seeing this play out!

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

RHINOS SURVIVE A SLOPPY GAME AT PITT
ESCAPE WITH A 37-27 VICTORY

The much anticipated matchup between teacher and his former pupil was definitely memorable, if perhaps not for the reasons that most expected. Both offenses looked uncomfortable, with a staggering eight turnovers between the two teams. When the final horn sounded, Niagara made slightly less mistakes and managed to squeak out with a 37-27 victory.

"Porn stars with Parkinson's don't show ball handling this shaky", said Niagaa Head Coach Rusty Nonek, "We caught a little bit of a break when their halfback came up lame, they seemed to abandon the ground game after that... but I'm just happy to get the hell out of town with a win. If this thing had gone to overtime, both teams would still be out there throwing interceptions". Indeed one of the turning points in the game appeared to be the early injury to Pitt halfback Sean Jenkins. He came up lame with a quad injury in the 1st quarter, after ripping off 58 yards in only four carries. After he left, Pitt leaned heavily on the passing and QB option game. Early reports are stating that Jenkins will likely miss at least one more game.

Neither QB looked very good. Niagara's Monte Hall performed slightly better, breaking even with three touchdowns against his three interceptions. However, his final interception almost turned the tide back towards Pitt. Senior Panthers CB Brett Brown jumped an out route and rumbled 52 yards for a pick six that brought Pitt to within seven points early in the fourth quarter.

Not to be outdone, Pitt's sophomore slumping QB Jesse Ramsey promptly returned the favor after his defense gave him the ball again with a chance to tie the game. This time it was Niagara's cornerback named Brett, with Brett Kirby gladly intercepting a pass that was ostensibly intended for Corey Moses. There was no chance for Moses on the play, as Ramsey threw it directly to the defender for his fourth and final interception. On the day, Ramsey had five total turnovers as he had also lost a strip sack earlier in the game.

After finishing last season ranked 3rd in the country in the final Top 25 poll, Pitt has opened at 0-2 and most certainly will fall off the polls heading into next week. For the Rhinos, they haven't look terribly prolific on offense under new QB Monte Hall, but the defense has been stout and they've done just enough to win their first two games. Next week, Pitt will look to salvage their season as they remain at home to host the Arizona State Sun Devils. Niagara returns home to host the University of Central Florida.

NUNYER'S NOTES

Results of the "human controlled" parts of the game:

(Started controlling Niagara, won toss, elected to kick)
Pitt drove pretty confidently, two big runs by Jenkins and one from Ramsey got the Panthers into the red zone within 5 plays or so. Then... Ramsey throws a red zone interception to CPU controlled Gwilym Iorg. Taking over on offense, long and grinding drive eventually ended with a 15 yard TD pass to Papadatos. Niagara 7, Pitt 0

(switched control to Pitt)
Decent kickoff, followed by Jenkins 2nd 20+ yard run in his first four attempts... but he's hurt! That sucks. Drive stalls in the redzone after the RT doesn't even attempt to block Titan Starks, who gets an easy sack on 3rd down. Settle for a Chavez FG. After kicking off to Niagara, it's my turn on defense for Pitt. I pulled off a decent LB lurk interception with Will Harrington, giving the ball back to Pitt at around midfield. Niagara 7, Pitt 3

From here on out, it was 100% sim -> watch play. Pitt would score a FG on the drive after my user lurk interception, but that would be as close as they would come with the score 7-6 after the 1st quarter. They looked just awful in the 2nd quarter, committing three more turnovers (two INTs, one lost fumble) but their defense at least did more bending then breaking, forcing two Niagara FGs.

The 2nd half was Niagara's turn to play sloppy, with Pitt pulling back to within a touchdown early in the 4th quarter... but the final Pitt turnover resulting in a Niagara FG finally put the game out of reach at the end.

Overall it was a fun game to watch... I was close to intervening on Pitt's behalf a few times... but they were keeping it close and the Rhinos weren't exactly sharp either... so I just let it roll. In the grand scheme of things, it probably would have been a much better game if Jenkins hadn't gotten hurt. The right side of that Pitt o-line are hardcore run blocking motherscratchers... and Jenkins had three big runs to the right side... but after he went down, the CPU playcalling just seemed to intentionally avoid giving the ball to the backups. Reserve HBs only got six carries the entire game, with one of those happening before the Jenkins injury and two other were ones I called when I was controlling them. The CPU was 100% QB focused, either passing or option runs, and Ramsey didn't quite answer the bell.

[djp73]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

sounds like an entertaining game, glad to see the Rhinos come out on top!

[Deuce2223]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

Tough day for the Panthers on Offense. It's tough to decide what do do when it comes to having your 2 teams play each other. I went through that with BSU and Oregon and then BSU and Auburn. Then decided to just retire both coaches and go back to 1 school.

I miss the days of online dynasties though. I use to run one with my friend and we had some pretty epic battles over the years with our 2 teams meeting typically in Week 1 or 2 and then again sometimes for the National Title when it worked out.. Even before Online dynasties back in the day we had a memory card where I would play my games then give him the card, and he would play his and we would trade it back and forth throughout the week until the end of our season, then get together and do off-season recruiting and stuff and play our game against each other. Lot's of good memories with NCAA Football.

In fact back in 2000, we drove from Idaho to Mexico for a Mission trip and took the Play Station and a 13 inch TV and played games on the drive down and also utilized the time to personally name every team with real names and equipment updates

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

THE POLLSTERS ARE KIND TO THE PANTHERS
Somehow Pitt remains in the Top 25 despite dropping their first two games. I suppose the pollsters took mercy and considered a 10 point loss to the #1 team and defending national champions as a moral victory. The Panthers only dropped three spots to #23 heading into their matchup against the Arizona State Sun Devils.


JENKINS UPGRADED, EXPECTED TO START AGAINST ARIZONA STATE
Despite initial reports stating that he had a quad injury that would keep him out this week, it looks like Sean Jenkins will be starting against Arizona State. According to head coach Stevie Browning, Jenkins has recovered quickly and wants to be on the field to help reverse the 0-2 start for the Panthers.


ARIZONA STATE BREAKDOWN
The Sun Devils have also had a tough start, opening the season at 0-2. They were upset at home against perennial also-ran Rice by a score of 24-21. Then followed that up by losing 31-28 on the road at #14 Texas A&M. Just like Pitt, they will be desperately trying to salvage their season and it's only week three.

Overall Rating: B / Offense: B- / Defense: B+

On paper, the Sun Devils are built around the ground game but have had more success this season in the air. Junior QB Ryan Peterson has five TD passes in the first two games, the rest of the team has only two rushing touchdowns. We'll see if the Panthers can hold them in check after two games of looking weak against the pass.

On defense, ASU is a little soft in the secondary but has a number of playmakers, particularly in the front seven. Their 0-2 start can be much more easily pinned on the lack of offense, as this defense can get after most plays.

This is definitely a game that Pitt can win at home, but it's hardly a given. Jenkins will have to run hard and stay healthy. QB Jesse Ramsey will have to avoid turnovers. If they can manage that, then they'll have a solid shot at ending this two game losing streak.

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

back in 2000, we drove from Idaho to Mexico for a Mission trip and took the Play Station and a 13 inch TV and played games on the drive down and also utilized the time to personally name every team with real names and equipment updates

via GIPHY

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

#23 PITT JUST OUTLASTS ARIZONA STATE AT HOME, 36-35
Panthers take first step to salvaging 2022 seasn after disastrous 0-2 start


Things were not looking after the first two games for the Panthers, turnovers, injuries and a lackluster defense that looked lost against the forward pass led to a disappointing 0-2 start. Heading into this matchup against the Sun Devils, this team needed to pull something near a complete 180 to salvage any hopes for their season.

QB Jesse Ramsey was held in check on the ground game, only attempting three rushes against an ASU front seven that seemed dedicated to shutting down the Pitt option. Despite coming into the game looking soft against the pass, Arizona State managed two interceptions and six defended passes. Ramsey was still marginally productive through the air. He was bailed out a few times by his receivers, including on a TD pass thrown into double coverage and still doesn't look to have completely shaken off the sophomore slump.

Despite the continued mediocre play of Ramsey, the Pitt ground game remained effective. Despite being banged up and leaving last week's game against Niagara, halfback Sean Jenkins looked to have no long term ill effects from his quad injury. He rushed with authority all game, finishing with 151 yards on only 22 carries. This is an offense that needs to maintain balance to be effective, and it looks like Jenkins is the only guy on the roster who can provide that balance on the ground. Despite his solid performance, the Panthers offense managed only 20 points on the day, so this unit still has obvious problems to address.

If the offense only managed 20 points, where did the other 16 points come from? Well, cornerback-turned-strong safety Aaron Johnson had a career day, pulling down a critical pick six on the opening drive of the 2nd half. Two possessions later, after a false start penalty and a sack pinned ASU inside their own 5-yard line, Johnson came free on a safety blitz and Pitt recorded their first safety of the season. Within six minutes of game clock, Johnson was singlehandedly responsible for nine points. Not to be completely forgotten, senior defensive end Shaun Grigsby set the Panthers team record with four sacks on the afternoon, including the big sack that set up Johnson's safety one play later.

Wanting to do their part as well, the Pitt special teams came through in the clutch as well. Sophomore Amir Miller broke a tackle, made two other defenders miss and then rumbled for a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown in the 4th quarter. This was the final points Pitt put on the board, still with six minutes on the clock. The rest of the way, the defense would only surrender an additional field goal, holding down the fort for a one-point victory.

While Panthers fans will gladly take the victory at home, all is not well. Expecting the special teams and defense to score almost half your points is simply not sustainable. Next week either they'll have an easy game to get into synch or it will be a classic trap game. They remain at home, hosting the mid-major Bowling Green Falcons.

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1) QB Jesse Ramsey had to fit the ball into small windows all afternoon, as ASU played strong in the secondary. Here he just manages to avoid the defender, connecting with TE Nap Tyler.

2) QB Jesse Ramsey had to fit the ball into small windows all afternoon, as ASU played strong in the secondary. Here he chucks up one of his two interceptions on the day.

3) WR David Pollard isn't known as a burner, but he had size and hops. He climbs the ladder here against double coverage to pull down a big touchdown catch.

4) SS Aaron Johnson makes the TE miss on the tackle attempt, taking his interception to the house for his 2nd career pick six.

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NUNYER'S NOTES

After the CPU seemed determined to commit 51 turnovers with Ramsey this season, I decided to manually play some drives here and there on offense, while maintaining the sim -> watch play approach on defense. I'm guessing I controlled maybe 30-40% of the offensive snaps. I had been away from the PS3 for about a week, so maybe there was some rust... I was responsible for one of Ramsey's two interceptions, along with getting lucky on that TD pass into double coverage. Generally speaking, I wasn't setting the world on fire, but did alright.

The CPU didn't do too bad when controlling the Pitt offense, solid with Jenkins in the rushing game and the CPU scored two of the three offensive TDs. The CPU looked surprisingly decent controlling the defense, giving up yards but bringing consistent pass rush pressure and forcing two key punts late in the 1st half and holding ASU to a 4th quarter FG when they were trailing by four points. The 100 yard kickoff return was CPU controlled as well.

The Panthers have enough talent to be successful on offense, with solid starters at all the skill positions... but the sim -> watch offense has been turnover heavy... so it will probably be a hybrid approach the rest of the way.

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

[djp73]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

I'm predicting a three score win.

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

From: Lerma, Tanner ([email protected])
To: Nonek, Reinhold ([email protected])

Subject: 2022 Recruiting Update #1: It's a Family Affair

I've done my best to make the Niagara program a family. I relentlessly recruit the younger siblings and cousins of former Rhinos. We currently have three relatives of former Niagara players: Linebackers Gwilym Iorg and Troy Rowsdower and halfback Mark Nunnelly. Why not add some more? The following three prospects are basically locked in for Niagara next season.

Speaking of Clan Iorg, it's been a few years since I've uncovered one of them... Third cousin of former Rhino WR Bart Iorg, nephew-twice-removed of former Rhino TE Latimer Iorg and step-uncle of current Rhino LB Gwilym Iorg.. the next member of the clan to likely join the Rhinos will be...

ATH | Arwyn Iorg
6'5 | 200 lbs | 5-Star

Perhaps the most gifted Iorg yet uncovered... he's been off the radar for most scouting departments as he plays 7-on-7 football in a tiny town in Michigan's upper peninsula. While his lack of competition is a concern, he has all the tools you could ask for... size, speed and arm strength. He also played his first few years at wideout, so he can definitely play there if he doesn't work out at QB... as he'll likely have to wait his turn behind heir-apparent Hayden Fynbo.


CB | Zebulon Gibbs
5'11 | 187 lbs | 5-Star

Half-brother of Lavette 'The Jet' Gibbs... Zebulon probably won't have as catchy of a nickname... but he's considered one of the top defensive backs in the country. With three defensive backs entering their senior seasons next year, Gibbs should be starting in Niagara fairly quickly. He's the total package, with solid footwork and coverage technique as well as above average tackling.


SS / LB | Stanislaw Wojtowicz
6'0 | 203 lbs | 3-Star

Brother of former linebacker Krzysztof Wojtowicz, Stanislaw is following his brothers footsteps of exchange student turned athlete. He's a bit of a tweener, likely not quick enough to survive at defensive back but perhaps not big enough to survive at linebacker... But Stanislaw loves to hit and we should be able to find a role for him somewhere on the team... if I had to guess, he'll eventually develop into a speedy coverage linebacker.

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

#1 RHINOS DEFEAT UCF 49-31 IN FINAL TUNE-UP GAME
Next week Niagara goes on the road for a big game against #6 LSU


The UCF Knights came out swinging this afternoon, connecting on a 71-yard touchdown catch and run on their second snap of the game. They continued to play tough throughout the early part of the game, intercepting Monte Hall twice and heading into halftime trailing by only four points. However, that momentum could not be maintained and a strong 3rd quarter from Niagara eventually put the outcome of the game out of reach.

Speaking of Monte Hall, while he was intercepted twice in the first half, he continued to get the ball to his favorite target. Tight end Nicos Papadatos has been a very solid player over his career, starting since his true freshman season. However he's never exactly been the primary target of the passing game. Over his first three seasons, his career high numbers have been 37 catches in 2021 and four touchdowns in 2020. So far in three games of the 2022 season, he already has 17 catches and has tied his career high with four scores.

The ground game for Niagara was less effective, with halfback LaQuincy Kemp held to only 75 yards rushing with no Rhinos scoring a rushing touchdown. Niagara's 3rd quarter performance was largely driven by special teams and the defense, with each unit adding a touchdown. Following in the tradition of insanely tall Niagara cornerbacks such as Runako Gaddis, the 6'4 tall Brett Hall is coming into his own in his first season as an every down defensive back. After pulling in three career interceptions in his first two years, Kirby already has two this season including a pick six.

Next week Niagara will face their next big test, traveling to that weird place down south where people add the suffix "eaux" to every other word. The LSU Tigers are looking hot after a disappointing 8-5 finish last season. They've opened up 2022 with two wins against Top 10 opponents. In their season opener, they crushed then #8 ranked Georgia at home by a score of 31-9. Not to rest on that accomplishment, they then travelled to Knoxville and beat then ranked #5 Tennessee Volunteers by a score of 38-22.

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NUNYER'S NOTES

I managed to rip off a handful of 10+ yard runs, but generally UCF played tough against the run for the entire game... and I still haven't found a reliable deep threat, most big passing plays have been catch-and-run types. Part of that is probably Monte Hall and his lower arm strength.

The higher turnovers, both for HUM and CPU have been a fun change of pace from last season. While I think the sim-controlled Pitt squad has been a bit turnover crazy... it's been enjoyable overall... if nothing else, makes things a little less predictable. UCF had three 2nd half turnovers that sunk them... but Monte Hall is never too far away from a turnover himself... with an TD-INT ratio of 11-8 thru the first three games.

[Careless Whisper]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

Next week should definitely be a challenge for the Rhinos. Feel like both sides of the ball are merely good at the moment, though they'll likely need to reach a second level against LSU. Monte in particular has been solid replacing Tiki, though he's been a bit too turnover happy in the early going and will have to avoid that if Niagara wants to three-peat.

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

[djp73]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

[Nunyerbiz]

Re: Niagara Rhinos: An Alternate Universe NCAA 14 Dynasty

RHINOS EDGE TIGERS 20-17 WITH FIELD GOAL AS TIME EXPIRES!
A classic, throwback, hard-hitting, old-school, no-nonsense defensive struggle goes down to the wire in Baton Rouge


The weather was dreadful this Saturday afternoon, with almost 24 hours of non-stop rainfall turning Tiger Stadium into a muddy quagmire (giggity!). Traditional football wisdom would dictate that such conditions would favor the rushing attacks, but that wasn't the case for either team today. Both squads combined to barely average three yards per carry and it would be the passing offenses that would score all four touchdowns.

LSU drew first blood, with QB Adam Williams finding halfback Ray Watkins on a 19 yard score on their opening drive. Unfortunately for the #7 Tigers, that would be their only score of the first half. Not that the Rhinos were much more prolific. QB Monte Hall was forced to check down for most of the game, with LSU playing tight coverage. With both offenses struggling, Niagara did manage to take a modest lead heading into halftime. A 4-yard pass to former JUCO transfer Matt Leach and a 29 yard field goal from Akindi Badu gave the Rhinos a 10-7 lead at the break.

Opening the 2nd half, the LSU defense forced a punt, stopped Niagara on a short 4th down conversion and pulled down an interception. But after the low scoring of the first half, the second half LSU Tigers didn't exactly remind anybody of the 1999 Rams. Despite multiple opportunities for LSU to pull away, the Rhinos defense also held strong. They allowed only 10 unanswered points, thanks partially to a pair of missed field goal attempts from LSU.

Trailing by a touchdown with five minutes remaining, it was time for the Rhinos to put up or shut up. After looking lost for most of the game, LaQuincy Kemp came alive. He managed to fall forward and drag tackles for two critical 3rd down conversions, neither gained many yards but moved the chains. Monte Hall then found 4th wide receiver Marquelle Reese for a 34 yard gain, the longest play from scrimmage on the day for the Rhinos, to set up a 1st and goal from the five yard line. On the very next play, Hall would lead Tre Tribble into a devastating hit, but Tribble would somehow manage to hold on for the touchdown.

Now it was on the defense to do their part. All-American linebacker J.R. Dequindre broke into the backfield for back-to-back tackles for loss, forcing the Tigers to throw on 3rd down when they had apparently been playing for overtime. As LSU's Williams dropped back to pass, middle linebacker Gwilym Iorg came free through the middle delivering a huge sack. LSU was forced to punt, giving the Rhinos excellent field position. Long story short, Monte Hall delivered. He didn't deliver any huge throws, but dinked and dunked just effectively enough. Clock was killed, yardage was gained, Akindi Badu nails the 37 yard game winner as time expires.

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NUNYER'S NOTES

This is definitely not a big play offense... especially not against solid competition. Out of the regular contributors, I only have one player with a yards per catch in double digits (Sanders at 16.4 ypc). Kemp is averaging under five yards per carry. Hall is only averaging 11 yards per completion. All that said, I'm having a blast. The defense is very stout, so that helps.

I did call a rather conservative gameplan, but LSU was giving me nothing over the top regardless. They rarely showed press coverage and my only few successful 10+ yard completions were finding the hole on a cover 2 look and one lucky cheese via 4 Verts. Early in the 4th quarter I was pretty confident that I was going to lose the game, as they were really tough on defense, but a few lucky plays here and there... and I'll take the 3-point win.