Football Press Conference

Welcome to the first of our weekly interactive chats with the Conference's nine head football coaches. The coaches will take questions from the moderator and, if time remains, will also take questions from the viewers. Our schedule for the day (times approximate): Dickinson (10:00), Franklin & Marshall (10:07), Gettysburg (10:14), Johns Hopkins (10:21), Juniata (10:28), McDaniel (10:35), Moravian (10:42), Muhlenberg (10:49) and Ursinus (10;56).

Feel free to log in and ask your question about preseason camp, who will start at QB, or about this week's opponent.

Football Preview

The Sunday before the start of the season means newspapers can sell their football tabloid previews. Here are some Centennial highlights.

Chuck Curley of the Hanover Evening Sun writes that Gettysburg does not look like a team picked to finish fifth in the preseason coaches/SID poll.

Curley also notes that McDaniel coach Tim Keating hopes his veterans can turn the Terror's fortunes around.

Tom Hinkel of the Easton Express-Times says that the four-game end-of-season win streak by Moravian will be a springboard for 2009.

Hinkel also writes that defense will play a major role in Muhlenberg's quest for a third straight outright Conference crown.

Dave Byrne of the Lancaster Sunday News talks about the potential for offensive fireworks at Franklin & Marshall this fall with its "East Coast Offense."

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review says to keep an eye on Johns Hopkins and sophomore QB Hewitt Tomlin.

Football Insider 8/28

McDaniel's Butler is the Big Man on Campus
by Josh Land, Carroll County Times

"Woody Butler’s McDaniel College teammates and coaches call him a freak. On the playground, that’s a put-down. On the football field, it’s a compliment. Butler is a 6-foot-8 sophomore, has the potential to be a premier tight end and could impact the Green Terror’s tormented offense more than any other player."

Other News
Franklin & Marshall graduate Mickey Rehring '08 joins the staff at Bowdoin. He will be coaching the defensive line.

Centennial Football Insider 8/21

Today's Insider takes a look at Gettysburg College's football program and its prospects for 2009.

Flynn, Bullets still chasing CC title
By Adrian Martin
Gettysburg Times Sports Writer

"As the Gettysburg College football players gathered on Shirk Field for team photos during Tuesday’s Media Day, the overcast sky separated to reveal the bright sun, as if shining down good fortune for the upcoming season. But the Bullets know better than to chalk up any of their recent successes or setbacks to luck. Though their record over the past few years may not reflect it, the Bullets have steadily improved, and they feel their best it yet to come."

Flynn ready for final season with Bullets
By Chuck Curley
Hanover Evening Sun Sports Editor

"Not everything in Matt Flynn's life is certain. It just seems that way because so much has gone so well on the football field. Beyond football, though, is another matter entirely. "I guess I'll have to figure that out this year," the Gettysburg College senior quarterback and management major said about plans after graduation. Life won't seem the same around the Orange and Blue's campus without the presence of the Northfield, N.J., resident, who may set records this fall that will be tough to match."

Financial Solutions for College Athletic Budgets

Michael Cross, Executive Associate Director of Athletics at Princeton University, writes a blog entitled "Ultimate Sports Insider," which is dedicated to news, observations and commentary about college athletics with a focus on the relationship of athletics to higher education as a business and educational enterprise. The goal of UltimateSportsInsider.com is to be the most thoughtful, content driven and thought provoking forum available for discussing the real issues in college sports and the NCAA.

Back in January, Cross wrote a two-part feature on Financial Solutions for College Athletic Budgets. Part One dealt with institutional ideas, while Part Two dealt with conference and national ideas.

Some of these suggestions were on the table during the Annual Meeting of the Centennial Conference at McDaniel College in May. You can see that escalating athletic budgets are being questioned not only in Division III, but Divisions I and II as well.

2009 Football Media Day

Welcome to the 2009 Centennial Conference Football Media Day. Today's format is a unique one as the nine head coaches will participate in an interactive chat, taking questions from the moderator and the audience. You can send in your question once the chat begins via the software or a tweeting us at @centennialconf (use #centennialfb as the hash tag). If you want to send in your question in advance, send it in via the comment box below. We will attempt to get in as many questions as possible.

Please be advised that all questions will be screened by the moderator and we do ask that you submit your name and location (example: Steve Ulrich, Lancaster PA). Media members, if you could please add your affiliation rather than location (example: Steve Ulrich, Lancaster Newspapers).

The schedule for the day (Wednesday, August 5):

11:30-11:55 - Moravian, Muhlenberg, Ursinus
11:55-12:20 - Johns Hopkins, Juniata, McDaniel
12:20-12:45 - Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg

We hope you enjoy the chat.