NCR's D1 has been pretty consistent since its first final in 2021: four finals, with Brown, Queens, and St. Bonaventure all appearing twice.
In fact, of the 16 semifinal spots, those three teams have 10 of those spots.
This year we are guaranteed at least one of those three makes the semis (and maybe as many as two), but we also could have a completely new pair of finalists.
Here's what we see:
St. Bonaventure vs Brown University
2PM at Siena College
Bonnies has shown vulnerability what with their conference final loss to Queens, and a game against Wheeling in which they fell behind 25-14 before scoring 36 unanswered points. Which Bonnies team will show up?
When they are playing with confidence and don't force passes in traffic they are good to excellent.
For Brown, winning the Liberty and earning a bye was a big deal, although Head Coach David LaFlamme confessed he wasn't sure if two rest weeks were good for his team or undercut their momentum.
"It was certainly nice to have two weekends off in a row and allow some of the sore bodies to recover," LaFlamme told GRR. "Was it too much time off? Should we have scheduled a game in there to keep the boys focused? All certainly possible. Hopefully the rest will be more beneficial than playing a game. I suspect if we had played a game, I would have rested some guys anyway. St. Bonaventure is (as always) going to be a challenge. They have some incredibly skilled and physical players. If we try to challenge them physically every time we get the ball, it will be a long day in the office."
So LaFlamme wants his team to stay consistent and not try to foce things. Hmm ... Bonnies too for that matter.
"We may only have a few opportunities in this game so we need to make sure we take advantage of them when we can."
In three playoff meetings between the two, Brown won by five points in 2022. Brown won on the final play in 2023 (taking the game by two points)., and last year it was a one-point game, won on the final play.
"I hope that the result this weekend will be equally thrilling," said LaFlamme.
Walsh vs Marian
4PM at Fortess Obetz (Sunday)
Walsh has got to a point where they have found their identity under Head Coach Cornell Britz. They have also found a hard-running, skilled front row that will hurt you.
The Cavaliers can play simple, hard-running attack, or they can open it up. For Marian, their ability to get points on offer will be crucial.
The winner of this game plays the winner of Bonnies vs Brown.
