McCaffrey's Musings - December 20
By Tim McCaffrey
This is the last Musings of 2021. Before we get to some movie talk, the weekly rankings….
Women’s Rankings
1) Pace 9-1 ▲ 1
2) SNHU 9-2 ▼1
3) USciences 8-1 ▲3
4) Le Moyne 4-1 —
5) Bentley 4-3 —
6) Assumption 5-4 ▲1
7) Jefferson 9-2 ▲ 4
8) SCSU 6-3 ▼5
9) Saint Anselm 6-5 ▼1
10) AIC 5-3 ▲ 1
11) Chestnut Hill 7-3 ▲3
12) Dominican 6-5 ▲ 1
13) Daemen 5-3 NR
14) Post 7-2 ▼2
There are several teams that have a strength of schedule problem. There is no better example of such a school than Post University. The Eagles are dead last in the nation in SOS. If the Northeast10 continues to tear itself apart in league play, the rankings could be messy for the women’s committee. It is clear the majority of the best teams are in the NE10 which is why some schools avoid them like Brian Kelly avoided the SEC while at Notre Dame! Credit to the CACC South and especially Jefferson and Chestnut Hill with crucial road wins. The Rams are always relevant, and two key away from home triumphs (at Lincoln and SCSU) were a nice stocking stuffer heading into the holiday break. Don’t look now, but Mercy is off to a 3-0 start in the ECC. I don’t care how down the league is, this Maverick unit is doing more than just competing!
Men’s Rankings
1) Dominican 9-1 - -
2) Bentley 7-2 ▲1
3) New Haven 7-3 ▲4
4) Franklin Pierce 7-3 ▲6
5) Stonehill 7-3 ▼3
6) STAC 10-3 ▼2
7) Pace 8-2 ▼1
8) Assumption 5-3 ▼3
9) Adelphi 6-3 —
10) Saint Anselm 5-3 ▲4
11) SNHU 6-4 ▼3
12) Jefferson 6-3 ▼1
13) Le Moyne 6-5 ▼1
14) Daemen 5-6 ▼1
It is next to impossible with all of the cancellations and postponements to get a full view of how things will be come March. I hope we can just enjoy the ride, but I fear this season could be off the rails sooner rather than later. I wanted to give credit to several administrators, such as Joe Clinton, the head coach and Athletic Director at Dominican who are taking a proactive approach in handling the turmoil of COVID and all it entails. Worrying about your opponents safety and well-being is nearly unheard of in high-level college athletics which is one of the many reasons I enjoy the Division II atmosphere.
Movie Talk
For the many who do not know, I watch over 100 documentary films a year. The Musings is an extension of my never-ending search for the truth. The people who get in the way of that search are much more likely to have an ongoing battle with themselves than with me. I thought as we closed the year, I’d share four of the films that have moved me enough to tell you about them.
Free Solo/The Alpinist: This is a double feature. Free Solo (Disney +) is a brilliant doc about rock climber Alex Honnold on his journey to perform a free solo climb of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park in June 2017. I have become fascinated by these adventures and the second film, The Alpinist (Netflix) is an emotional roller coaster on the life of Marc-André Leclerc and his desire to climb anything and everything mountainous without anyone knowing. While some people do things for the accolades, LeClerc was the opposite. Both are riveting.
The Lost Leonardo: I like mysteries and while art may not be the subject you’d expect to find drama, believe it or not, The Lost Leonardo is layered and ends up in a place you would have never seen coming. Is the painting a real Leonardo Da Vinci? That question and the adventures this piece of art goes through have to be seen to be believed! It’s available on demand.
Not Going Quietly: Whether you believe in the cause of universal free healthcare for everyone in America or not, does not matter. Ady Barkan suffers from ALS and despite having a young child, he spends his dying days going all over America to plead with politicians for Universal Free Healthcare not only for himself, but everyone. For me, the film was an inspiration. It will be available on PBS early in 2022.
All of these feature documentary films are geared to make the viewer think. It certainly did for me and I hope it will for you as well!
Until Next Year.. Always do what’s right! Be Well!