The Sicatoka

All I know is when things started getting scruffy late Saturday against St. Cloud I couldn't find the big peacemaker* defenseman in green to step in. No Finley, no Blood, no Commodore, no ... The closest we have right now is Peski. And the closest we have to a Prpich is ma-a-a-ybe Cole Smith. *Or should that be spelled 'piece maker'.

Are you sure? He's a 1999 DOB.

I don't see Randklev coming fall of 2019 after his injury. I think the injury brings Mismash back. I wonder if Frisch will be in (as he'd only be a senior at Moorhead right now). Poolman's probably the trigger on that move.

... or quiet "reaching of a private accord" in the background. <-- Again, pure speculation.

Ain't our QB until is our QB.

NDSU AD Larson seems to be watching his words very carefully.To me that's a sign of someone who knows they need to stay on a very narrow path (and there be landmines outside it). But that's also called living in NCAA-land. So it's not surprising. It's curious that the Robbins' haven't said what the substance in question is. Honestly, if it was caffeine (we don't know) they'd get a level of pity and disbelief from the casual observer. If it's not, well, I guess I wouldn't expect them (Robbins') to admit to what it was until they could use that information to show the validity of the rest of their claims. Finally, McFeely did a favor to NDSU. He inferred it was "5 Hour Energy" in question. That's going for the disbelief and pity. However, we don't know what the substance at issue is. So Mike should've stayed out of the speculative game. Or stated what the substance in question is (if he knows). But after all that it comes down to this: A very good NDSU FB player lost a senior year to a failed post game test. The player's (NDSU Athletics HOF mother) says it was a "trusted staff member" that gave the substance that caused the failed test. NDSU claims otherwise. Someone is being less than forthright and it's not a good look for NDSU either way. And we're yet to find anyone ready to step up and do a full discovery of the facts. We're getting whispers (Ben Newman, supplements), but not the truth and facts. Rumors and innuendo will fill the void until the truth is known.

Right there Milo you let down your guard and exposed yourself as a poseur.

A long hard stare at this roster going into 2019-2020 has to be done.

That game is just football moving to what soccer, and sadly hockey, have become: Low scoring defensive mindset stalemates where the games are not decided by talent but by "a bounce".

Rebounds? I thought you were talking Fowler, not Rubio.

Either NDSU has been slandered or is lying. After seeing the polar opposites presented by the Robbins and Larson I believe any investigative effort should come from outside NDSU. Its the only way to ensure a complete and unbiased fact finding.

We don’t know the issue is caffeine.

The NCAA needs to look at this Ben Newman fellow and his various endeavors. NDSU’s relationship with him (payments, access) should be explored as part of a self or State evaluation.

... and the front page of the Sunday Fargo Forum.

Fact is Robbins’ NCAA career is over because of a failed post game substance test. What that does is open the door to follow up questions and not all of them will be pleasant or polite. And it’s a reasonable basis for a greater inquiry by media (no comment) or the State (given claims by the mother of State employees being involved) or the NCAA (to evaluate some of the parties involved or how certain things are being done by certain parties).

The NCAA needs to look into this curious Ben Newman fellow. And his travels. And his offerings. Follow the Benjamins. All will become clear.

Thome hasn't played since the Duluth series. Ryan Anderson "ran the door" in the CC series as Thome didn't even dress. See PDF page 17: https://fightinghawks.com/documents/2019/1/30//Notes_020119_DU.pdf?id=8300

It's a maroon and gold thing. They all seem to get it.

Any wonder such things are on the NCAA naughty list?

That's probably some sort of rules violation.

Which probably explains why the NCAA has chemicals found in them on the naughty list.

The biologic half-life of caffeine is 5-6 hours in an average adult. Now put that to a college athlete, with say double the muscle mass, and having just played a game. I'd guess the bio half-life was down in the 3 hour range that day by exertion and excretion. And now, having said that, tell me he took that "pre-workout" supplement ... pre-game? Could it be caffeine? Sure. Was it? As I said, I'd be surprised. It'll probably be in the big, completely transparent NDSU self-audit study and report they'll put out Monday uncovering and exposing every relationship and detail.

I'm saying I'll be very surprised if it comes out that the issue was caffeine.

Travis Beck's reply to Kolpack's tweet says so much in so few words. "Pound the Stone" is a Newman catch-phase. And that's Beck's answer to the Kolpack story on Robbins.

Yes it is. But he's also admitted 'supplement'. If it really was too much gulping Big Gulps, sure; but, it's not. It's taking in something they'd been warned about. And they got caught. Now some of the other interesting practices (self-testing) and characters (Ben Newman) are coming into the light.