UND08

That's why my hopes are tempered here...he's a classic "tweener"...not big enough to play DE at the D1 level...not sure if he's quick enough to be an every-down MVFC OLB. If he was coming in as an 18 year old kid I'd be thrilled...but he's got one year. That's not a developmental signing...it's an impact signing. I really hope I'm wrong because by all accounts he's a great kid and a college grad...but we need help on D, and I'm not sure we're going to get much here.

You are correct...he was a monster for VCSU and a great all-around athlete in high school. Thing is...he's a 230-ish lb NAIA defensive end. Ben McNaboe was undersized, and Gerhardt is 15-20 lbs smaller. If he's going to play OLB that could be an option as a pass rusher but color me skeptical. The North Star Athletic Association to the MVFC is a massive jump. I hope he surprises but I'm not expecting much...

You nailed it...NDSU Teammakers runs laps around the UND Champions Club...LAPS!!! Alston awards are cool...but if you have a stud that's getting $25k+ offers in the portal...do we have any mechanism we can tap to keep him in Grand Forks? Currently we don't...NDSU and SDSU do. Need a new starting tackle? Sure we can peruse the portal...but we don't have much to offer other than opportunity (which isn't nothing)...but NDSU/SDSU can fire up the collective and buy what they need. Is it greasy? Sure! Do I like it? Not particularly! But if we want to compete for relevancy in our back yard we need these things. At best we are late to the ballgame...at worse we'll stay behind...

One more thing I'll add...we as fans/supporters/boosters play a big part in this too! Show me the plan...show me what you need to execute it...and I better be willing to pony up to make sure it happens! If not...then my apathy is saying that I'm ok with the status quo...and I have no right to complain!

Then they should leave too the way this whole "lame duck" coaching setup is going...

I'm sorry that your post is going to inspire my rant CM...but here it comes anyway... Why does everyone think we have to be so dang "North Dakota Nice" on a stinking message board?!?! Of course this is where everyone comes to complain and vent...that's how every message board in the COUNTRY works!!! Fan is short for "fanatic" after all...and if recruits are turned off by a message board then they should just go to a school like Southern Utah or Idaho State where fan apathy is so strong that they don't have these kinds of sites...of course they won't get NIL or any kind of great support...because those "fanatics" are the types that write those checks...because they CARE! Of course...if/when UND goes 4-8 next year, blows the whole thing up, and the rebuild fails...UND football might look awfully similar... Most of us would just be happy to see a freaking VISION from the athletic dept. that shows WHAT the expectations are for the program, HOW we are going to meet said expectations...and then a follow through on holding people in leadership positions accountable if those expectations aren't met. Hell we are part of that as fans! If you need an extra million a year to compete in recruiting come up with a plan and pitch it to us! It's not unreasonable to expect greatness...hell its healthy! We get a taste of success...a lot of teams build on it. Some teams lose steam because those responsible for success move on to bigger pastures. Meanwhile the events of the last 3.5 months at UND are so stereotypically UND under Bubba that I'm not even surprised anymore. It's 2 steps forward 1 step back. Bubba's had 10 years at UND. That's an ETERNITY in his profession! If you're not going to take the program any further then we need to do something else...because when it goes stale it's not a pretty sight. Meanwhile our athletic department let the two most talented coaches we have on staff walk for lateral jobs where they got paid more and have a better chance to succeed. Again...reeks of stale air in the program. Of course nobody is coming after our defensive coaches and offering them opportunities. Makes sense...we are a defensive minded football team after all... And why should I feel bad for hurting a recruit or players' feelings?!? They're pseudo employees now after all. We give them a chance and they ball out...chances are they'll just hit the portal anyway to get that bag! This is now de facto professional sports. So how dare you question my loyalty by saying that you pay your dues no matter what (and inferring that I don't)...my loyalty is the only reason I'm pissed off at the direction of the program! And ya know...more and more every passing day I'm questioning why I even bother...that's dangerous ground for an FCS football program trying to compete with the others on I-29...because I know I'm not the only one that feels that way...and their fan bases are much more dialed in. UND might be a top 20 ish team in the FCS...problem is they are consistently #4 on the list of those that actually matter in this area...out of 4! Tough draw no doubt...but life's not fair! Even when we house NDSU at home...this is what we follow it up with (while SDSU wins a title and NDSU makes a deep playoff run, hires a new staff, poaches our OC, starts a collective that keeps attractive transfer candidates at home)?!?! Gross... I expect this program to be great. That's been the expectation for UND football for as long as I can remember. If we are content with 7-5 every year and a first round exit please just let me know and I'll find something else to do in the fall. Those of you who wear the "In Bubba we Trust" shirts walking around parking lots are getting to be more and more in the minority. If the portal bleeds us dry and we go 5-7 or 4-8 next fall, it's going to be ugly. Chaves and Bubba should get their walking papers together. Hope everyone figures their crap out...but I'm not holding my breath...

If there is one thing I've learned in all of this...if you don't have the stones to extend a coach when they have two years or less left on their contract...then you better just buy them out and move on! I'd have been ticked had we extended Bubba last fall...but now I'm arguably more pissed...and it's with Chaves not Bubba on this. I'd argue the only two coaches we had that anyone else wants are now gone (could argue RB coach also but from past experience we don't pay RB coaches squat so they likely will always come and go)...we'll likely see players on their side of the ball (our strength) hit the portal when it opens...and we'll likely limp to something like 4-8 with a house cleaning a year later. Saved $265k or so in buyout costs...but what's it cost the University to have 5-6k at football games when the team isn't successful? Also what's the lost momentum cost us in future years? Maybe I'm overly pessimistic...but all the hits have come on the strong side of the ball for us. Defense is our liability and I haven't seen much to make me think we've addressed it. Also...$71k max to be an FCS OL coach?!? I'll never blame a guy for moving on to make more in this day and age. This might not be a popular thing to say...but it's not hard for a college educated capable young person to make $71k in this day and age. And they'd have to put in a whole lot less hours than a college OL coach at the D1 level.

Should UND perform as many on here expect in 2024...I'd hope to see Luke's name in the mix for a job in Grand Forks come 2025...I'll let the readers decide what job that would be...

It goes to show how much coaches value relationships...Polacek and Landry worked together for one season...and it's why he was hired now! Meanwhile NDSU has a former D2 OC of the year on staff as a RB coach...and their OL coach and QB coach both have several years of OC/Head Coaching experience...just a wildly different environment...

I agree on this specific situation...and I also remember hearing those things about Jake when he was coming up. Not sure that means much now...but regardless he's made his choice. The grass ain't always greener...

I don't disagree with any of the Landry discussion...but I will add one thing. To most of us, NDSU is a "rival" school. But Jake's generation of players never played NDSU. So I think in that aspect of things us fans view "where he went" differently than he probably does. I'm good with him making his choice. I like that we got a seemingly ambitious young guy in his place who's willing to bet on himself in a one year type of "prove it" situation. I also like that he has a combination of OC experience and Big 10/NFL Camp Body playing experience. Besides...if it all blows up in our faces we reboot it all next year anyway...

Bemidji State’s coaching staff can get it done! I know “it’s Bemidji”…but I think many of them are on an upward trajectory…

Hahahaha not sure you saw it on any of your bike rides over Columbia but Danny’s a great guy, was a great player for us, and his offense consistently averaged 30+ ppg under his watch. He needs to continue to develop for the sake of his career. I hope he does that…just like I hope all our alums do! And it would appear he gets to coach Gronowski next year…I’d have taken the job too!

Hahaha I don't think UND football needs Danny's help to hurt itself any more than it already has. He's a UND grad...he's given most of his adult life to the program...we didn't want to do whatever it took to keep him (obviously). SDSU is a great program that seems to be damn near on a different planet than most of FCS lately. They probably would "light it up" without him but he's getting a great opportunity to learn first hand how it's done at a first class FCS program. If we want to get there we need to find a way...and that "way" probably shouldn't involve letting talented coaches leave for roles in the conference without giving everything we can to keep them. I stand by what I said and hope he lights it up!

Agree completely with one caveat to the negative for UND: It's the best thing for UND as long as UND can convince him to come back. If he lights it up at SDSU he could find himself with offers to become an FBS assistant. If that happens and his pay goes north of $400k we probably won't be able to get him back (a la Eric Schmidt). Danny made a great career move imo...I hope he lights it up! And hopefully we have a chance to bring him back someday...

For the love of all things holy couldn't we have negotiated a re-assignment to the athletic department/fundraising for the last two years?!? Would take Bubba stepping down in a mutual parting of ways...a la Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft (but without the titles)...

They’ll probably promote Pawlak to OC, shuffle Sam King to QBs (his college position), hire a WR coach (might as well keep it in the family and call Hardin) and grab a GA for the OL… Why?!? Because it’s the UND way…that’s why!!! Disgusting on all levels…no coach worth his salt is leaving to come here for $86k and a likely firing in a year…

In my mind it's as simple as this: Mediocre defense/Inconsistent offense - 5-7 wins (bubble team at best depending on schedule) Average defense/Average Offense - 6-8 wins (playoff bubble most years) Good defense/Average offense - 7-9 wins (normally in the playoffs/seed contention some years) Average defense/Good offense - 7-9 wins (seed contention some years) Good defense/Good offense - 8-10 wins (seed contention most years) Good defense/elite offense - 9-11 wins (threat for a title) Elite defense/good offense - 10-12 wins (title worthy) If UND can find their way to recapture their defensive prowess...they'll make significant progress even if the offense only equals what it's done in prior years. That needs to be the biggest point of emphasis for the staff. If UND can do that and run the ball consistently well...then look out!

Not sure if athletes are allowed to sign NIL deals outside of a collective. I'd think they could since the collective isn't organized by the school. But if the collective is open to all athletes then it may be easier for those non-star players to benefit from NIL by being a part of the collective. As far as the business I'd assume any marketing services provided by players associated with a collective would be billed by and paid to the collective by the business, and the business would then deduct it as advertising expense.

I maybe didn’t phrase my thought the best. What I meant was Tommy was a last minute stop gap addition to his recruiting class with zero division one offers and committed without even visiting. To get three years of even average play out of him is actually kind of a miracle in my book…let alone what he did in many games in his career (albeit with big game struggles). That’s as much an indictment on the staff as it is praise for Tommy. Without Tommy 2021 spring season is probably a flop…and fall 2021 is likely even worse.

This is exactly how most rational fans feel about Tommy and UND I think. We have what we feel like is a really good QB room with lots of depth and talent waiting in the wings. If this was mutual I actually credit Bubba for being willing to roll the dice a little bit with an unproven (albeit maybe more physically gifted) QB next year, when Tommy may have been the most consistent bet at another 7 win season (and maybe an extension). He could have done that and sold out the future (ie losing one or both Feeney and Kaminski to the portal)... This feels like it's in the long term best interests of the program, but it's certainly not without some risks. I hope Tommy lights it up wherever he goes (unless he's on our schedule next year), and he's a key reason why our QB room was as good as it has been the last couple years. He's a UND legend in my book...think where we would have been without him? I'm also excited for the future. I'd certainly appreciate seeing a bigger QB be able to stand in the pocket and deliver "dots" all over the field. I hope we have that in our next QB1!

Let's not talk about Bemidji as some small college throw-away program...they do a lot of things right out there and have a coaching staff that probably is more apt to move up than we have currently!

At the risk of not sounding as sour as I currently feel about the program...Kilty is grad transferring. He's got one year of eligibility left, and a UND degree (soon to be) in hand. If he can use that last year at an FBS school then more power to him! I'd have done the same thing if I were him...

I saw that poll too and agree with you 100%. Honestly after the top 4 not sure anyone was a runaway deserving candidate for a seed. There's a lot of parity (and frankly plenty of mediocrity) in this division (especially in the Big Sky and the MVFC). Feels like the Bison got the #9 seed. They get to avoid the rust by playing an opponent they can beat by 40 with their backups, and then catch a Bobcat team that's licking its wounds a little lately...and at the same time avoid SDSU until Frisco. I certainly wouldn't put it past them to make a run! I think they got a good draw when you consider everything. Heck I feel like most fanbases feel like they got a pretty good draw...and no team screamed "SNUB" for not getting in...tip of the cap to the committee for that. At the same time...I saw that SDSU played SEVEN playoff teams in their run of dominance this year...that's really, really impressive in my book.