Midwestern Hawk

Even if they’re the best FCS team, we had zero answers for them on O or D. Many of you have played and/or coached. Was this game over before it began? (Art of War). I’ve had that feeling about this team the last season and a half. Actually since the Bison debacle at the Alerus.

Burning the tape is the way to never get better.

"Burn the tape" is BS. We had a bye week to get ready for SDSU and couldn't stop them and couldn't move the ball. That is just sh*t!y coaching...This team is not as good as as some of Bubba's past teams, especially on defense. So much of football still comes down to coaching...game planning, motivation, belief, energy, play calling, in game adjustments...its football.

After the Yotes beat the Bison, the game @USD moves to a "L" from a "toss up". Remainder of the schedule gives us 2 more wins(W Ill and Ind St), 3 losses( NDSU, @UNI, @USD) and 2 "toss-ups"(@Murray St and Ill St). We will finish with 4-6 wins and 5-7 losses. Vintage Bubba ball.

Based on the last 2 games, and more importantly, Bubba's body of work over the last 2+ seasons, winning 6 of the next 7 games is little more than a pipe dream. Anything is still possible but when a team can't throw the ball downfield, cant run the ball consistently and cant stop the run it does not usually end well. I'm afraid our big game coaching acumen was on display in the first quarter as we could not move the ball and could not stop our opponent after a bye week. UGh.

Let’s not forget we defeated SDSU in Spring of 2021 and we were driving for the go ahead score late in the 4th in the fall of 2021. IMO we have faltered since.

This is so depressing, yet so predictable.

Tommy is a smart QB with a weak arm, who doesn't like to run. It's too bad, because he has shown he can run, just does not like to run.

The pinnacle was halftime at home vs NDSU in fall of 2021.

After the result in Fargo, I move the @USD game to a L. We finish between 3-8 and 6-5.

Its been that way for 4 years...

Jack is trying really hard to sell us on our status as a football team. I guess we will find out in the second half.

We seem like we have regressed over the last couple of years.

Need a TD after that. Let’s go!

It’s so predictable. Exhausting.

Looks like we used our bye week to figure out the Jacks…

This is a must win. Any idea on crowd size for today?

Hawks with easy win. 38-7.

Hard to argue with your analysis. Just reinforces my points throughout this thread as to where UND is as a program. I do think the ALERUS is worth a TD minimum, so I would still pick us at this point. If for some reason we lose at home to NAU, then all bets are off, IMO, for the rest of the season. 2-5 going into Indiana State would be a disaster for all of us.

The day the season starts I will likely be back to 100% fan and be hoping for a championship season, my excitement will likely grow after drubbing Drake and what should be a victory at home vs NAU. Boise will very likely bring us back to reality. SDSU and NDSU are probably "ripe" for the picking, as some on here have pointed out, with changes at both programs. At this point, I just don't have the confidence we can get either job done. If we are, in fact, 3-3 after 6, the tilt @UNI becomes hugely important. A victory there, and a hell of a season is still possible, 3-4 and then we are back to our usual "must-win" late season scenarios to even make the playoffs.

Passion is a great thing.

IMO program was on the rise through the spring season. Maybe I was fooled, but I thought we had arrived and would be where SDSU now sits. UND should ALWAYS be a top 10 team, and a top 3 MVFC team. We made the playoffs last fall, but we were like 3 plays from being 4-7 instead of 7-4. We crapped the bed in Fargo and in the first half of the playoff game. My heart says 8-3 or 9-2, my brain after 9 years of Bubba Ball says, we have 3 guaranteed wins, 3 guaranteed losses, and if the stars line up will win 4 of the other 5 and we will all be praying for a way into the playoffs come November.

A couple years ago it felt like the program was on the cusp, now it feels to me like will be fighting for .500.

BH thought he had more going into last fall, than he actually had. Never came together. For all of our sakes, I hope you are correct. Last years D was not good by any stretch of the imagination. We gave up over 30 points a game, 10 points more per game than in 2021. We all knew going in with what had been lost from the previous year, I was hoping for improvement as the year went on and some guys would step up, It did not happen. IMO, Even Krzanowski and Siegel had weaker seasons in 2022, due to the lack of supporting cast around them. DL is still undersized and lots of question marks after the first 3, LBs are super key in a 3-4 and I have question marks at all 4 positions. Siegel will be strong, and Kaupinen is a liability in coverage, the other CB and safety are unknowns. Again, hopefully I am wrong

Like I said BH also knew it was time to move on. On paper, the defense will be worse than last fall and will be miles from some of his previous D's. Joel will need to be a magician for the D to be even average.