bincitysioux

They're like any school in transition..................they need games..........

I would guess because those schools are in the same boat as us..............looking for games, and are flexible with the dates they are available. As far as the NSIC teams you mentioned, I believe they only get one non-conference game per year these days, so they are extremely limited as to available dates.

It would be a real blow to the athletic department to lose Sean Johnson...................he is the one behind the deal with Fox College Sports, getting more football, basketball, women's hockey, and even volleyball televised, and getting Sioux basketball on the radio in Fargo. Hope he stays for a long time................

Lamar is the only other non-conference DI............. Again, it goes back to the fact that there is not enough money to pay for alot of high quality nonconference opponents...............the money isn't there and the numbers just don't work. I recently paid $1,300 for a TV. The one I really wanted was priced at $4,000. But I only had $1,300 to spend, so that was the one I got. Look for UND's non-conference schedule going forward to be something along the lines of: Year A: FBS away game, FCS home game, DII home game Year B: FBS away game, FCS away game (return trip for prior season), DII home game Year C: FBS away game, FCS home game, DII home game Year D: FBS away game, FCS away game (return trip for prior season), DII home game And so on..................... Until the Alerus is consistently sold out, UND is going to have to be one of those teams that does home-and-home scheduling with other FCS programs in order to get FCS programs to come here. That's how we got Northwestern ST, Central Akansas, SDSU, and Montana to agree to come here................. If you don't want to continue to see schools like SD Mines on future schedules, then you better go buy your tickets for Black Hills St, Montana Western, and Sioux Falls............because ironically, the only way those type of games are going to go away is by packing the house for them....................

Attendance was roughly the same the last few years of DII. I believe our all time attendance record was set in 2007, the last year of DII, a little over 10,000 per game. I believe UND is the only former NCC school to move up this past decade that didn't experience attendance growth. The transition itself hasn't affected attendance as much as poor play and fickle fans.................... EDIT: The attendance record was set in 2008, the first year of DI, with an average of 10,167. 2006: 8,827 2007: 9,887 2008: 10,167 2009: 8,539 2010: 8,154 2011: ? ? ? ? IMO attendance will get a moderate increase this season, because the team should be better and with all the cream puffs on the schedule the fans should be able to feast on some of the good old fashioned blowouts that they became accustomed to in DII...................

While I would love it to be in a position to pay a Stony Brook, Austin Peay, or Morgan St. to come to the Alerus every year in an effort to enhance our chances at receiving an at-large berth to the playoffs, there are also financial responsibilities to consider that the University must balance with putting the program in the best position to make the playoffs............ People like to point to NDSU not playing any DII's in recent years and assume that North Dakota should be in the same position..............but they're just not the same. I know I'm over-simplifying things but using $15 as a base ticket price, NDSU grosses around $240,000 for a home game just from the gate using last year's attendance average of about 16,000. If they paid Morgan St $150K, that still leaves them with $90,000 to pay the rest of the costs of putting on a sporting event. If North Dakota charges $15 a ticket, and 9,000 fans (give or take) show up like in the last few years, that's a gross of $135,000. Now, we paid Stony Brook $130,000 two seasons ago to come to Grand Forks, so that left UND's A.D. $5,000 with which to pay, among other things, the $20,000 bill for renting the Alerus Center for that day...................... We can argue until we're blue in the face that we should just fork over the cash to get better quality opponents because it would be an "investment" in the program. But you can't just print money either................. As long as the low level DI programs are commanding $100,000-150,000 for a one game deal, it is far more likely that UND will be forced, not choose, to continue to bring in at least one non-DI opponent each season for half of what a crappy MEAC, Big South, or NEC team would require................if we want that to change, then the Alerus needs to start filling up! Just another 3,000 fans on Saturdays would give the athletic department another $50,000 to work with. As far as USD not being on the schedule in 2012 any more, my guess is that both the Big Sky and the MVFC have set their schedules, and either one or both UND and/or USD had a league game imposed on the date the UND-USD game was originally planned, and both schools didn't have a non-conference date that would match up.....................

It is great to see so many upset about playing non-DI opponents.................that means there is passion within the fan base, and I think that is a good thing. What is not so great is to see so many complain, whine, piss & moan, and theaten to effectively boycott North Dakota football because they don't approve of the opponents.................... Let me enlighten some of you as to why North Dakota's administration is reluctant to shell out in excess of $100,000-150,000 to secure a home opponent that has the FCS label attached to it........................... Since moving to NCAA Division I FCS in 2008: Average Home Attendance vs. non-DI opponents (7 games): 10,758 Average Home Attendance vs. DI FCS opponents (8 games): 8,316 Green means go................red means stop..................... What would be the point of forking over $130,000 for Austin Peay when you can have South Dakota Mines for half that and bank on having 2,000-3,000 more buying tickets, cheering in the stands, drinking beer, and buying pizza? I've said it in the past and I'll say it again..................if Sioux football fans are going to complain about DII and NAIA teams on the home schedule, there better be more than a paltry 6,700 on hand when the #16 DI team in the nation (Cal Poly in 2009) comes to town................. IMO, attendance will be up this season..........................as ugly as it is to those of us that follow closely, scheduling 4 probable blowout wins at home for 2011 was pure genious by the administration...............

My guess would be the Summit in Sioux Falls, especially if USD, SDSU, and NDSU are participating.................... Big Sky is so vast, I think it is wise to keep it the way it is...................if not, I still think SLC would be better than Vegas considering Weber's fan following and attendance numbers.

An FCS program with no DII or NAIA opponents on the schedule seems to be the exception rather than the norm..........

University of Montana athletics study: Move to FBS would cost millions

Aren't you gonna be in the Missouri Valley in 2012?

Sioux shooting 38%.................

Congrats to the team. What an exciting way to end an already pleasantly surprising season. I bummed cause I didn't realize it was on TV, but thanks to the two OT's I got to listen to Sioux basketball for the entire drive home from the hockey game. I see the CIT website has a link to Fox College Sports, so hopefully that game will be on too.............................

Getting back to the conference tourney format, I feel both formats have their merits.............a neutral site probably creates a more fair opportunity for all participants to win the title, makes it easier to secure corporate sponsorship, and allows fans and teams more time and makes it easier for setting travel plans. The the Big Sky's home-host format will often asure a better atmosphere for the championship game unless of course the #1 seed loses in the semis, makes winning the regular season title far more important, and also rewards the #3 and #4 seeds with an extra home game. Personally, I hope the Big Sky format stays as is as far as the regular season champ hosting. When considering the Big Sky's vast geography, I think the current format is best. For a league like the Summit, with now 5 schools scattered along I-29, the neutral site works well, especially considering how well South Dakotans like their basketball and that the "neutral" site will most likely always be within a couple hour drive of SDSU and USD. If the Big Sky did go to a neutral site, I'd think it would have to be in SLC due to proximity to Weber St as the Big Sky's biggest draw, and ease of travel. Denver could be the only other realistic option, but UNC could never guarantee as many fans as Weber. I wonder if the Big Sky bracket will be expanded because of the additions of North Dakota and SUU?

UNO's administration cited several times that their current model was not sustainable. That may be true, I'm not sure that their new model will be either. If they have grand goals of becoming a basketball school, I think it will be difficult to compete for entertainment dollars with Creighton. And I can't for the life of me understand why wrestling would get the axe in favor of men's soccer or tennis, just because the Summit doesn't sponsor it. One would would think they wouldn't have had trouble getting into the wrestling league that NDSU & SDSU are in............. 4 together in the Summit. But expanding on that, there are now 8 former NCC members competing at the DI level: Big Sky North Dakota Northern Colorado Summit League South Dakota NDSU SDSU Nebraska-Omaha Missouri Valley Northern Iowa Creighton

Dale Lennon coached the special teams the last couple seasons he was here, inside LB I think too....................... Lennon was also a fullback as a player I believe who became the greatest defensive coach in the history of the world if I am not mistaken.......................point is, Freund might make a a good RB coach even though he wasn't a running back.............

I don't know all of the details that surround how a college basketball program and scholarships are run and such, but personally, I'd think it is unlikely that North Dakota is in a position to be "pulling" scholarships from players. There has been alot of debate over the last year over the progression of this year's redshirt sophomore class....................if anything happens as far as one or some of those players not returning, I think it will come down to the players' choice, not the coaching staff's decision..........I think we are obviously speaking of Goodman and Archer..................both are not from this area, have been hampered by injuries, and have seen dwindling playing time when they are healthy. If one, or both of them expressed to the staff that they wished to pursue other options, I doubt that Jone's and Co. would set much if any obstacles in their way..............on the other hand, I also really doubt that this coaching staff will ask anyone to leave the program.........

Uhh..........what????? Douple hates UND like Jesus hates Satan...............................

9 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists

72 North Dakota 61 UTPA Final

Mitchell got called for travelling for running the baseline while trying to inbound the ball coming out of that timeout?.................... That timeout came after a made basket didn't it........he should have been able to run the baseline right?

60 North Dakota 54 UTPA 3:39 2nd half

58 North Dakota 54 UTPA ~5:00 left

I take offense to this..............................

74 North Dakota 70 HBU Final OT Good job by the Sioux to battle throughout and get a gutsy road win...........................