mksioux

You're out of your element.

I agree with this assessment.

It's not been bought out yet as far as I know. Whether it will be bought out probably depends on a lot of factors, such as other 2011 scheduling opportunities for UND. I guess a small part of me would like to have an opportunity to avenge the loss, but my better judgment says the game should be bought out. I was in the camp that didn't like it scheduled in the first place and I still feel that way about the 2011 game. It was a no win situation for UND in 2009 and, despite USF's upcoming move to DII, it will still be a no-win situation for UND in 2011. If I were a big Gopher football fan, I'd feel the same way about the Gophers scheduling the Dakota schools. It's GREAT for the Dakota schools, but it has zero updside for Minnesota with the potential for A BIG downside.

I'm pleased with the 6-5 record, although it wasn't the combination I expected. 5-3 versus FCS competition this year was very impressive.

I was listening to WCCO radio this morning in the car and heard Don Lucia say that there was serious discussion of a BTHC this summer and that it was "a lot closer to happening than most people know." He said (and I'm paraphrasing based on memory) that there was one school in particular that was really driving it and Minnesota was the main hold out to keep it from happening. We pretty much knew all of that, but the seriousness placed on it by the Don was interesting.

I suppose it's easier for Taylor to sell the fanbase on USD because there is less animosity toward USD than UND. But doing so would effectively negate every stated reason for why he supposedly can't schedule UND. It would also delay having to schedule UND for another four years because if they schedule USD then there surely wouldn't be any room for UND.

I'd love to see UND and USD get into the MVFC, but if they lost a team, why not go back to 9? 10 is not an ideal number for a footbal-only conference. In any event, any movement to shake things up is good for UND.

I agree. You need not look any farther than Sioux hockey for a great example. Everyone was up-in-arms when Brad Schlossman replaced Virg Foss. It turned out Brad is vastly superior to Virg. He increased stories, he blogs daily (often multiple times per day during the season), started a twitter account, etc. He embraces new media and creates a lot of interest in Sioux hockey. The Sioux football coverage needs some new blood. Someone that blogs daily, looks for interesting angles for stories and blogs, takes advantage of mulit-media, and writes more stories. The person doesn't necessarily have to be a young pup, but someone who understands and embraces new media and the information and commentary wanted by younger sports fans. The days of writing a pre-game, post-game, and mid-week story are over. Much more is required from someone in that position. Obviously whoever the Herald chooses to cover Sioux football is not up to the Unversity, but you'd think the Herald would do it for its own sake. The more Sioux football fans there are, the more those people are going to follow the Herald.

You're correct. But then they'd have to deal with Florida State and the bad PR all over again. And the second time around, the PR would be especially bad because the only schools left with Indian nicknames would be schools that have namesake approval. Regardless of whether the NCAA revisits its namesake exemption policy, namesake approval is the the only chance of keeping the nickname and I'd rather give it a chance than give up right now.

I think this a valid thread. It's a great discussion topic. And I don't dispute that the Alerus security has a place in the discussion somewhere down the list. I just don't want to see that issue blown out of proportion. I think there are numerous reasons why the attendance is down and they have been covered extensively. No football in September was a huge factor. As is unfamilar opponents and playing a tiny conference (only two home conference games per season). No chance at playoffs is factor. Two hockey-football combos was a factor. Halloween night game was a factor. And yes, performance on the field is a factor as well. I think losing to Sioux Falls was a big factor in the Cal Poly attendance. I think the best thing that could happen for football attendance would be for UND to get into a better football conference like the Missouri Valley. UND needs more conference games so it can start establishing familiar opponents and rivalries and so that fewer non-conference games are necessary. The more non-conference games the AD needs to schedule, the less leverage he has for dictating dates. Obviously playing NDSU again on a rotating schedule would be huge. UND's football conference situation is the most worrisome factor as far as I'm concerned. A lot of the other issues can be addressed, but getting into the MVFC is beyond UND's control. As far as the game day atmosphere at the Alerus Center, I think a big part of the (lack of) atmosphere stems from low attendance. The fewer people that go to a game, the more boring the atmosphere becomes. A sold-out Alerus Center is a great atmosphere. Having said that, I do think there is room for improvement in the game day atmosphere. I think UND needs to take its marketing budget back from REA. I'm not familiar with the details, but UND needs to take control of its own marketing and market the heck out of football. When Sioux football season approaches, the people in the region have to know it. Perhaps more tailgating marketing is needed. I agree that a football game needs to be marketed as an event, and not just a football game. Leaving the parking lots open later after the game is a good idea. Maybe food contests, decoration contests, events for kids, a radio station broadcasting live from the tailgating lot, etc. There's a lot for a marketing department to work with in tailgating. Others have commented in other threads on ideas to get more students to games on football-hockey combo days and many of they were really good ideas. And yes, maybe security officials need to be better trained to be consistent and fair. I'm not trying to minimize the security issue, just to put it into its proper context.

That's just an newspaper editorial. Newspaper editorials carry no weight anymore. I didn't see anything in the article to indicate that a nickname change was even remotely forthcoming. But to your larger point, tribal approval is not a guarantee that an Indian nickname is safe, but not having tribal approval is a guarantee that it is doomed.

I also miss outdoor football, but attendance at the Alerus Center has been much better than Memorial Stadium. That's just a fact. The reality is that football is not going back to Memorial Stadium any time soon. It's more productive to concetrate on improving the game day experience at Alerus Center than to advocate for something that isn't going to happen.

I'm pretty sure the 4 p.m. start time was dictated by television (Fox College Sports). To get your games on national TV, sometimes you have to be flexible with the start time. But I fully agree that a Halloween game could have been marketed much better. Maximum attendance is the MAIN priority for both parties. The amount of money the Alerus makes at a football game (concessions, parking, etc.) is directly tied to attendance. I don't see a conflict of interest, let alone a "huge" one. Security is always a delicate balance, whether the facility is owned by the city, the University, or a private entity. Sometimes the balance shifts too heavy on one side and needs to be adjusted. You can think security is too strict now, and you might be right. But there is no inherent conflict of interest as it relates to security. This is very old news and something that has been reported in the Herald and commented on many times on this board. Everyone agrees that the $25,000 buy-out was a joke. The Idaho State contract was done before Faison got here. Faison has negotiated much larger buyouts in the contracts he has handled (i.e. $100,000 for Montana).

So this is what it's come down to...blaiming SECURITY for the lack of attendance? I don't doubt the veracity of the stories and maybe security needs to be better trained in customer service. But come on, security would not even crack the top-ten for reasons why attendance is down this year. Remember, students on this board criticized REA security for years. I can't even remember how many threads were started about how poorly REA treated students. It was probably THE most recurring topic on this forum for years. Yet, miraculously, attendance at the Ralph has remained just fine.

Where would they play the rest of their sports?

FYI - Fox College Sports (Central) is showing the UND at Northwestern State game tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. central time.

I see no harm in compensation being involved. But it needs to be a continuing financial relationship and not a one-time payment. A percentage of Sioux merchandise would virtually ensure that no future tribal council would revoke permission. And it would establish a win-win situation between the University and the tribes.

I

The Iowa-Iowa State rivalry required legislative action to get renewed after it was halted for 44 years. I don't think we want to use that rivalry as a model. And don't FBS teams get an extra game? I believe both Iowa and Iowa State have four non-conference games every year. It's a lot easier to make it work with that extra non-conference game.

I agree with you in theory, but in reality it's not that simple. The chance of renewing an annual rotating game with NDSU was effectively killed when NDSU was admitted into the Gateway Football Conference (now Missouri Valley Football Conference). With Chapman's resignation, I think a home-and-home will be scheduled for sometime in the next decade, but it will probably be just two games. If you want to see an annual game renewed, hope for some major shakeups in conference affiliation. That's basically the only way it will happen because the Missouri Valley Football Conference is sitting pretty right now with 9 teams, which is the ideal number for a football-only conference.

Of course it's possible for NDSU to schedule UND every year, but it's not as easy as it seems. Of those three non-conference games, Taylor wants one to be an away FBS money game. So that only leaves two non-conference FCS games. I think he wants one to be a home guaranteed win against an FCS cupcake. If the other is against UND every year, that basically means NDSU has no room to ever schedule other quality non-conference home-and-homes with the likes of Montana, Montana State, UC-Davis, Cal Poly, etc. I suppose he could get rid of the cupcake game, but that's easier said than done. I also believe Taylor has talked about the importance of having 6 homes games as much as possible. Six homes games is not possible when NDSU plays at UND unless it is a rare year where 12 games is allowed by the NCAA I think a home-and-home now and then will get scheduled, but I think an annual rotating game is not going to happen unless the schools end up in the same conference someday. I know Mussman doesn't want to play it unless it's an annual game, but he doesn't get to make the decision. I'm sure Faison will agree to a home-and-home.

The way I read it, that passage is about Eaves being against Wisconsin switching to the CCHA, not about the formation of a BTHC. But in any event, I don't think it matters in the long term. What is important is that the BTHC makes a lot of sense to Wisconsin, as an institution, and has the backing of the administration. Ultimately, I don't think the hockey people are going to end up making the decisions on this issue.

Right, but it sounds like he was the only one strongly against it. Reading bewteen the lines, it sounds like Ohio State, Wisconsin, and the Commissioner are pretty much on board. Michigan and Michigan State may be against it for now, but I doubt their objection is nearly as strong as Minnesota's. If Michigan or Michigan State decide a BTHC is okay, Minnesota will not be able to stop it. I don't know if/when that will happen, but it's really not as far-fetched as you seem to think. However, just because the possible affiliates mentioned in the article have FBS football, I don't think that would be a condition to affiliate membership in the BTHC. I think the affiliate situation will be very fluid as the Big Ten members negotiate. UND should be working behind the scenes to see what the Big Ten Presidents and AD's would be looking for in affiliate members, and plan accordingly.

Other than regrettable comments by the UND coaching staff after the game, who's been beating the injury dead horse? I don't sense that the UND fans are using injuries as an excuse whatsoever. There are no excuses. I think the common consensus on this board is that Sioux Falls outplayed, outworked, outsmarted, and especially outcoached UND in all phases of the game for 60 minutes.

Don't worry, you'll get the hang of emoticons someday. I was adding a little levity to your baseless accusation against me. I take it you don't have a substantive response?