tony

Note to TS, put down the Latin and step away from the computer - and while you're at it, flip the page on your "word of the day" calendar. I wasn't making an argument, I was ripping you. Your response makes no sense in the context given. Corella, the general impression I'm getting of UND fans is that you are hypersensitive girlie men* **. The general impression you get is that all NDSU folks are hurtful meanies. Ah, I guess there is no place for anything but junior high irony on so serious a forum as a sports board. Thus, I name you Corella "The Adjudicator of All That is Classy or Not." * I'm generalizing and only being 73.7% serious, 26.3% yanking your chain - just like the last post (except the ratio in the first post was 11% serious, 89% chain yanking). ** Translated into The Sicatoka simper lingo, "I heard somebody comment that some folks who like to wear faux Notre Dame logos were hypersensitive girlie men <tee, hee, hee, *sniff*, ... hee>."

I said, "griping". Yeah, that's a crime. For the love of Pete, this topic was about a basketball game and, like a lot of topics on this board, it got side-tracked by a rant about NDSU going DI. Griping was the mildest word I could think of, still too harsh for the ever-so-sensitive Star2City, I guess. I thought of using "whining" instead of "griping" (thought it too pejorative and overused). Moaning also sounded a little judgemental. Doomsaying came to mind but it didn't encompass the variety of opinions about NDSU I had in mind. If only that's all there was - what a fascinating read those posts will make in five years! "Spewing bile" only appled to StarCity so that was out. Likewise, "Simpering like a hanky-waving courtier in a hypothetical Court of Fops" only applied to The Sicatoka and Ryan Bakken. If you want the title of "Most Politically Correct" sports board, I conceded long ago when I put in a Smack board. So, yeah, now the world is subjected to boorish NDSU fans calling Gene Roebuck, "The Great Pornstachio." The horror!

Maybe Jim should have kept the DI-AA topic (and renamed it "Griping About NDSU Going DI" to be more accurate)

Basically, you have a different opinion on what's best for NDSU - the difference being that I want NDSU to be successful while the thought of that must be a little alarming to many UND fans. NDSU and UND have different situations because UND's focus is not DII athletics, while NDSU's is. You think the big risk to UND is that the NCAA will restructure DII. I think the risk is that the NCAA will NOT restructure.

I dunno about you guys, but I've dealt with consultants before. You do not hire them to manage your business; in fact, if you do, then you are abrogating your responsibility. Instead, you use them like the Godfather uses a consiglieri. Would I like NDSU to have a conference? Oh yeah. Should getting a conference be the athletic department's number one priority? Definitely. Do I think NDSU is going to find a conference? Definitely. Even one or two UND fans probably think NDSU will find a conference within the next couple years Chapman and Taylor listened to the consultant and made a decision themselves because that's their job, not Carr's. What if NDSU had hired two consultants and they gave NDSU differing advice? Since you like second-guessing NDSU so much, let's turn the tables. Isn't there some risk for UND staying in DII?

UND92,96, I can't disagree with that (i.e. football teams shouldn't rely on JUCOs). I just don't think NDSU's recruiting philosophy will end up changing much. In the short term, NDSU will recruit JUCOs; in the long term, they'll rely almost exclusively on high school seniors. It appears to me that NDSU and UND are going after a lot of the same kids so there can't be that much difference between the two program's recruiting philosophies.

Not that it'll change your mind, UND 92,96, but there is a reason that NDSU is going after JUCOs this year and last. Last year, NDSU needed immediate help on the defensive line and secondary. They were partially successful because the defensive line got a lot better. This year, NDSU is in the process of ramping up scholarships as fast as they can (our AD wants to add 20 or so equivalencies to the 10 or so that they'd usually have available so that NDSU can get on a DI-A schedule ASAP if they want). If the coaching staff were to give all 30 full schollies to high school seniors, this would come back to bite them in a couple years because they'd have nothing to give for a couple years. By increasing scholarship amounts for current players and bringing in JUCOs, the coaching staff is trying to avoid this. I think that once the coaching staff gets the depth they want, NDSU will go back to the old recruiting pattern of bringing in almost all HS seniors. Besides, DI has more stringent guidelines for JUCOs than DII does (as evidenced by UND's basketball roster the last couple years ). Oh yeah, sodakfan, if you want to feel smarter, post that Jark is going to NDSU on the Bisonville board and watch some Bison fans say how he couldn't compete in DI-AA anyway (kind of like some of the guys did with Dressler - a guy I'd have loved to see in a Bison uniform). That should cheer you up

Sorry Sprig, I was asking Sicatoka why he felt it necessary to link the alleged attacks in Fargo to NDSU when there was no connection whatsoever. Back to the topic - if Dru Sjodin's kidnapping shows anything, it isn't that we all have to be paranoid as we walk around town. Grand Forks is a very safe place. There are positive and negative ways to react to horrible events like Dru's kidnapping. Hysteria and paranoia (like what happened in ND after 9/11 and now this kidnapping) are negative reactions. Searching for Dru, praying for her safe return, and supporting her family are positive reactions.

I say you talk like a snake crawls because I can never tell where you're going or where you're coming from. Nobody would accuse you of being a straight-talking son-of-a-gun The issue is that you seem to be insinuating that the proximity to the alleged abductions in Fargo has something to do with the scene being close to NDSU. Where are you going with that? If you want to be understood, start talking in a straight line. Factually you are wrong. Northport is not close to NDSU - it's on the north side of town, that's true, but it's over a mile from NDSU in a residential neighborhood. Heck, the architecture buildling isn't even occupied yet (as far as I know). Man, do some introspection - in my judgement, you did not link those incidents in Fargo to NDSU to show that even in safe places people need to be careful. PS I have no idea what the heck you are talking about when you say "for a guy so worried about conduct of posters, nice leading insult." Who says that I don't like a good insult? Be specific now.

Sicatoka (he who talks like a snake crawls), what are you trying to say?

UND92,96, that is kind of interesting about Northern Colorado. However, UNC is rated in the top 20 in every one of the ten ranking systems the GPI uses. I'd probably rank them right around where they are. IMO, the GPI did a pretty good job of ranking them.

I'd disagree. There were more teams at maximum scholarships in the '80s than there are now, both in percentage and in number. When DI-AA first formed, about 45 DII members left to join up, the others came from DI-A. Since the 1980's, more than 80 additional DII teams have left, with the majority moving up to DI. I can say with a fair amount of confidence that most of these teams were at DII's maximum when they decided to move up to DI (which is where most of them ended up). DII has lost many teams that offered the maximum number of scholarships. In the meantime, the SAC, the WVIAC, the NE10, the NSIC, the GNAC, the RMAC, etc have joined DII. That's 50 or so new teams to replace the ones that left for DI. Perhaps one or two of the GNAC teams offer 36 scholarships, but none of the rest of them offer anywhere close to the maximum. DII has lost at least 40 fully-funded programs and replaced them almost entirely with programs that offer fewer than 20 scholarships. By my count, DII has at least forty fewer fully-funded programs now that it had at the start of '80s. ------- Title IX: NDSU can't really cut any sports because DI requires that they offer a minimum number. Last I heard, they were thinking of adding a womens sport (equestrian and tennis are ones I've heard mentioned). Question: Why did UND have to add womens hockey to become Title IX compliant even after dropping wrestling?

Nodakvindy, yeah, you got me. Patriot League is non-scholarship. There is a difference (and this in no way excuses my error), Patriot League teams have proven they can beat the best teams in DI-AA. Nobody from Bentley's league has beat anybody in DII. Ever. Heck, they've never even scheduled a decent team since joining DII. In total, I see only one argument in the great "DI-AA v DII Playoff Debate." It's a hilarious one too. DII's playoff system is not well laid out! Heck, The Sicatoka still doesn't seem to understand it. The SSI is a crock of crap but to DII's credit, it is only one of many equally-weighted criteria. In fact, a team's results against DI competition are listed among the selection criteria and, if the rules are followed, they are given equal weight with the other eight. Which one gets more weight? It depends on who is making the argument (i.e. it's a political process). Heck, DII doesn't even publish the SSI ratings and will probably end up replacing them soon. I tend to look at results though. The DI-AA system does a much, much better job of getting the best 16 teams in. However, the DI-AA playoff selection committee does refer to a rating system when making playoff selections. It's called the GPI. If you want to argue SSI vs GPI, I'm game. Just know this, with the SSI, Bentley would be rated higher than Michigan. The fatal flaw with the SSI, just like the entire DII playoff system, is that it is not designed to get the best 16 teams into the playoffs.

I've looked for, but am not seeing, a stirring defense of the DII playoff system yet.

10 Reasons the DI-AA football playoffs are better than DII's: 1. Two or three times as many people attend DI-AA football playoff games than DII playoff games. The fans have voted! 2. No regionalization like DII has. The Big Sky has three teams in the playoffs all in a different brackets. The best two DI-AA teams have a much better chance of meeting in the championship game than in DII. 3. If you don't play anybody that offers scholarships, you don't get in (i.e. No Bentleys). 4. No laughable Strenth of Schedule Index (and, hey, it's not the sole criterion, guys. UND was #1 in the region long before their SSI was). 5. Eight at-large teams - no regional quotas to be filled. 6. The DI-AA playoffs have steadily improved their playoff system. DII has spent 15 years screwing up theirs. DI-AA is better managed. 7. In the first round and second rounds, teams might get to play somebody they haven't already played recently (or ever) just like in the old days of DII. 8. The semifinals and championship games are both on national TV. 9. Complain about Southern Illinois getting a home game? Huh? They lost their last game. How about Central Oklahoma at Mesa State, Grand Valley at Bentley, or my favorite, NDSU at Delta State? Every year, DII gives home games to teams that don't deserve them. 10. The new guys challenging for DI-AA titles are going to be fully funded, won't be trying to drag down the division, and will have names like North Dakota State, Northern Colorado, and UC Davis instead of Bentley, Concordia-St. Paul, and Tiffin. DII has declined to the point where the typical DII school now has: an enrollment of around 3000, a name like <Town With Fewer Than 15000 People> State (<enter state abbreviation here>), and an athletic budget that would have to double or triple to fund 36 football scholarships (so naturally they are going to want to continue reining in the big bully schools). Now, can any UND fan explain to me how the DII playoff setup better than DI-AA's? Note: I'm looking for a serious answer here.

Oh please, CoteauRinkRat, I've lost count of how many times UND guys have lost all, most, or some respect for me I can see why you might not like me pointing out that all but one of the IP addresses were from Grand Forks, but why not get angry at the people who were posting that kind of stuff in the first place? Huskie679 is way off base. I listed the banned and their offenses so Jim could say, "Heck, they'd have been banned here too." My only mistake was letting some of those people post as any times as they did.

Hahahaha! Maybe Huskie guy should have asked what my policy was on banning people. Always glad to give good old Huskie679 one more thing to add to his list of "Horrible Ways NDSU and their Fans Have Violated Me." I've banned seven user names (all Grand Forks IP addresses - congratulations, Grand Cities), representing four or five different guys. I banned SiouxRock three times - and he lasted a lot longer on Bisonville than he did on SiouxSports (that was back when I was more patient with foul-mouthed idiots). He posted 151 times before his first ban and 80 some before his second. I banned another guy whose logins were NDSUcks and NDSU CKS, not because of his login name, but because his posts, one of which I did end up deleting, were kind of in poor taste. None had anything to do with Bison athletics. OK, I've never had any patience with idiots so he went fast. I banned two other guys for a little too much talk about a Bison coach and the type of sex toys she might like - as well as a whole bunch of speculation about Entzion's sex life. I actually thought these two should have been forced to march the length of University Avenue in Fargo bearing sandwich boards displaying the text of their posts. *Sigh* I don't have that kind of power... yet (bwahahahahaha!) so I had to be satisfied with banning them. My worst crime was that I deleted Huskies679's glowing contribution to the world of letters. Tragically, I don't remember what it was so the wit and insight he bestowed upon unworthy Bison fans may have been lost forever.... Oh wait, here's your chance, Huskie679, post it again on the SiouxSports board! I can't delete here... yet (bwahahahaha)! Yeah, I've had to delete some posts lately. If anybody at SiouxSports.com thinks I've done a disservice to the world, then I can probably retrieve them and SiouxSports can display them proudly on their site. Since almost all of them originated from Grand Forks, that would only be fitting. Then again, maybe Huskie679 should be the one to right this wrong. He could start a Huskie football board and display the posts himself.

If the BCS schools leave the NCAA, they can't be any part of an NCAA tourney because NCAA championships are for NCAA schools only. It wouldn't be up to Goldie.

The Sicatoka, if the BCS leaves the NCAA, it just won't be for football and basketball alone. There wouldn't be any more BCS schools in the NCAA hockey tourney either.

That's ironic considering that this forum is practically devoted to doom-saying about NDSU's chances in DI.

Maybe the reason NDSU officials said it wasn't critical was that they were sure that the postseason ban was going to get reduced from 13 years. Sept. 1, 2002, in a Forum article, Coach Miles says there "is no doubt in my mind that it will change." The "it" he's talking about is the probationary period.

HAHAHAHA! It means NOTHING. It means that if RT answers a question, he always gives at least two contradictory non-answers. This is nice for you because you can interpret what he says in any way that suits your purposes. You think UND athletics is a business? OK, let's say you ran a business. Your business landscape is almost certainly going to change. Your employees in one division are asking you what you are going to do when outside forces intervene and force you to cut your benefits for your production workers. As a leader, you stand before them and say, " Hey, it's fine. We'll probably just transfer the savings into this other department. However, there is a slightly smaller possibility that we will do something about it."

I can't argue with anything Roger says in that. Not sure why you picked that particular quote. It sounds like he'd embrace cuts in DII scholarships. Of course, later on he probably says the exact opposite.

Lawkota, if Kupchella doesn't think DII is going to change despite the influx of schools the size of Fargo North, he is near-sighted. That said, I can fully accept that what is good for NDSU might not be good for UND. At this point, I want UND to stay in DII. Now that the DI NCC is no longer a possibility, it would hurt more than help as UND would just represent another competitor for conference membership and for athletes.

Sicatoka, we'll just have to disagree. PCM, well I'm glad you care about NDSU's problems. ScottM, more cynical? Did you mean less cynical? redwing77, I wouldn't flame you for that. Personally, I think football drives NDSU's athletic department, not UND's hockey program, but I can disagree with you without flaming ya. Lawkota, I was being a funny guy by implying that you misunderstood the analogy but you opened it up by suggesting that I was likening the "demise" of DII to WWII. (I mock my friends too - usually they have the benefit of being able to kick my ass as soon as I'm done though). Churchill and Chamberlain led different parties, served the same state. Same can be said for Chuck and Chapman (I like alliteration as much as analogies). I agree with most of your points, especially that going DI is a going to be huge and difficult undertaking for NDSU. But if Kupchella really does understand the nature of the changes in DII, what is his Churchillian plan for dealing with them? That is not a plan; that is hoping Germany will come to its senses. The changing nature of DII gets no mention at all. Anyway, I've taken this way off topic. Before raising ticket prices again or ending the rivalry, Kupchella and Thomas should ask themselves, "How does this serve the state?"