katohtr

I do see your point here with the travel costs and lack of home games....but this is all NEAR future sort of stuff. I would like to think that with time they would find a conference, better recruits, and maybe get themselves their own field. Any school that's tried to make a jump has experienced some turbulence, which is to be expected. Most of our sports (with the exception of football and maybe women's hoops) will be beat on a little bit. I still disagree with the cost being that much of a factor....their budget right now is not costing the University a whole hell of a lot in terms of athletic funding, and having a baseball program is going to bring in another 50-60 students that would otherwise be spending their tuition money elsewhere. I think that a baseball program (whether they're competitive the first few years is irrelevant) is good for the University. I thought that hockey was given some gagillion dollar donation from Ralph Englestad, which a certain percentage was to be split up amongst the other sports? Or am I way off? Cause I was under the impression that hockey was semi-funded by the Englestads....somebody clue me in.

Why is it not realistic? I'm aware of the bumps and bruises NDSU's baseball team has experienced over the past season and a half and I'm assuming that we would go through something similiar with a jump. As time passes I believe that this will change--they'll eventually get good enough to be competitive at that level. Zig has managed to do an excellent job putting a pretty decent product on the field for the time that he's been there--and I believe with a DI status, he'd could only do better. Long story short here, I think that we could (with time) be competitive. NDSU, SDSU, AND UNC have been able to keep their programs, and they've been running all over the U.S. trying to get games in, getting beat BADLY for the better part of two seasons--with no talk of cuts...so you can't tell me that it's not affordable. Also, we would most likely join up with the former NCC members....so there's half a conference already. I'm only antsy about this because I played in this program and would be heartbroken to see it go. I understand that from a monetary standpoint, it may make it difficult to continue pumping money into a non-revenue sport--it's apparent that it's tough already--evident by all the budget cuts...but this program has been around FOREVER--and as I already said, if these other Universities in the identical situations can make the jump and keep baseball in tact, I don't see why we can't.

You've hit on some good points here....although anything can happen in the conference tourney (especially now that all 6 teams are invited this year), MSU or UNO will run away with the title. Not sure how the NCC got so "down" this year, but that is definetely the case. You're also right about the "pay to play" comment. Sports such as baseball really only have enough money to cover their travel, equipment, meals.....the necessities. Guys here had to buy hats, undershirts, work-out gear....ect. They also have had to fundraise every year for a few extra bucks to do something that just about every other program on campus has the luxury of doing. When you look at the big picture it really isn't all that fair that baseball has to do all these things just to "keep up with the Jones'" when programs like volleyball have a "butt-load" of money (7-8 full rides for about 15 girls), and more free stuff than you can shake a stick at. They were, for a long time, a non-revenue sport just like baseball, softball, golf, track.....yet they had second-string girls on a 85-90% ride! You know what a second-string outfielder at UND gets? MAYBE $500.....for the entire YEAR! That'll barely buy your books. HELLO TITLE IX! The point I'm trying to make is that cutting UND baseball (which I'm not even sure is in question right now, I'm still ranting about some earlier posts) doesn't make any sense to me at all. How can the program be expensive enough to cut? I know for sure it won't be because they lost to UMD.....granted they're not a huge force in the NCC or when they were in the NSIC...and UND probably should win games against a new conference opponent (no offense beersong). But UMD took 3 of 4 from a decent UND team last year AND made a NCAA Regional appearance in 2003, so we should probably start cutting them some slack. When they start getting swept by SCSU....then we can crucify em'.

I've read a lot of your posts both here and on Bisonville and I have to say that this one is pretty out of character for you. This post has ZERO substance to it and sounds like it came from a Bison troll. Not only is there no substance, but to suggest that a couple losses (or a bad season for that matter) be additional ammo to cut this program is absolutely asinine. This team is only 2 years removed from a trip to the NCAA Regional Tournament (which is a quite the task to get there) and tying the school record for wins. Yes-if they go DI they'll have monetary issues just every other 2nd/3rd tier sport at UND will....so why do they have to be on the chopping block first? Why not take a look at softball or golf--programs that haven't won anything since the Reagan administration before you cut a program with as much history and tradition as this program. Bad form USA Hockey!! Bad form!

Excellent point....something like this should NEVER happen. Teams that are clearly that inferior should not be able to come into another's house and make themselves a sandwhich!!

I'm not sure that "wild" is an effective enough adjective for that idea!!

This is exactly the point that I was trying to make earlier in this thread. You want to do a nation-wide search to find "super coach," go right ahead (whom by the way, if you bring this guy in next year and he "poops the bed" at the DII level--what's gonna happen when/if we make the jump?) So in the meantime, while you're looking for "Mr. Right," why not give Randall a year to show that he's capable of doing the things that you're all looking for; he's paid his dues. The only thing similar about the volleyball/basketball coaching scenarios is that the assistants want(ed) to be promoted, and are/were experiencing major resistance....that's it. Holt was no more qualified to head coach that team than I was. He may have had the X's & O's knowledge to coach at that level, but that's only a small piece of the pie. The biggest thing, as Corella mentioned; Herbst has the support of the players, Holt did not. These kids WANT to play for this guy. What more of a motivational factor to do you need to get the kids excited about basketball again? You guys that played sports should know the importance of having someone you respect, and want to win for at the helm.

Obviously 15-1 and 7-7 are complete hypothetical scenarios, nobody knows who's gonna be in charge of the team and what kind of effect it will have on them....but you missed the point. The examples that were given by ESPNInsider were to point out that if Randall is given the chance that he deserves, AND produces--all of you (most posters expressing their disapproval) would be seated comfortably on the Herbst bandwagon. All this really boils down to is that you want your beloved Sioux to START WINNING, right?. So.....who's to say that Randall's not your guy? I get the idea that he should be partially to blame for the misfortunes up to this point. However--to have the NCC player of the year that many times, along with a damn good supporting cast each year, and continue to underachieve season after season....there's only one person who should be wearing the dunce hat. Some close sources say that Randall has some entirely different styles and beliefs about how to play the game of basketball. Isn't that exactly what everyone wants? Change? Why does he have to be "thrown under the bus" along with Rich and his philosophies? Although it all seems to make perfect sense, you can't put Herbst at fault for what has happened with the men's BB team. A team could have the best assistant that college basketball has seen, and it wouldn't mean SQUAT if the players didn't want to play for and/or respect the Head Coach (which is what I've heard happened in this situation). Herbst has the respect of the players, and as I mentioned before--he'd bring a new look and new ideas to the gymnasium. I really think you guys should give the man a chance!

This sounds like a mean case of "redass".....are we a little jealous?

Thanks.....I got it. What period is it?

Will somebody please tell me what the score is?? I'm at work and I can't find any live feed from the internet....a score is all I want.

Anybody got a score they could report?

Anybody got a score on the game to report??

I guess I was unaware that stores were even making replicas of these jerseys....that's good for the program, like you were saying, as "walking" publicity. Night games don't exist at UND....at least not in the spring. Waaaaaaaaaaayyy too cold. Although there have been some springs where you could get away with it, the majority of the games are played in the early afternoon. As far as crowds go, it really varies on the weather and sometimes the opponent. On a nice day when UND played NDSU (they're "too cool for school" now) they'd get somewhere close to 1000 people....maybe more. On the average they'd get around 200-300 people. Attendance would also depend on how the team is doing. They always get the "regulars" (friends, family) but the seasons that they were doing well, they recieved a good portion of support from the student body as well. The football team was always good about supporting baseball, never really figured out why......but a group of them almost NEVER missed a home game. Good to see athletic teams (especially one as prestigious as UND football) supporting each other.

I agree....but those were actually my second favorite. I felt the pure black jersey with green "Sioux" across the front looked real sharp. Anyway, to answer your question, my guess is that because baseball is a "non-revenue" sport at UND. There is no charge for admission (therefore they don't earn), and a large chunk of the team's budget is acquired by team fundraisers or furnished by baseball alumni. I think that there would have to be a larger public demand for the baseball uniforms (like football or hockey) in order for the University to have them manufactured for retail. Suggestions to getting your hands on a jersey (can't guarantee white), would be to ask around. Every so often they get new uniforms and make the old ones available for sale. However, because of the budget, this sort of thing doesn't really happen all that often. So...about the white jerseys that you asked about, those are 5 seasons old (or something like that), and there's no real way of knowing when it is that they'll be replaced.

That would be SWEET!!

Have to admit, I've been over there a little bit as well. I'm surprised at just how "touchy" they are now with ANY comments made about any sports at the U of Agriculture. Like the other day, they were talking about Bison Baseball being #12 in the nation in strength of schedule. I made some crack about how after seeing last year's record for BB (10-43-1), no WONDER they had to talk about SOS. (Also asked why they weren't coming up to UND this year, as per the agreement made last year, and suggested that they weren't afraid of losing 6 of last 7 to a "insignificant" (as they put it) DII program)......not even 10 minutes later, their admin. wiped out my post and snickered to the poster before me about what he'd done? Our administrator wouldn't be such a "homer".....

Time for another Sioux baseball update...... UND baseball travelled to sunny Brookings, SD to play former NCC opponent SDSU on Wednesday (29th)afternoon. Struggles on both ends of the game led to a sweep of the Sioux dropping their record to 5-10. Not much to say about game one. Jacks pitcher Caleb Thielbar went the distance facing only 4 batters over the minimum. The lone Sioux highlight came in the top of the 7th when senior Jason Fairchild singled in UND's only run. Final score: SDSU 12 UND 1 Game two was actually much closer than the score indicates. Senior Darrin Heston held the Jacks in check for most of the contest trailing 2-0 entering the sixth. Fairchild led off the inning with a walk and was moved over on a groundout by 1B Chris Gulsvig. JUCO transfer Tim Burns then blasted a one-out, game tying homer, bringing the Sioux back to life. The high was short lived though, as the Jacks tacked on 4 in the bottom half on the inning, taking the wind out of the proverbial sail. Final score: SDSU 6 UND 2 Catching up on stats..... (SO) Scott Schmidt is still leading the squad with a .362 BA.....(SO) Chris Gulsvig, (JR) Tim Burns, and (SR) Troy Wasiloski are not far behind at .356, .333, and .327 respectively. The pitching staff is still trying to get in their "groove." Sioux hurlers are at a collective 5.11 ERA with (SR) reliever Lucas Sandman (1-0 2.45 ERA 7.1 IP) and (SO) Aaron Dehn (2-2 4.32 ERA 25.0 IP) leading the way. The Sioux travel tommorrow to Fayette, IA to play Upper Iowa University in a Sat/Sun 4-game set, their last contests before Tuesday's scheduled home opener. (4/4 UMC 1/3pm Kraft Field) Oh, almost forgot....if anyone's interested, the new media guide is available to view online at http://www.fightingsioux.com/sports/baseball/mediaguide.asp

I agree with replacing the nickname with nothing IF it is "pulled." The fans of North Dakota are very passionate of their tradition. I believe, without a doubt, that the fans will do the "announcing" of the words "FIGHTING SIOUX" for the PA guy after he introduces the University of North Dakota (which has already been suggested on another thread, just thought I'd second that). This way, we're still the "Fighting Sioux," it just may not say that on the uniforms.

I agree with this 110%.....so why is that? Why aren't alumi, current students and student athletes asked their opinion?? You're right though....I went through practice 9 months a year for 5 years with that name and those colors on my back....but nobody's asked how I feel about it......how WE feel about it. I do understand that there was more to the story with this guy than what I posted....I guess what I said was more out of frustration than anything. This guy just really rubbed me the wrong way, which apparently, I wasn't the only one....

I found a quote in someone's postscript (sorry, I'm gonna borrow it for a sec) that really hit home with me on this subject.... "There

I follow...sorta. About your boy....I think it would be unfortunate if your son ended up a Bison....for a couple of reasons. First off, it's NDSU, so being from the GF area, and playing sports for the Sioux, I automatically have to advise against it. Secondly, I don't think that McLeod has a coaching brain cell in his head (however if your son is a pitcher he could really take advantage of having Redhawk pitching coach Steve Montgomery on staff). And lastly, have you checked out what the NDSU baseball team is having to do to play any games lately? They have to drive around the country all spring, never having a home game. Nobody in the DI baseball pool (even the smaller DI schools) want to come up to North Dakota to kick the hell out of a program that has NO business at the DI level....at least for now they don't. Now don't get me wrong here, playing schools of that caliber is good for developing young talent. But don't you think at some point it would get old to get your head kicked in game after game? I knew a couple of the guys that played on NDSU's baseball team last season. They really had no business on a DI program, but they were sort of "grandfathered" in because of the schools' transformation to the DI level. They explained to me how playing like that (getting killed, never having a home game) sucks, and were pretty sure that they weren't gonna be back next season. They complained that it became a "joke", how nobody cared anymore, guys weren't taking practice or team rules seriously...ect. College athletics of any sort is about the SPORT, the competition, hanging with teammates...ect. The minute the whole thing becomes a joke and the morale of the team falls apart, you've got nothing more than a brutal team that you were on in high school. Now maybe your son is good enough to compete at this level, but the point I'm trying to make is that NDSU's program is gonna be a punching bag for a few years. Your son would be much better off getting the "real" college baseball experience at a school that HAS an established conference and CAN compete with most of the teams on their schedule.

The Old Ralph has been used for almost 4 years now by the UND baseball team and also UND's track and field (maybe cross-country too....not totally sure). Track uses the concourse to do their conditioning, as the concourse is obviously bigger than the Hyslop indoor track (or any other track UND has to offer for that matter), so it serves as a very useful area for them. As far as baseball is concerned, they take their pitchers over there and throw "long-toss" on what used to be the main sheet. This also serves as a useful area as there isn't quite enough room at the Hyslop for position players AND pitchers.

I don't think that the weather will determine whether or not the team will struggle. Not being able to play at home until late April/May is in fact tough, but the issue is more in depth than that. UND baseball usually has 25+ games under their belt before they come home. Also, they have a great situation with indoor practice facilities now that basketball and volleyball have moved into the Betty. They have almost the entire Hyslop (main arena + multi-purpose arena), 4 batting cages (2 on hydrolic lift system), multiple "indoor" mounds.....not to mention access to the old Ralph Englestad Arena. This plus the fact that Zig has been dealing with this situation (college baseball during spring in GF) for 12 years (+ his years as an assistant)....I'm pretty sure he's got a game plan on how to get the boys ready for the season.

Thanks for starting the thread. Squirtcoach's son (of the POI/SS controversy) is a baseball player and interested in playing for the Sioux, among other teams. So any info regarding the team is welcome.