UND92,96

I believe it's August 8.

May was listed on the roster last year, even though he couldn't even practice. Perhaps it's just different policies for different sports within an athletic department.

I hope that's true, but it begs the question--why has Murray's name been removed from the roster?

Barring any academic issues, FBS transfers do not have to sit out a year when tranferring "down", so Moore should be eligible to play this year.

My understanding is that Murray has not been dismissed, so if his grades improve he can return. It's hard to say how likely that is, however, as we heard the same thing about Chappell last year...

Here's Moore's bio from the 2008 Gopher roster/media guide.

Hopefully it's a good sign for the depth and talent on the defensive line that Wayne is not even listed as a starter right now.

This prospectus posted on www.fightingsioux.com includes a depth chart. It's apparently not the same one from the spring game, as Bamba is listed as number one at split end, whereas he was not starting, and may have been as low as third, as of the spring game. A couple of other interesting things are that Kenny Watkins, who played a lot as a true freshman, is listed at third at right corner, and former linebacker Noah Dombrovski is now the starting tight end.

I just noticed that recruit Mitch Overstreet isn't listed on the new roster. I wonder if he decided to play baseball somewhere instead?

I'll be very interested to see whether the starting offense will be more or less the same as from the spring game (with the probable addition of Bondy), or whether we'll see some of the talented young players/newcomers such as Sutton or Davis or Anderson break into the starting lineup. Plus, will Bamba get himself out of the doghouse? He could be a difference-maker, as he showed some real playmaking ability last year.

I don't disagree, at least most of the time, but according to Wayne Nelson's article from Saturday's Herald: I'm sure it's not a decision being taken lightly, but it's apparently being seriously considered.

Speaking of the post, does anybody know whether Ledger will be able to play this season?

I guess I look at certain positions as being more likely for a first-year player to contribute--running back, receiver and corner. If there's a need, i.e. few proven returnees, and if a kid is likely better than those returnees, it may make sense to play him right away. For most other positions, such as quarterback, offensive line, and linebacker, it would be highly unlikely that a kid could play right away. In those situations, unless the kid is really exceptional or the cupboard is almost completely bare, then you red-shirt everybody. I think this is the philosophy that the coaching staff has taken the past few years, as the kids who didn't red-shirt have all been either rb's, wr's or db's. This year, it wouldn't surprise me if Binns and possibly the receiver from Nebraska don't red-shirt because IMO there is need at those positions, and these kids look like they may be able to contribute immediately.

I respectfully disagree. If Binns can show in pre-fall that he's one of the top three backs, let him play. We desperately need playmakers right now, and as we've seen the past two years, keeping our top backs in the program and eligible for more a couple of years is far from a guarantee, so using one of those years on a red-shirt season may turn out to be a waste (see Chappell as Exhibit A).

I'm certainly not claiming that this season is going to necessarily be a disaster, but if Murray indeed can't play (and I don't have any reason to doubt the accuracy of this info), that would mean that we'll be heading into the season quite unproven at quarterback, running back AND receiver. So how does this affect your expectations for this season? Freund, Murray and Trenbeath are all big shoes to fill (not to mention Troen and Braegelmann). Realistically, the offense is probably going to be down this year, barring a number of pleasant surprises from young players. Hopefully the defense will step up, because winning high-scoring games may not be in the cards this year. I hope the offense exceeds expecations, but to expect as much production as the past three or four years probably isn't fair under the circumstances.

If he can't play, I really hope Binns doesn't red-shirt. I think Sutton and Binns are our best bets for big-play backs.

link

From the same article: Not that I don't trust the coaching staff's decision to start Townsend off as a receiver, but between his amazing senior year passing numbers and his performance at this all-star game, he sure seems like he could play quarterback. On the other hand, the need at receiver seems considerably greater than at quarterback.

It sounds like there have been some new developments since Brad's blog: link

link

I don't really expect to see a population slide in Grand Forks anytime soon. There has been a huge amount of single-family home construction since the flood (far more than what was lost), and a lot of those homes have been purchased by younger people. I just think families have fewer kids now than they used to. I fully expect to see the Grand Forks population continue its slow rise, but school enrollment may take a long time to get back to where it was during its peak.

A few years ago, I'd have been more interested in the Big Sky than the Summit/Midcontinent. But now, even without including football, I'm actually a bit more attracted to the Summit, particularly if Centenary drops out and Denver is added. I'm somewhat skeptical of the long-term viability of the Big Sky right now. Too many schools seem to have real problems financially, and there is always the possibility of the Montana schools looking at moving to FBS football.

The only ones I've heard of are Ryan Smith from Wahpeton, and Kyle Costigan and Matt Eggen out of Wisconsin. Eggen would have to be considered an extreme longshot though, since he's already got a number of FBS offers.

I echo your congratulations. Now I'm sure BD will congratulate us for having the following all-time records vs. NDSU: 62-45-3--football 158-128--men's basketball 40-33--women's basketball