UND92,96

I don't think Mertens is limited to playing the 3 any moreso than Winkelman is at NDSU. They're pretty much the same size, and if I'm not mistaken Winkelman actually played the 4 most of the time because NDSU didn't really have anybody else to play that position. Which brings up another point--the one and only reason NDSU didn't and couldn't offer a scholarship to Mertens (or May) for next year is because they have a whole bunch of scholarships tied up in players who have shown little or nothing so far. For example, who would be more likely to help NDSU next year--Mertens or Lorenzo Riley? Who would be more likely to develop into somebody who can actually score once in awhile--May or Pennick/Vaughn?

Yes, he is skinny. I haven't seen him play, but hopefully he's one of those players who plays bigger than he is.

Former Sioux player Brady Larson has been hired as one of Rich Glas's assistants. link

I don't specifically know to what extent Montana State was recruiting Mertens, but I'd have a hard time believing they would have only been interested in him as a walk-on. For what it's worth, another North Dakotan, James Hennessy from Williston, played 16 minutes per game for Montana State this year, and IMO he's nowhere near the talent Mertens is.

We likely won't see him on the field this year, but I'm excited about the potential of incoming freshman Devin Benjamin. On paper anyway, it sounds like he has exactly what you'd like to see in a nose guard.

I'm sure we're going to be reminded ad nauseum that NDSU didn't have any available scholarship for Mertens, although I believe there was some talk of him red-shirting next year there, and getting a scholarship the following year (ditto for May). I think we're all well aware of how scholarship availability can impact recruiting. It's certainly played a role in football, i.e. 36 vs. 63 scholarships.

I tend to agree, although my understanding is that red-shirt Pat Mitchell is very good and will contribute a lot this season.

Was that the case even before cousin Nick from EGF went to NDSU?

I can't really say I noticed any of them one way or the other, but for whatever it's worth Quesenberry and Hawkins are both listed as second-stringers right now. Of course, given the number of injuries at db, and the lack of numbers on the OL, it's probably not a big surprise that red shirt freshmen are possibly slated to see some time at those positions.

Seth Wisthoff has been quite impressive in track so far this spring. He's thrown the shot 60'4" already. Jim Kleinsasser's class B record of 62'2" could possibly be within his reach.

I think there's just too many variables for somebody outside the program to even begin to speculate as to exactly how many scholies may still be available. For one thing, there are numerous players on the roster who came in as walk-on's, and presumably one or more of them may now be on scholarship. Also, who knows whether the Dumas rumor is true or not? I would say that the odds are pretty good that we may still see two or three additions, but that's really just a guess. At a minimum, I have to think that both Mertens and Allard have scholarships waiting for them if they choose to come to UND.

Not really. They're impossible to beat in Vermillion, aren't they? link

I don't know for sure whether he didn't play much down the stretch due to injury or simply due to coach's decision, but I wouldn't be surprised if Darius Joseph doesn't return. I strongly suspect the coaches were expecting more than 5 points and 3 assists per game when they recruited him.

Nice pick up. I understand May is good friends with South's Jordan Allard. Any word on Allard's college destination yet?

Here are some fairly substantial weight gains: Ryan Kasowski, from 200 to 220 Jeff Tescher, from 218 to 236 Curtis Dublanko, from 200 to 222 Noah Dombrovski, from 231 to 250 Paul German, from 220 to 232 Link Gottbeheat, from 255 to 267 Keith Queoff, from 255 to 277 Jake Caufield, from 220 to 230 Nick Nolte, from 261 to 272

I believe there were 81 players listed on the spring roster, and with 18 signees coming in, that would mean 14 players must be cut.

Based upon the spring game roster, it appears there may have been a number of departures since the fall. Specifically, I noticed that Troy Bryant, Mark Kubacki, Nick Bylin, Matt Simmons and John Carruth from last year's recruiting class were not listed on the roster. Also, Nick Safranski, Pete Hiltner, Brock Setness and Andrew Gudmunson apparently aren't returning, either. Does anybody know the story with Keith and Kory Smith, a pair of 6'4" twin(?) receivers from Florida who are listed as seniors? Also, I'm not familiar with Nick Long, a tight end from Andover (MN).

I don't believe it was ever insinuated that the search be limited in such a way, but it may have warranted being a "preferred" qualification--just as coaching experience was. But it's now a moot point. Bringing it up at all was simply my none-too-subtle way of backing a Rob Bollinger candidacy...

My deepest sympathies go out to the Lennon family, as I saw in the Herald that Dale's father passed away last week.

This news makes the signing of Kenny Watkins even more significant, as I believe there was talk of not red-shirting him even before the news of Jordan's injury. Besides Otto, the Sioux will apparently be quite young at corner.

But in what capacity? If the a.d. is going to be reporting directly to the president, as Kelley has indicated, is Harmeson's vice presidency really needed? I don't know--I'm just asking the question.

The spring game is a week from tomorrow. Until then, unless the Herald runs something I'm not sure there's much to report. I haven't heard anything.

UND gets a commitment from another Missouri kid: link

Terry was and is a fine administrator. However, he probably didn't really understand the "culture" of UND sports when he took the job, which led to some mistakes for which some never forgave him. I don't think Buning really understood what he was getting into either, although he apparently didn't have Terry's administrative skills. I don't believe there was much opposition to Terry within the department, although that certainly was a problem for Buning. Maybe I'm completely off base on this one, and the hiring of an "outsider" without any apparent background in UND's number one sport will work out just fine. To reiterate, my biggest concern is fundraising. To me, that's the biggest key for UND's new a.d. at this time. Perhaps ten years from now the job will be completely different, but we're in the "show me the money" phase of the dI transition. No matter what sort of fundraising track record one may have elsewhere, that doesn't necessarily translate well into a new school/area. A good local example may be Scandrett at MSU-Moorhead. It's closely related to the whole "understanding the culture" theory. People are more apt to make donations when it's somebody they know and trust asking them. Fundraising is one of the reasons I am so in favor of Rob Bollinger.

O.K., I'm going to try this one more time--and keep in mind that I'm a football/basketball guy, and not necessarily a hockey guy. Potentially, we're asking somebody to run the athletic department at UND who faces a major challenge in fundraising in that he's not going to known ANY of the major players, i.e. the alumni and friends with the deepest pockets. These people are absolutely crucial to a successful UND transition to dI. And who are those people (by and large)? Hockey and/or football fans/letterwinners. It's only more difficult now that Dale Lennon is no longer around, because he was wildly popular amongst football alums and fans (that's not a slam at Mussman; he's just a relatively unproven commodity). Added to that challenge, he's apparently also going to be somebody who MAY not know the first thing about hockey, which MAY not make him "fit in" with the average UND sports fan. I believe this quote by Terry Wanless is something to think about: This is going to be something of an apples to oranges comparison because every school has basketball, and most have football, but can you imagine the a.d. at USC, Nebraska, Florida, Michigan, etc. not having any previous experience in football? The a.d. at Kansas, Duke, Indiana or North Carolina not having any basketball background? I just can't see it. Maybe that's not exactly what Wanless meant, but that's more or less how I interpret his above-quoted statement. Hockey is a huge part of the culture at UND. Not that it would be impossible for Hickman and/or Faison to become acclimated with the UND sports culture, but it would be a challenge IMO given their backgrounds. If Hickman or Faison get this job, I wish them nothing but the best. I just hope they're not being placed into a nearly impossible situation. I certainly hope my reservations turn out to be unfounded.