UND92,96

I gave an example of something he said, which was reported in the media, as an example of why I don't particularly like the man. I've also exchanged e-mails with him, which didn't serve to make me change my opinion. That's the best I can do without using second and third-hand accounts, and I'm not going to do that on a message board. Frankly, I'm starting to think that chastising and defending him on this board are an equal waste of time.

I have no problem, even in retrospect, with the fact that Smith didn't get the UND job. Sure, I think he warranted an interview, but such is life. What I did have a problem with was the a.d.'s above-referenced comments, which came after a process that gave us a less-than-stellar list of finalists (Jones did end up being a good hire IMO, though). I believe you yourself even posted something to the effect that "this was a dII list." I just don't care for Buning's propensity for speaking first, thinking about the consequences later.

I would think so. I believe this has something to do with the 10-semester rule which often results in a dII player being around for six years, e.g. Jeff Glas, even though he never really had an injury that would have given him a medical red-shirt. However, I believe it's a different rule in dI, so Freund probably won't have eligibility beyond the 2008 season. I'm sure somebody has a better grasp of this situation than I do, but I believe that UND's move to division I could result in some players--such as Freund in football and Daniel Harkins in basketball--getting one fewer year of eligibility than what they would have had if UND were staying dII.

I'm not sure how long ago this was posted on www.fightingsioux.com, but I just noticed this 2007 Sioux football prospectus. link

Not surprisingly, the MPO's projection of the GF population is higher than that of the census. link.

Ashley Privatsky, a guard from Devils Lake, and Jenna Gillett, a post from Dakota Prairie, have verbally committed and will presumably sign this fall.

link

My two cents is this--if Joe Alumni tries to put pressure on an a.d. to retain a once-successful coach whose time has clearly passed, that's a good example of somebody attempting to exert influence in a foolish manner. I believe that has happened at UND in the past, and obviously the a.d. turned out to be correct in his eventual decision. With that said, obviously that's not to say that a.d.'s don't sometimes make mistakes in the way they deal with current and potential donors. I just don't necessarily buy the argument that such complaints can be explained away by labeling the complainants as part of a "good ole boys" club. As an example, I (and many others) didn't really appreciate the comments by Mr. Buning during the men's basketball hiring process when he responded to questions about the required qualifications which all-but-eliminated all local candidates: Disagreement is fine, but it seems rather foolish for an a.d. to make condescending remarks like that.

I think the key word is "if." Who exactly is contending that there is a problem at UND in this regard? Personally, I don't think there is.

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To the extent this has been a problem at UND--and I have no idea whether or not it has been--is now really the time you'd want to take the chance of alienating many of the very same people you're counting on to fund the division I move?

Pretty cool that UND recruits were the leading rusher (Solum--19 for 67 yards) and receiver (VanZee--5 for 99 yards) in the game. I was actually a little surprised that team North Dakota won, given the fact that there were only two UND recruits and two NDSU recruits on the team (three for NDSU counting a walk-on). That seems like a pretty low number compared to most years. Plus, considering how Montana has dominated this series for the most part, you'd kind of expect it would take a team loaded with I-AA (whoops--FCS )/high-level dII signees for North Dakota to be competitive, let alone win.

The Badlands Bowl is tonight in Dickinson. UND recruits Solum and Kudrna will be playing for North Dakota, and VanZee and Quesenberry will be playing for Montana. [url="http://www.thedickinsonpress.com/articles/index.cfm?id=10894

In the McIntosh/Erskine/Fosston area, it's been $2.89 since at least this past weekend.

That was quite a performance by Daggett, particularly in the 300 hurdles. With his combination of size and speed, I'm really excited to watch him develop into a potentially great receiver for the Sioux.

O.K., maybe "completely stunned" was a bit of an overstatement, but I am certainly very pleasantly surprised! Thank you, Coach Lennon!

He may very well be interested IMO. And with our impending period of playoff ineligibility, his biggest drawback--playoff futility--wouldn't even be a big concern since he'd probably be ready to retire by the time UND would be playoff eligible, anyway. Behrns actually is a pretty good coach, despite the fact that he simply can't win the playoffs, but hiring him certainly wouldn't go over well with a lot of fans who remember that mid-90's UND-UNO game in Grand Forks.

Drew Daggett had a very good first day of the Minnesota A state track meet, qualifying for the finals with the second-best time in the 300 hurdles, the third-best time in the 110 hurdles, and running on Frazee's 800m relay team that had the second-best time in the prelims.

UND recruit Chris Anderson from Duluth has qualified for the finals in the both the 100 and 200 at the Minnesota AA state track meet. What makes this especially impressive is that Anderson is 6'3", which is very tall for a sprinter.

I guess I can't say that this surprises me, but it's disappointing nevertheless. I really need some GOOD news today.

At this point, I'd be completely stunned if Lennon is coaching the Sioux in the 2007 season.

Purely from a professional standpoint, yes, it would make much more sense for him to stay at his present job. But there's also something to be said for getting head coaching experience, as well as a "quality of life" issue of being closer to home. UND is of course his alma mater, and his brother is currently on the team. Basically, it's probably just wishful thinking on my and others' parts, but I heard some rumor/speculation awhile back that there may be some interest there should the job open up, so you never know.

I've always thought UNO was on the verge of a big Title IX problem, due in part to the fact that they don't have a women's hockey program, but they actually got a B+ grade.

I have no idea what the LTC would do, but if he didn't contact Tibesar immediately, it would be a huge mistake. He's got everything UND could possibly want in a coach, PLUS he's got division I experience, which I'm going to assume would be listed as a preference on the job announcement. Whether he'd be interested or not is another question, but he should be number one on the wishlist IMO.