UND92,96

We are probably going to be able to judge the current state of UND football by comparing our season to USD's. USD played at NAU earlier this year, and lost a competitive game 22-16. They also beat future UND opponent UC-Davis 10-7. Next week, they host Montana, and the week after they host SDSU. USD is currently leading #10 Youngstown St. 17-13 in the first half in Vermillion.

Tyler Morrow?

Also Jake Nordick. And wasn't there another linebacker who originally went to NDSU, transferred somewhere, and ended up at UND? His name escapes me right now.

And speaking of Nebraska, many followers of Husker football feel the aforementioned loss to Minnesota was the last straw for Bo Pelini. I fully expect Nebraska to have a different coach next season. Which would likely mean that many, if not all of the current Nebraska assistants will be looking for new jobs this off season. Will this have any bearing on UND? Who knows.

While it's admittedly a moot point, it's still kind of interesting to look back about how things transpired which ultimately paved the way for Muss to be something of the "last man standing" when Lennon left. What if it would have been Muss, rather than Bubba, whom UMD hired after the 2003 season? Both were finalists. And what about MSU-Mankato? I think many forget that had they acted a bit sooner, Muss very possibly could have ended up there after the 2007 season: http://mankatofreepr...er-than-Mussman And of course, had Lennon left a few years earlier, which he had the chance to do, would Tibesar have been promoted before he had the chance to leave for Kansas St.?

I agree that Behrns was too young when he was promoted here--29 or 30. But Muss was about 40 when he took over, and is now about 45. I don't think youth or inexperience is his problem as it may have been with Behrns. The big difference though is that when Bohl had his really bad year, he had a 45-16 career record prior to that year, and they weren't getting blown out. This has been the kind of season any sixth-year head coach would have an extremely difficult time surviving. I just don't think Muss has built up anywhere near the equity that would be necessary to pull it off.

I thought Sioux Football Insider had a good point in their most recent blog, suggesting that Kleason be moved back to his natural position of guard, and starting Barton at tackle.

I think that homecoming attendance told us all we (or Faison) needed to know. UNC will almost certainly be the lowest number we've seen for any of the "deer opener" games, but that's not really going to be a surprise to anyone.

This is what I just can't understand. Offensive line really should be the last area a person would expect would struggle this badly given Muss's background, and the fact that unlike some other positions, you should actually be able to find these guys in the traditional recruiting areas. How did things get to this point?

Just saw on twitter than DeLaSalle pg Geno Crandall has committed to UND.

Maybe the most honest column I've read from the Herald sports department, and I agree with every word: http://www.grandfork...group/homepage/

Hopefully this just shows that maybe it won't take long for the next UND coach to turn things around. One can only hope, anyway.

6634 was the announced (paid) attendance today. Maybe 6000 actually there.

I hope to get there.

Big Sky pre-season polls are out: http://www.undsports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=13500&ATCLID=209285520

USD won a college division basketball title, as did SDSU. SDSU also won a title in dII women's basketball.

Your argument would be more compelling if anybody was saying that somebody on staff should be promoted. By your logic, when Gino was let go, hiring Blais was a mistake since he was a former UND assistant.

That's not the point. I'm just saying that the mere fact that somebody has a previous connection to the UND football program shouldn't be viewed somehow as a negative. That's different from saying it's a prerequisite to getting the job, which clearly it is not. And whether a school hires a complete outsider or not, there is still the very real possibility he could be a complete bust. You just don't know.

The problem with trying to find the next Bohl is that you may also end up with the next Babich or Brewster. Considering the success the UND football program had from the early 1990's to 2007, I think it's only natural people have a certain affinity for those partly responsible for that success. That's not to say that a complete outsider would necessarily be a bad thing, but to expect people to not even throw names around of coaches formerly associated in one way or another to UND or North Dakota is unrealistic.

I guess I'm looking at things from the perspective of how it would be nice to have a third guard on the roster who could play both the 1 and the 2, and Hooker is the only one who might fit that bill. Antwi can't play the point, IMO. I do think the minutes would be there for Hooker, assuming he really is the third-best guard on the roster right now, to back up both Webb and Anderson and conceivably get 15-20 minutes per game. Under normal circumstances, I'd agree that ideally it would be nice to have Hooker be a four-year starter, which would probably happen if he redshirts. But with this being a season in which UND has a real shot at making the NCAA tournament, and you don't know when that opportunity may arrive again, it would be nice to have another weapon who could conceivably help the team reach that goal.

First, we really don't know what Tibesar makes, but let's say it is $300k. How far does that get you in a city like Chicago compared to one-third less in a city like GF? What about the costs of housing, for example? Taxes in Illinois vs. North Dakota? There are a lot of factors in play. I don't think it's as clear cut as you might think.

Nice job. I agree with you that Hooker may very well end up playing this year. Truth be told, I would actually prefer that Anwi redshirt rather than Hooker.

He's an alum, as is his wife, AND she is a Grand Forks native. For all I know she has no interest in moving back, but I believe she does still have family here, so it's certainly possible she would welcome such a move. True, but there's still a world of difference in that regard between FCS and the NFL. I would guess he'd get a minimum of five years unless somehow things got worse than they currently are after the first three years. It's interesting to think that had Tibesar stayed at UND for two more years, in all likelihood it would have been he, rather than Muss, who was promoted when Lennon left. What might have been...

I certainly don't know Tibesar personally, but I have to think there are coaches out there--particularly those with young families--who might appreciate the lifestyle of a college head coach at $200k per year, give or take, with a much lower cost of living to boot, over making more in the NFL, but with absolutely no job security to speak of.

It will be interesting. I believe the smallest regular season crowd since the Al opened was the Lamar game from a few years ago--6238. I suspect we'll see a new low for the UNC game, and will possibly be close on Saturday.