UND92,96

Just throwing this name out there: http://www.huskers.c...4&Q_SEASON=2013 Was once an assistant at New Mexico St., so I'm sure he and Faison know each other. Also was an assistant at St. Cloud St. from 1989 to 1994, so he's quite aware of what the UND program is capable of.

I don't care if the next UND coach necessarily has previous ties to UND, but I do hope he has ties to the traditional UND recruiting areas. I still think that might be part of the issue Lennon and company have had at SIU.

UND is ranked last in the Big Sky, and 87th overall, in the first GPI: http://www.collegesp...-With-NDSU-at-1

Tonight was the first volleyball match I've ever attended. I will definitely come back. It was a fun evening, and I was very impressed with the play of UND.

Muss is currently 29-29 in his career as head coach. You have to go back to the 1940's for the last time a UND head coach ended his tenure with a sub-.500 record.

Are there any recent examples of FCS schools firing coaches during the season, at least for reasons other than off-the-field scandals? Clearly it happens at the FBS level, but I honestly don't know how rare it is at lower levels.

I am going to disagree. After the EWU game at the latest.

This almost has to be the explanation--Faison doesn't think there are any viable options for interim coach. I still wouldn't bet on Muss coaching all 11 games this season, though. A loss to ISU, particularly if it's not even close, may be the last straw. And if not, a mostly empty Alerus for homecoming probably would be.

Greg Lotysz for interim head coach. He would command respect in the locker room.

I recall when Lennon's name was floated by some as a potential replacement for Babich.

I'll take your word for it, as I haven't researched their job histories. I do agree with your point about getting back to a power running offense and great run defense as the focal points of the program.

I'd be a little hesitant about hiring a coordinator coming off a two or three year stretch with exceptional talent, unless there's a track record of great success even with lesser talent. Case in point--let's not forget that Muss seemed like a lot better offensive coordinator than he ever was before when he was coming off two years of Dressler and Chappell.

On the other hand, the life of an NFL coach is not easy, and the job security is non-existent. Plus, never underestimate the fact that his wife is a GF native. I'm not sure this is necessarily as far-fetched as some may believe.

When I wrote this, I honestly never even considered the possibility of losing at Idaho St. on the week between MSU and EWU. If that happens--and let's face it, it very well could--things could end up being even worse than I feared attendance-wise.

Bump.

Maybe his dad could take a sabbatical from BSU and accept the interim job?

I'm guessing it's in the $225k range on paper. However, the contract probably has a clause whereby that amount is reduced by the amount he receives for his next coaching job, so it could end up being quite a bit less, particularly if he catches on as a dI assistant somewhere.

Probably the Johnny Bailey Texas A & I game of 1986, or an NDSU game of the same era.

UND gave up 65 at Stephen F. Austin in 2009.

He should be on the short list, along with Hazelton and a few others. I also think Faison has to at least give Tibesar a call.

I, for one, am glad. I want to see their best player play, and this will be our only opportunity to see him in GF. And at least now we'll be able to better tell whether the defense has made any improvement in the past two weeks.

At this level, I don't think it's unusual for a new head coach to retain one or two assistants from the previous regime. Joe Glenn kept at least two of Meierkort's assistants. Bohl retained Vigen (and maybe more, I don't recall).

I'm not so sure a lot of money isn't going to be lost regardless, due to the very real question of what direction attendance may be heading not only for the rest of this season, but beyond.

The downward trend has been pretty clear in recent years. And that was before some of the debacles we've seen in the last ten games. I still say that one more game along the lines of what we saw last week will result in a significant drop in attendance compared to last season's homecoming game, similar to the drop from 2009 to 2010. I hope I'm wrong. EDIT: If somebody had said five years ago that a September home game against Montana would draw fewer than 10,000, would you have believed it? I certainly would not have. We used to draw a lot more than that for games against UMC.

How much of a factor should attendance play into evaluating a coach? Specifically, I'm afraid this past Saturday's debacle is going to ruin attendance for the rest of the season. If per game attendance goes down this year, even with the best home schedule ever, it would obviously be a huge red flag to any a.d. The following are the attendance figures for the five homecoming games UND has played under Muss: 2008--12,164 2009--12,431 2010--10,215 2011--9,930 2012--9,742 Even with EWU coming in--the best homecoming opponent UND has had in years, if not ever--I'm afraid we may see attendance in the 7000's or worse if UND is blown out by MSU.