Bison06

I agree, you have always come across as level headed. But being that you are able to be objective about UND, how is it not fair to believe that UND left a lot of people wondering how good they actually were after going one and done in the playoffs and having the only two teams that UND could point to as "high quality wins" also go one and done in the playoffs? I'm not hating on UND, I just see those as legitimate questions. I'm not trying to beat a dead horse here, just curious how UND fans view it(and it's the offseason so have to talk about something)

What got clicking in those instances that was difficult to be consistent with?

Which game(s) against good teams last year were the best examples of when UND was playing as a top 5 team?

Fair enough. But I think if you were able to view UND's season as a non UND fan, there would be some questions in your mind. As was stated above by a UND fan, losing that Richmond game left UND open to some questions.

So you think UND showed definitive proof they were a top 10 team last year or did their performance, combined with the conferences' performance, leave some reasonable doubt for an objective viewer?

Haha, apparently they even have jerseys, who knew?

I also agree it is unlikely that a kid would choose NDSU over Iowa, but Easton Stick chose NDSU over Rutgers so it's not completely out of the realm of possibility.(conceding that Iowa and Rutgers aren't the same thing)

I think UND football took a nice step forward last year personally. Looked much improved from what I saw, especially later in the year. But you have to admit, UND's performance in the playoffs, combined with an overall poor showing in the playoffs from your conference mates, opens the door to the "pretender" conversation. I'm not saying it's true or isn't true, just that I believe given the circumstances it's fair to wonder if it's true.

I think any conference that plays a split schedule is subjected to some skepticism when top teams haven't played each other. Even UND fans are left to wonder how you matched up with EWU last year. Maybe well, maybe not so well, we'll never know. Same happens in the MVFC at times.

It's not at this point. 10 years ago, I would have been all for it, but not now. The only appeal for me at this point is UNI.

With the Nickel off to Bismarck and NDSU and UND on a path to play a yearly game again, what are the odds a new trophy comes out of this "new era" of the rivalry?

Not saying there aren't valid reasons for a fan to want UND in the Big Sky, but what about being in the Big Sky is more appealing to you personally for UND?

The Summit being a revolving door is more a product of it's location than anything. The Big Sky only remains stable because it's proximity to other Division I basketball conference footprints is remote. Teams and schools are always looking to better position themselves for success and ultimately put themselves in a more visible conference or a conference that "pays better". Stabilizing the Summit is exactly what is being done now. Here's a link to a cool map that shows the Division I basketball conferences. http://collegesportsinfo.com/ncaa-map/

Trust me, I've been introduced to the "acceptance" of dissenting opinions on that site. I stopped posting there about 4 years ago after a Bison player had a run-in with the law that I thought he brought on himself.

Your logic has flaws and is actually quite ironic. Consider the fact that you commenting on my posts is exactly what you are telling me to stop doing. Is it your job to follow my posts around this board and copy and paste your response? Maybe don't take yourself or this board so seriously, it's a distraction and entertainment, nothing more. If I was all over this board it'd be one thing, but if you look at my posting history the vast majority of it is contained to threads where NDSU and FCS football outside of UND is the topic of discussion. Take a breath, have a beer and enjoy the offseason.

Did I kick your dog at some point? You seem hell bent on finding nearly every one of my posts and telling me not to post here, what's the deal? There are UND fans who made posts that reflected my exact opinion and sentiment about this topic, yet you decide my post is the one opinion that shouldn't be expressed. Have I wronged you in some way that I'm not aware of?

This is Division I football, make no mistake, every coach in that position is there to win, period. If they don't, they'll be out of a job. Now, the great ones can both win and develop young boys into outstanding men, but it's not their primary responsibility. None of this is to imply that Coach Kleiman and his staff aren't doing both quite successfully. In fact, the vast majority of players coming out of the program say just that. Just speaking in general that Division I football coaches exist to win, everything else comes second. And by the way, learning how to put in the requisite work and discipline to win at a high level I would argue is a principle tenant in developing a strong character.

And some fans blow small things out of proportion to feed their own narrative that NDSU is evil.

I'm not sure what the big deal is here, I don't even see the kid's comments as some grand indictment on the program. Some players connect with coaches more than others, he apparently didn't. If you're in a situation where you're not connecting with your position coach, it would be easy to think they don't care about you and all they care about is winning. Wish this kid success on his path moving forward, but this is a non-story from my perspective. It's a product of the times, everybody can get their sometime not-so-well thought out opinion instantly in 140 characters.

Lighten up Frances.

One has to admire your perseverance. A mere mortal prognosticator would have tucked his tail and hid after all of your timelines and master plans fell through, but not you. Here you are doubling down on more predictions. Kudos to you sir on your unwavering attempts to envision the future.

I'm of the opinion that NDSU's best fit for it's future is the Summit League, but thought I would look into your comment about the distances. Fargo to each member city in the MVC: Evansville-833 Carbondale-896 Normal-691 Peoria-687 Chicago-642 Springfield-767 Des Moines-477 Cedar Falls-450 Grand Forks to each member city in the Big Sky: Cheney-1129 Portland-1465 Davis-1769 SLO-2003 Sacramento-1832 Flagstaff-1676 Cedar City-1415 Ogden-1180 Pocatello-1065 Greeley-910 Bozeman-817 Missoula-972 The state of North Dakota is going to be an outlier in any Division I conference that doesn't include the South Dakota schools and possibly some Minnesota schools. IMO, the best fit for both NDSU and UND, as well as SDSU and USD is to be in the same conference moving forward. Traditional rivals, close away games for fans. It's a good fit for all four schools IMO.

Yeah, I wonder how high of a prospect a school must have for it to be worth a specific trip to a school. It seems NDSU has hosted pro days recently, even before Wentz, when they had "low level" prospects. I've never known if they came to fargo because it was a hub of sorts for the region or if they came specifically to see the NDSU guys. Even back when I played we had 5 or 6 scouts show up, my senior year I don't think we had anyone get drafted. Interesting discussion, I don't know much about pro days or how they are organized.

Preface: This is not a shot at UND. The above comment got me thinking. Outside of a once in a lifetime situation like Carson Wentz created at NDSU last year, would UND ever host their own ProDay? Is it the NFL that decides who has enough talent to have a specific day at their school or can schools decide to host one and hope scouts show up? Obviously with travel to the Fargo airport being more convenient for commercial travel, scouts have an easier time getting in and getting out quickly, so will NDSU and UND, along with other local schools always congregate on NDSU's campus or how does it work?

I'm sure he could come back, most of the fanbase had become disenchanted with the former USD star though and was ready for some new blood. He just got hired at Rice btw, so moving up the coaching ranks. Not sure if he ever had the official head coach in waiting title, but he was the associate head coach I believe.