UND-FB-FAN

The funny thing is, in most other industries in GF, the pay for the most part is above market value in order to get good out-of-state employees to move to Grand Forks. From a UND athletics standpoint, hockey does that, but in all other non-hockey sports, it’s a*s backwards. Football and basketball tries to recruit and retain coaching talent with pennies when they should at least be using nickels and dimes …

At some point all this “inbreeding” needs to be closely examined by UND athletics. It’s not like UND football has been consistently doing anything great since going DI, and the head coaches have been “UND guys” in Mussman and Schweigert during that time … UND needs to take a hard long look at guys outside the program, mainly DII head coaches with great records of success.

Honestly the PA announcer should prompt the crowd to get up and get loud on all downs when UND is on defense. This idea that the crowd should only be prompted when it’s 3rd down is lazy. For when UND’s on offense, they definitely shouldn’t be playing music loud right before the snap … do that when UND’s on defense!! also, they could put on the big screens “quiet, offense at work” or something like that when UND has the ball. this is sad for a couple reasons: 1) shows how uninvolved UND athletics is with anything football (they have a bunch of NHL goons in the athletic department) 2) shows just how uneducated fans of UND football are about football in general … or just how unenthusiastic (apathetic) they are about UND football

Big slow receivers are UND’s speciality, though.

I sure hope so. If you can’t see a jump in recruiting after all those improvements, then what the hell? (for the record, I think it will help)

Can’t argue with that.

Well, there it is; not surprising which sport is more popular (and therefore success in said sport has more potential to grow a university).

From an eyeballs standpoint, especially if you win a NCAA mens basketball tournament game, it is NCAA mens bb tournament. from a sense of accomplishment standpoint, including pride as fans and alumni, it would be a national championship in hockey and/or football.

It’s UND’s rival. Regionally, UND is naturally compared to NDSU. SDSU is not UND’s rival from a regional standpoint, at least not before NDSU is. Kids from North Dakota and northern Minnesota will naturally compare UND to NDSU, and vice versa. Has to do with geography and tradition/history. Lastly, NDSU football should be the benchmark (or at least the program to strive to become) for all FCS football programs, including UND football.

Agreed. SDSU got a leg up on UND by moving up along with NDSU. From a pure head to head standpoint (SDSU vs UND), SDSU has recruited better players then UND (AND DEVELOPED - they’ve had the better S&C program).

Absolutely! Completely agree 1000%. herein lies the issue with her and the donation UND accepted

Just anecdotal, but plan on more specific conversations soon. Ultimately, as I’ve said, I think the agreement with REA/Engelstad, McGarry has also been limiting. REA takes in 52% of ticket revenue - all of that just directly or indirectly goes to hockey. UND has no say in that going to football.

Beyond puzzling… and frustrating.

Because priority doesn’t appear to be there. Chaves and his department doesn’t make it a priority; that lies with hockey. People constantly donating to just hockey (which honestly doesn’t need anymore) and receiving publicity for doing so.

Agree to a point. Not sure how football’s poor salary pool is entirely football’s fault. All programs need a stimulus at some point. Heck, UND hockey got a $100M one a bit ago. UND football’s resources are not at the top compared to their regional competitors. At some point, the athletic department’s priorities and their relationship (or lack thereof) with boosters needs to be looked at also.

Spot on. As long as no loopholes open up, 2030 is a cardinal year. https://www.grandforksherald.com/news/und-ralph-engelstad-arena-reach-new-10-year-usage-agreement read the details above, awful agreement for any sport at UND that is not hockey …

The 60,000 people who attended last weekends Northern Illinois @ Kentucky game don’t think it’s an afterthought. And the media doesn’t think they’re an afterthought - they’re ranked #8 in the country right now. Mark Stoops has had up and down seasons at Kentucky. Been there even longer than Bubba has been HC at UND - wont surprise me if he leaves for a different school in the next year or two. He’s a candidate for Nebraska job.

I agree completely - in fact, stated the same thing via my other post. By accepting the $100M donation and the REA, UND put themselves in a situation where they have to emphasize hockey. But, believe it or not, I think it’s hurt UND’s growth potential in the long run. Comes down to how the country (and even the state) views college hockey compared to college football and college basketball. Fact of the matter is, college football and college basketball are still incredibly popular in this area, and without question the most popular nationally.

I completely agree and have mentioned it on this site several times. The athletic department is tied to the REA/Engelstad agreement. President Kennedy attempted to (rightfully) buck it a few years back, but McGarry went running to the press and used her public image - inflated by the REA donation - and won out. UND entered into an agreement with the “devil” in order to get the (at the time) $100M REA. The dependence on the REA and Engelstad family has been hard on the other UND athletic programs, especially since going to Division I - where more funding is needed.

Proves the point there’s “hockey only fans”. UND’s athletic department set up is unlike any other in the country - they have put all there eggs in one basket. Trying to make it big time while emphasizing hockey and overlooking the two most popular collegiate sports in the country (FB, BB). All you have to do is look at the immense growth NDSU has had over the past decade to know what the region really cares about. Many of those “NDSU fans” weren’t NDSU fans 15 years ago, but with the changing landscape, they’ve all gravitated to the school that funds the sports people care about (yes-even in North Dakota people love football and basketball - who knew??).

See above post. Those institutions still have FB success - actually, Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky have very good FB teams this year (two are 4-0 and two are 3-1). Difference? Active athletic departments to find the right leadership for the program - not afraid to find someone different if it’s just not working.

There’s definitely some passion for football at UND, despite what some might think, just need the right athletic department setup to fully unlock it.

Well Duke is 3-1 and Kansas is 4-0 this year, so I doubt it. And although those football programs are definitely 2nd fiddle to their school’s basketball programs, at least their athletic departments actively look to try find the right coach. They recognize the importance of program leadership in winning and cultivating a fan base. Kansas with Lance Leipold looks to be finally heading the right direction. Duke with Mike Elko doesn’t look too bad either. Whereas at UND, the administration doesn’t even try to improve football. Keep 9+ years of mediocrity not only together, but extend it aimlessly? They could at least try hide the fact they only care to fund hockey. The apathy and ignorance towards football and basketball at UND is gut wrenching - worst DI collegiate athletic model in the country until things change. And you wonder why folks with dollars to give would rather just hold on to it?

Well no … WRONG. FCS is not division II, as numerous posters have explained but you’re too ignorant to appreciate it. No schools chose to compete in division 2 hockey? What does that tell you? What a joke. Laughable that you defend such a joke of a sport. “St. Norbort, Univ. Wisco-Stevens Point, Adrian, Norwich” … are you serious? You think that’s comparable to football from the University of North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota State, University of Montana, Montana State University, etc. ? You’re delusional.

You’re delusional and just trying to convince yourself of your own farfetched reasoning. We all know what you’re trying to say, but it’s apparently impossible for you to realize the insignificance of it. NCAA hockey has a single classification and lacks diversity because it’s not overall popular. NCAA football has multiple classifications because there’s so many institutions supporting it - it’s diverse and incredibly popular. UND is in the second highest classification of NCAA football and the only classification available (and needed) for NCAA hockey. The highest NCAA classification of hockey is no where near as popular monetarily or attendance-wise as the highest classification of NCAA football. NCAA hockey is, however, comparable to the second highest classification of NCAA football. Keep talking yourself in circles though to convince your delusional self otherwise.