UND-FB-FAN

As long as this continues at the CURRENT DEGREE, then UND athletics will continue to struggle as a whole. From a rational prioritizing standpoint, the areas of most need should always be addressed first. Right now, considering common logic models and the amount of potential being ignored, UND football and basketball should be the focus areas,. Remember, UND men's hockey is already "maxed out" ($100 M arena, top of the line Reebok uniforms and equipment, great support, ongoing winning tradition, etc.). Unfortunately, UND athletics continues to over-emphasize hockey at the expense of the main sports that every other regional athletic department does emphasize. I am in no way suggesting that UND men's hockey should no longer be the number one sport at UND, but rather more effort needs to be made within the obvious priority sports of this country (football and basketball).

It's ridiculous and it reflects the current ineptitude that exists within the UND athletics department.

Rushed that shot at the end. They made it close, but damn, losing both games on the road trip was not good in terms of competing for 1 of the top 4 BSC spots.

Agreed. UND sure didn't respond too well on this road trip considering all the premature hype surrounding the Weber State win.

Huge 3 pt made there by Q. Hooker

Just stating that this has been a trend with his squads.

11/20 from the free throw line ... Not good. Typical Jones squad once again.

Settling for shots; no quality attempts or drives that result in free throws... Offensive flow is, well, lacking.

If UND continues to play this ol' fashion Jones style of basketball (no ball movement, no rebounding) on the road, they won't win a single meaningful game in Reno.

All of the key defensive secondary players from last season will return in 2016 with valuable experience. As a result, the secondary will be much better. Cole Reyes is the best player of the bunch and is yet only to be a junior. *Possibly* (if not already) could be the best player on UND's roster next season. Both Arnell and Palmborg got experience last season; I see either one of them filling the other safety spot quite admirably. Also, one of the incoming freshmen will get their shirt pulled and add to the safety depth (and/or special teams); possibilities include Jordan Canady, Jake Geier, or Tim Ryan (all three are very talented football players). At corner, experience is very key, and all returners have it. Deion Harris will again be the lockdown guy, and he will be good. Tyus Carter did some very good things as a true freshman last season; after his year of freshmen weights, watch out. Also, the returning experience of Jahmere Irvin-Sills and Chris Carter is important. Vashon Tucker is a wildcard type player at the spot. Although both incoming CB freshmen Holm and Randolph are talented, they may not see the field due to the four or five ahead of them - will be something interesting to watch in fall camp. Looking at the secondary as a whole, hard to imagine they won't be better in 2016. Losing Will Ratelle is a tough one, but with the returning secondary experience and the tremendous front-line depth developing, UND's defense may very well be better in 2016 than 2015. Good things ahead! Go UND Fighting Hawks!

There was no department-wide Adidas deal to my knowledge, and I think it partly was because of Jones' ridiculous views. It needs to happen; contracts exponentially expand the variety and overall supply of uniforms, apparel, and equipment. The Wisconsin deal is with Under Armour and it takes effect in July 2016. http://www.wsj.com/articles/university-of-wisconsins-badgers-pick-under-armour-as-adidas-contract-expires-1444337014

In theory, UND could sign a contract with Nike and be set with all programs. For example, the Univeristy of Minnesota has a deal with Nike, which supplies uniforms, equipment, apparel, etc. As for gloves and skates, appears most UM players wear Bauer. Of course, with Reebok, there's the Adidas option, and that seems like the most practical option. Interestingly enough, the University of Wisconsin has a contract with Adidas and the hockey program does not sport Reebok (the hockey jerseys are Adidas). Also, Under Armour produces hockey apparel with their deals, also (see Boston College). Either way, UND athletics needs to ink an apparel contract with one of the big three soon (Adidas, Nike, or Under Armour). If South Dakota State and USD can sign department-wide apparel deals, then UND with the marketing capability of men's hockey certainly can too.

Yes, this is perplexing. It needs to happen.

It's not an "Adidas" issue, it's a "lack of agreement/consistency" issue. UND is not utilizing the opportunity to provide better uniforms, equipment, apparel, etc. to student-athletes by producing a department-wide apparel deal with Adidas. Rather, there are only inconsistent, program-type deals.

My point exactly (why it's posted in the men's basketball thread). This needs to change. No reason UND can't have a department-wide deal that offers great variety of uniforms, footwear, apparel and equipment to ALL student-athletes, especially with the considerable pull UND hockey provides with Reebok and national exposure/promotion capability.

Whether this team is on the road or on a neutral court, I have concerns. Beating Weber State at home showed UND can win in a supportive environment, but they have yet to establish huge wins on the road, such as win(s) versus NDSU, Weber State, EWU, or Montana.

As college athletic programs across the country begin to establish apparel deals with top companies - namely Adidas, Nike, and Under Armour - I can't help but notice the departmental inconsistency that currently exists within UND Athletics. This needs to be fixed in my opinion. UND hockey dons Reebok, which is owned by Adidas, the company that every other program at UND wears with one exception - men's basketball. The benefits of a department-wide deal versus just a program deal are well-established; because of the modern nature of college athletics, recruits [really] care about these things. Local programs with deals include NDSU with Nike, South Dakota State with Under Armour, and South Dakota with Adidas. There are also several programs within the Big Sky Conference, such as Montana State with Under Armour and Eastern Washington with Adidas. Brian Faison needs to get a deal done; right now, the current state of apparel within UND athletics suggests a lack of focus on sports other than hockey - particularly since hockey has its situation figured out with Reebok. For the record, UND men's basketball wears Nike. Bubba and his staff made one of the "largest little changes" by establishing an Adidas identity. Now, its time UND men's basketball do the same.

The Bradley team that is 4-22 right now? Not much to brag about, I'd say.

I believe he only mentioned South Dakota STATE University...

Not looking good. Poor performance thus far.

Agree with UND being the underdog in this game. Would be another big win if Jones and co. can pull it out.

I love the enthusiasm for the 2016 season as I am as excited as anybody, but let's not get carried away. Home-field advantage is a real thing, especially with college football and a dome. NDSU's current home-field advantage with noise is far greater than what they had in the 1990s. That's what playing for championships will do. UND had the same thing during the 2001 playoff run in the Alerus.

However, the 2016 Potato Bowl in Grand Forks against the Yotes will be a fun one. Not to mention, Bubba will be facing his old UMD boss in Bob Nielson and the Big Sky-MVFC clashes are always fun. Should be a good game and, of course, hopefully Bubba Blitz terrorizes USD's QB all day long.

I agree with you, but just for fun, where is the OVERALL popularity still going to be? College hockey may yet grow in popularity, but the level that college football (yes, even FCS football) and college basketball are currently at is going to be near impossible for college hockey to match. College hockey is great, and UND is great at it, but that doesn't mean we should all scrap objectiveness and stop looking at the numbers. The numbers suggest UND hockey cannot get much bigger and, in contrast, that UND football and basketball can grow to be much more popular. My bottom-line is quite simple: there is a lot of potential and room for improvement in the areas of football and basketball at UND; therefore, those should be focus areas moving forward.

It's fact. I've commented on this several times only for it to be refuted with direct, ignorant opposition or mere reference to "equality" amongst all programs. Hockey is currently "maxed out"; it can't get any bigger. UND football and basketball has dug itself such a deep hole in terms of general perception that it will take time; however, when it does regain momentum in sports that large populations care about, it will have more of a positive impact on UND athletics than most on here would like to admit. Filling the Alerus Center, hosting extra games (FCS playoffs), and constantly drawing 2500+ in the Betty every game would boost UND athletics tremendously. Not to mention, coverage from ESPN and other national networks in terms of FCS playoffs and NCAA tournament basketball games. Hockey is what it is; can't grow anymore.