UND-FB-FAN

If Faison is indeed going after someone not on the list, how can that be a bad thing? The target could easily be a great coach. Most were not completely satisfied with the list anyways. Faison probably has a quality coach in mind. And even though I expected it, I like hearing that the base salary will be closer to $200,000 than $150,000. I have faith that Faison will hit a home run. There's a lot of good coaches out there.

Couldn't agree more. I don't see hiring Schweigart as a great solution. He has had limited DI success. Pflugrad, Cummings, and DeWitt top my list, in that order. Schweigart would probably be fourth, though.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmXGfPacI2g

I still feel the new coach will be hired by the end of the week. It makes little sense for Faison to wait an extra week to make the decision. During the necessary 21-day posting period, he likely was communicating with several coaches across the country and gauging their interest. I'd have to think by now he has a top 3 list, if he hasn't already picked one. With that said, Wayne Nelson expects another week to go by so who really knows. For recruiting purposes, I hope it's sooner rather than later.

Pflugrad is still my favorite. He's won the Big Sky before and has FBS recruiting coordinator experience. Cummings and Schweigart, two who applied today, are the other two I really like.

Quote from Gene Taylor on his opinion regarding Bohl leaving (source: wday.com) : Gene Taylor/NDSU Athletic Director: “I’m not upset he's a friend guy you get to know, knew the day was coming knew Craig Bohl was going to have opportunities whether it was Wyoming or whoever, hate to see a guy you've built a great program hate to see it change but you know it will someday.” If that quote is any indication, then GT will probably hire the West Fargo jr. varsity coach...

Post/Song of the Month

Most of Pflugrad's former assistants are still on Montana's staff with Delaney. There was rambling over on egriz that if Pflugrad was hired, he would likely try and take a couple assistants from Montana. With that said, Pflugrad's extensive DI connections make him more than capable of assembling a quality staff. Plus, don't worry about his offense. That thing, with the right athletes, could easily average over 30 pts in the controlled environment of the Alerus. The reason they lost to Sam Houston in the semifinals back in 2011 was because of their defense, not their offense.

Although Pflugrad is my favorite of those who've applied, I do realize the odds are against him actually being the one who is hired. I have faith in Faison; I believe he'll make a quality hire that will be the opposite of Mussman. I think he fired Mussman with the idea he was going to hire someone of the opposite mold. That is, someone with DI and/or NFL experience and has the ability to be a competitive recruiter in the region against NDSU.

Because of how important the timing is due to recruiting, my gut tells me the new coach will be hired by the end of this week. Hope it's Pflugrad.

If you have good players, the scheme isn't as crucial as you would think. With that being said, it still is important. If Pflugrad is hired, I'm quite sure he'd be able to assemble an experienced staff. Subsequently, the spread option and 4-3 system that likely would be installed easily has the potential to get the job done. The most important thing is whether or not the new coach can recruit the talent. I'm certain Pflugrad could do that and then some. We'd see heckuva lot better players on campus over the next few years...and they'd be better disciplined/motivated.

Pretty sure SFI was only speculating there would be an applicant with close UND ties because were only a day out from the deadline. Still could get a name tomorrow I suppose.

New Mexico's former DC Mills (who just was fired because New Mexico's defense was horrible this year) and Cal Poly's OC and former Mankato coach are the three who applied today. They don't interest me or convince me at all. As each day passes, I become more sold on Robin Pflugrad. Just hire the man come the end of the week! Pflugrad will get this program where we want it to be: a national title contender!!

Mad? You can't expect coaches to stay forever, especially if they're successful at the FCS level. That's the reality of playing FCS football. If you're successful, you'll lose your coach due to the bigger dollars that exist elsewhere. I really doubt the next coach of NDSU will be comparable to Bohl. UND starts the process of closing the gap with NDSU next season.

What about Pflugrad puts his character in question? That whole situation in Montana ended in Pflugrad being scapegoated. I don't see how there would be a disaster of any sort at UND if Pflugrad was hired. In the end, all these top 3 and top 5 lists are irrelevant I guess. They all consist of local and familiar names, but this is a national search that very well could take Faison to someone we're not familiar with. As long as he's experienced and a leader, I'm sure he'll be a good fit.

All I am asking is that in choosing the next coach, we look at only the most obvious qualifications as objectively as possible. Ability to recruit Ability to assemble experienced staff DI FBS coaching experience NFL experience When voiding out name-recognition, Bollinger doesn't match up with most candidates. He hasn't had to recruit for very long at the collegiate level. Both Robin Pflugrad and Glenn Caruso have. Bollinger has never had to assemble a staff. Both Pflugrad and Caruso have. Bollinger has 2 years of DI FBS coaching experience, Caruso has none, and Pflugrad has 14 years of FBS experience (Arizona State, Washington State, Oregon). Bollinger has NFL playing experience, but no coaching experience. Caruso and Pflugrad also have no NFL coaching experience. When adding all that up, what do you get. 1) Pflugrad 2) Caruso .... ?)Bollinger It's basic application review in correlation with the job requirements and preferences.

Anyone who claims Bollinger is too young just doesn't understand? That rubs me the wrong way. I'm not looking exclusively at age, but coaching experience. There's obviously an emotional connection to Bollinger with those who so desperately support him. He has three years of total coaching experience, with only two of those being collegiate experience. Pitt has gone 12-13 in the two seasons Bollinger has been there; I guess that's really successful to some.

http://www.gowyo.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/120813aaa.html I just had an opportunity to watch Craig Bohl's press conference from down in Laramie. All I have to say is I have endless respect for the man. Anyone who claims he is "phony" does not understand character and integrity and I'm glad they aren't the ones hiring our next football coach. It's quite obvious he has all kinds of respect for his players and the decision to move on was not easy for him. I don't like NDSU athletics, for obvious reasons, but I love great football coaches, and Craig Bohl is definitely one of them. Let's now hope Faison can find the right guy who not only demands respect from his players and is a proven DI winner like Bohl, but that also cares about his players tremendously. I think Pflugrad fits that bill given how he stood up for his players and essentially sacrificed his job for them. Of course, there are others. Caruso also comes to mind.

NDSU's transition was more successful than UND's; I hope that's not what we're arguing. UND had Mussman led teams whereas NDSU's team were actually led by a competent coach in Bohl. UND's teams were average at best during the transition, and they only got worse once getting into the Big Sky.

Caruso have any connections that would allow him to hire an experienced DI staff? I personally don't think so. Pflugrad, and even Bollinger, would though. In my opinion: 1a) Pflugrad 2a) Bollinger Still holding out that Faison comes through with a slam-dunk, surprise hire from an FBS team.

True but still somewhat similar in terms of the situation. Nevertheless I trust that this guy can recruit.

http://missoulian.com/sports/college/montana/article_6ef65e62-111f-11df-bb3c-001cc4c03286.html Article on Pflugrad's first recruiting class at Montana. He had only about a month to recruit as head coach, so it would be a similar timeline to what he would have if hired by UND.

College football is cyclical. NDSU was never going to be the 'top dog' forever. UND football was never going to be the 'bad team' forever. Things are turning around as we speak. If Bohl, Klieman, and Vigen all leave during the same offseason that UND hires (hopefully) Pflugrad, UND will have already made huge strides in catching up to NDSU.

Yeah it is. Vigen has almost a decade of D1 experience and even more as a coach. He has way more coaching experience than Bollinger. I didn't know Bollinger had relatives on this forum; so much for objective analysis.

Supposedly, Bohl hadn't even notified Gene Taylor as of this afternoon.