UND-FB-FAN

They're understandably frustrated, just as the fans and alumni are. A lot of "I'm done" and "so sick of this" kind of stuff.

UND may not be the most talented football team in the Big Sky, but there is absolutely no reason this team should get blown out consecutive games at home! This team, if properly coached, should be able to COMPETE with nearly any FCS school at home. The fact they can't compete with the schools in the conference-the same ones we will see year in and year out- is absolutely unacceptable. The effort isn't there cause the team has quit on Mussman. The goofing off on the sideline is simply proof of the lack of disciplines. I'm glad Faison noticed this; he'll make the correct move if this continues. Only question now is whether or not it's mid season.

If McGhee is playing, it will be a very difficult game, if it wasn't before. UND coming out on top of this one would be a very good win. Doesn't look good though.

I can't speak for the whole team, but some of it, yes.

Because the players themselves don't respect Mussman. Players at NDSU are terrified of/respect Bohl to death; that's definitely not the case at UND. Hard to have success when the soldiers think the general is full of himself and doesn't know what he's doing.

Not gonna try sugar coat this, I HATE that UND is all about hockey. If anything, I would love for football to be equally funded with the hockey program, but that'll never happen. NDSU having success at the FCS level this season already has had more national exposure than UND would have with a national championship in hockey. I guess I just see it the same way the nation does: football is #1 and basketball is #2. Nevertheless, I'll always be loyal to my alma mater. After all, I did not decide to be a part of UND just to be a sports fan, but rather to get a quality education.

Facts, buddy. UND's men's basketball went 12-8 in the conference last year and were third, not last. They actually had the best conference record for a league newcomer and almost made it to the conference tournament championship game.

If UND can come away with a win, it would show well for the coaching staff. The Montana game was tough on the players and coaches, as well as all supporters, and if Mussman can right the ship with a victory vs. MSU, then that will show well for Mussman's leadership. Now, if UND loses, it just shows this team can't beat an MSU team desperately missing their starting QB, our defense is what it is, and perhaps the team is still in the dumps after the UM game.

Heart is telling me yes, but my head is saying no. At the end of the day, I need the defense to prove me wrong. Montana State 42 North Dakota 31

So a week after we get embarrassed at home against Montana, I watch NDSU get recognition and major promotions on national television. Proud for the state of North Dakota and excited for basketball season though!

Absolutely, well said.

Yeah, I think outstanding is a bit of a stretch, especially since we haven't played the majority of the true freshmen and only a selective few of the redshirt freshmen. Don't know what those classes can be until they see consistent playing time.

The transition made recruiting more difficult, there’s no question about that, but if you have a good recruiting staff, you can still bring in good players. During NDSU’s transition, they collected several very good players, even a few which went on to play at the next level. UND and Mussman’s staff have performed horribly in the recruiting department and I don’t think there’s really much debate to that. Just look at our team’s make-up and you can see where the recruiting flaws are. QB: Two great freshman players with loads of potential, but where are the upperclassmen? Having a junior or senior who wouldn’t make a ton of mistakes is always a great asset! HB: Our starting RB is 160 lbs…enough said. Solution: A couple guys actually over 200 lbs! FB: Had to convert a linemen to FB because our projected starter quit the program. And we can’t seem to run the ball… probably more on the OL though. OL: Can’t run the ball. Several procedural penalties. Produce no push! Need some NDSU/SDSU type guys who can push the pile. WR: A+ DL: Other teams run the ball at ease. No penetration! LB: Defenses run the ball, can’t cover anyone, can’t produce turnovers, limited emotion, the list goes on…Need some “Football Players” that love contact and just make plays by always being around the football. Digger Anderson-types please... DBS: Can’t cover anyone, no interceptions, etc. 160 and 170 lbs CBs won’t get the job done. Need both more physical and more athletic guys back there. K: A P: Great young talent I know this is very generalized, but several recruiting hole are quite evident, particularly with the offensive and defensive linemen. Some of our starters belong in DII football, not the Big Sky Conference!

A combination of acetaminophen and caffeine won't be necessary, but thanks for the gesture. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to supporting the team against Montana State a week from Saturday. After all, I have mentioned before on here that I believe the team can make that game competitive, and even if the team loses two more games, they could still have a shot at the playoffs with a 7-4 record. In a more realistic sense, the chances this team records 7 wins largely falls on the potential improvement of the defense and overall discipline of the team. With the way the team has played thus far, I don't see it.

Likely will focus on how we got ran over by SDSU and absolutely destroyed by Montana. So yes, it should be a nice reminder …

Unbelievable. Open against Texas A&M Kingsville with 11,000 but this play-off eligible hyped-up Big Sky season we open with 9,000. I think this indicates how important consistent winning is to attendance. And also how much this program has descended over the past 5 years. When the season's over, I know what I want for Christmas...

The direction and philosophy of this program is certainly concerning. One benefit of being able to consistently recruit the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin is the tough, physical line of scrimmage players that are scattered throughout the immediate area. NDSU and SDSU have focused on bringing in hard-nose linemen from the area and implementing a down-hill running and stopping the run approach, yet UND has seemed to sway away from this the past couple of seasons. Even Barry Alveraz while HC at Wisconsin implemented the approach to recruit line of scrimmage players from Wisconsin and then reach out for skill players in Florida. UND can continue to use the Chicago area as a skill player depot, but UND needs to get back to getting good OL and DL from around this area. SDSU and NDSU have several skill players from around the country, but they continue to rely on local kids to anchor the line of scrimmage. Nearly all of NDSU's lineman are from either the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Now, UND has the majority of their linemen from that area as well, but they aren't utilized or simply aren't the same caliber as what NDSU and SDSU have. I think the emphasis on these players has shifted a bit. Or they simply aren't being prepared, coached, and utilized like NDSU and SDSU's linemen are.... No reason you can't have tough, physical OL, emphasize the running game, but still be able to drop back and throw the ball downfield occasionally. UND currently can't run the ball and only can chuck it around for 60 minutes. How's that worked the past 14 games? I don't think there's any argument this team would be way better if they could run the ball 30 to 50 times a game and only occasionally throw it up to Hardin, Jackson, and Golladay on PA for big plays. For comparison, the 2012 FCS National Championship team averaged 42.7 rushes/game and 23.8 passes/game UND in 2012: 31.7 rushes/game & 36 passes/game UND in 2013 (3 games): 32.6 rushes/game & 36.3 passes/game It's been shown you can win by relying on the pass, but it's much more common for winning teams to be a running the ball and stopping the run type of team.

NDSU's 2009 does not compare to UND's record last year or this year's potential record. NDSU had established a #1 national rank, a couple one loss seasons, and a few FBS wins before they went 3-8. In Mussman's time, he has 3 losing seasons out of 6 (counting this concise season thus far), no FBS wins, and a losing record against FCS teams. Not to mention he's only beat one top 20 FCS team (No. 16 Cal Poly in 2009). Last season's record and this year's Montana game are not the only indicators Mussman cannot lead UND to a Big Sky championship, but rather the past five years have all been concerning. If USC, Texas, or Oklahoma had a coach with a losing record after 5 seasons, they would be looking for a replacement. Same with EWU, MSU, and Montana; if they had a losing record to FCS teams after 5 seasons, they would be looking for a new coach. The only difference with UND is the transition period they had to go through, but I don't think that should've handicapped the program to the point it can't have a winning record against FCS teams. SDSU and NDSU certainly did well during the transition. I'm not going to settle and say UND can be the exception. No reason UND should be so poor now that the transition is over. You can say its the Fr. QBs, but they don't tackle. You can say it's the poor tackling on defense, but they don't account for offensive turnovers and false starts. You can say it's the DBs, but they don't get blown off the ball every defensive snap. Point is, this team has many areas of concern. For a team that had semi-high expectations coming into 2013, I think they are way worse than anticipated.

The 2011 team got blown out by Idaho, lost to Cal Poly in an ugly one, and barely beat Sioux Falls at home. Why would causal fans be attracted to that brand of football? Bottom line: the 2011 team was nothing special! They benefited from a weak schedule and a few lucky bounces. While in the Big Sky, we'll never have a schedule that weak again!

Wait until the end of the season to make a move. No use jumping to any conclusions; not to mention, removing Mussman mid-season won't help a single thing. Unless we see some on the field changes during the remainder of the season, I believe Mussman should be relieved of his duties. Since being Big Sky members for one season and a fraction of another, we already have lost 55-17, 55-10, and 55-17 to Eastern Washington, Montana State, and Montana, respectively. Those are supposed to be conference opponents! Not games against Big 10 and Big 12 teams! This team has shown nothing of significance over the past 6 years. Unless some astonishing things happen during the remainder of this season, changes need to be made to conclude the year. I realize Faison doesn't care what people are saying on a fan forum, or possibly even what alumni and fans politely email him, but I can assure you he cares about attendance. If attendance hits rock bottom during a season the athletic department advertised as having the best schedule in FCS, I'm quite confident Faison will feel something has to change. In that case, I hope that change includes Mussman.

UND's DBs are quite undersized. Daryl Brown, our designated cover guy, is barely 170 lbs! Not to mention our safeties barely push 200 lbs but yet can't run with anyone. So, we've got undersized DBs, so they should be able to run, right? Instead they still let guys run right past them. Our secondary has been an issue for the past few seasons and it continues to be one. I think the problem in the secondary simply lies with the recruiting. Kuksa and Reyes, along with even Javen Butler because of his physical stature, appear to be the only potential bright spots in the secondary.

I agree, don't do anything right now with the coaching situation. I mean, it's still possible to make the playoffs with a win against MSU and their back-up QB and a good stretch of wins to finish off the year! Most are penciling in EWU as a lost, as do I, but the rest of the games are winnable. UND could still lose 2 more games, go 7-4, and sneak into the playoffs. Now, in the likely event UND doesn't make the playoffs, Mussman should be relieved of his duties. This team has not shown legitimate talent accumulation since going DI and the nickname situation is nothing more than an excuse. Mussman and his staff have not been able to recruit talented players like NDSU and SDSU have, and that's resulted in UND getting blown out by the top Big Sky programs. Plus, Mussman's leadership and preparation skills appear to not be DI caliber; his coaching record speaks for itself.

It is what it is; that team won some DII games, barely beat the FCS teams they played (UC Davis, South Dakota, SUU, and UNC), almost lost to Sioux Falls, got embarrassed by a bad Idaho team (but that was okay by Mussman because Idaho is FBS and those games are meant to just be 'fun'), and lost to the one good FCS team they played in Cal Poly. That team won the majority of games they played, and that is good, but also that schedule was nothing like what we will see year in and year out in the Big Sky. Tim Brewster never put together any good seasons (15-30 in 4 seasons) - his confidence was fake. Bohl and Belichick both win consistently and have significant winning records. Throwing Brewster and Mussman into the same discussion as Bohl and Belichick is ridiculous. And by the way, I think Belichick handles the media just fine by simply deferring a lot of their questions. But, Belichick is a professional NFL coach, not an FCS college coach; not a good example for UND's coaching situation.

If the undisciplined play continues along with a couple more blowouts, then I fully suspect Mussman to be gone by the end of the season. The pressure would then be on Faison to go through a diligent process that results in the kind of coach and leader UND needs to compete for Big Sky titles and FCS national titles. Now, with that said, I don't believe firing Mussman during the season would do much good. Just as well let him coach it out, and while he does that, I will continue to support the program the best I can. After all, UND could still make the postseason mathematically speaking. The way last Saturday went, however, playoffs don't seem very realistic anymore. Certainly upsetting considering we're only 3 weeks into a highly anticipated season and already playoffs seem out of the question.