UND-FB-FAN

Perhaps when Grand Forks realizes it's not in Canada? Had to do it. But your point is valid; with the Ralph and tradition here, hockey will always be number one - even though hockey will always be # 4 in terms of national popularity.

If there's any positive to the seating behind the baskets, it's that they could be easily upgraded and it's not overly impractical. Just install taller bleacher sets and you've accomplished an easy capacity increase.

As far as home games go, NDSU is a must see/attend. However, the Montana and Weber State games should be big also. Could just as well throw in South Dakota State also.

Trenbeath, along with Rob Hunt and Matt Anderson who played for NDSU, all played for Cavalier during Cavalier's glory years of the early 2000s. Although they were AA at that time, Cavalier has now dropped all the way down to 9-man football due to numbers. Over the past decade, other teams have had to do the same. In effect, Class AA is considerably weaker than it was even 10 years ago.

Back to musical quarterbacks - oh goodie. This nationally televised game could still be somewhat closer than we expect, but I don't see anyway we end up winning. So, we show all of the skeptical recruits out there that they should be even more skeptical. Good work, Mussman.

Petrino's situation was far more severe than Bohl's when he left Nebraska. Not a good comparison at all. If Pelini gets fired, which there is a good change he will, then Bohl will at least get some consideration, especially if NDSUAAS wins a third consecutive national title.

You know this program is going through tough times when we don't even want nationally televised games because they will reveal the current ineptitude of the program. And yet there are people who want NOTHING to happen when this season is over and we begin preparing for next season. Those people should be ashamed of their lackadaisical philosophy.

The 100-times better statement was a bit of a hyperbole; nevertheless, ND Class AA football does not offer much stiff competition. I'd take Class A most years over Class AA.

Yeah, appears UND will still be on FS North this Saturday. The following Saturday, Nov.9 , will be when NDSUAAS is on FS North.

He just doesn't have the measurables. In all honestly, all this speculation is rather moot because Hanson will never start a game at UND.

Often times North Dakota Class A produces several better teams than what Class AA has to offer. So, in short, yes, North Dakota Class AA is rather weak in competition (Wahpeton and Fargo Shanley are usually quite talented however).

The fact we entered this season without a sophomore, junior, or senior QB is a glaring issue that Mussman and staff screwed up on. I'll admit I too thought at the beginning of the season it wouldn't be nearly as big of an issue as what it has turned out to be. Then again, I was also banking on our QBs not being turnover machines playing in an offense with ABSOLUTELY no running game. Horrid defense to start the season didn't help either. If anything indicates inadequate coaching, the roster distribution and depth chart have proven to be downright bad.

In the grand scheme of sports, America doesn't care about hockey. That simple. Want ADDITIONAL exposure onto what we already have with hockey? Do something with football and/or basketball. Football with Mussman has been a dud so all hope now shifts to basketball to try and make the dance. EDIT: I guess FS North would be the exception - they do carry a lot of hockey. But, football and basketball coverage should be a future goal for UND on FSN.

Here you go, in case you forgot.

I don't think I need to read the rest of my post being I composed it; I know what it says. You stated Hanson could just as well start; thus, you must be implying Hanson is similar in ability to Mollberg.

Read my first sentence; I question that he's faster.

I question that. I watched both play high school ball, and trust me, Detroit Lakes faces 100x better competition than Grafton does in North Dakota Class AA football. If you support Hanson as a DI starter, then you obviously don't realize the talent differential between Mollberg/Bartels and Hanson. There's been numerous times where Mussman has even hinted at this (e.g. spring ball).

Great point made with Maine and New Hampshire. They are FCS schools with a hockey focus and they regularly are competitive in football. However, with that said, they don't compete at a high level like the Montanas and Eastern Washington, which is what UND needs to find a way to do in order to win the Big Sky.

If you think Mollberg's play has been poor, you don't want to see our walk-on quarterback play. He doesn't have DI talent. I think he is merely on the roster for North Dakota representation - which is respectable. Nevertheless, his measurables aren't even close to those of Mollberg and Bartels; too short, too slow, and not a strong enough arm.

I was planning on flying out to this game a couple months ago. This team ain't worth the travel costs now though. Will be nice to see the team in HD on the road though. Just too bad it likely won't be a win; hope the team/Mussman doesn't embarrass the football program too bad.

I'm just going to answer my own proposed question. Everyone offers valid points about patience, limiting or eliminating negative comments, the transition and nickname issues, this year'a young team, etc. However, I feel the bottom line is the W-L record Mussman has. Having a losing record after 6 years is concerning, no matter how you spin it. I've had serious question marks since 2011, and since then they haven't been answered. Whether you preach patience or not, the athletic department can only survive so many 6,000-person attended games. That is the outlook of UND football if winning doesn't become the norm. The Northern Colorado be will around that 6,000 (maybe lower), so it comes down to whether or not Faison believes the threshold has been crossed after this season and if the athletic department can afford more potential 6000 attendance games next season. A coaching change could be the stimulus this program needs to get butts back in the seat and hopefully produce a winning culture. For the last 6 years, since Lennon left, and yes, we entered the transition, UND football has possessed a mediocre culture in terms of winning. And, the two Big Sky years have been more of a losing culture than anything else.

Games will go from ugly to ugliest.

This is a complex situation, but it's not like college football coaches are never fired if their teams don't perform after a period of time. Actually, it happens all the time. South Dakota fired their coach after their final transition year, and although they suffered through the first year of the new staff, they now appear to be steadily improving and putting together a nice 2nd season with that staff. My point is that bringing in a new staff is not unique, it's actually very common in college football if the team doesn't perform, and it can lead to fairly immediate success down the road. Also, I don't feel Lennon leaving is the definition of a "blowup". Lennon left and the majority of his former staff took over. In fact, his offensive coordinator (who had never been a college head coach) simply replaced him. Because I used precedence in the previous example, I will also state here that it is not overly uncommon for coordinators to be promoted in college football when the former head coach moves on. With that being said, UND football has not had a "staff blowup" in quite some time, because Lennon leaving was not that.

I respectfully disagree about the attendance issue via scheduling. Although scheduling was a problem during the transition, attendance was somewhat revived at the beginning of this season. The SDSU and Montana games were well attended (over 10,000 and almost 10,000, respectively) and I truthfully believe the attendance would've remained in that area, if not increased, had the team competed and/or won. Losing, especially through home blowouts, is hard to watch and it causes an attendance hit. If UND wins and competes for/in the playoffs, UND football attendance will be around 11,000. This year's early attendance numbers indicate that.

Comes down to whether or not you think 6 years is a large enough sample size. If you do, then your view is likely that Mussman has to go. He has a losing record, no signature wins against top 10 programs, and several bad loses (Sioux Falls, Idaho, Montana schools, etc.). If you honestly expected UND to struggle through the transition and the first couple years of conference play, regardless of the head coach, then I commend you on your accurate predications and I believe you likely want to wait and see how Mussman does next season. Regardless of your views, the attendance and season record indicate this is a low point for UND football. What needs to be done will obviously be decided Faison and not us. With that said, we can voice our opinions. Recruits do look at this site, but ultimately winning is more of a priority to any recruit than fan forum content. As far as attendance goes, consistently having 11,000 should be the goal. It is practical and still provides a quality atmosphere. To achieve this, however, UND at the very least needs to be competitive against conference opponents at home. Losing by over 30 points to the same opponents you're going to see year after year is unacceptable and will always deter attendance.