fightingsioux4life

In that case, FU had better hope they never draw UND in the playoffs. If they were to lose, there would be people jumping off bridges down there.

Kelling was a disaster as Co-Defensive Coordinator. I don't even know how he got the job in the first place. He was the worst assistant coach we have had since Jeff Menage left as offensive coordinator following the 2000 season. Mussman took his place in 2001 and we all know what happened that year.

I hope you are right; I fear that you are wrong.

Which hotshot offensive player for Montana will gash our defense next week? I think someone should put up a poll on that. That's the only thing we can entertain ourselves with at this point.

Ahem.....I think NAU would have still won with the passing game without Bauman. Our defense is THAT bad.

Please don't get everyone started on that crap again. If some people want to call it I-AA, let them. We have much bigger problems to deal with.

So without "Superman" (Bauman), we would have won the game? Did you even notice all the big pass plays we gave up? All the 3rd down and long situations where we couldn't get a stop? The soft pass coverage downfield on every single pass play? This defense gets gashed week after week both thru the air and on the ground. The names change, the results do not. Except for the Sac State road game, the defense has done virtually nothing to help us win. I doubt Bauman or Williams would have even 100 yards vs. NDSU's defense; which is what our defense used to look like. When our defense was at its peak, we would shut down opposing offensive stars (either quarterback or running back) and force our opponents to play with one arm tied behind their back. And until we get back to that, nothing that happened on Saturday will change.

I totally understand your feelings on this. Changes have to be made or this will repeat itself over and over and over again.

I am as ticked off as you are, but boycotting the rest of the season is not the answer. I will be there next week supporting the team, win or lose. But you are right, changes have to be made after the season is over.

When every single team we play has the "greatest running back/receiver/quarterback in the history of history", then it's time to question what kind of defense we have. No team, I don't care who they are, should be able to march 99 yards for 6 points in OUR HOUSE. Ever. We give up 400-500 yards and 40-50 points every single game. Our defense used to eat opposing running backs for lunch at home. Now we can't get a stop if our life depends on it. From now on, I think we should go for every single 4th down when we are across mid-field because the defense sure as heck isn't going to get a stop.

Was this Summit League inspired?

I agree with MacWilliam 100%. But, according to some people on here, winning a national championship is just too hard for our program to achieve. So we should just tip our caps to every single other school that wins the national championship and be content with WCHA (and starting next season, NCHC) regular-season and playoff titles. The standards and expectations for our fan base have really softened up from where they were when I was a kid in the 1980's and a UND student in the 1990's. It's nice to see that the players don't think like that. I take it as a good omen.

All teams would use 2 and 3 step drops with their quarterbacks and kill us downfield. They would end up with 500 to 600 yards passing and God only knows how many points. The defense will just have to use smoke and mirrors until the 2012 season is over.

This is 100% correct. Leadership and attitude starts at the top.

I'm afraid you are close to the truth on this one.

Nobody forced you to read this topic.

Are you obsessed with that movie?

You didn't read the whole post (or you just chose to see what you wanted to see). I said IF the program gets turned around (and that's a BIG if), Mussman would attract attention from other schools. And by turning the program around, I mean conference titles, playoff appearances and playoff wins. Why do so many people on here have a problem with reading what is actually there? If anyone else has any ideas as to how this program can get fixed, let's hear them. And FYI, "there's nothing we can do about it" is NOT one of them. We didn't move all our programs up to settle for this.

What kind of logic? Self-Preservation. If the defense continues on the current path, Mussman will not have a job in a couple of years (if not sooner). If Bubba could help him turn the program around and Mussman's coaching stock rises, he could get a better job someplace else and then Bubba is right there to take over the program. Age is just a number. And besides, with age comes experience and lessons learned. We need all the help we can get right now. And I don't care how radical the ideas are, as long as they work.

Let me clarify something: I would like Bubba to come back as D coordinator, NOT Lennon. I don't think Lennon would want to come back as D coordinator at a school where he was once "the man". Bubba was head coach at Duluth and he built a winner in a very short period of time; they won the D-II title the season following his departure to Southern Illinois. He has proven he can build a program from the ground up. Bring him in as D coordinator and prepare him to take over at some point in the future. Because what we are doing now just isn't working.

The defense hasn't been elite for 7 years and counting. It has nothing to do with "transition" or "FCS quality athletes". Ever since Bubba left town to coach Duluth, the defensive talent has gone way down from what it was in the early 2000's. This is a long-term systemic problem and it must be fixed. And if that means Mussman has to fire some of his close and personal friends, then that is what he had better do. If not, it might be time for him to start polishing up his resume. Leadership in a football program starts at the top. These are all Mussman's players and Mussman's coaches and he has to start taking the bull by the horns and start doing what it takes to get this program to the level it is capable of getting to. The upside of the football program is unreal, but if we don't take the right steps in the next couple of years, it won't happen. I do not want to become the next Northern Colorado of Big Sky football.

I vote for all of the above. If Lennon gets fired this year (and there is a good chance of that happening), I hope we could lure Bubba back to Grand Forks to take over the defense. He had good rapport with the players and his in-game instincts were top-notch. He could establish himself as the next head coach in waiting. Wishful thinking? Perhaps, but that is all we have left at this point.

The defense hasn't been elite for about 7 years now. The 2005 unit was the last one I would realistically call "great". There are long-term, systemic problems with the defense that haven't been solved. And until they are, we will continue to give up 30-40 points per game and get embarrassed like we did last night.

To be fair, the radio guys didn't notice the switch until the 3rd period started.