fightingsioux4life

I don't think that "Team North Dakota" (Conrad, Pomeroy and Dorgan) are worried about losing Native American support. What will Native Americans do instead, vote Republican? Or Green Party? I don't think so. "Team North Dakota" has always had strong relationships with the tribes in North Dakota and that isn't going to end anytime soon. That is why they get money from Indian groups, not because of anything underhanded. As for the bill not having a chance now that the Dems have taken the House (and now the Senate), it didn't seem to go anywhere when Dennis "I used to be Tom Delay's puppet" Hastert was in charge. Besides, that bill had co-sponsors on both sides of the aisle. The NCAA Politburo has angered people on both the Right and Left. This isn't a partisan political issue, it's an issue of an abusive, arrogant monopoly bullying institutions of higher education on issues that are none of their business. A bipartisan approach is what is needed to get this thing passed.

I thought that our delegation gave back the money and/or didn't know that Abramoff was involved in criminal activity? My point was that most of the people involved were/are Republicans and because the GOP controls the House and Senate, most of the buck must stop with them. From a totally non-partisan point of view, there is a huge need for comprehensive, ethical and lobbying reform in both houses of Congress. But don't hold your breath waiting for it to happen.

I hate to bring politics into a sports forum, but just remember that I didn't start it..... The Jack Abramoff scandal is a Republican scandal. It is not the fault of "the liberals" or "the media" or anyone else. It is why Tom Delay's political career is finished and why Conrad Burns is in serious trouble in Montana. And it is one of the major reasons the GOP is in trouble this year. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. When you control the House, Senate and White House at the same time, this is the type of stuff that happens. It hurt the Dems in 1994 and it's hurting the GOP in 2006. Prediction: Dems gain 20-30 seats in the House and take control; Dems gain 4 seats in Senate and GOP keeps control. It's back to divided government (the best kind of government, if you ask me). And remember to vote, whatever side you are on!!! GO AMERICA!!!

I am not convinced that this Sioux team is national championship material (too inconsistent with pass defense), but being on the road for every single playoff game would ensure we will not win it all this year. All the blame would have to be placed on the NCAA Politburo and their fearless leader, Secretary-General Myles Brand. Of course, this would make winning a national championship this year the sweetest championship ever won at this school. In any sport. But the odds are slim and/or none. November 9th will determine if we have a chance at making a playoff run or not. Let's hope we can get a favorable ruling for our football team and our other teams later on.

Rutgers is one of the reasons I would love to see a playoff system in I-A football. I don't think the Scarlet Knights would win the national title, but I think they could give some of the big boys a run for their money or even pull off an upset. But I've already ranted about this in another thread, so I will leave that whole topic alone.

Agreed. Either fund I-AA football and do it right or dump football and focus on Men's and Women's Basketball, which small schools can be successful in if they hire the right coach and use their resources wisely.

I'm sure the Gophers will be happy with their production.

I hated taking keyboarding in high school, but I'm glad I learned how to type.

Game Over!!! Sioux Sweep!!! 8-5 win tonight!!! Bring on Jan Brady at The Ralph next weekend!!!

Empty Net Goal!!! Watkins!!!! 8-5 Sioux Get out the brooms!!!

This weekend should give our guys some much-needed confidence after the beat-down we suffered last week.

Not trying to pour cold water on the festivities, just trying to get a feel for this team. Not sure what to think yet. Thankfully it's October and not March right now.

If we don't get some goaltending and defense sometime before Christmas, it won't matter for us.

GOAL!!!! MILLER!!!! 7-5 North Dakota!!! 4:48 left in game

6:07 left in game. 6-5 Sioux lead. Come on boys, hang on!!!

7:40 left 6-5 North Dakota lead. We have to tighten up the defense. We won't win anything this year if we give up 4-5 goals a game.

And I hate to tell YOU this (but I will, anyway): Gopher fans that claim we aren't a rival are casual fans who care more about basketball and football than hockey. The hockey-loving portion of Rodentia (with a few exceptions here and there) hates UND hockey and everything it stands for. For years, I have read and posted on forums such as this one and have seen Gopher fans trashing our program, the number of Canadians we have on the roster, the number of older players we have, the University itself, the city of Grand Forks, the State of North Dakota, the quality of education we offer here, the fact we aren't D-I in everything (soon to change); you name it, they bring it. If they can't beat us on the ice, they hit us over the head with all that other garbage. They can't stand the fact that a small school (13,000 enrollment) in a small state (population 600,000) can beat them in anything. If Gopher hockey fans think that North Dakota is "just another team on the schedule", then how come it is next to impossible to get tickets for a Sioux-Gophers series in Marriucci Arena (unless you know someone that has tickets and can't use them)? Nuff said. I'm sorry, but you can't have it both ways. You can't trash a fellow conference rival like this and then in the next breath say "it's not a rivalry on our end, all we care about is Wisconsin". Both of these programs have been playing each other for years in the same conference and have had many classic matchups; many for championships or playoff positioning. To try and argue that teams with this kind of history don't have a rivalry is the height of arrogance and conceit. But that's Rodentia and it likely won't change anytime soon. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

PCM, You are right, it would be self-destructive and there is no way that Dale Lennon or Tom Buning would go along with it. And it wouldn't help matters any to decline a playoff bid. But even as a big supporter of UND football, I am angry enough about this whole situation that any way we can tell the NCAA Politburo to stick it sounds tempting. I was just brainstorming out loud. Probably not one of my better ideas. Having all playoff games on the road equals no national title, especially in a tough region like ours. You can have some games on the road, but not all of them. It doesn't matter how talented your team is or how good your coaching staff is. Home playoff games are more important in football than in any other sport. In hockey, it doesn't mean as much because all playoff games are regionalized and have been for a long time. In basketball, it's not as daunting to travel to another team's home court and win a regional (re: UND at NDSU in Women's Basketball in 1997). But in football, home field advantage is very important. Both years we advanced to the title game we had all our games at home (2001 and 2003). In 2004, we won at St. Cloud (a game I went to) and at Michigan Tech and then beat Grand Valley State at home. If we had to go to Allendale, Michigan for that game, I don't think we would have won (GVSU is as unbeatable at home as we are). Then we had to go to Pittsburg State and lost. In the early rounds, it wouldn't be as much of a problem. But the further you advance in the playoffs, the tougher the teams get and the tougher it is to win games on the road and get to Florence. It isn't impossible, but it is very close to impossible. I will support all of our teams forever, no matter what the circumstances (check out my username if you ever question that). But I also realize that football is one of the major reasons we are moving up to D-I in all sports. It is one of the sports in which we can win a national title at the next level (Men's and Women's Hockey are the others). But if we don't win this legal war (and it is a war, don't ever forget that), we can scratch football off of that list. We have two years of D-II playoff eligibility until we go on five years of playoff probation. If we don't get an injunction, we are in danger of losing this war and of wasting two chances at a potential national championship in the number two sport on campus (behind Men's Hockey). Let's hope that November 9th goes well in the courtroom so our football team can kick butt on the gridiron into December.

This is going to sound crazy, but I think that UND should consider declining any football playoff bid if the restrictions are still in place. Accepting a playoff bid under these conditions gives credibility to the nickname ban that the NCAA Politburo and Secretary-General Myles Brand imposed by imperial edict on August 5th, 2005. By declining the bid (and I think we will finish in the top six in the region), we would make the playoff field less credible and make the NCAA look really foolish. I know it isn't going to happen, but I would love to see our athletic department thumb its nose at the NCAA however it can. Even better would be winning the national championship while on the road for every game. What would the NCAA do then, strip us of the title and ban us from postseason play for all sports? It would be the ultimate slap in the face to the NCAA Politburo. But I think the odds of any team pulling this off are very slim, if not none. I have always believed that accepting the restrictions permanently would destroy our football program forever. Let's all hope and pray for victory in court so that these tough choices don't have to be made. I can't WAIT until November 9th!!! Bring it, Myles Brand!!!

Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Heraldo will probably tell you otherwise in Sunday's sports section. Read my signature below for further details.

Minnesota barely qualifies as a I-A team. I get so sick and tired of hearing Gopher fans brag about their football team being in the Big Ten. "We're Big Ten and you're not!" Well, Indiana, Illinois and Northwestern are also in the Big Ten, but that doesn't make them good programs either. Either fire Mason and get a young, up and coming coach to build the program or move down to D-IAA. And no, I am not joking.

This series is very important for this team. This weekend was basically a disaster, but the good news is that it was a non-conference series with no points at stake. But next weekend, we'll be playing for points and if we don't get at least 2 points of out 4, that will be a bad omen for this team. Mankato is supposed to be down this year, but I have a feeling we will have our hands full. We can't afford to dig ourselves a hole in the conference standings this early in the year.

The City of Fargo owns the Fargodome, not NDSU. And if it doesn't affect NDSU in a negative manner, I don't think the City is going to listen to their complaining.

Next week we are at MSU-Mankato, which means their goaltender will be a stud for that weekend only! Seriously though, next weekend is a must-win situation, with conference points and the confidence of our players on the line. GO SIOUX, LET'S REBOUND!!!

Penalty on Sioux. Game Over.