Dustin

Anyone know of recruits at the game yesterday? Besides Luna Larson, what other big names are still out there?

Other than some botched red zone chances, this was a solid game. 2 QB system seems to be working quite well last 2 games. O-line is starting to gel, just needed those reps. Think how young they are. Heck, think how many games our sophomore quarterback has started already. He’ll probably break some records before he graduates. Think of how solid our depth is getting. 4 running backs have had a 100 yard game. Weren’t both Jalens out today? And we still had very solid run defense. Had lots of receiving yards with no Maag. Lots to look forward to, even if the 2021 season gets cut short. One thing I’d like to see is some nifty play calls when we need just a few yards. We have seen trick plays go for 25-30 yards, but how nice would it be to pick up that 4th & 2 with something other than a QV keeper or OW run? Maybe we’re saving those for bigger moments? Save them too long and the moments won’t be big anymore.

Utah State kicker having a bad game as well - missed wide, missed short, and just had one blocked. not the backup kicker, either.

I’m going to make a bold call: this team will be 6-4 when they head to Brookings on 11/20.

Looking at the NSIC standings, the five North Dakota / NW Minnesota teams are a combined 1-44. That is some dreadful volleyball in this region.

Starkey? Actually looks like a lot of the NSIC teams have good records this year. Maybe one of Starkey's assistants, too, would be a cool route to take.

Weird thing is, Tiffin came in with decent credentials. Basically he was hand picked by Pryor, our most successful coach ever, to be his successor. Plus, Tiffin is from Winnipeg, so I was hoping to tap into a Canadian recruiting well. Just an overall bigtime failure on his part, whatever this distraction happens to be, to slide a strong program down so far. For shame.

It's great that we got him, but wasn't this a Hegerle type situation? It would have been big news if he didn't commit to UND?

I thought the Big Ten set a rule against scheduling FCS teams??

My goal for this season was a playoff seed, which means we would host the quarterfinals, with a good chance at winning and playing in the semifinals. Basically wanting a step further than we’ve ever been before. Would need to run the table at this point, and even then a seed wouldn’t be guaranteed. But, UND has rattled off 9 in a row after starting 0-2, so something might click.

I do believe in my heart that it is simply a matter of getting an inexperienced O-line to gel. It’s taking longer than we expected, so we just have to put up with growing pains. We are getting better with position depth, but I don’t think we have a 1A at every position yet, so some of these things take time. I would think it will fix itself within the season. If not, we may need to look at some changes.

I am not saying they are, I have just been led to believe they are. Maybe it's all coachspeak. I don't take Bubba for that kind of guy, but I don't know him personally, so he could be a terrible coach for all I know...

So when a coach (or coaches) preach discipline (which I am led to believe they do), and then undisciplined actions result in a game, is that on a coach or a player? I am not trying to sound condescending, if it comes across that way. I am legitimately wanting to know the answer to that question. In a different example, if a parent preaches to their child not to get involved in drugs, or bullying, or whatever, but yet the kid does anyway, is that bad parenting? Maybe the way it's approached is wrong? So maybe a different coach could approach this differently and therefore be more effective. I could see in that case that a different coach could/would make a difference in the player(s). If the coach did nothing, that would be a coaching problem. But if the coach is actively trying to change the situation, and it's not working, wouldn't that be the players' problem? At some point the person causing the harm has to be held accountable.

Hadn’t considered them, but you make a Good case.

So are we recruiting kids that can’t be coached, or can’t our coaches coach our recruits? I feel like recruiting has taken a good direction, especially the last couple classes. So what gives?

get the O-line in line, and things will get better. No more penalties. Protect the quarterback. Open the holes for our dynamic running backs. And for God’s sake, move the chains and keep the defense off the field.

I think Bubba probably should retire to save face. Not sure who should be his successor, though. Danny was heir apparent, but now…

Huge opportunity lost today.

Looks like the Valley is for NDSU to lose. Same old $—t.

Kelly Howe called it after the Drake game. There’s something off with the offense. At that point, they had a bye week to fix it. Now we’re at back to back losses because the offense can’t put together enough drives to rest the defense, who are playing well, but playing tired.

We’ve been winning some recruiting battles. Are we a year or two away? Or is it just not gonna happen under this regime?

I know you were preaching this pretty hard last year, and most, including me, weren’t having it. You may be right though. Is Feeney that program changing QB?

I mean, we still can go 8-3. But the O needs to get it figured out. Sophomore slump, I guess.

So, where do we go from here? Have our coaches lost their players?

Our defense is not bad, but they get gassed by the later stages of the 4th quarter. Happened in all of our losses. But when the offense can’t give you a break…