UNDfan2013

The other 3 teams that won the Big Sky GOT rings for winning the conference. I understand the quantity of players/coaches for football and cost but that is a known fact. The message Bubba sent to the players that earned that conference championship last season is that you don't deserve this token. Yes it is just a ring but it is an everlasting symbol and pride of what they accomplished. The seniors on last years team don't get another chance to win the conference. Prior football teams that won the conference GOT rings. Second slap in the face to the players. You announce this one week prior to the season opener.....wow that has to be the worst timing ever! Coaches got raises (which they deserved), sold almost 1200 additional season tickets, season tailgate lot is sold out....oh but sorry players you get nothing for all your blood, sweat, injuries, heart and dedication you have given to rebuild this program. If there were no players or team there would be none of this! What message have you just sent to the upperclassmen players.....what message are you sending to the younger players and recruits? IMO, there are so many bad outcomes of this decision.

I agree....relax a bit on the OL. It does take time for players on the line to gel, master their blocking assignments and work as a unit. Older returning OL players got valuable playing time in 2016 (many their first year with quantity reps) but also some injuries meant moving guys around and giving backups valuable reps too. Personally I feel like if everyone can stay healthy, the OL will be much improved in the upcoming season. Now that said, don't expect a lot of WOW during spring practice and spring game since this is the time to give young guys reps. There is talent on the OL and I believe this position will do just fine these next few years.

1. Exactly....but we have all been expecting for this to happen so get your butts in the seats. Plus the bandwagon fans (none on here of course) usually jump on board when they are winning at that moment so jump on!! 2. Very true....I still predict right around 10,000 for Saturday's game.

Ok I am pretty sure that you all say that the upcoming game is the biggest game of the season....LOL. Obviously, all games are big ones and must be won to stay in the hunt for the post season. I think UND will bounce back and clean up issues from the game against ISU. They have shown they can do that from games early in the season. I am an optimist.

UND is ranked, undefeated in conference play, leading the BSC and on a role...so I am predicting right around 10,000 again. I thought you all said that winning would be the difference and bring the fans to the Alerus....plus they plan indoors so no one should complain about the weather.

I am pretty confident that the UND players and coaches learned from the two games last year that they should of won and didn't. However that said, the other teams goal is to win too and they Sac St got an important win last week vs MSU and have some confidence. Right now I am nervous about every game. I think that most of the teams in the BSC could win any game any week. Our teams resilience and never give up approach is encouraging though.

Penalties were an issue last game...not this one. Turnovers costly in this game, both in the red zone so eliminated points from the board. Couple defensive breakdowns allowing big plays by CP. I am sure those will both be addressed this week by the coaching staff too. Lets keep this progress rolling!

I thought Aplin played well today at RG and even Center when he filled in there too. Original starting RG had been struggling so hoping Aplin can continue at RG and Rooney is ok. Really an all around good team effort. O and D both had breakdowns at times during the game but the ongoing fight and determination of these players and coaches is great to see!

#1 Need to reduce penalties. Penalties are part of the game BUT penalties kill momentum and obviously put us in bad field position. Penalties that bother me the most are the stupid ones (personal fouls). Also it is equally frustrating when the officials can't get the penalty calls right. #2 Need to be assignment sharp in ALL areas of the game (offense, defense and special teams). Glad this game is at home!

I agree. I have not seen Bubba firing up the players....unless he is yelling at them (and not in the way to fire them up). The other coaches though for the most part do a good job of intensity and motivation. Captains definitely need to fill this role to fire up the players. I believe that Freud was one of the first out as the players stormed the field in the OT win jumping into the pile.

Is there a purpose of a chop block? Personally I have never liked the lineman being told to do that. Two costly 15 yard penalties for that yesterday. First quarter I was thinking the game could get away from UND but then saw constant improvement and adjustment. Second half was so much better in all areas and although a W would have been fantastic I think the way they played and executed the second half was very encouraging.

I believe that Keaton will bounce back from last nights game. He seemed out of sync with the receivers but also the receivers dropped some passes that hit their hands. I was glad when he started to scramble a bit. That is a strength he needs to be able to use. Last nights game had mistakes in every part of the game. Punter I thought did ok. Blocked punt was not his fault, the blockers did a terrible job. Secondary got picked on a bit and I am glad that they didn't keep throwing deep balls since they were having success in the first half. D Line didn't do well in the first quarter but looked better in rest of the game but still not great. O line also just did ok. They had moments and then they also had some mistakes. Lastly some coaches calls left me scratching my head. First game of the season all of this will happen when you are having your first contact with another team and not your own teammates and not fully live practices. I have confidence that they will perform much better against BG but it will probably be another game that could go either way. I am with this team until the end (unlike the bandwagon fans in last nights posts).

Hoping everything will gel right out the gate. The players and coaches have been working hard and been focused. That said, I honestly know that it could take a game or two or some adjustments to make it really gel once they are in game situations. Playing against your own teammates and at reduced intensity is not a true measure. I can tell though that this team has a lot of heart and determination so I am pleased with that since it can help overcome some mistakes. Excited for tomorrow's game...GO UND!

This year the football parents/families have a group facebook page which keeps everyone up to date with the latest details. Plus there will be a parent/tailgating area this year at all home games.

Grady was stringing the coaches along and wouldn't make the commitment. Coaches gave him every opportunity and now it is time to move on.