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In looking at the 2008 roster, I see that 2-3 highly recruited red-shirt freshmen are not expected to return: OL Matt Simmons (big all-state kid from WS), Mark Kubacki (LB from Stillwater) and Troy Bryant (DB - WS). I know Simmons was expected to be very good when we landed him and I think the other two were highly thought-of as well. This happens every year to all teams but it is disappointing.

I am not sure if this means anything right now, but it is interesting to note that Watkins and Sutton were assigned the same jersey numbers as upper classmen. That may or may not be a hint as to whether the coaching staff thinks they will play as true freshmen.

It will be interesting if we have any chance in landing Delano Saporu's younger brother, Tobi. He is a very talented 6'2", 230 FB at Blaine. I think he may have some big time offers so we may not have a shot at him.

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In looking at the 2008 roster, I see that 2-3 highly recruited red-shirt freshmen are not expected to return: OL Matt Simmons (big all-state kid from WS), Mark Kubacki (LB from Stillwater) and Troy Bryant (DB - WS). I know Simmons was expected to be very good when we landed him and I think the other two were highly thought-of as well. This happens every year to all teams but it is disappointing.

I am not sure if this means anything right now, but it is interesting to note that Watkins and Sutton were assigned the same jersey numbers as upper classmen. That may or may not be a hint as to whether the coaching staff thinks they will play as true freshmen.

It will be interesting if we have any chance in landing Delano Saporu's younger brother, Tobi. He is a very talented 6'2", 230 FB at Blaine. I think he may have some big time offers so we may not have a shot at him.

Yes, it is always unfortunate to lose highly recruited red-shirts. Matt Simmons decided that playing college football just wasn't going to be his "cup of tea" and moved back to Racine. He would have been a great O lineman and had the size we needed. Troy Bryant struggled with a bum ankle and any further injuries would have jeopardized his future health. I think he moved out to California to go to school. I met him a few times and he was one of the most personable young men you could ever meet. He would have represented the program well. Oh well, we will move forward and I am sure the staff will continue to bring in top notch talent.

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Yes, it is always unfortunate to lose highly recruited red-shirts. Matt Simmons decided that playing college football just wasn't going to be his "cup of tea" and moved back to Racine. He would have been a great O lineman and had the size we needed. Troy Bryant struggled with a bum ankle and any further injuries would have jeopardized his future health. I think he moved out to California to go to school. I met him a few times and he was one of the most personable young men you could ever meet. He would have represented the program well. Oh well, we will move forward and I am sure the staff will continue to bring in top notch talent.

Thanks for the info. Any other insight you might have (now or any other time) would be greatly appreciated.

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Pete Hiltner and Nick Bylin are also missing from the roster. I believe Hiltner's departure was due to a lingering back injury. I seem to recall that Bylin was on the roster for spring ball, and has enrolled at UND for the fall semester. He must have had personal reasons for leaving the team.

As for Simmons, he had good size and came highly touted, but he may not have been meeting the expectations some had for him. He may have recognised that and decided to move on. Sometimes great success in High School stems from the system the player played in and/or the natural gifts a player has. When stepping up to the next level, tougher competition, under a different system, those natural gifts are not enough to be successful.

I'll just throw this out there as well. Would the departure of Greg Lotusz been a factor in the loss of these O linemen? I know from talking to some of them that he was probably the most popular and respected coaches on the team.

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Would the departure of Greg Lotusz been a factor in the loss of these O linemen? I know from talking to some of them that he was probably the most popular and respected coaches on the team.

I don't think that in itself would be enough to make a player hang it up. More likely if a player decided to leave due to Greg moving on, that player was already seriously considering leaving the team.

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You'll generally see a great deal of attrition at the offensive line position. Whether from injuries, transfers, etc. it just seems to be one of the positions where it never hurts to have enough bodies. It's a big reason why it's not uncommon to see successive recruiting classes with 4-6 O-linemen.

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How area teams rank in summer magazines - Sioux City Journal 01JUL2008

Lindy's College Football, for instance, has the University of North Dakota fourth in its preseason NCAA Division II rankings behind Valdosta State, Northwest Missouri and Grand Valley State.

UND, of course, is no longer in Division II and, like the University of South Dakota, is making the transition this season to the FCS.

:)

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Has anyone heard if Bamba will be red-shirted this year? I just watched his hightlight reel again from last year and he looks like a very exciting player. I can't wait for the season to start. :)

Even though it appears that perhaps Raphael Reynolds may become the primary return man, I could still see Bamba as potentially the other kick returner, assuming UND continues to have two guys deep like Dressler and Chappell were last year.

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I have heard from coaches that they would not hesitate to pull a redshirt on a guy this year if they thought he could help the team. Apparently they feel that this is an important year to start things in this transition off well. I tend to agree even though you do lose that player's best year of productivity, maturity, and leadership. Think if we had Dressler back this year, but then again he was a boost for the team his true freshman season.

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A new era begins tomorrow!! Very exciting time for UND football...what's the outlook (breakdown of each position?)

I talked to one of the strength coaches and it sounds like the guys really worked hard in the off-season. I guess defensive lineman Mike Ebanks and Broc Bellmore really put up a lot of weight during max outs. Brady Trenbeath is the "beef master" again (pound for pound strongest player)...here's an impressive number...he bench pressed 330 pounds.

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Sioux prepare for a new era

A pretty good Q&A with Coach Mussman on the upcoming season and the changes that have taken place.

I agree. Coach Mussman had down to earth type answers to the questions, instead of the typical cliche-like answers you may find in such an interview.

Good luck coach. Looking forward to a great season of Sioux football.

Go Sioux!!!

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A new era begins tomorrow!! Very exciting time for UND football...what's the outlook (breakdown of each position?)

I talked to one of the strength coaches and it sounds like the guys really worked hard in the off-season. I guess defensive lineman Mike Ebanks and Broc Bellmore really put up a lot of weight during max outs. Brady Trenbeath is the "beef master" again (pound for pound strongest player)...here's an impressive number...he bench pressed 330 pounds.

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Bellmore's number were 415 lbs on the bench

570 lbs on the squat

368 lbs on the clean ( new historical record for the position)

Anybody know of any other player's numbers ?

Ebanks continues to improve as well as many others. It should be an interesting year !

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The 2008 roster is up.

I don't see Bamba or Reynolds on it. I guess this is an indication that Bamba will be red-shirting. I wonder if this is just a preliminary roster and Reynolds will be/could be added later?

Sorry, I missed Bamba's name the first time. It is on there #18.

Edited by GeauxSioux
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Was Rosario a no-show? I still don't see his name on the roster.

Correct, he decided against leaving Alaska. He would have been a good player but his heart wasn't in it. No coach wants a kid who is not engaged so they move on.m

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