GeauxSioux Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 On the flip side, I think there's some out there that are worried UND is going to jump ship if the MVFC tries to expand again - any merit in this? I personally don't see this happening, as the Big Sky > Summit and generally on par with the MVFC - and probably better the last decade or so. I think most of this talk comes from the other Dakota schools. Most Sioux fans are ecstatic about joining the Big Sky. Also, how do UND folks feel about the direction their football program is going in? I was able to watch the Montana-UND game this season and it seemed to be competitive at times, although it seems like it was a bit of a down year for you guys. Are you already at the full compliment of scholarships, or still in transition in that regard? Are there plans in the works in regards to the football program in terms of facilities, etc. The football program needs to right itself. The past couple of years have gone in the wrong direction. My hope is that this year there will be something to build on for entry into the Big Sky in 2012. As far as facilities, I have heard that new turf is being installed in the Alerus this year and just like EWU, the turf will match the team colors. Quote
Bison Dan Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 IAs far as facilities, I have heard that new turf is being installed in the Alerus this year and just like EWU, the turf will match the team colors. WOW a pink field! 1 1 Quote
Hambone Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 WOW a pink field! Nicely done Dan That one made me laugh...... But that's the wrong school color..... Quote
GeauxSioux Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 WOW a pink field! Nice. I was referring to the schools athletic colors, not academic colors. Quote
The Sicatoka Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 WOW a pink field! Didn't NDSU lose on a pink field (after the flurries started) in Cheney. I'd rather be in the pink, than yellow. Quote
bincitysioux Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 Hello all, Just wanted to drop by and say that I'm looking forward to seeing UND in the Big Sky in 2012 along with SUU and Cal Poly and Davis for football. I think, under this new format, the Big Sky will rival the CAA in football. It's not far off now. I think most Big Sky fans have a fairly positive outlook on the conference expansion. Adding the two California schools increases exposure there and can only be good for recruiting for the conference as a whole. Southern Utah has been improving it's athletics programs and fits well within the geographical footprint of the historical conference. And while I think many are concerned with UND's geography, most acknowledge that this will be a good addition. Not only because UND Is a flagship university, but because you also seem to have a good tradition in athletics. IMO, the fact that UND is somewhat isolated in the conference isn't a major problem in itself, although I will admit that USD giving the BSC the snub does present some problems as far as travel partners go. Under the 11 member all-sports format for the 2012 season, does UND have a travel partner, or is this something that is still being worked through? How do you all see the 13 member conference football conference working out? Thoughts on who the 14th member for football might be? An all-sports member seems to make sense, IMO, putting the Big Sky at 12/14. On the flip side, I think there's some out there that are worried UND is going to jump ship if the MVFC tries to expand again - any merit in this? I personally don't see this happening, as the Big Sky > Summit and generally on par with the MVFC - and probably better the last decade or so. Also, how do UND folks feel about the direction their football program is going in? I was able to watch the Montana-UND game this season and it seemed to be competitive at times, although it seems like it was a bit of a down year for you guys. Are you already at the full compliment of scholarships, or still in transition in that regard? Are there plans in the works in regards to the football program in terms of facilities, etc. Sorry for all the questions, but I'm trying to learn about all of our future conference mates, and no better way to get answers than to go to the source. Thanks in advance Also, I am one of the mods over at www.bigskyfans.com/eagles - feel free to drop by anytime. Welcome to the board...... North Dakota is ecstatic to be in the Big Sky conference, and if the Summit and MVFC called tomorrow and offered, there is zero chance that UND would leave the Big Sky for those affiliations. The only way UND pursues Summit and/or MVFC membership is if the Big Sky completely implodes and loses a multitude of the more northern and eastern members............. 13 teams for football presents some challenges of course, like not playing full round-robin and could lead to some unconventional means to crowning a champion in some years, but it is still doable and I tend to think those issues will work themselves out. In any case, the unbalanced scheduling could provide opportunities for teams in some years that have a favorable schedule to surprise the rest of the league, as has happened with the Big 10 from time to time. For teams that play the stronger schedules, and do well with them, it could provide better seeding come playoff time. I haven't heard yet if the Big Sky is considering going back to the "lone wolf" scheduling model for basketball. There has been alot of speculation that UND and Northern Colorado may be travel partners. I had actually hoped that the league would go with an unbalanced 16 or 18 game schedule for basketball rather than a full 20 with each team playing twice each season. Could have eliminated the need for instance Sac coming to North Dakota every year and scheduled more regional games, but we will see how it works out. As for our football program, alot is expected of it. Last year was rough, and although I expect to have a better record this season due in part to a weak schedule, I don't know how much better the team will be yet. By all accounts, our defense, which is what we've hung our hat on for 100 years, is as athletic and talented as it has been in quite some time, and there is depth within it too. The defense actually played all right last season. They were prone to giving up the big play, but they were on the field ALOT. Offensively, we've really struggled at QB for a couple of seasons, very badly last season after the starter went down with injury. Most of us are pinning our hopes on a JUCO transfer and/or a redshirt freshman. I don't expect the offense to be high powered next season, but hopefully by the time we join the Big Sky, one of these young QB's will have gotten enough experience and asserted himself as the leader on offense. I think we have alot of potential talent at WR, but I worry that the RB position could be a problem if an injury occurs to our capable, yet not really explosive starter. Long story short, the football program is down right now, but not out. They should be a quality team within a couple years of Big Sky play. In addition to new turf supposedly going into our football arena, the university is in the process of raising funds for an indoor practice facility. Stop by anytime................and beat the 'Yotes! 1 Quote
star2city Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 WOW a pink field! EWURanger: Presumably, you've become acquainted with the rube bison fans. Please don't prejudge us based on their behavior. 1 Quote
dakota fairways Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 WOW a pink field! almost worth a +1. at least it brought a smile. Quote
Let'sGoHawks! Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 Welcome to the Sioux board. Not much to add that others haven't said. Attendence has been down the past few years, as the product on the field hasn't been the best, and unknown opponents perceived as nobodies came to the Alerus Center. The move to the Big Sky will turn things around, and I believe it has already started with recruiting. Can't wait to have your squad make the trip to Grand Forks. Quote
dakota fairways Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 ... On the flip side, I think there's some out there that are worried UND is going to jump ship if the MVFC tries to expand again - any merit in this? I personally don't see this happening, as the Big Sky > Summit and generally on par with the MVFC - and probably better the last decade or so. ... There would be an uproar over taking the Big Sky away from UND, like there is over the Fighting Sioux nickname. UND fans are ecstatic over being invited to the Big Sky, and being the lone Dakota school in the premier conference in FCS is icing on the cake. Quote
EWURanger Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 EWURanger: Presumably, you've become acquainted with the rube bison fans. Please don't prejudge us based on their behavior. No worries, it was kinda funny to see it change colors when it started snowing. Hope that doesn't happen again. . Otherwise, we like it quite a bit. Thanks for the responses, good info. Sounds like UND has the tools to be competitive in the Big Sky and at the FCS level. I really think you will enjoy watching Big Sky football. Probably a little more finesse style than your traditional mid-west or east coast smash-mouth type football, which can be good and bad. Like I said, I am really excited to see the new teams compete in the Big Sky in 2012. I'm also wondering what the deal is going to be with basketball scheduling. What was suggested above does make some sense. They need to try and regionalize things as much as possible to try to cut down on travel costs. Also interesting that we're now going to have 11 teams competing for 6 spots in the conference tournament for the one auto-bid. Quote
dakota fairways Posted April 20, 2011 Posted April 20, 2011 Now that this topic has reappeared on the board (like we could have any impact on the Big Sky scheduling )... What if the conference split into two divisions - east/west, north/south, founders/newbies, whatever... schedule a full intra-division rotation, play two of the teams from the other division and leave the last week of the conference schedule open for cross division play, not a specific opponent, but an opponent that finishes in the same position of the other division. This is an 8/9 game conference schedule - with opportunity for OOC games. For example if Montana wins the east division and UC Davis wins the west division, they would face each other the last week of the regular season. Not a playoff, per se, but an opportunity to establish a conference champion. I realize that it would give one team with a 4-3 record a chance to beat out a team with a 8-0 conference record for the championship, but that could happen if there is a planned conference championship game too. Going down the line, East #2 vs West #2; East #3 vs West #3, etc so that there are 6 conference games on the schedule for the last week of the season, but the teams are not set. Best record hosts. Teams might not know who their opponent is until the games are done the week before and in a 13 team conference, one team would always be left out, but would it be a way to have a conference title game without violating the NCAA prohobition against FCS conference title games? Would the biggest objection be big long-standing rivalries like Montana-Montana State would no longer be the last game of the season? Quote
bincitysioux Posted April 21, 2011 Posted April 21, 2011 I really think you will enjoy watching Big Sky football. Probably a little more finesse style than your traditional mid-west or east coast smash-mouth type football, which can be good and bad. Grind it out, black-and-blue football is probably what one thinks of when they think of North Dakota football, but actually during this decade UND for the most part has been known for a wide open run and gun offense. Pretty much every passing record at North Dakota has been set within the last 7 years or so. And it has all been done with our current head coach calling the plays as he was offensive coordinator for around 8 years prior to be named head coach. The question is whether or not we have the personnel to accomplish what the coach wants to do and what he has done in the past. Coach Mussman likes to chuck it around..................... Quote
dakota fairways Posted April 22, 2011 Posted April 22, 2011 EWURanger: Presumably, you've become acquainted with the rube bison fans. Please don't prejudge us based on their behavior. Here is a picture from the EWU board... Eastern Washington Eagles Not too much of a story behind it. Once upon a time a brave bison wandered too far West. He didn't survive. The end. likin' the Big Sky more every day! Quote
darell1976 Posted April 22, 2011 Posted April 22, 2011 Here is a picture from the EWU board... Eastern Washington Eagles likin' the Big Sky more every day! That pic is awesome!!!!!!!!!! ++++++++++++++1 Quote
jodcon Posted April 22, 2011 Posted April 22, 2011 Here is a picture from the EWU board... Eastern Washington Eagles Not too much of a story behind it. Once upon a time a brave bison wandered too far West. He didn't survive. The end. likin' the Big Sky more every day! Had to include the comment from the EWU board, that was the best part. Quote
dakota fairways Posted April 22, 2011 Posted April 22, 2011 Had to include the comment from the EWU board, that was the best part. You're right! fixed it Quote
108498 Posted April 22, 2011 Posted April 22, 2011 Don't forget to find space for a recreation rival series for und/ndsu Quote
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