Blackout Week: North Dakota vs. UM Griz

[jodcon]

Looks like it's been pretty quiet here from the Montana fans, I guess I could offer up a real quick assessment of us.

 

Offensively we've been up and down, mostly because the O-line is very young, and the two guys who were expected to be the anchors have been banged up. Johnson has had to rush a lot of throws and has taken more hits than he should, and the passing numbers have reflected that. And of course the running game has felt that too, the two backs are pretty good and big-play threats but consistently having holes has been an issue. We have a good bunch of receivers, Henderson has been banged up and I'm not sure where his health is for this game, if given time Johnson can do quite a bit of damage through the air, but like I said time in the pocket hasn't been a luxury so far. I think we will keep getting better offensively as the line gets healthier and settles in, but we're not there now.

 

Defensively we've been better than expected, losing the entire LB crew was the biggest concern coming in but the young guys stepping in have been surprisingly decent and have brought a lot of enthusiasm to the field. Upfront we knew would be the strength coming in, they've been able to keep games close even when the offense has struggled, had trouble slowing down NDSU's running game but hung tough in the red zone and kept it close. Defensive backfield is about average...they make plays, they give up plays...I consider them middle of the road.

 

Kicking game is not good right now, not a lot of confidence in any of the kickers which is a repeat of last year until one finally stepped up...we're hoping that happens again soon. Punter Shaw has a big leg but has had a few issues lately including a block and a couple shanks the last couple weeks, really unusual to see anything from him except rainmakers so we're hoping that was a glitch that doesn't show up again.

 

If UND plays like they did last week and Molberg has enough time to throw before Wagenmann and Co. can get to him they might be able to hang around, but really the key is getting enough pressure on Johnson to force him into quick throws, with our O-line issues it has been difficult to sustain long drives when teams have been able to get good push off the line and keep us in long yardage situations, many punts and a few big plays is not the ideal way to win games, it hangs your defense on the field for way too long.

 

Should be fun, wish I could be there for this one.

[UND Fan]

Looks like it's been pretty quiet here from the Montana fans, I guess I could offer up a real quick assessment of us.

 

Offensively we've been up and down, mostly because the O-line is very young, and the two guys who were expected to be the anchors have been banged up. Johnson has had to rush a lot of throws and has taken more hits than he should, and the passing numbers have reflected that. And of course the running game has felt that too, the two backs are pretty good and big-play threats but consistently having holes has been an issue. We have a good bunch of receivers, Henderson has been banged up and I'm not sure where his health is for this game, if given time Johnson can do quite a bit of damage through the air, but like I said time in the pocket hasn't been a luxury so far. I think we will keep getting better offensively as the line gets healthier and settles in, but we're not there now.

 

Defensively we've been better than expected, losing the entire LB crew was the biggest concern coming in but the young guys stepping in have been surprisingly decent and have brought a lot of enthusiasm to the field. Upfront we knew would be the strength coming in, they've been able to keep games close even when the offense has struggled, had trouble slowing down NDSU's running game but hung tough in the red zone and kept it close. Defensive backfield is about average...they make plays, they give up plays...I consider them middle of the road.

 

Kicking game is not good right now, not a lot of confidence in any of the kickers which is a repeat of last year until one finally stepped up...we're hoping that happens again soon. Punter Shaw has a big leg but has had a few issues lately including a block and a couple shanks the last couple weeks, really unusual to see anything from him except rainmakers so we're hoping that was a glitch that doesn't show up again.

 

If UND plays like they did last week and Molberg has enough time to throw before Wagenmann and Co. can get to him they might be able to hang around, but really the key is getting enough pressure on Johnson to force him into quick throws, with our O-line issues it has been difficult to sustain long drives when teams have been able to get good push off the line and keep us in long yardage situations, many punts and a few big plays is not the ideal way to win games, it hangs your defense on the field for way too long.

 

Should be fun, wish I could be there for this one.

Thanks for the insight.  I hope we can give you a reasonably good game!

[bincitysioux]

Thanks for the insight. I hope we can give you a reasonably good game!

I hope we can kick their ass.....

[gundy1124]

Looks like it's been pretty quiet here from the Montana fans, I guess I could offer up a real quick assessment of us.

 

Offensively we've been up and down, mostly because the O-line is very young, and the two guys who were expected to be the anchors have been banged up. Johnson has had to rush a lot of throws and has taken more hits than he should, and the passing numbers have reflected that. And of course the running game has felt that too, the two backs are pretty good and big-play threats but consistently having holes has been an issue. We have a good bunch of receivers, Henderson has been banged up and I'm not sure where his health is for this game, if given time Johnson can do quite a bit of damage through the air, but like I said time in the pocket hasn't been a luxury so far. I think we will keep getting better offensively as the line gets healthier and settles in, but we're not there now.

 

Defensively we've been better than expected, losing the entire LB crew was the biggest concern coming in but the young guys stepping in have been surprisingly decent and have brought a lot of enthusiasm to the field. Upfront we knew would be the strength coming in, they've been able to keep games close even when the offense has struggled, had trouble slowing down NDSU's running game but hung tough in the red zone and kept it close. Defensive backfield is about average...they make plays, they give up plays...I consider them middle of the road.

 

Kicking game is not good right now, not a lot of confidence in any of the kickers which is a repeat of last year until one finally stepped up...we're hoping that happens again soon. Punter Shaw has a big leg but has had a few issues lately including a block and a couple shanks the last couple weeks, really unusual to see anything from him except rainmakers so we're hoping that was a glitch that doesn't show up again.

 

If UND plays like they did last week and Molberg has enough time to throw before Wagenmann and Co. can get to him they might be able to hang around, but really the key is getting enough pressure on Johnson to force him into quick throws, with our O-line issues it has been difficult to sustain long drives when teams have been able to get good push off the line and keep us in long yardage situations, many punts and a few big plays is not the ideal way to win games, it hangs your defense on the field for way too long.

 

Should be fun, wish I could be there for this one.

That's what I saw against NDSU.  Dangerous QB and skill guys but limited by the O-line play for Montana.  I was pulling for the Griz against NDSU but never felt they were in the game.  The score doesn't show the 2:1 time of possession, 447 to 256 yard differential with 76 yards on a sweet deep ball, and 1st downs were 24 to 9.  All that said, we are a ways away from NDSU right now but if we can pressure the QB we might be able to hang around.  Great insight from Montana.

[BigGame]

Is the Montana defense better than the Stoney Brook defense?

[Matt]

Is the Montana defense better than the Stoney Brook defense?

IALTO!

[jdub27]

What?  Why would Root Sports control EVERY teams home games when they only televise one game per week?

 

Ron Loghry, Big Sky Associate Commissioner, will be speaking at the fan luncheon tomorrow.  He's happens to be in charge of the league's television contract.  There is always an opportunity to ask questions, might not be a bad thing to bring up...

[gundy1124]

IALTO!

I had to look that up to find what IALTO means-

 

We should expect Montana to be as tough and a little more athletic.  But on our end the play calling, execution, and confidence should be better.

[UND1983]

IALTO!

 

Did you watch the UND/Stony Brook game?

[homer]

Is the Montana defense better than the Stoney Brook defense?

 

Based on statistics so far this season, no they are not.

[UND-FB-FAN]

I hope we can kick their ass.....

Add me to that group too

[Oxbow6]

Did you watch the UND/Stony Brook game?

Have you seen UNDs offense in the last 5 weeks? Statistics are only as good as the competition played. I have seen the Griz twice this year. Their D line is top 5 in FCS. They are every bit as good as SB D.

[Matt]

Did you watch the UND/Stony Brook game?

Yes.

[UND1983]

Have you seen UNDs offense in the last 5 weeks? Statistics are only as good as the competition played. I have seen the Griz twice this year. Their D line is top 5 in FCS. They are every bit as good as SB D.

 

I was wondering if he actually saw the game to be able to make comparison's. Not all see the games and just go off boxscores and message board posts.

[Oxbow6]

I was wondering if he actually saw the game to be able to make comparison's. Not all see the games and just go off boxscores and message board posts.

There is truth to that last sentence.

[The Sicatoka]

For statistics to be meaningful they must be meaningful statistics.

That's a fancy way of saying, "Are the stats really useful at this point?" If one team played four games against the eventual four bottom teams and the other played four games against the eventual four best teams, the comparison of stats between the two teams will probably not tell the whole story.

What I know is Montana has played pretty tough on the road twice, against two pretty good teams, already this year and they'll be hungry for a road win.

[Matt]

I was wondering if he actually saw the game to be able to make comparison's. Not all see the games and just go off boxscores and message board posts.

To me the Stony Brook D has become a meme for the UND O isn't that bad, the opponent D is that good.

 

That's why the SB D reference elicited an IALTO from me as I read it.

[Oxbow6]

To me the Stony Brook D has become a meme for the UND O isn't that bad, the opponent D is that good.

 

That's why the SB D reference elicited an IALTO from me as I read it.

 

 

Totally agree with you.

 

And last time I checked SB is 1-4.................

[UND92,96]

Did anybody actually see the USD-Montana game? I'm just wondering whether Montana played relatively poorly in that game, or if USD--expected to be one of the two or three bottom teams from the MVFC, and playing with its backup quarterback--is better than expected? I thought USD looked fairly good against NAU, but that was a home game.

[UND-1]

Totally agree with you.

 

And last time I checked SB is 1-4.................

 

...and their offense is worse than UND's.  Figure it out.

 

When the coaches say that Stony Brook had the best defense they have faced this year and say how they kicked the crap out of UConn all game on tape, I believe it.  

 

That being said, Montana's defense is probably better.  

[BigGame]

To me the Stony Brook D has become a meme for the UND O isn't that bad, the opponent D is that good.

 

That's why the SB D reference elicited an IALTO from me as I read it.

Just because UND has sucked on offense doesn't mean Stoney Brooks defense isn't any good.  I think it is reasonable to compare or try to compare to Montana.  Clearly Montana will be a much better offensive team but I am not so sure about the defense and that is why I asked. 

[UND-FB-FAN]

South Dakota may be considered a bottom team in the MVFC but they would be middle of the pack in the Big Sky. They gave Montana a tough game. South Dakota is a better team than UND but that doesn't mean UND can't pick it up and atleast make this Montana game interesting anyway.

Not so fast there ndsu23; South Dakota has done nothing in this young season to show they're better than UND. Montana is a tough team but they've also only defeated low-end FCS teams so it's hard to know exactly how good they are.

UND played a good Montana State team tough on the road, which makes me think South Dakota wouldn't be any better than UND.

[jdub27]

South Dakota may be considered a bottom team in the MVFC but they would be middle of the pack in the Big Sky.  They gave Montana a tough game.  South Dakota is a better team than UND but that doesn't mean UND can't pick it up and atleast make this Montana game interesting anyway.

Weber State will be a bottom team in the Big Sky but gave NDSU a tough game and played them closer than half the MVFC will, so how does that math work out?  Would Weber State be a middle of the road team in the MVFC despite them being a bottom team in the Big Sky?  Hypotheticals are just that.

[BigGame]

Not so fast there ndsu23; South Dakota has done nothing in this young season to show they're better than UND. Montana is a tough team but they've also only defeated low-end FCS teams so it's hard to know exactly how good they are.

UND played a good Montana State team tough on the road, which makes me think South Dakota wouldn't be any better than UND.

South Dakota certainly has a better offense than UND.  They are able to run the ball but I don't think the defense as good as UND's.  South Dakota will have trouble in conference but the are not a bad team. 

 

I think UND/USD would be a good game this year because of the way they match up. 

[Matt]

...and their offense is worse than UND's.  Figure it out.

 

When the coaches say that Stony Brook had the best defense they have faced this year and say how they kicked the crap out of UConn all game on tape, I believe it.  

 

That being said, Montana's defense is probably better.  

The coaches are trying to prepare their team for a game, I get that.  And I don't think SB has a bad D.  They don't.  I just haven't seen enough from them to agree with the hype they've been given.

 

And with all due respect, unless you are talking basketball don't throw out the name UConn and think it means a damn thing.  They stink.  SB is their only win, and they just got whacked by Temple at home last week.

http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/conn-m-footbl-sched.html