Gameday: UND @ MSU 3PM

[BigGame]

5 minutes ago, Oxbow6 said:

 

Rudolph has game planned and play called the same almost every game he has been OC. I'll give him credit for sticking with a good thing last year due to the talent up front and having top end RB talent. Off tackle the first couple plays almost every set of new downs only works consistently if you win the line of scrimmage. UND hasn't consistently won the line of scrimmage this year on the offensive side of the ball. Lots of factors go into that but play calling is a big part of it IMO.

Yet the rushing numbers on the season aren't bad, but the completion percentage of 50 or less in pretty much all quarters but the 4th of each of the games makes more sense to rely upon. 

I do think the offense needs to expand with more play action and bootlegs but the problems are with execution more then anything at this point.  The main reason Brady had a better game than John yesterday IMO is that one back for all but one play followed the blocking scheme and the other kept trying to bounce everything to the outside.  Brady is a tough runner and a good back although Santiago is much more explosive. The blockers can't guess when a back will improvise, so when a back bounces a play they basically have to make it happen themselves.   The UND offense isn't very well suited to handle 2nd and long or 3rd and long situations.  So on 1st and 10 it would be better to stay with the blocking scheme most of the time and get 1 to 5 yards depending upon how well it's blocked.  2nd and 7 or 8 is a lot better situation for this offense then 2nd and 14 or 15. 

[BigGame]

17 minutes ago, shep said:

Watching the replay made me realize how stud Reyes was on the 2 point play. He slammed the RB AT THE GOAL LINE!

He was one of three guys that made the play but Newell gets in if the others hadn't hit him first.  The guy is strong and very good and not letting defenders get a solid shot on him. 

[BigGame]

I think the block below the waist call on UND was a bad one.  The guard pulled around the center and turned up and cut the guy.  This is legal along the LOS and inside the tackles and it was both of those.  The holding call on the center would have been OK if they had been calling that the entire game but they hadn't and Montana State was doing as much or worse on most of it's pass attempts.  The poor officiating is expected but at least be consistent with the bad calls. 

[UNDColorado]

2 minutes ago, BigGame said:

I think the block below the waist call on UND was a bad one.  The guard pulled around the center and turned up and cut the guy.  This is legal along the LOS and inside the tackles and it was both of those.  The holding call on the center would have been OK if they had been calling that the entire game but they hadn't and Montana State was doing as much or worse on most of it's pass attempts.  If the poor officiating is expected but at least be consistent with the bad calls. 

Good observation. All I want is consistency in penalty calling and yesterday was far from that. I can live with some bad calls but yesterday was unacceptable all around. 

[mksioux]

The thing that really stood out to me was penalties.  We can argue about play calling and whether the offense has the personnel, but there really is no excuse for the untimely and type of penalties UND got yesterday (mostly on offense, but some bad ones on defense too).  The good news is that reducing penalties is something that is definitely achievable this season.

It was an ugly and frustrating game, but it was the first win for UND in Bozeman in the DI era, so it's a huge milestone in my opinion.  The last win for UND in Bozeman was 1982!  The first two games against Montana State in the DI era were BRUTAL.  Then UND had a close loss followed by two victories in a row.  Taking the long view, you can't complain too much.  

[UND-FB-FAN]

2 hours ago, UNDColorado said:

It was ugly but I will take it. 

Penalties did kill a couple promising drives so if we can clean that up we score more points yesterday.

I enjoy watching the defense play. It was not long ago I was nervous every time the defense took the field but that feeling has gone away. 

More points are easily within UND's grasp. UND easily could've had 6 to 10 more points if they capitalize on relatively makeable field goals and don't shoot themselves in the foot with foolish penalties. Have to continue to coach up the offense, and really the entire team, Bubba -- they're not there yet, but on the way. 

[UND-FB-FAN]

2 hours ago, BigGame said:

I get ya big guy, the coach gets all the blame and zero credit.

I believe it was Mike Ditka that said "coaches can't win games, but they can lose them." If you really think about it, there is some truth to it.

[bang]

Bubba held a press conference about his offensive coordinator. It went something like this. 

[UND-FB-FAN]

35 minutes ago, bang said:

Bubba held a press conference about his offensive coordinator. It went something like this. 

Damn let's hope not 

[fightingsioux4life]

7 hours ago, bang said:

Bubba held a press conference about his offensive coordinator. It went something like this. 

No, everything wasn't Bob Schnelker's fault. But his poor use of Hershel Walker was on him. As was a lot of the unimaginative play calling he was famous for. The Minnesota Vikings of the late 1980's had the defense to win a Super Bowl, but their offense had to continuously settle for field goals inside the 5 yard line instead of punching it in for six. That is the biggest reason why those teams could never quite get over the hump.

Is Rudolph to blame for everything? No, but unless Studsrud is calling his own plays (like Terry Bradshaw), he is responsible for the predicable run, run, pass, punt pattern that opponents are always ready for.

PS: This was the game vs the Rams where the Vikings won with a safety off of a blocked punt in overtime. I will never forget that game.....crazy stuff.

[geaux_sioux]

So let's say Hot Rod gets !@#$ canned at NIU. Bring him back as OC and OL coach here? We would then have to find a qb coach, or slide Freund over to that spot and find a WR coach. Bring back Bellmore? Something for the Rudolph haters to think about.

[UND-FB-FAN]

Just now, geaux_sioux said:

So let's say Hot Rod gets !@#$ canned at NIU. Bring him back as OC and OL coach here? We would then have to find a qb coach, or slide Freund over to that spot and find a WR coach. Bring back Bellmore? Something for the Rudolph haters to think about.

Interesting thought if nothing else.

[bang]

6 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

So let's say Hot Rod gets !@#$ canned at NIU. Bring him back as OC and OL coach here? We would then have to find a qb coach, or slide Freund over to that spot and find a WR coach. Bring back Bellmore? Something for the Rudolph haters to think about.

Where is Bellmore at now? 

[fightingsioux4life]

Also, Burns doesn't seem to understand that if the fans, who paid good money to sit there and watch the game, want to express their displeasure at the lack of offensive production, that is their right. Nobody forced Burns and Schnelker to get into coaching, where every decision you make is scrutinized by the media. I don't think Burnsie could have coached in today's social media age, he would have ended up having a heart attack at some point.

[geaux_sioux]

3 minutes ago, bang said:

Where is Bellmore at now? 

Not sure. He was a very good WR coach though. 

[Sioux94]

Hahaha that Steckel clip fits this situation perfectly!   Can you imagine a coach swearing like that now days lol

[bang]

10 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

Not sure. He was a very good WR coach though. 

Found him. He's the OC at Mary. 

[UND-FB-FAN]

I remember back in December 2013, when Bubba had his introductory press conference, he emphasized that it is important to do what is best for the team, not the individuals.

That is why true freshmen and other young players play if they are the best player on the team. It's also why I would hope, if the offense continues to struggle for the remainder of the season, that Bubba would at least entertain the idea of going a different direction at offensive coordinator. A lot of season left so no use to harp on this a bunch, but just something to ponder. 

[geaux_sioux]

1 hour ago, bang said:

Bubba held a press conference about his offensive coordinator. It went something like this. 

I've never seen this before but it's like a clip from SNL. Was he always drunk?

[bang]

23 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

I've never seen this before but it's like a clip from SNL. Was he always drunk?

Not sure how much he drank, but I can tell you this. He was constantly pissed  and he had constant bed head. He never smiled and perhaps he was loyal to a fault. Also, he's Connor Gaarders grandfather. 

[SWSiouxMN]

Wasnt able to watch the game and only saw the highlights and stats.

Ugly... BUT, they got the win, are back to .500 and 1-0 in conference play.

Bring on Poly.

[geaux_sioux]

I look forward to winning more ugly games this year and hearing about how our opponents had an off game. 

[Nodak78]

Someone on this forum said we needed to win close games if we are to be any good.  This was after the first two games.  Well UND have just won TWO close games.  That is a good start.  Key big stops.  Forced MSU to kick FG's and stopped a 2 point conversion.  No on to Poly.

 

[shep]

So every D coordinator UND plays has a goal of stopping an All American RB and now another has established himself as a great threat. Same D coordinator knows he doesn't need to worry about any passes more  than 30 yards downfield due to lack of speed in the WR's and a QB who just hasn't shown he can make any real tough passes. Plus the OL is leaky right now.

I don't care if Lane Kiffin is the OC or Bill Walsh is: How much more can you do with that personnel?

For the record, when UND gets a golden armed QB and some speed on the outside, I will join the chorus of getting rid of him IF he continues the same plays.

 

 

[geaux_sioux]

8 minutes ago, shep said:

So every D coordinator UND plays has a goal of stopping an All American RB and now another has established himself as a great threat. Same D coordinator knows he doesn't need to worry about any passes more  than 30 yards downfield due to lack of speed in the WR's and a QB who just hasn't shown he can make any real tough passes. Plus the OL is leaky right now.

I don't care if Lane Kiffin is the OC or Bill Walsh is: How much more can you do with that personnel?

For the record, when UND gets a golden armed QB and some speed on the outside, I will join the chorus of getting rid of him IF he continues the same plays.

 

 

Precisely, we don't exactly have Marcus Hendrickson at QB throwing to Golladay and Hardin right now.