2017 Season

[fightingsioux4life]

Just now, sioux24/7 said:

Not sure I read the same thing you did....

All he did is talk about what we lose. He could have talked about what we have coming in or players we should keep an eye on once Spring ball starts up.

[AJS]

6 minutes ago, Sioux94 said:

I guess I read it differently than you, I didn't take that out of it at all.  In my mind he basically pointed out there are 5 key seniors we lose and said OL has ton of competition to replace that spot, the DL will be fine, and some linebackers will have to step up to fill some voids there.  Hardly doom and gloom....or at least that is not how I take it. 

This is how I read it as well, he looked at the areas where UND will need to improve the most, given what they are losing / areas that were weaknesses this year. This is the information I'm most interested in as well. It's not as much fun to talk about as the 7 all-returning players, ect, but it's just as important.

 

Couple things:

Positive:

"There are some strong reports on the redshirting freshmen hogs, especially guard Ryan Tobin, tackle Noah Mortel and center/guard Nathan Nguon." 

Negative:

Arnell hardship. Isn't he back next year? Wouldn't that have been decided last year? I'm really confused. I noticed this year that sometimes he was listed as SR, others JR.

 

 

 

[UNDColorado]

7 minutes ago, AJS said:

This is how I read it as well, he looked at the areas where UND will need to improve the most, given what they are losing / areas that were weaknesses this year. This is the information I'm most interested in as well. It's not as much fun to talk about as the 7 all-returning players, ect, but it's just as important.

 

Couple things:

Positive:

"There are some strong reports on the redshirting freshmen hogs, especially guard Ryan Tobin, tackle Noah Mortel and center/guard Nathan Nguon." 

Negative:

Arnell hardship. Isn't he back next year? Wouldn't that have been decided last year? I'm really confused. I noticed this year that sometimes he was listed as SR, others JR.

 

 

 

This has me confused as well. I thought he was already cleared to play next season. 

[the cornerback teacher]

9 hours ago, SiouxHawks said:

 

As the proud father of Joe Mollberg I would like to take a few minutes to share some observations.  Thank you to those of you who have posted positive comments about Joe over the years on this site, or have stopped at games to ask about Joe’s health and well-being.

 

First, I want to congratulate Coach Schweigart and the entire UND FIghting Hawks staff on a tremendous season and an undefeated Big Sky Conference Championship.  Bubba has the team going in the right direction and the future looks bright for the Fighting Hawks.  Joe has great respect for Bubba and his staff and is appreciative of the support offered him at UND from all coaches, including former head coach Chris Mussman.  

 

It is easy on sites such as this to be critical of coaches and the decisions they make, but being a former coach myself, I am confident that almost all coaches have their priorities straight and really do care for their players at the deepest levels.  To prove this to you, less than an hour after the championship clinching game against NAU was over Joe received a call of congratulations from former Coach Mussman.  That is a class act on Coach Mussman’s part.

 

I would also like to commend one current coach in particular that impacted Joe in his time at UND.  Joe told me repeatedly how much respect he has for tight end Coach Shawn Kostich and the enthusiasm Kostich brings to each and every practice and game.  Coach Kostich took Joe under his wing when he made the voluntary transition to tight end and did a great job making Joe feel as if he were a valued part of that close-knit group that was referred to as the “Big-Cats.” UND is lucky to have Kostich on staff.   Shawn is a young and upcoming coach who will go far in his career

 

Joe Mollberg is a good athlete, but he is even a better person.  Coming out of high school Joe had other options of schools to attend and as a parent, looking in the rear-view mirror, it it is easy to second guess, but Joe has never once regretted his decision to attend UND.  Joe never once questioned his choice, because he is fully committed that he made the right choice, for the right reasons.  Joe has made great friends that will be part of his life forever, and though the road was difficult, Joe left UND as a champion of the Big Sky Conference.   But perhaps the most important fact (that is rarely talked about with college football players) is that Joe has received a tremendous education at the University of North Dakota. What more could he possibly ask for?

 

Joe paraphrased his favorite role model Tim Tebow when he shared what Tebow said in an interview when asked about success and failure.  Tebow said;

 

“The ultimate goal is not to succeed or fail, the ultimate goal is to give everything you have for something in your heart.  If you get to live out your dream every day, then the result does not matter.  To be able to look back 20-30 years from now and say.’I gave everything I could, that is pretty awesome.’”  

 

That was the exact attitude that Joe brought to UND football every day over the last five years.  How could a father not be proud of that attitude?  

 

I learned a tremendous amount by watching Joe and how he faced the adversities thrown his way the last few years.  Joe taught me more the last few years than I taught him.  Joe wants to be a special education teacher, working with special needs kids, and a high school coach.  As a former coach and current teacher I truly believe Joe will be tremendously successful at whatever he chooses to do.  The University of North Dakota School of Education and the University of North Dakota football program have both  helped prepare Joe for the challenges ahead of him l and I am grateful for that.

 

Many of you may not be aware of this, but in high school Joe was diagnosed with Ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis is an inflammatory disease that can cause the the vertebrae in your spine to fuse together. This fusing makes the spine less flexible and can result in a hunched-forward posture.  A.S. is a painful disease that there is no known cure for.  I remember well taking Joe to Mayo in Rochester in high school and his doctor telling us, “If Joe makes it through a career as a college football player with A.S. they will probably be writing medical journals about him.”  Though there is no medical confirmation of this, I am confident that the ruptured achilles Joe suffered in his sophomore season was the result of A.S..  There is medical evidence to support this claim.  Again, we are proud of Joe for battling through this adversity.

 

After Joe’s ruptured achilles injury he had a number of choices he could have made.  He could have quit the team and walked away.  No one would have questioned this decision.  He could have transferred to another school and tried to reclaim the quarterback position he loved playing.  He could have returned to the team and been a negative influence on his teammates.  Instead he chose a difficult and uphill path.  He chose to support his school, support his coaches, and most importantly support his teammates.  

 

We have a great many photos of Joe playing football at UND, but probably my favorite of all time is this one.  This was one of his final games at UND.  Joe had called me days before to proudly tell me to “be sure to get to the next game early” as he was going to be carrying the UND school flag out onto the field.  Joe was as proud at that moment as any other in his time at the University of North Dakota.

 

Thank you for your support of Joe Mollberg, his teammates, and all student-athletes in their time at the University of North Dakota.

 

Go SiouxHawks!

 

Kent Mollberg

 

 

 

 

Thanks for putting thing in perspective ! Its one thing to say one kid is better than the other but to talk about taking kids scholarship. For making mistake on the field or working hard but not being good enough for some fans. You sir have raised i great young man and i think he has made a lot of his teammates better.  I thank u and joe for being good people may GOD bless the both of u.

[shep]

Doesn't mention Dijon Murray as a LB replacement. Plus, I don't even know who this McKinney is. May be here for spring ball????

Anyone have anything about the Grady Train?

[Westside]

1 hour ago, shep said:

Doesn't mention Dijon Murray as a LB replacement. Plus, I don't even know who this McKinney is. May be here for spring ball????

Anyone have anything about the Grady Train?

Murray had a season-ending injury that required surgery. Doubt he is very far up on the depth chart at this point. McKinney is a current HS verbal commit (RB/WR) out of Seattle. Some connected posters here & SFI have mentioned that Grady is probably not an option to be back. 

[bincitysioux]

When I peek at next years schedule, my early take on North Dakota's status for each game looks like this:

• @ Utah (8-4, 5-4):  Underdog -- Self Explanatory.  Big time FBS program from the Pac-12
• Missouri State (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  
• @ South Dakota (4-7,3-5): Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  USD games are often competetive, but in the end we've won 6 of last 7 against them.
• Montana St. (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Despite a nice finish, the Cats were a disaster in 2016.  
• @ UC Davis (3-8, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level conference opponent, installing a new coaching staff in 2017
• Northern Colorado (6-5, 4-4):  Favorite -- Bears have been better of late.  Don't see our 4 game winning streak against them being snapped in the Alerus though.
• @ Montana (6-5, 3-5):  50/50 -- Griz were soft this year.  But it's tough for anyone to get a win in Missoula.
• Sacramento St. (2-9, 2-6):  Favorite -- Might get ugly for the Hornets in this one at the Alerus
• @ Portland St:  Favorite -- Can the Viks return to their 2015 form?  Didn't see anything in 2016 that would indicate so.
• @ Southern Utah:  50/50 -- Only EWU, Poly, and NAU have won more Big Sky games than the T-Birds since the 2012 Expansion.  9-1 at home last two seasons
• Eastern Washington:  Underdog -- Class of the Big Sky for close to a decade now.  Could be defending National Champions next year.

[The Sicatoka]

On 12/4/2016 at 2:47 PM, Longtime fan said:

Randolph- (cb) is a very talented player that would look great under center

OK, you intrigued me with that comment about a guy who's a DB on the roster. 

I went back to look at his Hudl recruiting video. He was a dual-threat QB in HS. He was elusive as a runner; however, and there's always one of those, his throwing motion is very, very unrefined. His wrist is barely above his shoulder when he throws; you'd like to see the elbow up near shoulder height and it's nowhere near that. He'd need a lot of work on that throwing motion or he'd have a lot of passes blocked or tipped at the DI level. 

[AJS]

11 minutes ago, bincitysioux said:

When I peek at next years schedule, my early take on North Dakota's status for each game looks like this:

• @ Utah (8-4, 5-4):  Underdog -- Self Explanatory.  Big time FBS program from the Pac-12
• Missouri State (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  
• @ South Dakota (4-7,3-5): Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  USD games are often competetive, but in the end we've won 6 of last 7 against them.
• Montana St. (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Despite a nice finish, the Cats were a disaster in 2016.  
• @ UC Davis (3-8, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level conference opponent, installing a new coaching staff in 2017
• Northern Colorado (6-5, 4-4):  Favorite -- Bears have been better of late.  Don't see our 4 game winning streak against them being snapped in the Alerus though.
• @ Montana (6-5, 3-5):  50/50 -- Griz were soft this year.  But it's tough for anyone to get a win in Missoula.
• Sacramento St. (2-9, 2-6):  Favorite -- Might get ugly for the Hornets in this one at the Alerus
• @ Portland St:  Favorite -- Can the Viks return to their 2015 form?  Didn't see anything in 2016 that would indicate so.
• @ Southern Utah:  50/50 -- Only EWU, Poly, and NAU have won more Big Sky games than the T-Birds since the 2012 Expansion.  9-1 at home last two seasons
• Eastern Washington:  Underdog -- Class of the Big Sky for close to a decade now.  Could be defending National Champions next year.

The only changes I would make is putting both @USD and EWU at 50/50. USD was very competitive with NDSU and SDSU down the stretch and like UND return a lot, plus are at home. EWU on the other hand brings back their All-Conference QB, but lose their top 3 WR's who all had over 1,000 yards receiving and combined for over 3,500 yards. 

[The Sicatoka]

14 minutes ago, bincitysioux said:

When I peek at next years schedule, my early take on North Dakota's status for each game looks like this:

• @ Utah (8-4, 5-4):  Underdog -- Self Explanatory.  Big time FBS program from the Pac-12

Dear Utah, 

You beat the 2015 BSC champs (24-0) to open your 2016 season. 
You get the 2016 BSC co-champs to open your 2017 season. 

Just look back. 24-0. The BSC champ is no threat to you.
Look to your following 2017 game: at BYU. That's what you should worry about and focus on. 

Signed,
Nothing to see here; forget about UND 

[shep]

14 minutes ago, The Sicatoka said:

OK, you intrigued me with that comment about a guy who's a DB on the roster. 

I went back to look at his Hudl recruiting video. He was a dual-threat QB in HS. He was elusive as a runner; however, and there's always one of those, his throwing motion is very, very unrefined. His wrist is barely above his shoulder when he throws; you'd like to see the elbow up near shoulder height and it's nowhere near that. He'd need a lot of work on that throwing motion or he'd have a lot of passes blocked or tipped at the DI level. 

But when was the last time we had a QB who was a game changer, a threat to break a long run. If they fix the delivery this guy is scary.

[iramurphy]

On December 4, 2016 at 3:50 PM, geaux_sioux said:

Jerry Rice had game speed. Not track speed. Most of our wrs have neither.

I disagree.  They had a poor game Saturday as a group, but we need to do a better job of getting them the ball on the break.  Studsrud has done exactly what Bubba asked him to do.  Protect the ball and read the defense.  Needs to get through his reads quicker and deliver the ball on the break which will give your receiver a step or step and a half on the defender.  He has an adequate arm and is a very good athlete. He did not have a good game in any of our three losses including Saturday.  He showed  signs of being very good mid season.  We need that consistently all four quarters every game.  If he plays like that every game we probably win all three. He doesn't lose games but he could be a bigger factor winning games. He is a gamer and played with pain against N Arizona but we need him all 4 quarters and if we are going to make play offs next year, he needs to continue to improve.  Jerry Rice's " game speed" was partly due to having a HOF QB.  Mercer, Stanley, Wanzek and Toivenen are very good and they block well.  Fastest receiver we ever had at UND was Norm McGee.  Great guy but these kids catch the ball better and can block.  If you can't block with this offense you are not going to play much. We should be better next year at TE and WR.

[shep]

Studs' other issue-he picks his target about the time they break the huddle, then focuses on that guy, no check downs, and throws to him. I don't think he ever looks off the main target.

[Sioux94]

44 minutes ago, shep said:

Studs' other issue-he picks his target about the time they break the huddle, then focuses on that guy, no check downs, and throws to him. I don't think he ever looks off the main target.

I'd agree with that.  Hopefully he can improve on that for next year.  Thought he might have improved on it this year from the prior year....but sure didn't seem like it....was typically locked in on one guy.

[geaux_sioux]

11 hours ago, iramurphy said:

I disagree.  They had a poor game Saturday as a group, but we need to do a better job of getting them the ball on the break.  Studsrud has done exactly what Bubba asked him to do.  Protect the ball and read the defense.  Needs to get through his reads quicker and deliver the ball on the break which will give your receiver a step or step and a half on the defender.  He has an adequate arm and is a very good athlete. He did not have a good game in any of our three losses including Saturday.  He showed  signs of being very good mid season.  We need that consistently all four quarters every game.  If he plays like that every game we probably win all three. He doesn't lose games but he could be a bigger factor winning games. He is a gamer and played with pain against N Arizona but we need him all 4 quarters and if we are going to make play offs next year, he needs to continue to improve.  Jerry Rice's " game speed" was partly due to having a HOF QB.  Mercer, Stanley, Wanzek and Toivenen are very good and they block well.  Fastest receiver we ever had at UND was Norm McGee.  Great guy but these kids catch the ball better and can block.  If you can't block with this offense you are not going to play much. We should be better next year at TE and WR.

If we don't get some faster WR we won't make it deep into the playoffs. We need a deep threat to keep defenses honest.

[geaux_sioux]

11 hours ago, shep said:

Studs' other issue-he picks his target about the time they break the huddle, then focuses on that guy, no check downs, and throws to him. I don't think he ever looks off the main target.

He does look off the main target some times. But you are right in that he really locks in on a guy each play.

[RD17]

3 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

If we don't get some faster WR we won't make it deep into the playoffs. We need a deep threat to keep defenses honest.

With the way Mercer has come on he should be the #1 receiver next year. He doesn't have elite speed like Georges though. If Georges doesn't come back or they can't find another guy like him then the coaches need to get more creative with how they use Santiago. Need to get him in the slot more and much more involved in the passing game. 15 carries and 3-4 receptions a game in addition to kick returning duties seems about right. He needs more opportunities in space instead of trying to pound him against nine man fronts. Also, Cloyd could become a huge weapon in the middle of the field and play action. I hear his hands are fantastic.

[RD17]

12 hours ago, bincitysioux said:

When I peek at next years schedule, my early take on North Dakota's status for each game looks like this:

• @ Utah (8-4, 5-4):  Underdog -- Self Explanatory.  Big time FBS program from the Pac-12
• Missouri State (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  
• @ South Dakota (4-7,3-5): Favorite -- Lower level team from a top tier conference.  USD games are often competetive, but in the end we've won 6 of last 7 against them.
• Montana St. (4-7, 2-6):  Favorite -- Despite a nice finish, the Cats were a disaster in 2016.  
• @ UC Davis (3-8, 2-6):  Favorite -- Lower level conference opponent, installing a new coaching staff in 2017
• Northern Colorado (6-5, 4-4):  Favorite -- Bears have been better of late.  Don't see our 4 game winning streak against them being snapped in the Alerus though.
• @ Montana (6-5, 3-5):  50/50 -- Griz were soft this year.  But it's tough for anyone to get a win in Missoula.
• Sacramento St. (2-9, 2-6):  Favorite -- Might get ugly for the Hornets in this one at the Alerus
• @ Portland St:  Favorite -- Can the Viks return to their 2015 form?  Didn't see anything in 2016 that would indicate so.
• @ Southern Utah:  50/50 -- Only EWU, Poly, and NAU have won more Big Sky games than the T-Birds since the 2012 Expansion.  9-1 at home last two seasons
• Eastern Washington:  Underdog -- Class of the Big Sky for close to a decade now.  Could be defending National Champions next year.

I think you are significantly overvaluing some of these teams.

SUU will be under .500 next year. They lose their only productive players at running back and receiver and they were also hit hard by graduation on a defense that allowed 455 yards per game. UND beat them by 22 this year and will pound them next year. Warren is going to take this program on a downward trend.

EWU loses five first team all-conference players, including those three star receivers. They can't run the ball or stop the run so unless they have three more receivers that are All-America caliber they will fall off next year. Baldwin is also the front runner to get the Nevada job so they are likely to have a new coach as well.

It is tough to win in Missoula but Stitt has them going in the wrong direction. Soft football team that plays a soft style.

 

[homer]

If we get stronger up front offensively this off season, no reason not to expect another undefeated conference run.  The teams in our conference cannot play to our style if we get things clicking.  It's been proven over the last couple of years.  We need to continue to develop the MVFV type oline.  Getting closer, not there yet.  

 

[77iceman]

I'd tend to agree with R2D2 on that 2017 breakdown.  I'd need to see UND show up for all four quarters consistently before I'd think otherwise.

It's what makes this a fun team to watch, though.  No game is a gimme!

[The Sicatoka]

23 minutes ago, 77iceman said:

It's what makes this a fun team to watch, though.  No game is a gimme!

No. Just, ... no. 
I want some games to be flat out gimmes. 

It allows sitting starters (to protect from injury) and getting the second and third team reps for the future. 

[Sioux94]

46 minutes ago, The Sicatoka said:

It allows sitting starters (to protect from injury) and getting the second and third team reps for the future. 

That would require us to actually sit key players like Reyes and Studs in the 4th quarter when we are up 30 points.  Unlike this year when we didn't against Sac St. and Reyes got injured and then missed a couple of games and Studs took a hard late hit in the 4th.  I do totally agree though, hope we have 4 or more games next year where we are up big in the 4th and can rest some guys, especially since it sounds like we don't have a bye until the last week again. 

[UNDColorado]

Since we are on to 2017 I am looking forward to making the trip to Salt Lake City to watch us beat Utah. So far I have one other Colorado based UND Alum on board so this is already setting up to be a great weekend. Scouting starts 12/28 as Utah plays Indiana in the Foster Farms Bowl.

[The Sicatoka]

2 minutes ago, Sioux94 said:

That would require us to actually sit key players like Reyes and Studs in the 4th quarter when we are up 30 points. 

That's the mode I'd like to see.
The first step is to not be afraid to put someone down 30 points. 

[Sioux94]

3 minutes ago, The Sicatoka said:

That's the mode I'd like to see.
The first step is to not be afraid to put someone down 30 points. 

With a slow start and losing the first two games this year, and dropping out of the polls for a while.......I think we were maybe focusing on trying to get style points more than we should have.  With most of the OL returning, hoping that start is much better out of the gate next year.