#1 fact we learned in this years playoffs...

[GrizBison]

B]1. ...it is all about matchups[/B]. If the NCAA keeps doing these regional match ups the first few rounds...the Bison should have an easier walk into the semi's every year compared to others who have to face the CAA right away.

The best part once they get there to the semi's: Bison are one of the few teams that can match up with the CAA teams of Delaware, Villanova, etc. with their physical play on the lines. Did you watch Nova play? Their lines totally handled App State and even though App State had a speed advantage, they couldn't do anything with it. With Jones broken foot and not playing, Eastern Washington will get beat by 21 point at least this Friday. Eastern is a finesse speed team that will get worked by them at home. If Nova's Sczcur isn't hurt for 7 games, they win a few more games and are a top 3 seed. I saw first hand last year that Sczcur is an animal as there is a guy that is a difference maker and should have won the Walter Payton award if he could have stayed healthy. EWU will have to play out of their minds just to keep this close. Bison would have gave them a better game than EWU....just a better matchup. That sucks as I had some front row tickets all lined up for Friday night when they would have hosted Nova in the dome.

2. Also, the Bison need home playoff games to use the fargodome's noise to give them an advantage and turn them into a consistent FCS powerhouse. The Bison can't lose some of these conference games like they have over the recent years to teams that do not have the same talent level....those games shouldn't even be close. This "underachieving part of the year" has to be over if the Bison want to win a title...it's too hard to be expected to win every playoff game on the road consistently. The Bison have the talent to play with the CAA big boys, they just have to be more consistent throughout the year. 7-1 and 6-2 are where they should have been in conference play (this year and every year in my opinion)....whether Gratzek gets hurt or not...no excuses with our talent.

3. Bison need a consistent passing game to some extent to win the title. Brock played way better in the EWU game, but Nova would have been really, really tough to run on (totally different then MSU or EWU).....so with 8-9 guys in the box, we need a QB that can hurt you in some way. Doesn't need to be anything special with the way the Bison run the ball and I think Brock/others can get there in the coming few years if he is groomed properly by the coaches and given the right opportunities during the game.

The future is only bright for the Bison........

[HerdBot]

The west is an easier path. Why does Montana make deep playoff runs? We've basically taken their formula and with the dome we can bid for games. Now we nees to take it to the next level we need to win the MVFC, get seeded, and home field advantage. Its the formula Montana and all the Big Sky teams have milked for years. We can realistically win the National Championship and build a D1 tradition just like Montana did.

[HerdBot]

The west is an easier path. Why does Montana make deep playoff runs? We've basically taken their formula and with the dome we can bid for games. Now we nees to take it to the next level we need to win the MVFC, get seeded, and home field advantage. Its the formula Montana and all the Big Sky teams have milked for years. We can realistically win the National Championship and build a D1 tradition just like Montana did.

Also we need to keep the team built to win outdoors while being explosive indoors when needed.

[BisoninNWMN]

B]1. ...it is all about matchups[/B]. If the NCAA keeps doing these regional match ups the first few rounds...the Bison should have an easier walk into the semi's every year compared to others who have to face the CAA right away.

The best part once they get there to the semi's: Bison are one of the few teams that can match up with the CAA teams of Delaware, Villanova, etc. with their physical play on the lines. Did you watch Nova play? Their lines totally handled App State and even though App State had a speed advantage, they couldn't do anything with it. With Jones broken foot and not playing, Eastern Washington will get beat by 21 point at least this Friday. Eastern is a finesse speed team that will get worked by them at home. If Nova's Sczcur isn't hurt for 7 games, they win a few more games and are a top 3 seed. I saw first hand last year that Sczcur is an animal as there is a guy that is a difference maker and should have won the Walter Payton award if he could have stayed healthy. EWU will have to play out of their minds just to keep this close. Bison would have gave them a better game than EWU....just a better matchup. That sucks as I had some front row tickets all lined up for Friday night when they would have hosted Nova in the dome.

2. Also, the Bison need home playoff games to use the fargodome's noise to give them an advantage and turn them into a consistent FCS powerhouse. The Bison can't lose some of these conference games like they have over the recent years to teams that do not have the same talent level....those games shouldn't even be close. This "underachieving part of the year" has to be over if the Bison want to win a title...it's too hard to be expected to win every playoff game on the road consistently. The Bison have the talent to play with the CAA big boys, they just have to be more consistent throughout the year. 7-1 and 6-2 are where they should have been in conference play (this year and every year in my opinion)....whether Gratzek gets hurt or not...no excuses with our talent.

3. Bison need a consistent passing game to some extent to win the title. Brock played way better in the EWU game, but Nova would have been really, really tough to run on (totally different then MSU or EWU).....so with 8-9 guys in the box, we need a QB that can hurt you in some way. Doesn't need to be anything special with the way the Bison run the ball and I think Brock/others can get there in the coming few years if he is groomed properly by the coaches and given the right opportunities during the game.

The future is only bright for the Bison........


No arguement with any of that.

EWU, w/o Jones, is going to get their a**es handed to them. Same as their Montana State game, he got hurt and they lost big.

If the Bison can just take care of business during the regular season, home playoff games could be a huge advantage. It would have been very interesting to see how many tickets we would have sold with a playoff game this saturday against Villanova. IMO, it would have been close to a sell-out.

[houndawg]

B]1. ...it is all about matchups[/B]. If the NCAA keeps doing these regional match ups the first few rounds...the Bison should have an easier walk into the semi's every year compared to others who have to face the CAA right away.

The best part once they get there to the semi's: Bison are one of the few teams that can match up with the CAA teams of Delaware, Villanova, etc. with their physical play on the lines. Did you watch Nova play? Their lines totally handled App State and even though App State had a speed advantage, they couldn't do anything with it. With Jones broken foot and not playing, Eastern Washington will get beat by 21 point at least this Friday. Eastern is a finesse speed team that will get worked by them at home. If Nova's Sczcur isn't hurt for 7 games, they win a few more games and are a top 3 seed. I saw first hand last year that Sczcur is an animal as there is a guy that is a difference maker and should have won the Walter Payton award if he could have stayed healthy. EWU will have to play out of their minds just to keep this close. Bison would have gave them a better game than EWU....just a better matchup. That sucks as I had some front row tickets all lined up for Friday night when they would have hosted Nova in the dome.

2. Also, the Bison need home playoff games to use the fargodome's noise to give them an advantage and turn them into a consistent FCS powerhouse. The Bison can't lose some of these conference games like they have over the recent years to teams that do not have the same talent level....those games shouldn't even be close. This "underachieving part of the year" has to be over if the Bison want to win a title...it's too hard to be expected to win every playoff game on the road consistently. The Bison have the talent to play with the CAA big boys, they just have to be more consistent throughout the year. 7-1 and 6-2 are where they should have been in conference play (this year and every year in my opinion)....whether Gratzek gets hurt or not...no excuses with our talent.

3. Bison need a consistent passing game to some extent to win the title. Brock played way better in the EWU game, but Nova would have been really, really tough to run on (totally different then MSU or EWU).....so with 8-9 guys in the box, we need a QB that can hurt you in some way. Doesn't need to be anything special with the way the Bison run the ball and I think Brock/others can get there in the coming few years if he is groomed properly by the coaches and given the right opportunities during the game.

The future is only bright for the Bison........

If a "finesse team" like EWU can rush for 200 yds in the first half on you, 'Nova would have to be a prohibitive favorite against the Bison. I didn't see the game but it sounds like their front seven was maybe a little more physical than you're willing to admit, too.

[semobison]

I hope winning a few playoff games will lead to greater success in the MVFC. We havnt learned how to win consistantly in our conference yet. No use talking playoffs if you cant get there! We have yet to have a winning season in the MVFC. Our overall 3 year record is a humbling 10-14. I hope this playoff experience leads to winning a conference championship!.....We were so close to getting a shot at the big boys from the CAA. We proved we can play with the Big Sky's best.

[HerdBot]

If a "finesse team" like EWU can rush for 200 yds in the first half on you, 'Nova would have to be a prohibitive favorite against the Bison. I didn't see the game but it sounds like their front seven was maybe a little more physical than you're willing to admit, too.

60 of those yards shouldn't have even happened because they should have punted the play before. It was 3rd down and the receiver caught a ball that clearly hit the turf. Hey, mistakes happen but the corrupt crew, using 5 espn angles, couldn't get in right on the replay when everyone and their dog could see it was incomplete. The announcers said, "this one is coming back" and seemed shocked when it wasn't overturned. The next play the break a 60 yard run for a TD. Talk about a game changer.

[Tatanka]

If a "finesse team" like EWU can rush for 200 yds in the first half on you, 'Nova would have to be a prohibitive favorite against the Bison. I didn't see the game but it sounds like their front seven was maybe a little more physical than you're willing to admit, too.

No, really?

[houndawg]

No, really?

Seriously.:nod:

Keep your chin up, you did well for the last team let in to an expanded playoff field and have something to build on after a couple of not-so-impressive seasons.

[semobison]

What I was most impressed with watching Nova dismantle App, was the size and agility of their O line. They have only one guy under 300 lbs, and they looked like some athletic beasts! Nova would have been a tremendous challange.