Originally Posted by
thebigund
Last year I noted that NDSU’s defense was beginning to slip from their torrid pace. It appears I was right. The yearly pts/game allowed by NDSU go like this: 18-12-11-11-14-15-16. Now I know, I know, this year NDSU will have teh greatest defense in history, ever, of all time. There’s just so much depth and speed all over the field that it makes me sick. I mean these guys are gooood. Just for fun I’ll show UND’s pts/game allowed over the last few years. This should be fun, for you guys. 34-33-26-25-22…. Those first two years in the Big Sky were pretty rough on the d…. like The Pain Olympics rough. By my calculations we should allow 18pts/game and NDSU should allow 2pts/game this season. Book it. It’s science.
DL:
When I look at NDSU’s DL I see quite a few guys that I wanted at UND pretty bad. Nate Tanguay is one of those guys. He’s a fucking prick and I love it. A real tone setter for the defense. He’s one of those DTs that blows up a play in the backfield a few times a game and celebrates like an ape. It’s contagious and you guys missed that in the playoffs last year. Greg Menards is my other guy I wanted bad aaannnnnnd he’s gone. So Caleb Butler is now the top returning sacker for teh bizuns…. So much for the greatest defense of all time. Steidl read my post last year no doubt and used it to set his goals for the year. You’re welcome. Stanley Jones is now going to have to be the man. Cole Karcz is apparently the x factor for this unit. Good for him. Throw in one time greatest commit ever Grant Morgan and the Tuzka boys and you’ve got yourself a deep DL unit.
Not so fast! UND is legitimately stacked and experienced on the DL. Jr. Tank Harris is the dancing bear in the middle. He plugs 2 gaps at a time all day long. Thanks to Tank our ILBs get to run free and make plays. SRs Brandon Dranka and Drew Greeley are back for their swan song. They started the DL renaissance at UND when they played as true FR. Both are high motor guys who are stout against the run. SO Mason Bennett is the future. He’s got elite burst and length. Look for him to have a monster year after a solid FR campaign. JR Austin Cieslak is a mammoth DE at 6’4” 300 lbs who can run. He absolutely dominates at times. If he can be consistent this year he will wreck offenses. Nick Schmitz, ever heard of him? Well this dude from Mekinock is country strong and tough as nails. Classic run stuffer. SO Carter Wilson is a little light, 235 lbs, but has elite quickness and hands. He’s another guy that is about to come in to his own this year.
Advantage: UND
LB:
UND graduated 3 starters from last year and the other had to retire due to a concussion sustained from a cheap shot. Fuck. On the bright side we sub like crazy on defense and went 3 deep last year. SO Donnel Rodgers is going to be a star. Blazing fast first step and a really heavy hitter. He’s a young man with a mustache and he’s not afraid to use it. SR Jake Disterhaupt has been a stud at OLB for the past two seasons and may be forced to move to ILB this season. This dude is FAST; he runs with the top group in the winter. He’s also tough and has a nose for the football. May be a little light for ILB but he’ll be fine. SO Jade Lawrence, the LB from Moorhead who NDSU was too errogant to offer, is, let’s say, a poor mans Travis Beck. He’s a really fast tackling machine. He’s also barely over 200lbs. Former safety Tanner Palmborg has moved down to OLB and he has turned some heads. Now for the freshman x factors. Ray Haas, 6’5” 220lbs. The word out of spring ball is that this dude is special. Supremely athletic, long, and great ball skills. By the end of the season I would not be the least bit surprised if he is starting. Also, word on the street is that true FR Noah Larson, 6’2” 230lbs, may just have his shirt pulled. This dude is carved out of stone and fast. Not your typical FR LB.
Time for my annual Nick DeLuca gush fest. He’s the best LB in the country. That was fun. Matt Plank is probably gonna start at ILB this year. He’s not bad. He’s not half the player DeLuca is inside but with graduation thinning the OLB spots NDSU is better off with DeLuca outside and Plank inside. Seems like just yesterday that Chris Board was supposed to be the best safety ever. Well he sucked at that and got moved to linebacker.... where he also sucked. I do hear that he's been hitting the weight like super hard and is looking positively ginormous. Good thing he sucks otherwise we'd all be fucked. Jabril Cox, on the other hand, is supposedly the truth. 6’3” and 230 is all you can ask for and he can run. Should be fun to watch him develop. Other than those guys it’s what? Levi Jordheim and Marlette? Basically you guys are pretty thin at LB.
Advantage: DeLuca – he’s just too good
CB:
Who are the 5 greatest cornerbacks on NDSU’s roster? Jalen, Jaylaan, Jealahn, Jayelawn, and Jaylon. Jalen Allison, is he the next great corner at NDSU? He very well could be. Has the size and better speed than Williams or Smith had. But he will need to step it up big time to get to that level. He’s got the talent to make it happen, but does he have “it”? We will see. I’m sure he does. Jaylaan Wimbush on the other hand is not the next in line.
Deion Harris is the most hyped CB in the entire FCS aaaannnnd he’s gone. Tyus Carter was a starter to being last season before going down for the year with a shoulder injury. He’s back and will most likely start. Evan Holm is the fastest white boy of all time. Torrey Hunt is a crazy speed havin 6’1” smooth CB. Last year he either looked like an all American or an end zone escort. He was 5th on the team with 46 tackles 3 picks and 13 PBUs. If he finds consistency in his game for his sophomore season he will be an all American level player. Hayden Blubaugh has been running with the second team defense so far in fall camp. All reports are that he doesn’t look or act like a true fr. He will play a ton this year.
Advantage: NDSU due to the loss of Harris
S:
Cole Reyes is the best SS in the nation. He’s an open field tackling machine and has elite ball skills. He’s got it all. The big question in our defensive backfield is at FS. Chuck Flowers has been running with the 1’s so far. The senior was the backup FS last season and played a lot. Tamas Stewart is still a mystery. He came in from a JUCO in the spring but was injured the entire time. His film was really impressive but unless he sees the field at some point he might as well hang out with Bruce Willis and change his name to Elijah Price.
Tre Dempsy is a small ball hawking son of a bitch. I like how he plays. Robbie teh whipping boy Grimsely is the weakest strong safety in the game. He’s got elite ball skills though. His tackling still sucks but it has gotten better. That’s just not his thing. He’s a playmaker not a hitter. It’s tough for me to really even consider him a true SS. You guys basically have two FS back there which has plusses and negatives. James Hendricks has made a pretty impressive transition from QB. It reminds me of how Thorton transitioned to LB and made a huge impact.
Advantage: NDSU 2>1 even if the 1 is really really good.
Overall: NDSU – how can I not go with the greatest defensive unit of all time?
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