2017 Offensive Depth Charts

[89MTBISON]

This. We are a system offense, not a high octane burner offense. Like another pointed out, that would be our TEs.



Vraa was not a burner. He ran great routes, understood the offense, and caught everything. He was the Vikings version of Cris Carter.

We are a power running offense that runs lots of short passes to possession receivers, Tight Ends, and running backs. We take our deep shots very selectively

Yes. The one team to figure this out in the last 6 years has been JMU, they beat us at our own game. Here's to hoping the rest of the FCS never learns that lesson. Keep slingin' the ball around FCS, we'll take the power game and the championships that come along with it.

[HerdBot]

Yes. The one team to figure this out in the last 6 years has been JMU, they beat us at our own game. Here's to hoping the rest of the FCS never learns that lesson. Keep slingin' the ball around FCS, we'll take the power game and the championships that come along with it.

Defensive injuries (Deluca, Tanguay, 2 of his backups) , a phantom off sides, and bad play calling is what cost us that game. Could have used a burner though since we needed points fast

[89MTBISON]

Defensive injuries (Deluca, Tanguay, 2 of his backups) , a phantom off sides, and bad play calling is what cost us that game. Could have used a burner though since we needed points fast

Yes, and we failed to show up for the first half. I liked their physical style of play. We will see if they can replicate that this year. If we stay healthy, get better play calling and QB play we will be tough to beat, JSU and Chatty looked lame last weekend.

[HerdBot]

Yes, and we failed to show up for the first half. I liked their physical style of play. We will see if they can replicate that this year. If we stay healthy, get better play calling and QB play we will be tough to beat, JSU and Chatty looked lame last weekend.

It's all about depth. When you lose Tanguay and then Steidl along with DeLuca, you will be softer in the middle. Our starters were all backups and their backups were 3rd Team and we had to slide a very undersized Caleb Butler inside. Not a good match-up for a power run team

And yes we sucked in the first half but up until that phantom timeout and then offsides we had all the momentum until Polasek decided to run the ball right into a defense that was crashing the middle

[thebigund]

This. We are a system offense, not a high octane burner offense. Like another pointed out, that would be our TEs.



Vraa was not a burner. He ran great routes, understood the offense, and caught everything. He was the Vikings version of Cris Carter.

We are a power running offense that runs lots of short passes to possession receivers, Tight Ends, and running backs. We take our deep shots very selectively

I don't think it really hurt us. By normal people's standards last year was successful. The defensive injuries and CB depth is what hurt us more. Would have been nice having a deep burner vs JMU though since we needed to air it out late

No shit he wasn't a burner. He and Holloway were my examples of guys with a big catch radius that attack the ball in the air. Nobody on NDSU could do that last year.

[Bison20]

Defensive injuries (Deluca, Tanguay, 2 of his backups) , a phantom off sides, and bad play calling is what cost us that game. Could have used a burner though since we needed points fast

How many teams can lose an all American dt and mlb along with their 2nd best dt and not have a major drop off. The biggest thing was polasek called a horrible game. I really hope that the new oc does a better job mixing it up and keeping the defense off balanced

[Professor Chaos]

The one team to figure this out in the last 6 years has been JMU.

I see it a little differently. I think there's been several playoff games the Bison have won over the last few years there that were only a few plays away from turning out like the JMU in '16 game did. Off the top of my head:

SHSU (natty) in '11
Wofford in '12
GSU in '12
In '13.... ummm ok got nothing there.
SDSU in '14
CCU in '14
ISUr (natty) in '14
UNI in '15

What seemed to bail the Bison out of those games was either one unit played heroicly (defense in '11 SHSU and '12 Wofford, offense in all 3 of those '14 games, or special teams in '15 UNI) and/or the Bison had a special kid or three that made incredible plays (Grant Olson's 198 tackles against Wofford in '12, the Wentz/Legendowski connections against SDSU and ISUr in '14, Jensen's refusal to lose against GSU in '12, etc). In all those games the opponent had the horses to beat the Bison if their kids had stepped up the way those Bison players did.

They just didn't have that happen for them against JMU last year. That game, like the games I mentioned above, was a play or two during that crucial 2nd half stretch where it was tied up from the final score being flipped. I don't think JMU had an epiphany or was any better strategically than numerous other playoff opponents that the Bison have beaten over the last 6 years, they just had kids who made heroic plays (like Schor's 3rd and long strike for the TD that put them up 10) and a defensive unit, specially along the defensive front, that played heroically against the NDSU power run game.

Call me a homer or a rube but I'll gladly take the guys in green and yellow this year over anyone else in the country. One playoff loss where they didn't make the plays doesn't erase the last 22 playoff wins where they did. Sometimes it happens but I'll be more than happy to see another 5 titles before it happens again sometime in 2022.

[EC8CH]

I see it a little differently. I think there's been several playoff games the Bison have won over the last few years there that were only a few plays away from turning out like the JMU in '16 game did. Off the top of my head:

SHSU (natty) in '11
Wofford in '12
GSU in '12
In '13.... ummm ok got nothing there.
SDSU in '14
CCU in '14
ISUr (natty) in '14
UNI in '15

What seemed to bail the Bison out of those games was either one unit played heroicly (defense in '11 SHSU and '12 Wofford, offense in all 3 of those '14 games, or special teams in '15 UNI) and/or the Bison had a special kid or three that made incredible plays (Grant Olson's 198 tackles against Wofford in '12, the Wentz/Legendowski connections against SDSU and ISUr in '14, Jensen's refusal to lose against GSU in '12, etc). In all those games the opponent had the horses to beat the Bison if their kids had stepped up the way those Bison players did.

They just didn't have that happen for them against JMU last year. That game, like the games I mentioned above, was a play or two during that crucial 2nd half stretch where it was tied up from the final score being flipped. I don't think JMU had an epiphany or was any better strategically than numerous other playoff opponents that the Bison have beaten over the last 6 years, they just had kids who made heroic plays (like Schor's 3rd and long strike for the TD that put them up 10) and a defensive unit, specially along the defensive front, that played heroically against the NDSU power run game.

Call me a homer or a rube but I'll gladly take the guys in green and yellow this year over anyone else in the country. One playoff loss where they didn't make the plays doesn't erase the last 22 playoff wins where they did. Sometimes it happens but I'll be more than happy to see another 5 titles before it happens again sometime in 2022.

Excellent post. Looking back it certainly looks like NDSU dominated, but when you look closely other than '13 there were games when other teams were very much NDSU's equal but for a few key plays going the Bison's way through either luck or determination of individual players. Last year was not so different other than those key plays going JMU's way for similar reasons.

[89MTBISON]

So I tend to lump all the read/spread/triple option teams into one pile for simplicities sake, ie SHSU, Wofford, GSU, ISUr. Seems like CCU did something similar. SDSU throws the kitchen sink at us in desperation. UNI has a numbskull at head coach, they don't seem to be able to figure out what they want to be. We have an identity and we stick to it. I don't see it so much as heroic play as we have a system that everyone buys into. I still remember our discipline at Kansas State, down by 2 TDs, we never waivered from that identity. JMU reminded me of us more than any other team.

[MAKBison]

I see it a little differently. I think there's been several playoff games the Bison have won over the last few years there that were only a few plays away from turning out like the JMU in '16 game did. Off the top of my head:

SHSU (natty) in '11
Wofford in '12
GSU in '12
In '13.... ummm ok got nothing there.
SDSU in '14
CCU in '14
ISUr (natty) in '14
UNI in '15

What seemed to bail the Bison out of those games was either one unit played heroicly (defense in '11 SHSU and '12 Wofford, offense in all 3 of those '14 games, or special teams in '15 UNI) and/or the Bison had a special kid or three that made incredible plays (Grant Olson's 198 tackles against Wofford in '12, the Wentz/Legendowski connections against SDSU and ISUr in '14, Jensen's refusal to lose against GSU in '12, etc). In all those games the opponent had the horses to beat the Bison if their kids had stepped up the way those Bison players did.

They just didn't have that happen for them against JMU last year. That game, like the games I mentioned above, was a play or two during that crucial 2nd half stretch where it was tied up from the final score being flipped. I don't think JMU had an epiphany or was any better strategically than numerous other playoff opponents that the Bison have beaten over the last 6 years, they just had kids who made heroic plays (like Schor's 3rd and long strike for the TD that put them up 10) and a defensive unit, specially along the defensive front, that played heroically against the NDSU power run game.

Call me a homer or a rube but I'll gladly take the guys in green and yellow this year over anyone else in the country. One playoff loss where they didn't make the plays doesn't erase the last 22 playoff wins where they did. Sometimes it happens but I'll be more than happy to see another 5 titles before it happens again sometime in 2022.

The JMU game reminded me a lot of the 2015 championship game. In 2015 the previous 4 years essentially had our defense just spent. No matter how courageous how talented, there was not much left in the tank. Against JMU our offense and defense seemed to both be equally spent. We need some young bucks to step up. I think we will be just fine!