Countdown To Cal Poly

[totoinfl]

The comment that liked best was one I found a couple of weeks ago. The poster was a dad of one of the players who complained that we were winning too much and wanted NDSU to be forced to go to the FBS. I also posted over there a couple of times and the acceptance rate was one of the first things that were brought to my attention. I don't understand how smarter players mean that they can get by with smaller ones. There are alot of things that I don't understand about West and East coast elitism. It seems to me that we have been competing with several FBS teams for recruits. Some of their attitudes probably stem from frustration over their 1-10 record last season. The least interesting game for me is probably;y North Alabama, but I will be in my usual end zone seats.

The last of I heard of Cal Poly was when Army was talking about Rich Ellerson coming from Cal Poly to improve the TO there...after a 20-41 record, they found a guy in Jeff Monken...hmm that name is familiar who actually makes it work.

[Vet70]

First things first. Where the hell are my season tickets? It is time for Christmas in August. Second, and at this point in time not near as important, we have finally turned another corner and there are under 30 days to go at day 29 in the Cal Poly Marathon Countdown. So, time to wrap up my soliloquy on Cal Poly's triple option (unless I think of something else on another day). We have played versions of this type of offense before and overall have done a pretty good job. My humble take is the way to defend it is to adhere to two basic rules:
1. Assignment football and discipline.
2. Repeat, repeat, and then repeat rule #1.
To be successful the defense has to recognize what gaps they have to fill and what players to hit. Beating up on the quarterback is always a good idea if you can get away with it. I remember in 2016 the Chuck Southern quarterback complained several times to the referees about getting smacked around. Speed helps (remember the problems in the second GSU game? A real classic) and I can't wait to see what happens when they meet #42.

As far as discipline goes, the quote by former Jamestown coach Rollie Greeno pretty well sums it up:
"You got the pitchman. If you look anywhere else, you will be slingin' chicken (crap) back in Esmond tomorrow."
I get the feeling Greeno probably didn't say "crap." Again this is the video of the highlights of the SDSU game I posted on day 31. You don't have to get more than 1:05 in to see two Bunnies converging on the quarterback who pitches to the running back with no one around him. Touchdown Mustangs.

A few days before the Rabbit's Cal Poly game the Argus Leader published an article on how to defend the option, but the coaches and/or players must not have gotten the text, tweet or whatever else they do these days. Maybe Stig got an early jump on the Josse.

Of course, Cal Poly and any other option offense will also occasionally pass and turnover the ball. In 2016 they had 22 fumbles and lost 12---in 2017 it was 23 and they gave up 17. I would really like to see us recover at least 3 fumbles. The last thing is hopefully we can hog the ball as usual and keep their offense off the field. The last two years both teams have hovered around 33 minutes in terms of time of possession. That's more than my two cents on the topic, and I'll leave most everything else to the coaches on Bisonville and at NDSU. Any thoughts?

**In 1934 #29 Fritz Hanson set a record by returning a punt 98 yards against Oklahoma City.
**The record for first downs is 29 and was set in a game with Morningside in 1977.
**Ball State was the first FCS victim in 2006 when they lost 29-24.
**The record for passes completed in a game is 29 held by Walker (2006) and Mertens (2009).
**In 2012 against Wofford Grant Olson set two records: 29 total tackles and 23 assists.
**At the finish of the 2013 season, NDSU received 17 votes in the final AP Football Poll and was ranked 29th in all of D1 football. That is an FCS record for a season-ending poll.
**Craig Bohl was the 29th head coach from 2013-2013. He finished with 4 Conference titles, 3 National Championships and a record of 104-32 (.765).
**At the 2014 season National Championship game ISU-R lost 29-27. This was a great one and other than the JMU game it was the hardest fought FCS title game for the Bison. Afterward, Coach Spack uttered the quote that needs to be memorialized: "I told our players after the game that you didn't lose the game, you just ran out of time." Sorry, brother Spack, this one still goes in the Bison win column.
**A total of 174 points were scored by the Bison in the 6 D1 Championship games compared to 76 for its opponents. That is an average of 29 to 12.7 or a +16.3 differential.

A pretty good free safety who wore #29 was 6-0, 197- pound Nick Schommer (2005-2008). He played in 41 games with 186 total tackles (108 solos) and 13 interceptions. Schommer became the 25th Bison drafted by the NFL (by the Tennesse Titans in 2009), but unfortunately, things didn't work out. This is a picture of Nick after the Bison beat the Gophers in 2007.

https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

Today that #29 jersey is worn by 6-2 203- pound Senior strong safety Eric Bachmeier. He has played as a reserve and on special teams in 29 games with 10 tackles. We need guys like Eric to really step up this year.

https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

Tick tock, day 28 tomorrow.

[Vet70]

If anyone is reading these rants it is 28 days (or 4 long weeks) until the game with Cal Poly. If no one is reading them it is still 28 days to go before the game. If the countdown is not accurate blame it on Christopher Moen for providing me with a faulty Calendar Converter when all of this started on the day 50/51 fiasco. Anyway, all is right in my universe because my season tickets arrived yesterday afternoon. I know you care. Meanwhile:

**The Bison record for passing attempts in a playoff game is 28 when Montana was defeated 30-3 in 1969.
**Bob Babich was the 28th Bison Coach from 1987-2002 and had a record of 44-22.
**NDSU has played in 30 D1 playoff games and has won 28 of them (.933).
**The Bison have beaten SHSU in two FCS title and two semi-final games. The scores in these games were: 2011---17-6 (+13); 2012---39-13 (+26); 2014---35-3 (+32) and 2017---55-10 (+45).
The obvious pattern is there is a larger margin of victory each time we have played them. That's a lot to live up to the next time they come to the Dome. In the four contests, the Bison have outscored SHSU 146-32 for an average +28.5 point differential.
**In the second round of the 2012 Playoffs the Bunnies came to town and lost 28-3. My favorite play from that game and one of my all-time top 20 or so? "Hide Ryan" (credit to StL. Bison Fan):

The Rabbits liked it so much the copied it for in the 2016 semifinals when they were crushed 36-10.

One of the all-time great Bison running backs was #28 Lamar Gordon (1997-2001). He was a consensus All -American in 2000 and was the 84th overall selection by the St. Louis Rams in the 2001 draft. He still holds a number of single game, season, and career records: Most consecutive 100-yard rushing games, 1st (10), 2nd (8) and 3rd (7); Average yards rushing per game in a season (156.6); and the career marks for rushing yards (4,696), rushing yards per game (114.5 in 41 games), and all-purpose yards (5,251). He is also in the top five all-time in a number other categories.


https://gobison.com/hof.aspx?hof=282&path=&kiosk=

Starting last season Ty Brooks started seeing action in 2016 wearing the #28 jersey. To say that he was dynamic does not do him justice. He played in 9 games as a Freshman, and only 10 in 2017 due to a severe shoulder injury. Before that misfortune, Ty had 700 yards rushing on 76 carries for an average of 9.2. I was surprised to learn that Brooks now holds the Bison record for total offense per play during a season (minimum of 50 plays required. Stick is #6 with an average of 8.32 for 2017). Ty also had 3 kick returns for an average of 28.7 yards. There is no doubt Brooks is a playmaker that we need in the backfield so here is hoping he is 100% for the season.



https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

I'm out of here. Tomorrow is probably day 27.

[Vet70]

(Going to post day 27 a few minutes early, tomorrow may be a sleep in day)
It has taken almost a full day but finally day 27 for the Countdown to Cal Poly is here. What is much more important to me is this is the day of the month I get to collect another social security check. For those of you who are still working please keep at it and thank you for helping to fund my retirement. As a small token of my appreciation here is a few thoughts on the featured number of the day:

**NDSU in 1986 finished the season 13-0 and beat the Coyotes 27-7 for National Championship #6.
**Tyronne Braxton 1987, was drafted by the Denver Broncos as the 27th pick in the 12th round (334 overall). He was the second player from NDSU to get a Superbowl ring when the Broncos won in both 1997 and 1998.
**Rocky Hager was the #27 head coach for the Bison from 1987-1996. His record was 91-26-1 (.777) along with 5 NCC titles and National Championships in 1988 and 1990.
**In the 1990's the team had a record of 88-27 (.765).
**Phil Hansen was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 1991. He was the 27th pick in the 2nd round and the 54th player selected that year. He played in three Superbowls with the Bills.
**In 2007 Minnesota became FBS victim #4 when they lost 27-21.
**The Bison in the 2011 playoffs allowed only 27 points in 4 games. That has been the fewest for any of NDSU's six D1 Championships. That was a fairly good defense.
**In a second-round playoff game in 2014 the Bunnies lost 27-24. This was Klieman's first playoff game as a head coach. The Bison trailed 24-20 and with time running out and drove 76 yards in 8 plays (2 minutes 18 seconds) to score on a 12 yard pass from #11 with only 54 seconds left. R.J. Urzendowski was a true Freshman that year and he showed he could be a clutch receiver. He went on to play a key role in the "Just ran Out of Time" National Championship that year. I had to split the gif of the catch in two, but the first one shows the excellent throw from Carson and a great effort from RJ. The next one shows a second defender coming over and doing a couple of Bunny hops in front of the official, either upset with the call, frustrated, or just hopping mad. They were nice Rabbit hops, but the ref didn't seem impressed.
https://imgur.com/uCIgzKy
https://imgur.com/SSjAumx
**We beat #13 Iowa 23-21 in 2016 and the Bison received 74 votes in the AP Football Poll that week. That made NDSU the 27th best team in all D1 football, the highest ranking ever for an FCS team.
**The Bison currently have a streak of 27 straight victories after a bye week.

One of the lesser-known players to wear #27 was Jeff Willis. Partially because there are no rosters after 2004 available online information on a number of players from his era is hard to find. As far as I can figure he played from 1982-1984 and his best games were a 101-yard effort against Augustana and 127 yards in the game with Northern Michigan (both in 1982). I did find a picture from the 1882 semifinals against U.C. Davis.

Shawn Bibeau (2006-2009) was a more recent player who had #27 on his jersey. He is 5th all-time in total points (308) and was successful on 155 of his extra points out of 165 attempts (.939, 9th place all-time). He was also 2nd in field goals made (51 for 73, .699 ) and ranks first in attempts.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2070


From what I have read all good stories need to leave the readers with a cliffhanger. Tune in on day 26 for more.

[dewey]

(Going to post day 27 a few minutes early, tomorrow may be a sleep in day)
It has taken almost a full day but finally day 27 for the Countdown to Cal Poly is here. What is much more important to me is this is the day of the month I get to collect another social security check. For those of you who are still working please keep at it and thank you for helping to fund my retirement. As a small token of my appreciation here is a few thoughts on the featured number of the day:

**NDSU in 1986 finished the season 13-0 and beat the Coyotes 27-7 for National Championship #6.
**Tyronne Braxton 1987, was drafted by the Denver Broncos as the 27th pick in the 12th round (334 overall). He was the second player from NDSU to get a Superbowl ring when the Broncos won in both 1997 and 1998.
**Rocky Hager was the #27 head coach for the Bison from 1987-1996. His record was 91-26-1 (.777) along with 5 NCC titles and National Championships in 1988 and 1990.
**In the 1990's the team had a record of 88-27 (.765).
**Phil Hansen was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 1991. He was the 27th pick in the 2nd round and the 54th player selected that year. He played in three Superbowls with the Bills.
**In 2007 Minnesota became FBS victim #4 when they lost 27-21.
**The Bison in the 2011 playoffs allowed only 27 points in 4 games. That has been the fewest for any of NDSU's six D1 Championships. That was a fairly good defense.
**In a second-round playoff game in 2014 the Bunnies lost 27-24. This was Klieman's first playoff game as a head coach. The Bison trailed 24-20 and with time running out and drove 76 yards in 8 plays (2 minutes 18 seconds) to score on a 12 yard pass from #11 with only 54 seconds left. R.J. Urzendowski was a true Freshman that year and he showed he could be a clutch receiver. He went on to play a key role in the "Just ran Out of Time" National Championship that year. I had to split the gif of the catch in two, but the first one shows the excellent throw from Carson and a great effort from RJ. The next one shows a second defender coming over and doing a couple of Bunny hops in front of the official, either upset with the call, frustrated, or just hopping mad. They were nice Rabbit hops, but the ref didn't seem impressed.
https://imgur.com/uCIgzKy
https://imgur.com/SSjAumx
**We beat #13 Iowa 23-21 in 2016 and the Bison received 74 votes in the AP Football Poll that week. That made NDSU the 27th best team in all D1 football, the highest ranking ever for an FCS team.
**The Bison currently have a streak of 27 straight victories after a bye week.

One of the lesser-known players to wear #27 was Jeff Willis. Partially because there are no rosters after 2004 available online information on a number of players from his era is hard to find. As far as I can figure he played from 1982-1984 and his best games were a 101-yard effort against Augustana and 127 yards in the game with Northern Michigan (both in 1982). I did find a picture from the 1882 semifinals against U.C. Davis.

Shawn Bibeau (2006-2009) was a more recent player who had #27 on his jersey. He is 5th all-time in total points (308) and was successful on 155 of his extra points out of 165 attempts (.939, 9th place all-time). He was also 2nd in field goals made (51 for 73, .699 ) and ranks first in attempts.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2070


From what I have read all good stories need to leave the readers with a cliffhanger. Tune in on day 26 for more.

Dawson Weber is #27 for the 2018 Bison.

https://www.bisonmediazone.com/2018-...oster-updates/

Great countdown posts!

Dewey

[Vet70]

Dawson Weber is #27 for the 2018 Bison.

https://www.bisonmediazone.com/2018-...oster-updates/

Dewey

They keep shifting players around so fast you literally can't tell the players without a scorecard. They are making posting on this thread difficult. I am thinking about calling Klieman to complain.

[dewey]

They keep shifting players around so fast you literally can't tell the players without a scorecard. They are making posting on this thread difficult. I am thinking about calling Klieman to complain.

I hear you. I participate in the Any Given Saturday daily countdown thread.

The number change threw things for a loop. The roster on Gobison appears to be up to date now.

Dewey

[Vet70]

So, here we are at day 26 in the 50 (or 51) day countdown until the season opener against California Polytechnic State University from San Luis Obispo, California. Reminds me a little of Captain Tuttle's alma mater "Berlinisches Polytechnikum" (obscure TV reference, some will get the joke, most won't). It is hard to believe that 25 days are gone in the countdown and after today there are only 25 left. At any rate, on with the business of the day:

** In 1968 running back Ken Rota was the 26th pick in the 17th round (461 selection overall) by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
** Bruce Reimer was also selected by the Steelers as the 234th overall pick. He was the 26th player drafted in the 9th round.
**U.C Davis was defeated 26-17 in the 1983 semifinals.
**Earle Solomonson was coach #26 for the Herd for two seasons in 1985 and 1986. He had a record of 24-2-1 (.933). and won two NCC titles and National championships #5 and #6.
**Len Kretchman in 1988 established the record for the best average for receptions in a season at 26.75 yards (24 for 642 yards).
**The regular season record for total tackles is 26 by Ken Clark in 1989 against Nebraska Omaha.
**Tim Strehlow (1996-1999) caught 26 touchdowns passes in his career to rank 2nd all -time.
**During the D2 years the Bison won 26 NCC titles.
**In 2011 JMU lost in the second round in the playoffs 26-14.
** King Frazier (2014-2016) scored 26 touchdowns in his 3-year career at NDSU. He wasn't exactly what you would call an elusive running back but I liked his hard running style and he was usually the one who was called on to pick up the tough yards.
**The Bison hold the MVFC record for consecutive home wins at 26 (2012-2015).

Two of the most prolific running backs in Bison history wore the #26 jersey back to back. The first was Chad Stark (1983-1986) who played with Bentrim and Molstre in an all-Freshman backfield in 1983.
**He still holds the record for the average rush per carry in a season at 8.49 (1986) and is also ranked #6 in that category (6.95 in 1984).
**For his career, he is #3 with a 6.99 average rush per carry. (406/2,837).
**In the career total yards per play category, he is #4 with a 7.5 average (409/2,925).
**And #3 at 8.68 yards (102/ 885) for total offense per play in a season.
https://gobison.com/hof.aspx?hof=74&path=&kiosk=

The second #26 that was one of the greatest backs in Bison history was Tony Satter (1987-1990). He also established many records in his career both as a running back and kick returner and still holds or shares many of them. His #1 rankings are:
**All-purpose yards per game in 1989 (188.3).
**Most touchdowns in a game at 5 (tied with 4 others including Bruce Anderson).
**Kick return yards in a season (751, 1989).
**Career average yards per rush (7.47, 230/3,212).
**Kick returns for touchdowns at 2 (tied with 4 others including Bruce Anderson)
**Career kick return average at 33.32 yards (37/1229).
https://gobison.com/hof.aspx?hof=12&path=&kiosk=

More recently #26 was worn by Matt Kittleson who played both linebacker and fullback from 2005-2009. For the Velva North Dakota Kittleson's playing football at NDSU was a family tradition. In addition to Matt, there were brothers Cody (Strong Safety 2001-2005) and Jard (linebacker 2000-2004) as well as cousin Wade (1998-2002). Did I miss any Kittlesons?
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

For today all of these figures and facts have me feeling like this:

If the sun comes up tomorrow I'll post day 25.

[Vet70]

Today I want to delay any attempts at humor and smart-alec remarks in order to start this day 25 post by paying my respects to Tyler Jangula (2004-2008). He was a 6-2 250-pound fullback from Williston who played in 35 games. While wearing #25 he had only 5 rushing attempts (59 yards) and 49 receptions (614 yards and 7 touchdowns), but like a number of Bison fullbacks, Tyler had the reputation as a ferocious blocker. I never meet the young man and only knew him through the enjoyment I received watching him play. In 2015 he died two days after surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon at only 28. Although it has been a little over three years since we lost this member of the Bison family, I needed to acknowledge his memory.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football



**Coach #25 for the Bison was Don Morton (1979-1984) who went 57-15 (.701). he helped NDSU win 4 NCC titles and National Championship # 4 in 1986.
**In the 1984 semifinals Nebraska Omaha lost 25-14
**The Bison playoff record for first downs record is 25 (twice, 1992 Truman State and 1996 Ashland).
**The mark for postseason passing attempts is 25 and is held by Jordan (2000), Nellermoe (1982) and Grasamke (1969).

Jake Morris was a number 25 that was a terrific running back, to say the least. Morris played from 1994-1997 and held so many records that it was ridiculous. A number of them were broken by a guy named Lamar Gordon, but Jake still has a strong presence in the top 5 in a number of categories: Single-Game: #3 in carries, 37 (tie); #4 net yards, 251 on 34 carries:and #4 consecutive 100-yard games (6). Season (all from 1997): #3 rushing (tie), 1,710 in 280 attempts; all-purpose yards #5, 1844; rushing yards per game, #2, 155.5; and #3 all-purpose yards per game, 167.6. Career: #5 rushing, 3,688 yards; #4 average rushing, 6.60 yards; #2 rushing yards per game, 105.4; and #3 all-purpose yards per game 125.3.
One thing that I have come to really appreciate is that fact that NDSU has a long tradition of really good backs to run the damn ball.

Another Bison to wear #25 was 6-0 223pound fullback Chase Morlock (2013-2016). Chase played as a true freshman in 2013 and was in every game except for the fun at K-State. He participated in 58 games and had 1,355 rushing yards (244 attempts, 5.6 ypc. and 14 TD's) and 49 receptions (718 yards, 14.7 av., and 8 TD's) My favorite pattern that he ran was the wheel route and more often than not it resulted in a touchdown. He also was a substantial contributor on special teams with 23 tackles. By the way, he also returned 7 kickoffs.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football



The #25 jersey was passed on in 2017 to 5-10 182- pound strong safety Michael Tutsie. As I mentioned in a previous post, when I initially saw a picture of him he was wearing glasses and if he added a pocket protector I swear he could have starred in the 1984 flick "Revenge of the Nerds". Of course, since he is only about 20 years old that wouldn't have worked, but you get the idea. At any rate, that notion went out the window when I watched his tapes. He is a hitter, has speed, and at one point in high school he created turnovers in 7 straight games. Below is a sequence of three pictures of one of his two TD interceptions, this one for 62 yards. According to a video of the "Bison Zone (see link below), he is slated to start on special teams and backup Grimsley. Dom and Jeff also said that he was committed to the Bunnies but flipped. I think we might be very happy that he made that decision. P.S. Michael, don't wave the ball around with one hand. On second thought I suspect that you may have already been told that by the Bison coaches.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

https://www.bisonmediazone.com/top-5...ichael-tutsie/





Tomorrow is day 24 and I will just end this post for day #25 where I started.

[Vet70]

It occurred to me the other day that these daily posts are sort of like the old theatre serial films. If you have been around long enough you know what I am talking about. What the serials have in common with these efforts is they were usually in episodic form with simple plots and were shown over a period of weeks, always building to a conclusion where good triumphs over evil. One definition of "simple" is "lacking in knowledge or expertise, a simple amateur of the arts". But hey, the effort is always here. In our case, we are now 24 days away from the conclusion of these daily vignettes. Since we are viewed by the rest of the FCS (and some of the FBS) as the spawn of the devil and thus "evil" here is hoping that the scripted outcome of the old serials does not hold true to form. But once again I digress from the task before me (probably because of migraines from too much reading of Loaf's AC/DC thread).

** Bison running back Marlow Gudmundson in 1953 was selected as the 24th pick in the 11th round of the NFL draft (288 overall).
**Jim Wacker was the Herd's 24th head coach from 1976-1978. His overall record was 24-9-1 (.716 counting ties as 1/2 win & 1/2loss) with 2 NCC titles.
**In 1981 Puget Sound lost 24-10 in the 1st round of the playoffs.
**Also in the 1st round in 1983 Towson State lost 24-17.
**In 3 games during the 2010 playoffs, Brock Jensen set a Bison record with 24 pass completions.
**The overall record in the Dome is 144-24 (.657). Since the Championship run began in 2011 the record is 56-5 (.925). Those 5 losses were by a total of 21 points.
**The final in the 2013 K-State game was 24-21. Obviously one of the greatest victories in the history of the program, they were FBS victim #7. It is safe to say not everyone expected us to win.


One notable #24 was defensive back/ special teams player Bryan Shepherd (2011-2013, 5-10 180 pounds). Shepherd came to the Bison after the University of Nebraska Omaha ended their football program. He played in 37 games at NDSU and totaled 118 tackles in his career here (61 unassisted) and ranked second on the team with 14 special team tackles 2013. After joining the Bison coaching staff in 2016 as an assistant he was promoted to defensive back coach until he left the program just recently. Here are his best efforts during his career:
Solo Tackles: 6, vs. Sam Houston State, 1-5-13
Assisted Tackles: 5, Youngstown State, 10-6-12
Total Tackles: 9, vs. Sam Houston State, 1-5-13; Furman, 12-7-13
Tackles for Loss: 1, Lehigh, 12-10-11
Forced Fumbles: 1, Missouri State, 10-15-11
Passes Defended: 3, Northern Iowa, 10-29-11
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football

Below are two pictures of Shepherd in action. In the first, he is making a tackle in the University of New Hampshire 2013 playoff game while Chase Morlock tries to grab an ankle. In the second, a Furman receiver during another 2013 playoff game is getting a "Welcome Wagon" greeting by (left to right) Dudzik, Shepherd and Beck. No word on whether the Furman player appreciated the gesture.



Today #24 is worn by 6-198 pound Junior, Demaris Purifoy. To date, Damaris has only played in three games and has had some tough luck in his career at NDSU. In 2016 he was 5th in a very deep backfield and only had 8 carries for 20 yards. Last year he had 18 carries for 85 yards against Mississippi Valley State in the first game of the season, but was injured late in that game and was out for the year. In 2018 we are loaded once again in the backfield and unless we are decimated again this season there is the possibility that he will not see that much action.. Below is a picture of Purifoy in action in high school, followed by his commitment photo to NDSU.
https://gobison.com/roster.aspx?rp_i...&path=football



Tomorrow the serial posts continue for 23 more days as we build toward the meeting with Cal Poly.