If we concentrated on the really important stuff in life, there'd be a shortage of fishing poles"
When you play football, you gotta like the taste of blood, And 50 percent of the time, it's your blood.
It is characteristic of the unlearned that they are forever proposing something which is old, and because it has recently come to their own attention, supposing it to be new.
"The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it's to post the wrong answer."
What happened to the tackles for losses? The swarming defense? DLine struggles to get to the QB. No one on DLine has really stood out. Eli Mostaert was a stud two years ago. Maybe his injury has set him back.
Players and coaches included need to realize that just because you are a Bison, doesnt mean the same success will happen.
I don't want to win an message board argument, I want NDSU to be better.
I've seen the two worst defensive performances of the last 50 years this year. And I'm not confident that I won't see even worse ones this season and next. I mean, at least when the defense looked helpless in 2009, we had these freshmen on the roster: Drevlow, Perry, Gimmestad, Leucke, Jirik, and Juckem. When is that last time NDSU signed more than three DLs?
You're not going to get Entz fired. And please, for the love of all that is holy, STFU about playcalling.
Here's what I think (and feel free to disagree - unless you want to bleat about playcalling some more): Recruiting on the defensive side of the ball has been terrible. While the jury is out on the last couple recruiting classes, from 2018 to 2020, NDSU was absolutely horrific at recruiting defensive linemen. And the pattern of NDSU recruiting HS LBs and moving them to DL does not work when you don't recruit long, rangy, athletic guys who can put on weight.
Now the lone bright spots, imo, were that I thought Braun moving on might shake up recruiting, and Petrino moving Cole Wizniewski looked like a fantastic decision (hopefully he's OK.) But, holy cow, our defensive linemen can't keep their eyes smart (or whatever the heck that phrase is) when their backs are to the LoS. Yes, recruiting is dicey, but when you roll snake eyes five years in a row on the DL, that's not just bad luck. And I don't want to hear anymore about bad tackling. If the players aren't put in positions by their coaches to make plays - or don't have the speed/athleticism/strength to get to where they need to be and finish plays at this point in the season? That is 99% on the coaching staff.
Normally, I don't like being negative during a season - that's what the off-season is for so I do apologize for that. I mean, I'm still looking forward to seeing NDSU play this weekend because like most of the old folks on this board who have watched every season since the 1980s, we were never going to get bored because we've seen mediocre and even bad seasons.
Last edited by tony; 10-16-2023 at 03:06 PM.
One outsider's observation:
On the long run by UND28 I was surprised NDSU23 couldn't gain a step on a 200 pound back.
For all those who were bored with winning by 30 every game and not caring, this is what you want right? Lol. Look, how we lost is even more concerning then that we lost. While its not time to panic and burn it all down. Definitely need to address the defense and figure that out. If you are only a fan when we win, then I feel sorry for you. Keep you head up, show your Bison pride, and I’ll see you at the dome Saturday.
"North Dakota State is a big part of the fabric of college football right now."
"North Dakota State is alive on the college football map."
-Lee Fitting ESPN