NDSU vs WOFFORD Lets get it on!!!

[mudrat43]

The Terriers lost in Fargo to a more talented team...were they better coached? I doubt it. Were there options (schemes, and positions) that WOF could have instituted on O and D that may have benefited them? Maybe. They (WOF) run an offense and defense that everyone in the known galaxy knows about! It takes many, many hours of repetitious practice to get good at just one system, let alone many systems.....so they play what they play! It's almost impossible to change "on the fly" to some unfamiliar system just to stop some offense or defense. WOF can handle the talent level in the SoCon and some other conferences around the country simply because of the talent they play against. NDSU (at this time in history) is at the top of the food chain in FCS football simply because of talent. They (NDSU) can recruit with impunity: " hey kid just look at our record, you want to play here or at some (also ran) school"? But (as some have stated) could NDSU beat that team down I-95 with the rooster mascot? Not a chance! And remember, most importantly, IT'S NOT THE X'S AND O'S, IT'S THE JIMS AND JOES! I'm still very, very proud of the Terriers for being talented, competitive, tough, and smart.........Go Terriers!

[Ruckus]

With coaches and players, it is always more about who than what or how.

[gofurman]

There have been posts here above about FCS is stuck w NDSU. Not true based on stadium size. The requirement for a 30k stadium was apparently dropped about 10 yrs ago (or more). So NDSU would NOT need a new stadium to play FBS. all you have to do is maintain attendance of 15K every other year. They do that. And that's not enforced as UMass doesn't make it but plays FBS. So NDSU absolutely qualifies for fbs by all measures. it's not even close.

The only thing keeping them from FBS is either a desire to stay FCS -OR - the non-revenue-sharing thing where NDSU makes much more money than most FCS programs thus mitigating the financial incentive to move up.
( But they do NOT have to change stadiums or do any construction to be FBS ). So it's an easy move if they wanted it. Question what conference they would go to but that's another subject ...

[Eric Deutsch]

They'd be an interesting addition to the B1G. Natural-ish rivalry with Minnesota, probably would be a middle of the pack team there at worst. Plus I think it'd be hilarious to see Ohio State play in the Fargo Dome.

[youngterrier]

They would more likely go Mountain West or MAC

[Eric Deutsch]

Yeah but pipe dreams are fun.

[Ruckus]

No way they go B1G. Minnesota wouldn’t allow it for one. Because they would get their butt kicked.

[Eyes of Old Main]

I think Coach Ayers made his mind up well before today, but I wonder how much the result this past Saturday played? You can't take too much from one game, but that was a manhandling that Wofford has not frequently been on the receiving end of. I don't believe for a minute that coaching has passed Coach Ayers by, but I could see where it might fuel the thought that it was someone else's turn even if at it's core it likely serves as that much more motivation to someone like Coach Ayers.

[lawdog]

Are they our best ever? Probably not. But I would argue no one on this team was individually the greatest Wofford has seen.

Eric, I would suggest that Miles Brown was as good as or better than any DL we have had.

[OlRB#3]

I agree lawdog. You can definitely make the case that he is the best ever at that position. I think before it’s said and done the same could be said of our corners. Hard to think of a time when we had any corners as athletic or skilled as Watson.

[youngterrier]

I think Wylie and Shelton back in 2012 were comparably good. Having said that, I think there's no question we are at least deeper at the corner position than we were that year. I do think they are a lot better at closing in on screens like a heat seeking missile than Shelton/Wylie were and they are a little bit better at forcing turnovers (the latter is possibly attributable to luck though).

The thing about comparing players year-to-year is that the eye test is generally unreliable, especially with stuff like blocking and pass coverage which most viewers of the game don't notice in real time unless something bad happens. I tend to not make comments about lack of athleticism because it's so subjective. It's easier to point to a statistic and say "this player than other players because x"

So, I think easily we are the most talented on DL than we've ever been by the simple statistics that we were 30 lbs heavier than ever before. We *really* need to keep Coach Raise.

[Eyes of Old Main]

We *really* need to keep Coach Raise.

Agreed. Great coach and great leader for our DL guys.

[Eric Deutsch]

Are they our best ever? Probably not. But I would argue no one on this team was individually the greatest Wofford has seen.

Eric, I would suggest that Miles Brown was as good as or better than any DL we have had.

He's definitely good and makes an impact, not arguing that. Best ever though? I don't know that I agree with that. He's still got time to make a case, but I always compare them to Heavy Jones, Nate Fuqua, Lee Basinger, Brian Bodor, and Katon Bethay. They may not have been the biggest but they were truly dominant. They changed gameplans because they were so disruptive.

I would compare Heavy to any DL we've ever had. And he would win. Maybe I'm tainted by nostalgia but I know that those guys made games easy for us because we practiced every week vs. the best DL in the country.

[walliver]

NDSU could easily play FBS. The same goes for their southern neighbors, SDSU. Their real issue is that no-one in FBS really wants them. They would run the table in the MAC every year which makes them less desirable, and their geography is unfavorable. They would be competitive in the Mountain West, but geographic outliers.

Unless the entire MVFC moves to FBS, there really isn't anywhere for them to go, and we will deal with them for a long time.

As Mike Ayers has said, "To be the man you have to beat the man". Maybe next year is our year.

[Atldog7]

The only way to gain any kind of an advantage is to get them away from Fargo, which means you have to be undefeated and highly touted (not easy) or they have to have a down year (not likely). The only other way to make it work is to hope (and pray) you are on opposite sides of the bracket and hope to meet them in Frisco.