***UNI at NDSU***

[06panther10]

I would stongly prefer we start winning more games so we can stop pretending like socks and winter coats are important.

[dan_beeding]

So, I am to believe that Wartburg has a better deal with Nike than UNI does? Wartburg has more access to Nike gear than UNI does?

Hmm.

We may need to fire every single person in the athletic department if that is the case.

I think you guys are trying to make the same point.

[sevelev711]

I would stongly prefer we start winning more games so we can stop pretending like socks and winter coats are important.

Yeah, I'd rather the team win the championship wearing nothing but pads and a helmet, then lose while dressed to nines. Unfortunately, right now they aren't dressed well OR winning.

[wretched]

Great analysis GonzoCat I have said time and again it's also about the recruiting territory UNI lost when NDSU, USD, UND and SDSU became D 1 teams. The fans that wants Farley gone have no idea what they are asking for, a "W" on Saturday will = a 7-4 season, a playoff bid, a likely home game and hope. Just saying.

[vbfan19]

a "W" on Saturday will = a 7-4 season, a playoff bid, a likely home game and hope. Just saying.

Don't count your chickens before they're hatched. I could see the team winning on Saturday, but then managing to lose to MSU or Indiana State.
But I could see them winning all three and making the playoffs too. Of course, they could lose on Saturday too.

[havok58]

Great analysis GonzoCat I have said time and again it's also about the recruiting territory UNI lost when NDSU, USD, UND and SDSU became D 1 teams. The fans that wants Farley gone have no idea what they are asking for, a "W" on Saturday will = a 7-4 season, a playoff bid, a likely home game and hope. Just saying.

So that's where we set the bar for UNI, finish anywhere between 4th and 6th, and hope for a winning record and playoff bid? Every team faces recruiting issues, some do have an advantage over others, but good programs can overcome that. Not every team is going to get all the 4 and 5 star athletes. And of those, there's not enough starting spots at the top schools for those athletes, so the other schools have to use that to their advantage: "Look kid, you can be a backup behind another 5 star there, but here, you can start and be a huge part of this program."

Bottom line is as fans, we are all frustrated that UNI has fallen from being a regular at the top of the conference. It's even worse that some of the non-Dakota schools have caught up and passed UNI. I look at it that UNI's staff has not adapted to nor responded to the changes in the environment of the Valley. And for some of you fans, it seems like you're happy with just getting in the playoffs, because the Dakotas are just too good and we can't really compete with them. I'll still buy purple, root for UNI, go to the games, and yes, get my heart broken or frustrated when they lose, but I expect them every year to be at the top. I'm not buying the recruiting advantage or disadvantage as the reason why UNI has fallen. At some point, change has to come in order for UNI to get back on top.

[GonzoCat]

I think the answer is obvious. UNI needs to leave the Valley and go to a conference we can dominate again. Almost any other conference will do. The Panthers lose one more game and some of you will start whining about the way some players wear their hair.

[sevelev711]

I think the answer is obvious. UNI needs to leave the Valley and go to a conference we can dominate again. Almost any other conference will do. The Panthers lose one more game and some of you will start whining about the way some players wear their hair.

Just another reason to move to the MAC. HEYOOO

[7YrsOfCollegeDownTheDrain]

In my opinion UNI's goal is to win the conference, if they fall short they want to get a playoff bid because if you want to win a championship it's all about getting into the single elimination tournament. Those are my goals going into the season as a fan.

I'm not as big of a believer in the to be successful we all have to match our undershirts and cut our hair and wear this shoe etc. I know some people buy into the mantra that all these details matter and you see it at all levels. In baseball the Yankees have rules about hair length and beards. Do i think any of these things effect wins and losses...no...but they are an easy target when you lose.

If we execute on the field (stop WIU on 4th and 15, don't turn the ball over 5 times at NDSU etc) none of this is a discussion. Southern Utah is a game that got away but not a bad loss and neither is ISU ames at this point. I'm not one for moral victories but this team has been through a grind and I'll be there Saturday hoping they have a good game plan to beat the Yotes then take care of business the next two weeks and we get in that tournament with a chance to win it all if things break our way.

[clenz]

In my opinion UNI's goal is to win the conference, if they fall short they want to get a playoff bid because if you want to win a championship it's all about getting into the single elimination tournament. Those are my goals going into the season as a fan.

I'm not as big of a believer in the to be successful we all have to match our undershirts and cut our hair and wear this shoe etc. I know some people buy into the mantra that all these details matter and you see it at all levels. In baseball the Yankees have rules about hair length and beards. Do i think any of these things effect wins and losses...no...but they are an easy target when you lose.

If we execute on the field (stop WIU on 4th and 15, don't turn the ball over 5 times at NDSU etc) none of this is a discussion. Southern Utah is a game that got away but not a bad loss and neither is ISU ames at this point. I'm not one for moral victories but this team has been through a grind and I'll be there Saturday hoping they have a good game plan to beat the Yotes then take care of business the next two weeks and we get in that tournament with a chance to win it all if things break our way.

The Yankees have 27 championships and were in the ALCS this year.

Again, it's not that undershirt colors affect the game. They don't. What matters is that little details like that add up to a lack of control. A lack of discipline. Little things add up to equal, and show, larger problems within a program/company. Successful people, successfull companies, successful players, coaches, teams, etc... all pay extreme attention to detail.

I'll be willing to be alone on this one. Focus on the shirt color not causing wins are losses, fine. You're focusing on the symptom, not the problem. If you go to the doctor because you don't feel good and the doctor gives you cough medicine to help with your cough, meanwhile not figuring out what the cough is a larger sign of you won't solve anything.

[vbfan19]

There has to be some medium in fandom between not being complacent with mediocrity, but yet not sucking every ounce of joy from the sport just because the team doesn't have the same level of success that it used to have.

But I'm realizing that that won't be found here.

[PantherFan]

I got to go with Clenz on the lack of attention to detail is simply a reflection of a general lack of attention to detail and discipline. It also shows with the penalties. Just from the Western Illinois game for example:

Personal foul took away an 11 yard pass play and a first down
Illegal formation took away a 97 yard touchdown and eventually resulted in a safety (a 9 point turnaround in a game we lost by 9)
Unsportsmanlike took away a 12 yard pass play and a first down
Illegal motion took away a 20 yard pass play and a first down

That's three first downs, 140 yards and a touchdown taken away by penalties that are a result of lack of discipline and lack of attention to detail. I could site other incidents in other games like an illegal formation on a kick off followed by kicking the ball out of bounds on the rekick costing 15 yards of field position. Or poor clock management. Or untimely time outs.

I love my Panthers, but this kind of stuff gets old after a while.

[7YrsOfCollegeDownTheDrain]

i couldn't agree more...the errors in that WIU game were maddening. In fact any formation penalty is maddening. I agree things need to be cleaned up.

The yankees won all those pennants because of the names they got to write on the lineup card...not the arbitrary appearance rules.

I really do appreciate that a culture where the details matter is important. But the Raiders of the 70's and the 80's are an example of the opposite approach and success at the highest level.

[vbfan19]

[clenz]

i couldn't agree more...the errors in that WIU game were maddening. In fact any formation penalty is maddening. I agree things need to be cleaned up.

The yankees won all those pennants because of the names they got to write on the lineup card...not the arbitrary appearance rules.

I really do appreciate that a culture where the details matter is important. But the Raiders of the 70's and the 80's are an example of the opposite approach and success at the highest level.

That success wasn't sustained. You can have flashes the other way, but it will be few and far between. Look at when the Raiders were good in the early 00s - John Gruden who is one of the most detail oriented coaches of the last 20-30 years. He took Tampa to a Super Bowl title. Bill Belichick and the amount of attention he pays to detail. Pete Carroll, Mike Tomlin, Sean McVay (who took over for Jeff Fischer, who couldn't have given a flying fornication less about small details, and look where he has the Rams right now).

Those guys run teams with extreme detail attention. They create a culture of making sure everything is done correctly. Making sure the details are nailed down. Making sure little things don't slide. It's about the culture that is created.

Sure, there are examples of teams that don't give a damn about detail winning but the are far from the norm. Details matter. The true culture, true character, true everything about a program can be seen in the small details.

I haven't looked but I'd be we are close to, if not over, 1 formation penalty per game. There shouldn't be more than 1 or 2 formation penalties and in an entire seasons. That is attention to detail. I would put a lot of money on us leading the conference in personal fouls (honestly, for the last 15 years I'd do the same). That is coaches not instilling discipline in players - especially when they are the taunting type of PF, which we seem to get a lot of.

Farley's laundry list of poor clock management is too long to even start on. That is about details. We've had a delay of game penalty ON A KICK....AFTER WE CALLED A TIME OUT TO AVOID A DELAY OF GAME PENALY

Again, it's not the shirt color or the jersey tucking that is the issue. They are an extremely visible symptom of the true, much larger, issue of our program. Ignoring what the symptoms are pointing to will not get the issue resolved.

Again, I point to a cough.
You can continue to ignore the cough that has bothering you for 3 months and go "It's just a cough, it doesn't really matter" - completely ignoring the root cause of the cough and thus not fixing it
You can take cough medicine/drops in an attempt to cover up the symptom - meanwhile still ignoring the true cause of the problem
You can get tests done to figure out what is causing it. Then you can continue to ignore it or treat it properly.

Use that as the shirts
You can continue to ignore the shirts - pretty easy to go..."It's just shirts and untucked jerseys. It doesn't affect the outcome of the game"
You can have the players tuck the jerseys in and wear the same color shirt but not actually explain why and just be authoritative about it - again, not getting to the reason
You can take a hard look at your program, discover the issues, discover what the symptoms are showing as the cause and fix those problems.

So many things about our program are pointing directly are a lack of attention to detail and leadership. It's not just the shirts, that's just quickly becoming the most visible symptom. Call it the yellow colored mucus that comes up with the cough. That's what starts to make it real obvious when comparing to a healthy program/persons cough and go "Something is off here". Other symptoms start to become more obvious once you see that. The false starts, the formation penalties, the horrid clock management, the personal foul penalties, etc...

Again, it's not about the shirts. It's about what looking like a group of guys pulled off the street to play in city league some semi-pro set up is representing in the larger scheme of things.