NDSU - Illinois State... what happened there?

[havok58]

NDSU wins 9-3. What happened? Is the Illinois St defense that good? Does this mean NDSU is showing signs of vulnerability? Just curious because I was expecting the usual NDSU dominance at home.

[Blue42]

ISU did play some great D.

They were REALLY conservative in their own offensive play calling and I feel missed some opportunities to give themselves a better chance to win.

And they got screwed on a incomplete pass/lateral call they took to the house that was blown dead.

But their D was excellent. It looked a lot like UNI's D last night. Bending at times but not breaking.

[Mudrafan]

NDSU wins 9-3. What happened? Is the Illinois St defense that good? Does this mean NDSU is showing signs of vulnerability? Just curious because I was expecting the usual NDSU dominance at home.

Not near the qb play they’ve had or skill players in general and the coaching drop off is enormous. They won’t win it this year and are vulnerable in the valley if someone steps up offensively. There are several valley schools that have the ability to do it with the right mix of talent and coaching in a given year

[vbfan19]

what happened? NDSU won the game and will advance to the semifinals, as expected.

[GonzoCat]

I wouldn't bet against them.

[vbfan19]

I wouldn't bet against them.

depends what the spread is.

[run&blade]

Fleck in Minnesota might be better at identifying talent which leaves less for NDSU.

[panthergirl123]

Yes, NDSU looked beatable. In my opinion, Illinois State had 2 calls go against them. The first is mentioned earlier which is the lateral pass. Redbirds should have gotten a TD on that call. The second is the defensive pass interference called late in the 4th quarter. The replay showed the ref behind the play throwing the flag not the one in front of it. Announcers felt it was a bad call. Also noting that to call it that ticky-tacky at that time was bad and not what they had been doing the whole game. It would have given Illinois State more time on offense at end of game.

Illinois State D played awesome defense. Like UNI, no offense. They only ran with a very few passes. If Illinois State had more offense, they could have won.

NDSU is beatable. Other teams watch this game and use it as a template for how to defend NDSU their road to finals may be tougher than they thought.

[Blue42]

If it's NDSU and JMU in the final...and I'm betting it will be...that will be a heck of a battle.

Not sure who I'd pick at this point.

Both O's are very good but last weekend showed they can be held in check.

Both D's are very very good.

[vbfan19]

If it's NDSU and JMU in the final...and I'm betting it will be...that will be a heck of a battle.

Not sure who I'd pick at this point.

Both O's are very good but last weekend showed they can be held in check.

Both D's are very very good.

especially when they have the officials on their side.

[Mudrafan]

I wouldn't bet against them.

I plan to. They don’t have the offensive firepower the rest of the teams do

[GonzoCat]

I plan to. They don’t have the offensive firepower the rest of the teams do

I hope that works out for you. If memory serves they had quite a bit more offensive firepower against us than JMU did. I made my first ever official legal sports wager on UNI Friday, made $45. I was expecting the field to be a sloppy mess from freezing rain and snow, which I felt would hold down the score quite a bit. That part didn't work out, but even so UNI doesn't lose by 20 to too many teams, FBS included. It was obviously a 10 point game with no scoring after the first quarter until the offense gave up a desperation TD at the end.