would have nice to have Thomas for more bulk.

No no no ..... yes

Well that pooch was executed ok I must say.

Now kick the ?!/“&$ ball through the end zone. It is inside for Pete’s sake.

Multiple dropped passes. Hen great catch. And TD

Ok just throw it every down.

Right where Conner Airey would have been.

Wow. Crawford never seems to drop a pass but that was a major TO.

I cannot understand why Davis just doesn’t kick it through the end zone. A pooch kick ending up on the 40 makes no sense.

From the little I have seen, there is absolutely no defensive penetration (except for the 4th down stop). Lack of penetration and pass rush has been a problem this year IMO. Linebackers and DBs are undersized compared to most of the opposition. Speed and tackling must be on to counteract that.

really need the run game to step up”

Agreed. Watched the EWU-ND game. EWU gashed UND with their rushing game in first half. That was tightened up in the second half. EWU got gashed a bit too especially in second half, but not a big surprise as their D has been quite suspect this year. Passing game was limited on both sides due to strong wind.

So Portland State loses by only 7 to Arkansas and Arkansas only scores 20 points. Idaho State thumps the Vikings and hangs over 50 points on them. Another example of how crazy college football can be.

First look at final score and one thinks defensive didn’t get it done. But looking at offense:

First 8 Aggie drives:
2- 3 and outs -1 first down negated by penalty
1-4 play drive ended by fumble, also offensive PI
2 -5 play drives
1-6 play drives ended by fumble
1-7 play drive ended by int.
1-14 play drive TD but assisted by roughing punter. also an off. PI
4.33 yards per play (1.9 yd/rush) vs 6.85 Montana.
Also field position not good.

So pretty clearly lack of offense, turnovers, and 9 penalties sealed the deal. I also noted 3 penalties at NDSU for blocks in back- at least 2 on fair catches. There is a lot to work on. As another noted - mostly the same offense as last year but not performing as last year. I think folks got overconfident about offense after last year - last year was special - got to enjoy those seasons without speculating/assuming automatic equal or better performance the subsequent season.

Had kids in town and choir duty so only (thankfully) listened to 1st quarter. Could even “feel” on the radio call that Ags we’re confused/not ready to play. My take away is that it is very difficult to win league championships or be at top consistently. College football is very fickle and those teams that are consistent or have good defenses (e.g., Weber state) will always be on the mix. My guess is that their heads were still on Fargo and Montana simply wanted it way more.

Offense has not been able to stretch field much all year. Running game not nearly as good as last year. To have a shot a playoffs, they can afford at most 1 more loss and that might be iffy. Last year was special and I think maybe too many assumed that would almost automatically happen this year.

I can’t find on Pluto either. NAU is beating up on Montana State 21-0

Delaware 14 Pitt 10 3rd quarter. Both Delaware TDS off turnovers. Pitt beat UCF last Saturday. Bison handled Delaware easily 2 weeks ago.

2nd string qb looked bad. Could run a bit but passes not close.

Amen!

can we get BACK to football on the football forum?
Well the short answer is yes - but to many of us it is like a death in the Aggie family. Historically the band-uh has been the main (and sometimes only) cheering section and source of Aggie spirit. That is why were were front and center at Toomey field back in FWC days. Some of us on this board are band-uh alums and speaking for myself, the band-uh is the only reason I am such a big follower of the football team. I think given the context of this game, being the first home game with students back, it is only natural to wonder about the band status.
Hopefully an explanation and not a sermon. I'll shut up and get back to football. Go Ags - beat Montana! (can't tell you how much I enjoyed watching the Aggies shellack them last year in Missoula).

my wife met the Bison punters brother down at the hotel pool and hot tub (I decided to watch Georgia - Notre Dame so was not there). She said the brother said that the punter had a hamstring issue. In any event seeing Whelan punt in a dome is a real treat. He can flat out jack them. A beauty to behold his boomers live. I think the problem on the big return of his first punt was that he simply out-kicked the coverage.