Thoughts on Albany..

[putter]

Any Hofstra fans out there that saw the game against Albany? I have been saying all along that this will be a more difficult test for the Griz than people think. They beat Delaware last year and they put up a good fight against Hofstra last week. Any info out there about how the game went?

[danefan]

My thoughts on us are as follows:
We are young and green offensively. Our QB has played well and has avoided major mistakes. How he will react to the Montana crowd will be interesting. Our O-Line is large and should be able to push d-lineman around. What the lack is the ability to pass protect.

Defensively we are solid. The occasional soft zone or man coverage mishap may occur, but overall a very solid defensive unit.

Our kicker is very good and an NFL prospect.

We should have (should've, could've, would've...I know) won the Colgate game and absent two backbreaking plays against Hofstra that game could have been much closer.

I look for this game to be competitive in the first half and through the 3rd quarter. Then it comes down to whether the defensive unit is conditioned properly. The most likely scenario is that Montana wil control the time of possession forcing UA's defense to be on the field a lot. The one thing we lack (product of 23 scholarships) is a lot of depth.

[UncleSam]

Defense appears to be Albany's strength. In three games vs Colgate, Fordham & Hofstra, Albany is allowing less than 90 yrds a game on the ground. Albany should be a good test for the Griz running attack.

[DC 'gater]

Defense appears to be Albany's strength. In three games vs Colgate, Fordham & Hofstra, Albany is allowing less than 90 yrds a game on the ground. Albany should be a good test for the Griz running attack.

Jordan Scott 44 rushes for 180 yards vs Albany
-112 yards net rushing on 5 QB sacks
113 yards net rushing for the game

I'm not sayin, I'm just sayin.;). I'm glad we're done with the danes for this year.

[putter]

My thoughts on us are as follows:
We are young and green offensively. Our QB has played well and has avoided major mistakes. How he will react to the Montana crowd will be interesting. Our O-Line is large and should be able to push d-lineman around. What the lack is the ability to pass protect.

Defensively we are solid. The occasional soft zone or man coverage mishap may occur, but overall a very solid defensive unit.

Our kicker is very good and an NFL prospect.

We should have (should've, could've, would've...I know) won the Colgate game and absent two backbreaking plays against Hofstra that game could have been much closer.

I look for this game to be competitive in the first half and through the 3rd quarter. Then it comes down to whether the defensive unit is conditioned properly. The most likely scenario is that Montana wil control the time of possession forcing UA's defense to be on the field a lot. The one thing we lack (product of 23 scholarships) is a lot of depth.


Sounds like you are solid running the ball which will be a good test for our defense. We have a solid O-Line and with Lex running the ball (along with everyone else) it will be key for us to establish the run. The Danes have played well so far but it will be interesting to see if the Griz can exploit your depth.

[89Hen]

The one thing is that Montana's normal home crowd advantage may not be as big since many of the Albany players played in front of 22k+ at UD just last year. They won't be awed by Wash-Griz as much as other teams that haven't been there before. xtwocentsx

[AZGrizFan]

Jordan Scott 44 rushes for 180 yards vs Albany
-112 yards net rushing on 5 QB sacks
113 yards net rushing for the game

I'm not sayin, I'm just sayin.;). I'm glad we're done with the danes for this year.

That's why I just LOVE those that quote statistics. So, the TRUTH is they have a pourous run defense, but a strong pass rush. xeyebrowx ;) xcoolx

[Dane96]

Hofstra couldn't run on UA. It was our new DB's who got burned a bit (250+ air yards).

That Gate game was the first game of the year...and Scott is a bruiser. You run the ball 44 times...and the front will be tired on defense.

I am more worried about the Griz exploiting the young DB's than the running game (which, btw, isn't to say I AM NOT WORRIED ABOUT THE GRIZ on the ground).

Dungey, Disch, and Dupont (part of our front 7) are all legit NFL prospects.

[Ruler 79]

Danefan hit it right on the head. Two disasterous special teams gaffs in 3 games are the reason we are 1-2 after and not 2-1 after 3 weeks. Hofstra gave us fits because they are very balanced. If they had ran the ball like Colgate I think we could of been there in the end. In fact we had the ball inside their 30 twice in the 4th and were turned away on downs and a pick. No excuses they beat us and that is that. UA is closing the gap but still need another 7-8 scholly kids to be there unless we play a bottom of the barrel fully funded team.

We told Delaware last year the same thing...throw the ball and you probably will win. They did not and our front 7 stuffed them when it mattered. Our secondary is young but getting seasoned, our front 7 are a veteran group. Decent size upfront but will be smaller then Montana's O line which is actually bigger then ours which is considered to be very big.

Depth will have an impact. I am intrested to see this game because without question UM will be the biggest test UA has had well since Delaware and Montana in 2002. We will be ready to play no doubt and I hope it is as competitive as the UM faithful are demanding.

UM 35
UA 12

[aceinthehole]

Man, the more I read about UA the more I think CCSU and Albany are the exact same team. CCSU wins vs. Towson if they are a more rushing oriented team, insted we get picked apart by their passing game.

We both seem to have a very good run defense and pass rush on D, but lack a strong secondary. On offense, we can grind out the yards behind our line, but can't connect with a consistant passing game.

Do you think this similar "profile" is based on the limited schollys NEC teams are playing with? Are those "skill positions" (DB, WR, QB) harder to recruit for NEC teams?

Good luck Danes! I know you won't be intimidated by the Griz.

[Ruler 79]

Believe it or not we FINALLY have a very good frosh QB emerging. The best QB we have had in a few years. I really like this kid at QB and he is going to be very good once we get into confrence play. And barring any disasters we have him for 3 more years.

But more to to your point ACE I think limited schollies probably does impact the skill players more unless you get a situation like you guys did with Hariston last year.

[Dane96]

As for UA, i think it is a change in philosophy both from our old style of play and because we are playing more skilled teams and need to change the offense.

I do know that Ford is very high on the kids he is red-shirting at receiver...and this kid Esposito...to win the job from Blasinsky...seems like the real deal. He has only played 3 full games...so he is raw...but I have to think back to Joe Savino as the last QB that Ford has allowed to unleash the ball 30 times in a game.

[srgrizizen]

Having read AGS for a couple of weeks, I've learned that all of Montana's OOC opponents are cupcakes and that the BSC is a one team affair offering no opposition worthy of the name to a perennially overrated Grizzly team. So even if UM wins, they deserve to drop 25 positions for even scheduling you guys. But if any of you Albany people make it to Missoula, I bet you'll have a great time and get treated royally.

[Dane96]

I would love to go...believe me...

[Fordham]

From a Fordham fans' perspective - Albany is big (especially on the Oline) and very physical on both sides of the ball. Our Dline is VERY small and over time their huge Oline just wore us down and they ended up running all over us.

As I posted in the post game thread from last week, their D had some good hitters out there and the truth was that I really didn't notice Ditsch standing out. As I wrote then, though, that wasn't a knock on him as much as it was a complement to the rest of their D.

Good luck in that environment, Danes! xthumbsupx

[tribe_pride]

That's why I just LOVE those that quote statistics. So, the TRUTH is they have a pourous run defense, but a strong pass rush. xeyebrowx ;) xcoolx

How do you figure that that means that they have a porous run defense. Yeah they let 1 guy rush for 180 yards but it took 44 carries to do that. That is 4.1 yards/carry. Nothing impressive by RB standards definitely not porous like.

[Franks Tanks]

It seems that in the trenches Albany will match up pretty well vs. Montana, but do they have the skill players to match the Griz? Probably not. Therefore the game should be close for a while, but Montana will probbaly pull away at the end and win pretty comfortably with superior speed and depth.

[Uncle Buck]

I wouldn't guage the Hofstra game as anything more than a good defensive effort by the Dutch. The HU running game was an anomoly (sp?) against Furman with over 100 on the ground. We're still a better passing team IMO and should be 60/40 pass:run

As for the size match-up, Montana is always BIG and should matchup well with UA upfront. The difference maker, Montana's kids will probably be more athletic in the front seven. While i think UA will play tough and keep it respectable in the first half, i think Montana will wear down UA for a 34-17 win.

[Seahawks Fan]

Good luck Albany. Make us proud.

xthumbsupx

[Ronbo]

Don't look for Montana to pile on. It's not our Head Coache's MO, he's very sensitive to the opposing Coach and his ego. I'll bet he plays the 2nd stringers as much as the 1st and if we have a nice lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter he will go to his usual 3 runs up the gut and a cloud of dust offense. That Offense includes going for it on 4th and 5 or 6 when we are in field goal range. Don't want to be accused of running it up.xtwocentsx

[Fordham]

I certainly hope your first teamers are as focused on having their backups getting some quality PT like you are Ronbo! ;)

[AZGrizFan]

Don't look for Montana to pile on. It's not our Head Coache's MO, he's very sensitive to the opposing Coach and his ego. I'll bet he plays the 2nd stringers as much as the 1st and if we have a nice lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter he will go to his usual 3 runs up the gut and a cloud of dust offense. That Offense includes going for it on 4th and 5 or 6 when we are in field goal range. Don't want to be accused of running it up.xtwocentsx


And on Sunday morning, the AGS community will be abuzz as to whether or not Montana deserves their #2 ranking because the didn't pile on and score 50 against the poor Albany team. xlolx xlolx xnodx xnodx xnodx xrolleyesx xrolleyesx xrolleyesx

[Go...gate]

Don't look for Montana to pile on. It's not our Head Coache's MO, he's very sensitive to the opposing Coach and his ego. I'll bet he plays the 2nd stringers as much as the 1st and if we have a nice lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter he will go to his usual 3 runs up the gut and a cloud of dust offense. That Offense includes going for it on 4th and 5 or 6 when we are in field goal range. Don't want to be accused of running it up.xtwocentsx

This is as it should be. IMO, he is a class act.

[AZGrizFan]

This is as it should be. IMO, he is a class act.

See "Does MT Deserve the #2 Ranking" and "#2 Votes" poll for further discussion on this topic. Not all agree with you, apparently, because we haven't beaten our inferior opponents into submission like some teams. xcoolx xcoolx xcoolx xcoolx

And when UM only wins by 18, there'll be more fodder for the discussion.

[Griz0383]

The Montana OC's offensive game plan has been very conservative thus far and when it becomes time turn up the tempo the Offense will change gears and start streching defenses. This Griz team is good and blessed with speed, size and is very deap at all positions. There are some explosive teams in the FCS and its gonna be a blast watching as the drama unfolds. Too bad NDSU is not gonna be in the show! what stupid rules we have!!!

[Go...gate]

See "Does MT Deserve the #2 Ranking" and "#2 Votes" poll for further discussion on this topic. Not all agree with you, apparently, because we haven't beaten our inferior opponents into submission like some teams. xcoolx xcoolx xcoolx xcoolx

And when UM only wins by 18, there'll be more fodder for the discussion.

Back in the day, especially in HS football (which was as far as I got) but also in most college FB (even big-time), it was an unwritten rule of sportsmanship. Once you got up 5 TD's, especially after halftime, the object was to get everybody some experience, but no passing. You might see a big score here and there, but not too often. Hell, that's the only way scrubs like me ever got to see action! (I noticed that Fox Sports criticized Greg Schiano of Rutgers about this for his use of repeated time-outs so RU could get a couple extra TD's at the end of the first half against Norfolk State, but some might say that it was the end of the first half and RU did play everybody in the 3rd and 4th quarters).

[AZGrizFan]

Back in the day, especially in HS football (which was as far as I got) but also in most college FB (even big-time), it was an unwritten rule of sportsmanship. Once you got up 5 TD's, especially after halftime, the object was to get everybody some experience, but no passing. You might see a big score here and there, but not too often. Hell, that's the only way scrubs like me ever got to see action! (I noticed that Fox Sports criticized Greg Schiano of Rutgers about this for his use of repeated time-outs so RU could get a couple extra TD's at the end of the first half against Norfolk State, but some might say that it was the end of the first half and RU did play everybody in the 3rd and 4th quarters).

And the Griz coach's "line" is a LOT fewer than 5 TDs. It's more like 3. And in some cases (when the opponent is truly a known inferior), it's even as small as 2 TDs. Doesn't make it right or wrong, it just give an erroneous impression as to the relative strength of the team to those outsiders who only look at the final score as an indicator of the strength of the organization.

[blukeys]

As for UA, i think it is a change in philosophy both from our old style of play and because we are playing more skilled teams and need to change the offense.

I do know that Ford is very high on the kids he is red-shirting at receiver...and this kid Esposito...to win the job from Blasinsky...seems like the real deal. He has only played 3 full games...so he is raw...but I have to think back to Joe Savino as the last QB that Ford has allowed to unleash the ball 30 times in a game.

I saw Albany last year and they are big and physical. They do not match up as well in the skill positions. Albany's QB play last year was brutal. Any significant improvement in this area will make them a very dangerous team. Ford is a smart and savvy game day coach. If the game is close after 3 quarters he will pull out all of the stops. He thinks of everything.

[danefan]

I saw Albany last year and they are big and physical. They do not match up as well in the skill positions. Albany's QB play last year was brutal. Any significant improvement in this area will make them a very dangerous team. Ford is a smart and savvy game day coach. If the game is close after 3 quarters he will pull out all of the stops. He thinks of everything.

QB play so far has been the best we've seen in probably 4 years. Knock on wood.xnonox

[DuckDuckGriz]

This is random but I met Albany's coach (Bob Ford?? I could be way off) in 2002 when Albany came to Wash-Griz for Montana's home opener. THAT was a crazy crowd considering it was the first time many in Missoula had seen the Griz in person since winning the national championship, but the guy was poised as ever. Got to talk to him a while and the guy is IMO one of the most underrated coaches and people in all of FCS. Great speaker, intelligent, easy to talk to, friendly and very gracious in defeat. The Griz won 45-7 that day but this is I think a different Great Danes team and Ford will no longer be Mr. Nice Guy.

I look for the Danes to make this a game, and the Griz to pull away in the fourth.

[danefan]

Bob Ford is one of the greatest coaches in the history of all college football. Ask anybody who has played or coached under him and they will tell you the same. We are truly lucky he has stayed at Albany as long as he has. he had plenty of opportunities to go elsewhere for much much much more $$$. But he stayed. See the below article for a brief history:

http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=618032&category=ETTKIN&BCCode=&newsdate=8/30/2007&TextPage=1

[X-Factor]

Don't look for Montana to pile on. It's not our Head Coache's MO, he's very sensitive to the opposing Coach and his ego. I'll bet he plays the 2nd stringers as much as the 1st and if we have a nice lead in the middle of the 3rd quarter he will go to his usual 3 runs up the gut and a cloud of dust offense. That Offense includes going for it on 4th and 5 or 6 when we are in field goal range. Don't want to be accused of running it up.xtwocentsx

This helps with future scheduling as well xthumbsupx

[Green26]

From today's Missoulian:

“I think our team is at a distinct disadvantage,” fifth-year Griz football coach Bobby Hauck said Tuesday. “Because Bob Ford's forgotten more football than I know.

“It'll be interesting to see how they choose to play us, on both sides of the ball. The last three weeks they've had a different game plan, both offensively and defensively.”

Ford is the Great Danes' venerable coach, and in fact their only coach since their program was reintroduced in 1970 as a club sport. He's had his team playing at a high level, from a 9-0 record as an NCAA Division III team in 1973 to winning 21 of 23 games in Division II in 1997-98.

“He has 217 victories,” said Hauck, whose team hosts Albany Saturday at 1:05 p.m. “That's just a tremendous challenge for our coaching staff to be up against a veteran like that.”

[Green26]

The Albany v. Montana game can be seen live via satellite. See below (which was taken from egriz.com).

The following are the satellite coordinates for the Montana - Albany non-conference football game to be played Saturday, Sept. 22, at Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. There is not a delay on the satellite feed, the game will be broadcast live on the coordinates below:

Coordinates:
Galaxy 16 / K19 | slot d-9mhz | DL freQ: 12093.5 H | SR: 6.148936 | FEC: 3/4

For support information please call: Bob Bonner in Las Vegas at 702-648-7775

[AZGrizFan]

From today's Missoulian:

“I think our team is at a distinct disadvantage,” fifth-year Griz football coach Bobby Hauck said Tuesday. “Because Bob Ford's forgotten more football than I know.

“It'll be interesting to see how they choose to play us, on both sides of the ball. The last three weeks they've had a different game plan, both offensively and defensively.”

Ford is the Great Danes' venerable coach, and in fact their only coach since their program was reintroduced in 1970 as a club sport. He's had his team playing at a high level, from a 9-0 record as an NCAA Division III team in 1973 to winning 21 of 23 games in Division II in 1997-98.

“He has 217 victories,” said Hauck, whose team hosts Albany Saturday at 1:05 p.m. “That's just a tremendous challenge for our coaching staff to be up against a veteran like that.”

Fortunately for us, the coaches don't play the game. xeyebrowx xeyebrowx xeyebrowx

[YoUDeeMan]

Jordan Scott 44 rushes for 180 yards vs Albany
-112 yards net rushing on 5 QB sacks
113 yards net rushing for the game

I'm not sayin, I'm just sayin.;). I'm glad we're done with the danes for this year.

-112 yard on 5 QB sacks? xconfusedx That's 22.4 yards per sack! xeekx

Did your QB know which way he was supposed to go? xeyebrowx

[Ruler 79]

I think Fordie is THE MAN and Duck Duck Griz read him right. He has a personality second to none in this business. He has the ability to take a team with "lesser" athletes and get them to play as champions. If you guys could see our current "stadium" you would wonder how he wins at all or how he gets the players he does. As Danefan who I believe is a former Great Dane player states he is well respected by everyone in the profession including his buddies Joepa, Frank Beamer, and Bobby Bowdon!

Now, for all the sweet talk that Hauck has praised him with this game will be played by the players. Hauck knows this and is being gracious. Fordie is a class act and is unflappable...he's been coaching for 40 years so he kind of knows what he is doing.

His players will be ready and sky high in this enviornment Saturday and are willing to run through walls for this guy. I think that is exactly what UM's D is going to be..A WALL! One of the cool things he told us at our golf outing this past summer as he was speaking about the Delaware game last year goes as follow

"Guys you will always remember playing this game in front of 20,000 fans but it will be something you think about everyday of your lives if you go out and beat this team in their own house!"

Got goosbumps when he said it ot about 20 of us at the 19th hole.

[Raider Dane]

Prior to Colgate's last drive, which came with just over 4 minutes left in the game, Scott rushed the ball 36 times for 131 yards for a 3.6 yd per carry average. After Colgate converted a huge 3rd and long deep in their own territory, the defense was deflated and Scott rushed the ball 8 times for 49 yards (6.1 yd/carry avg.) to help run out the clock. The point being Albany's run defense played Scott tougher than the box score stats might lead one to believe.