APPALACHIAN STATE VS. MONTANA 2009 NATIONAL SEMIFINAL

[Grrrrriz]

No argument there.. I agree without that loss, we would have a seed. I sure hope the Griz think the same exact way you do and think "hey we just beat a team that was better that Apps only FCS loss.. we don't need to prepare"

We are MUCH better than we were in that game..

I know how good App is, I was just making a point about how ignorant your statement was. Just like this statement I quoted. I said nothing about not thinking you guys were good, I was just pointing out you lost to a weak team. I hit a nerve I guess. But my point still stands. It will be a great game, I agree. But, I am not envious of App fans at all, having to travel all the way across country after a loss is a position I wouldn't want to be in.

[AppIAA]

I know how good App is, I was just making a point about how ignorant your statement was. Just like this statement I quoted. I said nothing about not thinking you guys were good, I was just pointing out you lost to a weak team. I hit a nerve I guess. But my point still stands. It will be a great game, I agree. But, I am not envious of App fans at all, having to travel all the way across country after a loss is a position I wouldn't want to be in.

Weak team? Preseason top 10 (top 10 at the time we played them), and stayed in the top 25 all season.. that designates a weak team??

No hitting of nerves... just opinions I guess.. but I don't know how you justify scheduling a DII year in, year out, with no FBS teams and mediocre (or in your terminology -- weak) teams doesnt help out your tremendous records year in, year out..

[ASUG8]

Hardly. Vitaris is at least 60-70% in each category (20-29, 30-39, etc) which McKnight is a lowly 2-7 from 40-49 and 1-5 from 50 up. Like it or not, you've got the advantage. So no, it doesn't make anything moot.

In other words, let's hope it doesn't come down to a kicking battle or it will be a 7 hr game. xlolx

[gbhmt]

In other words, let's hope it doesn't come down to a kicking battle or it will be a 7 hr game. xlolx

Agreed! Doubt that'll happen though. Both of these teams seem to catch fire once they smell that endzone. Or just touch the ball, for that matter.

[Grrrrriz]

Weak team? Preseason top 10 (top 10 at the time we played them), and stayed in the top 25 all season.. that designates a weak team??

No hitting of nerves... just opinions I guess.. but I don't know how you justify scheduling a DII year in, year out, with no FBS teams and mediocre (or in your terminology -- weak) teams doesnt help out your tremendous records year in, year out..

I think what you are forgetting, is that nobody schedules a FBS team to test the mettle, or showoff how good their team is. They do it for $$$$$MONEY$$$$$. So the reason that UM schedules DII is the same reason that an FBS schedules you. Its pretty much a guaranteed win, and the smaller school gets a payday. Montana makes about $750,000 per home game. If an FBS wants to pay us $800,000 to come play them, then I bet O'day will think about it. If you think that you guys schedule FBS for any other reason, you are mistaken. If you made as much money at a home game as U of M, you would certainly schedule an extra home game rather than go to an FBS. Its the way it works. College football is big business, and most FCS teams are willing to take a loss for 500 grand, but U of M doesn't have to.

[gbhmt]

I think what you are forgetting, is that nobody schedules a FBS team to test the mettle, or showoff how good their team is. They do it for $$$$$MONEY$$$$$. So the reason that UM schedules DII is the same reason that an FBS schedules you. Its pretty much a guaranteed win, and the smaller school gets a payday. Montana makes about $750,000 per home game. If an FBS wants to pay us $800,000 to come play them, then I bet O'day will think about it. If you think that you guys schedule FBS for any other reason, you are mistaken. If you made as much money at a home game as U of M, you would certainly schedule an extra home game rather than go to an FBS. Its the way it works. College football is big business, and most FCS teams are willing to take a loss for 500 grand, but U of M doesn't have to.

Not to mention that an FBS game is a big risk for injury. Why take that risk if you don't need to? The money's fine up here.

[ASUG8]

I think what you are forgetting, is that nobody schedules a FBS team to test the mettle, or showoff how good their team is. They do it for $$$$$MONEY$$$$$. So the reason that UM schedules DII is the same reason that an FBS schedules you. Its pretty much a guaranteed win, and the smaller school gets a payday. Montana makes about $750,000 per home game. If an FBS wants to pay us $800,000 to come play them, then I bet O'day will think about it. If you think that you guys schedule FBS for any other reason, you are mistaken. If you made as much money at a home game as U of M, you would certainly schedule an extra home game rather than go to an FBS. Its the way it works. College football is big business, and most FCS teams are willing to take a loss for 500 grand, but U of M doesn't have to.

Not to throw stones, but App has to post a similar gate and we always have an FBS - maybe we're just greedy.xsmiley_wix

[Grrrrriz]

Not to throw stones, but App has to post a similar gate and we always have an FBS - maybe we're just greedy.xsmiley_wix

No you don't. I know for sure your gate isn't as high as Montana's, for many reasons...mostly ticket prices. Montana's are way higher than yours. And I think Montana has the most profitable team in the FCS. There is a thread somewhere on here about it. But...I don't necessarily disagree with you, I think App also might doit for recruiting purposes...but mostly money.

[AppIAA]

I think what you are forgetting, is that nobody schedules a FBS team to test the mettle, or showoff how good their team is. They do it for $$$$$MONEY$$$$$. So the reason that UM schedules DII is the same reason that an FBS schedules you. Its pretty much a guaranteed win, and the smaller school gets a payday. Montana makes about $750,000 per home game. If an FBS wants to pay us $800,000 to come play them, then I bet O'day will think about it. If you think that you guys schedule FBS for any other reason, you are mistaken. If you made as much money at a home game as U of M, you would certainly schedule an extra home game rather than go to an FBS. Its the way it works. College football is big business, and most FCS teams are willing to take a loss for 500 grand, but U of M doesn't have to.

Jerry Moore has said several times they do not do it for the money, but rather to help the players get used to battling..

And considering we lead the nation in attendance, I am sure we pull close to that much as well...

Just read your post above.. nevermind..

[Waco Kid]

Offense-

QB- Armanti's an instant win in this category. App St.

RB- Chase Reynolds and Devon Moore have nearly identical numbers. Montana's other RB seem to be better than App St.'s, but that's probably because Armanti runs it himself as opposed to using other RB's. Push.

WR/TE- App St. has two solid receivers in Cline and Quick, but Montana's got a top-3 FCS receiver in Mariani and the best all-around TE corps in the country. Montana

OL- Without stats to compare here, Montana probably gets the edge just by virtue of sheer size. Montana

Defense-

DL- Comparing apples to oranges here. App's DL has a few more sacks. Montana's DL has more interceptions, as we'll occasionally drop a lineman back into coverage. Push.

LB- Both have solid LB corps, App's simply has more numbers to show. App. St.

Safety- App takes it with Mark Legree. A lot like last year, he doesn't have many tackles for a safety but 7 picks is tough to ignore. App. St.

CB- Little Keith Thompson for Montana showed he can pack a punch against SDSU when he lit up their 255 lb TE. Trumaine Johnson has five picks and 11 pass breakups while being out of the game for nearly half the season. Montana.

Special Teams-

Kicking- Brody McKnight for Montana has been money inside 40 this year, but Vitaris has been money from pretty much everywhere. App St.

Punting- Montana's Sean Wren sits at 10th in the country in punting, but App St.'s Sam Martin is only two yards behind in average. However, Montana's net punting is 4th in the country while App St.'s is 23rd. Montana

Kick Returns- Montana: 2nd overall. App. St: 61st overall. Pretty clear. Montana

Punt Returns- Mariani's the most feared returner in the country at the moment. Cadet's nowhere near him. Montana

Intangibles- Overwhemlingly Montana. Black and Gold mentioned that he came to the game in 2000 and experienced the environment. Sorry to break it to you, but our stadium is MUCH bigger now. You talk like the fact that App has a big stadium would help them deal with the environment of Washington-Griz, but a loud crowd at home does not hurt home team. Really, the louder your home crowd is, the better your team plays. Add the weather to the toughest place to play in the country and it swings this category in the Griz's favor. App St may be rallied up from a big close victory at Richmond, but this Montana team has scored 91 unanswered points. That's what I call momentum. Montana


As I was reading this I was thinking you had a very good breakdown of each position, and I was going to give you some big props for not being biased. Then I got to the Intangibles section... to say it will be overwhelmingly in Montana's favor is a big stretch. We play in big stadium's on a yearly basis with hostle crowds so don't put too much into the crowd effect. Our guys practice in sub freezing temps on a regular basis starting in late October so cold weather won't be an advantage either. Now playing at home for the Griz vs travling across 2 time zones for the Apps will help the home team, no doubt. One intangible the Apps have going for them is a team full of players that have won national titles. Don't under estimate the value of having that experience.

I'm expecting a heck of a ballgame Saturday, and I'm just glad that I will be able to watch the entire game this time. In 2000 I had a history exam right in the middle of the ASU/UM game. It was very hard to write about the history of the Russian Empire knowing the Apps and Griz were going at it.

[Black and Gold Express]

I think what you are forgetting, is that nobody schedules a FBS team to test the mettle, or showoff how good their team is. They do it for $$$$$MONEY$$$$$. So the reason that UM schedules DII is the same reason that an FBS schedules you. Its pretty much a guaranteed win, and the smaller school gets a payday. Montana makes about $750,000 per home game. If an FBS wants to pay us $800,000 to come play them, then I bet O'day will think about it. If you think that you guys schedule FBS for any other reason, you are mistaken. If you made as much money at a home game as U of M, you would certainly schedule an extra home game rather than go to an FBS. Its the way it works. College football is big business, and most FCS teams are willing to take a loss for 500 grand, but U of M doesn't have to.

I agree with you for most schools. But ASU draws more than you do, so our gate would be comparable if not more. There are no shortage of area D-II teams we could easily bring to Boone, there's an entire conference of them within 3-4 hours drive time. But we don't do it, instead we have Florida, Georgia, and Virginia Tech already lined up. The money we will make off of those games would not be substantially more than another home game would bring in. So clearly money is not the only factor for everyone.

You are in a rare situation where you are the only game around (well you and MSU). The Carolinas have three I-A conferences represented. There is a fight for recruits we have that you don't have, and games like these also help in recruiting. A player on the fence between a low-level I-A offer and ASU may be swayed by the combination of the winning tradition we have here and the knowledge that most likely they will get a few games in their career against some big name competition.

[Waco Kid]

No you don't. I know for sure your gate isn't as high as Montana's, for many reasons...mostly ticket prices. Montana's are way higher than yours. And I think Montana has the most profitable team in the FCS. There is a thread somewhere on here about it. But...I don't necessarily disagree with you, I think App also might doit for recruiting purposes...but mostly money.

I believe we bring in roughly $500K (i'm low balling here since I don't know what value to place on the 10K student ticket sold) for ticket sales each home game. Throw in concession and souvineer sales and we bring in at least $600K on a game day. The only two teams to pay us more than that for an FBS game were Michigan and LSU, so obviously its not about the money. Like Montana we could stay at home and make more money playing a weak OOC game, but our admin likes to give the team and the fans a game it can get excited about. The team is much better off playing against an FBS team than pounding some crap team, and our fans get much more excited about playing a name team. Recruiting is also a big factor since we have so many teams in our area to fight against for players.

[Grrrrriz]

I believe we bring in roughly $450K for ticket sales each home game. Throw in concession and souvineer sales and we bring in at least $600K on a game day. The only two teams to pay us more than that for an FBS game were Michigan and LSU, so obviously its not about the money. Like Montana we could stay at home and make more money playing a weak OOC game, but our admin likes to give the team and the fans a game it can get excited about. The team is much better off playing against an FBS team than pounding some crap team, and our fans get much more excited about playing a name team. Recruiting is also a big factor since we have so many teams in our area to fight against for players.

I am telling you, its all due to ticket prices. We charge between $30-$55 for each game. We get $750,000 every home game...just in ticket sales. That doesn't account for concessions or anything. In addition, no FCS team sells more apparel and merchandise than Montana. Montana makes a lot more money than anyone else in the FCS. I agreed that you guys did it at least partially for recruiting, due to the competition of recruiting there...You guys are one of the only ones that can say that. As well, "saying" that you do it for the fans, and because Jerry Moore wants your team to be battle tested is simply political speak to keep the fans interested. You guys beat Michigan, and that was awesome..but you haven't beat a 1-A since then, and fans don't get excited about a loss. You get plenty of recruiting benefits, but if there wasn't a huge payday...you wouldn't do it.

[GOKATS]

Not to mention that an FBS game is a big risk for injury. Why take that risk if you don't need to? The money's fine up here.

That's really a poor excuse, a player can get injured just as easily playing a DII team.xnodx

[paul1978]

That's really a poor excuse, a player can get injured just as easily playing a DII team.xnodx

True, but there is more of a chance of an injury (and more serious) playing against the bigger, more athletic plays from an FBS school then there is playing against a Div II team.

[Saint3333]

ASU does it for recruiting, seldom do we get paid more than 500K, which once you incorporate travel expense would be necessary to break even vs. a home game.

ASU can tell next year's class they will play Florida, UGA, and VT during their four years at ASU, plus it helps with Yosef donations as those donors get the first tickets to those games.

[HiHiYikas]

I am telling you, its all due to ticket prices. We charge between $30-$55 for each game. We get $750,000 every home game...just in ticket sales. That doesn't account for concessions or anything. In addition, no FCS team sells more apparel and merchandise than Montana. Montana makes a lot more money than anyone else in the FCS. I agreed that you guys did it at least partially for recruiting, due to the competition of recruiting there...You guys are one of the only ones that can say that. As well, "saying" that you do it for the fans, and because Jerry Moore wants your team to be battle tested is simply political speak to keep the fans interested. You guys beat Michigan, and that was awesome..but you haven't beat a 1-A since then, and fans don't get excited about a loss. You get plenty of recruiting benefits, but if there wasn't a huge payday...you wouldn't do it.
Our fan base tends to get angry when we schedule DII teams (Usually the complaint goes something like "what are we, Montana?") We played FCS non-scholly Jacksonville a few seasons ago, and that even made some of us mad.

I personally get more excited when we lose by 5 to a team like ECU (who won their conference) than when we destroy DII Lenoir-Rhyne.

And I actually wouldn't mind seeing a price increase at Kidd Brewer. $25 gets you any seat in the house (minus the luxury boxes and club level seats).

Of course, your seats won't be as good unless (1) they're part of a season ticket package, and (2) you donate at least $1,000 to the Yosef Club. So they have ways of creating an "upcharge" for better seats.

I would pay another $15 per ticket for premium seats. $25 to see ASU play at home is a good value. Almost too good.

[AppAlum2003]

xpopcornx

[srgrizizen]

Doesn't ASU's attgendance include a mass of people sitting around on grassy slopes for little or no admission fee? I doubt if ASU's gate remotely compares to UM's.

Also to say that Montana has a recruiting advantage because of the lack of FBS teams is ridiculous w/o taking the available population base into account. Montana has less than 1 million and fewer than 20 high schools that play football at the highest classification. Many UM athletes come from 8 man and sometimes 6man programs. Talk about a bogus argument.

On another point, it is amazing how much prattle there has been on this thread about the concept of "battle tested." It's basically pure hooey. UM's athletes train just as hard as anybody's and do their best to compete against every opponent. If they match up better than ASU, they will win. They may well lose to a team that matches up better in some aspect of the game, but who they have played previously has next to nothing to do with it. All this talk of soft schedules lack of "battle testedness," etc. is merely a transparent attempt to delegitimize Montana's record and reaches the height of absurdity when implying that reaching the finals six times is somehow a negligible achievement because of four losses. How the hell did they ever get to the finals w/o ever being battle tested? Or in spite of not being battle tested. Maybe they were not battle tested, but just damn good.? Oh yeah, I forgot, it's because of all the undeserved home games against teams they could not possibly have beaten anywhere else. Obviously, some people will never accept the legitimacy of Montana's record, and it is pointless to argue with them. If ASU wins, congratulations, go beat the CAA. If you don't, come back on the board and savor a big helping of crow. Or gripe about the undeserved home game, the crooked refs, whatever. Just go play the game.xlolxxlolx

[putter]

Our fan base tends to get angry when we schedule DII teams (Usually the complaint goes something like "what are we, Montana?") We played FCS non-scholly Jacksonville a few seasons ago, and that even made some of us mad.

I personally get more excited when we lose by 5 to a team like ECU (who won their conference) than when we destroy DII Lenoir-Rhyne.

And I actually wouldn't mind seeing a price increase at Kidd Brewer. $25 gets you any seat in the house (minus the luxury boxes and club level seats).

Of course, your seats won't be as good unless (1) they're part of a season ticket package, and (2) you donate at least $1,000 to the Yosef Club. So they have ways of creating an "upcharge" for better seats.

I would pay another $15 per ticket for premium seats. $25 to see ASU play at home is a good value. Almost too good.

And your comments are echoed by 99% of Montana fans. The closest FBS teams that Montana has : Idaho and Washington St wont play Montana. I hate the revenue excuses for scheduling D2 but it is what it is. I could give up my season tickets in protest but there are people lined up to buy them from me...xrolleyesx

[Skjellyfetti]

Doesn't ASU's attgendance include a mass of people sitting around on grassy slopes for little or no admission fee? I doubt if ASU's gate remotely compares to UM's.

Grass seats are the same price as other seats.

[srgrizizen]

Grass seats are the same price as other seats.

What a rip off!

xlolx

[SouthernEagle02]

I look at this game the same way I looked the Bama/UF game. This game won't be determined by a single player or even a single play and unlike the Bama/UF game, it won't be a lopsided victory for either team. Score will be more like the Texas/Nebraska game. This game will be all about the details, the execution of even the simplest plays. I tend to think it will come down to which team plays better special teams. You can't give UM or App great starting field positon or else you're just giving them 7 points. As far as a winner, I want to UM to win becuase I just can't stand App, especially after that butt whuppin they gave us, but realistically App comes out with the win here. Not because they are "battle tested" as one App fan so wants to believe, but because App will execute and execute well.

[Eight Legger]

App wins by 15.

[Silenoz]

Here's another thing, we do try (maybe not hard enough though). O'Day tried to get a Wazzu game, and instead of a payout, we were to receive X number of tickets for our fans. Wazzu refused, not because they sell out and need those tickets, but because they don't want to be embarrassed like that.

[HLNgriz]

I look at this game the same way I looked the Bama/UF game. This game won't be determined by a single player or even a single play and unlike the Bama/UF game, it won't be a lopsided victory for either team. Score will be more like the Texas/Nebraska game. This game will be all about the details, the execution of even the simplest plays. I tend to think it will come down to which team plays better special teams. You can't give UM or App great starting field positon or else you're just giving them 7 points. As far as a winner, I want to UM to win becuase I just can't stand App, especially after that butt whuppin they gave us, but realistically App comes out with the win here. Not because they are "battle tested" as one App fan so wants to believe, but because App will execute and execute well.



What he said!

[GrizNation93]

App wins by 15.

Please explain why?

[84Griz]

I agree with you for most schools. But ASU draws more than you do, so our gate would be comparable if not more. There are no shortage of area D-II teams we could easily bring to Boone, there's an entire conference of them within 3-4 hours drive time. But we don't do it, instead we have Florida, Georgia, and Virginia Tech already lined up. The money we will make off of those games would not be substantially more than another home game would bring in. So clearly money is not the only factor for everyone.

You are in a rare situation where you are the only game around (well you and MSU). The Carolinas have three I-A conferences represented. There is a fight for recruits we have that you don't have, and games like these also help in recruiting. A player on the fence between a low-level I-A offer and ASU may be swayed by the combination of the winning tradition we have here and the knowledge that most likely they will get a few games in their career against some big name competition.

Black and Gold - Go look at the ticket sale differencial at the Financial Report Database that the Indystar.com has at http://www2.indystar.com/NCAA_financial_reports/. Granted the last data it has is from the 2004 / 2005 year and is probably before your big attendance upswing but it is also before our latest expansion.

The difference in football ticket sales income is huge (App State $404,216 vs. U of M $3,381,935). I know your numbers have taken some big increases since 2004 but we added 2,000 seats and have also increased ticket prices (some say to the point of overpricing our fans) since then also. Some of the difference might also be playoff games because we had three of them that year but I do not see the payouts to the NCAA on the expense side so I don't know if those playoff game sales are included or not?

That is why we do not need to schedule a FBS team and probably won't as long as King George is president of U of M. The current U of M administration has been sucking all the profits from the football team for years.

If you look at the expense side of the ledger you will notice that U of M charged the football team almost $920,000 for "facilities maintanence" and another $740,000 for "game expenses" and the football team still made $1.7 million.

[HiHiYikas]

Here's another thing, we do try (maybe not hard enough though). O'Day tried to get a Wazzu game, and instead of a payout, we were to receive X number of tickets for our fans. Wazzu refused, not because they sell out and need those tickets, but because they don't want to be embarrassed like that.
I was looking at your recent schedule. There are a handfull of FBS games in there, just not in the last year or two. It's got to be hard to get anybody to come to Missoula, and I would figure there aren't a lot of FBS teams that want any part of the Griz.

ASU has been going through that, too.

Honestly, everybody knows a 41-13 loss to LSU helps your team get better than a 49-0 win over Fort Lewis. It's a more helpful game experience. That's just a fact. But teams have to do the best they can with the schedule they can make.

Scheduling a home-and-home with ASU was and awesome thing to do. I hope I can be in Missoula when ASU gets out there next time.

[GOKATS]

Here's another thing, we do try (maybe not hard enough though). O'Day tried to get a Wazzu game, and instead of a payout, we were to receive X number of tickets for our fans. Wazzu refused, not because they sell out and need those tickets, but because they don't want to be embarrassed like that.

It's your story, stick with it...............................xlolxxlolxxlolxxl olxxlolxxlolx

Wazzu is paying MSU $375,000 next year, not bad for a bus trip game that isn't much further than EWU.

[GOKATS]

Here's another thing, we do try (maybe not hard enough though). O'Day tried to get a Wazzu game, and instead of a payout, we were to receive X number of tickets for our fans. Wazzu refused, not because they sell out and need those tickets, but because they don't want to be embarrassed like that.

It's your story, stick with it...............................xlolxxlolxxlolx

Wazzu is paying MSU $375,000 next year, not bad for a bus trip game that isn't much further than EWU.

[Silenoz]

It's your story, stick with it...............................xlolxxlolxxlolx

Wazzu is paying MSU $375,000 next year, not bad for a bus trip game that isn't much further than EWU.

You think I just made that up, spur of the moment?

I hope the Cats enjoy losing to one of the worst programs in FBS

[GolfingGriz]

What thread did I just click into? Come on Griz fans, MSU is 2 weeks, and 14 points ago. On to Appy!

Any chance Armanti is due for an off day?

[proasu89]

What thread did I just click into? Come on Griz fans, MSU is 2 weeks, and 14 points ago. On to Appy!

Any chance Armanti is due for an off day?

He had an awkward moment once just to see what it was likexsmiley_wix

It could happen, just wouldn't put all my eggs into that basket.

[Skjellyfetti]

Any chance Armanti is due for an off day?

No. He got that out of his system against SCSU.

He plays his best on the biggest stages. Look at any of his semifinal or championship games on ESPN or ESPN2. I will be shocked if he does not have a top 5 performance of his career.

[GolfingGriz]

No. He got that out of his system against SCSU.

He plays his best on the biggest stages. Look at any of his semifinal or championship games on ESPN or ESPN2. I will be shocked if he does not have a top 5 performance of his career.

True but those were all home games including those in Chattanooga. I don't think he has ever been in an environment like WaGriz before. I know he played against Michigan in the big house, but that was a September game against Appy, not a November game against Ohio State. I'm not saying we have a bigger stadium or anything like that, just that I think it will be more difficult for him to handle. It will be an absolute ZOO on saturday.

[BearIt]

Honestly, everybody knows a 41-13 loss to LSU helps your team get better than a 49-0 win over Fort Lewis. It's a more helpful game experience. That's just a fact. But teams have to do the best they can with the schedule they can make.

I will give you a "yes and no" to your logic. Yes in that you test the maxiumum ability of your players.

The "no" part of the arguement is that in the 49-0 win you get the opportunity to play and build depth. Your 2's and 3's get lots of play time, which definately helps down the road when injuries take their toll. These players are much more ready to take the field than if they sat on the side lines watching the first team get their asses handed to them by LSU. It also gives the coaches opportunities to work on some of their play development.

I don't say I love the D2 games, but I think for the team over all there is a lot more benefit than most posters give them credit for. Why do you think the BCS teams schedule people like App State? It is not for the money, they could make more with a Marque match up with television coverage. It isn't to "battle test" their team. It is so they can get a win and work on developing depth and working out the kinks on some of their plays.

Your are foolish if you think there is anyother reason LSU would schedule App State.

[srgrizizen]

As far as a winner, I want to UM to win becuase I just can't stand App, especially after that butt whuppin they gave us, but realistically App comes out with the win here. Not because they are "battle tested" as one App fan so wants to believe, but because App will execute and execute well.

This was my primary point in my earlier post, obviously in response to B&GE. 99% of ASU fans are very knowledgeable and respectful of other programs and do not engage in such nonsense. It's going to be a great game won by the best team. xpeacex

[Grizaholic17]

This has turned into schedule discussion. You didn't play LSU in 2009. This is a new year...this is a new week...this is a new day. Seeing our players today no campus has built my confidence level tenfold. They are excited and ecstatic to play App St and I know they will give it their all. Here's to 10 more years of dominance Griz fans (hopefully :p )

[Grizaholic17]

What thread did I just click into? Come on Griz fans, MSU is 2 weeks, and 14 points ago. On to Appy!

Any chance Armanti is due for an off day?

actually 91 unanswered points ago!

[appstate38]

True but those were all home games including those in Chattanooga. I don't think he has ever been in an environment like WaGriz before. I know he played against Michigan in the big house, but that was a September game against Appy, not a November game against Ohio State. I'm not saying we have a bigger stadium or anything like that, just that I think it will be more difficult for him to handle. It will be an absolute ZOO on saturday.

If it wasn't a zoo I would be disappointed.... That said I don't think the noise/atmosphere will affect his game that much. He and this team have played in front of some crazy crowds before. Paulson stadium comes to mind. Besides if he is able to have the kind of game that I hope then the crowd will HOPEFULLY not be a factor.xprayx

[Grizaholic17]

If it wasn't a zoo I would be disappointed.... That said I don't think the noise/atmosphere will affect his game that much. He and this team have played in front of some crazy crowds before. Paulson stadium comes to mind. Besides if he is able to have the kind of game that I hope then the crowd will HOPEFULLY not be a factor.xprayx

I'm sorry, but any App fan saying the crowd won't be a factor during this game is deaf. This will be one of the loudest games at Wa/Griz...and that is saying something. The crowd will only be taken out of it if we are down 35 in the 3rd quarter. I hope that doesn't happen

[biggie]

Crowd may affect Offensive tackles, but that would be about it, just have to keep them under control. Irvin(center) and AE would have Mich noise as well as other 20k+ stadium experiences. JM had the quote saying the team will love playing out there, looking back on his '00 experience.

[GolfingGriz]

If it wasn't a zoo I would be disappointed.... That said I don't think the noise/atmosphere will affect his game that much. He and this team have played in front of some crazy crowds before. Paulson stadium comes to mind. Besides if he is able to have the kind of game that I hope then the crowd will HOPEFULLY not be a factor.xprayx

For your sake I hope your team doesn't prepare for the noise like they would at paulson. WaGriz is a concrete bowl, not two big grandstands with open endzones. It WILL be the loudest stadium your players have ever played in and I am very interested to see how they deal with it.

[HiHiYikas]

I will give you a "yes and no" to your logic. Yes in that you test the maximum ability of your players.

The "no" part of the argument is that in the 49-0 win you get the opportunity to play and build depth. Your 2's and 3's get lots of play time, which definitely helps down the road when injuries take their toll. These players are much more ready to take the field than if they sat on the side lines watching the first team get their asses handed to them by LSU. It also gives the coaches opportunities to work on some of their play development.

I don't say I love the D2 games, but I think for the team over all there is a lot more benefit than most posters give them credit for. Why do you think the BCS teams schedule people like App State? It is not for the money, they could make more with a Marque match up with television coverage. It isn't to "battle test" their team. It is so they can get a win and work on developing depth and working out the kinks on some of their plays.

Your are foolish if you think there is anyother reason LSU would schedule App State.
I'm not commenting on reasons FBS teams schedule FCS teams. I know it's not an ideal matchup for an LSU. Everybody knows that.

Everybody plays up, and everybody plays down. Recent history suggests that 8-3 teams who play up are better than 11-0 teams who don't.

And every conference has a couple of doormat teams that are just as good (if not better) at tuning up your 2nd and 3rd stringers as a Morehead State. That's what your Idaho State's and your Western Carolina's are for.

Every team does the best they can with the schedule they can make, though.

[Grrrrriz]

Of course, your seats won't be as good unless (1) they're part of a season ticket package, and (2) you donate at least $1,000 to the Yosef Club. So they have ways of creating an "upcharge" for better seats.


We have that exact same racket. Sounds like maybe ASU, and U of M are more alike than anyone likes to think.xthumbsupx

[BearIt]

That's what your Idaho State's and your Western Carolina's are for.

xlolxxlolx:D

Unfortunately, some years the second team doesn't get to see the field in those games.
xwhistlex

[HiHiYikas]

xlolxxlolx:D

Unfortunately, some years the second team doesn't get to see the field in those games.
xwhistlex
Our second QB played all day against WCU this year, with all of 2 pages of the playbook to work with - that was the problem xnodx

[Saint3333]

For your sake I hope your team doesn't prepare for the noise like they would at paulson. WaGriz is a concrete bowl, not two big grandstands with open endzones. It WILL be the loudest stadium your players have ever played in and I am very interested to see how they deal with it.

Seriously guys it won't, travel to an SEC stadium or any other BCS team for that matter. It is a loud stadium I know and we may have a false start due to the noise no doubt, but it will not be the loudest stadium they've played in.

[GolfingGriz]

Seriously guys it won't, travel to an SEC stadium or any other BCS team for that matter. It is a loud stadium I know and we may have a false start due to the noise no doubt, but it will not be the loudest stadium they've played in.

You guys don't get it. Yes I know when Michigan and LSU are playing big games it is louder, but you guys aren't a big game for them. Their fans are going to a September game expecting a blowout. Are fans are going to the the biggest game in the history of WaGriz knowing that we can have an effect on the game. It WILL be louder than your team has ever experienced.

[DLS]

You guys don't get it. Yes I know when Michigan and LSU are playing big games it is louder, but you guys aren't a big game for them. Their fans are going to a September game expecting a blowout. Are fans are going to the the biggest game in the history of WaGriz knowing that we can have an effect on the game. It WILL be louder than your team has ever experienced.

opening day isnt a big game? yea okay buddy.

[Grrrrriz]

Seriously guys it won't, travel to an SEC stadium or any other BCS team for that matter. It is a loud stadium I know and we may have a false start due to the noise no doubt, but it will not be the loudest stadium they've played in.

Tony Romo said it was the loudest....ever.

[BearIt]

Our second QB played all day against WCU this year, with all of 2 pages of the playbook to work with - that was the problem xnodx

That actually brings up another point I believe is in Montana's favor. Our depth is arguable the best in the FCS. Mariani and Trumain Johnson are the only players on our team where there is a significant drop in talent to #2. For the most part there is only a slight edge to the 1st team compared to the 2nd team for Montana.

I don't know enough about App State's depth on the rest of the team, but it sounds like you are an average team with out AE. Thankfully for App State AE is playing saturday because it elavates you to a whole different level.

[Grrrrriz]

opening day isnt a big game? yea okay buddy.



Not against a lower division team it isn't.....If it was the opening of conference play, then yes.

[BearIt]

And by the way, Montana is not undefeated or still in the playoffs with out Mariani

[ASUG8]

You guys don't get it. Yes I know when Michigan and LSU are playing big games it is louder, but you guys aren't a big game for them. Their fans are going to a September game expecting a blowout. Are fans are going to the the biggest game in the history of WaGriz knowing that we can have an effect on the game. It WILL be louder than your team has ever experienced.


You're right - Michigan fans were pretty quiet toward the end.......

[GolfingGriz]

opening day isnt a big game? yea okay buddy.

If the game was played at 7 pm like it was supposed to then yes. But when it is played at 10 am with a serious hurricane pending, no it wasn't. I hope your coaches aren't looking at WaGriz the same way some of your fans are...

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

You're right - Michigan fans were pretty quiet toward the end.......

You guys played Michigan?

[ASUG8]

You guys played Michigan?

You wanna hear about it? Only if you'll show some pics of Wa-Griz. xlolx

[GolfingGriz]

You're right - Michigan fans were pretty quiet toward the end.......

I look at that game alot like I looked at our game against Central Washington last year. Were we loud at the end? sure. But was it as loud as it will be on Saturday? not even close.

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

You wanna hear about it? Only if you'll show some pics of Wa-Griz. xlolx

Damn, I need some new bait or something xsmiley_wix

[DLS]

so youre saying that 25,000 griz fans are louder than 80,000 drunk cajuns on opening day at one of, if not, the loudest stadium in all of football?

fellahs, take a minute and think about what you just said.

[HiHiYikas]

That actually brings up another point I believe is in Montana's favor. Our depth is arguable the best in the FCS. Mariani and Trumain Johnson are the only players on our team where there is a significant drop in talent to #2. For the most part there is only a slight edge to the 1st team compared to the 2nd team for Montana.

I don't know enough about App State's depth on the rest of the team, but it sounds like you are an average team with out AE. Thankfully for App State AE is playing saturday because it elavates you to a whole different level.
We're not that bad when it comes to depth. In some cases, we're too deep and not sure what to do with the extra talent.

Our #2 QB, Cadet, is a good example. He's no AE (and nobody is, or ever will be). But he's too good an athlete to stay off the field.

He was playing extremely conservatively against WCU, per coach's orders, apparently. Not sure what was going on in that game. This is the guy who played most of the second half against ECU, for whom "no quarter" evidently means giving up 24 of the last 29 points in the game. AE didn't take a snap all day, and ASU had a good chance to win it at the end of the 4th. Not to drag out the mythical transitive property, but ASU minus AE = 1 point better against ECU than top 25 Houston. This is to say that ASU seems to be able to play well without AE, but it's not a sure thing.

Depth and conditioning has been a plus for ASU for several seasons now. The Mountaineers have a way of making games that were close in the first half pretty one-sided in the second.

Saturday night was a good example. Richmond's stellar run D got shredded in the second half by Devon Moore. ASU's offense outscored UR's defense 28-10 in the second half, and 21-3 in the fourth quarter. 21 points was the most UR's D had given up to anybody all year (except, inexplicably, VMI). It seems the longer the game goes on, the more exaggerated the disparity between the Mountaineers and their opponents becomes.

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

so youre saying that 25,000 griz fans are louder than 80,000 drunk cajuns on opening day at one of, if not, the loudest stadium in all of football?

fellahs, take a minute and think about what you just said.

I am not going to try and argue loudest, but I have been to quite a few games around this area and Wa-Griz is by far the most fun on game day. Utah, Utah St, BYU and Boise state all have more fans and I am sure they are loud, but it is still different at Wa-Griz. I don't have a meter, but I know which one I would go to given the chance. I am glad you guys get to hear the crowd against you for a change, it's the same thing we always hear......such similarities between these programs it's scary. I want the Griz to win, but I'll be happy with a good hard fought game. I like our chances the way we have been playing as of late. App has every reason to think they can win and I don't think a fan on either side should think their team would lose. That is what makes this game so exciting. xthumbsupxxpeacex

[GolfingGriz]

so youre saying that 25,000 griz fans are louder than 80,000 drunk cajuns on opening day at one of, if not, the loudest stadium in all of football?

fellahs, take a minute and think about what you just said.

Drunk Cajuns?? The game kicked off at 10 am with a hurricane on the way. Don't think too many people were drinking that morning. You know what? Sure, you guys have played in a much tougher environment many times. Also, please let all of your players know that we are nothing compared to what you faced at LSU and that minimal time needs to be focused on crowd noise. In fact, I'll stay home saturday because my voice will clearly not be able to effect Armanti or any other players.

[BearIt]

Kind of over playing the noise card in here.

I think when you look at the teams we've had Wash Griz over the years in the playoffs, App state is the least likely to be affected by both the noise and the weather. They have a similar, but slightly warmer climate and have played in front of large crowds.

It doesn't mean in the end it won't make a difference, but I'm going to guess it won't be a major one.

[DLS]

Drunk Cajuns?? The game kicked off at 10 am with a hurricane on the way. Don't think too many people were drinking that morning. You know what? Sure, you guys have played in a much tougher environment many times. Also, please let all of your players know that we are nothing compared to what you faced at LSU and that minimal time needs to be focused on crowd noise. In fact, I'll stay home saturday because my voice will clearly not be able to effect Armanti or any other players.

5am tailgate, everyone was hammered. there were a lot of tailgaters that went through the night. football is taken a little more seriously down there.

point is you prepare for loud environments regardless and the team has obviously had to do that before. so why is griz stadium gonna throw anyone off?

[HappyAppy13]

Tony Romo said it was the loudest....ever.


uhhh ohh!!! not Tony Romo! haha
the QB who's never wona big game in his life and chokes in the playoffs!


maybe thats why he hasn't won yet...cause he's not good with judging crowd noise. haha

im sure it will be loud, but it'll be fine.
really the only reason to get loud is to pump up your own team and show your support.
its not really about messing the other up...

[grizzpaw]

one your game at lsu was over right after the kickoff! they could have ran the score up on you sooo bad it was not even funny! their crowd never gets excited playing d-II teams(as they call us)xwhistlex. but a montana crowd cheering for their team against one of the best programs in all of fcs THAT is a different storyxnodxxeekx! we (our crowd) will be a problem for your team not just ae!xcoffeexxpeacex

[SpeedkingATL]

Drunk Cajuns?? The game kicked off at 10 am with a hurricane on the way. Don't think too many people were drinking that morning. You know what? Sure, you guys have played in a much tougher environment many times. Also, please let all of your players know that we are nothing compared to what you faced at LSU and that minimal time needs to be focused on crowd noise. In fact, I'll stay home saturday because my voice will clearly not be able to effect Armanti or any other players.

All I'll say is our ASU Alumni tailgate with bloody marys, and Jack Daniels started at 7am because of the game timechange. When we walked to the tailgate from the LSU Alumni hotel the LSU tailgates were in full force and the "tigerbail" catcalls were in full force. LSU KNOWS how to party and I guarantee that even with 15% empty seats and a hurricane bearing down it was LOUD....louder than Michigan wasxbeerchugx.

The Griz Stadium should be a great atmosphere with great and loud fans but I expect it will have little impact on the game on the field. These are 2 seasoned and battle tested teams that can score early and often. The turnovers and defensive stops will be the key and it might come down to who has the ball last....and I hope it's ASU.xthumbsupx

[Edge316007]

Drunk Cajuns?? The game kicked off at 10 am with a hurricane on the way. Don't think too many people were drinking that morning. You know what? Sure, you guys have played in a much tougher environment many times. Also, please let all of your players know that we are nothing compared to what you faced at LSU and that minimal time needs to be focused on crowd noise. In fact, I'll stay home saturday because my voice will clearly not be able to effect Armanti or any other players.

Don't sell these fans short--a lot of them were out there tailgating full force at 5AM.

Also, Michigan may not have been as loud for App as they are against Ohio State, but any close game will push the crowd to make more noise. And sorry, but 100k+ at half volume is going to be louder than 25k at full volume.

Now, that doesn't mean that it negates the advantage. Just because you have experience in a loud stadium doesn't mean you'll be able to hear in another deafening stadium. But to claim that Montana is louder than LSU or Michigan is a bit foolish itself.

[putter]

All I'll say is our ASU Alumni tailgate with bloody marys, and Jack Daniels started at 7am because of the game timechange. When we walked to the tailgate from the LSU Alumni hotel the LSU tailgates were in full force and the "tigerbail" catcalls were in full force. LSU KNOWS how to party and I guarantee that even with 15% empty seats and a hurricane bearing down it was LOUD....louder than Michigan wasxbeerchugx.

The Griz Stadium should be a great atmosphere with great and loud fans but I expect it will have little impact on the game on the field. These are 2 seasoned and battle tested teams that can score early and often. The turnovers and defensive stops will be the key and it might come down to who has the ball last....and I hope it's ASU.xthumbsupx


That is awesome that you were able to experience those places, cool memories xthumbsupx I don't know if Wa/Griz will stack up or not and I don't care. All I know is that this crowd will be fired up and it will be loud...just like a good football environment should....will be one helluva game no matter who wins.

[Silenoz]

Don't sell these fans short--a lot of them were out there tailgating full force at 5AM.

Also, Michigan may not have been as loud for App as they are against Ohio State, but any close game will push the crowd to make more noise. And sorry, but 100k+ at half volume is going to be louder than 25k at full volume.

Now, that doesn't mean that it negates the advantage. Just because you have experience in a loud stadium doesn't mean you'll be able to hear in another deafening stadium. But to claim that Montana is louder than LSU or Michigan is a bit foolish itself.

I've never been to the Big House, so I won't personally stake any claim in this "which is louder" argument. All I know is ours is partially, or mostly, due to the design of the stadium. Qwest field is supposedly the loudest most intimidating stadium in the NFL, and I personally felt it wasn't as bad as our playoff games, and I was there for an overtime game.

[APP SHOOTER]

Do you Grizz fans think the loudness of your fans is going to cause APP to lose the game.If we do for some reason lose I don't think it is going to be because of your fans. Get real this is a 3 times championship team I don't thing a little noise is going to bother them.Anyway what do I know I did not stay at a Holiday inn last night but might stay at one in Chatty next Friday NIGHT :) Notice I said MIGHT. After the
Richmond game my heart can not take much of that drama. Either way going to be a great game.Good Luck to both for making it this far.BTW Does coach Fishers son still play.

[grizzpaw]

on espn they were saying that oregon has the loudest stadium and during the oregon state game the reading was 103db any bet that wa/griz is louder this weekendxnodxxpeacex

[GolfingGriz]

I've just heard the hole "we've played in bigger stadiums so the crowd won't be a factor" bit too many times. SDSU said it cause they played at Minnesota. Every one their players were soiling themselves the last 5 minutes of that game and SFA didn't do any better.

[putter]

Do you Grizz fans think the loudness of your fans is going to cause APP to lose the game.If we do for some reason lose I don't think it is going to be because of your fans. Get real this is a 3 times championship team I don't thing a little noise is going to bother them.Anyway what do I know I did not stay at a Holiday inn last night but might stay at one in Chatty next Friday NIGHT :) Notice I said MIGHT. After the
Richmond game my heart can not take much of that drama. Either way going to be a great game.Good Luck to both for making it this far.BTW Does coach Fishers son still play.

Yep, he is a senior #25. Fans or noise won't win the game but we sure do have a good time trying to affect it....xthumbsupx

[GolfingGriz]

on espn they were saying that oregon has the loudest stadium and during the oregon state game the reading was 103db any bet that wa/griz is louder this weekendxnodxxpeacex

I think it measured between 105 and 110 for the game against SHSU in 04 and it wasn't even that close of a game. They brought a decibal measure for the ESPN telecast and hopefully they will do the same this weekend.

[HappyAppy13]

i just wish it was possible for a lot more App fans to go, just so we could add to the db's!!

[GaSouthern]

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GRIZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[AppStateold299]

Drunk Cajuns?? The game kicked off at 10 am with a hurricane on the way. Don't think too many people were drinking that morning. You know what? Sure, you guys have played in a much tougher environment many times. Also, please let all of your players know that we are nothing compared to what you faced at LSU and that minimal time needs to be focused on crowd noise. In fact, I'll stay home saturday because my voice will clearly not be able to effect Armanti or any other players.

I hate bringing it up because it has been beat to death, but Armanti did play at the Big House that holds over 100,000. I know you guys want to beat your chest, but we have played at bigger and better places than Teddy Bear Stadium.

[AppAlum2003]

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GRIZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

non-ASU SoCon fans = cheering for Montana
non-Grizz Big Sky fans = cheering for Montana

You guys can have each other.

[Appguy]

I watched Montana's game from this past weekend and was definitely impressed, but... They got a lot handed to them and I don't think they played as good a game as the 51-0 scoreboard showed.

Hopefully we don't hand them the ball so many times without putting anything on the board. that was disgraceful showing by the lumberjacks, they certainly moved the ball, especially early when it mattered most.

Watching SFA driving after I knew the final score was like watching a replay of a train wreck, they kept finding new ways to end a long drive without scoring.

[james_lawfirm]

I've never been to the Big House, so I won't personally stake any claim in this "which is louder" argument. All I know is ours is partially, or mostly, due to the design of the stadium. Qwest field is supposedly the loudest most intimidating stadium in the NFL, and I personally felt it wasn't as bad as our playoff games, and I was there for an overtime game.


I was at the Big House. That was a once in a lifetime experience (more so because it was my younger son's 12th b'day.) I really do not care who has the louder environment. 105k+ fans are LOUD! Mostly because I don't think it will affect the play on the field this Saturday. Both teams are used to playing in loud stadiums. NBD.

I am REALLY looking forward to visiting WaGriz. What I want to know is whether or not the Griz fans are as nice and friendly as the Michigan fans. I know Ohio State fans will disagree, BUT the Mich. fans we met were fabulous - even AFTER the game.

See y'all Friday!!!

[james_lawfirm]

non-ASU SoCon fans = cheering for Montana
non-Grizz Big Sky fans = cheering for Montana

You guys have have each other.


That's pretty funny!

[Saint3333]

Looks like egriz on here today. No analysis of man vs. man just BS talk about how awesome the stadium is and how cold it is. BORING.

ASU's been it that atmosphere and better and this Saturday will not be in the top 10 coldest days these players go through each year in Boone.

[Blumpkin]

I think it measured between 105 and 110 for the game against SHSU in 04 and it wasn't even that close of a game. They brought a decibal measure for the ESPN telecast and hopefully they will do the same this weekend.

Nor did we have the 2,000 extra seats that came in last year.

And for those who are thinking that it's delusional for griz fans to compare the noise in WaGriz to a place with the capacity of the Big House...that's actually a frequent claim made by well-traveled visitors – something you have to hear to believe. It has more to do with the acoustics of the stadium than the number of people. WaGriz is basically a sunken concrete bowl with no real outlets for sound, and the steep stands come right up to the edge of the field.

[HiHiYikas]

Nor did we have the 2,000 extra seats that came in last year.

And for those who are thinking that it's delusional for griz fans to compare the noise in WaGriz to a place with the capacity of the Big House...that's actually a frequent claim made by well-traveled visitors – something you have to hear to believe. It has more to do with the acoustics of the stadium than the number of people. WaGriz is basically a sunken concrete bowl with no real outlets for sound, and the steep stands come right up to the edge of the field.
Why would anybody have Blumpkin as a screename? I guess the mods/admins aren't up on their sexual slang terms.

[SpiderSafety75]

App will beat Montana by at least 10.

Spiders beat Northern Iowa last year on the road. App can do the same, and will.

[AppAlum2003]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean ever won a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.

Loooooooooot of new Griz posters out there with 1 - 2 lifetime posts. xrolleyesx

[HappyAppy13]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean ever won a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.

wow, easy tiger, or should i say bear cub??
ha

your descriptions have me shaking in my Yosef overalls right now!! YIKES!!xeekx

[griz8791]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean ever won a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.


Loooooooooot of new Griz posters out there with 1 - 2 lifetime posts. xrolleyesx

Join us this week on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom as Marlin and Jim bring you the pageantry and spectacle of the annual migration of the newbie Griz fans to AGS.

xcoffeex

[AppAlum2003]

Join us this week on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom as Marlin and Jim bring you the pageantry and spectacle of the annual migration of the newbie Griz fans to AGS.

xcoffeex

I wouldn't be shocked if it was actually those Elon "fans" that created accounts and talked nothing but unadulterated smack before the ASU-Elon game masquerading as Griz fans.

[griz8791]

You could be right, 2003. Now that you mention it, real newbie Griz fans would be wanting to put up stadium pics.

[Walkon79]

non-ASU SoCon fans = cheering for Montana
non-Grizz Big Sky fans = cheering for Montana

You guys can have each other.

OK, Go App State!!

[GOKATS]

OK, Go App State!!

I've said it before but I'll say it again................Go App. St.!!!!!!!!

FTG!!!!!

[Walkon79]

FTG, except for Mariani and Reynolds. They should have been Bobcats!!

[84Griz]

I am thinking that there are alot of little intangibles that are adding up in favor for the Griz. ASU traveled to Richmond and won late Saturday, big game with alot of emotion, travels back early Sunday, what time did they get back, cram three days worth of finals on Wednesday and Thursday, travel across the country on Friday.

I know that it is not an excuse for last year but I talked to a couple of Griz players in Chatanooga and they said that the traveling to JMU, win a big emotional game, travel back, take finals and travel to Chatanooga last year wore them out. I also know it is easier to travel from East to West then the reverse because of the time change but it has got to be tough.

Griz were home last week, home this week and have their finals next week I believe.

[AshevilleApp]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean ever won a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.

OK, this was such a big claim (nice use of the bold type) that I had to pull out my handy ASU Media Guide for reference:

ASU has reached the semifinals 5 times

1987: Marshall - Home
2000: Montana - Away
2005: Furman - Home
2006: YSU - Home
2007: Richmond - Home

So your argument was by far the worst use of statistics I've ever come across due to the extremely small sample size of one game. You would have been better served to say that ASU has never, ever, ever I mean never won at Wash-Griz....but your sample size would still be one game!

[AshevilleApp]

i read in the missoulian the other day that app state was 0-2 in semi-final games on the road, and ya you did lose in wash-griz so good point.

Thanks - love finding statistical flaws

[KiddBrewer]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean ever won a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.

ah, im sorry.....how young were you when you lost your eye sight?xeyebrowx i hate you wont be able to see the (rich) 'neer faithful on saturday....xcoffeex

[GOKATS]

wow. guess all those years of getting your ass handed to you by the Griz has made you bitter.

You fizz newbies are really crawling out of the woodwork this week, if you can't do any better than that you might as well crawl back in your hole................xnodxxlolx

[AshevilleApp]

wow. guess all those years of getting your ass handed to you by the Griz has made you bitter.

Not bitter at all....just a fan of using stats appropriately...kind of like "all those years" being exactly one year - 2000 where Montana playing at home beat ASU in OT....hardly an "ass handed to you"...."all those years"....since that really implies a butt whoopin' across numerous years - dontcha think?

[KiddBrewer]

just an observation......the conversations over the last 3 days on this thread have been nothing but garbage trash talk.....i agree with a previous poster, pretty boring. i dont even get amusement out of ready and laughing over uneducated homer posts anymore. hearing it from UNC basketball "fans" for 20 years has done me in. sure hope this gets better soon, either that or the game gets here even sooner

[AshevilleApp]

Sorry KB....couldn't help myself

[KiddBrewer]

Sorry KB....couldn't help myself

no problem man, i know its hard to resist

[KiddBrewer]

p.s. just got word from an ASU football player.......according to him, each player practiced today with Bose headphones on, blaring a mix of jet engines, stock cars, and atomic bomb noises

[AshevilleApp]

p.s. just got word from an ASU football player.......according to him, each player practiced today with Bose headphones on, blaring a mix of jet engines, stock cars, and atomic bomb noises

Wait when did they move the game to Talladega?

[KiddBrewer]

Wait when did they move the game to Talladega?

washington griz is louder

[AshevilleApp]

read the whole post!!! i was talking to someone eles, not you.

Well - you are right....my bad on that one

[grizzpaw]

i see how your sid at tsn was quick to post about your win but about ten words on montana win the week before (best comeback in fcs playoff history) and he had to wait all week to do it! when we win i wonder how long its going to take for him to post a story!

[AppAlum96]

Well, the Griz can just go ahead and stay in the locker room and let their stadium and their fans beat us. ;)

[HiHiYikas]

I have ASU's playoff win percentage at .647 currently, and Montana's at .630.

An ASU win on Saturday would bring the Apps to .500 all time on the road in the playoffs. The Griz are at a robust .214 (3-11) on the road. That includes 4 losses in Chattanooga. And they're at .813 at home (26-6).

ASU has only played one road semi-final game, the OT loss in Missoula in 2000. The Mountaineers are 3-2 in the semi's. Montana is 6-3.

Feel free to fact check these. I sorted through the information at http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/football_champs_records/2008/d1/DI2009-ChampResults.pdf, and counted year-by-year.

[Torgo]

i'm just curious, how many app fans have tickets? i'm guessing not many.

Are you 12?

[KiddBrewer]

i'm just curious, how many app fans have tickets? i'm guessing not many.

ill bet money we sell our allotment....i dont think you understand how many Yosef Club (boosters) members are LOADED and will not miss this gamexreadx

[HappyAppy13]

Are you 12?

thats what i'm saying. gah lay.

[HappyAppy13]

ill bet money we sell our allotment....i dont think you understand how many Yosef Club (boosters) members are LOADED and will not miss this gamexreadx

what is our alltment?

isnt Yosef Club taking a plane as well??

and i really wish i could go.
me and some friends were all hyped about it until we figured up the cost, and an average college student just cant do it unfortunately... xbawlingx

[Grizo406]

non-ASU SoCon fans = cheering for Montana
non-Grizz Big Sky fans = cheering for Montana

You guys can have each other.

xlolxxlolxxlolx

Absolutely!

Nice job, AppAlum!xthumbsupxxthumbsupx

[KiddBrewer]

what is our alltment?

isnt Yosef Club taking a plane as well??

and i really wish i could go.
me and some friends were all hyped about it until we figured up the cost, and an average college student just cant do it unfortunately... xbawlingx

im not sure how many tickets were getting actually.

i wish i could go, but as a fellow college student (who is graduating on sunday), i understand your pain, and lack of money, my friendxthumbsupxxoopsx

[HappyAppy13]

im not sure how many tickets were getting actually.

i wish i could go, but as a fellow college student (who is graduating on sunday), i understand your pain, and lack of money, my friendxthumbsupxxoopsx

yea, its sad we cant get the cost down.

i wish theyd move it to like Missouri, thatd be cheaper and neutral. ha.

but congrats on the graduation!!xthumbsupx

[griz8791]

Wow, I skipped back through the thread and now realize I "missed" the weekly throwdown about the noise. Good thing I've seen and heard all of that more often than all of the syndicated reruns of Star Trek and Gilligan's Island combined.

[SeattleGriz]

Looks like egriz on here today. No analysis of man vs. man just BS talk about how awesome the stadium is and how cold it is. BORING.

ASU's been it that atmosphere and better and this Saturday will not be in the top 10 coldest days these players go through each year in Boone.

Oh yeah. Well how about a pic? xlolx Have you seen what App is up against?


http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q76/wastjer/grizstadium_from_above-WEB-2.jpg

[griz8791]

Good call, Seattle. We line our stadium up at wide receiver and App St covers it man-to-man with their out of conference schedule. It could easily come down to whether our tailgating can hit the game-winning field goal.

[HappyAppy13]

Oh yeah. Well how about a pic? xlolx Have you seen what App is up against?


http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q76/wastjer/grizstadium_from_above-WEB-2.jpg

thats a really nice/incredible field yal have!

[HiHiYikas]

Good call, Seattle. We line our stadium up at wide receiver and App St covers it man-to-man with their out of conference schedule. It could easily come down to whether our tailgating can hit the game-winning field goal.
I think your coach's record in big games botches the hold and our coach's record in big games gets the game-saving block.

[Tod]

I was looking at your recent schedule. There are a handfull of FBS games in there, just not in the last year or two. It's got to be hard to get anybody to come to Missoula, and I would figure there aren't a lot of FBS teams that want any part of the Griz.

ASU has been going through that, too.

Honestly, everybody knows a 41-13 loss to LSU helps your team get better than a 49-0 win over Fort Lewis. It's a more helpful game experience. That's just a fact. But teams have to do the best they can with the schedule they can make.

Scheduling a home-and-home with ASU was and awesome thing to do. I hope I can be in Missoula when ASU gets out there next time.

Did you see what Central Washington did at Wa/Griz last year? A lot of it has to do with the quality of the D-II program. And depending on how far out they're scheduled...you never know how competitive a D-II game can be.

But, I digress...I'd like to not see another D-II on our schedule. If we can't play Idaho or Wazzu, perhaps Wyoming or Colorado/CSU would do it. We'd lose money, but maybe it would be worth it. xconfusedx

But if you look at what other FCS schools have done in the west recently, I'll bet these guys don't want to play the Griz. They're not stupid, they know about the Griz. xthumbsupx

[griz8791]

I think your coach's record in big games botches the hold and our coach's record in big games gets the game-saving block.

Looks like a bad case of epic sarcasm fail by me. Sorry for wasting everybody's time.

[HiHiYikas]

Looks like a bad case of epic sarcasm fail by me. Sorry for wasting everybody's time.
I thought it was hilarious, personally. Gave you rep points.

Good stuff.

xthumbsupx

[Tod]

I have ASU's playoff win percentage at .647 currently, and Montana's at .630.

An ASU win on Saturday would bring the Apps to .500 all time on the road in the playoffs. The Griz are at a robust .214 (3-11) on the road. That includes 4 losses in Chattanooga. And they're at .813 at home (26-6).

ASU has only played one road semi-final game, the OT loss in Missoula in 2000. The Mountaineers are 3-2 in the semi's. Montana is 6-3.

Feel free to fact check these. I sorted through the information at http://web1.ncaa.org/web_files/stats/football_champs_records/2008/d1/DI2009-ChampResults.pdf, and counted year-by-year.

I don't know why anybody would need to fact check that. Do you think it paints ASU in a good light and UM in a bad light? xconfusedx

We are aware of our poor record on the road. But, as you say, a win for ASU "would bring" App to .500. What are they now? What would a loss bring them down to?

[Tod]

on the left of the picture is the north end zone home to the "north end zone crazies" thats my seat 10 rows up right behind the uprights. i'd say 1 out of 10 in the north end zone would have no problem knocking out any app fans at the game. were out for blood

WTF??!!!

xmadxxmadxxmadxxmadxxmadxxmadx

How dare you?!!

[HappyAppy13]

on the left of the picture is the north end zone home to the "north end zone crazies" thats my seat 10 rows up right behind the uprights. i'd say 1 out of 10 in the north end zone would have no problem knocking out any app fans at the game. were out for blood

wow...so abusive

watch out Appy's theyre even comin to take out our fans!! AHHHHxeekx

[griz8791]

on the left of the picture is the north end zone home to the "north end zone crazies" thats my seat 10 rows up right behind the uprights. i'd say 1 out of 10 in the north end zone would have no problem knocking out any app fans at the game. were out for blood

That's it, ignore everything this guy says. He spells as bad as one of us but in 26 years of being a Griz fan I have never heard or read anything even close to this.

[HiHiYikas]

I don't know why anybody would need to fact check that. Do you think it paints ASU in a good light and UM in a bad light? xconfusedx

We are aware of our poor record on the road. But, as you say, a win for ASU "would bring" App to .500. What are they now? What would a loss bring them down to?
Well, it's more my way of saying "I might be wrong." Wouldn't be the first time, but I think I counted correctly there.

I'm not trying to make either team look good or bad. I'm just trying to do something besides smack talk, issue threats, or talk about noise or weather.

Some of us might as well be saying that ASU will win because, according to Dwight Schrute, "Black is the most dominant color."

Also, one of the newer Griz posters made the point that ASU had never won a semifinal on the road. True, just as it's true that ASU is undefeated against the Big Ten.

ASU is 5-6 on the road in the playoffs.

[Tod]

on the left of the picture is the north end zone home to the "north end zone crazies" thats my seat 10 rows up right behind the uprights. i'd say 1 out of 10 in the north end zone would have no problem knocking out any app fans at the game. were out for blood

Post reported, negative rep given.

Jesus! xnonono2xxnonono2xxnonono2x

You dare to threaten ASU fans? You should be dragged out of your precious seat and put in jail for a few days you son of a b****!

[Tod]

Well, it's more my way of saying "I might be wrong." Wouldn't be the first time, but I think I counted correctly there.

I'm not trying to make either team look good or bad. I'm just trying to do something besides smack talk or talk about noise or weather.

We might as well be saying that ASU will win because, according to Dwight Schrute, "Black is the most dominant color."

Also, one of the newer Griz posters made the point that ASU had never won a semifinal on the road. True, just as it's true that ASU is undefeated against the Big Ten.

ASU is 5-6 on the road in the playoffs.

And that's certainly better than UM. That JMU win was huge for us last year, even if we did lose in the NC game. xlolx:(

But the "never won a semi-final on the road" thing...well, two tries! We need John StOnge to put that in perspective. xlolx

[Tod]

ok i do spell bad but who gives a fu@k. maybe its just me and my group but lets just hope we dont meet any app fans in the bars friday night.

Again, a threat!!! Why don't you just ****** off!

You and your "group" obviously have some mental issues you need to sort out!

How old are you? 15? 16?

Mods, ban this idiot, would you? xrulesx

[griz8791]

I reported both of his posts, don't know what else to do. Threatening visiting fans is absolute BS. App fans, know that nothing like this has EVER happened and if it did, locals would intervene on your side.

[Tod]

yep and it came from the bottom of my heart. i'm 25 btw.

How about a name? Got the balls to give that, smart guy?

[Silenoz]

ok i do spell bad but who gives a fu@k. maybe its just me and my group but lets just hope we dont meet any app fans in the bars friday night.

Paragon of society right here

[Tod]

y would you call the cops saying i've posted threatening comments aimed at asu fans. think they would lock me up? i'm so scared. was thinking about going for a beer tonight, want to get together? got the balls?

Sure! Time and place?

[griz8791]

why? that wouldn't add to the db's dumb-ass, and i'll bet i don't see a single app fan at the game. don't under estimate the raw power of 25,000 die hard Griz fans in the famous Washington-Grizzly Stadium.http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-7149.html. one more fact for y'all, app state has never ever, ever, ever and i mean everwon a semi-final on the road. Griz win big.

Emphasis mine.


I wouldn't be shocked if it was actually those Elon "fans" that created accounts and talked nothing but unadulterated smack before the ASU-Elon game masquerading as Griz fans.

Just reread DaBigGriz's genius post above and thinking AppAlum2003 probably hit the nail on the head.

[GOKATS]

I reported both of his posts, don't know what else to do. Threatening visiting fans is absolute BS. App fans, know that nothing like this has EVER happened and if it did, locals would intervene on your side.

I reported him as well, there's no excuse for a newbie to be pulling that kind of crap. As a Montana State fan I apologize to App St fans, don't pay any attention to this idiot, you'll be treated extremely well in Missoula.

[grizzpaw]

for sure asu fans griz fans don't like punk kids mess'in with any fans of any other team and they will come to your aid fast! but all is fair is the good clean smack talk!

[HappyAppy13]

I reported him as well, there's no excuse for a newbie to be pulling that kind of crap. As a Montana State fan I apologize to App St fans, don't pay any attention to this idiot, you'll be treated extremely well in Missoula.

yea, before his posts i felt as if yal were really nice people. i still do, dont get me wrong but he could make someone's point of view change negativley.

from what ive read so far, yal are the nicest to us on the board yet. (newbie here too, so im not real aware yet)

but sounds like both sides are just excited to be playing each other, and pumped for a shootout!!

[B&G]

How loud is Wofford's stadium? Somehow the Terriers were able to win at wa/griz. Yes the noise will affect the game. Will it leave the players quivering in fear? No. Can we move on from that debate?

If you don't mind, I'd actually like to talk about the people who will actually be on the field instead of the ones in the stands. Here are some questions that stand out to me...

1) Can Montana keep Armanti Edwards in check?
- Yes and no... they can limit either his arm or his legs but probably not both. And if they choose to denote a player to spy on him, then that opens things up for Devon Moore. It becomes a game of pick your poison. The toughest thing about defending Armanti is that it keeps defenders on their heels.

2) Can ASU keep Mariani in check?
- Mariani is going to get his yards. But how well App stops Mariani will depend more on the pass rush than it will on the pass coverage. Richmond's big OL did a great job at keeping the ASU DL away from Eric Ward. Ward helped matters because he poses a running threat. Selle is more of a stationary target.

3) Can Montana run the ball?
- Well recent trends say they may not be able to... what has happened to Chase Reynolds? He was 18-52 vs SFA, 14-34 vs SDSU, 25-63 vs MSU. Those are three straight mediocre weeks. And against ASU over the last three weeks? UR's Forte went 18-58, SCSU's Ford/Jamison combined for 14-51 and WCU's Johnson had 24-105. So will Montana get enough from the run game to keep them from being one dimensional? This could be the key to the game assuming there isn't a big disparity in turnovers.

[SeattleGriz]

Good call, Seattle. We line our stadium up at wide receiver and App St covers it man-to-man with their out of conference schedule. It could easily come down to whether our tailgating can hit the game-winning field goal.

Exactly!

[HappyAppy13]

B&G...that was good stuff.

[WyomingGrizFan]

I wouldn't threaten players and/or fans of visiting teams; I do get a bit whacky at times when it comes to the referees though.

[Skjellyfetti]

You don't want to try to stop our offense by choosing to limit Armanti throwing or running. You want to stop our offense by running the ball and playing ball control.

[Grizaholic17]

I agree Skjellyfetti. If this game comes down to a shootout, I'm afraid of what the outcome will be. I hope we have ball control and keep our defense rested for every bout with your offensive machine!

[fltheadgriz]

One question I have for anyone outside of the Griz.
Before the 5th of December, SFA was touted as the #1 offense in all of the FCS. Not just west of the Mississippi but ALL of the FCS.
How did that work out for SFA during game day?
Now I have not heard that App State, with the great AE, was the #1 offense in all of the FCS, so how is it that we are hearing the same things on this thread that we heard on the SFA thread last week?
Would like to be enlightened about this.

[McNeese75]

yep and it came from the bottom of my heart. i'm 25 btw.

LOL, I can see you getting your azz beat by your own in a heartbeat Friday night. xnodx

Way too many great Griz fans to put up with that kind of foolishness.

[HappyAppy13]

saturday Quick wasnt able to get involved until the last drive of the ballgame.

i feel he needs to be a much bigger influence in the deep passing game more and let Cline & Elder tak care of most of the middle stuff

[Grizaholic17]

saturday Quick wasnt able to get involved until the last drive of the ballgame.

i feel he needs to be a much bigger influence in the deep passing game more and let Cline & Elder tak care of most of the middle stuff

If any team knew what they were doing against us, they would do the deep ball the first play of every series...we never stop it.

[Skjellyfetti]

One question I have for anyone outside of the Griz.
Before the 5th of December, SFA was touted as the #1 offense in all of the FCS. Not just west of the Mississippi but ALL of the FCS.
How did that work out for SFA during game day?
Now I have not heard that App State, with the great AE, was the #1 offense in all of the FCS, so how is it that we are hearing the same things on this thread that we heard on the SFA thread last week?
Would like to be enlightened about this.

I am honestly not all that familiar with SFA. I only watched about the first half of their game against Montana last weekend. But, I believe SFA is a very pass happy offense. They are #1 in passing offense per game. They are 73rd in rushing offense. SFA didn't have a running game for y'all to worry about.

Appalachian is VERY balanced (211 rushing yards per game and 251 passing yards per game). If you stack the box and try to stop the run... we throw on you. And we can be effective throwing the ball. If you drop your D into coverage... Armanti and Devon can eat you up on the ground.

[HighRyder08]

http://sports-venue.info/sitebuilder/images/Michigan_Stadium_1-575x430.jpg

we can handle the crowd noise.. 34-32

[CrackerRiley]

If my roommates and I had a couple hundred bucks to spend this weekend (and I didn't have a final on Friday and Monday) we would definitely make the awesome drive up there. Unfortunately, I will have to catch this on the TV.

A-S-U! A-S-U!

[appstate38]

How about this Wa-Griz is loud and AE is great =PUSH!

[caribbeanhen]

Post reported, negative rep given.

Jesus! xnonono2xxnonono2xxnonono2x

You dare to threaten ASU fans? You should be dragged out of your precious seat and put in jail for a few days you son of a b****!

foul, taking the lords name in vain and promoting violence in the stands

post reported

[fencer24]

If any team knew what they were doing against us, they would do the deep ball the first play of every series...we never stop it.

Damnit! You gave it away. Just a formality now.

I do think that ASU and UM are like twins separated at birth. Both with a lot of history, prestige, and expectation to win. This is really THE GAME!

Not sure exactly how it will come out, since both seem to come alive late in the game. I am figuring on a 7-6 score at half time with a 49-51 score at the end. Not sure which has the final winning score.

xpeacex

[HiHiYikas]

One question I have for anyone outside of the Griz.
Before the 5th of December, SFA was touted as the #1 offense in all of the FCS. Not just west of the Mississippi but ALL of the FCS.
How did that work out for SFA during game day?
Now I have not heard that App State, with the great AE, was the #1 offense in all of the FCS, so how is it that we are hearing the same things on this thread that we heard on the SFA thread last week?
Would like to be enlightened about this.
You don't sound like you're honestly looking to be enlightened. You're not going to like any answers you get, but here's another shot:

SFA's offense has put up a lot of points, for sure. They played in some shootouts. I think the 92-0 win over NAIA Texas College skewed their numbers a bit. So did the 65-31 win over North Dakota. They seem to have passed a lot - the North Dakota Box score shows that they were still passing when they were up 58-31 in the last three minutes of the 4th quarter.

It appears that, against some of their stiffer conference competition, they did not score as easily. 23 points in all against the 2nd and 3rd teams in the Southland (9-2 McNeese and 7-4 Texas State).

Sure, they scored a lot. But there wasn't much that strongly suggested they'd light up the Griz. Particularly when we're talking about a team traveling to Missoula from East Texas. Sometimes you Griz fans overplay the weather card, but it must bother warm-weather teams.

Plus, the Lumberjacks turned the ball over 10 times. Going into the game they were averaging about 1 INT and less than 1 fumble lost per game. They had 5 of each against you guys. That is uncharacteristically bad for the Jacks and uncharacteristically good for the Griz. It's unwise to assume that's going to happen again for Montana.

ASU's performance against a Richmond team that defeated the Griz last season does not suggest that the Mountaineers will make SFA's mistakes in Missoula. ASU was 5-for-5 in the red zone. Their only turnover came on a special teams play that should have been blown dead for forward progress. The Mountaineers protected the ball well, and didn't make mistakes.

Now, nobody knows what's going to happen this Saturday in Missoula. But indications are the Apps will fare better than the Jackrabbits and Lumberjacks have.

In 2007, some Griz fans might have said "If EWU's offense can't beat us, neither can Wofford's." And they would have been wrong. The principle is similar.

[Saint3333]

Back to the topic while we let these little boys duke it out of the interest...

ASU's keys to the game:

Keys to the game:

Defense
1. Hurry the QB, bring a LB or McDuffie 6-7 times
2. Limit #80's production and DO NOT KICK TO HIM
3. Limit production on 1st downs to help with pass rush

Offense
1. Run Moore and wear down their smaller defensive lineman, like to see lots of two back sets
2. Don't turn the ball over, they love to drop a DE back in coverage and bring a LB - don't be fooled
3. They will try to single cover Quick, make them pay for it

Stay focused.

[Tod]

foul, taking the lords name in vain and promoting violence in the stands

post reported

The lord's name in vain? Neither a curse nor a crime, hen.

Not promoting violence in the stands. Advocating arrest due to threats.

But way to be a douche. Doesn't surprise me. You are, after all, a Delaware fan. xsmhx

[Tod]

foul, taking the lords name in vain and promoting violence in the stands

post reported

My God! What an ass!

Go to hell.

[Appattk]

Back to the topic while we let these little boys duke it out of the interest...

ASU's keys to the game:

Keys to the game:

Defense
1. Hurry the QB, bring a LB or McDuffie 6-7 times
2. Limit #80's production and DO NOT KICK TO HIM
3. Limit production on 1st downs to help with pass rush

Offense
1. Run Moore and wear down their smaller defensive lineman, like to see lots of two back sets
2. Don't turn the ball over, they love to drop a DE back in coverage and bring a LB - don't be fooled
3. They will try to single cover Quick, make them pay for it

Stay focused.

I also hope that our offensive playcalling is better than the majority of plays called at UR.... Those bubble screens just plain don't work anymore... Not without the speed of Coco...

[fencer24]

Back to the topic while we let these little boys duke it out of the interest...

ASU's keys to the game:

Keys to the game:

Defense
1. Hurry the QB, bring a LB or McDuffie 6-7 times
2. Limit #80's production and DO NOT KICK TO HIM
3. Limit production on 1st downs to help with pass rush

Offense
1. Run Moore and wear down their smaller defensive lineman, like to see lots of two back sets
2. Don't turn the ball over, they love to drop a DE back in coverage and bring a LB - don't be fooled
3. They will try to single cover Quick, make them pay for it

Stay focused.

SFA managed to avoid kicking to Mariani. Not sure that is a method that you want to use though.

[caribbeanhen]

The lord's name in vain? Neither a curse nor a crime, hen.

Not promoting violence in the stands. Advocating arrest due to threats.

But way to be a douche. Doesn't surprise me. You are, after all, a Delaware fan. xsmhx

allow me to offer you a clue, dont get all worked up by what some old guys sitting around in there underwear have to say, It's not good for you and aint worth the stress. Life is short, so just go out and enjoy the game

[GOKATS]

The lord's name in vain? Neither a curse nor a crime, hen.

Not promoting violence in the stands. Advocating arrest due to threats.

But way to be a douche. Doesn't surprise me. You are, after all, a Delaware fan. xsmhx

You and I have never agreed on anything, but I'm with ya on this one and was really hoping he was kidding. If not, what a jerk!!!

[GunsAndGuitars]

I agree Skjellyfetti. If this game comes down to a shootout, I'm afraid of what the outcome will be. I hope we have ball control and keep our defense rested for every bout with your offensive machine!

I'm hoping the same thing on the other side. (Yes I'm a noob, no I will not be threatening anybody). Although we're a score now ask questions later team...

[caribbeanhen]

My God! What an ass!

Go to hell.

sounds like you have a control problem, did you beat up your anger management instrutor ?

[uofmman1122]

Wow...This thread sure took a turn for the stupid.

App fans thinking the crowd won't be a factor.

Griz fans thinking the crowd and cold will disable this team like it did SFA.

Both are wrong, and arguing those points is stupid.

Every team comes into Washington Griz acting like the crowd won't be a big deal. "We played at Michigan/Minnesota/LSU/Florida/USC/etc." Doesn't matter. Every team says that, and they all leave saying it was the loudest they'd seen all year. This will be the loudest stadium ASU has played in all year.

Griz fans, this team isn't SFA or SDSU. Their seniors have won 3 NCs. Their juniors 2, their sophomores 1, and their freshmen made it to the quarters last year. This is a seasoned playoff team, and they won't roll over like SDSU did in the 3rd and 4th quarters, or like SFA did all game. The crowd will play its part, and cause them trouble, but not nearly as much as it did for SDSU and SFA.

[gbhmt]

Okay after hearing all this talk about "We played at the Big House" stuff, I just have to say: come on guys. I'm currently at a Big Ten school and the rest of the Big Ten has a nickname for the stadium in Ann Arbor: "The Quiet House." I was telling an upperclassman here about how ESPN's announcers have come to UM for a semifinal playoff game and said it was louder than stadiums like Tennesee's and Florida's and Michigan's, and his response was "Michigan's stadium is incredibly quiet. I was there for the State game last year and couldn't believe it was actually over 100k." I've been to every game here with over 75k and not once, even during an overtime win against Michigan, has it touched the loudness of Washington-Griz in the semifinals. You also can't pull out the Wofford excuse because when a Griz fan mentioned that Montana State's former coach said Wa-Griz is much louder than The Rock, an App fan chimed in with "Oh well it was the first round, we didn't have good attendance." Works both ways. So throw out the Wofford argument. The fact is is they measured the decibel level during the Massachusetts game and it was equal to that of a jet engine. Not only is this game bigger, but the stadium's grown since then. Whether or not it has an effect on the players, we'll see. But App's players have not experienced noise levels this high.

[Rekdiver]

the noise won't be a problem. Noise doesn't make tackles. ASU players ears will be covered up anyway to keep them from falling off. An the noise won;tbe a problem when the ASU is up 21 points. It will be time to go home and put some wood in the fireplace.xthumbsupx

[BearIt]

3) Can Montana run the ball?
- Well recent trends say they may not be able to... what has happened to Chase Reynolds? He was 18-52 vs SFA, 14-34 vs SDSU, 25-63 vs MSU. Those are three straight mediocre weeks.

I think the biggest reason that Chase's Rushing numbers have gone down is that teams have committed to stopping the run in the last several games. This has opened up our passing game. If you don't stop Chase you will loose, period. AE can't help you when he is not on the field. He will put up 150+ yards and you will loose.

Teams are dedicated to stopping him first and forcing Montana to pass the ball. It turns out we are very good at at the air game as well. If you look at the numbers in each of those 3 games, we passed the ball more than we have in any other games this season except vs. NAU.

Don't let Chase's numbers in the last few games fool you. The other teams know that your 1st step to beat Montana is to stop the run. If you don't, you loose. The next step is to stop the passing game. No one has stopped them both yet.

We have beat teams by passing for 350 yards or by running for 250 yards. Take your pick.

[B&G]

Okay after hearing all this talk about "We played at the Big House" stuff, I just have to say: come on guys. I'm currently at a Big Ten school and the rest of the Big Ten has a nickname for the stadium in Ann Arbor: "The Quiet House." I was telling an upperclassman here about how ESPN's announcers have come to UM for a semifinal playoff game and said it was louder than stadiums like Tennesee's and Florida's and Michigan's, and his response was "Michigan's stadium is incredibly quiet. I was there for the State game last year and couldn't believe it was actually over 100k." I've been to every game here with over 75k and not once, even during an overtime win against Michigan, has it touched the loudness of Washington-Griz in the semifinals. You also can't pull out the Wofford excuse because when a Griz fan mentioned that Montana State's former coach said Wa-Griz is much louder than The Rock, an App fan chimed in with "Oh well it was the first round, we didn't have good attendance." Works both ways. So throw out the Wofford argument. The fact is is they measured the decibel level during the Massachusetts game and it was equal to that of a jet engine. Not only is this game bigger, but the stadium's grown since then. Whether or not it has an effect on the players, we'll see. But App's players have not experienced noise levels this high.

Wait... didn't you guys lose that Massachusetts game???

[gbhmt]

Wait... didn't you guys lose that Massachusetts game???

Maybe you didn't read the second to last sentence. Need me to spell it out for you?

[HappyAppy13]

i honestly dont think the noise will be a problem either.

this is too late in the stage of things for noise to be a problem for either team!
seriously, noise is just something fun to produce while supporting your team.

the Appys will be just fine...plus like Rekdiver said, their ears will be covered anyways cause its prob going to be -50 degrees

[HappyAppy13]

I think the biggest reason that Chase's Rushing numbers have gone down is that teams have committed to stopping the run in the last several games. This has opened up our passing game. If you don't stop Chase you will loose, period. AE can't help you when he is not on the field. He will put up 150+ yards and you will loose.

Teams are dedicated to stopping him first and forcing Montana to pass the ball. It turns out we are very good at at the air game as well. If you look at the numbers in each of those 3 games, we passed the ball more than we have in any other games this season except vs. NAU.

Don't let Chase's numbers in the last few games fool you. The other teams know that your 1st step to beat Montana is to stop the run. If you don't, you loose. The next step is to stop the passing game. No one has stopped them both yet.

We have beat teams by passing for 350 yards or by running for 250 yards. Take your pick.


stopping the pass & run are keys to beating any team really...

[B&G]

I think the biggest reason that Chase's Rushing numbers have gone down is that teams have committed to stopping the run in the last several games. This has opened up our passing game. If you don't stop Chase you will loose, period. AE can't help you when he is not on the field. He will put up 150+ yards and you will loose.

Teams are dedicated to stopping him first and forcing Montana to pass the ball. It turns out we are very good at at the air game as well. If you look at the numbers in each of those 3 games, we passed the ball more than we have in any other games this season except vs. NAU.

Don't let Chase's numbers in the last few games fool you. The other teams know that your 1st step to beat Montana is to stop the run. If you don't, you loose. The next step is to stop the passing game. No one has stopped them both yet.

We have beat teams by passing for 350 yards or by running for 250 yards. Take your pick.

You are probably right. I'm willing to bet App will take their chances with the Griz passing attack rather than playing soft on Reynolds & Co.

[uofmman1122]

stopping the pass & run are keys to beating any team really...But few teams are so strong at both.

Add in the fact that I don't think ASU is the best defense we've seen all year, and this could turn into a high-scoring affair.

Turnovers will rule this game.

[theasushow]

yeah the noise is the last thing i am worried about...more worried about the actual grizz players.

[HappyAppy13]

we just got to have our secondary have a HUGE stand and NOT get picked apart like they have a few times this year

[Mid-Atlantic]

this thread is very entertaining

[Tod]

sounds like you have a control problem, did you beat up your anger management instrutor ?

You say that as if it's normal to have an anger management instructor. xeyebrowx

Notice the guy making threats? Got no problem with that?

Let's just hope my little outbursts on AGS are worse than that idiots threats, huh?

That I'd be your larger concern certainly seems odd.

xconfusedx

[HappyAppy13]

But few teams are so strong at both.

Add in the fact that I don't think ASU is the best defense we've seen all year, and this could turn into a high-scoring affair.


youre probably correct
our D has been shakin several times this season.

but as of late, they have really come on strong.
we're prob not the best D yall have faced, but i know they will step up in such a huge game like this and perform like champions

[B&G]

Maybe you didn't read the second to last sentence. Need me to spell it out for you?

Apparently... why is this game bigger? Wasn't the UMass game also a semifinal? Is it bigger because it's ASU? If so, then maybe there is your answer on whether the noise will affect them.

[BearIt]

stopping the pass & run are keys to beating any team really...

True, but not many teams can effectively utilize either aspect of the game to beat you. A previous poster in this thread said that you have to make Montana one dimensional by stopping the run to beat them. Guess what the last three teams did that. Look at the results. We passed all over them.

We can beat teams with either aspect of the game. Not many teams can. Last year if you shut down the run it really hurt us (Richmond). That doesn't seem to be the case this year.

[HappyAppy13]

True, but not many teams can effectively utilize either aspect of the game to beat you. A previous poster in this thread said that you have to make Montana one dimensional by stopping the run to beat them. Guess what the last three teams did that. Look at the results. We passed all over them.

We can beat teams with either aspect of the game. Not many teams can. Last year if you shut down the run it really hurt us (Richmond). That doesn't seem to be the case this year.

yea, gotchya.
being stellar on both aspects on offense is rare and very dangerous!!

just gotta be able to kick that solid D!

im getting more and more excited for this game...itll be a doozyxthumbsupx

[uofmman1122]

UM vs. ASU thread: 455 posts

Nova vs. W&M thread: 66 posts

xlolx xlolx xlolx

This thread might get over 2,000 posts by game time. xlolx

[theasushow]

this thread is very entertaining

yeah i have been xpopcornx for the past 2 hours.

[caribbeanhen]

You say that as if it's normal to have an anger management instructor. xeyebrowx

Notice the guy making threats? Got no problem with that?

Let's just hope my little outbursts on AGS are worse than that idiots threats, huh?

That I'd be your larger concern certainly seems odd.

xconfusedx

good grief, your team is in the semi-finals and your hosting App St, try and enjoy and dont let people push your buttons xpeacex

[gbhmt]

Apparently... why is this game bigger? Wasn't the UMass game also a semifinal? Is it bigger because it's ASU? If so, then maybe there is your answer on whether the noise will affect them.

It's a bigger game in the sense that it's the two biggest dynasties of this decade. And the teams practically already have an unplayed rivalry. Everybody knows that.

[caribbeanhen]

UM vs. ASU thread: 455 posts

Nova vs. W&M thread: 66 posts

xlolx xlolx xlolx

This thread might get over 2,000 posts by game time. xlolx

any idea what the record might be?

[Skjellyfetti]

any idea what the record might be?

As far as game threads on this forum... LSU - App thread
http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37416

[GunsAndGuitars]

any idea what the record might be?

I'm sure it's with the CAA as the CAA is the end all be all of the FCS. xoopsx

[BearIt]

yea, gotchya.
being stellar on both aspects on offense is rare and very dangerous!!

just gotta be able to kick that solid D!

im getting more and more excited for this game...itll be a doozyxthumbsupx

Truthfully, this is what scares the crap out of me about AE. Do you commit to stopping him and Devon (sp?) from running or do you shut down the passing attack? I have no idea. Hopefully Hauck and Co. know, that's why they get paid the big bucks.

[theasushow]

As far as game threads on this forum... LSU - App thread
http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37416

Lord have mercy we were still posting 8 months after that game was over...

[Skjellyfetti]

Good read for App and Montana fans:


Montana 2000 revisited (Part I)
There is a mystique to Montana football.

For east-coast teams in the FCS, traveling to Missoula for a game is an experience.

A grizzly bear (stuffed, fortunately, and in a glass case) awaits visitors at the airport. It’s typically cold and snowy for December playoff games. And a mountain called Hellgate is the backdrop at Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

The Grizzly fans are ardent, and loud. The stadium itself lends itself to a big-time college football atmosphere, with fans wrapped around and close to the field in a bowl-type facility.

Appalachian State will travel there this weekend, for a semifinal game in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. The Mountaineers been there before, for a 2000 semifinal game that turned out to be a classic thriller – with top-ranked Montana surviving for a 19-16 overtime victory.

Following is a recap of that game, and notes from before and after, from the Winston-Salem Journal pages in December of 2000.

Check back later this week for what players from that ASU team remember about the game, and a story on what quarterback Joe Burchette recalls will be in Friday’s Winston-Salem Journal. And, of course, we’ll be making the trip to Missoula to report what happens this time around.

http://www.journalnow.net/index.php/app_trail/entry/montana-2000-revisited-part-i/

[HappyAppy13]

Truthfully, this is what scares the crap out of me about AE. Do you commit to stopping him and Devon (sp?) from running or do you shut down the passing attack? I have no idea. Hopefully Hauck and Co. know, that's why they get paid the big bucks.

haha
you are correct/ i cant even imagine the pressure either coach is under right now getting a gameplan together. especially Moore since he'd got limited tim to do so, due to travel tim and all.

i think both coaches will come out of this game revered on a much higher level, but especially the coach who wins. what an epic game in the history of FCS football!

[Skjellyfetti]

Truthfully, this is what scares the crap out of me about AE. Do you commit to stopping him and Devon (sp?) from running or do you shut down the passing attack? I have no idea. Hopefully Hauck and Co. know, that's why they get paid the big bucks.

As I said earlier... you do neither. You stop him by running the ball successfully and keeping him on the bench.

[BearIt]

As far as game threads on this forum... LSU - App thread
http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/showthread.php?t=37416

That thread is 101 pages, but it took 20 days to get to page 47 xlolxxlolx

[caribbeanhen]

I'm sure it's with the CAA as the CAA is the end all be all of the FCS. xoopsx

actually no, it's the Appy St/LSU game

[theasushow]

Truthfully, this is what scares the crap out of me about AE. Do you commit to stopping him and Devon (sp?) from running or do you shut down the passing attack? I have no idea. Hopefully Hauck and Co. know, that's why they get paid the big bucks.

well I think the coaches always know what to do to shut a team down, college, nfl or any level. it just always comes down to the execution. it is no mystery that if you can bottle up AE and play great pass defense you will find success, the question always is do you have the athletes to execute.
the first step in the gameplan is always "how do we stop AE"...all coaches know that, but not all coaches have the players that can get it done.

[caribbeanhen]

This thread will shatter that record even before this game starts

[Skjellyfetti]

That thread is 101 pages, but it took 20 days to get to page 47 xlolxxlolx

Nah, that thread is 262 pages and it was started in February (Game in September)... it was on the front page on AGS for about 7 months. xlolx

[GunsAndGuitars]

This thread will shatter that record even before this game starts

We're up to 48 pages. You may be right. If it doesn't, I expect it will after the game at least.

[grizband]

The eventual length of this thready is directly correlated to the outcome of the game. And remember, its only Monday... xrotatehx

[msugrizzly]

Kind of over playing the noise card in here.

I think when you look at the teams we've had Wash Griz over the years in the playoffs, App state is the least likely to be affected by both the noise and the weather. They have a similar, but slightly warmer climate and have played in front of large crowds.

It doesn't mean in the end it won't make a difference, but I'm going to guess it won't be a major one.

I agree, getting a little tired of it myself. This will probably be the loudest the stadium has ever been but i don't think it will make app st. fold under the noise. the winner will be decided by the players on the field, not the fans in stands.

[B&G]

It's a bigger game in the sense that it's the two biggest dynasties of this decade. And the teams practically already have an unplayed rivalry. Everybody knows that.

Correct. It's two of the biggest dynasties of the 2000's. I can buy that crowd noise is going to sway a game against SFA who has barely sniffed the playoffs this decade or SDSU who just made their 1st appearance. But crowd noise vs one of the biggest dynasties of the decade is not going to be the deciding factor. That's all I'm saying.

Montana has been the beneficiary of 14 turnovers in the first two playoff games. Either that proves the homefield advantage, that the two opponents were over their heads, or the Montana is just that good. We will find out the answer on Saturday.

No matter what I expect it to be a close game. The winner doesn't become king of the decade unless they win next week too. Good luck guys.

[GunsAndGuitars]

The winner doesn't become king of the decade unless they win next week too.

I honestly don't see the winner (either way) of this game losing in Kidd Brewer TN.

[GOKATS]

I think this should be a great game between two good football teams. Noise? Yes, it will be loud but I don't see that having a big affect on ASU. Cold? Yes, but not near as bad as some griz fans are making it sound (I saw one post where a griz fan was telling how he dressed, this won't be a polar expedition;)). Yea, it's colder than hell in Montana right now (we're headed for -30 tonight here in Bozeman, -8 in Missoula), but the forecast for Sat. is mid-high 20's- no big deal. How about bagging the noise and weather aspects and talking more about the players, game plans, etc.

And to the App St fans making the trip, despite the idiot remarks by a grizidiot who signed up today and made an ass of himself, you will be treated with genuine Montana hospitality.

[GreatAppSt]

Griz = toastxthumbsupx

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

I think this should be a great game between two good football teams. Noise? Yes, it will be loud but I don't see that having a big affect on ASU. Cold? Yes, but not near as bad as some griz fans are making it sound (I saw one post where a griz fan was telling how he dressed, this won't be a polar expedition;)). Yea, it's colder than hell in Montana right now (we're headed for -30 tonight here in Bozeman, -8 in Missoula), but the forecast for Sat. is mid-high 20's- no big deal. How about bagging the noise and weather aspects and talking more about the players, game plans, etc.

We probably would if we knew anything concrete xlolx

[GunsAndGuitars]

We probably would if we knew anything concrete xlolx

That's a noteworthy point. I'm sure both coaching staffs are saying something similar as well.

[Grizaholic17]

Kind of over playing the noise card in here.

I think when you look at the teams we've had Wash Griz over the years in the playoffs, App state is the least likely to be affected by both the noise and the weather. They have a similar, but slightly warmer climate and have played in front of large crowds.

It doesn't mean in the end it won't make a difference, but I'm going to guess it won't be a major one.

I'm sorry, I'm not being a homer or anything, but saying the noise won't be a major factor is completely and utterly false. Ear splitting noise and lack of communication on the field is a major issue with football teams...especially in a big game. I don't see Armanti being a big audible caller, so that dampens the effectiveness. But there will be false starts. Not to mention the Montana defense and atmosphere will be fueled the crowd noise. The energy in the players can be a direct result of the rowdiness in the crowd. Ask any Montana player! Saying noise isn't going to make a difference is quite frankly a dumb thing to say.

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

I'm sorry, I'm not being a homer or anything, but saying the noise won't be a major factor is completely and utterly false. Ear splitting noise and lack of communication on the field is a major issue with football teams...especially in a big game. I don't see Armanti being a big audible caller, so that dampens the effectiveness. But there will be false starts. Not to mention the Montana defense and atmosphere will be fueled the crowd noise. The energy in the players can be a direct result of the rowdiness in the crowd. Ask any Montana player! Saying noise isn't going to make a difference is quite frankly a dumb thing to say.

ASU has heard loud stadiums, but most times it is in their own and it's for them. Saturday it will be against them, that is the only difference I see. You have to plan for it, but I wouldn't waste too much time on it if I were them. I am betting they don't waste a lot of time, but they do have to put some effort into it cause it will be there. xpeacex

[Grizaholic17]

ASU has heard loud stadiums, but most times it is in their own and it's for them. Saturday it will be against them, that is the only difference I see. You have to plan for it, but I wouldn't waste too much time on it if I were them. I am betting they don't waste a lot of time, but they do have to put some effort into it cause it will be there. xpeacex

I'm not saying they haven't experienced louder stadiums. I'm saying that if you believe noise will not be a factor in the game...the you are wrong.

[Blumpkin]

If i run into any appi state fan he better just start running cuz i will give them a blumpkin until he passed out.

[BearIt]

Looks like we have a second Griz "fan" that needs go. xsmhx

Take it somewhere else Blumpie

[GolfingGriz]

Looks like we have a second Griz "fan" that needs go. xsmhx

Take it somewhere else Blumpie

I don't think its a griz fan. Just someone trying to get a rise out of people. If its a chick, she's gross. And if its a guy, then he's pretty gay.

[GOKATS]

I'm not saying they haven't experienced louder stadiums. I'm saying that if you believe noise will not be a factor in the game...the you are wrong.

The easiest way to shut the crowd up is to move the ball and score, SDSU did a great job of taking the crowd out until they packed up & headed home with 20 minutes to play. xoopsx

[Blumpkin]

You want some to bearit. name the place. i will blumpkin you so hard you will spray all over the stall and the police will hafto clean you up. wtf ru gonna do NOW!!!!!

[GolfingGriz]

The easiest way to shut the crowd up is to move the ball and score, SDSU did a great job of taking the crowd out until they packed up & headed home with 20 minutes to play. xoopsx

Its true. We don't cheer for the other team so that was a real rough 40 minutes besides our little 14 point run in the second quarter.

[GOKATS]

something your team would know nothing about.

You make it so easy for me............................

Go App St !!!

FTG!!!!

[BearIt]

You want some to bearit. name the place. i will blumpkin you so hard you will spray all over the stall and the police will hafto clean you up. wtf ru gonna do NOW!!!!!

xlolxxlolxxlolxxlolxxlolxxlolx

LMAO!!! That was actually pretty funny.

Seriously though, take it to another thread.

[TokyoGriz]

I see one team busting the game open by 10 points or more. I think both teams are great, just a feeling that one team will have an "off day".

Both app state and montana have had their share of "off days" this year. App the 1st 2 games of the year, montana Idaho state and the 1st half of SDSU.

Homer inside me says Montana by 14 points. xwhistlexxnodx

[ThompsonThe]

Come on....surely you believe that you team will beat us by more than that...
after all, we are just a simple little college in the mountains of N.C.
We don't even represent any state. Just a region.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrCw8po7JKo

[caribbeanhen]

Okay after hearing all this talk about "We played at the Big House" stuff, I just have to say: come on guys. I'm currently at a Big Ten school and the rest of the Big Ten has a nickname for the stadium in Ann Arbor: "The Quiet House." .
xnodx

23,000 loud fans louder than 105000 stunned fans,

[Skjellyfetti]

What about 23,000 stunned fans? How loud are they?

[appmaj]

Oh yeah. Well how about a pic? xlolx Have you seen what App is up against?


http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q76/wastjer/grizstadium_from_above-WEB-2.jpg

A picture of Wa-Griz I don't think anyone at AGS has ever seen one of these xrolleyesx


It is a great looking stadium that said, Go App!

[caribbeanhen]

What about 23,000 stunned fans? How loud are they?

I dont know, ask Umass -

[GOKATS]

we play one game a year against you and for that one game your a griz or a cat straight up. besides that game honestly i want the cats to win and be competitive. lets just say if the cats were in the position we are in now, you can bet your ass i would be going for them, let alone any big sky team. your truly a disgrace to the state of montana and all of big sky football. go back to California.

Sorry kid, I'm a 4th generation Montanan. I rooted for both EWU and Weber in the first round, but I never have and never will root for the fizz because of their arrogant, obnoxious fans. I respect what the griz have done and bear no animosity toward the players (though I think Hauck is a POS). It's a rivalry, accept it.xcoffeex

[Poker Alan]

I am feeling disgraced by the new, psychobabbling Griz fans that have popped up in this thread. Sorry to all the regular posters who have to see that, it really is a very small cross-section of our fan base.

The crowd will impact App. St less than any other team that has visited Wa. Griz, I highly doubt that it will impact them much negatively at all. I am very curious to see what our D scheme is to contain AE, last week we had a great design against Moses, clogging the passing lanes and making it hard for him to find his 3rd or 4th reads, due to pressure being generated up front (no stunts/blitzes). That will not work this week. This will be a very tough team for the Griz to stop offensively -- our way to stay in this game is to not fall behind by much, if we hit a big play, don't have it called back by a dumb penalty, and not commit more than 2 turnovers. If the Griz are close in the 4th quarter, I would feel good about our chances.

[Poker Alan]

Sorry kid, I'm a 4th generation Montanan. I rooted for both EWU and Weber in the first round, but I never have and never will root for the fizz because of their arrogant, obnoxious fans. I respect what the griz have done and bear no animosity toward the players (though I think Hauck is a POS). It's a rivalry, accept it.xcoffeex

This is a fair perspective, we do have many arrogant fans. I will agree with the other Griz poster, that I would root for the Bobcats in a playoff/championship situation, just for the pride of the state reasons.

[james_lawfirm]

Griz fans:

I already have tickets & hotel reservations for Chatty (w/ wife & 2 sons). Since the hotel requires a ONE WEEK cancellation (Yikes!) I decided to go to the NC regardless of the outcome in Montana.

I hope my team will meet me in Chatty. But if not, can we borrow yours?

[Poker Alan]

Griz fans:

I already have tickets & hotel reservations for Chatty (w/ wife & 2 sons). Since the hotel requires a ONE WEEK cancellation (Yikes!) I decided to go to the NC regardless of the outcome in Montana.

I hope my team will meet me in Chatty. But if not, can we borrow yours?

Sure you can... as many others have said, I will be rooting for the winner of this game in the NC, I hope many others follow suit, especially if this turns out to be the classic that it could be.

[Rekdiver]

I can see how the stadium will be very loud with the proximity to the field....I also see it getting louder when we get our weekly unsportsmanlike penalty for excessive celebration............

[AppAlum2003]

Hey, one question that I don't know has been answered yet...

This is not intended as smack whatsoever Griz fans, but with such a nice stadium... why no lights? I'm sure weather can turn quickly there like it does in the NC mountains. I've seen it go from sunglasses weather to "dusk" at 3:00pm in Boone plenty of times.

[Poker Alan]

Hey, one question that I don't know has been answered yet...

This is not intended as smack whatsoever Griz fans, but with such a nice stadium... why no lights? I'm sure weather can turn quickly there like it does in the NC mountains. I've seen it go from sunglasses weather to "dusk" at 3:00pm in Boone plenty of times.

Its actually a great question, especially now that they host larger concerts at the stadium, as well. I am sure much of it was cost-related, obviously.

[Mountaineer#96]

I see Griz is growing bandwago'neers much like ASU has in every year since 2005.

I hope the bar fighter guy gets banned so we can talk football here and not about beating ASU fans in section 10 "right behind the upright" I'll be looking for you buddy, just on ESPN in High Def. not up close and personal since I have a job and my wife has a budget. I bet you will be the guy wearing a trash bag over your jacket so when you spill your whiskey drink on yourself you don't get hypothermia. Typical internet toughguy.....in case you haven't figured it out everyone is a bonafide bad a** on the internet (Griz included ;))

To football:

My questions to Montana faithful are as follows, I was able to catch your game with SFA last week and noticed what I thought was decent play by your defensive line. What surprised me was that your defensive front seemed slower than what I am used to out of a SoCon front 4. They get off the ball great but their lateral movement and pusuit seemed lacking to me. (For reference I have coached the defensive line for a local high school this year and also played d-line and TE in college and high school). This presents a problem given the spread option look ASU and AE will give you, a lot of zone read (which means lateral moving zone blocking attack), quick cut backs by AE and RB's (which means the D-line will have to scrape quickly and stay home). Were your front 4 just having an off day or do they usually just press up field and let the LB's worry about the lateral stuff?

[Houndawg]

Sorry kid, I'm a 4th generation Montanan. I rooted for both EWU and Weber in the first round, but I never have and never will root for the fizz because of their arrogant, obnoxious fans. I respect what the griz have done and bear no animosity toward the players (though I think Hauck is a POS). It's a rivalry, accept it.xcoffeex


xconfusedx So, if you divorce your wife, is she still your sister?

[Mod66]

STOP THE SMACK AND STOP IT NOW. THIS IS THE AGS DISCUSSION BOARD, NOT EGRIZ OR THE MOUNTAINEER BOARD. TALK FOOTBALL, NOT SMACK OR TAKE IT TO THE SMACK BOARD HERE. INFRACTIONS ARE UPCOMING.

[Mountaineer#96]

STOP THE SMACK AND STOP IT NOW. THIS IS THE AGS DISCUSSION BOARD, NOT EGRIZ OR THE MOUNTAINEER BOARD. TALK FOOTBALL, NOT SMACK OR TAKE IT TO THE SMACK BOARD HERE. INFRACTIONS ARE UPCOMING.

What he said........xbowxxbowxxnodx

[griz8791]

Hey, one question that I don't know has been answered yet...

This is not intended as smack whatsoever Griz fans, but with such a nice stadium... why no lights? I'm sure weather can turn quickly there like it does in the NC mountains. I've seen it go from sunglasses weather to "dusk" at 3:00pm in Boone plenty of times.

The last I heard, they had money for lights but are holding off because they aren't done expanding the seating. I am an amateur photographer and as far as I am concerned it will be OK if they never put up lights.

[griz8791]

Theoretically, we could just move on when the opposition won't agree that the noise will be a factor.

As opposed to a whole week of "yes it will" vs. "no it won't."

Theoretically speaking.

[Saint3333]

Wow...This thread sure took a turn for the stupid.

App fans thinking the crowd won't be a factor.

Griz fans thinking the crowd and cold will disable this team like it did SFA.

Both are wrong, and arguing those points is stupid.

Every team comes into Washington Griz acting like the crowd won't be a big deal. "We played at Michigan/Minnesota/LSU/Florida/USC/etc." Doesn't matter. Every team says that, and they all leave saying it was the loudest they'd seen all year. This will be the loudest stadium ASU has played in all year.

Griz fans, this team isn't SFA or SDSU. Their seniors have won 3 NCs. Their juniors 2, their sophomores 1, and their freshmen made it to the quarters last year. This is a seasoned playoff team, and they won't roll over like SDSU did in the 3rd and 4th quarters, or like SFA did all game. The crowd will play its part, and cause them trouble, but not nearly as much as it did for SDSU and SFA.

If I'm connecting the dots here using the logic presented in this post I can assume this post is stupid.

[Mountaineer#96]

Theoretically, we could just move on when the opposition won't agree that the noise will be a factor.

As opposed to a whole week of "yes it will" vs. "no it won't."

Just sayin'.

But I'm just sayin' "no it won't" xsmiley_wix

[ronpayne]

I was a freshman at App when we played the Griz last time, and I distinctly remember our players coming out of that going "woah, that was loud". Will it kill us on every play? no. Will it be a factor and probably cause us a couple of penalties, yes.

I think, given the Griz's history, saying that noise won't be a factor is underestimating them. However, I'm also confident that Jerry Moore remembers that game - we barely lost - and will prepare accordingly.

But it will be a factor :-) GO APPS!!!!

[boonegoon]

I was a freshman at App when we played the Griz last time, and I distinctly remember our players coming out of that going "woah, that was loud". Will it kill us on every play? no. Will it be a factor and probably cause us a couple of penalties, yes.

I think, given the Griz's history, saying that noise won't be a factor is underestimating them. However, I'm also confident that Jerry Moore remembers that game - we barely lost - and will prepare accordingly.

But it will be a factor :-) GO APPS!!!!

I actually think that it will be more of a factor. In 2000 we didn't run the spread. Now, I don't know how the plays are changed at the line but if it involves a lot of audibles, I think it will be difficult. How was the crowd after SDSU went up by 3 scores?

[Houndawg]

STOP THE SMACK AND STOP IT NOW. THIS IS THE AGS DISCUSSION BOARD, NOT EGRIZ OR THE MOUNTAINEER BOARD. TALK FOOTBALL, NOT SMACK OR TAKE IT TO THE SMACK BOARD HERE. INFRACTIONS ARE UPCOMING.


xpeacex Chill out sweetheart, I didn't mean no offense to your wife and sister. I'm sure she's a great gal.