The UND Football team squeaked out a 16-13 Potato Bowl victory on Saturday over Robert Morris.  It wasn’t the prettiest of games but what was encouraging is that UND found ways to make big plays and win game.

Rumors
Thunder Lake Lodge

Good

  • The defense came up with multiple stops in the third and fourth quarters to allow UND to win the game.  It was SIX stops in a row, to be exact, after RMU scored their touchdown to open the second half.  With UND up by 3 for the entire fourth quarter, the defense was able to keep coming out and getting stops.
  • ILB Will Ratelle.  He had 13 more tackles on Saturday and has become a rock on the inside of the 3-4 defense.  His form tackling and aggressive play is fun to watch.
  • Three blocked kicks.  The UND defense blocked two field goals and an extra point.  Awesome effort by the interior of that defensive line, especially the two who broke through – Spencer Cummings (2) and Jordan Hinojosa.
  • Corner Alex Tillman had a nice game in coverage, returning punts, and laying bone-shattering hits like the one on the Robert Morris receiver.  He also intercepted a pass but was called for a questionable holding call before the pass was thrown.
  • WR RJ McGill stepped up when UND needed somebody in the third quarter.  McGill took the short crossing route and turned on the speed to split the Colonials defense on his way to a 32 yard TD.
  • QB Joe Mollberg showed nice touch on the deep seam pass to TE Kyle Ruhe, floating it in between three defenders.  Ruhe is proving to a bonafide deep threat from the tight end position.
  • UND was +2 on the day in turnover ratio.
  • True freshman kicker Reid Taubenheim had another good day.  He went 3-4 on field goals, connecting from 20, 45, and 35.
  • Thompson, ND native #15 Garrett Reinecke played no doubt his best game of his career at OLB.  His relentless pursuit and effort lent itself to making some big plays, including a sack late in the game.  You can tell it means something to him to be on the field wearing the UND uniform by the way he plays.

Not So Good

  • Time of Possession was 35 to 25 in favor of the Colonials.  That is not ball control offense.
  • The UND offense was 3 for 15 on third down.
  • 8-22 passing will simply not get it done.  Even considering the few drops, that’s still only 50%.
  • UND:  268 yards total offense.
  • Lets call it like it is, the UND offense was abysmal on Saturday.  Besides the fact they only had 268 total yards, the entire flow of the offense was off.  If it wasn’t bad QB/Center exchanges, it was poor blocking in both the running and passing game, or overthrows/underthrows to the receiver, or flat out drops.  Nothing really clicked on Saturday, except for the one drive where QB Joe Mollberg hit WR RJ McGill for the 32 yard TD.  Even that could be chalked up to blown coverage based on the fact the pass was only about 6-7 yards and McGill was able to run 25 yards into the end zone.  On UND’s biggest play from scrimmage, Mollberg badly underthrew WR Brandon Walker, who had his man beat by at least 3 yards.  If he hits him in stride, it’s a TD.  Instead, UND came away with no points after the Taubenheim missed FG.
  • We’ve been saying this for a while now, but it’s officially time for QB Joe Mollberg to take over this team.  Be the leader, be the voice.  If your running back turns the wrong way on a handoff, straighten him out.  The center exchanges need to be figured out now, not later.  Also, on the UND lost fumble, Mollberg appeared to accidentally hand it off to the wrong player, fullback Dustin Iverson, who was supposed to be the blocker on the lead draw play.  Obviously, Iverson was not ready for it and the ball fell to the turf.  “Jet” motions need to be timed up better and more consistently, as well.  These are all just honest, objective observations and constructive criticisms.  This all needs to be better.
  • The play of the OLB’s on the zone running plays was poor.  The outside zone runs were the big one’s that RMU running back Rameses Owens killed UND on.  That kid is going to be a special player, by the way.  Anyway, on those plays the OLB’s need to fold into the area and make the play or at least pinch it down and make the RB cut back.  It was way too easy and credit the RMU staff for noticing that.
  • UND needs to find a running back who wants to hit the hole hard and accelerate at the point of contact with the defender (is this groundhog’s day?).  Same problems as Week 1 vs. SJSU.  The RB’s need to get going faster and worry less about cutting and juking and avoiding contact.  These running plays are not slow developing, for the most part.