I recently chatted with UND head coach Bubba Schweigert reviewing the Sam Houston State victory, talking the defensive effort in that game, the swinging gate choice on 4th down, emergence of CB C.J. Siegel, current Quarterback situation, and more!
The Hawk sit at 2-1 as they heal up this week waiting to head out to Cheney, WA next week to take on the explosive Eastern Washington Eagles.
Most fans would say UND needs to be 2-1 after their first three games so they are right where they need to be. In our preseason prediction post we laid out the games that we felt the Hawks could/should/need to win and Drake & Sam Houston State were two of them.
The next two weeks are not season-defining but are important, nonetheless. The Eagles are ranked #11 in the country and the following week UND gets #4 UC-Davis at home for Homecoming. We predicted a Hawks victory over the Aggies, even through their Homecoming record as of late isn’t all that great (3-2 in Schweigert era).
If you listened to the interview above you can tell Schweigert thinks that QB Nate Ketteringham will be back sooner than later. Ketteringham has been practicing and with the week off he may be ready to roll for next week. I honestly could see both Ketteringham and Tommy Schuster playing out in EWU, if need be.
The UND defense has started out the season playing pretty good football. They looked a bit slow and unsure of themselves down in Fargo, which tends to happen to teams, but rebounded nicely last week vs SHSU. They looked much more energetic and quicker to the ball.
UND Defense Rankings (FCS)
- #8 in total defense – 279 yds/game.
- #3 in yards/play – 3.97 yds/play
- #2 in passing yards allowed – 112 yds/game
- #4 in sacks – 12 total
OLB’s Jaxson Turner and Jade Lawrence have really upped their game this fall. Lawrence seems to be settling into the Brian Labat role of being the steady veteran that is always in the right place and will make big plays due to experience and having seen situations before. His two interceptions last week were the result of executing the call perfectly.
Turner has been a disruptive force off the edge and is almost unblockable at times. He has the twitch of a safety but the strength to take on tackles in the run game. His 4.5 sacks on the season rank #4 in the country currently.
Hawks fans: hang in there with the new UND offense. It’s only been three games and one was vs. the best defense in the country. It will continue to evolve as will it’s OC Danny Freund. He needs to learn what their good at and the players need to learn the nuances. The nice part is there are weapons – particularly the big WR’s.
Speaking of which – sophomore WR Garett Maag has been a bit “off” this year. He has dropped a couple of passes already this season and had a false start last week. Look for him to rebound after a well-timed bye week. Maag is too good of a kid & player for this to continue. He does have 10 catches for 126 yards and 2 TD’s so it’s not like he is struggling, though.