In what turned out to be a drama-filled football game, the UND Fighting Hawks came up short in their comeback bid losing 35-30 to Weber State on Saturday.

Rumors

UND dug themselves out of several holes, including a 14-0 deficit to start the game.  But, ultimately it was the Wildcats that made a few more plays offensively to create an insurmountable gap.

The loss leaves UND with a 5-3 record and three games remain on the schedule.  This week they head to Idaho to take on the Vandals.

If UND wants to sleep well on Saturday, November 17th they best win these last three games to go 8-3.  That will assure them of a playoff spot.  Going 7-4 is flirting with disaster and leaves them vulnerable to what else is happening around the country.

Game Highlights

We have been pretty critical of the UND special teams the past few weeks and for good reason.  They were not performing up to expectations, whatsoever.  But yesterday they provided the team with TWO touchdowns and essentially kept UND in the game.  We still would like to see more out of the kickoff team, where UND has been trying to pooch kick to cover up deficiencies but still allowing the opponent big returns of 15-25 yards.

Punter Cade Peterson is starting to find his rhythm. The timing looks good, the drop looks good and he is getting very good hang time, which is allowing the coverage team to get down and make the tackle or force the returner to fair catch the punt.

Evan Holm Long Kickoff Return TD

We have talked about Holm’s “oh sh*t” speed in the past where he can turn on the after burners when needed like nobody we have seen in this program’s history.  Well, the following kickoff showed that speed as Holm broke one tackle, used a nice block from Jake Geier, and burst into the open to run far, far away from the Wildcat defenders.  I mean, Holm was long gone by 30 yards.

Deion Harris Blocked Field Goal For TD

The explosiveness of the edge from Harris was impressive – the jump he got off the ball gave the winger blocker no chance.  UND needed this in a bad way and I think everyone in the Alerus Center and those watching at home were shocked at how it transpired.  Huge effort play out of Harris to try and get his team back into this thing.  The part of the play we love the most was the heads-up savyness of Jaxson Turner to realize he was falling down upon recovering the blocked kick and instinctively tossed it backwards so that Donnell Rodgers could scoop and score. (Note: look who laid the last block to assure Rodgers scored – #21).

Noah Wanzek TD Catch

Noah Wanzek is turning into a total dude at wide receiver.  If you haven’t watched Wanzek play lately take some time to do it.  His speed has increased each and every year, his route running is precise and developed, and his hands are second to none.  The 6’4″ junior from Jamestown, ND is turning into the one of the bigger recruiting steals in recent memory.  Wanzek had 10 catches for 111 yards and 1 TD vs. Weber.  On the season Wanzek has 41 catches for 579 yards and 5 TD’s.  Remember, this is in a ball control, run-first offense that will sometimes go darn near a full quarter without throwing the ball.  Can you imagine Wanzek in a pass-happy offense?


We were critical of UND’s play defensively during the game but should have clarified it a bit.  After some reflection it certainly wasn’t a lack of effort by the Hawks on Saturday-they just didn’t play as well as they have been lately.  The effort was there but the ability to get the big stop or make the big play didn’t transpire as it had in past weeks.  Some of that had to do with the Wildcats executing at a high-level, as well.

It was obvious that Weber came into the game wanting to get UND running left and right, getting their eyes off the backfield, and then try and mix in some inside zone run plays with RB Josh Davis.  That plan worked fairly effectively throughout the game.  Davis ended the game with 107 yards and 1 TD.

UND wasn’t able to muster much pressure on QB Jake Constantine at all.  They registered zero sacks and only hurried Constantine a few times.  That time allowed him to find his receivers to the tune of 341 yards on 27-41 passing and 3 TD’s.

Possession Time was 36-24 for Weber State.  Not used to seeing it flipped on UND like that.

Need more out of the UND safeties.  Kind of quiet back there lately after a torrid start by Jordan Canady, in particular.  Safety play is a key to UND’s success, each and every year.

To sum it up:  it was probably the worst defensive performance overall of the year for the Hawks.  It happens but they need to bounce back now and get their swagger back to make a playoff run.

The Hawks offensive line played well in pass protection, once again.  Nate Ketteringham (16-29, 216 yds, 2 TD) had all the time he needed through the first three quarters and was only sacked once on the day.  That is only 8 sacks in 8 games for the opposing defense.

UND was short-handed at the skill positions with John Santiago, Izzy Adeoti, and Travis Toivonen out.  Those are arguably the two fastest guys on the team and their second leading receiver.  They would have helped immensely vs. that stout defense.

We knew the offense was not going to rush for 300 yards in this one as Weber State is pretty tough up front.  But to only get 105 yards is a bit concerning.  Being behind played into that a bit but they still only had 43 yards rushing at halftime.  The holes were opening in the third quarter but the big run never materialized as Weber limited them with solid tackling.  Longest run of the day was by Brady Oliveira for 17 yards.


We’re on to Idaho.  The Vandals lost 38-14 last week to Eastern Washington and sit at 3-5 on the year, effectively out of playoff consideration and playing for pride in their first season back at the FCS level.  However, they have some playmakers on offense that will give UND some trouble if allowed to grow.  We equate them to Sacramento State in that if you let them hang around they will gain confidence.  If you bury them they will implode.

Photo Courtesy of Eric Burton.