Are you not entertained, Hawks fans? UND put their fans through a rollercoaster of emotions on Saturday, but thankfully, everyone left on a high as UND downed the Panthers of Northern Iowa 29-27.
UND ran it’s home-opener win streak to 36 in the process, by far the longest streak in FCS. The win upped UND’s record to 1-1 on the season.
The Hawks now set their sights on the land of the sun as they take on the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks this Saturday down in gorgeous Flagstaff, AZ.
The Good
QB Tommy Schuster was a man out there on Saturday. He took over the game and willed UND to a victory.
Schuster finished the game with an impressive stat line: 21-24 for 297 yards and 2 TD’s vs 1 INT. He was dialed in all game. His feet were active and vision on the run was very good, as well. The OL played alright again but Schuster was able to evade the rush and keep plays alive countless times. UND only allowed one sack.
UNI has big, physical defensive lineman. The problem is they rarely bring pressure and prefer to let those big boys eat – but – they aren’t very nimble so QB’s like Schuster can sidestep them with relative ease and keep plays alive.
Tommy ran the ball seven times in the game and it was very much welcomed by the UND fans. Him taking off and running for a first down or positive yards is demoralizing for a defense.
Total Yards – UNI 449 UND 438.
UND dominated the possession time again 38 to 22.
The most impressive drive of the game was the final one for UND: they got the ball back with 6:51 secs left. UNI had just hit a one-play 75 yard TD to come within 29-27. UND needed to try and run out at much time as possible to limit UNI’s chances. Instead, they ran out the entire thing with multiple first down conversions. Truly impressive way to close out a tight game.
The UND wide receiver corps played very well as a unit. They aren’t the fastest or the biggest or look the best but they sure do get open. I would argue they are as good as any group at scramble routes – not to mention their stellar perimeter blocking on bubble screens and run plays.
Bo Belquist had another solid game catching 5 balls for 85 yards and 1 TD (39 yards). Belquist is their #1 receiver, undoubtedly.
True freshman Caden Dennis caught his first career pass, a nice 30 yard reception where he broke open after Schuster was flushed out of the pocket.
Another guy who is a very good receiver is RB Isaiah Smith. He caught five passes for 65 yards. He struggled on the ground in this one but did his part to help the team win by getting active in the passing game. Team effort.
RB Tyler Hoosman was running like a man that had something to prove to his former team. Hoosman ended the game with 101 yards and 1 TD and took over the workhorse role in this one. He has been a very nice addition for the Hawks.
TE Adam Zavalney was once again the go-to-guy when a big play is needed. He caught the first touchdown of the game and the last pass of the game, a reception that sealed it for the Hawks.
Wyatt Pedigo added another interception this week. This kid is a play-maker and someone the coaching staff pointed to during spring ball as a potential star on the defensive side of the ball. It was a big interception being it was the fourth quarter and a two point game.
The defensive front for UND played well overall I felt. They were active early but did struggle to get a consistent rush in second half as UNI adjusted their blocking. The Panthers only ran for 115 yards total and 47 of those were on one run by Dom Williams (who is electric btw).
The Hawks notched two sacks in the game – both by OLB Josh Navratil, who also added two TFL’s. Solid game for the young man from Pine Island, MN.
C.J. Siegel hasn’t been tested much on defense but he electrified the Alerus Center crowd with his game-opening kickoff return for 58 yards that setup UND’s first touchdown.
The Bad
Defensively, the Hawks couldn’t seem to get in a rhythm as a unit. Let’s give credit to UNI as their offensive staff did a nice job keeping UND off balance and hitting them with some wrinkles that led to fit issues up front. Typically UND will settle in defensively once they get a feel for the opposing offense but it never felt like that was achieved on Saturday.
The Hawks secondary did not play a good game, IMO. Too many breakdowns and just flat out getting beat. UNI has talented players, no doubt, but some of the plays looked like a jailbreak out there with guys running free all over the place. I saw a few times where the safeties were yelling at each other about where to be as the ball was being snapped, meaning something was off.
I am going to stop talking about it soon but UND needs to figure out what to do at right corner. Teams are literally attacking that side all game and short of having a safety over the top the entire time, which is impossible in UND’s 3-4 scheme, I don’t know what they can do other than wait for maturity. Run plays are leaking out to that side and not being leveraged or tackled. All four long runs this season have went to UND’s right side and not tackled.
Errant snaps were an issue in this game. Freshman center Danny Carroll is still adjusting to his new role so I completely understand it will happen. The first high snap killed the second drive of the game that saw UND poised to take a 10 or 14 point lead. Things will be fine but it was an issue that had to be acknowledged.
The Hawks head back on the road next week for a pivotal non-conference tilt vs NAU. Heading into the MVFC schedule with a 2-1 record would be huge for their confidence and playoff hopes. A loss would sting quite a bit.
NAU is 1-1 on the season having just beat Sam Houston State on the road 10-3. Playing at 7,000 feet is tricky for some teams.
Cover photo courtesy of Russell Hons and UND Athletics