(09-23-2018 12:37 PM)Purple Wrote: [quote='Dukester' pid='15525469' dateline='1537718009']
Say what you want about the CAA being the best conference in the FCS. It's not. #2-#4 in the Missouri Valley is much superior to the CAA's 2-4.
The only upper tier in the CAA is JMU.
ND State will play 3 solid challenging MVC games during the season. Again JMU won't play anyone within a couple TDs of us. Now that does not mean we can't lose again (couch ODU cough), but the competition simply is not great.
Last year in the playoffs, we had some major challenges, and in the NC game we made errors we don't normally make. I think it's due to not playing a competitive game for over 2 months.
It used to be if you come out of the CAA and make the playoffs you had a shot to win the NC do to the quality of the CAA. There is nobody the last three years from the CAA that had a shot of a NC other than JMU.
I really wish a top 5 team would evolve from the CAA - but the last three years there just has not been another quality team.
It's hard to win all your regular season games by 2-10 touchdowns and then all the sudden have to play competitive games.
I made the same point on the Bison board last year, I think in October, that we seemed to be "complacent," on autopilot, with no serious challenger, and I was afraid that when we were challenged, we would freak out and make big mistakes.
We didn't freak out and we didn't make big mistakes. Down in the fourth quarter for the first time all season, we calmly came from behind to beat Weber in the quarterfinals.
Like last year, I am convinced that only JMU can beat JMU this year, God forbid, or as you would say (couch dropped passes cough).
We were better than the Bison last year and we are better than the Bison this year.
After the NC last season, the comment was made on the Bison board that the better team lost but the better program won. Not so sure about the second part of that statement, but the first part was spot on.
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Your words, "not so sure about the second part of that statement," what would completely convince you one way or the other? I realize you are saying you believe we just might have the better program, not disagreeing, but what will completely convince you?
What is better, 3 times to the National Championship game over 14 seasons winning 2, or 6 times to the final game over 7 seasons winning all 6. I'm fairly certain NDSU has played in more playoff games in their short FCS history than we have over roughly 40 years of FCS football. They've hosted more home playoff games than have been played in BFS. NDSU is on a 6 game winning streak over FBS competition and hold a 9-3 overall record.
Our Dukes are certainly making a run at knocking the "Buffalo" off their perch but almost all independent minds not tainted either Purple or Green would consider NDSU to have the better program. Right now it's definitely only a two horse race.