2016 Reflections

[Yotes]

Now that the season is over I am ready to reflect on the season. USD finished 4-7, 3-5 in the MVFC against our toughest schedule yet with the following results:

New Mexico: L 48-21 (currently 7-4, 5-2 in the MWC)
*Weber State: W 52-49 2OT (finished 7-4, 6-2 in the Big Sky)
*#7 North Dakota: L 47-44 2OT (finished 9-2, 8-0 in the Big Sky)
*Youngstown State: L 30-20 (finished 8-3, 6-2 in the MVFC)
Northern Iowa: W 28-25 (finished 5-6, 4-4 in the MVFC)
Indiana State: W 33-30 2OT (finished 4-7, 2-6 in the MVFC)
*Illinois State: W 27-24 (finished 6-5, 4-4 in the MVFC)
Western Illinois: L 35-34 (finished 6-5, 3-5 in the MVFC)
Southern Illinois: L 35-28 (finished 4-7, 2-6 in the MVFC)
*#8 South Dakota State: L 28-21 (finished 8-3, 7-1 in the MVFC)
*#1 North Dakota State: L 28-21 (finished 10-1, 7-1 in the MVFC)

* denotes a playoff team, seeds following if earned.

Heading into the season I believed that we could improve this season with the understanding that it may not show in our record. I fully believe that to the case here. We had to play a more difficult schedule than last year (swapping out non-scholarship Drake for #7 UND) and finished the season with exactly one FCS loss by more than a possession, that one loss being by 10 points to a playoff team. Compare that to last year when we had losses of 28, 19, 13, 7, and 46 against these same teams. That is a very big improvement for Bob Nielson in his first year.

The only ostensibly bad loss that we suffered was Southern Illinois. It is a tough conference though and we are not the only ones that were given trouble by SIU. We just did not come to play that day. Every other game the team did put out a respectable effort and that is a big step forward for this team considering where we have been. With the likely added depth we have next year and easier non-conference (swap UNM for a bad Bowling Green team, Weber State for Drake, get UND at home) we may be poised to make the next step forward and find ourselves finally in that bracket come Selection Sunday.

The future is bright!

[Cousin Eddie]

[Yotes]

No one likes moral victories, but we managed to navigate that gauntlet avoiding embarrassment.

[easmus]

I thought the guys had a good season, and as others have stated better than their record. With no Drake or Mizz state from last season, to me it is obvious the 4-7 this year is better than the 5-6 last hear. Just look how they laid an egg last year after the state game. No such letdown this year.

I will be very interested to see what players may choose to transfer. Will a guy like Woodward look to leave so he can play QB? Streveler is #1, Simmons 2. Tsaglias had his name on jersey, so II assume he was #4. Will a guy like Brevin Kaiser stay with team when there could be 3 guys ahead of him and another QB recruit coming in? Lose any in-state freshmen to D2 schools in state?

[coyote70]

Looking back at the beginning of the season I remember looking at our roster and wondered about two things. One was that our defensive line looked to be pretty thin. Two was that we had some untested receivers. I figured we might be okay running the ball but might have some trouble scoring in the air. I think the opposite came true.

Unfortunately, the D-line and running game were probably our biggest deficiencies. In my opinion, both contributed to our lack of being able to hold onto or expand our leads in the 4th quarter.

That stated, I'm confident the coaching staff will attempt to rectify these weaknesses and address other areas as needed. Since the incoming freshmen class, no matter how outstanding they are, will probably take a few years to have much impact on line play, I hope a couple of transfers will add to our depth if nothing else.

At our level (FCS) individual player development has a lot to do with ultimate team success. Did anyone notice a particular player that progressed significantly during the season? I only saw one game this year (live in the Black Hills) so I can't comment.

Regardless, I think we're moving forward and if (big if) our defense and running game improve we can go at least 6-5 next year. Maybe even better.

One more comment: I did look at some other team's fan boards this year and read a lot of posts from people whining about injuries to players. There was virtually none of that here although I think we had more than our share. Classy board !

Looking forward to seeing the football team again next year, hopefully more than once!

[Cousin Eddie]

I have no doubt we will take a step forward next year, so long as there are no significant defections. This is the entire senior class (please do not misconstrue anything I am about to say as a knock on these guys):

2 Ryan Saeger QB Sr. 6-4 220 Hartland, Wis. Arrowhead HS
8 Tyson Graham DB Sr. 6-2 210 Pompano Beach, Fla. Highlands Christian Academy
10 Will Armstead WR Sr. 5-9 185 Broken Arrow, Okla. Broken Arrow HS
15 Devon O'Farrell LB Sr. 5-11 235 Sioux Falls, S.D. Washington HS
16 Miles Bergner K/P Sr. 6-0 225 Longmont, Colo. Longmont HS
21 Trevor Bouma RB Sr. 5-11 220 LeMars, Iowa Gehlen Catholic HS
24 Jacob Warner DB Sr. 6-0 205 Lawton, Okla. McArther HS Central Oklahoma
28 John Wessel LB Sr. 6-2 230 Sioux Falls, S.D. Roosevelt HS
32 Jet Moreland LB Sr. 6-3 215 Wichita, Kan. Wichita Heights HS
41 Drew Potter TE Sr. 6-3 245 Basehor, Kan. Basehor-Linwood HS
45 Colin Mertlik DL Sr. 6-2 245 Blair, Neb. Blair HS
55 Sean Bredl DL Sr. 6-4 275 Cedar Rapids, Iowa Washington HS
62 Nile Banks OL Sr. 6-5 280 Iowa City, Iowa City HS
68 Mike Meinert OL Sr. 6-3 290 St. Joseph, Mo. Central HS
90 Jon Maag DL Sr. 6-4 275 Scottsbluff, Neb. Scottsbluff HS

Of these guys, I see many important players that contributed a lot of minutes, however, the only ones where I am concerned about being able to fill their shoes and/or improve the position over all are the following:

P/K, DL, and OL.

Bergner is a BIG loss. Regardless of some missed kicks this year (all long high pressure kicks), where we may really miss him is in the punting game.

Mertlik, Maag and Bredl are losses more in the sense of depth than any one of them being major standouts. In other words, they played a ton of minutes, made big plays but I HOPE we will find some guys to fill the gap. I feel better about replacing Mertlik than I do Maag and Bredl. I think we have some guys in their RS year that are ready to step up at DE. Its the lack of size at DT that has me worried.

Banks was a key contributor on the OL and that is always a concern to replace. Meinert was the first backup on the OL. Hopefully some young guys are ready to step in.

I hope it doesn't sound like I am knocking any of the DB or LB departures, but I just feel better about the guys stepping in. Several guys got PT in those positions this year. In addition, I think there are some guys that will rise up from their RS years to contribute (Jake Matthew as an example).

Even though the defense is where I am the most concerned about getting some "dudes," I take solace in the fact that our coaches at each of S, LB and DL are the co-coordinators and the Asst. HC.

This staff is the real deal. We are in good hands.

[Yote 53]

Looking to the future, I see 6-5 to 7-4 and knocking on the playoff door next year. Give the new recruits some time to mature and find their fit into the program and I can see the Yotes contending for the conference by possibly Year 3 and definitely Year 4. Teams who contend for MVFC conference titles are contenders for National Championships, that's the level it takes to contend in this conference.

While going into the off-season on a losing streak sucks, the performance from this team this season, even in losing efforts, was much, much better.

[Cousin Eddie]

Nov 20, 2016 22:54:50 GMT -6 coyote70 said:

Looking back at the beginning of the season I remember looking at our roster and wondered about two things. One was that our defensive line looked to be pretty thin. Two was that we had some untested receivers. I figured we might be okay running the ball but might have some trouble scoring in the air. I think the opposite came true.

Unfortunately, the D-line and running game were probably our biggest deficiencies. In my opinion, both contributed to our lack of being able to hold onto or expand our leads in the 4th quarter.

That stated, I'm confident the coaching staff will attempt to rectify these weaknesses and address other areas as needed. Since the incoming freshmen class, no matter how outstanding they are, will probably take a few years to have much impact on line play, I hope a couple of transfers will add to our depth if nothing else.

At our level (FCS) individual player development has a lot to do with ultimate team success. Did anyone notice a particular player that progressed significantly during the season? I only saw one game this year (live in the Black Hills) so I can't comment.

Regardless, I think we're moving forward and if (big if) our defense and running game improve we can go at least 6-5 next year. Maybe even better.

One more comment: I did look at some other team's fan boards this year and read a lot of posts from people whining about injuries to players. There was virtually none of that here although I think we had more than our share. Classy board !

Looking forward to seeing the football team again next year, hopefully more than once!

Guys I thought made significant progress this year:

QB: Streveler (and I would include Simmons in there as well)
RB: Frederick (took a while, but really saw some flashes near the end)
WR: Across the board. We have a TON of weapons here
DE: Kline will be a force. Greenfield is making strides.
CB: Rambo and Judge are only scratching the surface. Harris has the other side covered.
S/LB: The Grey Bros. are just getting started. The same with Coker and Colpitts.

Just looking at our roster, there are so many sophomores, RS-freshman and true freshman, if the promising ones all stay around, we are bound to improve. Depth will certainly be an improvement.

I wanted to provide a list of names that I look forward to seeing in the spring, but the number of guys is so long, it isn't worth the effort.

[sdyotefan]

Congrats to Miles on his 9th career player of the week honor for the Missouri Valley!! Fourth leading punt average in all NCAA divisions (over 660 punters)!! Will compete in the Colligate Bowl on 1/21.
Hopefully we'll be watching Miles on Sundays next fall!!

[usdtator]

Nov 21, 2016 10:52:33 GMT -6 Cousin Eddie said:

I have no doubt we will take a step forward next year, so long as there are no significant defections. This is the entire senior class (please do not misconstrue anything I am about to say as a knock on these guys):

2 Ryan Saeger QB Sr. 6-4 220 Hartland, Wis. Arrowhead HS
8 Tyson Graham DB Sr. 6-2 210 Pompano Beach, Fla. Highlands Christian Academy
10 Will Armstead WR Sr. 5-9 185 Broken Arrow, Okla. Broken Arrow HS
15 Devon O'Farrell LB Sr. 5-11 235 Sioux Falls, S.D. Washington HS
16 Miles Bergner K/P Sr. 6-0 225 Longmont, Colo. Longmont HS
21 Trevor Bouma RB Sr. 5-11 220 LeMars, Iowa Gehlen Catholic HS
24 Jacob Warner DB Sr. 6-0 205 Lawton, Okla. McArther HS Central Oklahoma
28 John Wessel LB Sr. 6-2 230 Sioux Falls, S.D. Roosevelt HS
32 Jet Moreland LB Sr. 6-3 215 Wichita, Kan. Wichita Heights HS
41 Drew Potter TE Sr. 6-3 245 Basehor, Kan. Basehor-Linwood HS
45 Colin Mertlik DL Sr. 6-2 245 Blair, Neb. Blair HS
55 Sean Bredl DL Sr. 6-4 275 Cedar Rapids, Iowa Washington HS
62 Nile Banks OL Sr. 6-5 280 Iowa City, Iowa City HS
68 Mike Meinert OL Sr. 6-3 290 St. Joseph, Mo. Central HS
90 Jon Maag DL Sr. 6-4 275 Scottsbluff, Neb. Scottsbluff HS

Of these guys, I see many important players that contributed a lot of minutes, however, the only ones where I am concerned about being able to fill their shoes and/or improve the position over all are the following:

P/K, DL, and OL.

Bergner is a BIG loss. Regardless of some missed kicks this year (all long high pressure kicks), where we may really miss him is in the punting game.

Mertlik, Maag and Bredl are losses more in the sense of depth than any one of them being major standouts. In other words, they played a ton of minutes, made big plays but I HOPE we will find some guys to fill the gap. I feel better about replacing Mertlik than I do Maag and Bredl. I think we have some guys in their RS year that are ready to step up at DE. Its the lack of size at DT that has me worried.

Banks was a key contributor on the OL and that is always a concern to replace. Meinert was the first backup on the OL. Hopefully some young guys are ready to step in.

I hope it doesn't sound like I am knocking any of the DB or LB departures, but I just feel better about the guys stepping in. Several guys got PT in those positions this year. In addition, I think there are some guys that will rise up from their RS years to contribute (Jake Matthew as an example).

Even though the defense is where I am the most concerned about getting some "dudes," I take solace in the fact that our coaches at each of S, LB and DL are the co-coordinators and the Asst. HC.

This staff is the real deal. We are in good hands.

Jake Matthew is the stud LB that we stole from school up North... correct? 

[yotes88]

Team was fun to watch for the most part, coaches have done a great job getting kids to play closer to their potential. Coyote Football is in a better position than it has been for quite some time. Watching the game from my seat Saturday I noticed I had many NDSU fans scattered around me. The coaches have started turning things around when are the fans gonna turn things around? Great to see the '85 and '86 teams out on the field a few weeks ago, how many of them make it back to games? Coach Nielson and his staff have stepped up, the administration has stepped up, students as well as fans, its our turn! We can make change too, and we have to!

[yodayote]

John Wessel will most likely be back under a medical redshirt.

[easmus]

I believe it would be a 5th year as he played as a true freshman. He wasn't involved in senior day which seems pretty telling.

[canislatrans]

Thanks Cuz for the review, it's spot on!

One guy I thought showed real improvement was Shamar Jackson. Did he get injured? or did I miss out on news with him?

I agree on the WRs, there's a lot of talent there. Which leads me to the True Freshmen that were thrown into duty this year, that's a tough call, but I thought all of them showed that they can PLAY. (Kline, Baker, Ducker, Allen, Judge)

The staff has shown that they are the real deal. Even though the defense had their struggles, they showed a lot of heart, and I think, improvement, especially in "flying to the ball" as a team and creating turnovers.

I'm excited about the future of this program!

[yotefbfan]

Wanted to chime in on this thread. I saw most of the SIU game on ESPN3, very little of the SDSU game thanks to ESPN3, and saw the NDSU game live. All tough losses but each had some glimpses of our future along with our glaring areas for improvement.

Here is my grade on the season and outlook going into next year. First my prediction of a 6-4 season may have been a little rosey, but a few bounces our direction and we could have been there. I would grade the season as a solid C, not great, but lots to work with to get better.

Going forward you need to look no further to the current commits to see where this staff wants to make changes, 10 of the 19 are either O-line or D-line. On offence, we return most of the team, but I can see some good competition for the o-line spots. I don't think anyone of those boys should consider their spot secure. While our pass blocking was good our run blocking was less than good. With all of the receivers coming back, this is the strength of the offence. At QB Streveler is a big positive and the competition between Simmons, Tsagalis and Parks for 2,3, & 4 should be fun to sort out. My two biggest concerns going into next year are RB and TE. Although Fredrick improved throughout the year he does not strike fear in anyone as an offensive threat. He is a nice change of pace back but we need a true #1. Between the 5 true freshman this year and our one recruit for next year, I hope we can find a better option. If not hopefully there is another recruit or transfer the coaching staff is targeting. At TE, I would like to see someone who could be an offensive threat and not just a 6th lineman. We lose Potter who was nothing more than adequate and still have Ramsey but we need to find someone else either in our system or as a recruit. True freshman Herrmann looks to have good size and the recruits Kneifl and Jensen look good? Don't be surprised to see an influx of youth on the offence next year especially at O-line, RB, & TE.

Defensively, Every job should be up for grabs! Like Coach Neilson said we have to get stronger! The D-line is wide open, with the graduation of a few seniors I expect to see same major changes here. I would not be surprised to see Kam Cline moved to the interior. A lot of schools like to see DE recruits with the body to add size move to the interior to improve the overall athleticism of the D-Line. I think we will see some of this year's freshman class make in impact here along with a possible 2017 recruit? At LB, the coaches showed their cards by moving DBs to LBs to get more athletic, but their lack of size definitely hurt. It is nice that Wessel will be back and that we have a core of returning LBs, (Gray, Coker, & Litrenta) but I would expect to see a push from a few freshman (Matthew, Klett, Aune, & Thiele) as they have been getting stronger and were a part of the recruiting last year to upgrade the LB position. In the defensive backfield, I like the changes that were made this year at the corner positions. We have good depth here and this should be the strength of the D for next year. At Safety we have Andrew Gray returning and not much else. We will need a freshman (Reed or Powell) or another DB to step up and help here.

Like any year, the work to make next year better started at the end of the last game. I am sure there is lots of work to be done in the weightroom and film room prior to spring practices. Before that, this coaching staff, who have already done a tremendous job of recruiting, needs to finish finding the pieces for the 2017 class. As we improve, hopefully being redshirted as a freshman is the standard as this gives these players time to develop and get ready for the rigor of college football in the MVFC compared to their respective high school conferences. Looking forward to the next few years! Hopefully there are still a few more good recruits to find under our Christmas trees!

GO YOTES!