Traveling Blues

I have to tell you, for those of you that think traveling is fun....this weekend wasn't. I probably need to do some sort of photo essay so folks can see exactly how ISU football travels, but there is only one 5 o'clock that I recognize, and it isn't the one at 5 am, which I saw Friday and Sunday. Yes, the team had to leave Holt Arena at 5:30 am to get to Salt Lake City to fly to Denver, and we had to leave Greeley at the same ungodly hour to get to Denver on Sunday to get home. That officially sucks, but you know what....you do what you gotta do.

I will say this...the team represents very well. I can't tell you how many compliments I get from random airport people and passengers about how courteous the players are, and how they look (all are in a tie and collared shirt). They might be struggling on the field right now, but they are doing the right things...

Also, basketball starts on Friday night at 7:00 pm at Reed Gym, as the men's team has a pair of open practices (they also have one on Saturday at 1:00 pm). Some folks might want to catch their first glimpse of a team that Street & Smith picked to finish second (that would be a first in my 11 years here....)

Also, undoubtedly, you saw the disciplinary action that coach Z took today with regards to Rashaad Richards and Demetrius Amos. What the fans should get out of that is is doesn't matter if you are a senior, freshman, starter, whatever ... there are certain ways you conduct yourself, and if you don't want to do things the right way, well...you see the answer. I can also use this as a cautionary tale about the Bengal Den Message Board. Someone yesterday mentioned this in their post around 3:30 .... "With the recent dismissal of Demi and Rashaad, this will again put pressure on other players to fill in." Obviously, Demitrius was not dismissed from the team. Just remember that is a fan board, and while many, many, many people post on there as if they truly know everything that is going on, they aren't always quite in the loop.

Onto the links....

HOMECOMING FOOTBALL
Idaho State's release is here, Northern Arizona's is here, and the Big Sky's is here. With the late kickoff, fans have TONS of time to tailgate after the parade, so make sure if you plan on tailgating that you sign up for the Terrific Tailgate IV contest (the form is with the link above).

Tim Flagstad came to the press conference, and covered it in his Monday notebook, and the extra stuff that didn't fit went into the blog. Jayson Bird by the way had his MRI this morning, but the results aren't in yet.

Also, Jon Kasper got stuck in Bozeman (talk about traveling nightmares), so he blogged from the Best Western.

GREEN DAY IS NOT OUR OFFICIAL BAND
The inter-office SID joke was that Green Day was going to be the official house band for ISU, and they could only sing "Wake Me Up When September Ends", as it just wasn't a good month. Soccer and football both went winless in the month (soccer went 0-6-2, football 0-3), and volleyball was just 3-8 in the month. However, things are looking up, at least for the cross country team, as the women snagged themselves a title down in Cedar City.

Remember, volleyball tonight against Utah Valley at 7:00 pm, and football Saturday at 6:35 pm (go hunting and then come to the game) ...

One Zamberlin Nation

To say I enjoyed my time away from the blog is an understatement, but with the hectic travel schedule of the week, plus me getting back from Boise fairly late and then taking care of house issues, well, Wednesday is the first blog entry of the week....sorry about that.

Quick thoughts on last week:

Football: We looked better than 49-7, that's for sure. Also, the new SkySuites at Bronco Stadium were pretty nice, but on par with Oregon State's facility as well. Also, ISU went for it on fourth-down three times and missed all three times, but that was good solid coaching by John Zamberlin...field goals wouldn't win that game...touchdowns were needed. Mark my words, the football gods will smile on the Bengals because of John's decisions in that game. The running game looked great, Russel Hill looked solid, no interceptions for him, which means in his first three games of his career he had eight picks, and in the last nine he has had seven ... hmmmmmmm ... I like that trend.

Defensively, Michael Wright looked like a great late add to the team, and it allows for a host of guys to become the nickelback, which should bode well. Also, what a job by Phillip Arias...first start, 10 tackles. Nice. Also, Jon Vanderwielen had a great game, as did Jarrett Huk. Sadly, Chris Kirkegaard will be out this week it looks like, but he might try to go against North Dakota.

Volleyball: While the ladies went 0-3, I chalk a lot of it to first tourney jitters....ISU was whistled for 16 ball handling errors ... 16?!?!?! ISU opponents got whistled just twice, and those 16 points really hurt as ISU played all three matches pretty close. Also, looking at the stats, only one hitter, Britta Bartschi, was in the negatives in hitting, and that normally doesn't happen for her, so there was a lot to like in that first tournament. Next up, five matches in three days in Wichita.

Soccer: That was a pretty solid road split, getting Air Force on their home field for the first time in our history. Also, freshman Bailey Williams picked up a shutout, and according to Allison Gibson she might have the upper hand on the goalkeeping battle, which will probably keep fluctuating this week as the team heads to the Governor's Cup in Moscow. (NOTE ADDED AT 3:13 pm --- just learned that Michelle Harrison is under the weather, and in fact played all weekend in that condition, so kudos for the efforts she gave as well...she had eight saves in a half of soccer against Colorado College)

Cross Country: The men's team, with seven newcomers, thought they would struggle a bit, and the first race of the season was a tough one, but coach Janssen felt there were some good times posted and some improvements. Things were batter on the women's side, where ISU fifnished second, including taking the top four spots in the race.

Onto the Links!!!!
Our good friend Kevan, who runs One Bronco Nation Under God, has nothing to do this week with BSU having a bye. So, inspired by ISU's gritty performance, he has pledged a week of fervor towards ISU in the quest to defeat Idaho, swapping One Bronco Nation Under God to One Zamberlin Nation Under Frank Mercogliano. Bless his sweet little heart. Seriously, Bronco fans couldn't have been nicer, and it was a fun game.

At Least We Know...
Ever wonder how Jon Kasper picks his Players of the Week? He explains all on the Big Sky's blog.

Planning Ahead
Dan Thompson went to school at Washington State, so he is more than at home in the Palouse. So it makes sense that Dan would be reporting from Moscow all week. Dan checks in with some ISU scheduling notes and some conference links on his blog. (And as for his Utah State thing he talks about....I won't say when, but I will say that it is highly likely we will play the Aggies in Chris Kirkegaard's ISU lifetime).

They Don't Even Have School There...
Still, a nice roundup of the Western Athletic Conference from last weekend.

The Press Box Was Wrong...
So Idaho State tried the Statue of Liberty Play against Boise State...and the fans booed. First of all, they are not the first team to run to play...heck, we did it in the street when I was like 10. It was first run in a college game by Michigan in the 1940s, and it was run in a high school game in California in November of 1916. However, the media and the BSU players said ISU didn't run it as well as they did...but they are wrong. ISU ran it almost exactly as they did. The ball was just inside the eight-yard line, and ended up barely touching the five, so although it was officially a two-yard gain, it really gained three. That's all BSU's gained too. ISU's only miscalculation was running it to the short side. Other than that, it looked pretty similar.

You Gotta Get This
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