THE BISON WENT DOWN TO GEORGIA....   (10/5/2006) Off My Office Floor.... The Orkin Man... After spending a couple days at the Holiday Inn Express in Nacogdoches, Texas, I got quite a kick out of Jeff Kolpack's Bison Zone blog entry. Even though the only cockroach I saw the whole time was outside the motel (and then later on the under sole of my shoe), seeing a cockroach is a good indication of the cleanliness. Thank God, I made my reservations back in April... My wife would have totally freaked out. The End Of The Road... This week's game give new meaning to the phrase "light at the end of the tunnel." I know exactly what the Bison players and coaching staff are going through. Over the past few weeks, I've been to Memphis, Atlanta, and Fort Worth. When my wife and I arrived back home last Sunday night... I was dog-tired. It was so nice to go to my own fridge and make myself a sandwich; even if it was bologna. There is a lot of pressure for these student athletes to perform... not only on the football field, but in the classroom. From my own experiences, it's so easy to put off class work when you are on the road. And it gets tiring listening to coaches and tutors harp about taking care of your first priority... academics. The majority of the time professors/instructors don't really care if you have a football game down in Georgia on Saturday. Sure they give you a limited number of breaks, but they too emphasize the importance of academics over football. So don't over look another stress on the Bison football players... it's not easy playing football game after football game on the road, but it may be more difficult to get those assignments completed on time. All Bison fans should appreciate the discipline it takes to succeed on the football field and in the classroom... Player Spotlight... I'll never forget the day that OT Adam Tadisch, a 6'6 319-pound senior from Wausaukee, Wisconsin, committed to the Bison program... It was like winning a recruiting lottery. Many recruiting publications and web sites had this young man listed as one of the best high school offensive/defensive lineman coming out of Wisconsin after the 2001 season. Tadisch prepped at Wausaukee High School where he was a three-year starter, a first team all-conference performer as a senior and an honorable mention All-State selection that year... As a matter of fact, he was first team all-conference on both sides of the football, team captain, and the Lineman of the Year in the conference his senior year... Adam also competed in basketball in HS where he was a two-year letterman. Even though it took more time that originally thought for him to win a starting position along the offensive line, Adam has been solid at right tackle for the Bison this season... Too bad one of his best buds, Justin Buckwalter, isn't on the field to celebrate in his success this season... One time... Player vs. player... this is probably the closest the Bison will come to looking at themselves in the mirror this season. Mays vs. Mohring. Walker vs. Clark. Steffes vs. Covington. Etc... The speed of the teams is quite even, while the Bison are more physical than the Eagles. I'm going to write something, but it really seems strange considering the Bison are facing a southern team. I somewhat expect a down and out smashmouth football game this Saturday in Statesboro, Georgia... A type of game the Bison almost never lose. One more time... For the second time this season, I walked out a stadium after a Bison game with an odd feeling in my stomach. As after the Northeastern game, I just wasn't satisfied with how the Bison played versus Stephen F. Austin. Quite frankly, Stephen F. Austin has some nice players both offense and defense, but as a team... the 'Jacks just weren't that good. Ya I know, about all the Ball State hangover and lookin' ahead to Ball State stuff, but the Bison should have won both games by 20+ points. Both the SFA and NU football teams should have been considered 'toast' after the third quarter. I probably don't give enough credit to the opposition team, but I expect a lot from the Bison football team. Probably way too much... One last time... When did punter Mike Dragosavich have the "bionic right leg" installed? I realize the young man has displayed some punting oh's and ah's during his stint as Bison punter, but that 67-yarder down in Nacogdoches has to rank as the best punt I have ever seen live. And I'm a football fanatic... I only wish Mike would have done a little dance for us. The Georgia Southern Offense.... Base Offense: Pro-set/4-wide... The Bison defense will have its work cut out for them this week, as the Eagles enter this week 10th nationally in total offense, averaging 400 yards. The man pulling the strings for this offensive juggernaut is QB Travis Clark, a 6'1 215-pound sophomore from Lincolnton, Georgia. The Southern Mississippi transfer stands third in the Southern Conference and 41st nationally in passing efficiency (128.47). Clark has completed a pass to 11 different Eagles; eight of those 11 are averaging better than 10 yards per catch. On the year, he has completed 51 of 90 attempts for 636 yards and 4 touchdowns. The Eagles feature a dual headed running attack with Chris Covington, a 5'11 190-pound sophomore from Lawrenceville, Georgia, and Lamar Lewis, a 5'9 200-pound junior from Jacksonville, Florida. Covington leads the team with 539 yards rushing on 94 carries and 6 touchdowns, while the Florida State transfer Lewis has rushed 51 times for 355 yards and 2 touchdowns. WR Raja Andrews, a 5'8 185-pound sophomore from Swainsboro, Georgia, leads the team in receiving with 12 catches for 134 yards. So far this season, the Eagle offensive attack has racked up an average of 400 yards of total offense per game, including 241 yards by land and 159 yards through the air... *Note: This is most definitely the best and most diverse offense the Bison defense has faced to date this season. The Bison defense must live in the Eagle backfield... expect Bison defensive coordinator Willie Garza to press the line of scrimmage. I failed to previously mention all-around Georgia Southern athlete, Jayson Foster as an offensive threat. Due to a change in offensive scheme, the GSU star quarterback has been moved to wide receiver this season. Look for the Eagle coaching staff to try to get the ball in his hands as much as possible this weekend. Can anyone say... "wide receiver screen" or "flanker reverse". The Georgia Southern Defense.... Base Defense: 4-3... Just like Stephen F. Austin, the Georgia Southern defense relies on speed. The Eagles are led by Preseason All-America selection John Mohring. The 6'1 225-pound senior linebacker from Naples, Florida, has joined the national rankings this week. Mohring stands fourth in tackles for a loss (2.0 per game) and is tied for 44th averaging nine tackles per game. For the season, he has 27 tackles with 5.5 for loss including a sack. Heading the GSU defensive line is Charrod Taylor, a 6'2 248-pound lineman from Miami, Florida. The senior defensive end has recorded has recorded 15 tackles including 2 for loss. The Eagles defense also features cornerback Brandon Jackson, a 6' 185-pound sophomore from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and bone crunching safety Rico Zackery, a 6'1 204-pound senior from Newnan, Georgia. For the season, Jackson has recorded 10 tackles and hauled in a pair of interceptions, while Zackery has 18 tackles including 2.5 stops and 2 interceptions. For 2006, the Georgia Southern defense has surrendered 330 total yards per game, including a 128.5 rushing yards and 201.5 yards through the air... *Note: As Rich Stevens already mentioned in "Game Day" and after watching a taped Georgia Southern game, the Eagles defense does remind me a lot of past Northwestern State defenses... with one exception, the GSU defense is slightly more physical in their approach. The big fellows on the interior defensive line are tough to move, so expect the Bison to try to pound the ball off-tackle and then use the play-action pass often. QB Steve Walker must be sharp on his short-medium passes to setup the homerun. The Eagle corners are fast/aggressive and are quite susceptible to quarterback fakes on go routes. The GSU safeties tend to concentrate on the run, putting the corners one on one with opposition wide-outs. So I do expect the Bison offense to hit on one or two long balls... History.... Saturday's game will mark the first meeting on the gridiron between Georgia Southern and North Dakota State University and the first of a scheduled home-and-home series. Show Me the Keys.... * The inexperienced Bison offensive line has done a good job this season of establishing themselves early, but this Saturday's contest at Georgia Southern will be their biggest test yet. The Georgia Southern defensive front IS far more athletic than Ball State's a couple of weeks ago. The Bison hogs must keep establishing/maintaining their blocks (w/o holding). Staying low out of the blocks is the key to opening up holes for the 5th leading rusher in Bison history... Kyle Steffes. * I'll keep saying this until I'm blue in the face... "As Bison QB Steve Walker plays, so does the Bison offense." He is THE KEY to starting the engine. Walker didn't exactly light the world on fire last week versus Stephen F. Austin; pretty much average. Having seen the game live, I was pleasantly surpised by the stats Walker threw up on the board... Personally, his stats were better than his performance... * The Bison return game needs to show improvement. A potential return catalyst, RB Symeon Cabell has been lost for the season with a broken collar bone, so John Majeski and Jordan Schultenover must find a way to get the job done. Schultenover did have a nice return this past week, but confidence in the return game appears low for the Bison... * Control... The Bison offense must finish what it starts... A key factor in defeating the Eagles this week is 'time of possession'. If the Bison win the 'time of possession' battle, there is an 80% chance of winning this game. Penalties and mistakes plagued the Bison offense against Stephen F. Austin... need to get over the hangover and kick some behind before heading back home next weekend. * Kicking... Shawn Bibeau and Mike Dragosavich are nice weapons for the Bison. The 67 yard punt by Dragosavich last weekend was incredible... the ball just kept going and going. The Stephen F. Austin fans were thoroughly impressed by the pair of Bison kickers. * Score early! Under head coach Craig Bohl slow starts have plagued the Bison, especially on the road. After three weeks on the road, the Bison will lose this game if they don't establish some confidence and momentum early... * This is a very big season for the Bison coaching staff. Inexperience, plus a tough schedule... More than not leads to disaster. And as the playoff years approach, it's not a good time to apply the brakes on this run-away train. Blue-chip high school recruits only want to know what the Bison have done lately... * One word -- 'Consistency'.... from play to play; from game to game. The maturation of young players such as CB Derrius Colvin, CB Courtney Mitchell, CB Richard Bowman, DT Michael Fairbairn, LB Ramon Humber, OT Sam Laudner and others is so crucial to the success of the Bison program during the 2006 season. And help the Bison continue climbing to the top of the Division I-AA mountain.... * As for the Georgia Southern game specifically... The Bison must fight off those road weary legs. Just got keep remembering that it's just one more game until it's time to come home for a week... * Sacks, interceptions, fumbles... Goal for takeaways this week for the Bison defense? Two... Two turnovers forced by the Bison defense gets the Bison a win... Five sacks means the route factor comes into play. It's time for another Bison defensive touchdown... Jottings.... * The weight in the trenches: Offensive line: NDSU 300, Georgia Southern 285 Defensive line: NDSU 270, Georgia Southern 272 * Injuries this week: WR Shamen Washington - out; DE Nick Compton - out; OG Justin Buckwalter - out; RB Symeon Cabell - out; FB Tyler Jangula - out; C Zach Harrington - questionable... * The Georgia Southern Eagles enter this week 10th nationally in total offense, averaging 400 yards... * The Eagle defense has recorded seven interceptions over the past three games, including three at Western Carolina last week... * Georgia Southern’s running game will face a stiff test from an undefeated Bison team (4-0). North Dakota State, which chalked up a 29-24 win at Ball State two weeks ago, allows just 29 yards per game on the ground, leading all of I-AA. The Bison are 12th in total defense (234.6) and 13th in scoring defense (12.5 ppg)... * WR Travis White broke the NDSU record for career receptions with 135... * Bison DE Brian Dahl averages one sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss per game. Just think, some people said he was too small to be a defensive lineman... * North Dakota State All-American punter Mike Dragosavich has punted 11 times this season for an average of 51.5 yards per kick... He had a season-best punt of 67 yards against Stephen F. Austin... * Audio of Georgia Southern football games is available on the internet free of charge. Click Here to listen... * Bison senior strong safety Craig Dahl is No. 2 in career solo tackles with 114 ..... * North Dakota State football ranks No. 11 in NCAA Division I-AA attendance figures with an average of 15,872 fans after two home games at the Fargodome... Appalachian State heads the list with an average of 24,927 fans per game... * Poll Watch: The Bison are currently ranked #11 by the Sports Network, #11 Football Gazette, #9 Any Given Saturday and #5 in the Bison Insider Top 20. Georgia Southern is currently ranked #21 by the Sports Network, #19 Football Gazette and #24 Any Given Saturday, but not ranked in the Bison Insider Top 20...