OVERWHELMED AT SLO.... (updated 10-9-2005) The Measuring Stick    Outgunned in every sense of the word Saturday evening, the Bison can say they faced a team that is a legitimate contender for the IAA national crown. Cal Poly destroyed Montana State, blew away NDSU and will face what is probably their only remaining hurdle, Montana, for the title of "Big Dog of the West" in just two weeks. If Cal Poly is used as a measuring stick for IAA excellence, the Bison came up short in several areas. For the first time this season, Bobby Babich and Scott Walters were overmatched, the Bison defensive line was defeated and the offensive line looked like boys facing men. Not only were NDSU's personnel overmatched it appeared the coaching staff was very much outcoached.    At the wideouts, Cal Poly has at least one legitimate NFL prospect and their speed and size just blew away the Bison corners. They made several plays where they just flat outran the defender. The first of these occurred early in the second quarter when Tredale Tolliver blew by his defender for a 63 yard TD strike from QB Anthony Garnett. The Bison corners were just overmatched.    The defensive line seemed baffled part of the time by the flip flopping offensive line tactics and the occasional plays that featured an unbalanced line. The Cal Poly concept of having a "quick side" and a "strong side" to their offensive line and having them swap sides depending on the play was very effective. It helped running back James Noble average 8 yards per carry enroute to a 160 yard day.    And then there was the Mustang defensive line. Actually you could throw in their linebackers too. They had Steve Walker running and uncomfortable almost all the time when he attempted to throw. They also held the Great West's leading rusher Kyle Steffes under 100 yards and about a 4 yard per carry average. They were very clearly defeating Pat Perles' offensive line causing the comment from yours truly that they looked like boys among men.    So where do the Bison go from here? First of all, the Bison are a very young IAA program and the expectation that they were as good already as anyone in the country was a little unrealistic. Recruiting is going to have to solve some of the problems and coaching others. I do know the Bison have come a long way already but there still are hurdles to be crossed for them to be a national contender. Players of the Game    In a game like this it was very hard to pick players of the game, so for this game we are going to forego any selections... Holiday Vibes - Even Bison placekicker Cory Vartanian had a miserable day having a field goal attempt blocked and missing his only PAT attempt. - Even though he had a mediocre day, Kyle Steffes moved into 10th place on the alltime rushing list. - Cal Poly drew less than 7000 fans for the game. Go Bison!! Bob H.