Wildcat fans, don't get down on your team. You got the W and that's all that matters in the end. I know a lot of our fans are second guessing our coach for
going for the 2 pt conversion, but like they say....go for the tie at home, and the W on the road. The way our special teams was playing, I didn't want to risk another
return for a TD. Furthermore, Laurent Robinson rolled his ankle because he got moved to special teams after the fumble that was returned for a TD.
We were risking our best players by putting our starting HB and WR on kickoff duties to keep another miscue from happening, and what happens? L-Rob gets injured, misses most of the last 4 or 5 minutes of the game, and when he did return really couldn't put any weight on his ankle.
As for our running back, Pierre Rembert is a transfer from the University of Michigan. I don't think we've had a HB that hasn't transferred in the last few seasons:
Brian Thompson (Iowa State), Quincy Washington (Illinois), Sha'Ron Edwards (UConn). The last guy we started at HB that wasn't a transfer was a guy named Willie Watts (who just happened to be related to Edgerrin James).
Our O-Line averaged height/weight was 6'3", 310 lbs and includes several transfers from Indiana, Univ. of Miami (FL), and Illinois. Our defense was anchored by Cameron Siskowic (Washington State transfer), and countless other kids we recruited from Florida, Texas, and California. Illinois State also produced Brent Hawkins (5th round pick - Jacksonville) who was MVP of the Hula Bowl and Boomer Grigsby (KC Chiefs) in the past two years. Hawkins transfered from Purdue and amassed 17.5 sacks last season while finishing 2nd in the Buck Buchanon award (given to best I-AA defensive player). Grigsby finished 3rd, 2nd, and 3rd in the Buchanon race for 3 consecutive years. Siskowic is a favorite to win the award this year in our conference. Also, our defensive coordinator (John Teerlink) who's father is a defensive consultant for the Indianapolis Colts. His expertise has really helped solidify our defense in past years.
In many ways, we are not the typical D-1AA team with all the transfers, but unfortunately our coaching staff has a way of coaching down to the competition. Might not mean as much to many of you, and sorry for the ramble. But don't think that our talent is or should be indicative of the talent level of Montana State or other D-1AA programs. We don't recruit 1-AA talent, we recruit players who want to win and get to the next level. Sometimes it includes a few guys at the I-A level who want to play immediately. FWIW......Rhett Bomar (Oklahoma) visited our school the week prior to the game, and because our coach told him he'd have to EARN the starting job, he eventually landed at SHSU.