9216 so better than last week.

I'm going for the Redbirds but Montana State is my winner pick and has been from the beginning.

Band has been pretty lousy since the rebrand. I was there last week and thought they were poor musically. I mentioned to the couple behind me that we were better in the old days and the wife completely agreed. Do they even cheer or are they preoccupied by other stuff?

Have to respect some pay back. They did not forget

They were formidable and the better team. I'll root for them to go all the way; the story would be amazing

At a certain point the injuries just catch up to you. Tally on the unforced errors and it’s hard to consistently beat good teams like is needed in the playoffs.

A hip flexor really got us.

hamstring, impossible to play through and he tried his best

Having a Connors bro to really hit the big backs would’ve done wonders

I haven’t been in person in a long time but the band cheers had started to disappear several years before the rebrand. I believe there was a staff director who didn’t like them a string of student directors who didn’t really understand the game.

I’m not sure they are definitively the better team. They were better today for sure but I think we were fairly even. Defense just wasn’t good enough and the offense had costly turnovers at bad times. Last year we were better. We were better than Rhode Island too. But I think these two teams were fairly even.

But that was a missed opportunity today to host a semifinal. And man it hurts. I get that going into the playoffs, every one of us would have been content with a QF loss knowing it likely would have come at the hands of NDSt. But the bracket really opened up with Tarleton losing too.

I believe there was an apparently malcontent band leader who moved on to DHS and helped bring the band down.

+1

How bad was the team - flu bug?

Surprised CP took a shove at an opponent late in the game.

We were watching Caden walking the side lines in the third quarter, head down. He looked defeated at that point. Pysk’s absence was apparent. The chatter in the stands was that the flu bug hit the team hard this week. I have no idea how accurate that is. Overall good season for the Ags.
We had several folks in our section planning to make the trip to Nashville. Maybe next year- it would have been fun.

pretty bad from what I’m told, several key guys struggling through it

the first guy moved to Davis HS, the next one to Oregon State. Both were problems. The next one was good, but he took the fall for what the OSU guy left. Don’t know the current director, but he’s been there 5 years and I have my thoughts as to the lack of growth and improvement.

yeah. I saw that too. I was in section 123 and he was sitting alone on the bench for a while. Hopefully he perks up and stays with hopes of being even better next year!

We were in section 123 as well. Pinnick was sitting alone. But when he got up, Plough was talking to him. Coach Plough is a great mentor. Just watched Plough’s emotional presser on KCRA. He loves this team. I hope Pinnick sees this and comes back for another season.
The Redbirds were the better team today. Illinois State knew the goal line play where Pinnick threw the interception. It was similar to last weekends Aggies touchdown against Rhode Island. Great season Aggies!

This press conference tells you everything you need to know about how special this football program is and how lucky we are to have Tim Plough as or head coach. I'm so very proud of this team.

Cute tshirts.

Me too.

He’s a special person. The type that you’d be proud to have a child or grandkid play for.

Incredible hurdle by Zack Jones:

Serious hops! Both number 3s had a great game today. It's funny when Jones and Richardson get confused for each other by the announcer at the stadium you can always see one of them reacting in a funny way to it.

Dangit. Tough game to watch. Defense gave up some bombs but there were also a bunch of missed opportunities in the redzone. Could've traded more scores. Special teams needs so much work and got exposed. That said, Illinois State is def better than the one the Aggies played last year. They beat NDSU!

Still a great year for the Ags. The competition only gets tougher the higher you go and the longer you stay in it. And I'm happy they got this far while still not putting together what coach would call "perfect game."

It was hella cold. My friends and I brought our kids. I wore my 9-month old in a carrier. It was a funny sight trying to use the bathroom with a baby on your chest and a beer in one hand.

I'll be back and will be happy to support the team next year.

hopefully you didn’t use the bathroom behind 123 - no lights! Urinal use by ear!!

I was thinking on the drive home that I don’t recall us ever substituting defensive groups during the game. Same approach whether it was 1st and 10, 3rd and 1 or 3rd and 15 - Coombs had I choice except keep the remaining healthy guys out there and play a pretty vanilla scheme. Losing Pysk, along with Sam’s limitations, was too much. That being said, take away that damned kickoff and convert in the red zone, and that puts a bit more pressure on QB.

Great season. Great group of players and coaches.

My profile pic is from the 2010 game at Cal. I've been bringing my son to games for over 15 years. Last night he got to reconnect with Gunrock. So many good memories! Enjoy the journey as a dad!

Great year, great effort in what could have been a rebuilding year after losing LL and MH. Injuries too much, too deep on defense. What can be done to limit those, less contact drills, more rest?

The Redbirds RB and WR were tough, and they had a senior QB who would make you pay.