The reason for EWU agreeing to play at USD has been discussed ad nauseum, and is entirely irrelevant to the current discussion. But just as a recap, EWU rotates between 6 and 5 homes games every season. This was a 5 home game season, but instead of the usual DII or extra FBS game, we wanted an FCS opponent, even if that meant having to travel. I would have preferred a home and home deal, but I don't know the intimate details of how it worked out. I seriously doubt it had anything to do with the BSC trying to throw USD a bone in hopes that it'd give them some sort of additional incentive in joining the conference. USD is going to the MVFC; I say congrats to them as it seems like a much better fit for them. UND, on the other hand, obviously understands the benefits of playing in a more historically established conference which will house the majority of their sports. Not a hodge-podge of random schools with no real connections to one another like the Summit. They have obviously also taken note of the the fact that in football Big Sky members have an excellent shot of playing for a National Championship every season. This is obviously something that UND fans should be excited about. Playing in a conference with a higher level of competition will raise the competitive bar for their program.
As to the previous question, the Coyotes of USD seem to have a solid bunch returning. They welcome back 9 of 11 starters on offense, and 10 on defense. This is something that they have to feel good about. Their leading running back rushed for 817 yards last season and their QB had 2,530 all-purpose yards. He seems mobile and could give the Eagles problems if they cannot contain. The Coyotes are 34-5 in the DakotaDome under their current coach, including a 23-game winning streak from Nov. 15, 2003, to Nov. 10, 2007. USD has an overall 124-58 record in there, an impressive stat which should give them confidence going into this one.
EWU should be able to get their yards through the air. Several have noted that they will not be able to run the ball. That remains to be seen, but I think we will have more success in that area against FCS opposition than against our Pac-12 opponent last Saturday where we mostly ran draws to try to keep their defense somewhat honest.
Let's hope for a good, injury-free game.
As a side-note, what sort of playing surface is in the Dakota-dome?