September 16, 2025 • 9 mins
UND Head Football Coach Eric Schmidt is looking ahead to this weekend’s home matchup against Valparaiso.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
And welcome you back to HOWK Talk downtown Grand Forks
on this Tuesday night, and thanks for listening on fourteen
forty AM the Fan and also in Fargo Moorhead either
on the mighty seven ninety KFGO or seven forty can
a bell they'll bring it on as well. Or you
can go right to kkxl AM on the iHeartRadio app
(00:22):
and stream us live anywhere in the world. Yeah, that's scary.
You can take us with you so and then of
course if you miss any of our conversations tonight, go
back to hawk Talk tomorrow. Download these conversations. You can
listen wherever you want, whenever you want by just searching
HOWK hawk Talk inside the iHeartRadio app and that will
(00:42):
take you there and you can go back and listen
whenever it's convenient for you. Eric Schmid is our guest
for part two you Indy Football getting ready for Homecoming.
The all time series with VLPO val Praiso is one
and one. I think we played in like nineteen twenty
and then most recently in twenty thirteen. So with big
(01:03):
disparity the third meeting from the second meeting a lot
closer from the first to the second the former Crusaders
now Beacons. You know, we don't know a lot about them.
They're a Pioneer League team. We certainly know Northcote have
got the better of them the last meeting at the
Alert Center in twenty thirteen. But the one thing that
I typically have a tendency to believe about, and you
(01:24):
can correct me if I'm wrong, is they make you
play really hard because they will not give an inch.
They will not relent one bit when they step into
Grand Forks on Saturday. And that's all you can ask for.
And your opponent is to give you a great, honest game,
and you're gonna get that.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Well, I think to the thing with the Pioneer League
teams obviously, just the way it's set up, like these
are huge games, you know what I mean for those guys,
and right, you know, I be able to play, you know,
in the type of environment that they're going to play in.
It is not you know what they see every single week,
you know, at the at the venues that they play in,
so we know that, hey, we're gonna get their best shot.
They do a really good job. I think you know,
(02:03):
they're two running backs are both really good players. One
transferred in from the University of South Dakota, one from
the University of Wyoming, who were very familiar with obviously
with some of our staff members coaching the running backs
there in the past. So you know, those two guys
have been able to really run the football all three games.
They scored you know, whatever, it was thirty on on
Western Illinois last week, so they're very you know, capable
(02:24):
on the offensive side of the ball. Then defensively, you know,
I think that's their whole staff came in from from Marietta,
you know, the head coach from Marietta, Ohio, excuse me,
and had done a great job there. They you know,
basically couldn't get by Mount Union, but we're the next
best team in that league, you know. And he took
them from a family, a team that that hadn't had
a ton of success before he got there and now
(02:45):
has had you know, turned him into a consistent winner.
So I think that's the thing that we know that Hey,
a lot of times, you know, you take a look
at what you're seeing on tape and you're gonna get
something that's even better than that, just because of the
nature of the schedule and what what's gonna happen when
these guys set foot in theil Air Center. It's going
to mean something to them.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Yeah, when you when you deal with a quarterback that
is a good athlete, and uh, you know, as a
defense that wants to be attack driven, what are some
of the challenges that a defensive player. You know, I
always say, like it used to be when we were
talking about the an outside linebacker maybe in the thirty
four defense, when he was coming on a from the outside,
(03:25):
if he got too far past the quarterback, well then
that quarterback would often step up, and now you're in
real trouw everybody's in recovery and the defense and those
athletes at quarterback can really cost some issues, can't they.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Well, I think the worst place to be in football
is behind the qb. You know, tall the rushers at
all the time, like you're committing you know, one of
the worst crimes you can commit when you're when you're
doing that. So we have to do you know, you
have to upfront be able to always say, hey, you're
trying to rush the quarterback. As a company, you don't
want independent contractors. Sometimes when you get a guy who's
you know, so good at times and he wins clean.
(03:58):
It creates even more proper for you because now all
of a sudden it opens up you know, everybody else
is at the line of scrimmage yet, and it opens
up some of those rush lanes, you know, for the
quarterback to be able to scape out of. So I think,
you know, doing that. We did some things the other
night too as well, Like we spied. You know a
few times you saw Paynt Parks, Yeah, a few times
be able as a quarterback was getting out, well he was,
he was in a spy mode off of it to
(04:19):
be able to be able to go run him down.
I thought, you know, for the most part, trying to
think now off the top of my head, But I
don't know if there was one quarterback scrambled, there wasn't
one for a first down or anything like that. There
was a couple maybe four or five yarders, but there
wasn't anything where there was you know a lot of
a lot of open ground for the quarterbacks to be
able to go gain. So I think, you know, just
continue to be able to practice those things, and guys
(04:39):
understanding that, hey, we want to work together and we
want quarterbacks to throw from the bottom of a well.
I don't know if kids know what that means anymore
because you have never been at the bottom of a well.
But when you're trying to, you know, throw a ball
through a small opening, you know there's a lot of
guys around you. That's there's only a few of those
guys that can do those things and be able to
win a football game, and they make a lot of money.
Speaker 1 (04:58):
The help of your football team, uh continues to be
I mean we're in the football season now. It varies
from week to week. Tight end You've had guys that
have been out of the lineup trying to work their
way back. That position has gotten deeper because of the
reps for the guys that kind of came in and
did the job. How were we doing at the health
of the tight end position.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Yeah, I think Coach Hogg's done a great job of
just you know, next guy up and just you know,
continuing to set the standard you know, of play with
whoever's going to be available on Saturdays. I think we're
really close. Aiden. We still needs he's probably a week
away here yet, and I'm really excited for him. He
was you know when I talked about how that that
whole group took a jump from spring ball into the summer,
(05:41):
and then when they got back to fall camp, he
was probably the one who maybe took the biggest jump
offenches body type wise. We figured out a few things,
you know, as far as some some physical health things
that he was having that we were able to do
some tests on and figure out, you know him and
then he started gaining weight after that and and really
looked good. So I'm excited for him, Like he's very
you know, similar as far as skills set to eight
(06:02):
and obviously two years older and more you know, season
and those types of things. And then Hayden State, if
you remember at Kansas State, it was really really really good. Yeah,
you know, I mean catching the ball and getting first downs. Afterwards,
he went this morning and you know, did some decent things.
I think once again, you have to be able to
weigh the risk reward of you know, if you push
(06:24):
him and get him out there and he re injures,
now you know where does that leave you compared to
you know, if you do give him here another week
to be able to recover. And obviously you know, there's
a buy on the back side of this thing. Off
of it too as well, that that you know, plays
into some of the wear and tear two as well,
and to get guys healthy. But we'll see. I think
Hayden's got a better chance, like I said, Aid, and
still we're gonna hold him yet this week and then
(06:45):
we'll get him back the week of Northern Iowa and
he'll be ready to go there. So I think, you know,
bar and anything that happens in the tight end room
on Saturday, like, hey, we'll be at at at at
our full roster, you know, after this week.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
The last question, this one was from a fan that said, hey,
can you ask this before he leaves? And I said, absolutely,
number of true freshmen that I've either played where you
have already started account of games or do you still
feel pretty good with how many you have available for
your freshman.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Yeah, it's I mean obviously grand Olan, you know, I mean,
he'll start for us, and Nate's you know, is playing
a ton two as well at tight end. But there's
a number of guys in the special teams world that
are playing for us too as well. There are some
guys that that we're trying to, you know, make sure
we do a good job of using them when we
feel like we need them, you know, at the running
(07:35):
back position and things like that. Charles Charles is a
guy that we're you know, we're trying to figure out, like, hey,
do we play him this week or don't we because
we do think that he can help us and in
some different ways down the road. But yet we're trying to,
you know, see if we can still red shirt him
too as well. And the good part now is you
get four games, you know, in the regular season, but
you get the playoffs too as well. The playoffs don't
count against youtastically, you could play four and then play
(07:57):
the playoffs and still be considered a freshman yet you know,
the next season. And so that's a rule that started
last year that they carried over this year too as well.
But there's probably six to eight guys there that are
playing reps. You know, obviously talked a little bit. Grant
tai Luki is the other one. He's playing a ton
for us behind Johnny Wilshire, who I think has really
done a good job at the nickel position for us.
(08:18):
But Grant's been a really good two there. We moved
Avery over to corner because of you know, just kind
of trying to get our best eleven and then our
best twenty two on the field on defense. So those
are probably the two guys on defense, Grant hi Luki
and Grant Olen. And then obviously Nate on offense is
playing a ton right now. Yeah, making a big impact,
especially you know in the catch game, but he's gotten
(08:40):
better on the line of scrimmage two as well. And
then there's another, like I said, probably four or five
guys that you maybe not you don't see. You got
to look at, you know, on the special team's depth
charts and when they're down covering kicks and I'll kick
off returning those things. But been really pleased like a
lot of those guys were you know, came from good
programs and they were ready to go here and have
really adapted well into our schemes here early on in
their careers.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
Well, we'll continue to keep an eye out on some
of those young guys as they continue to work through
their first ever season with you. Indie football Coach Schmidt,
thanks for scrapping by. We got an exciting week ahead
Saturday game against Valparaiso. Thanks so much for this good
luck this week.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Thanks Paul, appreciate you all right.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Head coach Eric Schmid, everybody, what a way to lead
this homecoming edition of Hawk Talk.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Off.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
When we return, we're going to switch to volleyball. They're
about ready to hit the road. They picked up a
win on Saturday, straight sets over Idaho. Jesse Tupac joins
our broadcast next as we continue with more Hawk Talk
all across the Fighting Hawks Radio network.
And welcome you back to HOWK Talk downtown Grand Forks
on this Tuesday night, and thanks for listening on fourteen
forty AM the Fan and also in Fargo Moorhead either
on the mighty seven ninety KFGO or seven forty can
a bell they'll bring it on as well. Or you
can go right to kkxl AM on the iHeartRadio app
(00:22):
and stream us live anywhere in the world. Yeah, that's scary.
You can take us with you so and then of
course if you miss any of our conversations tonight, go
back to hawk Talk tomorrow. Download these conversations. You can
listen wherever you want, whenever you want by just searching
HOWK hawk Talk inside the iHeartRadio app and that will
(00:42):
take you there and you can go back and listen
whenever it's convenient for you. Eric Schmid is our guest
for part two you Indy Football getting ready for Homecoming.
The all time series with VLPO val Praiso is one
and one. I think we played in like nineteen twenty
and then most recently in twenty thirteen. So with big
(01:03):
disparity the third meeting from the second meeting a lot
closer from the first to the second the former Crusaders
now Beacons. You know, we don't know a lot about them.
They're a Pioneer League team. We certainly know Northcote have
got the better of them the last meeting at the
Alert Center in twenty thirteen. But the one thing that
I typically have a tendency to believe about, and you
(01:24):
can correct me if I'm wrong, is they make you
play really hard because they will not give an inch.
They will not relent one bit when they step into
Grand Forks on Saturday. And that's all you can ask for.
And your opponent is to give you a great, honest game,
and you're gonna get that.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Well, I think to the thing with the Pioneer League
teams obviously, just the way it's set up, like these
are huge games, you know what I mean for those guys,
and right, you know, I be able to play, you know,
in the type of environment that they're going to play in.
It is not you know what they see every single week,
you know, at the at the venues that they play in,
so we know that, hey, we're gonna get their best shot.
They do a really good job. I think you know,
(02:03):
they're two running backs are both really good players. One
transferred in from the University of South Dakota, one from
the University of Wyoming, who were very familiar with obviously
with some of our staff members coaching the running backs
there in the past. So you know, those two guys
have been able to really run the football all three games.
They scored you know, whatever, it was thirty on on
Western Illinois last week, so they're very you know, capable
(02:24):
on the offensive side of the ball. Then defensively, you know,
I think that's their whole staff came in from from Marietta,
you know, the head coach from Marietta, Ohio, excuse me,
and had done a great job there. They you know,
basically couldn't get by Mount Union, but we're the next
best team in that league, you know. And he took
them from a family, a team that that hadn't had
a ton of success before he got there and now
(02:45):
has had you know, turned him into a consistent winner.
So I think that's the thing that we know that Hey,
a lot of times, you know, you take a look
at what you're seeing on tape and you're gonna get
something that's even better than that, just because of the
nature of the schedule and what what's gonna happen when
these guys set foot in theil Air Center. It's going
to mean something to them.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Yeah, when you when you deal with a quarterback that
is a good athlete, and uh, you know, as a
defense that wants to be attack driven, what are some
of the challenges that a defensive player. You know, I
always say, like it used to be when we were
talking about the an outside linebacker maybe in the thirty
four defense, when he was coming on a from the outside,
(03:25):
if he got too far past the quarterback, well then
that quarterback would often step up, and now you're in
real trouw everybody's in recovery and the defense and those
athletes at quarterback can really cost some issues, can't they.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Well, I think the worst place to be in football
is behind the qb. You know, tall the rushers at
all the time, like you're committing you know, one of
the worst crimes you can commit when you're when you're
doing that. So we have to do you know, you
have to upfront be able to always say, hey, you're
trying to rush the quarterback. As a company, you don't
want independent contractors. Sometimes when you get a guy who's
you know, so good at times and he wins clean.
(03:58):
It creates even more proper for you because now all
of a sudden it opens up you know, everybody else
is at the line of scrimmage yet, and it opens
up some of those rush lanes, you know, for the
quarterback to be able to scape out of. So I think,
you know, doing that. We did some things the other
night too as well, Like we spied. You know a
few times you saw Paynt Parks, Yeah, a few times
be able as a quarterback was getting out, well he was,
he was in a spy mode off of it to
(04:19):
be able to be able to go run him down.
I thought, you know, for the most part, trying to
think now off the top of my head, But I
don't know if there was one quarterback scrambled, there wasn't
one for a first down or anything like that. There
was a couple maybe four or five yarders, but there
wasn't anything where there was you know a lot of
a lot of open ground for the quarterbacks to be
able to go gain. So I think, you know, just
continue to be able to practice those things, and guys
(04:39):
understanding that, hey, we want to work together and we
want quarterbacks to throw from the bottom of a well.
I don't know if kids know what that means anymore
because you have never been at the bottom of a well.
But when you're trying to, you know, throw a ball
through a small opening, you know there's a lot of
guys around you. That's there's only a few of those
guys that can do those things and be able to
win a football game, and they make a lot of money.
Speaker 1 (04:58):
The help of your football team, uh continues to be
I mean we're in the football season now. It varies
from week to week. Tight end You've had guys that
have been out of the lineup trying to work their
way back. That position has gotten deeper because of the
reps for the guys that kind of came in and
did the job. How were we doing at the health
of the tight end position.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Yeah, I think Coach Hogg's done a great job of
just you know, next guy up and just you know,
continuing to set the standard you know, of play with
whoever's going to be available on Saturdays. I think we're
really close. Aiden. We still needs he's probably a week
away here yet, and I'm really excited for him. He
was you know when I talked about how that that
whole group took a jump from spring ball into the summer,
(05:41):
and then when they got back to fall camp, he
was probably the one who maybe took the biggest jump
offenches body type wise. We figured out a few things,
you know, as far as some some physical health things
that he was having that we were able to do
some tests on and figure out, you know him and
then he started gaining weight after that and and really
looked good. So I'm excited for him, Like he's very
you know, similar as far as skills set to eight
(06:02):
and obviously two years older and more you know, season
and those types of things. And then Hayden State, if
you remember at Kansas State, it was really really really good. Yeah,
you know, I mean catching the ball and getting first downs. Afterwards,
he went this morning and you know, did some decent things.
I think once again, you have to be able to
weigh the risk reward of you know, if you push
(06:24):
him and get him out there and he re injures,
now you know where does that leave you compared to
you know, if you do give him here another week
to be able to recover. And obviously you know, there's
a buy on the back side of this thing. Off
of it too as well, that that you know, plays
into some of the wear and tear two as well,
and to get guys healthy. But we'll see. I think
Hayden's got a better chance, like I said, Aid, and
still we're gonna hold him yet this week and then
(06:45):
we'll get him back the week of Northern Iowa and
he'll be ready to go there. So I think, you know,
bar and anything that happens in the tight end room
on Saturday, like, hey, we'll be at at at at
our full roster, you know, after this week.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
The last question, this one was from a fan that said, hey,
can you ask this before he leaves? And I said, absolutely,
number of true freshmen that I've either played where you
have already started account of games or do you still
feel pretty good with how many you have available for
your freshman.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Yeah, it's I mean obviously grand Olan, you know, I mean,
he'll start for us, and Nate's you know, is playing
a ton two as well at tight end. But there's
a number of guys in the special teams world that
are playing for us too as well. There are some
guys that that we're trying to, you know, make sure
we do a good job of using them when we
feel like we need them, you know, at the running
(07:35):
back position and things like that. Charles Charles is a
guy that we're you know, we're trying to figure out, like, hey,
do we play him this week or don't we because
we do think that he can help us and in
some different ways down the road. But yet we're trying to,
you know, see if we can still red shirt him
too as well. And the good part now is you
get four games, you know, in the regular season, but
you get the playoffs too as well. The playoffs don't
count against youtastically, you could play four and then play
(07:57):
the playoffs and still be considered a freshman yet you know,
the next season. And so that's a rule that started
last year that they carried over this year too as well.
But there's probably six to eight guys there that are
playing reps. You know, obviously talked a little bit. Grant
tai Luki is the other one. He's playing a ton
for us behind Johnny Wilshire, who I think has really
done a good job at the nickel position for us.
(08:18):
But Grant's been a really good two there. We moved
Avery over to corner because of you know, just kind
of trying to get our best eleven and then our
best twenty two on the field on defense. So those
are probably the two guys on defense, Grant hi Luki
and Grant Olen. And then obviously Nate on offense is
playing a ton right now. Yeah, making a big impact,
especially you know in the catch game, but he's gotten
(08:40):
better on the line of scrimmage two as well. And
then there's another, like I said, probably four or five
guys that you maybe not you don't see. You got
to look at, you know, on the special team's depth
charts and when they're down covering kicks and I'll kick
off returning those things. But been really pleased like a
lot of those guys were you know, came from good
programs and they were ready to go here and have
really adapted well into our schemes here early on in
their careers.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
Well, we'll continue to keep an eye out on some
of those young guys as they continue to work through
their first ever season with you. Indie football Coach Schmidt,
thanks for scrapping by. We got an exciting week ahead
Saturday game against Valparaiso. Thanks so much for this good
luck this week.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
Thanks Paul, appreciate you all right.
Speaker 1 (09:15):
Head coach Eric Schmid, everybody, what a way to lead
this homecoming edition of Hawk Talk.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Off.
Speaker 1 (09:22):
When we return, we're going to switch to volleyball. They're
about ready to hit the road. They picked up a
win on Saturday, straight sets over Idaho. Jesse Tupac joins
our broadcast next as we continue with more Hawk Talk
all across the Fighting Hawks Radio network.
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