Bison passing game still in question

FARGO -- There is no questioning the running portion of North Dakota State's West Coast offense. Senior Pat Paschall leads Division I Football Championship Subdivision in rushing.

But the Bison are also 1-3 with a passing attack that has its head coach looking for improvement.

"We're not there yet," Craig Bohl said.

The Bison lost their Missouri Valley Football Conference opener Saturday at Southern Illinois, a 24-14 defeat that saw the passing game struggle, but the running game flourish.

Bohl said senior Nick Mertens will remain the starting quarterback for Saturday's 1 p.m. homecoming game against Illinois State.

Mertens completed 9 of 23 passes with one interception against the Salukis bringing his season totals to 50 of 97 for 52 percent with five touchdowns and four interceptions. The Bison in past years wanted their quarterbacks in the West Coast offense to work at around a 60-percent clip.

Bohl said not all of that is on Mertens, pointing to two dropped passes by Bison receivers in critical times. Mertens was also sacked four times.

"We're working like crazy," Bohl said. "We can't be one-dimensional."

That was the problem last year, especially late in the season when the Bison all but abandoned the passing game.

"Almost to the point of where we couldn't throw it," Bohl said. "We're a long ways from that. But are we getting other people to where they're scared to death to line up because we're just ripping it in the passing game? We're not there yet.

"Am I disappointed? Yeah. I'd like to think we would be a little bit further along and more than just our quarterback. Certainly, Nick can throw the ball better. But he's operating our offense pretty dog gone well. "

Asked if he considered making a change in favor of freshman Jose Mohler, Bohl said, "That's always something you typically think about, but I thought we were moving the football. It's a great question, though. I thought we were moving the ball well enough."

Bohl cited long pass attempts to receiver Warren Holloway and tight end Matt Veldman that were on the mark. Mertens has also been effective as a runner, something that wasn't part of the offense last year.

Bohl said freshman running back/kick returner Mike Sigers missed the Southern Illinois game because of a turf toe injury. He's questionable for the Redbird game. Also questionable is backup cornerback Josh Gatlin, who suffered fractured fingers against the Salukis.

Gatlin had just returned to the lineup after being out with a sprained ankle.

But the Bison may regain their starting fullback in senior Lee Vandal, who suffered a knee injury in fall practice.

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