Cal Poly football: Five questions for North Dakota beat writer Tom Miller

Tribune sports reporter Lucas Clark caught up with North Dakota beat writer Tom Miller, who covers North Dakota for the Grand Forks Herald, to discuss five topics leading into Saturday’s game in Grand Forks.

Lucas Clark: Brady Oliveira is coming off a career day against Montana State last week. Where does he fit in with sophomore star John Santiago moving forward?

Tom Miller: The performance from Brady Oliveira was a bit of a surprise to UND fans who saw him take carries over John Santiago for the first time. UND has struggled to get Santiago into open space in 2016. The argument could be made that Montana State changed its defensive approach when Santiago was off the field and that played into Oliveira's day. Either way, UND sees those two as complementary with Oliveira pounding out some tough yards and Santiago providing the home run-threat. I think Cal Poly will see plenty of both.

LC: All four of North Dakota’s games have been decided by four points or less. Do you think that bodes well for the Fighting Hawks with conference play heating up?

TM: To some extent, that's how UND is built. It isn't a quick-strike team. UND wants to beat you by dominating the clock and playing tough defense. You could say the close games are advantageous to your team down the stretch or you could point to reasons those games shouldn't have been close to begin with. I would take a stance somewhere in the middle.

LC: What can you tell me about North Dakota’s secondary? Eight interceptions and a plus-seven turnover ratio through four games is impressive.

TM: UND's secondary has taken advantage of opportunities this year. They're a lengthy crew, with Deion Harris at 6-foot-3 at one corner and 6-1 Torrey Hunt at the other. I think the secondary has been the beneficiary of UND's pressure. UND hasn't amassed a ton of sacks but I think its constant blitzing accelerates the internal clock of quarterbacks.

LC: Cal Poly head coach Tim Walsh said last year’s season-ending loss to North Dakota was one of the worst of his 30-year career. Do you think it will be more of the same Saturday afternoon? And, what’s your final score prediction?

TM: I think you can throw last year's score out the window. UND had now-injured Clive Georges and Poly didn't have Dano Graves. There's a lot of changing parts elsewhere, too. This UND team is still trying to replace four offensive linemen and dealing with the loss of Georges, who may be UND's lone deep threat on the edge. I see another one-score game for UND thanks to UND's historically stout run defense. I'll go UND 31, Poly 24 in the upset.

LC: Last, and perhaps most important, where’s the best place to eat in Grand Forks?

TM: For GF eats, you have to go to the Red Pepper on University for late night food, Rhombus Pizza downtown, the Toasted Frog if you want to class it up a bit and capped off by Bonzer's Pub for some tall beers. Maybe don't try all of those in one night, but those are the stops.

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Follow Tom Miller on Twitter at @tommillergf

This story was originally published September 29, 2016 at 2:21 PM with the headline "Cal Poly football: Five questions for North Dakota beat writer Tom Miller."