Calm down armchair quarterbacks

Will Griz Nation ever be happy with coach Bobby Hauck?

The Grizzlies are undefeated. They are in the top three of the country.

So they've played some cupcakes. So they've had some lackluster performances. So they've played a ton at home. But all I hear is how the Griz are not very good and how they're not playing well.

While some points are true, the fact remains that they're undefeated. They win, period.

Will the complaining ever end? Perhaps.

Are the Griz rated too high based on talent and schedule? Perhaps.

But all I heard last year was how bad quarterback Josh Swogger was and that Hauck needed to bench him and that the Griz didn't deserve to win.

Well, all Hauck, Swogger and the rest of the team did was get within one play of the national championship game.

The point remains: Hauck and the Griz know how to win, period. If the defense struggles, a la Eastern Washington (which killed Montana State), the offense comes through. If the offense struggles, a la Sacramento State (which has a really good defense), the defense comes through. And sometimes it's the special teams that makes the difference between a win and a loss.

But all I hear is, "What's wrong with the Griz?" and they're undefeated.

Saturday after the Grizzlies 52-7 walloping of Northern Colorado, Hauck addressed the issue.

"We had a lot of fun out there today," he said. "Our major point of emphasis this weekend was to go out and have some fun. Ignore anybody who doesn't like the way we're doing things and go have fun and enjoy each other, and that's what we did.

"These kids are college kids and sometimes, mentally, they get beat down a little bit. Heck, coming out of Tuesday's press conferences I felt like we were the 0-7 team, not UNC. I said that if I'm feeling that way, I've got to make sure the team doesn't feel that way. I told them (Saturday morning and Friday night), 'The guys in this room are the greatest guys you're ever going to be around. You're undefeated. You've been ranked No. 1 in the nation. It doesn't get any better. We, as coaches, have the greatest job in the world. The players have the chance to play the greatest game in the world. Go enjoy.'

"I think that gets lost sometimes."

It doesn't take a genius to realize the steps it takes to put together a successful year. Step one is to win the current game. Step two is to win enough games to make the playoffs. Step three is to make a run in the playoffs. How pretty, how ugly, it doesn't matter. A win is a win.

And all Hauck has done so far this year is lead Griz Nation to realistic dreams of hosting playoff games with a chance to play in Chattanooga, Tenn., for another national championship.

Carl Hennell is a sports reporter for The Daily Inter Lake whose columns appear every Monday. He can be reached at chennell@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4446.