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Oct. 1—GRAND FORKS — UND fifth-year senior Bo Belquist has made an All-American career as a slot wide receiver, known for turning short passes into big gains.
As the Fighting Hawks have climbed to a No. 7 national ranking with a four-game winning streak in 2024, Belquist is carving out the best stretch of his already impressive college career by redefining his role.
If Belquist wasn’t a defensive pain before, he’s now a vertical nightmare for a secondary, too.
“I think he wanted to develop his deep game the last two offseasons,” UND wide receivers coach Sam King said. “It’s not just speed. It’s the right route and understanding how a defense is playing you. It’s what he focused on because the rest of his game was pretty polished.”
Through five games, Belquist’s 478 receiving yards rank fourth nationally and first in the Missouri Valley. His 19.92 yards per catch ranks third nationally among wide receivers with at least 20 catches. Belquist’s five touchdowns receiving this year leads the Missouri Valley and ranks third nationally.
“I think now I’m getting more opportunities on deep routes and moving around the field,” Belquist said. “Earlier in my career, it was a lot of underneath routes. It was on me to break tackles and get extra yards that way.
“I’ve always wanted to be that (deep threat). One hundred percent. I know 9-man is different but (in high school) we ran a lot of posts. Coming here, it was a bummer to not always get that opportunity. I knew I could do it. With the new offense, it allows me to get those opportunities.”
The production has come despite an offense that is led by a first-year starting quarterback in Simon Romfo and changing a bit of its identity to feature more of a deep running back group.
A year ago, under offensive coordinator Danny Freund, UND ran the ball 55 percent of the time. This year,…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/unds-bo-belquist-adding-deep-003200713.html
Author : Grand Forks Herald
Publish date : 2024-10-02 00:32:00
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