2018 North Dakota State Bison football team
2018 North Dakota State Bison football | |
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NCAA Division I champion MVFC champion | |
NCAA Division I Championship, W 38–24 vs. Eastern Washington | |
Conference | Missouri Valley Football Conference |
Ranking | |
STATS | No. 1 |
FCS Coaches | No. 1 |
2018 record | 15–0 (8–0 MVFC) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Courtney Messingham (2nd season) |
Defensive coordinator | Matt Entz (5th season) |
Home stadium | Fargodome (capacity: 19,000) |
2018 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 North Dakota State $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 15 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 3 South Dakota State ^ | 6 | – | 2 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 23 Northern Iowa ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 7 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indiana State | 5 | – | 3 | 7 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Western Illinois | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Illinois State | 3 | – | 5 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Youngstown State | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
South Dakota | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Missouri State | 2 | – | 6 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Southern Illinois | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2018 North Dakota State Bison football team represents North Dakota State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Chris Klieman, who also coached his final season with the Bison before heading off to take over for the retiring Bill Snyder at Kansas State. The team played their 26th season in the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. They entered the season as defending National Champions and had won six of the last seven FCS titles. In 2018, the Bison finished the regular season 11–0, the first undefeated Bison season since the 2013 campaign, and won their eighth consecutive MVFC title. They received an automatic qualifying bid to the FCS playoff tournament and were seeded as the No. 1 team. The Bison then went 4–0 in the FCS playoffs to finish 15–0 and FCS champions.
Previous season[]
The Bison finished the 2017 season 14–1, 7���1 in MVFC play to win the MVFC championship for the seventh consecutive year.[1][2] As a result, the Bison received the conference's automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs as the No. 2 seed.[3][4] In the playoffs, they defeated San Diego,[5][6] Wofford,[7][8][9] and Sam Houston State to advance to the National Championship game.[10][11][12] There they defeated James Madison 17–13 to win the school's sixth National Championship in seven years.[13][14][15]
Preseason[]
Award watch lists[]
Award | Player | Position | Year |
---|---|---|---|
Walter Payton Award[16] | Bruce Anderson | RB | SR |
Easton Stick | QB | SR | |
Buck Buchanan Award[17] | Greg Menard | DE | SR |
Preseason MVFC poll[]
The MVFC released their preseason poll on July 29, 2018, with the Bison predicted unanimously to win the MVFC championship.[18]
Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
---|---|---|
1 | North Dakota State | 390 (39) |
2 | South Dakota State | 270 |
3 | Northern Iowa | 258 |
4 | Youngstown State | 248 |
5 | Illinois State | 248 |
6 | South Dakota | 206 |
7 | Western Illinois | 163 |
8 | Southern Illinois | 139 |
9 | Missouri State | 90 |
10 | Indiana State | 41 |
Preseason All-MVFC Teams[]
The Bison placed eleven players on the preseason all-MVFC teams.[19]
Offense 1st team Bruce Anderson – RB Brock Robbins – FB Zack Johnson – OL Tanner Volson – OL 2nd team Easton Stick – QB Darrius Shepherd – WR |
Defense 1st team Greg Menard – DL Aaron Steidl – DL Jabril Cox – LB Robbie Grimsley – DB 2nd team Derrek Tuszka – DL |
Schedule[]
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
September 1 | 2:30 p.m. | Cal Poly* | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 49–3 | 18,483 |
September 15 | 2:30 p.m. | North Alabama* | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 38–7 | 18,557 |
September 22 | 1:00 p.m. | Delaware*![]() | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 38–10 | 18,883 |
September 29 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 3 South Dakota State | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 21–17 | 18,846 |
October 6 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 22 Northern Iowa | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 56–31 | 9,899 |
October 13 | 6:00 p.m. | at Western Illinois | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 34–7 | 2,709 |
October 20 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 8 Illinois State | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 28–14 | 18,553 |
October 27 | 2:00 p.m. | at South Dakota | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 59–14 | 9,589 |
November 3 | 2:30 p.m. | Youngstown State | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 17–7 | 18,028 |
November 10 | 2:00 p.m. | at Missouri State | No. 1 |
| ESPN+ | W 48–7 | 5,224 |
November 17 | 2:30 p.m. | Southern Illinois | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN+ | W 65–17 | 18,008 |
December 1 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 23 Montana State* | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN3 | W 52–10 | 17,005 |
December 8 | 11:00 a.m. | No. 8 Colgate* | No. 1 |
| NBC ND/ESPN | W 35–0 | 16,404 |
December 14 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 5 South Dakota State* | No. 1 |
| ESPN2 | W 44–21 | 18,286 |
January 5 | 11:00 a.m. | No. 3 Eastern Washington* | No. 1 |
| ESPN2 | W 38–24 | 17,802 |
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- Source: Schedule
Game summaries[]
Polls are based on the FCS STATS Poll
Cal Poly[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mustangs | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 21 | 14 | 7 | 49 |
North Alabama[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 10 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
Delaware[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fightin' Blue Hens | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 |
No. 1 Bison | 28 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 38 |
South Dakota State[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 3 Jackrabbits | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 17 |
No. 1 Bison | 0 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 21 |
at Northern Iowa[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 | 56 |
No. 22 Panthers | 14 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 31 |
at Western Illinois[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No.1 Bison | 3 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 34 |
Leathernecks | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Illinois State[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 8 Redbirds | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
at South Dakota[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 1 Bison | 21 | 14 | 7 | 17 | 59 |
Coyotes | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
Youngstown State[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Penguins | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
No. 1 Bison | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 17 |
at Missouri State[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 1 Bison | 20 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 48 |
Bears | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Southern Illinois[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Salukis | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17 |
No. 1 Bison | 28 | 16 | 7 | 14 | 65 |
FCS Playoffs[]
Montana State–Second Round[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 23 Bobcats | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
No. 1 Bison | 21 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 52 |
Colgate–Quarterfinals[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 9 Raiders | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 35 |
South Dakota State–Semifinals[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 5 Jackrabbits | 7 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 21 |
No. 1 Bison | 7 | 7 | 21 | 9 | 44 |
Eastern Washington–Championship[]
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. 4 Eagles | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
No. 1 Bison | 10 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 38 |
Ranking movements[]
Week | |||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final | |||||||
STATS FCS | 1 (151) | 1 (157) | 1 (154) | 1 (152) | 1 (152) | 1 (155) | 1 (160) | 1 (160) | 1 (163) | 1 (160) | 1 (158) | 1 (155) | 1 (155) | 1 (156) | |||||||
Coaches | 1 (23) | 1 (26) | 1 (25) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) | 1 (26) |
Players drafted into the NFL[]
Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
---|---|---|---|---|
5 | 166 | Easton Stick | QB | Los Angeles Chargers |
References[]
- ^ "North Dakota State football claims third outright Missouri Valley crown". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "Bison Lead League With 11 All-MVFC Picks, Six on First Team". GoBison.com. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ KVLY. "Bison earn No. 2 seed in FCS Playoffs". Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "James Madison, NDSU are 1–2 in FCS playoff field". FOX Sports. 2017-11-19. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "San Diego vs. North Dakota State – Game Summary – December 2, 2017 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State rolls past San Diego again, 38–3". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State, behind Stick, throttles Wofford in FCS quarters". FOX Sports. 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "Stick leads No. 2 ND State to FCS semifinals with 42–10 over No. 7 Wofford". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "Lucky Seven: Bison roll Wofford, advance to seventh consecutive..." INFORUM. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "Sam Houston State routed by North Dakota State, falls short of FCS championship game". SportsDay. 2017-12-15. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State overpowers Sam Houston State to advance to FCS championship game". Argus Leader. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State returns to FCS title game with rout vs. Sam Houston State". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State beats JMU in FCS Championship". SI.com. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State takes back FCS title with 17–13 victory over James Madison". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "North Dakota State outlasts James Madison to claim FCS championship for the sixth time in seven years". SportsDay. 2018-01-06. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
- ^ "FCS football: 2018 Walter Payton Award watch list". August 1, 2018. Retrieved August 1, 2018.
- ^ "FCS football: 2018 Buck Buchanan Award watch list announced". August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ "North Dakota State Picked to Win 2018 MVFC Title".
- ^ "Preseason All-Conf and Team (PDF) - Missouri Valley Football Conference" (PDF).
- ^ "North Dakota State vs. Missouri State - Box Score - November 10, 2018 - ESPN".
- 2018 Missouri Valley Football Conference season
- North Dakota State Bison football seasons
- NCAA Division I Football Champions
- Missouri Valley Football Conference champion seasons
- College football undefeated seasons
- 2018 NCAA Division I FCS playoff participants
- 2018 in sports in North Dakota