FARGO – For those of you who went deer hunting Saturday, here's what you missed in the Fargodome: North Dakota State football fans cheering for rival South Dakota State.
Bison dominate Western Illinois with 59-7 win
While the Bison were entertaining a rare non-sellout crowd (can you say deer hunting?) with a rare blowout this season (can you say a 59-7 drubbing of Western Illinois?), the fans who didn't leave at halftime were more interested in what SDSU was doing 150 miles south in Brookings.
That's because, all of a sudden, the Bison are working themselves up to one of the top seeds for the FCS playoffs. Who would have thought that three weeks ago when they were reeling from a 24-21 home loss to South Dakota and the loss of starting quarterback Carson Wentz?
When it was announced SDSU defeated No. 2-ranked Illinois State 25-20, those who were still in the Fargodome roared their approval. And for good reason. NDSU's blowout, coupled with Illinois State's loss, could very well put the Bison in position to earn a top-four seed for the playoffs.
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And the way the highly ranked teams have been falling lately, the No. 5-ranked Bison could very well earn a No. 2 seed. That would mean Fargodome games until a possible fifth straight trip to the national title game in Frisco.
Who would’ve thought that after South Dakota?
“I tell you what … I’ve coached a lot of football and in my 23 years, I can tell you if they play like that, I don’t know if anybody can beat them,” said Western Illinois head coach Bob Nielson.
Of course, before we start anointing the Bison national champs again and before Bison fans start filling their coolers for another journey to Frisco, the Bison still have to take care of some business. As impressive as the Bison were Saturday, there is still that haunting loss to South Dakota that certainly is a reminder that this team is far from invincible.
“It’s just one game,” said Bison head coach Chris Klieman. “It’s a great win for our program and it puts us in a good position. But in the same respect, now we have to go back on the road and play a really good team in Youngstown.”
If the Bison keep controlling the line of scrimmage on offense and defense the way they have for the last three games, they should win at Youngstown and their regular-season finale at home to a Missouri State team that has one win.
While the Bison produced their most lopsided Missouri Valley Football Conference ever, three of the top five-ranked teams were upset. After No. 2 Illinois State lost at SDSU, No. 3 Chattanooga lost at Mercer 17-14 and No. 4 Eastern Washington lost at Northern Arizona 52-30. McNeese State, tied at No. 5 with NDSU in the coaches poll, posted a big 27-10 win over No. 9 Sam Houston State.
After all these upsets, the Bison could jump to No. 3. Jacksonville State, with its win over Eastern Illinois on Saturday, has pretty much assured itself of the No. 1 seed for the playoffs. Its last two games are at home against Southeast Missouri State and Murray State, both with losing records. McNeese, with only one game left against Lamar, may have assured itself of a No. 2 seed.
After all these upsets, the Bison could possibly jump to the No. 2 ranking. Jacksonville State, with its win over Eastern Illinois on Saturday, has pretty much assured itself of the No. 1 seed for the playoffs. Its last two games are at home against Southeast Missouri State and Murray State, both with losing records.
What a turn of events since South Dakota. Then again, maybe South Dakota isn’t as bad as we all thought. The Coyotes beat Southern Illinois on Saturday.
Then again, the Bison beat a pretty good Western Illinois team that nearly beat previously top-ranked Coastal Carolina earlier this season, won at Northern Iowa and gave Illinois State all it could handle in a 48-28 loss.
“They (Western Illinois) probably ran into us on a day I don’t think we were going to lose in the Fargodome,” Klieman said.
The way things transpired Saturday, the Bison could keep playing in the Fargodome in December.
