NDSU Bison football. What do you know? They’re in another title game. Here’s a preview of the Saturday matchup with James Madison University.
There’s a third certainty in life besides death and taxes. It’s the North Dakota State University football team making a deep run into the FCS playoffs. The NDSU Bison take on James Madison University for the FCS college football championship on Saturday, Jan. 11, in Frisco, Texas. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. Central time. The Bison (15-0) are the No. 1-ranked team in the land while James Madison (14-1) is No. 2.
These two teams have quite a history. First of all, this is a rematch of the 2017 national championship game. NDSU has won two straight and seven of the last eight national championship games. JMU took the 2016 national title game after they beat the Bison in the national semifinals. James Madison is making its third appearance in the title game in the last four years.
NSDU football beat writer Jeff Kolpack (@FGOSPORTSWRITER) spoke to Travis Aune on Minnesota Sports Weekly and was refreshingly honest when asked if he thought heading into the season that the Bison would make yet another appearance in the title game.
“To give you a one-word answer, it’s ‘no,’” he said with a laugh. “I wasn’t expecting it because I thought we had too many young players. It’s tough to depend on a freshman quarterback (Trey Lance of Marshall, MN) to get you back to Frisco (Texas).
Another year, same result
“That being said, there’s something about this program that just keeps reinventing itself,” he added. “One of the advantages this program has is they don’t have a lot of players leaving every year. Guys sometimes stick around for 2-3 years before they even get a shot at seeing the field. I think that’s a lot of dedication to a program that you don’t see as much of anymore.”
He says a lot of today’s kids that aren’t playing as freshmen will often bail on their program and look for opportunities elsewhere. It’s the “instant gratification” part of today’s sports and the Bison program has been able to avoid a lot of that.
Obviously, the Bison aren’t winning as much as they have without talent. “They have a lot of that,” he said. “They have a lot of support, resources, and money, as well as a university president (Dean. L Bresciani) who’s on board with the program’s success. You need all those things. Did I expect this? No. Am I surprised they’re here again? No.”
Freshman QB
Despite being a redshirt freshman, Marshall native Trey Lance has shown the ability to be an equally effective passer and runner since taking over under center for the Bison. For a young player, his accuracy is remarkable. He’s thrown for 28 touchdowns and doesn’t have a single interception this season.
“He’s 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, and is a powerful runner,” Kolpack said. “His development is coming along well. He recognizes what defenses are trying to do and gets to his check-down points. He’s much farther along mentally than anyone thought he’d be at this point. It’s sometimes hard to remember that he’s just a freshman when he’s out there.”
Matt Entz took over as head coach after Chris Kleiman left for Kansas State University after last season. Kolpack said the first year under Entz “couldn’t have gone any better.” He was the defensive coordinator under former Bison coaches Kleiman and Craig Bohl.
Dominance
The Bison have been on a remarkable run of winning football. Minnesota Sports Weekly host Travis Aune pointed out that NDSU beats most of its opponents by considerable margins. Why don’t the Bison schedule better opponents? Kolpack’s answer was a simple one; “No one will play them.” He said it might be hard to truly appreciate just how good the program has been over many years.
“It’s one of the most dominant college football programs in history,” he said. “If they win on Saturday, they may win three more. If that’s the case, the NDSU Bison program becomes the most dominant one in college football history.
“However, when you’re watching it before your eyes, it may be hard to recognize that,” Kolpack added. “It’s hard to live in the moment of a history book because technically the book hasn’t been written yet. It’ll be written 10-20 years down the road. You write it after the fact.”
This Saturday
Looking ahead to the title game on Saturday, Kolpack said the defenses could play a major role in the outcome. James Madison is No. 1 in the country in terms of yards allowed on the ground, with their opponents averaging a mere 61 yards per game and 2.2 yards per rush.
“The recent run of NDSU Bison success has been built on good defense,” he said. “They’re a good defensive team again this year. I think the first team to 20 is going to win this game. The teams will open with some basic football early on and get a feel for what each of them is doing.
“Two heavyweights like this are going to come out like boxers,” Kolpack said. “They’re not going to try for the knockout early. I’m seeing a close, low-scoring game.”
You can find the whole interview with Jeff Kolpack as part of Minnesota Sports Weekly right here.