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THIS WEEK:  Top-seeded and No. 1-ranked North Dakota State (12-0) returns to the NCAA quarterfinals for the fourth straight season hosting No. 11-ranked Coastal Carolina (12-2) on Saturday, Dec. 14.  Kickoff is scheduled for 11:05 a.m. at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome (18,700).
 
TELEVISION:  Live coverage in high definition begins at 11 a.m. on ESPN and WatchESPN.com with Dave Neal calling the play-by-play, Andre Ware analyst and Cara Capuano sideline reporter.  This is NDSU's earliest kickoff since an 11 a.m. game at Minnesota in 2007 that NDSU won 27-21.
 
RADIO:  Live coverage begins at 10:30 a.m. on KFGO-AM 790 and KRWK-FM 101.9 of Fargo along with the North Dakota Corn Growers Bison Radio Network.  KFGO's Scott Miller will describe the play-by-play with NDSU and Buffalo Bills Hall of Famer Phil Hansen as color analyst and NDSU's Jeremy Jorgenson reporting from the sidelines.  A live audio stream will be available on GoBison.com/allaccess.
 
THE SERIES:  This is the first meeting between North Dakota State and Coastal Carolina.  NDSU has not played a Big South opponent.  CCU is 0-1 all-time against the Missouri Valley Football Conference with a 17-10 home playoff loss to Western Illinois in 2010.
 
BISON ROLL IN SECOND HALF:  North Dakota State scored three third quarter touchdowns and rolled to a 38-7 win over Furman in the second round.  Quarterback Brock Jensen went 15 of 25 passing for 249 yards and two touchdowns and had a game-high 86 yards rushing including a 53-yard score.  Ryan Smith had 141 all-purpose yards and Zach Vraa had 112 yards receiving – his sixth 100-yard game of the year and the fifth in seven games.
 
COLD NO PROBLEM FOR COASTAL:  Quarterback Alex Ross rushed for a career-high 123 yards and completed 16 of 21 passes for 202 yards and three scores to lead Coastal Carolina to a 42-35 win at eighth-seeded Montana where game time temperature was minus-5 degrees.  The Chanticleers led 35-14 at halftime and outgained Montana 274-169 on the ground.  All-America running back Lorenzo Taliaferro had 16 carries for 104 yards with two TDs.
 
POSTSEASON HISTORY:  This is North Dakota State's fourth straight appearance in the FCS playoffs and its second as the top overall seed after claiming the No. 2 seed in 2011.  NDSU is 11-1 in the FCS playoffs including two straight national titles and a quarterfinal appearance in 2010.  This is North Dakota State's 27th postseason appearance overall.  NDSU has a 46-14 record all-time in the postseason including three College Division national championships in 1965, 1968 and 1969 and five Division II titles in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1990.  NDSU is 41-13 in the NCAA playoff format since 1973.
 
PLAYOFFS AT HOME:  North Dakota State is 8-0 at home in the FCS playoffs and the Bison have won nine straight home playoff games including a 1992 Division II first round win over Northeast Missouri State.  NDSU's last home playoff loss was a first round loss to Minnesota State Mankato in 1991.
 
BOHL TO COACH THROUGH PLAYOFFS:  North Dakota State's Craig Bohl will coach the Bison through the FCS playoffs despite accepting the head coaching job at Wyoming on Sunday, Dec. 8.  Bohl, the all-time winningest coach at NDSU, won his 100th career game in the 42-0 victory over South Dakota.  Bohl is 101-32 in his 11th season overall and is tied for sixth place in MVFC history with 32 league victories in six years.
 
BOHL REGION 4 COACH OF YEAR:  North Dakota State's Craig Bohl was named Region 4 FCS Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association on Tuesday.  Bohl was Regional Coach of the Year in 2011 and FCS National Coach of the Year in 2012.  He is a finalist for the Sports Network Eddie Robinson Award for FCS National Coach of the Year to be announced Monday in Philadelphia.
 
BEST START SINCE 1990:  North Dakota State finished the regular season undefeated for the first time since 1990 and the Bison are 12-0 for the first time since that 1990 team NCAA Division II championship team went 10-0 in the regular season and 4-0 in the playoffs.  NDSU's 12 straight wins to start the year is tied for the longest streak in Missouri Valley Football Conference history with Northern Iowa's 12 in 2007 (lost to Delaware).
 
SEEING DOUBLE:  North Dakota State is on pace to have two 1,000-yard rushers for the third straight season.  Senior Sam Ojuri (1,077) passed the mark for the third straight year against South Dakota and junior John Crockett has 947 yards looking for his second straight 1,000-yard season.  The backs have split time all year with Ojuri averaging 6.5 yards on 166 carries and Crockett averaging 6.0 yards on 159 carries.  Ojuri and Crockett both went over 100 yards in the same game against Southern Illinois, Youngstown State and South Dakota.
 
VRAA SETS TD RECORD:  Junior wide receiver Zach Vraa caught his school-record 12th touchdown of the season against Furman to break T.R. McDonald's mark of 11 touchdown catches in 1993.  Vraa has caught a TD pass in 9 of 12 games this season.  Vraa leads the Missouri Valley Football Conference with 17.8 yards per catch, 79.5 yards per game, and is third in NDSU single-season history with 986 receiving yards.
NDSU Single-Season Receiving Yards
1,181 - T.R. McDonald, 1993
1,003 - Warren Holloway, 2011
986 - Zach Vraa, 2013
828 - Tim Strehlow, 1999
 
JENSEN JOINS ELITE GROUP:  Senior quarterback Brock Jensen surpassed the 1,000-yard career rushing mark at Youngstown State and is one of eight active quarterbacks in the Football Championship Subdivision with 5,000 passing and 1,000 rushing yards in a career.
FCS Active Players, Total Offense—5,000 passing and 1,000 rushing yards
1. Denarius McGhee, Montana State (11,203 passing; 1,149 rushing; 12,352 total)
2. Brian Bell, Sam Houston State (8,447 passing; 1,517 rushing; 9,964 total)
3. Brock Jensen, North Dakota State (8,130 passing; 1,115 rushing; 9,245 total)
Others: Gavin McCarney, Colgate; Benjamin Anderson, Arkansas-Pine Bluff; Garrett Safron, Sacramento State; Greg McGhee, Howard; Matt Lancaster, Butler.
 
MOST WINS AS QUARTERBACK:  North Dakota State quarterback Brock Jensen has won more games at quarterback than any player in FCS history.  Jensen is 44-5 as NDSU's starting quarterback and with 45 total victories (including 2010 off the bench against Morgan State) he has surpassed Armanti Edwards, who won 43 games at Appalachian State from 2006-09.  Jensen is NDSU's career leader in pass attempts (1064), pass completions (665), passing touchdowns (66), passing yards (8,130) and total offense (9,245).
Most Wins by FCS Quarterbacks
45, Brock Jensen, North Dakota State (2010-present)
43, Armanti Edwards, Appalachian State (2006-09)
42, J.R. Revere, Georgia Southern (1998-01)
41, Eric Ward, Richmond (2006-09)
 
OJURI CRACKS 3,000 YARD MARK:  Senior running back Sam Ojuri has become the sixth running back in NDSU history to eclipse the 3,000 career yards mark.  Ojuri has 3,373 yards in 48 career games and trails only Lamar Gordon, Kyle Steffes and Jake Morris on the school's all-time rushing list.  NDSU's last 3,000-yard rusher was Steffes, who finished second in school history with 3,952 yards from 2003-06.
NDSU All-Time Leading Rushers
4,696 - Lamar Gordon, RB (1998-01)
3,952 - Kyle Steffes, RB (2003-06)
3,688 - Jake Morris, RB (1994-97)
3,373 - Sam Ojuri, RB (2009,11-13)
3,313 - Chris Simdorn, QB (1987-90)


WEARING THEM OUT:  North Dakota State ranks first nationally in time of possession and third down conversions, and the advantage is most notable in the fourth quarter.  NDSU is averaging 9:35 in the fourth quarter this year including six games over 10 minutes and a season-high 11:31 at Youngstown State.  The Bison have converted 30 of 46 third downs in the final quarter for 65 percent.
 
FOURTH QUARTER SUCCESS:  North Dakota State has held 11 of 12 opponents scoreless in the fourth quarter with Missouri State's 11-yard TD pass from Ashton Glaser to Dorian Buford being the only fourth-quarter points allowed.  Buford's touchdown and a Sam Houston State field goal in last year's national title game are the only fourth-quarter points NDSU has allowed in the last 17 games.
 
LITTLEJOHN STEPS IN:  North Dakota State linebacker Carlton Littlejohn was named Missouri Valley Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week after making a game- and career-high 16 tackles with seven solo stops and 1.5 tackles for loss in North Dakota State's 28-10 home victory over Illinois State.  Littlejohn made 10 of his 16 tackles in the second half after moving from the outside to middle linebacker in place of injured starter Grant Olson.
 
PUNT COVERAGE:  North Dakota State's Ben LeCompte has punted 41 times for a 43.3 average this year including 10 touchbacks and 17 inside the 20-yard line.  Only 5 of 41 punts have been returned and NDSU tacklers have limited those returns to 0 yards (Jordan Champion), minus-2 yards (Colten Heagle), 0 yards (Bryan Shepherd), 5 yards (Kyle Emanuel) and 1 yard (Michael Murphy).  NDSU is allowing just 0.80 yards per punt return, which is second in the FCS.
 
SMITH AMONG PUNT RETURN LEADERS:  North Dakota State wide receiver Ryan Smith is the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision active career leader in punt returns (78) and punt return yards (913), and is tied for first in punt return touchdowns (3).  Junior free safety Christian Dudzik handled the first 13 punt returns this year before Smith took his first return a career-long 85 yards for a TD in the first quarter against Missouri State.  Smith also had a 100-yard kickoff return for touchdown at Indiana State which tied a 1923 school record.
 
SMITH FOURTH IN RECEPTIONS:  Senior wide receiver Ryan Smith ranks fourth in NDSU history with 140 career receptions for 1,682 yards.  Smith had a career-high eight catches at Kansas State and hauled in a career-high 111 receiving  yards on four catches against South Dakota, including career-long 64-yarder for a TD.
NDSU Top Five Career Pass Receptions
1. Kole Heckendorf, 178 (2005-08)
2. Travis White, 163 (2002-06)
3. Warren Holloway, 161 (2008-11)
4. Ryan Smith, 140 (2010-present)
5. T.R. McDonald, 134 (1990-93)
 
FLIPPING THE FIELD:  North Dakota State ranks 11th nationally and leads the Missouri Valley Football Conference in net punting thanks to sophomore All-MVFC punter Ben LeCompte, who has been flipping the field with an impressive 43.3 yards per punt average.  LeCompte had seven punts and four inside the 20 – both career highs – in the Northern Iowa game.  He had a career-long punt of 75 yards and another for 74 yards at South Dakota State, and a 65-yarder against UNI.  LeCompte's career average of 43.2 would rank second in school history behind Mike Dragosavich's 44.46 from 2004-07.
 
STREAKING:  North Dakota State's 21-game winning streak is a Missouri Valley Football Conference record, the longest active streak in Division I, and three games shy of the school-record 24-game winning streak set from 1964 to 1966.  The Bison have won 12 straight at home (second best in the FCS) and 42 of the last 43 non-conference home games including 32 straight since a 2003 loss to UC Davis.
Division I Overall Winning Streaks
1. North Dakota State (MVFC)                     21
2. Florida State (ACC)                                       15
3. SE Louisana (Southland)                            10
 
Division I Home Winning Streaks
1. Sam Houston State (Southland)           22
2. South Carolina (SEC)                                    18
3. Stanford (Pac-12)                                          16
4. Ohio State (Big Ten)                                    15
5. Fresno State (Mountain West)              13
6. North Dakota State (MVFC)                     12
 
ON THE ROAD:  North Dakota State has won 14 straight true road games and 17 including two national championship games in Frisco, Texas, and one neutral site win against South Dakota in Sioux Falls, S.D.  The Bison have won 22 of their last 26 road games and are 42-20 on the road since head coach Craig Bohl took over in 2003.  NDSU is 17-7 in MVFC road games.  The Bison have not lost away from Fargo since the 38-31 overtime loss to eventual national champion Eastern Washington in the 2010 NCAA quarterfinals.
Division I Road Winning Streaks
1. Northern Illinois (MAC)                            15
2. North Dakota State (MVFC)                     14
3. Towson (Colonial)                                         10
 
BISON SIXTH IN ATTENDANCE:  North Dakota State's record crowd of 19,108 for the homecoming game against Missouri State was the fifth straight regular season sellout and the 17th sellout overall since 2006.  NDSU is sixth in the Football Championship Subdivision with an average attendance of 18,670 through seven home games.
FCS average home attendance
1. Montana - 24,380
2. James Madison - 21,011
3. Southern - 20,107
4. Yale - 19,809
5. Montana State - 19,704
6. North Dakota State - 18,670
 
NDSU, MVFC TOP GRIDIRON POWER INDEX: North Dakota State has the top spot in the Gridiron Power Index (GPI), the index ranking for the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision and a top indicator of at-large playoff selection.  The Missouri Valley Football Conference has seven teams in the top 30 and is tops among all 14 conferences ahead of the Colonial Athletic Association and Southland Conference.
Gridiron Power Index - Nov. 25
1. North Dakota State                      1.14
2. Eastern Illinois                                1.86
3. Eastern Washington                    3.86
4. SE Louisiana                                      4.14
5. Towson                                                6.00
 
Conference GPI - Nov. 25
1. Missouri Valley                            27.11
2. Colonial                                           34.23
3. Southland                                       35.46
4. Ohio Valley                                    37.94
5. Big Sky                                              43.65
 
BISON LAST FCS UNBEATEN:  North Dakota State is the last unbeaten team in the Football Championship Subdivision and one of two in all of Division I.  Florida State is 13-0 in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
 
FOUR ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT:  North Dakota State's Andrew Grothmann, Ryan Drevlow, Kyle Emanuel and Esley Thorton were named to the Capital One Academic All-District 6 team by a vote of the College Sports Information Directors of America.  To be nominated, student-athletes must have at least a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average, have sophomore athletic and academic standing, have completed one academic year at their institution, and be a starter or key reserve for their team.  Grothmann has a 3.58 GPA in agricultural economics, Drevlow has a 3.69 GPA in electrical engineering, Emanuel has a 3.59 in construction management, and Thorton has a 3.89 in exercise science.
 
RUNNING GAME:  North Dakota State racked up a season-high 331 rushing yards in the win at Southern Illinois when the Salukis had the nation's No. 4-ranked rushing defense.  It was the most rushing yards for NDSU since 376 in the NCAA second round win at Montana State in 2010 and the third most in a Missouri Valley Football Conference game behind 413 at Illinois State and 354 at Missouri State both during the 2008 season.
 
WILLIAMS AND INTERCEPTIONS: North Dakota State's Marcus Williams has 21 career interceptions, which is second in MVFC history.  He is the FCS active leader in career interceptions (21) and interception return yards (503).  His seventh career INT return for touchdown against Furman last week broke the FCS record of six set by Murray State's William Hampton (1993-96).
MVFC Career Leaders - Interceptions
24, Adrion Smith, Missouri St., 1990-93
21, Marcus Williams, North Dakota St., 2010-present
21, Jeff Smith, Illinois St., 1985-88
18, Ty Talton, Northern Iowa, 1995-98
18, Dre Dokes, Northern Iowa, 2003-06
 
BISON IN NCAA TOP 10:  North Dakota State leads the nation in kickoff return average, third down conversions, time of possession and scoring defense, and the Bison are in the top 10 in several categories in the FCS statistics through Dec. 7.  Individually, quarterback Brock Jensen ranks fourth in passing efficiency (169.4), eighth in completion percentage (.669) and 10th in points responsible for (204).  Christian Dudzik is one of five players nationally with two punt return touchdowns (both at Indiana State) and ranks 10th with 11.9 yards per punt return.  Zach Vraa is ninth nationally with 12 receiving touchdowns.
NDSU in the FCS Statistics
1st - time of possession (33:49)
1st - third down conversions (.562)
1st - third down defense (.270)
1st - kickoff returns (27.04)
1st - scoring defense (11.2)
2nd - total defense (250.0)
2nd - first downs allowed (167)
2nd - passing efficiency defense (97.46)
2nd - punt return defense (0.80)
3rd - punt return average (15.48)
3rd - rushing defense (91.7)
3rd - passing efficiency (166.37)
6th - completion percentage (.669)
6th - passing defense (158.3)
6th - red zone offense (.894)
7th - fewest interceptions thrown (6)
8th - red zone defense (.700)
9th - fourth down conversions (.667)
 
THREE SHUTOUTS:  North Dakota State's shutout victories over Delaware State and South Dakota State were the first back-to-back shutouts for NDSU since 1987 when the Bison won 34-0 at Augustana (S.D.) and 33-0 at home over Morningside.  NDSU's 42-0 win over South Dakota gave the Bison three shutouts for the first time since the 1997 team had four.
 
NEGATIVE YARDS:  SDSU's minus-32 yards rushing was the lowest total allowed by North Dakota State in Division I football.  The NDSU record is minus-85 yards against Morningside in 1974.  SDSU's Zach Zenner, the leading rusher in the Football Championship Subdivision, had four yards on eight carries.
 
NATIONAL TEAM OF THE WEEK:  North Dakota State was named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week by the Football Writers Association of America on Sept. 3 following its 24-21 win at Kansas State.  NDSU is just the second Football Championship Subdivision team to be recognized.  The other was Appalachian State in 2007 following its opening game win at No. 5-ranked Michigan.
 
THE DRIVE:  North Dakota State came back from a 21-7 deficit to win 24-21 at Kansas State in the season opener.  The Bison marched 80 yards in 18 plays over a span of 8:30 to score the winning touchdown on Brock Jensen's 1-yard run with 28 seconds left.  Jensen completed 14 of 15 passes in the second half including 7 of 7 on the final drive as the Bison converted four third down opportunities.
 
BOHL, JENSEN CAPTURE MVFC HONORS:  North Dakota State's Craig Bohl was named Bruce Craddock Coach of the Year for the third straight season and quarterback Brock Jensen was named Offensive Player of the Year by a vote of the Missouri Valley Football Conference head coaches, sports information directors and media.  The Bison had 14 players earn spots on the all-conference team including eight on the first team highlighted by three-time All-MVFC first team cornerback Marcus Williams.
 
CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:  The following players were recognized as Player of the Week by the Missouri Valley Football Conference this season for their performances:
        - Colten Heagle, Defense (team-high seven tackles and two stops for loss at Kansas State in his first game back from knee injury Sept. 2012)
        - Billy Turner, Offensive Line (96% with 10 knockdowns at Kansas State)
        - Ben LeCompte, Special Teams (seven punts averaging 44.3 yards, three inside the 20 and two touchbacks at South Dakota State with a career-long 75 and a 74-yarder)
        - Ryan Smith, Special Teams (took his first punt return of the season 85 yards for a touchdown against Missouri State)
        - Joe Haeg, Offensive Line (98% with eight knockdowns vs. Missouri State)
        - Billy Turner, Offensive Line (92% with 10 knockdowns in NDSU's season-high 331-yard rushing game at Southern Illinois)
        - Zack Johnson, Offensive Line (13 knockdowns as NDSU averaged 6.7 yards per carry and had backs run for 146 and 120 yards at Youngstown State)
        - Christian Dudzik, Special Teams (scored his first two career TDs on punt returns of 43 and 68 yards at Indiana State)
        - Carlton Littlejohn, Defense (10 of his career-high 16 tackles in the second half against Illinois State after moving to middle linebacker in place of Grant Olson)
        - Brock Jensen, Offense (17-for-22 passing for 200 yards, career-high four TDs and a fifth TD by rush at Youngstown State, where he tied the FCS wins record and broke NDSU's career and single-season records for TD passes)
 
 NATIONAL HONORS:  The following players earned national recognition this season for their performances:
        - Ben LeCompte, Sports Network co-Special Teams Player of the Week (seven punts averaging 44.3 yards, three inside the 20 and two touchbacks at South Dakota State with a career-long 75 and a 74-yarder)
        - Grant Olson, College Sporting News All-Star (eight tackles and a career-high two sacks totaling 14 yards at South Dakota State where the Bison held SDSU to minus-32 yards rushing)
        - Zach Vraa, CFPA Wide Receiver of the Week (five catches for career-high 179 yards against Missouri State, TD catches of 36 and 23 yards, two other catches for 56 and 52 yards)
        - Ryan Smith, CFPA Punt Returner of the Week (took his first punt return of the season 85 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead against Missouri State)
        - Christian Dudzik, Sports Network co-Special Teams Player of the Week and CFPA Punt Returner of the Week (scored his first two career TDs on punt returns of 43 and 68 yards at Indiana State)
        - Ryan Smith, CFPA Kickoff Returner of the Week (100-yard kickoff return to answer an Indiana State kickoff return touchdown on the previous play, tying the 1923 NDSU record for longest kickoff return)
        - Brock Jensen, College Sporting News All-Star (17-for-22 passing for 200 yards, career-high four TDs and a fifth TD by rush at Youngstown State, where he tied the FCS wins record and broke NDSU's career and single-season records for TD passes)