No. 3 NDSU Hosts No. 7 UIW in Friday Night NCAA Semifinal

Friday, December 16

Fargo, N.D.

6 p.m.

North Dakota State

Incarnate Word

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Photo by: Tim Sanger

No. 3 NDSU Hosts No. 7 UIW in Friday Night NCAA Semifinal

12/12/2022 5:33:00 PM | Football

Tickets Live Stats Live Audio NDSU Notes UIW Notes MVFC Notes Southland Notes Bracket

THIS WEEK: No. 3 seed North Dakota State (11-2) hosts No. 7 seed Incarnate Word (12-1) in the semifinals of the NCAA Division I Football Championship at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16, at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome (18,700). The winner advances to face either No. 1 seed South Dakota State or No. 4 seed Montana State in the national championship game Sunday, Jan. 8, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

TICKETS: Tickets may be purchased online at GoBison.com/tickets or by calling the Bison Ticket Office in the south lobby of the Sanford Health Athletic Complex at (701) 231-6378 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Season ticket holders have until 5 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13, to purchase their same seats for the game. Unclaimed season tickets will go on sale to the general public at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14. Game day ticket sales at the Fargodome begin at 8 a.m.

TELEVISION: Live coverage will be on ESPN2 with Drew Carter (play-by-play), Aaron Murray (analyst) and Marilyn Payne (sideline) describing the action. Video streaming will be available on ESPN.com and the ESPN app.

RADIO: Statewide coverage begins at 5 p.m. on the Pioneer Seeds Bison Radio Network including Bison 1660 and 107.9 The Fox in Fargo with Rob Hipp (play-by-play), Phil Hansen (analyst) and Cole Jirik (sideline). The network broadcast includes 1-hour pregame and 30-minute postgame shows. Streaming is available on GoBison.com/allaccess and the NDSU Athletics mobile app.

THE SERIES: North Dakota State won the only previous meeting with Incarnate Word 58-0 on Sept. 13, 2014, when UIW was the guest for NDSU's second appearance on ESPN's College GameDay televised live from downtown Fargo. The Bison are 14-2 against Southland Conference opponents. UIW is 1-2 against the Missouri Valley Football Conference including a 64-29 home win over Southern Illinois in this year's season-opener and a 44-41 overtime loss at Youngstown State last year.

CARDINALS WIN WILD ONE: Incarnate Word advanced to the semifinals with a 41-38 second round home win over Furman and a 66-63 quarterfinal road win over No. 2 seed Sacramento State, the most combined points in single-game FCS playoff history. The Cardinals scored 21 points off four Sac State turnovers and scored the winning touchdown with 27 seconds left on a 21-yard pass from Lindsey Scott to Taylor Grimes. Scott was 19 of 31 passing for 219 yards and four TDs while rushing 19 times for 166 yards and two scores. Marcus Cooper added 22 carries for 176 yards and two TDs plus four catches for 58 yards and a TD.

BISON SHUT DOWN SAMFORD: NDSU held Samford to 85 yards in the first half and opened up a 24-0 lead through three quarters en route to a 27-9 quarterfinal win over the Bulldogs, who entered the game ranked No. 6 in FCS averaging 306.5 passing yards per game. Samford QB Michael Hiers came off the bench in the second half to complete 22 of 30 passes for 227 yards, but the Bulldogs didn't find the end zone until 3:53 left in the game. Courtney Eubanks made a career- and game-high 10 tackles for NDSU, Dawson Weber made his team-leading third interception of the season, Spencer Waege blocked a field goal, and Javier Derritt had two of NDSU's five sacks.

BISON OUTRUN GRIZZLIES: Running backs Kobe Johnson and TaMerik Williams combined for 307 rushing yards in North Dakota State's 49-26 second round win over Montana. NDSU averaged 10.8 yards per carry and totaled 453 rushing yards, the most yards per carry and second most single-game rushing yards by an NDSU team in the FCS playoffs. Johnson carried 12 times for 206 yards and two touchdowns while Williams finished with 11 carries for 101 yards and one TD. The Bison scored four touchdowns of 68 yards or longer.

13TH STRAIGHT POSTSEASON: This is North Dakota State's 13th consecutive season in the FCS playoffs, the longest active streak ahead of No. 1 seed South Dakota State, which is making its 11th straight appearance. NDSU has a 78-16 record all-time in 36 postseason appearances from 1964 to 2022 including a 73-15 record in the NCAA playoffs since 1973.
        Most Consecutive FCS Playoff Appearances
        17 - Montana, 1993-2009
        14 - New Hampshire, 2004-2017
        13 - North Dakota State, 2010-2022
        11 - South Dakota State, 2012-2022
        10 - Eastern Kentucky, 1986-1995

SEED HISTORY: NDSU has been a top-two seed in the FCS playoffs 9 of 12 previous appearances. NDSU's only other seed was No. 3 in 2015 when the Bison hosted a semifinal after No. 2 seed Illinois State lost in the quarterfinals. The Bison beat Jacksonville State for the national title.

PLAYOFF SUCCESS: North Dakota State's 43-3 FCS playoff record is the second most victories behind current FBS member Georgia Southern's 45 wins. NDSU's nine FCS national championships is the subdivision record. The Bison are in the semifinals for the 11th time in 12 years, tied with Montana for the second most semifinal appearances behind Georgia Southern (13).
        Most FCS Playoff Victories
        45 - Georgia Southern
        43 - North Dakota State
        35 - Montana
        28 - Youngstown State
        26 - Northern Iowa

        Highest Winning Percentage in FCS Playoffs
        .935 - North Dakota State (43-3)
        .793 - Marshall (23-6)
        .777 - Youngstown State (28-8)
        .776 - Georgia Southern (45-13)
        .667 - Sam Houston State (24-12)

        Consecutive FCS Semifinal Appearances
        9 - North Dakota State, 2011-2019
        6 - Marshall, 1991-1996
        5 - Georgia Southern, 1998-2002
        4 - Eastern Kentucky, 1979-1982
        4 - Youngstown State, 1991-1994

        Most FCS Semifinal Appearances
        13 - Georgia Southern
        11 - Montana
        11 - North Dakota State
        8 - Delaware
        8 - Youngstown State

17 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: North Dakota State last year won its 17th football national championship. NDSU claimed three College Division national championships in 1965, 1968 and 1969 via the national polls, five Division II playoff titles in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1990, and was the first team in college football history to win five straight national titles with FCS crowns in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 before winning again in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021.

BISON SECOND IN MVFC: South Dakota State clinched the Missouri Valley Football Conference outright championship and the league's automatic qualifier for the NCAA FCS playoffs with an 8-0 record in league play. NDSU, which has won at least a share of 10 conference titles in 15 years as a league member, has finished no lower than sixth since joining the MVFC in 2008. NDSU went 7-1 for sole possession of second place this year, NDSU's highest finish in a non-championship season.

EIGHT ALL-CONFERENCE: NDSU claimed eight spots on the All-Missouri Valley Football Conference first team, highlighted by Hunter Luepke's dual selection as the first team fullback and all-purpose player. Other first teamers were LT Cody Mauch, LG Nash Jensen, DE Spencer Waege, LB James Kaczor, S Dawson Weber and S Michael Tutsie. Long snapper Hunter Brozio was named to the All-MVFC second team. The Bison had three honorable mentions (RB TaMerik Williams, DT Will Mostaert, PR Jayden Price) and three on the All-Newcomer Team (DT Jaxon Duttenhefer, LB Logan Kopp, DE Kole Menz).

ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT: Eight Bison were named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District® football team for their combined performances on the field and in the classroom: fullback Logan Hofstedt, safety Sam Jung, linebackers James Kaczor, Luke Weerts and Julian Wlodarczyk, right guard Jake Kubas, center Brandon Westberg and defensive tackle Will Mostaert. Nominees must carry a 3.50 cumulative GPA and have sophomore athletic and academic standing. Kaczor was voted to the MVFC Scholar-Athlete first team. Weerts and Mostaert were second team.

GRADUATION DAY: Seven Bison players will participate in NDSU's winter commencement ceremony Friday afternoon in the Scheels Center, NDSU's home basketball and wrestling arena across the street from the Fargodome. The seven graduates are OG Nash Jensen, LB James Kaczor, WR Jake Lippe, WR Zach Mathis, DE Tony Pierce, LB Luke Weerts and LB Julian Wlodarczyk.

THE SENIORS: North Dakota State has 13 outgoing seniors who were recognized prior to NDSU's final regular-season home game: RB Jalen Bussey, CB Anthony Coleman, TE Noah Gindorff, OG Nash Jensen, LB James Kaczor, OG Luke LaCilento, FB Hunter Luepke, OT Cody Mauch, CB Destin Talbert, S Michael Tutsie, DE Spencer Waege, S Dawson Weber and RB TaMerik Williams. Bussey and Coleman, both with junior eligibility, are graduating from school this year. Ten other seniors are eligible to return for an extra season in 2023 due to COVID-19's impact on the 2020 season.

KEY LOSSES: NDSU entered the playoffs having lost five starters to injuries during the course of the regular season: DT Eli Mostaert (Week 2), TE Noah Gindorff (Week 3), C Jalen Sundell (Week 5), RT Mason Miller (Week 10), FB Hunter Luepke (Week 10) as well as DE Jake Kava (Week 5). The Bison were also without LB Luke Weerts for the quarterfinals and had RB TaMerik Williams and WR RaJa Nelson leave the Samford game with injuries.

DEFENSE STILL AMONG FCS BEST: After graduating four starting defensive linemen and two starting linebackers from last year's national championship team, NDSU is still ranked No. 4 in FCS total defense (299.6 ypg) and scoring defense (17.4 ppg). The Bison also rank No. 4 in passing defense (160.2 ypg).

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS: North Dakota State is 75-4 in non-conference games since the beginning of its first FCS national championship season in 2011. One of those losses was to a Pac-12 opponent (31-28 at Arizona in 2021) and two were in the playoffs to the eventual national champion (27-17 to James Madison in 2016 and 24-20 at Sam Houston State in 2020-21). Montana's 38-35 home win in the 2015 FCS Kickoff is NDSU's only other non-conference loss the past 12 years.

BISON AT HOME: The Bison have a 183-28 record in the Fargodome, 32-6 at home against FCS Top 10 ranked teams, and winners of 78 of the last 80 home games over non-conference opponents. North Dakota State has a 33-1 record in the Fargodome during the NCAA playoffs since 2010 with the only loss coming to eventual national champion James Madison in the 2016 semifinals. NDSU's 32-game home winning streak September 2017 through April 2021 was fourth longest in FCS history.

GAMES RECORD: Left guard Nash Jensen has played in 68 career games, breaking the NDSU record set by right tackle Cordell Volson with 65 games played from 2017 through 2021. Jensen is in his sixth year in the Bison program. He redshirted in 2017, played all 15 games on the PAT/field goal unit in 2018, and has started all but one game the past four seasons missing only the Youngstown State game Oct. 1 due to injury. He has made 53 career starts. Jensen and Clemson's B.T. Potter are the nation's active career leaders with 68 games each. NDSU's Michael Tutsie is fifth with 66 career games and Destin Talbert is tied for sixth with 65 games.

MILLER SETS RECORD: NDSU quarterback Cam Miller set school postseason records for most consecutive pass completions and highest completion percentage in the quarterfinal win over Samford. Miller went 15-for-18 passing and finished the game with 10 straight completions. The NDSU postseason record for consecutive completions over multiple games is 11 by Easton Stick in the 2018 semifinal against South Dakota State and championship against Eastern Washington. Miller had a streak of 14 consecutive completions earlier this year against Indiana State and South Dakota State, which was the third longest streak in Bison history.

MILLER ON CAREER PASSING CHARTS: Quarterback Cam Miller has cracked the career top 10 lists at NDSU for passing completions (8th), yards (9th) and touchdowns (8th). Miller has completed 274 of 413 passes for 3,517 yards and 27 TDs. His career completion percentage of 66.3 would rank second in school history, and he ranks fifth in pass efficiency (155.1), sixth in yards per attempt (8.5), and 10th in yards per game (103.4). Miller's 69.8 completion percentage this season ranks sixth in FCS and is on pace to beat his own school record of 67.8 set last year.

CROSA KEEPS CLIMBING: Bison kicker Griffin Crosa is 61-for-61 on PAT kicks and has made 83 consecutive dating back to 2019. He is seventh all-time at NDSU in PATs made and attempted (127-for-128) and his career PAT percentage of 99.2 is second in school history behind Jake Reinholz, who was 87-for-87 from 2018 to 2021. Crosa is 10th all-time at NDSU with 21 field goals made and ranks first with a 80.8 career field goal percentage (21-for-26).

DEFENSIVE CAREER LEADERS: Safety Michael Tutsie continues to rank second all-time at NDSU with 170 career unassisted tackles behind safety Colten Heagle's record 191 solo stops from 2010 to 2014. Defensive end Spencer Waege has moved into the school's top 10 lists ranked ninth with 40.0 career tackles for loss.

FINALISTS: NDSU left tackle Cody Mauch finished eighth and fullback Hunter Luepke tied for 12th in the voting for the Walter Payton Award, presented annually to the top offensive player in the FCS. Bison defensive end Spencer Waege was 13th for the Buck Buchanan Award, the defensive player of the year award. Each award's top three finalists remain, including Incarnate Word quarterback Lindsey Scott for the Walter Payton Award. Winners will be announced Jan. 7.

ALL-STAR INVITES: North Dakota State fullback Hunter Luepke and left tackle Cody Mauch have accepted invitations to the Reese's Senior Bowl, widely regarded as the top college football all-star game. Left guard Nash Jensen has an invitation to the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, and defensive end Spencer Waege has an invitation to the Hula Bowl.

GOOD WORKS TEAM: Linebacker James Kaczor was named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, which recognizes 11 FBS players and 11 players from FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA for outstanding contributions to their communities. Kaczor's activities include Feed My Starving Children, Charism, River City Church and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is the ninth NDSU player named to the Good Works Team since 2004 and the third in the past five years.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: North Dakota State had eight players combine to earn nine weekly awards in the Missouri Valley Football Conference this season:
        — Cody Mauch, Offensive Line (9/5, 9/26)...Played 33 snaps against Drake with no sacks, quarterback pressures or tackles for loss allowed...Graded with 12 physicality points and helped the Bison rush for 274 yards and 7.4 yards per carry...Graded 93% with 25 physicality points in a 356-yard rushing performance at South Dakota.
        — Griffin Crosa, Special Teams (9/25)...Converted two field goals and four extra points in the win at South Dakota...Made a 26-yard FG and his 25-yard FG with 8:27 left gave NDSU its first two-possession lead.
        — Will Mostaert, Special Teams (10/9)...Blocked a 30-yard FG attempt to preserve a four-point NDSU lead late in the third quarter at Indiana State...Also had a sack and QB hurry in the 31-26 win.
        — TaMerik Williams, Offense (11/7)...Rushed 12 times for 120 yards and two touchdowns at Western Illinois as the Bison ran for a season-high 453 yards and seven touchdowns.
        — James Kaczor, Defense (11/14)...Game- and career-high 14 tackles plus an onside kick recovery with 37 seconds left in the 21-18 win at Southern Illinois...Made nine tackles in the first half and assisted on one sack.
        — Cam Miller, Co-Offensive (11/21)...Career-high 16 carries and 93 yards and the only five-touchdown game in FCS this year with school record-tying five rushing TDs against North Dakota.
        — DJ Hart, Special Teams (11/21)...Averaged 24.3 yards on three kickoff returns and had career-high 156 all-purpose yards against North Dakota...Had returns of 28, 47 and 27 yards (102 total) before penalties negated 29 yards...Led the Bison in receiving with two receptions for 83 yards.
        — Nash Jensen, Offensive Line (11/21)...Graded 95% with no penalties and no sacks or QB hits allowed against North Dakota...NDSU rushed for 363 yards, 6.6 yards per carry, six TDs and had a season-high 522 yards of total offense with 35:25 time of possession.

BISON RETURNING TO TWIN CITIES: NDSU will host Eastern Washington on the opening weekend of the 2023 season at U.S. Bank Stadium, home of the Minnesota Vikings. NDSU drew 34,544 fans to the 2019 season opener against Butler at Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins.

#PROBISON: NDSU has 14 former players with NFL clubs including 12 on active rosters and two on practice squads. The list includes Broncos OL Billy Turner (9th year), Commanders QB Carson Wentz (7th), Browns OL Joe Haeg (7th), Lions LB Chris Board (5th), Chargers QB Easton Stick (4th), Vikings TE Ben Ellefson (3rd), Ravens practice squad OL Zack Johnson (3rd), Chargers LB Derrek Tuszka (3rd), 49ers QB Trey Lance (2nd), Titans OL Dillon Radunz (2nd), Cowboys LB Jabril Cox (2nd), Packers WR Christian Watson (1st), Bengals OL Cordell Volson (1st), and Rams practice squad LB Brayden Thomas (1st). Former Packers practice squad TE Josh Babicz (1st) and Broncos practice squad WR Darrius Shepherd (4th) were released from their teams. Shepherd was drafted by the St. Louis Battlehawks of the XFL for the spring 2023 season.