THIS WEEK: The top two ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision and winners of the last four FCS national championships meet in the 22nd annual Dakota Marker game this week when No. 1 North Dakota State (7-0, 4-0 MVFC) visits No. 2 South Dakota State (7-0, 3-0 MVFC). Game time is 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25, at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium (19,300) in Brookings, S.D., where SDSU carries a 33-game home winning streak.
 
TICKETS AND TAILGATING: Saturday's game is sold out at the SDSU box office, but tickets remain available on Seat Geek, the official ticket partner of NDSU and SDSU Athletics. Tailgating for NDSU fans will be west of Dana J. Dykhouse at the corner of Medary Avenue and 11th Street. Spaces are $10 per car and $50 per RV or truck/trailer. SDSU tailgating policy prohibits hard liquor and glass bottles. Wristbands purchased at the tailgating tent are also good for in the stadium. Parking lots will open at 2 p.m.
 
TELEVISION: ESPNU will have exclusive television coverage of Saturday night's game with Richard Cross (play-by-play), Taylor McHargue (analyst) and Tori Petry (reporter) on the call.
 
RADIO: Statewide network coverage on all 25 stations across the Pioneer Seeds Bison Sports Network begins at 6 p.m. including Bison 1660 and 107.9 The Fox in Fargo with Sam Neidermann (play-by-play), Phil Hansen (analyst) and Noah Gindorff (sideline) describing the action. Streaming is available on GoBison.com/allaccess and the NDSU Athletics mobile app.
 
WEEKLY SHOWS: Fans are invited to join NDSU head coach Tim Polasek each Thursday night from 6:30 to 8 p.m. for the Bison Football Coaches Show live from Holiday Inn Fargo with host Sam Neidermann and other NDSU coaches and players. The show can be heard on Bison 1660 in Fargo, KSJB-AM 600 in Jamestown, KYCR-AM 1440 in Minneapolis, GoBison.com and the NDSU Athletics mobile app. On television, The Bison Football Show airs statewide each Sunday night at 10:35 p.m. on WDAY (Fargo), WDAZ (Grand Forks), KBMY (Bismarck) and KMCY (Minot).
 
THE SERIES: The 10th most-played rivalry in FCS, this is the 118th meeting between North Dakota State and South Dakota State since 1903. NDSU leads the series 65-47-5 and has won the last two meetings including a 13-9 victory in Fargo last October when SDSU was ranked No. 1 and NDSU was No. 2. The Bison won last year's NCAA semifinal matchup 28-21 in Fargo. NDSU has lost its last two trips to Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium since claiming a 23-16 victory in 2019.
 
DAKOTA MARKER: NDSU and SDSU have played for the Dakota Marker in each regular-season meeting since 2004, the first season of Division I competition for both programs. NDSU won 13-9 last year to take an 11-10 edge in the series. The Dakota Marker is a 75-pound model replica of the original quartzite monuments that were 7 feet long and 10 inches square and placed at half-mile intervals along the state border in the summers of 1891 and 1892. It is inscribed with N.D. and S.D. on opposite sides and 190 M, the number of miles between Fargo and Brookings.
 
TOP TWO MATCHUP: This is the 10th matchup of No. 1 vs. 2 in FCS history, but only the fourth time it has happened in the regular season. It's the sixth straight featuring at least one Missouri Valley Football Conference team. The No. 2-ranked team has a 6-3 edge in the nine prior meetings, including last year's 13-9 NDSU win over SDSU. This is also the first matchup in MVFC history between two teams with 7-0 records.
                FCS No. 1 vs. 2 History
                *12/19/1981 - #2 Idaho State 34, #1 Eastern Kentucky 23
                10/24/1992 - #1 Northern Iowa 27, #2 Idaho 26
                *12/21/1996 - #2 Marshall 49, #1 Montana 29
                *12/18/2009 - #2 Villanova 23, #1 Montana 21
                *1/9/2016 - #2 NDSU 37, #1 Jacksonville State 10
                *1/11/2020 - #1 NDSU 28, #2 James Madison 20
                10/15/2022 - #2 SDSU 23, #1 NDSU 21
                *1/7/2024 - #1 SDSU 23, #2 Montana 3
                10/19/2024 - #2 NDSU 13, #1 SDSU 9
                *denotes FCS title games
 
LAST WEEK: North Dakota State scored 38 unanswered points to claim a 38-7 road win over Indiana State last week. After a weather delay of 2 hours and 15 minutes for lightning and rain at halftime, the Bison defense got a turnover, four three-and-outs and forced five straight punts and a turnover on downs to shut out the Sycamores in the second half. Jaylin Crumby returned an interception 32 yards on the first play of the third quarter and NDSU scored on the next play with Cole Payton's 3-yard run for a sudden 17-7 lead. The Bison followed that with scoring drives of 80, 88 and 64 yards including touchdown runs of 15 yards and 1 yard by Barika Kpeenu, who finished with 113 yards on a career-high 23 carries. Payton went 12 of 18 passing for 149 yards and one touchdown. Linebacker Peder Haugo made a team-high eight tackles and linebacker Logan Kopp had seven tackles—two for lost yardage and two for zero yards—plus a quarterback hit that led to Crumby's interception.
 
HOME WINNING STREAKS: South Dakota State's current 33-game home winning streak is fourth-longest in FCS history, surpassing North Dakota State's 32-game streak from 2017 through the spring of 2021. The Jackrabbits haven't lost at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium since a 26-17 loss to Northern Iowa on Oct. 23, 2021. NDSU has won four straight on the road.
                Current FCS Home Winning Streaks
                33 - South Dakota State
                19 - Villanova
                16 - North Dakota State
                12 - Rhode Island
                11 - South Dakota

                FCS Longest Home Winning Streaks
                39 - Georgia Southern, 1997-2001
                38 - Georgia Southern, 1985-1990
                34 - Eastern Kentucky, 1978-1984
                33 - South Dakota State, 2021-present
                32 - North Dakota State, 2017-2020
 
COMMITTEE RANKINGS: North Dakota State was No. 1 and South Dakota State was No. 2 in the NCAA Division I Football Committee's first top 10 rankings released Oct. 15. The second release is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 5. The full 24-team playoff bracket will be announced on the FCS Selection Show scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 23.
 
PLAYOFF HISTORY: North Dakota State (10) and South Dakota State (2) have combined to win four straight and 12 of the last 14 FCS national championships. NDSU and SDSU have met six times in the FCS playoffs with the Bison winning in the 2012 and 2014 second round, 2016 quarterfinal, and 2018 and 2024 semifinals. The Jackrabbits won in the 2022 championship, their first of back-to-back national titles. SDSU has a 24-12 record in 14 FCS playoff appearances; NDSU has won more FCS playoff games than any other program with a 51-5 record in 15 appearances.
 
BISON AFTER DARK: North Dakota State has a 52-13 record in night games (6 p.m. or later local starting time) as a Division I program since 2004, including a 17-1 mark at home since 2010.
 
NATIONAL LEADERS: NDSU quarterback Cole Payton leads the FCS in passing efficiency (211.4), completion percentage (.744) and passing yards per completion (17.39) and per attempt (12.93) through his first seven starts. Payton is also ninth in total offense (291.4 ypg) and 12th in yards per carry (6.69). Barika Kpeenu is seventh in the FCS for scoring (9.4 ppg) and ranks third with 11 rushing TDs and fourth in total touchdowns (11). Bryce Lance is ninth in yards per reception (20.58) and Jackson Williams is ranked 14th in punt return average (11.4).
 
TEAM RANKINGS: In this week's FCS statistics, North Dakota State ranks first in scoring defense (10.0 ppg), passing defense (133.1 ypg) and total defense (229.0 ypg), and seventh in rushing defense (95.9 ypg). NDSU is also first nationally in passing efficiency (206.78), completion percentage (.736) and passing yards per completion (17.06). The Bison rank fourth in total offense (493.1 ypg), fifth in rushing offense (242.1 ypg) and sixth in scoring offense (43.6 ppg). NDSU along with Dayton and San Diego leads the FCS with only two turnovers committed.
 
RECORD PACE: North Dakota State is on school-record pace in passing and total offense through seven games averaging 7.77 yards per play, 493.1 total yards per game, 251.0 passing yards per game, and 12.6 yards per pass attempt with a 206.8 pass efficiency rating and 73.6 completion percentage. Quarterback Cole Payton's 10.62 yards per play, 291.4 total offense yards per game, 223.6 passing yards per game, 12.9 yards per pass attempt, 74.4 completion percentage, 211.4 efficiency rating would also be school single-season records. Payton has two of the top five single-game offensive performances in school history, and his 348 passing yards against Southeast Missouri State were third most in NDSU single-game history.
                NDSU Single-Game Total Offense Yards
                466 - Graig Gorder at Omaha, 11/9/2002 (50 rush, 416 pass)
                455 - Steve Walker at Ball State, 9/23/2006 (4 rush, 451 pass)
                401 - Cole Payton, Southeast Missouri State, 9/13/2025 (53 rush, 348 pass)
                382 - Carson Wentz, Northern Iowa, 10/10/2015 (47 rush, 335 pass)
                375 - Cole Payton, South Dakota, 9/27/2025 (102 rush, 273 pass)
 
GOOD WORKS TEAM: Senior linebacker Logan Kopp was one of 22 players in college football named to the 2025 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. Kopp is the 10th NDSU player named to the team, which recognizes extraordinary commitment to community service. Read more about the team members at ESPN.com/allstate.
 
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: North Dakota State has had four players earn five Missouri Valley Football Conference player of the week awards this season:
                — QB Cole Payton, Offensive (9/29, 10/13)...Had 375 yards of total offense and three TDs against South Dakota...Went 14 of 18 passing for 273 yards and two TDs with 11 carries for 102 yards and one score...Picked up six first downs in the run game including one on fourth-and-short and three third down conversions including a 21-yard scramble on third-and-17...Had 291 total yards and three TDs including a 41-yard scramble against Southern Illinois...Picked up eight first downs on 13 of 16 passing for 243 yards.
                — LB Nathaniel Staehling, Defensive (9/29)...Scored on a 43-yard interception return to end USD's opening drive of the second half, assisted on two tackles for loss and finished with a team-high five tackles.
                — RS Jackson Williams, Special Teams (9/29)...Had 107 all-purpose yards including two 21-yard punt returns, a 21-yard kickoff return, a 35-yard pass reception from NDSU's 10 to spark a 90-yard scoring drive in the first quarter, and a 9-yard touchdown run.
                — RG Griffin Empey, Offensive Line (9/29)...Played 66 snaps against USD with no penalties or sacks allowed and had a 94 percent overall grade with three key blocks to help the Bison rush for 274 yards, 5.5 yards per carry and four touchdowns.
 
WATCH LISTS: North Dakota State has three players under consideration for national player of the year awards. Wide receiver Bryce Lance is on the preseason watch list for the Walter Payton Award, presented annually to the FCS offensive player of the year. Defensive end Toby Anene and linebacker Logan Kopp are on the watch list for the Buck Buchanan Award, presented to the FCS defensive player of the year. Other preseason All-Americans from NDSU are center Trent Fraley and kick returner Jackson Williams.
 
18 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: North Dakota State has won 18 football national championships. 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, 2021 and 2024. The Bison lost to the eventual national champion in the 2010 and 2020 quarterfinals and 2016 semifinals.
 
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS: North Dakota State is 90-6 against non-conference opponents since the beginning of its first FCS national championship season in 2011. Two losses were to FBS opponents (31-28 at Arizona in 2021 and 31-26 at Colorado in 2024) 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 31-29 double-overtime win in the 2023 FCS semifinals and 38-35 victory in the 2015 FCS Kickoff are NDSU's only other non-conference losses the past 13 years.
 
BISON AT HOME: The Bison have a 202-29 all-time record in the Fargodome since 1993, including 36-5 against FCS Top 10 ranked teams and 77-1 against FCS non-conference teams with 33 straight wins over non-MVFC teams since 2017. North Dakota State has a 38-1 record in the Fargodome during the NCAA playoffs and has won 20 straight home playoff games since the 2016 semifinal loss to eventual national champion James Madison. NDSU's 32-game home winning streak September 2017 through April 2021 is fifth longest in FCS history.