Bison Shut Out The Citadel in Season Opener, 38-0

Saturday, August 30

Charleston, S.C.

11 a.m.

North Dakota State Athletics

1-0 , 0-0

The Citadel

0-1 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
North Dakota State	0	17	14	7	38
The Citadel	0	0	0	0	0

NDSU quarterback Cole Payton runs with the football at The Citadel.

Photo by: Tim Sanger

Bison Shut Out The Citadel in Season Opener, 38-0

8/30/2025 3:31:00 PM | Football

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CHARLESTON, S.C. - Quarterback Cole Payton accounted for 293 yards of total offense in his first collegiate start to lead top-ranked North Dakota State to a 38-0 victory over The Citadel on Saturday, Aug. 30.

Payton completed 10 of 16 passes for 192 yards and rushed for 101 yards on 11 carries for the Bison, who rolled up 520 yards of total offense and held The Citadel to 122 yards and 2 of 12 on third down.

NDSU averaged 5.5 yards per carry led by Barika Kpeenu with 12 carries for 79 yards and two touchdowns. DJ Scott ran 10 times for 43 yards and one score.

The teams played through steady rain in a scoreless first quarter before Eli Ozick's 31-yard field goal early in the second put NDSU ahead 3-0. Kpeenu scored on a 2-yard run to cap a 12-play, 90-yard scoring drive, and RaJa Nelson caught a 34-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone as the Bison went up 17-0 before halftime.

NDSU capitalized on the only turnover of the game on the opening drive of the third quarter. A fumbled pitch deep in Citadel territory was recovered at the 1-yard line by Logan Kopp, and Kpeenu scored two plays later for a 24-0 NDSU lead.

Scott's 1-yard TD run in the third quarter capped another long drive covering 82 yards in 12 plays, and backup quarterback Nathan Hayes led a 12-play, 90-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter culminating with a 15-yard TD pass to Isiah St. Romain on his first career reception.

Middle linebacker Nathaniel Staehling had a team-high seven tackles for NDSU, and Kopp finished with six tackles including one tackle for loss on a fourth-down stop at the NDSU 3 to help preserve the shutout.

North Dakota State is back on the road next week to continue non-conference play against Tennessee State. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.