NDSU, SDSU could collide in FCS national championship
College football fans may be waiting for the playoff to begin in the Football Bowl Subdivision on Dec. 31 – or Gophers vs. Syracuse in the Pinstripe Bowl – but the playoffs have been going on for weeks in the Football Championship Subdivision.
This weekend's semifinal matchups pit two local rivals on each end of the bracket as the South Dakota State Jackrabbits host the Montana State Bobcats and the North Dakota State Bison host the Incarnate Word Cardinals.
If both teams win, it would set up a rivalry showdown for the national championship in Frisco, Texas on Jan. 9, but neither team has a cakewalk to get there.
It starts with the Jackrabbits, who earned the top seed in the playoffs in part because of their 23-21 win over the Bison in Fargo on Oct. 15. Overall, SDSU has won 12 straight games after an opening week loss to Iowa and running back Isaiah Davis has been on a tear in recent weeks.
The junior racked up 104 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Delaware in the second round and ran for 154 yards and a touchdown in last week's quarterfinal win over Holy Cross. In all, Davis has five career playoff games where he has rushed for over 100 yards and he went viral last week for a nasty stiff arm in the win over the Crusaders.
MY GOD https://t.co/o8ZdFoDFHE
— Sickos Committee (@SickosCommittee) December 10, 2022
The Jackrabbits also feature tight end Tucker Kraft, who will declare for this year's NFL Draft at the end of SDSU's playoff run and was named the No. 2 tight end prospect in this class by ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr.
— wow that was crazy (@CowardlyDoggo) December 10, 2022
It will take more than Davis and Kraft to defeat the Bobcats, however, as Montana State is led by the quarterback duo of Tommy Mellott and Sean Chamberlain.
Mellott torched the Jackrabbits in last year's FCS semifinals, racking up 388 total yards and four touchdowns in a 31-17 victory that sent the Bobcats to Frisco for the first time since winning the national championship in 1984.
Just as the legend of "Touchdown Tommy" was born in Bozeman, Mellott followed it up by leading the Bobcats with 1,058 yards with 12 touchdowns this season. Chamberlain has mixed in with 835 rushing yards and a team-high 18 touchdowns to help Montana State claim the top rushing offense in the FCS at 331.8 yards per game.
Put ‘em on ice 🧊 @Tommy_Mellott skates in for the 10-0 lead! 👏 #ExperienceElevated pic.twitter.com/QUR1xQFgvF
— Big Sky Conference (@BigSkyConf) December 10, 2022
The Jackrabbits' defense – which leads the nation with 85.4 rushing yards allowed per game – could neutralize the Bobcats' attack but they allowed 261 yards on the ground in last week's win over Holy Cross including 213 rushing yards to quarterback Matthew Sluka.
With Saturday's forecast in Brookings calling for a high of 9 degrees, it could be an old-school matchup, but roughly 200 miles away, the Bison's matchup will be much more comfortable inside the sold-out FARGODOME.
The third-seeded Bison didn't expect to be hosting the FCS semifinals this year but received a gift from the football gods after the seventh-seeded Cardinals upset second-seeded Sacramento State in a wild 66-63 victory last Friday night.
That's tremendous news for the Bison, who have won 50 out of their last 52 games in Fargo. Both losses came against SDSU with one during the 2021 spring season and the other coming earlier this year, but the last time someone other than the Jackrabbits beat the Bison in Fargo, it was an FCS semifinal matchup against James Madison on Dec. 16, 2016.
NDSU's success at home has printed a golden ticket to Frisco as the Bison have won nine out of the past 11 FCS titles. Although this essentially makes Fargo the FCS's version of Tuscaloosa, the Bison also have an extremely talented team even in the wake of a season-ending injury to star fullback Hunter Luepke.
The Bison still have a talented backfield including running back Kobe Johnson (762 yards, 5 TD) and TaMerik Williams (679 yards, 8 TD) and have an NFL Draft prospect of their own in offensive tackle Cody Mauch.
North Dakota State left tackle Cody Mauch has just been MOVING people in the run game tonight against Samford. The Bisons have relied on running behind the @seniorbowl bound OT to pull away in the second half.
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) December 10, 2022
One of the top OTs in the 2023 NFL Draft. pic.twitter.com/CfrUPPhRw6
The Bison will be tested in their own right as Incarnate Word quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. has been one of the most exciting players during this year's playoffs. At one moment, Scott makes throws that have coordinators pulling their hair out. The next? They're celebrating a touchdown.
Makin' those video game moves! 🎮#FCSPlayoffs x 🎥 @UIWFootball pic.twitter.com/0xk91l9QMu
— NCAA FCS Football (@NCAA_FCS) December 5, 2022
A well-traveled veteran that has spent time at LSU, East Mississippi CC, Missouri and Nichols State, Scott threw for 219 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 166 yards and two more touchdowns in a game that included 57 combined points in the fourth quarter and post-TD beer celebrations.
If the Bison and Jackrabbits can get past this weekend's games, it will be the first time ever that the two schools will meet for a national title. Even if they don't, it should be an entertaining weekend of football for the starved college football junkie.
