The North Dakota State fans who saw their Bison fall in a devastating loss against South Dakota hoped for a performance in line with the nicest weather seen in the Fargo area in weeks on Saturday. Fans were hardly disappointed, as the Bison handled the Abilene Christian Wildcats 51-31 to advance to the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs.
“We won by 20 points and that’s no small feat,” North Dakota State Bison head coach Tim Polasek said. “It’s hard to win in college football, period.”
Things did not start so pretty for North Dakota State (NDSU), who allowed the Wildcats (9-5) to jump out to an early 17-3 lead. Abilene Christian (ACU) earned its first touchdown on a 12 play, 75-yard drive, capped off by a 13-yard reception to Ole Miss transfer J.J. Henry from quarterback Maverick McIvor. In what was the longest rushing touchdown NDSU has allowed to its opponent since 2013, Sam Hicks rushed for a 90-yard score in a one play drive to end the first quarter. Bison (11-2) quarterback Cam Miller threw an interception to defensive end Kaghen Roach, which allowed ACU to add a field goal in the second quarter.
Patience would pay off for NDSU, as the Bison scored 31 unanswered points from early into the second quarter until late into the third quarter. During this stretch, Miller passed for two touchdowns and rushed for one a yard outside the endzone. To kickstart the scoring stretch, a speedy Jackson Williams ran 100-yards for a touchdown on a kickoff return, the first 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown since Bruce Anderson did so for the Bison against Montana in 2015.
“We never looked back from that moment,” Polasek said. “Jackson has been unbelievable.”
Abilene Christian battled to stay in the game, but the Bison countered both of the Wildcats second half scores with five of their own. Linebacker Logan Kopp intercepted a pass from McIvor and returned it 31 yards for a touchdown, representing the Bison’s one defensive score.
“We made way to many mistakes to win against an opponent like North Dakota State,” ACU head coach Keith Patterson said.
Miller, who is now the all-time leader in pass completions in NDSU history, finished with 274 yards, three passing touchdowns and a rushing score. Miller’s 274 yards is a playoff record for the Bison in their time in the FCS playoffs. ACU’s McIvor threw for a touchdown but two interceptions and 153 yards. On the ground, the Bison were held to 3.3 yards per carry, with starter CharMar Brown handling 16 carries. The Bison earned 375 total yards to the Wildcats 345.
“I think we were all kind of tensed up and tight a little bit. We shouldn’t be like that. We will be better next week for sure,” Miller said.
NDSU will host Mercer next week in the quarterfinals at the Fargo Dome.
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