American college football season
The 2019 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season . They were led by first-year head coach Matt Entz . The team played in the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota , for the 27th season as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). They entered the season as defending national champions, having won seven of the prior eight FCS titles. In 2019, the Bison finished the regular season 12–0, the second consecutive undefeated Bison season, and won their ninth consecutive MVFC title. They received an automatic qualifying bid to the FCS playoff tournament and were seeded as the No. 1 team. The Bison then went 4–0 in the FCS playoffs to finish 16–0 as FCS champions, becoming the first team at any level of college football to finish a season 16–0 since Yale in 1894 . They also extended their FCS-record winning streak to 37 games.[ 1]
In the MVFC preseason poll released on July 29, 2019, the Bison were predicted to finish in first place.[ 2]
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place) 1 North Dakota State 392 (32) 2 South Dakota State 348 (4) 3 Illinois State 289 (3) 4 Indiana State 279 (1) 5 Northern Iowa 266 6 South Dakota 176 7 Youngstown State 153 8 Western Illinois 128 9 Southern Illinois 89 10 Missouri State 80
Preseason All–MVFC team[ edit ] The Bison had six players selected to the preseason all-MVFC team.[ 3]
Date Time Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance August 31 3:00 p.m. vs. Butler * No. 1 NBC ND /ESPN+ W 57–10 34,544 September 7 2:30 p.m. North Dakota * No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 38–7 18,923 September 14 12:00 p.m. at No. 18 Delaware * No. 1 NBC ND/FloSports W 47–22 14,489 September 21 2:30 p.m. No. 4 UC Davis * No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 27–16 18,425 October 5 12:00 p.m. at No. 10 Illinois State No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 37–3 13,391 October 12 1:00 p.m. No. 10 Northern Iowa No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 46–14 18,178 October 19 2:30 p.m. Missouri State No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 22–0 18,252 October 26 2:00 p.m. at No. 3 South Dakota State No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+/Midco W 23–16 19,371 November 2 5:00 p.m. at Youngstown State No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 56–17 11,102 November 9 2:30 p.m. Western Illinois No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 57–21 17,411 November 16 2:30 p.m. South Dakota No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+/Midco W 49–14 17,844 November 23 2:00 p.m. at Southern Illinois No. 1 NBC ND/ESPN+ W 21–7 5,423 December 7 2:00 p.m. No. 19 Nicholls * No. 1 ESPN3 W 37–13 15,690 December 14 11:00 a.m. No. 13 Illinois State * No. 1 ESPN W 9–3 14,132 December 21 1:00 p.m. No. 5 Montana State * No. 1 ESPN2 W 42–14 18,077 January 11 11:00 a.m. vs. No. 2 James Madison * No. 1 ABC W 28–20 17,866 *Non-conference game HomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time
[ 4] [ 5]
Butler Bulldogs (0–0) vs. North Dakota State Bison (0–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Bulldogs 0 0 10 0 10 No. 1 Bison 15 21 14 7 57
at Target Field, Minneapolis, MN
Date : August 31, 2019Game time : 3:00 p.m.Game weather : Mostly cloudy; 70 °F (21 °C); Wind: CalmGame attendance : 34,544Referee : Matt GallagherTV : ESPN+[1]
Statistics Butler North Dakota State First downs 14 25 Plays–yards 60–198 59–605 Rushes–yards 30–88 45–388 Passing yards 110 217 Passing: comp –att –int 16–30–1 12–14–0 Time of possession 30:49 29:11
Team Category Player Statistics Butler Passing Sam Brown 12/26, 85 yds, INT Rushing Brad Sznajder 14 car, 58 yds Receiving John Turley 3 rec, 39 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 10/11, 185 yds, 4 TD Rushing Trey Lance 5 car, 116 yds, 2 TD Receiving Phoenix Sproles 2 rec, 71 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP BUTL NDSU 1st 10:20 8 90 4:30 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 33-yard touchdown run, 2-point run good 0 8 1st 7:58 2 68 0:40 NDSU Phoenix Sproles (#11) 47-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 15 2nd 11:02 5 40 1:36 NDSU Josh Babicz (#81) 15-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 22 2nd 5:24 4 57 2:00 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 26-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 29 2nd 0:45 6 31 3:13 NDSU Josh Babicz (#81) 3-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 36 3rd 9:47 13 63 5:13 BUTL 29-yard field goal by Drew Bevelhimer (#36) 3 36 3rd 9:33 BUTL Fumble recovery returned 29 yards for touchdown by Dan DelGrosso (#49), Drew Bevelhimer (#36) kick good 10 36 3rd 7:45 5 80 1:45 NDSU Ty Brooks (#28) 36-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 10 43 3rd 6:14 1 61 0:11 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 61-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 10 50 4th 9:25 7 72 3:32 NDSU Saybein Clark (#30) 7-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 10 57 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 10 57
North Dakota Fighting Hawks (1–0) vs. North Dakota State Bison (1–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Fighting Hawks 0 7 0 0 7 No. 1 Bison 14 7 10 7 38
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : September 7, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 18,923Referee : Jeremy ValentineTV : ESPN+[2]
Statistics North Dakota North Dakota State First downs 14 20 Plays–yards 55–230 65–428 Rushes–yards 26–68 50–266 Passing yards 162 162 Passing: comp –att –int 18–29–2 11–15–0 Time of possession 24:54 35:06
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota Passing Andrew Zimmerman 16/27, 150 yds, 2 INT Rushing James Johannesson 7 car, 21 yds, TD Receiving Garett Maag 6 rec, 76 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 11/15, 162 yds, 2 TD Rushing Trey Lance 16 car, 95 yds, 2 TD Receiving Zach Mathis 1 rec, 41 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP UND NDSU 1st 11:14 9 68 3:40 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 3-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 7 1st 0:34 10 80 5:35 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 8-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 14 2nd 9:20 13 75 6:14 UND James Johannesson (#33) 3-yard touchdown run, Brady Leach (#27) kick good 7 14 2nd 4:44 8 73 4:30 NDSU Ben Ellefson (#82) 2-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 21 3rd 10:38 7 19 3:36 NDSU 27-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 7 24 3rd 4:56 7 78 3:39 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 34-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 31 4th 9:23 14 80 7:06 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 14-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 38 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 7 38
North Dakota State Bison (2–0) vs. Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens (2–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Bison 10 17 6 14 47 No. 18 Fightin' Blue Hens 5 0 3 14 22
at Delaware Stadium, Newark, DE
Date : September 14, 2019Game time : 12:00 p.m.Game weather : Overcast; 77 °F (25 °C); Wind: S 8 MPHGame attendance : 14,489Referee : Matt OvertonTV : FloSports[3]
Statistics North Dakota State Delaware First downs 26 14 Plays–yards 65–490 57–261 Rushes–yards 41–295 36–125 Passing yards 195 136 Passing: comp –att –int 18–24–0 11–21–1 Time of possession 31:56 28:04
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 18/23, 195 yds, 3 TD Rushing Kobe Johnson 11 car, 101 yds, TD Receiving Phoenix Sproles 3 rec, 72 yds Delaware Passing Nolan Henderson 9/12, 125 yds, 2 TD Rushing Will Knight 8 car, 115 yds Receiving Will Knight 3 rec, 46 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NDSU DELA 1st 13:14 DELA NDSU Punt blocked by Luke Frederick and recovered for a safety 0 2 1st 10:12 4 35 1:36 NDSU Kobe Johnson (#24) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 2 1st 5:45 5 26 2:09 NDSU 46-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 10 2 1st 2:17 8 14 3:19 DELA 36-yard field goal by Jake Roth (#36) 10 5 2nd 14:11 8 75 3:06 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 24-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 17 5 2nd 6:57 9 42 4:12 NDSU 23-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 20 5 2nd 0:30 7 80 2:36 NDSU Ben Ellefson (#82) 5-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 27 5 3rd 8:47 9 50 4:53 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 4-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick no good 33 5 3rd 3:29 11 84 4:35 DELA 23-yard field goal by Jake Roth (#36) 33 8 4th 12:01 8 81 2:50 DELA Gene Coleman II (#5) 7-yard touchdown reception from Nolan Henderson (#14), 2-point pass good 33 16 4th 9:40 5 75 2:21 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 10-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 40 16 4th 6:00 7 80 3:35 DELA Chichi Amachi (#2) 44-yard touchdown reception from Nolan Henderson (#14), 2-point rush failed 40 22 4th 1:46 9 75 4:14 NDSU Saybein Clark (#30) 20-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 47 22 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 47 22
UC Davis Aggies (2–1) vs. North Dakota State Bison (3–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 4 Aggies 7 6 3 0 16 No. 1 Bison 7 10 3 7 27
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : September 21, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 18,425Referee : Matt PackowskiTV : ESPN+[4]
Statistics UC Davis North Dakota State First downs 19 16 Plays–yards 80–422 67–354 Rushes–yards 32–110 44–198 Passing yards 312 156 Passing: comp –att –int 29–48–3 13–23–0 Time of possession 29:33 30:27
Team Category Player Statistics UC Davis Passing Jake Maier 29/48, 312 yds, TD, 3 INT Rushing Ulonzo Gilliam Jr. 19 car, 73 yds Receiving Jared Harrell 12 rec, 102 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 13/23, 156 yds Rushing Ty Brooks 11 car, 104 yds Receiving Christian Watson 4 rec, 56 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP UCD NDSU 1st 11:58 6 33 2:27 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 2-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 7 1st 4:59 5 44 2:31 UCD Wes Preece (#87) 17-yard touchdown reception from Jake Maier (#15), Max O'Rourke (#43) kick good 7 7 2nd 10:28 8 49 3:39 UCD 48-yard field goal by Max O'Rourke (#43) 10 7 2nd 7:24 6 69 2:56 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 10 14 2nd 0:54 10 66 2:23 UCD 44-yard field goal by Max O'Rourke (#43) 13 14 2nd 0:00 6 39 0:47 NDSU 42-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 13 17 3rd 7:32 11 61 5:36 NDSU 26-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 13 20 3rd 4:07 10 57 3:23 UCD 40-yard field goal by Max O'Rourke (#43) 16 20 4th 2:50 3 18 0:53 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 10-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 16 27 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 16 27
North Dakota State Bison (4–0) vs. Illinois State Redbirds (3–1)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Bison 16 7 7 7 37 No. 10 Redbirds 3 0 0 0 3
at Hancock Stadium, Normal, IL
Date : October 5, 2019Game time : 12:00 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 13,391Referee : David SiegleTV : ESPN+[5]
Statistics North Dakota State Illinois State First downs 22 11 Plays–yards 70–482 51–200 Rushes–yards 55–293 31–79 Passing yards 189 121 Passing: comp –att –int 12–15–0 8–20–0 Time of possession 35:57 24:03
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 12/15, 189 yds, 3 TD Rushing Ty Brooks 9 car, 106 yds, TD Receiving Christian Watson 3 rec, 57 yds, TD Illinois State Passing Brady Davis 8/20, 121 yds Rushing James Robinson 20 car, 94 yds Receiving Kacper Rutkiewicz 3 rec, 83 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NDSU ILL ST 1st 11:11 5 56 1:59 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 35-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 0 1st 8:20 3 63 1:13 NDSU Ty Brooks (#28) 53-yard touchdown run, 2-point rush failed 13 0 1st 2:03 12 56 6:17 ILL ST 25-yard field goal by Sam Fenlason (#36) 13 3 1st 0:07 4 -3 1:44 NDSU 38-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 16 3 2nd 2:17 9 80 4:56 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 4-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 23 3 3rd 2:43 11 80 5:51 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 42-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 30 3 4th 7:32 15 92 7:47 NDSU Ben Ellefson (#82) 7-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 37 3 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 37 3
Northern Iowa Panthers (3–2) vs. North Dakota State Bison (5–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 10 Panthers 0 14 0 0 14 No. 1 Bison 15 3 7 21 46
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : October 12, 2019Game time : 1:00 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 18,178Referee : Art BrownTV : ESPN+[6]
Statistics Northern Iowa North Dakota State First downs 14 24 Plays–yards 63–339 69–492 Rushes–yards 33–106 51–347 Passing yards 233 145 Passing: comp –att –int 15–30–1 10–18–0 Time of possession 28:20 31:40
Team Category Player Statistics Northern Iowa Passing Will McElvain 15/29, 233 yds, TD Rushing Tyler Hoosman 12 car, 54 yds, TD Receiving Isaiah Weston 5 rec, 129 yds, TD North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 10/18, 145 yds, 3 TD Rushing Adam Cofield 15 car, 104 yds, 2 TD Receiving Phoenix Sproles 3 rec, 59 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP UNI NDSU 1st 10:57 8 77 3:57 NDSU Phoenix Sproles (#11) 36-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), 2-point rush good 0 8 1st 2:12 6 44 2:58 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 19-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 15 2nd 13:13 2 11 0:44 UNI Isaiah Weston 17-yard touchdown reception from Will McElvain, Matthew Cook kick good 7 15 2nd 6:29 14 64 6:38 NDSU 25-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 7 18 2nd 2:40 8 65 3:49 UNI Tyler Hoosman 6-yard touchdown run, Matthew Cook kick good 14 18 3rd 13:02 2 35 0:42 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 30-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 25 4th 12:53 11 68 4:51 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 32 4th 9:05 4 54 1:51 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 37-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 39 4th 2:05 5 65 2:52 NDSU Kobe Johnson (#24) 50-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 46 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 14 46
Missouri State Bears (1–4) vs. North Dakota State Bison (6–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Bears 0 0 0 0 0 No. 1 Bison 8 7 0 7 22
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : October 19, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 18,252Referee : Andy SpecialeTV : ESPN+[7]
Statistics Missouri State North Dakota State First downs 12 22 Plays–yards 57–185 74–447 Rushes–yards 20–21 43–222 Passing yards 164 225 Passing: comp –att –int 20–37–0 21–31–0 Time of possession 25:08 34:52
Team Category Player Statistics Missouri State Passing Peyton Huslig 20/37, 164 yds Rushing Myron Mason 4 car, 15 yds Receiving Damoriea Vick 6 rec, 72 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 21/31, 225 yds Rushing Adam Cofield 12 car, 93 yds, 2 TD Receiving Phoenix Sproles 6 rec, 52 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP MOST NDSU 1st 7:40 6 65 3:35 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 21-yard touchdown run, 2-point rush good 0 8 2nd 9:44 9 87 4:22 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 15 4th 5:48 8 54 3:26 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 22 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 0 22
North Dakota State Bison (7–0) vs. South Dakota State Jackrabbits (6–1)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Bison 0 3 13 7 23 No. 3 Jackrabbits 6 0 3 7 16
at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium, Brookings, SD
Date : October 26, 2019Game time : 2:00 p.m.Game weather : Sunny; 62 °F (17 °C); Wind: S 15-20 MPHGame attendance : 19,371Referee : David SiegleTV : ESPN+[8]
Statistics North Dakota State South Dakota State First downs 18 19 Plays–yards 59–394 60–330 Rushes–yards 44–332 43–220 Passing yards 62 110 Passing: comp –att –int 7–15–1 7–17–1 Time of possession 30:57 29:03
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 7/14, 62 yds, TD Rushing Ty Brooks 9 car, 97 yds, TD Receiving Phoenix Sproles 1 rec, 24 yds South Dakota State Passing J'Bore Gibbs 3/5, 70 yds Rushing Pierre Strong Jr. 19 car, 120 yds Receiving Cade Johnson 4 rec, 76 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NDSU SDSU 1st 12:39 6 64 2:21 SDSU 29-yard field goal by Chase Vinatieri (#4) 0 3 1st 2:11 12 72 5:14 SDSU 25-yard field goal by Chase Vinatieri (#4) 0 6 2nd 5:53 15 85 8:15 NDSU 22-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 3 6 3rd 8:15 6 80 2:38 NDSU Ty Brooks (#28) 59-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 10 6 3rd 5:57 5 14 2:07 NDSU Ben Ellefson (#82) 6-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), 2-point rush good 16 6 3rd 0:56 9 52 5:01 SDSU 40-yard field goal by Chase Vinatieri (#4) 16 9 4th 7:22 9 80 4:54 SDSU Keaton Heide (#13) 3-yard touchdown run, Chase Vinatieri (#4) kick good 16 16 4th 2:32 4 80 2:24 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 71-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 23 16 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 23 16
North Dakota State Bison (8–0) vs. Youngstown State Penguins (5–3)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Bison 21 21 7 7 56 Penguins 0 7 3 7 17
at Stambaugh Stadium, Youngstown, OH
Date : November 2, 2019Game time : 5:00 p.m.Game weather : Cloudy; 44 °F (7 °C); Wind: WSW 12 MPHGame attendance : 11,102Referee : Art BrownTV : ESPN+[9]
Statistics North Dakota State Youngstown State First downs 12 16 Plays–yards 45–447 65–279 Rushes–yards 34–251 43–173 Passing yards 196 106 Passing: comp –att –int 9–11–0 11–22–0 Time of possession 24:11 35:49
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 7/9, 160 yds, 3 TD Rushing Kobe Johnson 6 car, 103 yds, TD Receiving Christian Watson Phoenix Sproles 1 rec, 69 yds, TD 3 rec, 69 yds Youngstown State Passing Mark Waid 5/10, 52 yds Rushing Mark Waid 8 car, 79 yds, TD Receiving Miles Joiner 3 rec, 37 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NDSU YSU 1st 10:42 4 25 2:05 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 9-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 0 1st 5:22 4 88 1:27 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 69-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 0 1st 1:09 5 62 2:24 NDSU Josh Babicz (#81) 6-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 21 0 2nd 9:17 3 41 1:16 NDSU Josh Babicz (#81) 6-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 28 0 2nd 2:35 5 43 2:35 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 4-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 35 0 2nd 0:55 5 33 1:28 YSU Miles Joiner 23-yard touchdown reception from Joe Craycraft, Colten McFadden kick good 35 7 2nd 0:42 NDSU Kickoff returned 94 yards for touchdown by Kobe Johnson (#24), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 42 7 3rd 7:53 14 77 7:02 YSU 27-yard field goal by Colten McFadden 42 10 3rd 6:20 3 83 1:27 NDSU Kobe Johnson (#24) 75-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 49 10 4th 13:49 7 74 3:27 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 30-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 56 10 4th 8:17 10 66 5:27 YSU Mark Waid 27-yard touchdown run, Colten McFadden kick good 56 17 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 56 17
Western Illinois Leathernecks (1–8) vs. North Dakota State Bison (9–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Leathernecks 0 0 7 14 21 No. 1 Bison 13 14 13 17 57
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : November 9, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 17,441Referee : Aaron AdamsTV : ESPN+[10]
Statistics Western Illinois North Dakota State First downs 18 27 Plays–yards 63–308 78–690 Rushes–yards 36–169 49–352 Passing yards 139 338 Passing: comp –att –int 17–27–2 20–29–0 Time of possession 21:10 38:50
Team Category Player Statistics Western Illinois Passing Kevin Johnson 9/12, 84 yds, 2 TD Rushing Tony Tate 6 car, 51 yds Receiving Dennis Houston 3 rec, 40 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 17/22, 313 yds, 2 TD Rushing Jalen Bussey 6 car, 123 yds, 2 TD Receiving Christian Watson 4 rec, 121 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP WIU NDSU 1st 11:19 5 50 2:27 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 7 1st 7:48 3 46 1:35 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 10-yard touchdown run, 2-point rush good 0 13 2nd 13:33 13 80 6:54 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 23-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 20 2nd 1:41 3 86 0:35 NDSU Josh Babicz (#81) 88-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 27 3rd 11:58 7 75 3:02 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 51-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick no good 0 33 3rd 9:21 8 72 2:31 WIU Clint Ratkovich (#25) 9-yard touchdown reception from Kevin Johnson, Nathan Erickson (#33) kick good 7 33 3rd 5:42 8 75 3:39 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 1-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 40 4th 12:26 5 65 1:41 WIU George Wahee (#11) 17-yard touchdown reception from Kevin Johnson (#19), Nathan Erickson (#33) kick good 14 40 4th 12:15 1 65 0:17 NDSU Jalen Bussey (#21) 65-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 47 4th 11:21 4 1 0:48 NDSU 32-yard field goal by Will Cardinal (#15) 14 50 4th 9:04 7 60 2:06 WIU George Wahee (#11) 28-yard touchdown run, Nathan Erickson (#19) kick good 21 50 4th 8:47 1 45 0:09 NDSU Jalen Bussey (#21) 45-yard touchdown run, Will Cardinal (#15) kick good 21 57 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 21 57
South Dakota Coyotes (4–6) vs. North Dakota State Bison (10–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total Coyotes 0 7 0 7 14 No. 1 Bison 14 14 14 7 49
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : November 16, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 17,844Referee : David SiegleTV : ESPN+[11]
Statistics South Dakota North Dakota State First downs 16 33 Plays–yards 64–245 70–700 Rushes–yards 45–172 52–419 Passing yards 73 281 Passing: comp –att –int 11–19–0 15–18–0 Time of possession 27:40 32:20
Team Category Player Statistics South Dakota Passing Austin Simmons 11/19, 73 yds Rushing Kai Henry 8 car, 58 yds, TD Receiving Carter Bell 3 rec, 46 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 12/15, 249 yds, 2 TD Rushing Ty Brooks 11 car, 128 yds, 2 TD Receiving Christian Watson 3 rec, 94 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP USD NDSU 1st 9:22 8 84 3:02 NDSU Ty Brooks (#28) 2-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 7 1st 4:33 6 58 2:11 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 7-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 14 2nd 14:53 5 90 2:02 NDSU Ben Ellefson (#82) 32-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#36), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 21 2nd 7:50 9 90 4:33 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 43-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 28 2nd 5:01 7 65 2:49 USD Kai Henry (#2) 1-yard touchdown run, Mason Lorber (#31) kick good 7 28 3rd 12:13 5 68 2:39 NDSU Hunter Luepke (#44) 7-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 35 3rd 6:58 8 60 3:18 NDSU Ty Brooks (#28) 4-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 42 4th 14:56 10 66 4:59 NDSU Hunter Luepke (#44) 3-yard touchdown reception from Zeb Noland (#8), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 49 4th 7:03 19 74 7:46 USD Canaan Brooks (#25) 2-yard touchdown run, Mason Lorber (#31) kick good 14 49 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 14 49
North Dakota State Bison (11–0) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (7–4)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 1 Bison 7 0 7 7 21 Salukis 0 7 0 0 7
at Saluki Stadium, Carbondale, IL
Date : November 23, 2019Game time : 2:00 p.m.Game weather : Overcast; 39 °F (4 °C); NW 11 MPHGame attendance : 5,423Referee : Matt GallagherTV : ESPN+[12]
Statistics North Dakota State Southern Illinois First downs 22 14 Plays–yards 68–392 52–276 Rushes–yards 45–246 42–206 Passing yards 146 70 Passing: comp –att –int 13–23–0 6–10–1 Time of possession 31:14 28:46
Team Category Player Statistics North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 13/23, 146 yds Rushing Adam Cofield 15 car, 87 yds, TD Receiving Jimmy Kepouros 6 rec, 80 yds Southern Illinois Passing Kare Lyles 6/10, 70 yds, INT Rushing Javon Williams Jr. 23 car, 117 yds, TD Receiving Avante Cox 2 rec, 25 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NDSU SIU 1st 9:59 10 91 5:01 NDSU Kobe Johnson (#24) 44-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 0 2nd 9:35 10 60 5:40 SIU Javon Williams (#15) 28-yard touchdown run, Nico Gualdoni (#99) kick good 7 7 3rd 5:15 10 74 5:34 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 8-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 7 4th 11:36 13 86 6:50 NDSU Trey Lance 34-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 21 7 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 21 7
The Bison entered the postseason tournament as the number one seed, with a first-round bye.[ 6]
Nicholls Colonels (9–4) vs. North Dakota State Bison (12–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 19 Colonels 3 7 3 0 13 No. 1 (1) Bison 7 7 10 13 37
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : December 7, 2019Game time : 2:30 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 15,690Referee : Bob JohnsonTV announcers (ESPN3) : Jim Barbar, John Gregory[13]
Statistics Nicholls North Dakota State First downs 18 21 Plays–yards 56–265 57–434 Rushes–yards 41–171 41–265 Passing yards 94 169 Passing: comp –att –int 11–15–2 10–16–0 Time of possession 26:31 33:29
Team Category Player Statistics Nicholls Passing Chase Fourcade 11/15, 94 yds, TD, 2 INT Rushing Julien Gums 15 car, 77 yds Receiving Dai'Jean Dixon 4 rec, 66 yds, TD North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 10/16, 169 yds, 2 TD Rushing Trey Lance 11 car, 88 yds, TD Receiving Jimmy Kepouros 2 rec, 62 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP NICH NDSU 1st 3:03 9 62 3:17 NICH 35-yard field goal by Gavin Lasseigne (#46) 3 0 1st 0:00 6 6 84 NDSU Phoenix Sproles (#11) 55-yard touchdown run, Will Cardinal (#15) kick good 3 7 2nd 12:53 12 82 2:03 NICH Dai'Jean Dixon (#5) 25-yard touchdown reception from Chase Fourcade (#9), Gavin Lasseigne (#46) kick good 10 7 2nd 4:13 6 80 3:36 NDSU Jimmy Kepouros (#19) 43-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Will Cardinal (#15) kick good 10 14 3rd 10:36 8 69 4:24 NICH 23-yard field goal by Gavin Lasseigne (#46) 13 14 3rd 6:26 4 2 1:26 NDSU 32-yard field goal by Will Cardinal (#15) 13 17 3rd 2:58 4 13 1:55 NDSU Noah Gindorff (#87) 3-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Will Cardinal (#15) kick good 13 24 4th 8:21 12 85 6:30 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 6-yard touchdown run, Will Cardinal (#15) kick good 13 31 4th 3:12 5 44 2:58 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 3-yard touchdown run, Will Cardinal (#15) kick no good 13 37 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 13 37
Illinois State Redbirds (10–4) vs. North Dakota State Bison (13–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 13 Redbirds 0 0 3 0 3 No. 1 (1) Bison 0 9 0 0 9
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : December 14, 2019Game time : 11:00 a.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 14,132Referee : Matt OvertonTV announcers (ESPN) : Jay Alter, Ray Bentley[14]
Statistics Illinois State North Dakota State First downs 9 15 Plays–yards 48–194 64–263 Rushes–yards 40–160 43–128 Passing yards 34 135 Passing: comp –att –int 3–8–1 10–21–0 Time of possession 27:33 32:27
Team Category Player Statistics Illinois State Passing Bryce Jefferson 3/8, 34 yds, INT Rushing James Robinson 24 car, 94 yds Receiving James Robinson 1 rec, 16 yds North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 10/21, 135 yds Rushing Ty Brooks 8 car, 49 yds Receiving Christian Watson 7 rec, 107 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP ILL ST NDSU 2nd 14:23 9 40 3:51 NDSU 38-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 0 3 2nd 10:00 5 50 2:18 NDSU 33-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 0 6 2nd 0:27 17 69 7:23 NDSU 22-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa (#36) 0 9 3rd 2:02 12 70 6:27 ILL ST 27-yard field goal by Sam Fenlason (#36) 3 9 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 3 9
Montana State Bobcats (11–3) vs. North Dakota State Bison (14–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 5 (5) Bobcats 0 7 7 0 14 No. 1 (1) Bison 7 22 7 6 42
at Fargodome, Fargo, ND
Date : December 21, 2019Game time : 1:00 p.m.Game weather : Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)Game attendance : 18,077Referee : Steve HazleTV : ESPN2[15]
Statistics Montana State North Dakota State First downs 13 21 Plays–yards 61–298 58–541 Rushes–yards 39–148 37–318 Passing yards 150 223 Passing: comp –att –int 13–22–1 15–21–0 Time of possession 30:34 29:26
Team Category Player Statistics Montana State Passing Tucker Rovig 13/22, 150 yds, TD, INT Rushing Isaiah Ifanse 11 car, 60 yds Receiving Kevin Kassis 2 rec, 45 yds, TD North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 15/21, 223 yds, 3 TD Rushing Christian Watson 3 car, 86 yds, TD Receiving Christian Watson 2 rec, 88 yds, TD
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP MON ST NDSU 1st 7:35 12 73 6:39 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 8-yard touchdown run, Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 0 7 2nd 12:44 8 78 4:08 MON ST Travis Jonsen (#10) 1-yard touchdown run, Tristan Bailey (#23) kick good 7 7 2nd 12:34 1 75 0:10 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 75-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 14 2nd 10:51 1 70 0:10 NDSU Christian Watson (#1) 70-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass good 7 22 2nd 0:24 15 75 8:20 NDSU Jimmy Kepouros (#19) 6-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 7 29 3rd 6:27 2 45 0:41 MON ST Kevin Kassis (#85) 41-yard touchdown reception from Tucker Rovig (#12), Tristan Bailey (#23) kick good 14 29 3rd 4:46 3 78 1:37 NDSU Dimitri Williams (#4) 73-yard touchdown reception from Trey Lance (#5), Griffin Crosa (#36) kick good 14 36 4th 13:23 2 50 0:45 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 6-yard touchdown run, 2-point pass failed 14 42 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 14 42
James Madison Dukes (14–1) vs. North Dakota State Bison (15–0)
Quarter 1 2 3 4 Total No. 2 (2) Dukes 7 3 3 7 20 No. 1 (1) Bison 7 14 0 7 28
at Toyota Stadium, Frisco, TX
Date : January 11, 2020Game time : 11:00 a.m.Game weather : Cloudy; 30 °F (−1 °C); Wind: WNW 16 MPHGame attendance : 17,866Referee : Kelly HolmanTV announcers (ESPN2) : Mark Jones, Dusty Dvoracek, Olivia Dekker[16]
Statistics James Madison North Dakota State First downs 24 20 Plays–yards 78–365 55–353 Rushes–yards 45–161 45–281 Passing yards 204 72 Passing: comp –att –int 22–33–1 6–10–0 Time of possession 31:43 28:17
Team Category Player Statistics James Madison Passing Ben DiNucci 22/33, 204 yds, 2 TD, INT Rushing Percy Agyei-Obese 18 car, 73 yds Receiving Riley Stapleton 10 rec, 100 yds, 2 TD North Dakota State Passing Trey Lance 6/10, 72 yds Rushing Trey Lance 30 car, 166 yds, TD Receiving Noah Gindorff 1 rec, 22 yds
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP JMU NDSU 1st 7:27 17 86 7:33 JMU Riley Stapleton (#10) 5-yard touchdown reception from Ben DiNucci (#6), Ethan Ratke (#91) kick good 7 0 1st 3:30 8 70 3:54 NDSU Adam Cofield (#18) 1-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good 7 7 2nd 14:50 4 69 2:13 NDSU Phoenix Sproles (#11) 38-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good 7 14 2nd 9:37 11 56 5:13 JMU 26-yard field goal by Ethan Ratke (#91) 10 14 2nd 3:47 12 81 5:46 NDSU James Hendricks (#6) 20-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good 10 21 3rd 8:45 10 50 4:02 JMU 27-yard field goal by Ethan Ratke (#91) 13 21 4th 14:50 6 65 2:50 NDSU Trey Lance (#5) 44-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good 13 28 4th 6:55 11 46 4:29 JMU Riley Stapleton (#10) 5-yard touchdown reception from Ben DiNucci (#6), Ethan Ratke kick good 20 28 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 20 28
AP Poll Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Final AP — — — — — — — — — — — — — RV RV RV —
FCS polls Ranking movementsLegend: ( ) = First-place votes Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Final STATS FCS 1 (142) 1 (148) 1 (149) 1 (150) 1 (153) 1 (152) 1 (155) 1 (155) 1 (156) 1 (154) 1 (155) 1 (153) 1 (156) 1 (152) 1 (153)
Players drafted into the NFL [ edit ]
Venues Bowls & rivalries Culture & lore People Seasons National championship seasons in bold
1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s
National championships in bold