THIS WEEK: No. 2 seed North Dakota State (11-2) is scheduled to host Southern Conference champion and No. 7 seed Mercer (11-2) in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I Football Championship at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome (18,700).
TICKETS: Unclaimed season tickets go on sale to the public at 8 a.m. Wednesday. Tickets may be purchased online at GoBison.com/tickets or by calling the Bison Ticket Office in the south lobby of the Sanford Health Athletic Complex at (701) 231-6378 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Game day ticket sales at the Fargodome begin 5 hours prior to kickoff.
TELEVISION: Saturday’s game will be televised nationally on ABC with Roy Philpott (play-by-play), Sam Acho (analyst) and Lauren Sisler (reporter) describing the action. The broadcast will also be available to ESPN+ subscribers on ESPN.com and the ESPN app.
RADIO: Statewide network coverage on all 25 stations across the Pioneer Seeds Bison Sports Network begins at 1:30 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). Streaming is available on GoBison.com/allaccess and the NDSU Athletics mobile app.
WEEKLY SHOWS: Fans are invited to join the 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: This is the first meeting between NDSU and Mercer. The Bison are 9-0 against Southern Conference teams, including a 38-35 victory at East Tennessee State in September. Mercer is 0-1 against the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Bears lost 41-0 at South Dakota State in the second round last December.
POSTSEASON HISTORY: This is North Dakota State’s 38th postseason appearance and 15th straight dating back to 2010. The Bison have advanced to the quarterfinals or beyond all 15 years in the FCS playoffs. NDSU has an 83-18 record in the postseason with 17 national championships including nine FCS titles in 11 years from 2011 to 2021. The Bison won three College Division national championships in 1965, 1968 and 1969 and five Division II titles in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1990. NDSU is 78-17 in the NCAA playoff format since 1973, and the Bison own the record for FCS playoff victories with a 48-5 mark, including 36-1 in the Fargodome.
SEED HISTORY: North Dakota State has a top-two seed for the 10th time in 15 FCS playoff appearances. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeds have home field advantage through the semifinals, and NDSU has hosted through the semifinal round 11 times. The Bison were No. 3 in 2015 and hosted a semifinal en route to the national title that year after a quarterfinal loss by No. 2 Illinois State. The Bison were No. 3 again in 2022 and won a home semifinal against No. 7 Incarnate Word after UIW beat No. 2 Sacramento State 66-63 in the quarterfinals.
QUARTERFINALS: Mercer is making its first FCS quarterfinal appearance, while North Dakota State has reached the quarterfinals for an FCS-record 15th straight season.
Most Consecutive FCS Quarterfinals
15 – North Dakota State, 2010-2024
6 – Appalachian State, 2005-2010
6 – Georgia Southern, 1997-2002
6 – Marshall, 1991-1996
6 – Georgia Southern, 1985-1990
Most FCS Quarterfinals (Last)
17 – Georgia Southern (2012)
15 – North Dakota State (2024)
15 – Montana (2023)
14 – Northern Iowa (2019)
13 – Delaware (2020)
SEMIFINALS NEXT: The winner between Mercer and North Dakota State advances to face either No. 3 South Dakota State or No. 6 Incarnate Word in next Saturday’s semifinal round. NDSU last played Incarnate Word in the 2022 semifinals, winning 35-32 in Fargo. The Bison are 4-1 against South Dakota State in the FCS playoffs, including a 44-21 home win in the 2018 semifinals.
Most Consecutive FCS Semifinals
9 – North Dakota State, 2011-2019
6 – Marshall, 1991-1996
5 – Georgia Southern, 1998-2002
4 – South Dakota State, 2020-2023
4 – Youngstown State, 1991-1994
4 – Eastern Kentucky, 1979-1982
Most FCS Semifinals (Last)
13 – Georgia Southern (2012)
12 – North Dakota State (2023)
12 – Montana (2023)
8 – Delaware (2020)
8 – Youngstown State (2016)
CONFERENCE CHAMPS: North Dakota State tied with South Dakota and South Dakota State for the Missouri Valley Football Conference championship with 7-1 league records. It is NDSU’s 11th title in 17 years of MVFC membership. NDSU has won six outright titles (2012, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021) and shared five (2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2024). Overall, this is NDSU’s 38th football conference championship counting 26 at the Division II level in the North Central Conference and its first FCS title in 2006 as a member of the Great West Football Conference.
PLAYERS OF THE YEAR: Bison QB Cam Miller was voted Missouri Valley Football Conference Offensive Player of the Year and RB CharMar Brown was selected as Newcomer of the Year and Freshman of the Year. Miller is the fourth NDSU player to be named Offensive Player of the Year joining quarterbacks Brock Jensen (2013), Easton Stick (2018) and Trey Lance (2019). Brown is the sixth player in MVFC history and third from NDSU to sweep the league’s Newcomer and Freshman of the Year awards, joining linebacker Jabril Cox (2017) and quarterback Trey Lance (2019).
ALL-CONFERENCE: NDSU had nine all-conference selections and five honorable mentions. QB Cam Miller was one of six All-MVFC first team picks along with LT Grey Zabel, RT Mason Miller, WR Bryce Lance, DT Eli Mostaert and LB Logan Kopp. RB CharMar Brown made the second team with K Griffin Crosa and RS Jackson Williams. Honorable mentions were FB Truman Werremeyer, TE Joe Stoffel, DT Kody Huisman, S Sam Jung and LS Caleb Bowers. Mostaert finished second in the voting for Defensive Player of the Year behind South Dakota lineman Mi’Quise Grace, and first-year head coach Tim Polasek was second for MVFC Coach of the Year behind Bob Nielson from South Dakota.
ALL-NEWCOMER TEAM: NDSU had five players named to the MVFC All-Newcomer Team including RB CharMar Brown, C Trent Fraley, RS Jackson Williams, S Jaylin Crumby and CB Anthony Chideme-Alfaro.
REGIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR: First-year NDSU head coach Tim Polasek was named FCS Region 4 Coach of the Year by the American Football Coaches Association. Polasek is in his third stint at NDSU after working as an assistant coach under Craig Bohl from 2016 to 2012 and offensive coordinator under Chris Klieman from 2014 to 2016.
JERRY RICE AWARD: North Dakota State running back CharMar Brown won the 14th annual Jerry Rice Award, presented to the FCS national freshman of the year. Brown is the second winner in NDSU history, joining 2019 quarterback Trey Lance.
WALTER PAYTON AWARD FINALIST: Quarterback Cam Miller is one of the three top finalists for the Walter Payton Award, presented annually to the FCS offensive player of the year. The winner will be named at the Jan. 4 FCS National Awards banquet in Frisco, Texas. Bison defensive tackle Eli Mostaert was 14th in the voting for the Buck Buchanan Award (defensive player of the year).
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: North Dakota State had nine players earn 14 Missouri Valley Football Conference player of the week awards this season.
— Cam Miller, Offense (9/2, 10/7)…Had 358 yards of total offense and three TDs at Colorado including a career-high 277 yards on 18 of 22 passing…Also carried 16 times for 81 yards with a 20-yard TD that pulled NDSU within five points with 2:19 to play…Had 207 total yards and three TDs against North Dakota, leading the Bison to points on six of their first seven drives.
— CharMar Brown, Newcomer (9/23, 9/30, 10/28, 11/4)…Rushed 24 times for 126 yards and three TDs in the win over Towson, including 41 yards on five straight carries in the fourth quarter as NDSU scored to make it a two-possession game…Ran for 100 yards on 17 carries at Illinois State the following week…Had 97 yards on 13 carries with 3 TDs at Murray State…Rushed for 124 yards and one TD on 18 carries against Northern Iowa.
—Jackson Williams, Special Teams (9/23)…Game-high 169 all-purpose yards in the win over Towson, including a 67-yard touchdown on his first collegiate punt return…Also averaged 21.3 yards on four kickoff returns.
—Eli Mostaert, Defense (9/30)…Had two of NDSU’s five sacks in the win at Illinois State, helping limit the Redbirds to eight net rushing yards and 4 of 12 on third down.
—Grey Zabel, Offensive Line (10/7, 11/4)…Graded 94% with zero sacks, hurries or TFLs allowed as the Bison rushed for 208 yards, converted 11 of 16 third downs and held the ball for more than 34 minutes in the win over North Dakota…Graded 94% with zero sacks, hurries, TFLs or missed assignments in the 42-19 win over Northern Iowa.
—Logan Kopp, Defense (10/21)…Made six tackles and sealed the 13-9 win over South Dakota State with an interception at the NDSU 38 with 1:00 left.
—Kaedin Steindorf, Special Teams (10/21)…Averaged 43.8 yards on five punts with two 47-yarders, one out-of-bounds at the SDSU 4 helping limit the Jacks to zero punt return yards.
—Griffin Crosa, Special Teams (11/18)…Scored 11 points on eight PATs and a 32-yard field goal against Missouri State, breaking the NDSU all-time scoring record.
—Mason Miller, Offensive Line (11/18)…Graded 93% with no sacks or TFLs allowed as NDSU averaged 9.6 yards per carry and rushed for a season-high 364 yards against Missouri State.
TURNOVERS: NDSU has committed the fewest turnovers in FCS this year (four) with one fumble and three interceptions. The FCS leader in turnover margin last season at plus-17, NDSU currently leads the FCS at plus-19. The best two seasons in turnover margin for the Bison at the Division I
level were plus-19 during the 2017 and 2018 national championship seasons. NDSU has two defensive touchdowns this year, a 34-yard interception return by LB Enock Sibomana at Murray State and a 31-yard pick six by LB Logan Kopp against Abilene Christian. DE Toby Anene is tied for third in the FCS with four forced fumbles, one shy of the NDSU single-season record five set by DT Mike Stratton in 1982 and tied by LB Ben Ahneman in 1997.
SCORING BIG: NDSU’s four 50-point games and scoring average of 39.7 points per game are the most since the highest scoring FCS team in Bison history averaged 41.5 points and had four 50-point games in 2018. No NDSU team has scored at least 50 points in five different games.
LEAGUE LEADER: North Dakota State wide receiver Bryce Lance at Murray State became the first NDSU player since Kole Heckendorf in 2008 to catch three touchdown passes in a single game. That included a career-long 74-yard reception from Cam Miller. Lance leads the Missouri Valley Football Conference with 11 touchdown catches, the most by an NDSU player since Zach Vraa‘s 15 in 2013 and tied for second most in NDSU single-season history with TR McDonald‘s 11 in 1993. Lance’s 55 receptions are the most by a Bison player since Darrius Shepherd‘s 62 in 2018.
TIGHT END TARGET: Senior Joe Stoffel has 76 career receptions for 864 yards, the most catches by a tight end in NDSU history. Stoffel has 12 career touchdown receptions and is tied with Noah Gindorff for fourth among Bison tight ends behind Ben Ellefson (16), Jerimiah Wurzbacher (14) and Kevin Vaadeland (13). Stoffel is second on the team this year with four TD catches.
THOUSAND-YARD RUSHER: NDSU’s CharMar Brown leads all FCS freshmen with a team-high 14 rushing touchdowns and 1,023 rushing yards. He is NDSU’s first 1,000-yard rusher since 2019 when quarterback Trey Lance finished with 1,100 rushing yards. The last Bison running back to reach a thousand was Bruce Anderson with 1,216 yards in 2017.
RETURN TOUCHDOWNS: NDSU freshman Jackson Williams had a 67-yard punt return TD against Towson and a 100-yard kick return TD against Abilene Christian. Williams is the fifth player in Bison history to score on a punt return and kickoff return in the same season joining Ryan Smith (2013), Richard Lewis (2001), Tim Strehlow (1999) and Tony Satter (1990). Two other Bison players have scored on a punt return and kickoff return in different seasons: Paul Hatchett (1968, 1969) and Shamen Washington (2004, 2005, 2007). The Bison are averaging 27.41 yards per kickoff return, second best in NDSU history and third in the FCS this year.
GAMES PLAYED: Wide receiver Braylon Henderson will play in his 71st career game this week against Mercer, tying the NDSU record of 71 games played by cornerback Jayden Price over five seasons from 2019 to 2023. Henderson’s 70 career games are second most among active NCAA players in all divisions behind Iowa linebacker Nick Jackson’s 72 games.
SCORING RECORDS: NDSU’s Griffin Crosa, in his fourth season as NDSU’s top placekicker and his sixth year overall with the Bison, broke the NDSU all-time scoring record against Missouri State and broke the MVFC and NCAA FCS records for PAT kicks made in the second round win over Abilene Christian. Crosa’s streak of 127 consecutive PAT conversions snapped in 2023 was the third longest in MVFC history. He has made 93 PATs in a row entering the Mercer game.
NDSU Career Points Scored
423 – Griffin Crosa, K, 2019-24
399 – Cam Pedersen, K, 2015-18
386 – Jeff Bentrim, QB, 1983-86
384 – Lamar Gordon, RB, 1998-01
359 – Adam Keller, K, 2011-14
NDSU Career PAT Kicks Made
264 – Griffin Crosa, 2019-24 (MVFC and FCS record)
261 – Cam Pedersen, 2015-18
191 – Adam Keller, 2011-14
NDSU Career FG Made
56 – Adam Keller, 2011-14
53 – Griffin Crosa, 2019-24
51 – Shawn Bibeau, 2006-09
46 – Cam Pedersen, 2015-18
42 – Aaron Pederson, 1998-01
FOURTH-YEAR STARTER: Quarterback Cam Miller has started 51 straight games for NDSU since the middle of the 2021 season. Miller has led NDSU to a 42-11 record as the starting QB, including two NCAA playoff games in the spring 2021 season.
ON THE MARK: NDSU’s Cam Miller was No. 2 in FCS last year with a school-record .720 completion percentage in 2023, and he is on pace to break that mark this year ranked second in FCS with a .737 completion percentage. Over the past two seasons, Miller has completed 418 of 574 passes (.728) with 45 touchdowns against just six interceptions.
PASSING LEADER: North Dakota State’s Cam Miller broke the NDSU career record for passing yards against South Dakota and the completions record against Abilene Christian. Miller also ranks first in career passing completion percentage (.692), third in pass efficiency (163.8), fifth in yards per passing attempt (8.8), and fifth in Bison history with 44 career rushing touchdowns, breaking the Missouri Valley Football Conference record of 41 rushing touchdowns by a quarterback set by NDSU’s Easton Stick from 2015 to 2018. Miller also holds school records with 17 career 200-yard passing games and 324 consecutive passing attempts without an interception.
NDSU Career Pass Attempts
1,124 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
1,028 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
980 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
841 – Steve Walker, 2004-07
612 – Carson Wentz, 2012-15
NDSU Career Pass Completions
711 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
703 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
598 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
534 – Steve Walker, 2004-07
392 – Carson Wentz, 2012-15
NDSU Career Passing Yards
9,084 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
8,693 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
8,598 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
7,033 – Steve Walker, 2004-07
5,115 – Carson Wentz, 2012-15
NDSU Career Passing TDs
88 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
74 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
72 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
60 – Steve Walker, 2004-07
45 – Carson Wentz, 2012-15
NDSU Career TDs Responsible For
129 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
118 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
107 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
88 – Jeff Bentrim, 1983-86
85 – Kevin Feeney, 1995-98
NDSU Career Total Offense Yards
11,216 – Easton Stick, 2015-18
11,107 – Cam Miller, 2020-24
9,838 – Brock Jensen, 2010-13
7,230 – Kevin Feeney, 1995-98
7,144 – Steve Walker, 2004-07
SEASON PASSING RECORDS: NDSU is approaching team single-season records for passing completions, yards and touchdowns. The Bison are eight completions away from the 2013 record of 240 completed passes, 201 yards away from tying the 2014 record of 3,152 passing yards, and four passing TDs away from the 2013 record of 35 TD passes.
NDSU Single-Season Pass Completions
228 – Carson Wentz, 2014
220 – Tony Stauss, 2003
219 – Brock Jensen, 2011
218 – Brock Jensen, 2013
210 – Cam Miller, 2024
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS: North Dakota State is 85-6 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 loss the past 13 years.
BISON AT HOME: The Bison have a 196-29 record in the Fargodome, 35-6 at home against FCS Top 10 ranked teams, and winners of 85 of the last 87 home games over non-conference opponents. North Dakota State has a 36-1 record in the Fargodome during the NCAA playoffs and has won 18 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 was fourth longest in FCS history.
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