The Bison are Making Themselves Herd Once Again

North Dakota State won eight NCAA Division II Championships, the last of which was in 1990, before moving up a division to the FCS in 2004. Today was the Bison's first title game since the move. They faced an undefeated Sam Houston State team. The Bearkats were an offensive machine prior to this game, putting up 39 points per game on average.

The offenses weren't the highlight of this game. Both teams struggled throughout the first half as Sam Houston State led 6-3, despite not capitalizing on two North Dakota State turnovers. The first possession of the second half led to what appeared to be yet another North Dakota State three-and-out on offense. However, the Bison decided they might need to try something unconventional to get a first down. Head coach Craig Bohl explained his decision, "We had not run a fake all year. It was something we kept in our hip pocket. We needed to establish some momentum." So on fourth down, Bison punter Matt Voigtlander hiked the football and immediately saw an open lane on the outside, so he took off and ran for 27 yards. On the next play, Bison quarterback Brock Jensen threw a screen pass to D.J. McNorton, who ran it 39 yards for the touchdown, giving them a 10-6 lead.

The defense dominance returned to the game, until North Dakota State made another big play, this time on defense. Midway through the fourth quarter, Sam Houston State quarterback Brian Bell underthrew a pass that hit Bison linebacker Travis Beck in the chest. Beck held on to the interception and ran it to the one yard line before being tackled despite his diving effort. On the next play, Jensen found the endzone again this time on a quarterback keeper, putting the Bison up 17-6. The North Dakota State defense shutdown any more efforts the Bearkats had in them, including one more interception of Bell.

The state of North Dakota usually isn't in the national sports spotlight, but the North Dakota State players, coaches, and fans deserve it. The Bison are champions again. After the game, Coach Bohl stated that, "There was a real resolve and determinism, especially by our seniors. We had a couple of tough years here. Our guys wanted to make sure we returned Bison football to national prominence. It's not easy to do. I want to thank them because today we returned Bison football to national prominence."

In case you missed the game, highlights can be seen here: http://www.ncaa.com/video/football/2012-01-07/fcs-championship-shsu-ndsu