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Missouri State Notes
THIS WEEK: No. 1-ranked North Dakota State (5-0, 2-0 MVFC) hosts Missouri State (1-5, 1-1 MVFC) in the annual homecoming game this Saturday, Oct. 12, with kickoff scheduled for 1:07 p.m. at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome (18,700). NDSU has won a conference-record 14 straight games overall including eight in a row at home.
TELEVISION: Live coverage in high definition begins at 1 p.m. on the NBC North Dakota network, ESPN3 and ESPN GamePlan with KVLY's
Brian Shawn describing the action, KFYR's
Lee Timmerman and former Bison quarterback
Kevin Feeney as color analysts, and KVLY's
Jamal Spencer reporting from the sideline. A live video stream will be available by subscription on
GoBison.com/allaccess.
RADIO: Coverage begins at 12:30 p.m. on KFGO-AM 790 and KRWK-FM 101.9 of Fargo along with the
North Dakota Corn Growers Bison Radio Network. KFGO's
Scott Miller will describe the play-by-play with NDSU and Buffalo Bills Hall of Famer
Phil Hansen as color analyst and NDSU's
Jeremy Jorgenson reporting from the sidelines. A live audio stream will be available on
GoBison.com/allaccess.
THE SERIES: This is the sixth meeting between North Dakota State and Missouri State and the Bison lead the series 3-2 after last year's 21-17 in Springfield. The series is tied 1-1 in Fargo with the Bears winning 21-17 in 2009 and the Bison winning 51-21 in 2011.
HOMECOMING: This is the 93rd annual homecoming game for North Dakota State and the Bison are 52-37-3 all-time since 1919 (no game in war years 1943 or 1944). The Bison have won two straight homecoming games 20-10 over Illinois State two years ago and 48-7 over Youngstown State last season. Missouri State is the homecoming opponent for the first time in Fargo, but is playing the role for the second straight week after a 17-14 loss at South Dakota.
LAST WEEK: Top-ranked North Dakota State rallied from a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat fourth-ranked Northern Iowa 24-23 at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome.
Zach Vraa caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from
Brock Jensen on fourth-and-6 to pull NDSU within 23-17 and
Sam Ojuri scored on a 19-yard run with 2:52 left in the game to give the Bison their first lead.
John Crockett rushed for 103 yards and Ojuri had 96. Jensen completed passes to six receivers and was 13-for-24 for 99 yards and two TDs.
Grant Olson had 11 tackles and
Colten Heagle nine to lead the Bison defense, and punter
Ben LeCompte averaged 45.4 yards on eight punts with five inside the 20.
FOURTH QUARTER SUCCESS: North Dakota State has held all five opponents scoreless in the fourth quarter this season with a nearly three-minute advantage in average time of possession including 10:56 at South Dakota State and 10:21 against Northern Iowa. The last NDSU opponent to score in the fourth quarter was Sam Houston State with a field goal in last year's national championship game. The Bison have not allowed a fourth quarter touchdown since Nov. 10 last year in the regular-season win over South Dakota State.
OJURI CLIMBS RUSHING CHART: Senior running back
Sam Ojuri has moved into ninth place on North Dakota State's all-time rushing chart with 2,712 yards passing former Bison players Paul Hatchett, Doug Lloyd, Kevin Feeney,
Tyler Roehl and Pat Paschall over the first five games of the season. Ojuri needs 126 yards to pass Chad Stark for eighth place. Only five NDSU players have rushed for 3,000 yards in a career with the last being Kyle Steffes, who finished second in school history with 3,952 yards from 2003-06.
SMITH NEARING TOP FIVE IN RECEPTIONS: Senior wide receiver
Ryan Smith is nearing the top five in career pass receptions at North Dakota State. Smith has 118 career receptions for 1,299 yards and needs just four catches to pass Tim Strehlow (1996-99) for fifth place.
FLIPPING THE FIELD: North Dakota State ranks 14th nationally and leads the Missouri Valley Football Conferenc in net punting thanks to sophomore punter
Ben LeCompte, who has been flipping the field with an impressive 43.7 yards per punt average that ranks 12th in the NCAA FCS statistics. LeCompte had eight punts and five inside the 20 – both career highs – in the Northern Iowa game. He had a career-long punt of 75 yards and another for 74 yards at South Dakota State, and a 65-yarder against UNI. LeCompte's career average of 43.3 would rank second in school history behind Mike Dragosavich's 44.46 from 2004-07.
MVFC RECORD WINNING STREAK: North Dakota State has the longest winning streak in Missouri Valley Football Conference history after capturing its 14th straight victory last week against Northern Iowa. NDSU has the longest active winning streak in the Football Championship Subdivision at 14 games and the second longest streak in all of Division I behind Ohio State. The Bison have won eight straight at home and 41 of the last 42 non-conference home games including 31 straight since a 2003 loss to UC Davis.
Division I Overall Winning Streaks
1. Ohio State (Big Ten) 18
2. North Dakota State (MVFC) 14
3. Stanford (Pac-12) 13
4. Towson (Colonial) 10
5. Alabama (SEC) 9
BISON FIFTH IN ATTENDANCE: North Dakota State drew a crowd of 18,840 to the Northern Iowa game. It was NDSU's fourth straight regular season sellout and 16th sellout overall since 2006. NDSU is fifth in the Football Championship Subdivision with an average attendance of 18,938 through three games.
FCS average home attendance
1. Montana - 25,904
2. Southern - 22,701
3. James Madison - 22,080
4. Montana State - 19,960
5. North Dakota State - 18,938
SEVEN UNBEATENS REMAIN: Division I has 24 teams with perfect records and seven of those are in the Football Championship Subdivision. North Dakota State (5-0) represents the Missouri Valley Football Conference:
Remaining Unbeaten Teams in the FCS
Charleston Southern (Big South) 6-0
Coastal Carolina (Big South) 6-0
Fordham (Patriot) 6-0
Towson (CAA Football) 6-0
North Dakota State (MVFC) 5-0
Harvard (Ivy) 3-0
Yale (Ivy) 3-0
NDSU, MVFC TOP GRIDIRON POWER INDEX: North Dakota State has the top spot for the second straight week in the Gridiron Power Index (GPI), the index ranking for the NCAA Division I FCS and a top indicator of at-large playoff selection. The Big Sky Conference had five teams in the top 25. The Colonial Athletic Association, Missouri Valley Football Conference and Southland Conference had four each. The Missouri Valley Football Conference led the conference rankings with the Southland Conference second and the Colonial Athletic Association third.
Gridiron Power Index - Oct. 7
1. North Dakota State 1.00
2. Towson 2.86
3. Northern Iowa 3.29
4. Eastern Illinois 3.57
5. McNeese State 7.57
RUN DEFENSE: South Dakota State's minus-32 yards rushing was the lowest total allowed by North Dakota State in Division I football. The NDSU record is minus-85 yards against Morningside in 1974. SDSU's Zach Zenner, the leading rusher in the Football Championship Subdivision, had four yards on eight carries.
BACK-TO-BACK SHUTOUTS: North Dakota State's shutout victories over Delaware State and South Dakota State were the first back-to-back shutouts for NDSU since 1987 when the Bison won 34-0 at Augustana (S.D.) and 33-0 at home over Morningside.
OLSON NATIONAL ALL STAR: Middle linebacker
Grant Olson was chosen as a National All-Star by College Sporting News after posting eight tackles and a career-high two sacks totaling 14 yards at South Dakota State. Olson was the leading tackler for the NDSU defense which held SDSU to minus-32 yards rushing.
LeCOMPTE NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Punter
Ben LeCompte was selected by The Sports Network as the FCS National co-Special Teams Player of the Week after the South Dakota State game. LeCompte had seven punts for 310 yards, averaged 44.3 yards per punt, placed three punts inside the 20 and had two touchbacks in North Dakota State's 20-0 win. LeCompte blasted a career-long 75-yard punt from his own 25 in the first quarter and added a 74-yarder from NDSU's 8-yard line at the end of the first quarter. He also handled four kickoffs with a 59.0 average including one touchback. He was the Missouri Valley Football Conference Special Teams Player of the Week.
JENSEN TOPS CHARTS: Quarterback
Brock Jensen became NDSU's career leader in pass attempts (912), pass completions (561) and total offense yards (7,479) earlier this season. Jensen is second in passing yards with 6,575 behind Steve Walker, who passed for 7,033 yards from 2004 to 2007.
GOOD COMPANY: In the past two-plus seasons, North Dakota State has the best winning percentage of any Division I school:
Win Percentage, Division I (2011-present)
1. North Dakota State (MVFC) 33-2 .943
2. Alabama (SEC) 30-2 .938
3. Oregon (Pac-12) 29-3 .906
4. Stanford (Pac-12) 28-4 .875
5. Harvard (Ivy) 20-3 .870
WILLIAMS AND INTERCEPTIONS: North Dakota State's
Marcus Williams has 20 career interceptions, which ranks third-best all-time on the MVFC list. Among active players, he currently leads all of FCS in career interceptions per game (0.42) and career interception return yards (442).
His six career INT returns for touchdown tied the FCS record set by Murray State's William Hampton (1993-96).
MVFC Career Leaders - Interceptions
24, Adrion Smith, Missouri St., 1990-93
21, Jeff Smith, Illinois St., 1985-88
20,
Marcus Williams, North Dakota St., 2010-present
18, Ty Talton, Northern Iowa, 1995-98
18, Dre Dokes, Northern Iowa, 2003-06
ON THE ROAD: North Dakota State has won 11 straight true road games and 14 including two national championship games in Frisco, Texas, and one neutral site win against South Dakota in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Bison have won 19 of their last 23 road games and are 39-20 on the road since head coach
Craig Bohl took over in 2003. NDSU is 14-7 in MVFC road games. The Bison have not lost away from Fargo since the 38-31 overtime loss to eventual national champion Eastern Washington in the 2010 NCAA quarterfinals.
Division I Road Winning Streaks
1. Oregon (Pac-12) 17
2. Northern Illinois (MAC) 12
3. North Dakota State (MVFC) 11
4. Alabama (SEC) 10
5. Texas A&M (SEC) 7
Towson (Colonial) 7
BISON IN NCAA TOP 10: North Dakota State leads the nation in scoring defense and third down conversion percentage, ranks second in total defense and time of possession, and the Bison rank among the top 10 in several categories in the NCAA FCS statistics through Oct. 5:
NDSU in the FCS Statistics
1st - third down conversion percentage (.564)
1st - third down conversion defense (.246)
1st - scoring defense (10.8)
2nd - total defense (254.6)
2nd - time of possession (35:08)
5th - fewest penalty yards per game (32.6)
6th - rushing defense (87.8)
6th - pass efficiency defense (96.84)
7th - fewest first downs allowed (69)
8th - fewst penalties per game (4.4)
10th - fumbles lost (2)
SMITH AMONG PUNT RETURN LEADERS: North Dakota State wide receiver
Ryan Smith is the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision active career leader in punt returns (74), punt return yards (783), is tied for second in punt return touchdowns (2), and is fourth in punt return average (10.6). Junior free safety
Christian Dudzik has handled all 13 punt returns this year.
JENSEN ON THE NCAA CAREER LIST: North Dakota State quarterback
Brock Jensen is among the NCAA active career leaders ranked fourth in total TDs responsible for (76). Jensen is 37-5 as NDSU's starting quarterback and with 38 total victories (including 2010 off the bench against Morgan State) he is within reach of the FCS record of 43 wins by Armanti Edwards at Appalachian State from 2006-09.
NATIONAL TEAM OF THE WEEK: North Dakota State was named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week by the Football Writers Association of America on Sept. 3 following its 24-21 win at Kansas State. NDSU is just the second Football Championship Subdivision team to be recognized. The other was Appalachian State in 2007 following its opening game win at No. 5-ranked Michigan.
FOUR IN A ROW: North Dakota State is the first team in Missouri Valley Football Conference history to win a game against an FBS foe in four straight years (Kansas-2010; Minnesota-2011; Colorado State-2012; Kansas State-2013). No other MVFC team has won three in successive seasons.
TURNER OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK: Left tackle
Billy Turner was named Missouri Valley Football Conference Offensive Lineman of the Week by the league office after the win at Kansas State. Turner graded out at 96 percent with 10 knockdowns and was responsible for zero quarterback hurries or sacks in front of quarterback
Brock Jensen, who was 21-for-30 for 165 yards. Turner helped paved the way for a rushing attack that outgained Kansas State 215-41 on the ground including 127 yards by running back
Sam Ojuri. NDSU had a 12-minute advantage in time of possession.
HEAGLE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Strong safety
Colten Heagle was Missouri Valley Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week after the Kansas State win where he led NDSU with seven solo tackles including two stops for loss in his first game back since a knee injury at Colorado State in September 2012. He made a tackle in the backfield on third-and-2 in the first quarter to force a Kansas State punt and NDSU scored on the next possession for a 7-0 lead before going on to a 24-21 victory over the defending Big 12 champions.
JENSEN DELIVERS LATE: Quarterback
Brock Jensen was 21-for-30 with two touchdowns and one interception at Kansas State and scored the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with 28 seconds left. Jensen completed 14 of 15 passes in the second half including 7 of 7 on the game's final drive which covered 80 yards in 18 plays over 8 minutes, 30 seconds.
LeCOMPTE KEYS SPECIAL TEAMS: Punter
Ben LeCompte averaged 42.2 yards on four punts at Kansas State including three inside the 20 (at the 3, 8 and 12). LeCompte also handled all five kickoffs, leaving the first four short to avoid returners and getting a touchback with 28 seconds left in the game. Senior middle linebacker
Grant Olson's first career interception with 19 seconds left in the game sealed NDSU's 24-21 victory.
BISON PICKED TO WIN VALLEY: North Dakota State has been picked to win the Missouri Valley Football Conference crown in 2013. NDSU, the defending national champion, has won 28 of its past 30 games (going 14-1 each year). The Bison were a unanimous choice to repeat, earning 39 of a possible 39 first-place votes, in a poll conducted by league coaches, media and sports information directors. The Bison return 18 total starters from a team that went 14-1 overall and 7-1 in the conference last year.
Named to the preseason all-MVFC offensive unit were quarterback
Brock Jensen, offensive tackle
Billy Turner, wide receiver
Ryan Smith and kicker
Adam Keller. Representing NDSU on the all-conference defensive squad were defensive end
Cole Jirik, defensive tackle
Leevon Perry, linebacker
Grant Olson, cornerback
Marcus Williams, punter
Ben LeCompte and return specialist
Ryan Smith. Linebacker
Travis Beck was honorable mention. Jensen is on the preseason
Payton Award (FCS Offensive Player of the Year) Watch List, and Olson and Williams are on the
Buchanan Award (FCS Defensive Player of the Year) Watch List.
A preseason favorite has claimed the league crown 15 times (in 27 previous polls). North Dakota State was picked to win the league last season.
2013 Valley Football Preseason Poll
Team (first-place votes) Points
1. North Dakota State (39) 390
2. South Dakota State 323
3. Northern Iowa 269
4. Illinois State 264
5. Youngstown State 253
6. Indiana State 197
7. Southern Illinois 188
8. Missouri State 123
9. Western Illinois 77
10. South Dakota 61
