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North Dakota State Bison Football
2013 North Dakota State Bison football team
File:NDBison.png
First season1894
Head coach
11th season, 101–32 (.759)
StadiumFargodome
(capacity: 19,000)
Year built1992
Field surfaceAstroTurf Magic Carpet II (2012)
LocationFargo, North Dakota
LeagueNCAA Division I FCS
Past conferencesGreat West (2004–2007)
North Central (1922–2003)
All-time record663–369–34 (.638)
Bowl record7–5 (.583)
Playoff appearances19
Playoff record11–1 (Div. I FCS)
30–12 (Div. II)
Claimed national titles10
Conference titles30
ColorsGreen and Yellow
   
Fight songOn Bison
MascotThundar
Marching bandGold Star Marching Band
RivalsSouth Dakota State University (Dakota Marker)
University of North Dakota (Nickel Trophy)
Websitegobison.com

The North Dakota State Bison football program represents North Dakota State University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level and competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Bison play in the Fargodome located in Fargo, ND. The Bison are the current back-to-back defending NCAA Division I-FCS National Champions and have a 40-2 record since the start of 2011, the best record in all of Division I Football during that time frame. As of 12/7/2013, the Bison have won 21 straight games, the second longest streak in FCS history.

History

1891–1921: Beginnings

The Bison fielded their first team in 1891 and were originally known as the NDAC Farmers.[1] From the early 1900's to 1921, the North Dakota Agricultural College (Later renamed North Dakota State University) mascot was the Aggies. In 1902, Eddie Cochems, known as the father of the forward pass was hired as head coach of the Bison where he experimented building an offense around his new technique; which subsequently became legal in the 1906 college football season; Cochems went 9-1 in his 2 year stint as head coach. The college hired famed Michigan Halfback Paul Magoffin, the first player to ever catch a forward pass in 1907, as head coach, but he left for the head coaching position offered to him by George Washington University a year later. The 1918 season was cancelled due to the outbreak of the Spanish Flu in conjunction with the first World War. The 1943 and 1944 seasons were also cancelled due to World War II and the shortage of eligible players. Keeping with their Michigan favoritism, the NDAC hired Stanley Borleske in 1919 to coach the football, basketball, and baseball teams. After six years of coaching and a 36-36-7 record, Borleske left for Fresno State but is largely credited with developing the Bison mascot. It was well known he was not a fan of the "Aggies" mascot, wanting something 'strong and fierce' he came up with the 'Bison' which remains the mascot today. He also coined the term "Thundering Herd" which is still a common reference to the NDSU Bison Football fanbase.[2]

1922–2003: Division II

Oct 20th, 1928 - NDAC (NDSU) vs. St. Thomas (View looking SE with Ceres Hall in the distance) Courtesy: NDSU Institute for Regional Studies

In 1921, NDSU became a charter member of the now-defunct North Central Conference, which they remained affiliated with for 82 years until 2003. Their primary rival during this time were the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux (who have since changed their nickname) whom they competed with to win the Nickel Trophy. As members of Division II, they won 8 national championships with an overall record of 347-94-4 having only 2 losing seasons from 1964-2003.

2004–Present: Division I (FCS)

In 2004, all North Dakota State athletic teams moved to Division I. From 2004 to 2007, the Bison were members of the Great West Football Conference. Since 2008 they have been affiliated with the Missouri Valley Football Conference. Since moving to Division I, their primary rival are the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits whom they compete with each year for the Dakota Marker. The team's current head coach is Craig Bohl, who has led the Bison since 2003 holds the school record for most wins by a head coach. At the beginning of the 2013 football season the Bison had a Division I record of 92-29.

The NDSU Bison are the only FCS program to ever be ranked higher #34 in the AP National Football Poll. After the 2011 Championship Game, the Bison became only the second team in FCS History to receive votes in the final AP Top 25 with 2, putting them at #32 overall (FCS Record); the other being Appalachian State who receive 5 votes after their third consecutive FCS Championship in 2007 and ended at #34. After the 2012 season, the Bison again broke the barrier and became the first ever FCS team to breach the poll twice by receiving 1 vote and ending at #36 in the nation. Due to the overwhelming support and attention NDSU got during this run, ESPN announced that it would host itsESPN College GameDay program in downtown Fargo on September 21, 2013. The Bison ended up beating Delaware State 51-0 later that day. The Bison finished the 2013 regular season with an undefeated 11-0 record, their first perfect season since 1990. The Bison became the first FCS team to ever finish the regular season ranked on the AP Poll at #34 with 1 vote.

Collectively, the Bison have won 30 conference championships, and ten national championships. They were selected as NCAA College Division champions by polling three times (1965, 1968, 1969), won the NCAA Division II National Football Championship five times (1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990), and have won the NCAA Division I Football Championship twice (2011, 2012).[3] The Bison football program has had only 3 losing seasons since 1964.

National Championships

North Dakota State has won 10 National championships; 8 as a member of Division II and 2 as a member of Division I (FCS).

Year Coach Selector Record Score Opponent
1965 Darrell Mudra NCAA DII by Polling 11-0 20-7 Grambling State
1968 Ron Erhardt NCAA DII by Polling 10-0 23-14 Arkansas State
1969 Ron Erhardt NCAA DII by Polling 10-0 30-3 Montana
1983 Don Morton NCAA DII Playoff 12-1 41-21 Central State
1985 Earle Solomonson NCAA DII Playoff 11-2-1 35-7 North Alabama
1986 Earle Solomonson NCAA DII Playoff 13-0 27-7 South Dakota
1988 Rocky Hager NCAA DII Playoff 14-0 35-21 Portland State
1990 Rocky Hager NCAA DII Playoff 14-0 51-11 IUP
2011 Craig Bohl NCAA DI 20 Team Playoff 14-1 17-6 Sam Houston State
2012 Craig Bohl NCAA DI 20 Team Playoff 14-1 39-13 Sam Houston State

Division I record against FBS competition

Overall (7–3)

Conference championships

North Dakota State has won 30 conference championships; North Central Conference (26), Great West (1), Missouri Valley (3)

Year Conference Overall Record Conference Record Coach
1925♦ North Central 13-8-2 4-0-2 Ion Cortright
1932 North Central 7-1-1 4-0 Casey Finnegan
1935 North Central 7-1-1 4-0-1 Casey Finnegan
1964♦ North Central 10-1 5-1 Darrell Mudra
1965 North Central 11-0 6-0 Darrell Mudra
1966♦ North Central 8-2-0 5-1 Ron Erhardt
1967 North Central 9-1 6-0 Ron Erhardt
1968 North Central 10-0 6-0 Ron Erhardt
1969 North Central 10-0 6-0 Ron Erhardt
1970 North Central 9-0-1 6-0 Ron Erhardt
1972♦ North Central 8-2 6-1 Ron Erhardt
1973♦ North Central 8-2 6-1 Ev Kjelbertson
1974♦ North Central 7-4 5-2 Ev Kjelbertson
1976 North Central 9-3 6-0 Jim Wacker
1977 North Central 9-2-1 6-0 Jim Wacker
1981 North Central 10-3 7-0 Don Morton
1982 North Central 12-1 7-0 Don Morton
1983 North Central 12-1 8-1 Don Morton
1984♦ North Central 11-2 8-1 Don Morton
1985 North Central 11-2-1 7-1 Earle Solomonson
1986 North Central 13-0 9-0 Earle Solomonson
1988 North Central 14-0 9-0 Rocky Hager
1990 North Central 14-0 9-0 Rocky Hager
1991 North Central 7-3 7-1 Rocky Hager
1992 North Central 10-2 8-1 Rocky Hager
1994♦ North Central 9-3 7-2 Rocky Hager
2006 Great West 10-1 4-0 Craig Bohl
2011♦ Missouri Valley 14-1 7-1 Craig Bohl
2012 Missouri Valley 14-1 7-1 Craig Bohl
2013 Missouri Valley 13-0 8-0 Craig Bohl
Total 30 Conference Titles
♦ Denotes a tie for first place and conference co-champion

Playoff history

Division I (FCS)

(2004-Present)

North Dakota State has appeared in 4 straight NCAA Division I FCS playoff berths, which they became eligible for in 2008. As of 11/23/2013, the Bison have posted a 97-29(.770) record in Division I play. Since the beginning of 2011, NDSU has won 2 National Championships and gone 40-2 (.952), which included a 21 game winning streak; second longest streak in FCS history.

Year Seed Record Result Opponent Score Head Coach
2010 #16 2-1 Quarterfinals #5 Eastern Washington University 31-38(OT) Craig Bohl
2011 #2 4-0 Champions #1 Sam Houston State 17-6 Craig Bohl
2012 #1 4-0 Champions #5 Sam Houston State 39-13 Craig Bohl
2013 #1 2-0 TBD TBD TBD Craig Bohl
Totals 12-1 (.917)

Division II

(1964-2003)

North Dakota State has appeared in 23 NCAA Division II Playoff Berth's from 1964 to 2003. During this stretch NDSU compiled a massive 347-94-4 winning almost 80% of their games for 4 decades and claiming 8 Championships along the way. NDSU appeared in 7 out of 10 Championship games from 1981-1990; an unrivaled number in DII as they posted an astounding 111-16-2(.875) mark. While this is a startling record, from 1964 to 1973 the Bison went 90-12-1(.887) including a winning streak of 35 games, considered to be the "Golden Years" of Bison football.

Year Record Result Game Opponent Score Head Coach
1964 1-0 Winner Mineral Water Bowl Western State 14-13 Darrell Mudra
1965 1-0 Champions Pecan Bowl Grambling State Tigers football 20-7 Darrell Mudra
1967 0-1 Runner Up Pecan Bowl Texas-Arlington 13-10 Ron Erhardt
1968 1-0 Champions Pecan Bowl Arkansas State 23-14 Ron Erhardt
1969 1-0 Champions Camellia Bowl Montana 30-3 Ron Erhardt
1970 1-0 3rd Place Camellia Bowl Montana 31-16 Ron Erhardt
1976 1-1 3rd Place Semifinals Montana State 10-3 Jim Wacker
1977 1-1 3rd Place Semifinals Jacksonville State 31-7 Jim Wacker
1981 2-1 Runner Up Championship Texas State 42-13 Don Morton
1982 1-1 3rd Place Semifinals UC Davis 19-14 Don Morton
1983 3-0 Champions Championship Central State 26-17 Don Morton
1984 2-1 Runner Up* Championship Troy 18-17 Don Morton
1985 3-0 Champions Championship North Alabama 35-7 Earle Solomonson
1986 3-0 Champions Championship South Dakota 27-7 Earle Solomonson
1988 4-0 Champions Championship Portland State 35-21 Rocky Hager
1989 1-1 Quarterfinals Jacksonville State 21-17 Rocky Hager
1990 4-0 Champions Championship IUP 51-11 Rocky Hager
1991 0-1 1st Round Mankato State 27-7 Rocky Hager
1992 1-1 Quarterfinals Pittsburg State 38-37(OT) Rocky Hager
1994 1-1 Quarterfinals North Dakota 14-7 Rocky Hager
1995 1-1 Quarterfinals Pittsburg State 9-7 Rocky Hager
1997 0-1 1st Round Northwest Missouri State 39-28 Bob Babich
2000 2-1 Semifinals Delta State 34-16 Bob Babich
Totals 35-13 (.729)
  • At the end of the 1984 championship game NDSU took the lead on a field goal making it 17-15 with 1:36 left; after being on the Troy 2 yard line and settling for 3 points. Troy subsequently drove down the field with no timeouts to the Bison's 33 yard line with :15 remaining. With apparent confusion on the field Troy rushed the field goal team out on the field and freshman kicker Ted Clem kicked the longest field goal in Troy history of 50 yards as time expired to give the Trojans the victory.

Head coaching history

On September 21, 2013, Craig Bohl won his 92nd game and became the winningest coach in North Dakota State history by defeating Delaware State 51-0, which happened to be the same weekend ESPN College GameDay was hosting their Saturday morning football show from downtown Fargo, ND. Rocky Hager holds the record for most conference titles won with 5.

# Coach Years Active Record Conference Titles
1 Henry Luke Bolley 1894–1899 7-8-1 NA
2 Jack Harrison 1900–1901 15-1-1 NA
3 Eddie Cochems 1902–1903 9-1-0 NA
4 A. L. Marshall 1904–1905 4-7-1 NA
5 Gil Dobie 1906–1907 8-0-0 NA
6 Paul Magoffin 1908 2-3-0 NA
7 Arthur Reuber 1909–1912 12-7-1 NA
8 Howard Wood 1913–1914 5-5-2 NA
9 Paul J. Davis 1915–1917 10-7-1 NA
10 Stanley Borleske 1919–1921, 1923–1924, 1928 20-18-5 NA
11 Joe Cutting 1922 6-2-0 0
12 Ion Cortright 1925–1927 13-8-2 1
13 Casey Finnegan 1928–1940 57-48-11 2
14 Stan Kostka 1941, 1946–1947 8-17-0 0
15 Robert A. Lowe 1942–1945 3-9-2 0
16 Howard Bliss 1948–1949 3-16-0 0
17 Mac Wenskunas 1950–1953 11-21-1 0
18 Del Anderson 1954–1955 1-17-1 0
19 Les Luymes 1956 5-4-0 0
20 Bob Danielson 1957–1962 13-39-2 0
21 Darrell Mudra 1963–1965 24-6-0 1
22 Ron Erhardt 1966–1972 67-7-1 3
23 Ev Kjelbertson 1973–1975 17-13-0 2
24 Jim Wacker 1976–1978 24-9-1 2
25 Don Morton 1979–1984 57-15-0 4
26 Earle Solomonson 1985–1986 24-2-1 2
27 Rocky Hager 1987–1996 91-25-1 5
28 Bob Babich 1997–2002 46-22-0 0
29 Craig Bohl 2003–2013 102-32-0 4
30 Chris Klieman 2014- 0-0
Totals 663-369-34 30

Updated on: November 9, 2013

2013 coaching staff

Name Position
Craig Bohl Head Coach
Brent Vigen Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Coach
Chris Klieman Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach
Kenni Burns Recruiting Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach
AJ Cooper Defensive Ends Coach
Scott Fuchs Offensive Line Coach
Nick Goeser Defensive Tackles Coach
Conor Riley Tight Ends/Running Backs
Steve Stanard Linebackers Coach
Gordie Haug Offensive Assistant
John Richardson Defensive Assistant
Jake Chapman Video Coordinator

All-Time statistical leaders

Single-game leaders

  • Passing Yards: Steve Walker (451, 2006)
  • Rushing Yards: Tyler Roehl (263 2007)
  • Receiving Yards: Len Kretchman (232, 1988)

Single-season leaders

  • Passing Yards: Brock Jensen (2,524 2011)
  • Rushing Yards: Lamar Gordon - (1,727 2000)
  • Receiving Yards: T.R. McDonald (1,181 1993)

Career leaders

  • Passing Yards: Brock Jensen - (7,651 2010-Date)
  • Rushing Yards: Lamar Gordon - (4,700 1997-2001)
  • Receiving Yards: Kole Heckendorf (2,732 2005-2008)
  • ‡Wins: Brock Jensen - (45, 2010-Date)

‡Denotes FCS Record

Notable players

Stadiums

The Fargodome

References

  1. ^ http://www.nmnathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=2400&ATCLID=68605
  2. ^ http://www.nmnathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=2400&ATCLID=68605
  3. ^ Haley, Craig. "In the FCS Huddle: FCS champ North Dakota State goes back-to-back". Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  4. ^ NDSU 2006 Schedule "North Dakota State 2006 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  5. ^ NDSU 2007 Schedule "North Dakota State 2007 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  6. ^ NDSU 2008 Schedule "North Dakota State 2008 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  7. ^ NDSU 2009 Schedule "North Dakota State 2009 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  8. ^ NDSU 2010 Schedule "North Dakota State 2010 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  9. ^ NDSU 2011 Schedule "North Dakota State 2011 Schedule hosted by ESPN". ESPN. December 1, 2011. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  10. ^ "Final ND St 22 Colorado St 7". September 8, 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  11. ^ "Final ND St 24 Kansas St 21". August 30, 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  12. ^ "Iowa notes: Non-conference schedule update". September 20, 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
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