Against the Hawkeyes, they ran for 239 yards and held Iowa to 231 total yards.
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With no other games scheduled against FBS schools programs until 2020, the 537.7-mile trip between the FargoDome and Kinnick Stadium has become a must-see event for a fanatical North Dakota State fan base.
Football is famously a game of inches, and no two teams found that out better on Saturday afternoon than the No. 13 Iowa Hawkeyes and the North Dakota State Bison. They beat Kansas in 2010, Minnesota in 2011, Colorado State in 2012, Kansas State in 2013 and Iowa State in 2014.
Coach Kirk Ferentz said midweek that he is “optimistic” that Daniels may play. “They’re accustomed to winning”.
But if there was any doubting that the Bison belonged alongside with the top teams in college football, “We told them all week that we belong”, Klieman said. Our fits weren’t great; I think we missed a few tackles from the sideline. Pierre Gee-Tucker hit Beathard from the back side to force the errant pass and Stumpf went untouched with his first career pick. Certainly, he wasn’t bad at returning last season, but he’s certainly more confident in doing so.
Beathard had three touchdown passes for Iowa (2-1). They team isn’t taking them lightly and cornerback Desmond King knows what it is going to take to avoid the upset. “They’re playing against the Iowa Hawkeyes”.
Coach Craig Bohl left North Dakota State after his third national championship in 2013, but Chris Klieman has kept the dynasty going. Iowa, which went undefeated in the regular season previous year, fell from No. 13 to out of the AP poll and is back to the drawing board heading into Big Ten play. Now the Bison are 5-time defending FCS champions.
“We thought we had a chance to win the line of scrimmage”.
NEBRASKA 35, NO. 22 OREGON 32: At Lincoln, Neb., Tommy Armstrong Jr. scored on a 34-yard quarterback draw with 2:29 left, and Nebraska held on Oregon’s final series. They also let Eastern Washington’s Gage Gubrud throw for 450 yards and four touchdowns in last week’s 50-44 win. The Hawkeyes, however, came back on a 30-yard pass from Beathard to Riley McCarron on fourth down and a 14-yard touchdown toss to VandeBerg to take a 14-7 halftime lead.
The defensive difference-maker from Week 1 to Week 2 could well have been Josey Jewell. Beathard looks improved as a passer this season and has always been a very good runner when the need arises, and his job is made much easier by one of the biggest, strongest offensive lines in college football. “He adds a lot to our tempo, helps us be a little more active out there”.
The one-time Rock Island and Burlington prep caught three passes for 38 yards in the game. “Period”, Klieman said on his decision to go for two down 21-20.
A huge play that eventually led to Cam Pedersen’s game-winning kick.
Walking the tightrope against FCS teams while Iowa has been drubbing FBS teams isn’t the most comforting thing for NDSU, but like I said – this is a team that comes up big in big spots.
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Five different backs taxed the Hawkeye defense on the first five runs called during a 15-play, 80-yard drive that ran 8:39 off the clock in the fourth quarter, resulting in fullback Chase Morlock grabbing a 7-yard touchdown pass from Stick with 3:41 left in the game.
