Getty Head Coach Nick Hill and the Southern Illinois Salukis will face NDSU this weekend.
The North Dakota State Bison (10-1, 7-1 MVFC) host the Southern Illinois Salukis (8-4, 5-3 MVFC) at the Fargodome on Saturday, December 4.
Note: Heavy may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up via a link on this page
The game (3:30 p.m. ET start time) isn’t on TV anywhere, but anyone in the US can watch Southern Illinois vs North Dakota State and every other FCS playoff second-round game live on ESPN+:
With ESPN+, you can stream dozens of different live sports (including hundreds of college football and basketball games), every 30-for-30 documentary and additional original content (both video and written) all for $6.99 per month.
Or, if you also want Disney+ and Hulu, you can get all three for $13.99 per month. Separately, the three streaming services would cost a total $20.97 per month, so you’re saving about 33 percent:
Get the ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu Bundle
Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch Southern Illinois vs North Dakota State live on the ESPN app on your Roku, Roku TV, Amazon Fire TV or Firestick, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4 or 5, Xbox One or Series X/S, any device with Android TV (such as a Sony TV or Nvidia Shield), Samsung Smart TV, Oculus Go, iPhone, Android phone, iPad or Android tablet.
You can also watch on your computer via ESPN.com.
Southern Illinois vs North Dakota State Preview
The Salukis were the ones who handed NDSU its first defeat since 2017, winning 38-14, this past spring. “They were better than us on that day,” Bison head coach Matt Entz said about that loss, via Chicago Now. “They whipped us up and down the field. What we need to do is be more efficient on early downs. In the spring, they did a great job of managing the game.”
Now, they’ll square off in the second round of the FCS playoffs, and NDSU is hoping to avoid a similar result.
The Bison are coming off a dominant 52-24 win over South Dakota last weekend. NDSU quarterback Cam Miller completed 19 of 23 passes for 219 yards and a score, leading an offensive attack that also racked up 303 yards on the ground. They’ll be challenged against a Salukis squad that looks very similar to the one that bested them earlier this year.
“Some similarities definitely,” Entz said. “You look down the roster and you see a lot of the same names. I think they are a really good football team and as I’ve said before, I think they are better than their record.”
On the other side, Southern Illinois is fresh from a 22-10 win over South Dakota on November 27. QB Nic Baker went 21-30 for 210 yards and a touchdown, with the bulk of those yards going to wide receiver Avante’ Cox, who caught 10 passes for 148 yards and a TD. Baker has thrown for 2,801 yards (254.6 ypg) this season, and he’ll be tested in a big way in Southern Illinois’ second straight playoff game.
“This is the second road playoff win in a calendar year,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said this week. “I’m proud of the guys in that room. This is a good football team that’s been battle tested like crazy,” Hill said after his team’s victory last weekend. “They’re stacking up a resume this calendar year that not many teams in Saluki history can talk about.”
One thing to keep an eye on in this game will be turnovers. North Dakota State has taken the ball away 17 times, while Southern Illinois has turned the ball over 15 times on the season. Whichever team wins the turnover battle may well come out on top.