When James Madison snuck into the College Football Playoff last year, that had the wheels spinning in Fargo with the North Dakota State Bison.
The Herd beat JMU twice for FCS national titles in the late 2010s, before the Dukes jumped to the FBS in 2022. NDSU insider Mike McFeely of the Fargo Forum says a potential showdown awaits in the CFP if the Bison make it in Year One, with defending national champion Indiana as the predicted matchup, by ESPN.
Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti once coached JMU and lost to the Bison in the 2019 FCS national championship and the 2021 FCS semifinals. Cignetti left JMU after the 2023 season to take the helm in Bloomington.
“Cig getting a rematch against the Bison, only with a roster worth an estimated $36-$40 million? Methinks he would relish that opportunity,” McFeely wrote. “So would the Bison, only for an entirely different reason.”
McFeely elaborated on how the Bison would be proving the naysayers wrong on the FBS move in his column, and NDSU could get a clear barometer on what it will take to climb the Power Four mountain. NDSU pulling an upset in Bloomington wouldn’t be likely, but it would cap a big first year in the FBS.
NDSU’s Road to CFP Murky at Best
NDSU has a 4-0 start as one of only two FBS teams with that record thus far, but the Bison have a tough road ahead to make the CFP. The Bison winning out might not even be enough, especially with the Mountain West Conference‘s struggles overall.
UNLV entered the season as the Mountain West favorite and the Running Rebels’ blowout loss to North Texas plus a 1-2 start has things looking bleak in Las Vegas. NDSU will need to win convincingly at UNLV in October to have any shot at a CFP berth, and that’s not a shoo-in after how the Bison barely held on against Air Force.
Hawaii came into the season as another Mountain West frontrunner and likewise stumbled out of the gate at 1-2. The Bison will need to overcome the longest trip in program history and a late-night game to beat the Rainbow Warriors in November.
Before those showdowns, the Bison will need to beat New Mexico (2-1), which looks like the top team in the Mountain West after challenging Oklahoma on Sept. 19 in a 14-6 defeat. It behooves the Bison to win that game in Albuquerque on Oct. 24 in a convincing way, considering the whole picture.
The Lobos’ performance at Oklahoma is likely the last impressive performance by a Mountain West team against a Power Four this season, so both the Lobos and the Bison will be on the CFP committee radar for that late-October showdown.
Boise State Poised to Nix NDSU’s CFP Hopes
Boise State nearly beating Oregon to start the season and a favorable schedule down the stretch is bad news for the Bison. The Broncos have a key G6 win over Memphis already, and the scare against South Dakota may be an anomaly.
This year’s Pac-12 doesn’t have a clear threat to the Broncos, with Colorado State and Fresno State as the only other teams with winning records. Colorado State already lost by 18 to BYU, and Fresno State took a 39-0 beating from USC on Labor Day Weekend.
If Boise State wins out, the Bison will need to out-perform the Broncos on top of going unbeaten to have any chance of making a case for the CFP. The Bison won’t be able to count on an ACC championship snafu like JMU did last year.
NDSU Insider Relishes CFP Matchup Prediction