Week 2 of the college football season has turned into a scoring contest, and a former rival of North Dakota State is taking the cake.
That’s James Madison with an 87-3 drubbing of Wagner out of the FCS. NDSU beat JMU twice in FCS national championship games for 2018 and 2019 seasons. JMU had since moved up to the FBS in 2022 and made the College Football Playoff in 2025.
The Dukes’ 87 points on Saturday eclipsed the previous highs of 77 points by No. 7 Miami on Thursday and 73 points by N.C. State on Friday.
NDSU, JMU Crossed Paths in Many FCS Postseason Games
JMU showed up from the beginning to the near tail end of the NDSU dynasty in the FCS. They first met in the FCS playoffs during the 2011 season; NDSU beat the Dukes 26-14 at the Fargodome on the way to a first FCS title against Sam Houston.
JMU then came to Fargo again in 2016 and upset the Bison in the semifinals 27-17 and went onto win the FCS championship that year over Youngstown State. The Dukes became a top brand of the FCS, and drew ESPN’s College GameDay to Harrisonburg, Virginia twice.
Before JMU moved up to the FBS, the Dukes and Bison faced one last time in the FCS playoffs. NDSU won that one, 20-14, when former Bison defensive back Dawson Weber denied the Dukes with a late interception.
JMU’s FBS Success Motivated the Bison
Given how NDSU’s and JMU’s paths were intertwined during their FCS years, there’s no doubt the Dukes’ FBS success only motivated the Bison to move up despite the geographic and financial hurdles. The Dukes won at least eight games every year in the FBS, which included two seasons with at least 11 wins.
JMU won a bowl game, Boca Raton, in the 2024 season, and the Dukes won the Sun Belt in 2025 on the way to the CFP. Former JMU head coach Curt Cignetti moved on to lead Indiana to an FBS national championship, and former Dukes head coach Bob Chesney now coaches UCLA. Former Florida head coach Billy Napier is now looking to revive his career with the Dukes, and his team looked like an SEC team blowing out an FCS team on Saturday.
NDSU finally joined the FBS this year after receiving an invitation from the Mountain West Conference. The Bison opened the FBS era with convincing wins over Jacksonville State out of Conference USA and against Fordham, an FCS team.
NDSU kicks off Mountain West play on Saturday night against Air Force, which opened the season strong the week before with a shutout win over Duquesne. JMU will be a team for the Bison to keep an eye on in the meantime in the race for the Group of Six playoff spot in the CFP.
Eventually, NDSU and JMU could meet in a bowl game or play a regular season home-and-home series down the road. The Bison notably have never visited JMU, but for now the two old rivals will be keeping tabs in the G6 race.
Old NDSU Rival Piles On Whopping Point Total