Getty NDSU's Hunter Luepke looks to run wild against SDSU on Saturday.
A potential Game of the Year–and not just in the FCS–awaits when No. 1 North Dakota State (5-1) and No. 2 South Dakota State (5-1) meet for the Dakota Marker at the Fargodome on Saturday, October 15.
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The game (3:30 p.m. ET start time) will be televised locally on ABC North Dakota, but anyone in the US can watch South Dakota State vs North Dakota State live on ESPN+ right here:
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Once signed up for ESPN+, you can watch South Dakota State vs North Dakota State live on the ESPN app or ESPN.com.
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South Dakota State vs North Dakota State Preview
If any matchup rivaled Alabama-Tennessee for hosting “College Game Day” on Saturday, it was the rare top-two FCS matchup between longtime rivals North Dakota State and South Dakota State.
It’s not as far-fetched as it sounds since the popular college football show visited Brookings, South Dakota, in 2019 for a matchup between NDSU and SDSU. Fargo, North Dakota, previously hosted the show twice amid the Bison’s run of five-straight national titles between 2011 and 2015.
NDSU has remained dominant in the FCS with nine titles overall, and only the Jackrabbits have shown any chance of knocking off the Bison consistently. SDSU has four wins against the Bison since 2011, which is more than former FCS powerhouse James Madison (one) in that span.
Not bad for a relatively manufactured rivalry for the Dakota Marker. NDSU and SDSU started meeting on the gridiron more than a century ago, but neither school consider the other its main rival. NDSU, which dominated Division II between the 1960s and a 1990s, had its way with SDSU for much of their existence in Division II in the old North Central Conference, a league that also had in-state rivals for both schools.
SDSU actually had two in-state rivals in the NCC — Augustana and South Dakota. Neither made the Division I jump with the Jackrabbits in the 2004 however. The same went for NDSU’s longtime rival North Dakota, which faced the Bison annually for the famed Nickel Trophy. South Dakota and North Dakota both moved up to Division I almost a decade later.
As NDSU and SDSU entered Division I in the old Great West Conference, the two needed new rivals and a traveling trophy, which brought about the Dakota Marker. The rivalry too a big step 2007 when the Bison came to Brookings unbeaten and arguably the top team in the FCS that season. SDSU spoiled the perfect season with an upset of the Bison, a squad that took down Minnesota that year and drew bowl game interest amid not being eligible for the postseason.
When NDSU began its run of postseason dominance in 2011, the Jackrabbits challenged the Bison in regular season amid becoming a playoff regular. SDSU’s rise included nearly knocking off the Bison in the 2015 playoffs, and the Jackrabbits became a team Bison fans didn’t want to see on the way to Frisco for the FCS championship.
SDSU morphed into more than the Bison’s fiercest rival as the Jackrabbits became an FCS powerhouse after once being a mediocre Division II program. This year’s Jackrabbits team might be the most promising yet with a shot to reach Frisco for a second time in program history. The Jackrabbits challenged Iowa in a 7-3 loss to open the season and beat every FCS opponent since.
NDSU faces its tough challenge on Saturday in the dome. The Bison fell to an Arizona squad that’s turning the corner from a one-win 2021 season. Otherwise, the Bison have dealt with challenges in Missouri Valley Football Conference play in recent weeks.
Saturday could easily bring the latest of the down-to-the-wire matchups between the Bison and Jackrabbits in their re-surged rivalry.