2013 North Dakota State Bison football team

The 2013 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2013 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by head coach Craig Bohl, in his 11th and ultimately final season, as he left to become the head coach at Wyoming after the season.[1] The team, which played their 21st season in the Fargodome, entered the season as the two-time defending national champions. The Bison have been members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference since the 2008 season.

2013 North Dakota State Bison football
NCAA Division I champion
MVFC champion
ConferenceMissouri Valley Football Conference
Ranking
Sports NetworkNo. 1
FCS CoachesNo. 1
Record15–0 (8–0 MVFC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBrent Vigen (5th season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorChris Klieman (2nd season)
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumFargodome
Seasons
← 2012
2014 →
2013 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 1 North Dakota State $^   8 0     15 0  
No. 13 South Dakota State ^   5 3     9 5  
No. 18 Youngstown State   5 3     8 4  
Southern Illinois   5 3     7 5  
Missouri State   5 3     5 7  
Illinois State   4 4     5 6  
South Dakota   3 5     4 8  
Northern Iowa   3 5     7 5  
Western Illinois   2 6     4 8  
Indiana State   0 8     1 11  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The season started with a road win over defending Big 12 champion Kansas State 24–21, in front of the second-largest crowd in Wildcats history.[2] According to ESPN.com, Kansas State paid the Bison $350,000 for the matchup.[3] This was the Bison's fourth straight win against an FBS opponent and seventh overall.

The university hosted ESPN College GameDay on September 21, 2013, as the Bison faced Delaware State that afternoon and defeated the Hornets 51–0. This was the first time in the show's history that it was broadcast live from downtown Fargo, and was a rare feature of a non-FBS program.[4] On October 12, in a home game against Missouri State, the Fargodome set a new single-game attendance record (19,108).[5]

With a win at Youngstown State, the Bison won their third consecutive MVFC title, and clinched an automatic playoff spot. The Bison finished the regular season with a perfect overall record of 11–0, their first undefeated record since 1990. NDSU received 17 points in the final AP Poll of the 2013 season, which would have ranked them 29th if that poll ranked teams beyond the top 25.[6][7]

On December 9, 2013, Bohl was introduced as the next head coach at Wyoming effective at the end of the season.[2] On December 15, Bison defensive coordinator Chris Klieman was selected as Bohl's successor as head coach for the 2014 season.[8]

Their victory in the 2013 FCS title game, held on January 4, 2014, at Toyota Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Frisco, Texas, made the Bison only the second team to win three consecutive FCS national titles, following the run from 2005 to 2007 by Appalachian State. The Bison were also the first unbeaten FCS champions since Marshall in 1996.[9]

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 307:30 pmat Kansas State*No. 1FS1W 24–2153,351
September 74:00 pmFerris State*No. 1NBC ND/ESPN3W 56–1018,979
September 214:00 pmDelaware State*No. 1
NBC ND/FCSW 51–018,995
September 282:00 pmat No. 6 South Dakota StateNo. 1NBC NDW 20–016,498
October 52:30 pmNo. 4 Northern IowaNo. 1
  • Fargodome
  • Fargo, ND
NBC ND/FCSW 24–2318,840
October 121:00 pmMissouri State No. 1
  • Fargodome
  • Fargo, ND
NBC ND/ESPN3W 41–2619,108‡
October 192:00 pmat Southern IllinoisNo. 1NBC ND/ESPN3W 31–1011,121
October 262:00 pmat Indiana StateNo. 1ESPN3W 56–105,009
November 92:30 pmIllinois StateNo. 1
  • Fargodome
  • Fargo, ND (Harvest Bowl)
NBC ND/FCSW 28–1018,076
November 162:00 pmat No. 15 Youngstown StateNo. 1NBC ND/ESPN3W 35–1713,164
November 232:30 pmSouth DakotaNo. 1
  • Fargodome
  • Fargo, ND
NBC NDW 42–018,234
December 72:30 pmFurman*No. 1
ESPN3W 38–718,455
December 1411:00 amNo. 11 Coastal Carolina*No. 1
ESPNW 48–1418,219
December 207:00 pmNo. 15 New Hampshire*No. 1
ESPN2W 52–1418,694
January 4, 20141:00 pmvs. No. 5 Towson*No. 1ESPN2W 35–719,802
  • Source: Schedule ‡ Denotes single-game home attendance record.

Coaching staff

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Name Position Year at
North Dakota State
Alma mater (year)
Craig Bohl Head coach 11th Nebraska (1982)
Brent Vigen Offensive coordinator
Quarterbacks
16th North Dakota State (1998)
Chris Klieman Defensive coordinator
Defensive backs
3rd Northern Iowa (1990)
Kenni Burns Recruiting coordinator
Wide receivers coach
4th Indiana (2006)
A. J. Cooper Defensive ends coach/special teams coordinator 8th North Dakota State (2006)
Scott Fuchs Offensive line 5th North Dakota State (1995)
Nick Goeser Defensive tackles coach 4th Wisconsin–Eau Claire (2003)
Conor Riley Tight ends
Running backs
1st Nebraska–Omaha (2002)
Steve Stanard Linebackers 2nd Nebraska (1989)
Gordie Haug Offensive assistant 2nd Bemidji State (2009)
John Richardson Defensive assistant 3rd North Dakota State (2010)
Jake Chapman Video coordinator 1st Ohio (2012)

[10]

Game summaries

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At Kansas State

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1 2 3 4 Total
#1 Bison 7 0 10 7 24
Wildcats 0 7 14 0 21

Box Score. 2nd-largest crowd in Kansas State history (53,351).

Ferris State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Bulldogs 0 7 3 0 10
#1 Bison 21 14 7 14 56

Box Score

Delaware State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Hornets 0 0 0 0 0
#1 Bison 20 21 10 0 51

Box Score

At South Dakota State

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1 2 3 4 Total
#1 Bison 0 7 0 13 20
#6 Jackrabbits 0 0 0 0 0

Box Score. Set a new home attendance record for South Dakota State (16,498).[11]

Northern Iowa

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1 2 3 4 Total
#4 Panthers 6 7 10 0 23
#1 Bison 0 7 3 14 24

Box Score

Missouri State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Bears 0 13 7 6 26
#1 Bison 10 14 14 3 41

Box Score. New home attendance record.

At Southern Illinois

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1 2 3 4 Total
#1 Bison 0 7 21 3 31
Salukis 7 3 0 0 10

Box Score

At Indiana State

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1 2 3 4 Total
#1 Bison 21 28 7 0 56
Sycamores 0 10 0 0 10

Box Score ‡NDSU's only loss in 2012.

Illinois State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Redbirds 0 7 3 0 10
#1 Bison 14 7 0 7 28

Box Score

At Youngstown State

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1 2 3 4 Total
#1 Bison 7 7 14 7 35
#15 Penguins 7 3 7 0 17

Box Score

South Dakota

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1 2 3 4 Total
Coyotes 0 0 0 0 0
#1 Bison 14 14 14 0 42

Furman—NCAA Division I Second Round

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1 2 3 4 Total
Paladins 0 7 0 0 7
#1 Bison 0 10 21 7 38

Coastal Carolina—NCAA Division I Quarterfinal

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1 2 3 4 Total
#11 Chanticleers 0 7 7 0 14
#1 Bison 17 17 0 14 48

New Hampshire—NCAA Division I Semifinal

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1 2 3 4 Total
#15 Wildcats 7 0 0 7 14
#1 Bison 7 24 14 7 52

Towson—NCAA Division I Championship Game

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1 2 3 4 Total
#5 Tigers 7 0 0 0 7
#1 Bison 7 14 7 7 35

Ranking movements

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AP Poll
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415Final
APRVRVRVRV
FCS polls
Ranking movements
Week
PollPre12345678910111213Final
Sports Network111111111111111

References

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  1. ^ Kolpack, Jeff (December 8, 2013). "'A Tough One': An Emotional Bohl Officially Announces Move to Wyoming". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
  2. ^ a b Associated Press (August 31, 2013). "K-State Falls To North Dakota State, 24–21". Kansas State Athletics. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
  3. ^ Chatmon, Brandon (August 31, 2013). "K-State Joins NDSU's FBS Victims List". ESPN. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
  4. ^ Kolpack, Jeff (September 14, 2013). "NDSU Hits "Jackpot," Hosts ESPN's GameDay Next Saturday". The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
  5. ^ "Jensen Passes Bison to 41–26 Homecoming Win Over Missouri State". North Dakota State Athletics. October 12, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
  6. ^ "Bison Unanimous No. 1 in Final FCS Polls; NDSU Gets 17 Votes in AP Top 25". North Dakota State Bison. January 7, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  7. ^ "College football rankings: AP Top 25". CBS Sports. Archived from the original on January 8, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  8. ^ Associated Press (December 15, 2013). "NDSU Names Chris Klieman coach". ESPN. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
  9. ^ "North Dakota St. Cruises to 3rd FCS Title in a Row". ESPN. Associated Press. January 4, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2014.
  10. ^ "2013 Football Coaching Staff". North Dakota State Athletics. Retrieved November 5, 2013.
  11. ^ "SDSU Sets Attendance Record During Dakota Marker Game". KSFY. Sioux Falls. September 28, 2013. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved November 5, 2013.