BISON PLAYOFF HISTORY - North Dakota State University Athletics

2009 BISON FOOTBALL
114
BISON IN THE PLAYOFFS
1976 NCAA Quarterfi nal
RICHMOND, KY--North Dakota State
overcame fi ve lost fumbles with two
fi rst-half scores and then used a stubborn
defense that yielded but refused to break
for a 10-7 NCAA quarterfi nal victory in the
Division II national football playoffs over
Ohio Valley Conference champion Eastern
Kentucky.
The Bison, ranked 10th in the nation
and six-point underdogs to the fi fth-ranked
Colonels of EKU, scored on QB Steve
Campbell's 3-yard run in the fi rst quarter
and a 38-yard fi eld goal by Mike McTague
in the second quarter. And, the Bison were
inside the EKU 25 three other times only to
lose the ball on fumbles.
The defense was superb in the fi rst
half, holding the Colonels to just 72 yards
total offense. EKU came alive in the second
half and the Bison held on downs twice
inside the 20 and forced the Colonels to
miss two other fi eld goal attempts. Eastern
Kentucky fi nished with 338 yards total
offense while the Bison had 298 yards.
Statistics NDSU EKU
First Downs 15 17
Yds. Rush 288 190
Yds. Pass 10 148
Passes 1-7-0 10-19-2
Punts 5-40.4 6-36.5
Penalties 7-75 5-45
Fumbles/Lost 5-5 4-1
E. Kentucky 0 0 7 0 -- 7
NDSU 7 3 0 0 -- 10
NDSU--Campbell 3 run (McTague kick)
NDSU--FG McTague 38
EKU--Nelson 34 pass from House (Landis kick)
A--3,360
Freshman QB Steve Campbell (5)
engineered NDSU's upset of Eastern
Kentucky.
1976 Grantland Rice Bowl
FARGO, ND--Montana State University
scored a third-period touchdown and added
a fourth-quarter fi eld goal to overcome a
3-0 North Dakota State University halftime
lead and capture a 10-3 NCAA semifi nal
playoff victory in the Grantland Rice Bowl
at Dacotah Field over a stubborn Bison
squad.
Montana State, the No. 1 team in the
nation (and the eventual national champion),
had its hands full with the Thundering
Herd before 6,100 fans and a regional ABC
television audience. The Bison took a 3-0
lead in the fi rst quarter on a 25-yard fi eld
goal by Mike McTague. NDSU had another
excellent scoring opportunity in the fi rst
half but missed by inches on a fourth down
at the MSU 31.
The Bison reached Montana State territory
twice in the second half with a pass
interception thwarting the best bid on a
fi rst-down play at the 24-yard line. The Bison
lost four interceptions and two fumbles
on a coldy, windy and snowy day. The loss
snapped a nine-game winning streak for the
Herd and it was only the second Bison loss
in nine postseason appearances dating back
to 1964.
Statistics NDSU MSU
First Downs 8 16
Yds. Rush 146 174
Yds. Pass 51 76
Passes 4-19-4 8-15-1
Punts 5-41.4 6-38.3
Penalties 7-58 3-53
Fumbles/Lost 3-2 1-0
Montana State 0 0 7 3 -- 10
NDSU 3 0 0 0 -- 3
NDSU--FG McTague 25
MSU--Damberger 5 pass from Dennehy (Muri kick)
MSU--FG Muri 34
A--6,100
Motorized brooms cleared the fi eld of
snow while ABC's cameras were bundled
up to prevent freezing.
1977 NCAA Quarterfi nal
FARGO, ND--A bitterly cold, snowy and
windy day greeted the No. 1-ranked North
Dakota State Bison and the No. 10-ranked
Northern Michigan Wildcats at Dacotah Field
as the 1977 NCAA playoffs opened. The Bison
played a near fl awless game and posted
a 20-6 win over the Wildcats to advance to
the semifi nals.
High mounds of snow around the fi eld
and a 7 degree temperature at kickoff did
little to chill the Bison as they jumped to a
7-0 halftime lead on a 3-yard run by Gordy
Sprattler after a Don Hutson fumble recovery
on the NMU 31-yard line. The Bison
pushed it to 20-0 after three quarters with
a pair of third-quarter TDs.
Jay Klein fell on a fumbled Wildcat punt
attempt in the end zone for the second
NDSU TD and Bison QB Mark Speral crossed
over from one yard out after Hutson picked
off an enemy pass and returned it 17 yards
to the Northern Michigan 15. The Wildcats
scored early in the fourth period but were
never in the game despite picking up 240
yards in the air.
The Bison recovered four NMU fumbles
and snatched one pass in running their
record to 9-1-1.
Statistics NDSU NMU
First Downs 10 17
Yds. Rush 186 53
Yds. Pass 3 240
Passes 1-7-1 16-30-1
Punts 6-33.6 4-22.7
Penalties 7-49 2-20
Fumbles/Lost 0-0 8-4
Northern Mich. 0 0 0 6 -- 6
NDSU 0 7 13 0 -- 20
NDSU--Sprattler 3 run (McTague kick)
NDSU--Klein recovered fumble in end zone (McTague kick)
NDSU--Speral 1 run (kick blocked)
NMU--Florini 1 run (kick failed)
A--2,200
It was a cold, snowy day for the 1977
quarterfi nal game.