South Dakota State at #2 North Dakota State, Saturday, 3:30
South Dakota and Montana State provided a thrilling first round contest. The Jackrabbits held on to upset MSU 47-40. South Dakota State got a nice outing from quarterback Austin Sumner, but it was running back Zach Zenner who stole the show. The senior rushed for 252 yards and four touchdowns. Those four touchdown runs came from 69, 60, 45 and 7 yards. That is a lot of back breaking big plays for one defense to withstand.
Their reward for beating Montana State is another playoff contest against North Dakota State. The two met in the second round of the playoffs back in 2012 where SDSU, of course, lost. The Jackrabbits have a very good balanced offense and they will hope Zenner can keep the Bison fans quiet and the Jackrabbits in the game. It did not work out that way when SDSU traveled to NDSU on November 1st. Zenner was held under 100 yards rushing and the Bison pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 37-17 victory.
The good news for South Dakota State is that NDSU has lost since the last time these two teams met. The Bison fell 23-3 at Northern Iowa. The Jackrabbits do not have the defense that UNI has, but they are capable of selling out and stopping Bison running back John Crockett. But they still need to contain quarterback Carson Wentz, who is dangerous with his legs and efficient with his arm. And they also need to get more than 96 yards from Zenner and a big game from Sumner. That is much easier said than done.
Projected Score: North Dakota State 24, South Dakota State 10
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