Week 12 Missouri Valley Football Conference Breakdowns
North Dakota State will win the outright MVFC title if they can beat Illinois State on the road. The Redbirds will likely join NDSU in the playoffs, but beating the number one team in the country would certainly erase any doubts heading into Sunday. Meanwhile South Dakota State and Indiana State are holding onto playoff hopes. In the end, it is possible that the conference only gets two bids to the playoffs.
#1 North Dakota State at #9 Illinois State, 1:00
These two teams are likely in the playoffs, but they are playing for a lot. North Dakota State will be the top seed and get a bye with a quality road win to close out the regular season. Even with a loss, the Bison could still get a bye as a four or five seed. Illinois State could tie NDSU atop the MVFC standings, opening up many tie breaker scenarios for the automatic bid. The key for Illinois State will be getting decent production out of running back Darrelynn Dunn. The Redbirds rely mostly on the arm of quarterback Matt Brown, but they must establish a ground game if they want to crack North Dakota State’s stellar defense.
Projected Score: North Dakota State 21, Illinois State 17
#22 Indiana State at Youngstown State, 2:00
This is a huge game for Indiana State. Youngstown State has won back-to-back games after losing four in a row. But those two wins were against Western Illinois and South Dakota. The Penguins finally have a little momentum, but the expectations were very high after YSU was 4-0 with wins over Pittsburgh and Northern Iowa. Now the playoffs are out of the picture and the Penguins will have to pull together and find something to play for if they want to ruin the Sycamores season.
Projected Score: Indiana State 28, Youngstown State 17
South Dakota at South Dakota State, 3:00
South Dakota State can tie for a conference title with a win over South Dakota and an Illinois State victory over North Dakota State. The Jackrabbits should not have much trouble with the Coyotes. South Dakota has not won a conference game yet this season. As bad as that sounds, and as bad as it really is, South Dakota has kept it close the last couple of weeks against Youngstown State and Northern Iowa. But South Dakota State can finish games where South Dakota has not proven that they can. This game will not boost South Dakota State’s resume very much, but at 8-3 they will be sweating it out on Sunday.
Projected Score: South Dakota State 35, South Dakota 10
Western Illinois at Southern Illinois, 3:00
Southern Illinois got last week off after losing to North Dakota State and South Dakota State. Those losses put SIU out of the playoff picture. But the Salukis had a pretty good season despite a slow start and a slow finish. Western Illinois has not won a game since early October when they beat South Dakota. They will not be able to figure out a way to score consistently against the Saluki defense.
Projected Score: Southern Illinois 21, Western Illinois 7
Missouri State at Northern Iowa, 5:00
Missouri State is playing really good football right now. They started the season 0-6. They then beat South Dakota, Illinois State and Western Illinois. In their last game two weeks ago, the Bears nearly pulled off another upset against North Dakota State. Northern Iowa’s struggles have been well documented. The schedule was brutal and the Panthers just had no room for error. The schedule has been a bit easier and Northern Iowa is starting to get some wins together. The Missouri State program can gain even more momentum heading into the future with a win at UNI. Northern Iowa can finish with a 5-6 record. While that is disappointing, it is not all bad considering the schedule.
Projected Score: Missouri State 24, Northern Iowa 20
See All FCS Games of the Week Breakdowns
