Sunday, January 06, 2013

Another Championship: Back To Back For NDSU

In what was supposed to be revenge for the Sam Houston State Bearkats, the Division I FCS Championship Game didn't go as planned.  The rematch from last year's title game was one sided after halftime as the North Dakota State Bison overpowered Sam Houston State 39-13.

Quarterback Brock Jensen ran for 3 Touchdowns and the Top-ranked defense of the Bison came up with 4 turnovers as the high-powered Bearkat offense stayed stuck in neutral.  SHS averaged over 40 points per game this year and even when playing competition like Baylor and Texas Tech, the defense averaged giving up just over 20 points per game.

I was worried after the first half.  The Bearkats were driving up and down the field.  The only thing that was stopping them was the Offensive Line could not hold the powerful D-Line of the Bison for pass plays that took time.  It also looked like the Bison were getting the short end of the stick where the officials were concerned.  But it appeared like the Craig Bohl chewing out of his kicker after a 50 yard field goal attempt went 40 yards on the field after time ran out and officials were sorting out penalties woke the Bison up.  It was surreal when the Head Coach of a team is out on the field just screaming at his kicker.  And while reading the lips of the Head Coach, my virgin eyes couldn't believe what they were seeing.  A 10-10 tie going into halftime and during an interview going into the locker room, Coach Bohl was asked about his talk to the kicker on the field, and the D-I FCS Coach Of The Year said that the kicker missed the kick and that we need to practice more to ensure that they convert on the next kick.  Classic.  The point of the game that I knew that the Bison were going to win is the extra point after the TD that made it 23-10.  The snap was flubbed by the holder, he picked up the ball, got hit flipped the ball back to the kicker.  The kicker tried his best Garo Yapremian impersonation, but actually threw the ball forward into the End Zone where a Defensive Lineman that plays on the Field Goal Protection team goes up and grabs the pass for a two-point conversion.  After that, it was just watching a game that I was confident in knowing who the winner was.

The story for next year is a Three-peat.  For this game, there were four Bison starters that are Seniors.  That means 18 will be returning.  Coach Bohl just received a multi-year contract which pays him over $200,000 for a base salary.  The Bison are 10-1 in BCS playoff games.  And that 1 was a job to Eastern Washington by the refs.  The new Quarterback has a strong arm and should get the Bison offense out of second gear.  The only thing that the Bison haven't achieved the past 2 years is an undefeated season.  Three points each season has come between the team and undefeated seasons.  I am expecting perfection in the results next season.  Although if that doesn't happen, a Three-peat is a good consolation prize.


No comments: