BROOKINGS — While South Dakota State will be looking for its second straight national championship against Montana on Jan. 7, it will already enter Frisco with an impressive streak under its belt.
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BROOKINGS — While South Dakota State will be looking for its second straight national championship against Montana on Jan. 7, it will already enter Frisco with an impressive streak under its belt.
The Jackrabbits have won 28 straight games dating back to last year’s season-opening loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes and haven’t lost a Football Championship Subdivision game since falling to Montana State in the national semifinals on Dec. 18, 2021.
Like any streak, there have been times when it looked like SDSU could be in trouble, but they’ve been able to come out on top. Here’s a look at some of the most notable times the streak was in danger and how the Jacks managed to keep it alive.
The Jacks had earned back-to-back victories over the Bison in the Dakota Marker rivalry coming into this game but a comeback win in the FARGODOME established them as the team to beat in the FCS.
NDSU got on the board early on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Cam Miller to DJ Hart and the Jacks answered with a 24-yard touchdown run from Isaiah Davis. Ward put NDSU back in front with a six-yard touchdown run with 3:02 left in the first quarter and a 30-yard touchdown pass from Miller to Hunter Luepke put the Bison up 21-7 with 11:08 left in the second quarter.
The Bison were poised to add to the lead when Miller connected with Braylon Henderson for a 41-yard gain late in the second quarter but Miller was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for a “bow-and-arrow” celebration toward the Jacks’ bench. Two plays later, Colby Huerter intercepted a halfback pass from Cole Payton and it served as a turning point in the game.
Although Davis left the game due to injury in the second half, Amar Johnson carried the running game with 89 yards and a 16-yard touchdown run in the third quarter and Hunter Dustman knocked down three field goals including a go-ahead 18-yard field goal with 3:49 to go to help SDSU complete the comeback.
One week after the Jacks came from behind to beat the Bison, SDSU found itself in a similar hole at the Alerus Center.
The Fighting Hawks came out of the gate on fire as Tommy Schuster connected with Bo Belquist for a 10-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive of the game. Bellquist made another big play with a 61-yard punt return that set up Quincy Vaughn’s one-yard touchdown run to put UND up 14-0 with 8:06 left in the first quarter.
The Hawks were coming back for more after getting another stop on the Jacks’ second drive of the game but DyShawn Gales brought momentum back to the Jacks with a 31-yard pick-six that put SDSU on the board with 4:20 left in the first quarter.
Although Tyler Hoosman made it a 21-7 game with a two-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, Mark Gronowski caught fire, throwing a 32-yard touchdown pass to Tucker Kraft just before halftime and a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jaxon Janke with 11:48 left in the third quarter.
Gronowski continued to lead the Jacks with five total touchdowns in the game, hitting Zach Heins for a two-yard touchdown pass that gave SDSU a 28-21 lead with 7:11 left in the third quarter and running in a pair of touchdowns to build a 41-21 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Although UND added a pair of touchdowns to make things interesting Amar Johnson slammed the door with a one-yard touchdown run.
The score may not indicate it but the Crusaders brought it to the Jacks in last year’s FCS quarterfinal matchup.
Matthew Sluka was a problem for SDSU all afternoon, running for 213 yards including a 56-yard touchdown run that put Holy Cross on the board in the first quarter but Dustman kicked a pair of field goals to make it 7-6 in favor of the Crusaders at the end of the first quarter.
Bob Chesney dove into his bag for a 27-yard fake punt pass from Tyler Purdy to Sean Morris to put the Crusaders up 14-6 with 9:10 left in the second quarter but it would be the last time they would hold the lead after Davis tied the game with a three-yard touchdown run and a two-point conversion to tie the game at 14-14.
Jason Freeman’s 37-yard pick-six gave the Jacks a 21-14 lead at the half but the Crusaders stuck around with a one-yard touchdown run by Peter Oliver that sent the game into the fourth quarter tied at 21.
This is where SDSU pulled away, using an 18-yard touchdown pass from Gronowski to Jaxon Janke on a nine-play, 78-yard drive to open the fourth quarter. Gronowski added to the lead with an 18-yard touchdown run with 2:39 left in the game and added a 21-yard touchdown pass to Jadon Janke with 39 seconds left to close the game.
Coming off their first national title in school history, the Jacks hosted the Bobcats in what was a rematch of the past two national semifinal matchups.
Although the teams split the previous two meetings, Montana State came out with a purpose, using a Sean Chambers two-yard touchdown run and a Brendan Hall 27-yard field goal for a 10-0 halftime lead.
The Jacks responded with a seven-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown run by Gronowski and SDSU took the lead on a 16-yard touchdown pass from Gronowski to Heins that ended an 11-play, 95-yard drive with 14:15 left in the fourth quarter.
The Bobcats blocked a punt and had a separate drive that led them deep into SDSU territory but a pair of goal line stands forced MSU to a pair of Hall field goals to take a 16-13 lead with 2:04 to play.
SDSU responded two plays later with a 35-yard screen pass from Gronowski to Griffin Wilde that went for a go-ahead touchdown but Montana State still had life. Although Chambers appeared to throw the game-winning touchdown at the final horn, the play was overturned via replay review and the Jacks extended their winning streak to 16 games.
There weren’t many tense moments as SDSU claimed its second straight outright Missouri Valley Football Conference championship but the Salukis did their best during an October matchup in Carbondale.
The Jacks’ offense was held scoreless in the first quarter until Davis scored on a three-yard run to put SDSU up 7-0 with 3:38 left until halftime. Gronowski hit Wilde on a 49-yard pass before halftime but SDSU could never pull away thanks to a SIU defense that held the Jacks to 308 total yards of offense.
Nic Baker’s 24-yard touchdown pass from D’Ante Cox with 12:07 to play made things interesting but SDSU ripped off a 15-play, 60-yard drive that included a key scramble on 3rd and 7 that led to a 44-yard field goal by Dustman to put the game away.
The final tense moment in the streak came a few weeks ago as the Jacks hosted Villanova in an FCS quarterfinal matchup. With the wind gusting through Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium, SDSU took the lead on a 42-yard field goal by Dustman on the opening drive before Jalen Jackson gave Villanova the lead on a 25-yard touchdown run with 7:55 left in the second quarter.
Grahm Goering muffed the ensuing kickoff to pin the Jacks to their own three-yard line and Villanova used the field position and the wind at their back to drive into SDSU territory. With a 3rd-and-3 at the SDSU 34, a delay of game penalty and a sack by Quinton Hicks forced the Wildcats to punt which led to Matthew Durrance blocking and returning a punt 45 yards for a touchdown to give SDSU the lead.
Gronowski hit Jaxon Janke for a 20-yard touchdown to break the game open in the third quarter and Davis ran for 192 yards and a touchdown to extend SDSU’s streak to 27 games.
