No. 2 seed North Dakota State stormed its way to another FCS national championship in a 38-10 victory over No. 8 seed Montana State in one of the most dominant performances the title game’s history. The Bison have now won nine Division I championships since 2011, and they are a perfect 9-0 since the title game moved to Frisco, Texas.
North Dakota State bludgeoned Montana State behind 380 yards rushing and 7.2 yards per carry against a strong Bobcats defense. Running back Kobe Johnson rushed for 106 yards, 76 of which came on a touchdown run in the second quarter. Fullback Hunter Luepke added 82 yards and three scores in an MVP performance for the champions. Quarterback Cam Miller threw for 126 yards and a touchdown on 13 passing attempts.
The Bison posted 270 yards rushing in the first half alone behind All-American offensive linemen Cody Mausch and Cordell Volson, averaging an even 10 yards per carry, to take a 28-0 lead into the break. From there, the Bison effectively ran out the clock en route to their next national championship.
Montana State traversed a difficult path to reach the national championship game, beating 2021 title game participants Sam Houston and South Dakota State by a combined 73-36 in its last two matchups. However, the Bobcats struggled to find any consistency on offense against the physical BIson front. Starting quarterback Tommy Mellott was knocked out with an apparent lower-body injury on the first drive of the game. In relief, Tucker Rovig completed just 13 of 28 passes for 156 yards, one touchdown and one interception. However, 100 of his yards came in the second half with the game out of reach.
The championship is the second for Matt Entz, who becomes the third straight North Dakota State coach to win multiple national championships. Former coaches Chris Klieman and Craig Bohl, who won the first seven FCS titles, now coach in the FBS ranks at Kansas State and Wyoming, respectively.
North Dakota State’s win matches the biggest margin of victory in the FCS championship game since 2003 (28 points). The Bison beat Towson 35-7 in 2013, while then-FCS Appalachian State capped off its legendary 2007 campaign — the year it beat Michigan — with a 49-21 win over Delaware.
