Ten North Dakota State Bison seniors will suit up for their final regular season game at the Fargodome.
Following the Senior Day pregame ceremony, the Bison will look to stay in the running for the Missouri Valley Championship with a win over Indiana State. The game will also be a Code Green, so all fans are asked to wear green in the stands.
The Code Green has been going on for the last couple of weeks, as the Bison defense has been on lock down since the 24-23 loss to South Dakota State. In the last three games, the Bison have only allowed an average of 12 points per game. The key for the Bison has been red zone defense. When backed inside their own 20, the Bison have allowed points on just 13 of 23 trips.
Last week was a golden example of the Bison strength when defending the end zone. Youngstown State made four trips deep in to Bison territory, and came away with just three points.
The defense has also been creating turnovers. Tre Dempsey leads the conference with five interceptions. He has four in the last three games. The rest of the defense has been doing their part. In total, they have forced nine turnovers.
The job will be a bit tougher for the defense due to the absence of Nate Tanguay. The junior defensive end tore his ACL last week and will not return for the year. Junior Grant Morgan will be the main fill-in, others will be moved around.
The Indiana State offense could be a test for the Bison. Quarterback Isaac Harker averages 255.9 yards per game. He has thrown for 19 touchdowns so far, 10 to receiver Robert Tonyan. The Bison secondary will once again be tested.
The Syacamore’s run game has not been a strong point so far. They are averging just 118 yards per game. The Bison front seven will be looking to bring the pressure once again. Greg Menard will look to add to his 7.5 sacks on the season.
NDSU’s run game will be the key. Indiana State’s run defense has been poor, allowing 178 yards per game. The notorious Bison run game will likely go into the game short-handed. Bruce Anderson will likely sit out once again with an ankle sprain. King Frazier may also join him on the sideline, stlll ailing from a rib injury.
So it will likely be a two-headed beast with Chase Morlock and Lance Dunn. Morlock exploded for his first 100-yard game last week against Yougnstown State. His 71-yard touchdown sparked the Bison, while Dunn added another 79 yards.
A question for concern for the Bison has been the play of quarterback Easton Stick. The redshirt sophomore struggled last week, completing just 50 percent of his passes. He also had three interceptions in the last two games.
He threw for just 20 more yards than he ran for last week.
The receivers have been seeing their production go down as well. The yardage drops also reflect the short yard situations that the defense has set up.
One receiver that has seen an uptick in offense is tight end Jeff Illies. The junior has touchdowns in each of the last three games. The last time a wide receiver caught a touchdown was Darrius Shepherd in Missouri State.
Bison special teams have been a big reason for the Bison success as of late. Jackson Koonce has been improving and not allowing returns. Cam Pederson has been solid, six of nine in the conference so far. He also pinned the Penguins back on several occasions last week.
The Bison will look to keep pace with South Dakota State, who host South Dakota Saturday. Kickoff is at 2:30 p.m. in the Fargodome.