Category: South Dakota State Jackrabbits
Dawgs Ride Rout to Playoffs
BROOKINGS, S.D. - Southern Illinois University’s defense took the drama out of Saturday’s Missouri Valley Football Conference de facto championship game.
Going up against the top scoring defense in the country, the No. 3 Salukis flirted with their second straight shutout on the way to a 34-15 victory over No. 9 South Dakota State. With its fourth league road victory in four tries, SIU earned its seventh straight trip to the postseason and at least a tie for the MVFC title.
A win against Missouri State next weekend - in McAndrew Stadiums’ final regular-season game - will give the Salukis (8-1, 7-0 MVFC) the first-ever 8-0 league mark and an outright championship.
SIU, SDSU Showdown to Have Playoff Atmosphere
CARBONDALE - Deji Karim had to stop himself momentarily after he was asked if Southern Illinois University’s football team is treating Saturday’s game with co-conference leader South Dakota State as a playoff game.
“Oh yeah,” he said, before pausing. “We’re treating it as another conference game, but you know what I’m saying? Every game for us has been a playoff game, basically a playoff atmosphere, because we don’t want to lose and not have a chance to be conference champions. This has been what it comes down to all the way from the start of the season in conference play, so we’ve got to finish it.”
Missouri Valley Football Conference Recognizes "Silver Anniversary Team"
Founded in 1985 as the Gateway Football Conference, the Missouri Valley Football Conference is celebrating its 25th season of FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) football during the 2009 season. As part of a season-long celebration, the conference is paying tribute to its all-time greats by selecting a Silver Anniversary Team. Also selected was an NFL Greats and Institutional Greats team.
- 3203 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, Southern Illinois Salukis, Indiana State Sycamores, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, North Dakota State Bison, Northern Iowa Panthers, Youngstown State Penguins, Western Illinois Leathernecks, Missouri State Bears, Illinois State Redbirds Jacks Hit Stride in Banner Season
Saturday certainly was, as the slogan goes, a good day to be a Jackrabbit. Actually, the past 10 years have been pretty decent for the blue and yellow.
A 24-14 triumph over sixth-ranked Northern Iowa on Saturday in Brookings was the 63rd win for South Dakota State since the 2000 season, breaking the program mark for the most victories in a decade.
The previous record of 62 wins was set in the 1990s. Prior to that, No. 11 SDSU had never won more than 55 games in any decade.
Nothing fancy for Jacks
Football coaches use trailers until new facility finished
BROOKINGS - The South Dakota State football staff has moved closer to the Dykhouse Center while taking a step back in accommodations.
Everyone except head coach John Stiegelmeier - who hasn’t had time to pack up all the paper piles and pictures in his office of 21 years - has relocated into four trailers at Coughlin-Alumni Stadium.
Why is a Football Championship Subdivision program spending the season in what amounts to tenement housing?
Because construction is ongoing at the Dykhouse Center, SDSU’s $6 million future home, and cosmetic upgrades - fresh paint, new flooring - are under way inside the Stanley J. Marshall HPER Center.
With QB in question, defense will dictate Jacks' season
BROOKINGS - Most of the attention at South Dakota State football media day centered on - what else? - the quarterbacks. There are four vying to replace all-conference pick Ryan Berry, and the race to win the most glamorous spot on the field seems wide open based on the evenly distributed snaps during the first padded practice Monday.
That’s all the more reason to believe that the play of the defense will define the season.
The Jackrabbits return their top eight tacklers from a seven-win squad. All three linebackers are multiple-year starters. Defensive end Danny Batten is a candidate for the Buck Buchanan Award given to the best defensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision.
That had better count for something if SDSU is going to garner a postseason bid.
TSN: UNI, SIU teams to beat in MVFC
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - There was little doubt that the addition of North Dakota State and South Dakota State would make a brutal Missouri Valley Fall Conference race even more competitive.
But when the dust had settled last season, it was traditional powerhouses Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois sitting on top of the league. Things will likely be just as competitive in 2009, but UNI and SIU are again the teams that should set the pace.
Northern Iowa is looking for a share of its third consecutive MVFC title and has developed into one of the more consistent programs in FCS under coach Mark Farley, going from a top-10 team to a squad capable of winning a national title in almost any given year.
- 2240 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, Southern Illinois Salukis, Indiana State Sycamores, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, North Dakota State Bison, Northern Iowa Panthers, Youngstown State Penguins, Western Illinois Leathernecks, Missouri State Bears, Illinois State Redbirds MVFC Recognizes "All-Select NFL Team"
ST. LOUIS – Founded in 1985 as the Gateway Football Conference, the Missouri Valley Football Conference will celebrate its 25th season of FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) football during the 2009 season. To kick off the league’s 25th Year Celebration, the Missouri Valley Football Conference is paying tribute to its all-time greats - those who have had stellar careers or played with distinction in the National Football League.
Included in the list are former NFL Most Valuable Players, Pro-Bowl selections and Super Bowl participants. In all, former conference players have combined to play in 15 Pro Bowls and earned four MVP honors, while 12 players have combined for 23 Super Bowl appearances. Notably, 16 former league players on the list are currently active in the NFL.
- 1657 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, Southern Illinois Salukis, Indiana State Sycamores, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, North Dakota State Bison, Northern Iowa Panthers, Youngstown State Penguins, Western Illinois Leathernecks, Missouri State Bears, Illinois State Redbirds Missouri Valley Football Conference Announces 2008 Academic Awards
Thirteen student-athletes highlight nearly 400 who earned selection to the 2008 Missouri Valley Football Conference Honor Roll, as announced by the league office.
- 1077 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, Southern Illinois Salukis, Indiana State Sycamores, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, North Dakota State Bison, Northern Iowa Panthers, Youngstown State Penguins, Western Illinois Leathernecks, Missouri State Bears, Illinois State Redbirds SDSU receiver Harris aims to join father by being drafted
On Thursday at Riverdale Park, the last Sioux Falls high school graduate selected in the NFL Draft loaded footballs into a pitching machine and fired them at perhaps the city’s next high school product to be selected.
Talk about a unique story line surrounding a game of catch between a father and son.
- 685 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, FCS In The Pros USD, SDSU share open date in 2010
The American Football Coaches Association’s official Web site includes an interesting item this week.
Under the “open dates” section, where football programs list their idle fall Saturdays for coming seasons, South Dakota State and the University of South Dakota have the same day listed for 2010.
- 579 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, Great West Conference, South Dakota State Jackrabbits, South Dakota Coyotes Jacks going west for spring practice
The South Dakota State football team is heading west rather than south for its annual spring road trip.
The Jackrabbits left Brookings following practice Friday night, bound for the Black Hills. They’ll bunk at a National Guard camp, hold a practice and a youth camp in Rapid City today, make four community service stops and then visit Mount Rushmore before returning home Sunday.
- 499 words - Missouri Valley Football Conference, South Dakota State Jackrabbits At Last, a Big Game to Rile Delaware
Proximity, history could charge UD-DSU meetings.
The University of Delaware and Delaware State University have some catching up to do.
Football rivalries don’t form overnight. But UD and DSU already have many of the ingredients to make this one special.
On Tuesday, the schools announced their first regular-season meeting will take place Sept. 19, followed by three annual games beginning in 2012.
Cal Poly Matches Program's Highest Ranking Ever
The Cal Poly football team matched its highest ranking ever Monday.
After their third bye over the past five weeks, the Mustangs rose to No. 3 in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) coaches poll and No. 5 in the Sports Network media poll. They were seventh in both last week.
Mustangs head coach Rich Ellerson downplayed the jump, even calling it “nuts” that the Mustangs would be ranked so highly with so many byes and a 30-28 loss Sept. 6 to Montana, which is ranked fifth by the coaches and eighth by the media.
Jacks prepare for big-game atmosphere
Iowa State expects crowd of 50,000
John Stiegelmeier began preparing for this game before it was on the schedule.
For the past four years, the South Dakota State football coach has asked seasoned colleagues for advice about facing a major-conference program, something the Football Championship Subdivision Jackrabbits will do for the first time in 45 years on Thursday night at Iowa State.
“Almost across the board, people have approached it like, ‘Big game, a fun game, but we’re going to win,’ ” said Stiegelmeier, who is in his 12th year at his alma mater. “There have been some mistakes where coaches were concerned about the big guys versus their guys, but I think our program is well-established enough that we don’t have to do that.”
Tough trips mean big money
will receive much-needed $300,000 for playing Iowa State
BROOKINGS - Another donor with deep pockets has stepped forward to assist the South Dakota State athletic department. The donor’s name is Iowa State University.
The Jackrabbits will receive $300,000 from the Cyclones for playing a nationally televised football game Thursday night, athletic director Fred Oien said. In return, Iowa State gets a home date at 55,000-seat Jack Trice Stadium - one it fully expects to win - and the reported $1 million in revenue that goes with it.
Such arrangements are commonplace in NCAA Division I football, but it’s the largest guarantee SDSU has ever received - by a considerable margin, according to associate athletic director Rob Peterson.
Memories of major foes
SDSU hasn’t faced Big 12 opponent since 1963
In a sense, this fall marks the start of a new era for South Dakota State. School officials hope to be able to schedule games against Football Bowl Subdivision programs - like the one slated for Thursday at Iowa State - on an annual basis now that the NCAA Division I reclassification is complete.
Regardless of the final score, these so-called guarantee games can generate national television exposure, six-figure payouts and incomparable experiences - something the Jacks have lacked for nearly a quarter-century.
They haven’t played a FBS opponent since Wyoming in 1984, haven’t taken on a member of the Big 12 Conference since Nebraska in 1963 and haven’t faced the Cyclones since 1954.
The memories - and the lessons - from those bygone big games still resonate with the participants, although some are more pleasant than others.
Jacks enjoying swirl of tilt with Cyclones
South Dakota State University opens its football season this week with one of the biggest games in the program’s 111-year history.
When the Jackrabbits take the field Thursday against Iowa State in Ames, it will be the school’s first meeting in more than 40 years against a program from one of the major conferences in NCAA Division I football.
Aside from getting to test their physical abilities against a member of the vaunted Big 12 Conference, SDSU’s players have the opportunity to play in front of the largest crowd in school history in any sport, gain national television exposure, thrill diehard supporters, reconnect with estranged alumni and maybe make some new fans.
The game was contracted in May 2005, and the excitement has increased steadily since November when SDSU - a Division II school through 2003-04 - won its first conference championship in 44 years.
SDSU prepares for Iowa State
BROOKINGS, S.D. - The move to NCAA Division I athletics officially arrives for South Dakota State University on Sept. 1.
For football coach John Stiegelmeier, the “big time” comes three days sooner when the Jackrabbits open the season at Iowa State in a game that’s been talked about for months.
“Normally we talk about a game three, four days before we play it. So we started six, seven months early,” Stiegelmeier said Monday. “We did that because things have changed. It’s a higher level. We need to have that focus.”
“Many times this move (to Division I) has been portrayed as, `Look where we get to play,’ as if we’re not going to compete but that it’s a special experience,” he said.
“But our guys work tremendously hard and they prepare whether we’re playing Ohio State, Iowa State or Peru State. We’re going to try to do the things we need to do to win (at Iowa State).”
Shrine Bowl, two-a-days for former Nighthawk & current Jackrabbit Fick
HULL, Iowa (STPNS) – Jon Fick is not a small guy.
At 6 feet, 5 inches and 255 pounds, the former BHRV lineman looks imposing even from the bleachers, but recently, he’s felt a little more average.
Now a redshirt freshman toughing out two-a-days at South Dakota State University, Fick also played for the North in the July 26 Shrine Bowl on Iowa State’s Jack Trice Field.
“It was kind of funny – I’m used to being the biggest guy on the field,” Fick said in a telephone interview from the Brookings campus. “At the Shrine Bowl, everyone was big…and here, I’m the second-smallest [on the offensive line].”
Despite the best efforts of Fick and other area standouts such as Nate DeJong of Central Lyon and Paden Kleinhesselink of Sioux Center, the North fell to the South, 41-0, in this year’s Shrine Bowl.
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