South Dakota State and North Dakota renew a football rivalry well over a century old, meeting Saturday for the first time as Missouri Valley Football Conference foes.
Kickoff for the top-15 matchup is set for noon at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
SDSU enters the weekend ranked third in this week’s Stats Perform FCS media poll. The Jackrabbits opened the 2020-21 season with a 24-20 win at then-third-ranked Northern Iowa on Feb. 19.
North Dakota vaulted into this week’s poll at No. 14 after a convincing 44-21 home victory over then-No. 24 Southern Illinois on Feb. 20. The Fighting Hawks forced five turnovers, four of which they turned into touchdowns.
With their 24-20 victory Feb. 19 at Northern Iowa, SDSU improved to 15-9 in season openers under head coach John Stiegelmeier. The Jackrabbits won each of their first seven season openers under Coach Stig, starting with a 17-7 victory at UC Davis in 1997.
