South Dakota State has won back-to-back national championships and has turned into one of the premier programs in the FCS. However, the Jackrabbits are missing one thing on their FCS resume and thats a signature win over a top-tier FBS program.
SDSU will be taking on No. 17 Oklahoma State at 1 p.m. Saturday and its an opportunity for the Jacks to get that signature win.
The Jacks have an all-time record of 2-10 against FBS teams. SDSU first beat a team at the next level in 2015 when the Jacks went to Lawrence, Kan., and beat Kansas 41-38. The Jacks second victory came in 2021 when they beat Colorado State 42-23.
The Kansas win was a big win in terms of getting over the hump against FBS competition, but that Jayhawk team finished the season with a 0-12 record, so it lost a bit of its luster by the end of the year. SDSU went into the Colorado State game as a two-point favorite and the Jacks took care of business. CSU ended the season with a record of 3-9 and went 2-6 in the Mountain West.
Saturday presents an opportunity to not only get a win to open the 2024 season but to get a win that will be remembered forever in Jackrabbit football history. SDSU senior quarterback Mark Gronowski said he knows whats at stake, but doesnt want there to be too much pressure on his team.
I think it would be very beneficial [if we win]. It would be a huge win in a sense for Jackrabbit Nation because we havent won a [power four] game in eight or nine years and its against a ranked team. It would be a huge win for us, but were trying to treat it like any other game and go in there and go 1-0, Gronowski said.
Gronowski has experience playing against a Power Four team as he was the starting quarterback two years ago when the Jacks fell to Iowa 7-3. SDSU will have 14 new starters on Saturday and although many of them have played in games before, not many of them have the experience of playing against such a talented opponent.
Gronowski said despite the experience he gained in 2022, its hard to give other players advice because you dont know how they will react to the environment or opponent until the game starts.
Thats always a tough thing because its hard to try and tell somebody about something that they havent experienced before, he said. You try to tell them that they need to do this, this and this, but they dont know until theyve stepped foot [in the stadium]. I think the biggest thing is, once we get there, trying to stay calm throughout the process.
I think [practicing with] the crowd noise and not being able to hear yourself in the indoor [practice facility] has been really beneficial for us. Now were just going to have to play fast and I think that as the game slowly goes on those guys are going to play better and gain confidence throughout the game.
As for the other players that played against Iowa, SDSU head coach Jimmy Rogers said he doesnt believe that the experience from that game will carry over to the Oklahoma State game on Saturday because every game and every year is different.
I think you learn everything from the experiences you take in, Rogers said. A lot of the players that played in that [Iowa] game are still on this team, with the exception of several key players. A lot of this team was here to witness that or they were in attendance to see it. Every year is different and you have different emotions.
For us, we try to constantly put our focus on each other and give each other our best. You learn from the moment schematically and you learn from the emotions, but to say its going to carry over two years later and the kids are going to remember exactly how they felt at that time, I dont think thats realistic.
Gronowski did take something specific from that game in Iowa City in early September in 2022.
[I need to] be more hydrated, he said. I ended up cramping up in that game, so I need to be more hydrated. We just need to make sure everyone is on the same page and make the moment not as big as it is. Its a big game and a big opponent that were playing against, but in the grand scheme of things it will be OK and we just have to play our style of football and well come out on top.
During his weekly press conference on Tuesday, Rogers made it clear that his team is going to Stillwater with the full intention theyre going to win the game. Last season three FCS teams beat FBS teams and already in 2024 Montana State beat New Mexico last weekend. There have been 69 FCS over FBS victories in the past 10 seasons but just 17 of them have come against power five teams. Of those 17 victories only one of them was against a ranked team as North Dakota State beat No. 13 Iowa 23-21 in 2015.
History is not in the Jackrabbits favor, but Rogers knows whats at stake and he is confident in his championship program heading into Saturday.
Every win on the national stage is huge because its national branding and youre competing, and if you can win this game, youre beating one of the elite programs in college football. Weve given up moral victories here for a long time. Were going there for a reason. Were going there to compete. If were going to claim that were one of the best in the country, heres a good chance to showcase that, Rogers said.
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