The North Dakota State Bison are the athletic teams of North Dakota State University (NDSU), which is located in the city of Fargo, North Dakota . The teams are often called the "Thundering Herd". The current logo is a bison .
83-680: A member of the Summit League , North Dakota State University sponsors teams in eight men's and eight women's NCAA sanctioned intercollegiate sports: The football team competes as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference . The wrestling team competes as an affiliate member of the Big 12 Conference . In the past, North Dakota State has been a member of the North Central Conference ,
166-637: A 2nd time and received a #12 seed. They defeated #5 Oklahoma 80–75 in a second-round matchup of the NCAA basketball tournament and fell to San Diego State, one win short of the Sweet 16 . In 2014, NDSU won the Summit League Tournament and advanced to their 3rd NCAA basketball tournament as a #15 seed, eventually falling to #2 seed Gonzaga 86–76. Several years later, the Bison men's team surprised
249-525: A Division II school located in the Summit's headquarters city of Sioux Falls. Many of the school's boosters have ties to Sanford Health , a hospital company that has long been a major league sponsor and also owns the office complex that houses the league headquarters. The university announced on December 14 that it would start a transition to Division I, though stating at the time that no such move would take place until at least 2021. However, on May 22, 2020,
332-522: A baseball associate starting in the 2022 season (2021–22 school year), and Lindenwood and Southern Indiana became associates in men's soccer plus men's and women's swimming & diving in the 2022–23 school year. Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, and Southern Indiana moved men's soccer to their primary home of the Ohio Valley Conference in 2023–24 while remaining Summit affiliates in swimming & diving. Western Illinois elected to leave
415-475: A first-round game with the defending national champions, the Kansas Jayhawks, and fell 84–74. NDSU's tournament appearance marked the first time in almost 35 years that a Division I men's program qualified for the tournament in its first season of eligibility. 2013 NDSU season highlights included a win over Notre Dame for their first ever win over an ACC team. NDSU advanced to the NCAA tournament for
498-440: A guaranteed six regular-season men's basketball games on the network with an option of six more men's or women's basketball games during the season. For the 2024 tournament, CBS Sports Network will also broadcast the women's basketball tournament semifinal. In 2025 and 2026 there will remain an option to have the men's and women's tournaments semifinals on CBS Sports Network if scheduling allows. The Midco contract will now expand to
581-461: A last-second field goal attempt was blocked by Minnesota, resulting in a 10–9 loss. The following season, the Bison won their first Great West Football Conference championship and achieved the number 1 ranking in major FCS polls for a majority of the season. During this season the 2007 Bison football team defeated FBS members Central Michigan University and the University of Minnesota . In 2010
664-508: A school no longer a part of the Summit League. Future members in gray On August 10, 2023, the Summit League announced the signing of a new three-year media rights deal that would tie the league with CBS Sports Network and even closer ties with Midco Sports through the 2025–26 academic year. The new deal transfers the Summit League's men's/women's basketball championship game rights over to CBS Sports Network from ESPN , and adds
747-487: A streak of six straight tournaments from 2014-19. However, the team has not reached a Super Regional since 2009. Recently, the Bison stumbled since the COVID-19 pandemic caused the 2020 season to abruptly end after just a month. NDSU has not reached the NCAA tournament since 2019, and has not won the Summit League regular season title since 2019. The NDSU baseball team plays their home games at Newman Outdoor Field on
830-1027: Is an NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic conference with its membership mostly located in the Midwestern United States , from Minnesota in the east, to the Dakotas, Nebraska and Colorado to the West, and Missouri and Oklahoma to the South. Founded as the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in 1982, it rebranded as the Mid-Continent Conference in 1989, then again as the Summit League on June 1, 2007. The league headquarters are in Sioux Falls, South Dakota . The membership currently consists of nine full members plus seven associate members. The most recent change in
913-531: Is an associate member for men's and women's swimming and diving and men's soccer. Drake and Illinois State became associate members in men's tennis starting in 2017–18, and former full member Valparaiso rejoined for men's swimming and men's tennis at the same time. Valparaiso dropped men's tennis after the 2019–20 season; it remained a swimming associate until moving that sport to the Mid-American Conference in 2021. Northern Colorado became
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#1732791899223996-526: Is two-time NCAA All-American Roger Kish . Kish led the 2013–14 NDSU to career highs in rankings and tournament placement since the Bison joined the Division I ranks. In 2013, NDSU earned its first D1 All American and four through 2015. The team is a member of the Big 12 Conference . In 2023, the Bison earned their next highest ranking in their Division I era at No. 15 before losing to No. 10 Minnesota . Later that same season, NDSU saw three wrestler's reach
1079-638: The 2009 season . They would also see their national title streak end at five after a loss to James Madison in the semifinals at the Fargodome, who would eventually win the National Championship that season. In the 2017 season, NDSU would return to the title game and avenge their loss the previous season, defeating James Madison in Frisco 17-13. The 2018 season would see one of the Bison's most dominant seasons, especially since 2013, when
1162-478: The 2022-23 season (loss to Oral Roberts). North Dakota State's women's basketball team is the school's only basketball team to win a national championship at any level and is the school's only other program to win at least five national titles besides the football team. The women's basketball team was a dominant force in Division II throughout the 1990s, as the Bison won five Division II titles. However, since
1245-529: The Association of Mid-Continent Universities (or AMCU or AMCU-8 , pronounced Am-cue), which it was known as until 1989. Covering all men's sports now in addition to football, the new conference consisted of current MCAA members Northern Iowa, Eastern Illinois, Western Illinois, and Southwest Missouri State, along with non-football sponsoring Cleveland State University , University of Illinois Chicago , University of Wisconsin–Green Bay and Valparaiso University . The conference continued to sponsor football at
1328-853: The Gateway Conference , merged into the Missouri Valley Conference. The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee joined the Mid-Continent a year later. In 1994, charter members Cleveland State, UIC and Green Bay, as well as newer members Wisconsin–Milwaukee, Northern Illinois, and Wright State left the conference to join the Midwestern Collegiate Conference, now known as the Horizon League . The Mid-Continent absorbed Central Connecticut State University , Chicago State University ,
1411-617: The Great West Football Conference , and the United Soccer Conference . It has also been an independent. The Bison have won twenty-nine NCAA national championships, both at the Division I and Division II levels. The Bison have won two individual event championships, all at the Division I level. Source: The Bison football team, which since 1993 played their home games at the Fargodome ,
1494-742: The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), which at the time did not sponsor any of these schools' Summit League sports, in July 2022. Southern Indiana started its swimming & diving program for both sexes in 2022–23. In late March 2023, the OVC announced that it would begin sponsoring men's soccer that fall, leading to Eastern Illinois , Lindenwood, and Southern Indiana moving that sport to their full-time home. Eastern Illinois and Southern Indiana remain swimming & diving affiliates, while Lindenwood dropped both of its swimming & diving programs after
1577-643: The Trans America Athletic Conference while Central Connecticut joined the Northeast Conference in 1997. Buffalo joined the MAC in 1998 while Northeastern Illinois ceased intercollegiate athletics at that time. Oral Roberts University and Southern Utah University replaced the former pair while Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI; its athletic program is now IU Indy) and Oakland University moved into
1660-419: The United Soccer Conference , and then finally joined the Summit League which has served as their conference of the future. Starting in 2008, the Bison emerged from reclassification and finished 7th in the Summit League and missed the conference tournament. But then in 2009, the team made their first Summit League tournament, and lost in the championship game. In 2010, the Bison women's soccer team achieved
1743-525: The University at Buffalo , Troy State University (now Troy University ), and Northeastern Illinois University from the collapsed East Coast Conference in response. None of these institutions remain in the league. Missouri-Kansas City , formerly an independent, also joined the Mid-Continent Conference in 1994. Eastern Illinois moved to the Ohio Valley Conference in 1996, reducing membership to nine programs. Troy State departed for
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#17327918992231826-450: The 2011 through 2015 seasons. James Madison finished their regular season with an 11–0 record (8–0 in conference). In the FCS playoffs, they defeated Stony Brook , Weber State , and South Dakota State to reach the finals. The Dukes entered the championship game with a 2–0 record in prior FCS/Division I-AA finals, having defeated Montana for the 2004 season title, and Youngstown State for
1909-563: The 2013 season. The season commenced with a game against the Kansas State Wildcats , the reigning Big 12 Champions. The Bison took a quick lead, but let a 7–7 halftime score get away from them; trailing 21–7 in the third quarter. The Bison finished the game with an 18-play 80-yard drive that used 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 minutes, leaving 28 seconds on the clock for the Wildcats, trailing by 3. NDSU Linebacker Grant Olson intercepted
1992-438: The 2019-20 season. They tied South Dakota State for the regular season title, and then won the Summit League tournament for the fifth time in program history. Unfortunately, the NCAA tournament was canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic . NDSU would continue to appear in the conference tournament title game, but came up short in the 2020-21 season (loss to Oral Roberts), the 2021-22 season (loss to South Dakota State), and in
2075-427: The 2022 season did not see the Bison return to the NCAA tournament, the team did achieve yet another first. The team won the Summit League regular season title for the first time in program history, finishing with a 17-5 record in conference play which was another high for the program. In the Summit League tournament, the team fell to fourth seeded Omaha to be eliminated from the tournament. The following season, 2023 ,
2158-455: The 2023–24 season. In early May 2023, it was announced that founding member Western Illinois would be leaving the Summit League in all sports and would join the Ohio Valley Conference beginning in fall 2023. In mid-June, Western Illinois announced that its men's soccer team would remain in the Summit League for the fall 2023 season, and depart for the OVC after that. On April 4, 2024, both entities announced that Delaware would be joining
2241-547: The All-American round, a record for the program. After the 2023-24 season ended, coach Roger Kish announced he was leaving Fargo to be the head coach at Oklahoma . He would be replaced by Obe Blanc, who had served on the NDSU staff for the last four seasons in as an assistant. The 2008–2009 season was when the school first became fully eligible for Division I competition. In December 2008 NDSU's women's volleyball team captured
2324-480: The Bison defeated the FBS Kansas Jayhawks, 6–3, for their first win over a Big 12 program. The Bison won the 2011 FCS national championship, defeating Sam Houston State University, 17–6. The 2011 title was their ninth overall. The Bison returned to the FCS championship game in 2012 and soundly defeated Sam Houston State University in a rematch of the 2011 title game, 39–13. Expectations were high entering
2407-568: The Bison have made two Summit League tournaments in his 5 seasons in Fargo, including 3 straight seasons of missing the tournament. "Thundar" is the official mascot of NDSU athletics. The mascot, which resembles the American Bison , comes from the term "thundering herd," a nickname given to NDSU athletic teams since changing its name from "Aggies" to "Bison" in 1919. While some form of a "Bison Mascot" has been used at NDSU athletic events since
2490-432: The Bison in his redshirt freshman season, NDSU achieved a 16-0 record for the first time in program history and for only the second time in Division I football history (1894 Yale being the only other program to reach the mark). This was highlighted by the National Championship game win against James Madison in which NDSU won on a game-sealing interception in the redzone with under five seconds remaining. Unfortunately after
2573-680: The Division I-AA level, now under the new AMCU name, from 1982 until 1984, when the football sponsoring members of the Missouri Valley Conference joined with the football sponsoring members of the AMCU to form the beginnings of what is now the Missouri Valley Football Conference ; current members North Dakota , North Dakota State , South Dakota , and South Dakota State continue to house their FCS football programs there to this day. The conference saw its first changes in
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2656-523: The FCS quarterfinals. The 2021 season could be categorized as a "return to their roots" type season for NDSU, after the team went 14-1. The team's only loss being in the Dakota Marker game in Brookings to 4th ranked SDSU. The Bison dominated their way to their ninth national championship, beating playoff rival James Madison in the semifinals in a close game, and then beating Montana State in
2739-675: The FCS semifinals. It was also announced earlier that same week that fifth year head coach Matt Entz would be leaving Fargo to join the USC staff as the linebackers coach and assistant head coach. Tim Polasek was soon named as the next head coach for the Bison. The Bison basketball program includes a men's and a women's team. The teams play at the Scheels Center inside the Sanford Health Athletic Complex (SHAC). They won five NCAA National Championships during
2822-670: The Horizon League. Eight of the nine then-current Horizon League programs were former Summit League members with Oakland's move (the Horizon has since added two more members that were never in The Summit League, Northern Kentucky and Robert Morris , as well as another former Summit member in Purdue Fort Wayne). In December 2013, The Summit League office announced that Oral Roberts University returned to
2905-472: The Jackrabbits again in the National Championship game . The 2023 edition of North Dakota State would also have their struggles, losing three games again, this time in the regular season and did not receive a seed heading into the FCS playoffs. The Bison would manage to beat Drake, Montana State in walk-off fashion, avenging their loss to South Dakota earlier in the season, before being bested by Montana in
2988-441: The Mid-Continent Conference annual Presidents Council meeting in 2006, and Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne (IPFW, now Purdue Fort Wayne), North Dakota State , and South Dakota State were approved for site visits. On August 30, 2006, IPFW accepted an invitation to join the Mid-Continent Conference as a full member starting July 1, 2007. Both North Dakota State and South Dakota State also accepted invitations to join
3071-475: The Mid-Continent added women's sports by absorbing the North Star Conference (NSC), a women's-only league whose final seven members were in the Mid-Continent. All of the final NSC members except for Akron moved their women's sports into the Mid-Continent. At the same time, Eastern Illinois and Western Illinois moved their women's sports into the Mid-Continent when their former women's sports home,
3154-488: The NCC started a conference tournament, in 2000 NDSU was the runner-up in the final game and missed the national tournament. Between that season and 2004, the Bison wouldn't finish high enough to make the conference tournament and did not see another Division II tournament. After the 2003 season, NDSU started their reclassification to Division I. During their reclassification years, the Bison started as Division I independents, joined
3237-607: The NDSU Bison also receive dedicated print coverage in Bison Illustrated . The monthly magazine brings readers behind the scenes coverage of NDSU teams, players, coaches, administration, and alumni. The magazine is distributed free of charge in locations around the Fargo-Moorhead area and is available via paid subscription for out-of-state readers. Summit League The Summit League , or The Summit ,
3320-602: The Summit League Network. 2018 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game The 2018 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game that determined a national champion in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision for the 2017 season . It was played at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas , on January 6, 2018, with kickoff at 12:00 noon EST , and
3403-525: The Summit League and won the conference tournament, advancing to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in program history. NDSU would be handed the 16 seed in the East, and was selected to play in the First Four. The Bison beat NC Central in the program's second tournament win, before falling to top-seeded Duke in the first round. The Bison appeared ready to repeat as champions in the Summit League in
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3486-451: The Summit League commissioner, Tom Douple, informed Augustana president Stephanie Herseth Sandlin that the conference would not be adding more new teams "at this time." The conference expanded anyway, announcing in June 2019 that UMKC would return in 2020 after a seven-year absence. However, shortly thereafter, Purdue Fort Wayne announced its 2020 departure for the Horizon League, maintaining
3569-561: The Summit League's regular season and tournament championships (doing so with a perfect league record) to become the first program at the school to earn a berth in a Division I NCAA tournament. The Bison dropped their opening round match to the University of Minnesota. In the spring of 2009, the Bison women's softball team won the Summit League tournament in Macomb, Illinois, becoming the school's third team to appear in an NCAA tournament in
3652-623: The Summit League, but controversy over the Fighting Sioux nickname in all likelihood prevented UND's admission at that time. Expectations that UND would join the Summit League came to an end on November 1, 2010, when North Dakota instead accepted an invitation to join the Big Sky Conference. The University of South Dakota entered into very brief negotiations to join the Big Sky as well, rather than continuing their plans to join
3735-447: The Summit. However, South Dakota chose instead to remain with the more compact Summit League (along with other Dakota schools, NDSU and SDSU). As the University of Nebraska Omaha began the transition to Division I athletics in all sports, it joined the Summit League on July 1, 2012. With the departures of Centenary to Division III at the end of the 2010–11 athletic year, and Southern Utah and Oral Roberts for other Division I conferences at
3818-513: The calendar year. In its opening game in May, the Bison upset 9th-ranked Oklahoma, 1–0, in an 11-inning game that spanned two days due to a weather delay. The Bison won the regional with victories over Tulsa, 3–2 and 4–1, to advance to the Super Regional (Sweet Sixteen) of the tournament, where they were eliminated. Since that season, the Bison have reached nine more NCAA tournaments, including
3901-847: The conference as an associate member in men's soccer starting in 2025. On May 7, 2024, the league announced that Northern Colorado , who is also an affiliate in baseball, and Weber State would be joining the league for men's golf starting in the fall of 2024. ( Evangelical ) ( Catholic ) All institutional names and nicknames used reflect those in the final school year of conference membership. The Summit League has 23 former members. ( UMC ) ( Lutheran ) Full members Full members (non-football) Associate members (football only) Associate member (baseball, men's soccer, softball, swimming and diving, or men's tennis) Other Conference Other Conference The Summit League sponsors championship competition in nine men's and ten women's NCAA sanctioned sports. Former full member Eastern Illinois
3984-515: The conference in all sports, effective July 1, 2014. The next changes to the conference's core membership were announced in 2017. First, on January 26, North Dakota, which had resolved its controversy by selecting the new nickname Fighting Hawks, unveiled as a new member beginning in 2018. Then, on June 28, IUPUI announced it would leave the conference to join the Horizon League effective July 1, 2017. For much of 2018, speculation involving further league expansion focused on Augustana University ,
4067-473: The conference the next day. The Summit League continued its renewed expansion push with the admission of the University of South Dakota . The Coyotes began conference play in the 2011–12 academic year and become eligible for all championships the following season. Centenary College subsequently announced that it would leave the Summit League following the 2010–2011 campaign. The University of North Dakota had also been openly rumored to have been courted by
4150-515: The core conference membership is the 2021 arrival of the University of St. Thomas , which began an unprecedented transition from NCAA Division III to Division I. A year earlier, the University of Missouri–Kansas City returned as a full member after a seven-year absence with the new athletic identity of the Kansas City Roos, while Purdue University Fort Wayne left for the Horizon League . A total of 32 schools have been full members;
4233-446: The creation of a new all-league media platform called The Summit League Network . It will provide access to all nine member institutions' live streams of every home game, both non-conference and in-conference, as well as interviews and other league info. This expansion will preserve the local media rights given out at select institutions, as the provider for the university will supply Midco with that broadcast/live stream to be simulcast on
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#17327918992234316-429: The decade (1991, 1993–1996). The men's basketball team won an upset victory over the University of Wisconsin on January 21, 2006, potentially increasing its chances of being accepted into a conference. The Bison also upset Marquette University on their home court at their tournament, 64–60, on December 2, 2006. On February 28, 2009, the Bison men's basketball team captured the Summit League regular-season championship,
4399-536: The early 1990s. Southwest Missouri State departed for membership in the Missouri Valley Conference as the University of Akron and Northern Illinois University joined in 1990. Then Wright State University joined in 1991 as Northern Iowa followed Southwest Missouri State to the MVC. Major changes came to the conference in 1992. First, Akron left for the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and another Ohio school, Youngstown State University , replaced it. More significantly,
4482-531: The end of the 2011–12 athletic year, the Summit League continued with nine institutions, all within the Midwest geographical region. The conference unveiled the University of Denver (DU) as its tenth member on November 27, 2012, and the Pioneers joined in July 2013. While Denver is slightly outside The Summit's current Midwestern base, the city's status as a major air hub seemingly minimized travel issues for
4565-458: The final by winning their semifinal games. James Madison was the designated home team for the final game. North Dakota State finished their regular season with a 10–1 record (7–1 in conference). Their one loss was to South Dakota State , 33–21. In the FCS playoffs, they defeated San Diego , Wofford , and Sam Houston State to reach the finals. The Bison entered the championship game with a 5–0 record in prior FCS finals, occurring consecutively in
4648-509: The first pass attempt by the Wildcats, sealing their 7th win over FBS teams since their move to FCS. ESPN College GameDay broadcast an episode from Fargo. The Bison finished the season 15–0 with a victory over the Towson Tigers , 35–7. Despite a cast of new coaches, the 2014 Bison finished the season with a 15–1 record, including another win over Big 12 Iowa State and won their fourth consecutive national championship. ESPN College GameDay
4731-501: The first time playing on a field part of the Ellig Sports Complex on the northwest side of campus. While in Division II, the team played in their first and only Division II tournament. In the 1999 season, the Bison placed second in the North Central Conference regular season. Since the conference did not have a full-league tournament, the top two teams were good enough to make the full Division II tournament. After that,
4814-479: The first time. However, they would go winless in their first national appearance. Later in 2021, NDSU would win the Summit League tournament for the second time in program history, upsetting Oral Roberts to advance to the program's second NCAA tournament appearance in Division I. This time, the Bison found their first national tournament win in a 6-1 victory over Nevada at the Stanford Regional. While
4897-572: The following year; they were replaced by Southwest Missouri State (now known as Missouri State University ) in 1981. The 1981 season also saw the conference as a whole move from Division II to Division I-AA; this would be the conference's final season under the name of the Mid-Continent Athletic Association. The new association was officially created on June 18, 1982, at the O'Hare Hilton Hotel in Chicago, Illinois as
4980-632: The full-time conference membership at nine schools. Then, on October 4, 2019, the University of St. Thomas , a Minnesota school that was set to be expelled from its longtime athletic home of the NCAA Division III Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) in 2021, announced that it received an invitation to join the Summit upon its MIAC departure. St. Thomas eventually received a waiver of an NCAA rule mandating that Division III schools can only transition to Division II, allowing
5063-453: The indoor track facility on the North side of campus. The NDSU soccer program has only been in existence since 1995, when the program played their first season under coach Gordon Henderson in Division II. The team played at two different sites while in Division II. The Bison started at Cardinal Muench Seminary's field off of NDSU's campus. Then after the 1996 season, the team moved on campus for
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#17327918992235146-566: The last charter member remaining in the league, Western Illinois University , left for the Ohio Valley Conference on July 1, 2023 in most sports, with men's soccer playing one more season before leaving at the conclusion of the fall 2023 season. The conference can trace its roots back to 1978, when the Mid-Continent Athletic Association was founded as a football-only conference playing in Division II at
5229-419: The latter duo's spots a year later. Youngstown State switched to the Horizon League in 2001, and Centenary College replaced it in 2003. Chicago State University announced in the spring of 2006 that it would withdraw from the conference to compete as an independent starting in the 2006–07 school year. Charter member Valparaiso then moved to the Horizon in 2007. Conference expansion was discussed at length at
5312-433: The league full time in 2023, but its men's soccer team remained in the Summit through the fall 2023 season. Men's varsity sports not sponsored by The Summit League which are played by member schools: Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the Summit League which are played by member schools: * At-large bid ** First Four game Italics indicate a school no longer a part of the Summit League. Italics indicate
5395-410: The mid-1960s, "Thundar" did not become the official mascot of the university until 1991. NDSU athletics radio coverage rights are held by Radio FM Media with games also airing on the 24-station Bison Radio Network . TV rights for the Bison are held by Forum Communications , a Fargo-based communications company that owns TV stations affiliated with ABC, for all sports. In addition to broadcast rights,
5478-429: The north side of campus. The team has not had a large amount of success compared to their Spring counterpart: NDSU's softball team. While the Bison won three North Central Conference titles while in Division II, after the school moved up to Division I in 2008 the team has only won the Summit League twice. The Bison advanced to their first NCAA tournament in 2014 after winning the Summit League baseball tournament for
5561-448: The other members. With Denver among the eight of ten WAC members switching to other conferences, that league searched for new members. UMKC announced on February 7, 2013, that it would be one of six schools joining the WAC for the 2013–14 season, dropping the Summit league back to nine member schools. Membership fell to eight schools on May 7, 2013, when Oakland announced that it was joining
5644-410: The program's first NCAA tournament bid with a victory over Western Illinois in the Summit League tournament final. Since that magical 2010 season, NDSU would make the conference tournament 8 consecutive seasons, which included 4 runner-ups. However, the team could not get over the hump of winning the final game and hasn't reached a Division I tournament since 2010. Under current head coach Mike Regan,
5727-427: The program's third Division I season with a winning record. His time at NDSU has also featured 2 out of the program's 3 total Summit League tournament wins. The 2023-24 season was a start of a new era for Bison women's basketball not previously seen since their Division II days. NDSU would finish the season with a 22-12 record and an impressive 13-3 Summit League record to clinch the 2 seed in the conference tournament for
5810-468: The school emerged from reclassification in 2008, the team has not accomplished much. The Bison have only made it past the quarterfinal round of the Summit League tournament three times. NDSU has also ended the season with a winning record only three times since entering Division I. Recently, the Bison have started to change under head coach Jory Collins . In Collins' second season as Bison head coach, NDSU went 15-9 overall and 9-7 in Summit League play, as
5893-586: The school to move directly to D-I on the originally announced schedule. Shortly before St. Thomas' future conference membership was confirmed, the University of Northern Colorado was announced as a baseball-only member effective in 2021–22. The most recent change to the affiliate membership was announced on May 11, 2022, when Lindenwood University and the University of Southern Indiana were announced as new affiliates in men's soccer plus men's and women's swimming & diving effective in 2022–23. Both institutions began transitions from Division II as new members of
5976-475: The school's first at the Division I level, by defeating Oral Roberts 75–72 in Tulsa, OK. Two weeks later, NDSU earned its first men's basketball NCAA berth by winning the Summit League Tournament played at Sioux Falls, SD. The Bison defeated Centenary 83–77 in the tourney quarterfinals, stopped Southern Utah 79–67 in the semifinals, and edged Oakland 66–64 in the championship game. The Bison traveled to Minneapolis for
6059-504: The season ended, the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the 2020 FCS season was postponed to the Spring of 2021. This wouldn't be the first unfortunate thing to happen to the school in that academic year, as the football team would have a very rare year in the team's history, going 7-3 in the shortened season. The Bison also ended their national championship streak of 3 titles (between 2018 and 2020) after they lost to eventual champion Sam Houston in
6142-715: The second season in a row. This time, the Bison made it to their first ever Summit League championship game against women's basketball powerhouse and longtime rival, South Dakota State. They would fall to the Jacks in a close game, but would also clinch a bid to the WNIT. The Bison would win their first postseason game in a home match against Montana, but fell several days later to Minnesota. The Bison wrestling program had success under coach Bucky Maughan , winning four NCAA Division II team National Championships (1988, 1998, 2000, 2001). Maughan retired in 2011 after 37 years and his successor
6225-411: The semis and then Eastern Washington in the National Championship game . The 2019 season started a new leaf for NDSU, with Matt Entz being announced as the next head coach for the Bison after previously serving as the team's defensive coordinator the last several seasons. As far as the on-field product was concerned, it was one of the best in program history again. With Trey Lance at the helm for
6308-448: The team hosted their first Summit League tournament . In that tournament, NDSU entered as the 2nd seed. The Bison lost to South Dakota State to start the tournament, beat Omaha, but lost to the Jacks again to be eliminated in the final elimination game for the second year in a row. The North Dakota State Bison women's soccer team plays their home games at Dacotah Field nestled in between the school's training facility/basketball arena and
6391-451: The team went 15-0 for the second time in program history. The team only played one team in a one score game (the Dakota Marker game against #3 South Dakota State ), and accomplished a score differential of 28.9 points). Before the team's eventual victory over South Dakota State in the FCS semifinals, coach Chris Klieman was announced as the next head coach at Kansas State . Klieman was allowed to finish out his season at NDSU, beating SDSU in
6474-400: The time. Its inaugural members were the University of Akron , Eastern Illinois University , University of Northern Iowa , Northern Michigan University , Western Illinois University , and Youngstown State University ; Wayne State University had also expressed interest in joining, but ultimately never did. Akron left after the 1979 season, while Northern Michigan and Youngstown State left
6557-464: The title game 38-10. However, in the 2022 season the Bison would stumble again. The team went 12-3, losing more than 1 game in a season for only the second time since 2011. NDSU lost their first game to an FBS opponent since losing to Minnesota in 2009, after they lost a three-point game at Arizona . The blows would continue as the team not only did not reclaim the Dakota Marker (losing 23-21 at home to 2nd ranked South Dakota State ), but would fall to
6640-456: Was a dominant force in Division II. Through January 2022, they have won 17 NCAA National titles. Eight were at the Division II level (1965, 1968, 1969, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1990) before moving up to Division I-AA (now FCS) in 2004 where they have won nine national championships (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021). NDSU is the only team at any level of NCAA football to have won five straight national championships. The program
6723-475: Was broadcast from Fargo for the 2nd consecutive year. In 2016, the Bison upset AP-ranked 13 Iowa at Kinnick Stadium . This still stands as NDSU's most notable win, and one of the highest profile upsets in Division I football history. Despite the impressive win, the remainder of the season would not be like the previous years for the Bison. NDSU would give up the Dakota Marker for the first time since
6806-535: Was the culminating game of the 2017 FCS Playoffs . With sponsorship from Northwestern Mutual , the game was officially known as the NCAA FCS Football Championship Presented by Northwestern Mutual . The participants of the 2018 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game were the finalists of the 2017 FCS Playoffs , which began with a 24-team bracket . No. 1 seed James Madison and No. 2 seed North Dakota State qualified for
6889-552: Was the winningest in the history of the NCAA Division II North Central Conference, with 17 outright championships and 27 total league football titles. The program has also been quite successful since moving up to the D1 FCS classification. In 2006 the Bison posted a 10–1 record that included a win over FBS Ball State . During a 2006 game against FBS Minnesota, NDSU led for much of the game, but
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