The run NDSUs football team has been on for the past 20 years is as impressive as anything we’ve seen as football fans in North Dakota. Every year the topic gets brought up of them moving up from the FCS level to the FBS level. Here is why I believe the NDSU football program should never move up to the FBS level.
Reason #1: They Will Lose What Makes Them Special
At the FCS level, NDSU is the brand. They are the big name program everyone else strives to be. South Dakota State took NDSU’s blueprint and made it work for them. The difference is they’ve been doing it for almost 20 years. When NDSU was in their probationary period during the transition, they made a name for themselves by taking on FBS schools and winning.
It’s the perfect storm for a school NDSU’s size. They are clearly not big enough to enter the FBS level and compete on a year-in, year-out basis. They are good enough in football to schedule an FBS school that isn’t going to compete for a national title, but are respectable and compete. The Minnesota Gophers were the first team the Bison made their name against.
The Minnesota Gophers Games Put NDSU On The Map
The 2006 NDSU team nearly defeated Minnesota, losing late in a 10-9 contest. If you were doubting NDSU moving up a level, you started to see the vision after this game. Let’s be realistic here, Minnesota in 2006 was not a National Championship contender, but it was still a Big 10 school. To go down there and compete with any Big 10 team is a far cry from getting blown out by St. Cloud State at home just four year prior.
The next year was the year they turned started turning the corner as a program. After defeating Minnesota 27-21 they started to be an ESPN darling with the coverage of the game from the day.
That was just the start. They weren’t playoff eligible at the time, but the tide was starting to turn. They had other wins against Division-1 FBS opponents. This wasn’t even the first one, but it was the first Power Conference opponent. NDSU has beaten: Ball State, Central Michigan, Minnesota, Kansas, Minnesota, Colorado State, Kansas State, Iowa State, #13 Iowa.
Their is no secret about them anymore, and a lot of FBS teams will not schedule them because they have to pay them to come in, and do not want to risk paying six figures to a team that might come in and beat them on their home field.
Reason #2: Budget Reality Check, Attendance
The biggest reason to me is the budget. Much higher operating costs at the FBS level vs the FCS level. You will have up to 85 scholarships, bigger coaches salaries, charter flights, expanded recruiting, and upgrading your facilities. Right now they are in the sweet spot. They can pull FBS caliber recruits away from those schools, sell them on a professional future if they are good enough, guarantee them the opportunity to compete for championships, and promise them a great game day experience at the FargoDome.
A move to the FBS at best takes away your national championship aspirations. Maybe they get a special group that could make a run into the expanded playoff system we have now, but that also means your first round game is going to be against an elite Power 5 team. However, if the 6-5 Bison are taking on New Mexico State for a spot in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl against the Toledo Rockets, the novelty would wear off quickly.
Scheduling home games would be increasingly difficult as well. Even though the K-State Mask fan from back in the day looked like a complete clown by the end, he was right about something. The FargoDome is too small to host major college football. They would have to look into a different venue for their home games, and then make sure they’re able to fill it.
One last point on the K-State Mask guy. He made 3 videos after his NDSU game preview blew up in his face. NDSU football killed his content career.
The best part of that saga, was the Bison fan that made a rebuttal video while drunk in a bath tub.
By the end of the video, I’m convinced he thought the video was live and he was arguing with it.
Reason #3 – Regional Identity Matters
The rivalries NDSU has built close to home within the FCS are important. UND, SDSU, UNI, Montana, and Montana State are not guaranteed games if they make the move up. The UND program is starting to look like it’s on the right track and a possible UND-NDSU playoff game where both teams are national title good would be huge for North Dakota. I don’t think a Tuesday night game against Kent State with no stakes is worth the tradeoff of “being in the FBS”.
The Bison have owned the midwest recruiting pipeline for a while. The overlooked 2-3 star recruits they’ve been stealing from Minnesota, Iowa, etc. would rather walk-on there than play for the “small FBS” program. They would be squeezed out in no time. As stated before, if you can sell those players on national championships and NFL opportunities, why go to an FBS school where playing time isn’t happening until your 3rd or 4th year?
If the team has growing pains the first few years in the FBS, which would be likely, the atmosphere at the home games would be completely different. I don’t know how many San Diego State fans would make a trip to Fargo in November to watch their guys play a 2-8 Bison team if they were having a down year. The NDSU fan base wouldn’t be as invested as they are now, so their own home atmosphere would take a hit, despite being in the FBS.
Final Reason: UND vs NDSU Matters Again
The UND-NDSU rivalry being healthy in football is the best thing for sports in our state. UND beat NDSU 49-24 two years ago and brought some life back into the rivalry. It was finally revived in 2015, but the game itself wasn’t for anything in the grand scheme of things. I want a late-season contest between these two that could decide the conference championship, change playoff seeding, you name it.
We cannot lose it again because NDSU has been “too good” at the FCS level. It isn’t like what they’re doing is complicated. They are just the best at their style, they don’t fall in love with gimmicks and fads. It’s an evergreen style of play that can last long-term. It feels like the wheels are moving for UND right now. If they keep it rolling, we are close to having UND vs NDSU reclaim the rivalry all the way. The thought of a playoff game between these two, or a potential national championship game is too good of a reason to keep NDSU exactly where they are.
I hope NDSU sustains their success for another 20 years and in that time UND closes the gap and we haver meaningful, in-state rivalry games between two premier FCS programs. It’s an easy decision for me if you weight the options.
Option 1: NDSU goes up to the Mountain West on the off-chance they make an expanded 12-team playoff once every 10 years. The rivalry with UND is meaningless once again.
Option 2: NDSU stays in the FCS to defend the throne every year. They have high-quality rivalries with regional opponents from South Dakota, Montana, and their longtime in-state rival, UND.
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