BOZEMAN – The Montana State Bobcats have advanced to the second round of the FCS Playoffs after taking down Incarnate Word 35-14 on Saturday. But their next opponent will prove to be much tougher.
The Bobcats move on to play North Dakota State on the road in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU is the number one team in the nation and undefeated at 11-0. They boast one of college football’s best holding opponents to a dismal 12.2 points per game while scoring an average of 41.2 points this season.
To add on to their impressive resume, the Bison have won six of the last seven national titles. And Montana State head coach Jeff Choate couldn’t speak more highly of NDSU.
“We turn our attention to arguably the standard-bearer for all of college football, not just the FCS. When you look at the success that they’ve had, nobody can really match what they’ve done over the last decade and you include Alabama in that,” said Choate.
And he knows it will take a perfect day to pull off one of the biggest upsets in FCS history.
“We’ve got to handle the environment, we’ve got to handle the stage. This is clearly a veteran team that understands what it’s all about to be in this position and so I think that’s something to keep an eye on for us early in the game and not make more out of it than it is,” Choate said.
And exact preparation is key, even if it involves some superstition.
“We need to prepare the same, our routine needs to be consistent, our preparation needs to be exceptional, our practices need to be on point and our travel needs to be seamless. All those things need to be in place for us to go have an opportunity to play our best football,” said Choate.
Montana State and North Dakota State kick off the second round of the FCS Playoffs Saturday Dec. 1 at 1:00 p.m.
