2013 FCS Playoffs coverage: North Dakota State completes the three-peat

North Dakota State started the scoring early on, as John Crockett’s two-yard run gave them a 7-0 lead in the first quarter. Star Towson running back Terrance West responded, as his three-yard touchdown run tied it at the end of the quarter.

North Dakota State put it away in the fourth quarter, as Sam Ojuri became the fourth different Bison player to score a rushing touchdown, punching it in from one yard out to make it 35-7.

North Dakota State is the two-time defending FCS champion and faces an upstart and talented Towson team Saturday in this year’s championship game. Television coverage begins at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

The Bison have not lost a game since October 2012, and ran through their schedule this season with just two wins of less than 15 points -- at Kansas State and versus Northern Iowa. The game will be Craig Bohl’s last hurrah as North Dakota State’s head coach, after being hired by Wyoming.

If politicians aren’t making a charming, low-stakes bet involving food on your sporting competition, it probably isn’t that big of a deal. They do it for the Super Bowl, the World Series and now the big time -- the FCS Championship Game, via the NewsTimes.

Undefeated two-time defending champion North Dakota State will square off against underdog Towson, so, respective governors, WHAT YA GOT?!

North Dakota State is in the FCS national championship game for the third straight year and also going for its third consecutive national title win. The team standing in the Bison’s way this year is Towson, and there is no lack of respect from the Tigers’ side.

“There’s a reason that they’re undefeated and have not lost a game in no-one-knows-how-long,” Towson head coach Rob Ambrose said Monday, via the Baltimore Sun. “They have resources, they have a following, they are consistent. They are the Ivan Drago of I-AA football. They are perfect.”

Towson gave up 31 straight points to Eastern Washington, and looked out of the game with more than a minute left -- the Eagles had the ball and the lead. The Tiger defense held stout, stopping the Eagles when they needed to and allowing Connor Frazier to pull up a dramatic last-minute drive capped by a quarterback sneak to take the win, 35-31.

The Tigers will face two-time defending champion North Dakota State on Jan. 4 in Frisco, Texas. This will be the first ever title appearance for Towson, and the third for the Bison.

For the third time in as many years, the North Dakota State Bison will be playing in the FCS National Championship Game. On Friday night, the back-to-back defending champions clinched a spot in the title game with a 52-14 win over New Hampshire.

The game was close for a quarter, with the Bison and Wildcats tied at 7-7 after the first 15 minutes. NDSU completely took over after that, though, scoring 45 consecutive points before UNH finally found the end zone once again with less than a minute remaining on the clock.

The dream season is still alive for the New Hampshire Wildcats, who were unseeded heading into the FCS playoffs, but have now upset the fourth and fifth seeds in the tournament after beating Southeastern Louisiana, 20-17.

For that, they have quarterback Sean Goldrich to thank -- the sophomore from West Haven, CT accounted for 375 yards of total offense on Saturday, and scored all three of New Hampshire’s touchdowns. Finding the end zone from 32, one and two yards out, respectively, the third of those scores put the Wildcats up 20-17 with just :47 seconds to play, although the ensuing extra point was blocked by Southeastern Louisiana.

Vernon Adams threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns to lead Eastern Washington to a 35-24 win over Jacksonville State on Saturday, clinching the Eagles a berth in the FCS Playoffs semifinals. They will face Towson in the semifinals on Saturday, Dec. 21st in Cheney, Wash.

This game was a close affair early, as neither side could really get ahead of the other. The Eagles got on the board first when Adams hit Connor Kupp for a 29 yard touchdown pass, but Jacksonville State tied the score on the next drive on a touchdown pass from wide receiver Telvin Brown to Gavin Ellis. They would go on to take the lead in the second quarter when Eli Jenkins connected with Anthony Johnson for a 10 yard touchdown pass, but EWU answered less than two minutes later on a Quincy Forte touchdown run. The two teams traded touchdowns again before halftime, and things looked tight at the break at 21-21.

The North Dakota State Bison kept up their dominant form on Saturday afternoon, flattening Coastal Carolina 48-14 in the Fargodome and booking their ticket to the FCS Playoff semifinals. Sam Ojuri rushed for 162 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Bison, who improved their record to 13-0 on the year.

There was some question as to how North Dakota State players would respond in the first game since head coach Craig Bohl announced he was leaving for Wyoming after the season, but those worries were put to rest early when the Bison opened up a 17-0 lead in the first 15 minutes. Ojuri had the first touchdown of the game on a 73-yard run, and Brock Jensen added his own 10-yard touchdown run minutes later. The lead would grow to 31-0 in the first half before Coastal Carolina got on the board with a touchdown run by Lorenzo Taliaferro. NDSU would go into the break with a 34-7 lead, and at that point the game was essentially over.

On a cold, snowy night in Charleston, Ill., the No. 7 Towson Tigers advanced to the FCS national semifinals Friday night with a 49-39 upset win over No. 2 Eastern Illinois.

EIU took an early 14-0 lead, and with the home crowd behind the Panthers, it seemed the game could get out of hand. The Tigers battled back, though, and scored three touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 21-14 lead into the half.

At least, he better be ready, because things are about to escalate quickly for Garoppolo.

For starters, more people will be watching him this weekend than ever before with the FCS Playoffs on national television. Not to mention, he already has plenty of people talking about his NFL potential.

North Dakota State will have to continue its quest for a third consecutive FCS championship with the knowledge that head coach Craig Bohl will be leaving for Wyoming at the end of the season. The uncertainty caused by Bohl’s impeding departure is the biggest reason to think that the Bison might struggle to dispatch the upstart Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, who are fresh off a 42-35 upset of No. 8 Montana.

Eastern Illinois is a two-touchdown favorite over Towson for the teams’ meeting in the FCS quarterfinals on Saturday. It will be a difficult task for Towson to topple the second-seeded Panthers, who trounced Tennessee State 51-10 in the second round and own a 40-19 blowout of the bowl-bound San Diego Aztecs. After entering halftime tied with Fordham in their second round game, Towson pulled away with a 14-point third quarter that secured the Tigers’ 48-28 win, their first FCS playoff win in school history.

The first eight teams had a bye last week, but every team remaining was in action Saturday. The second round featured several blowouts, with margins of 41, 31 and 24 points. It also may have included the final game for Craig Bohl at North Dakota State.

Furman went up against the No. 1 seeded North Dakota State Bison and were run all over. Coming off the bye, the undefeated Bison ran for 267 yards behind starting quarterback Brock Jensen and running back Sam Ojuri. Jensen completed 15-of-25 passes ball for 249 yards. He threw for two touchdowns and ran for another long one, a 52-yard sprint that contributed to his game-high 86 yards rushing. North Dakota State will face Coastal Carolina in the third round, on their quest for a third consecutive title.

The Bison are two-time defending champions of the FCS crown, and will start their hunt for a third straight title against the Paladins. Furman won just three of their first eight games, but have since won five in a row, including a first-round win over South Carolina State and impressive victories against Samford and Georgia Southern.

Sam Houston State was a controversial at-large selection, but a dominating first-round win over Southern Utah has silenced some of those critics. The Bearkats have made the last two FCS championship games, and will be looking to make an historic upset run to the title game this year.

Eight teams had a first-round bye, but the eight first round games are in the books.

Jarius Hollman had both a 90-yard punt return TD and a 34-yard pick-six to lead Furman. Tanner Skogen rushed for 116 yards on 13 carries for the Paladins as well. Furman advances to play North Dakota State in the second round Dec. 7