Kolpack: No ground game, no problem for Cam Miller – InForum

Fargo

North Dakota State quarterback Cam Miller was rock solid when he needed to be Saturday night. After years of frustration, the Bison senior quarterback was finally able to hold onto the Dakota Marker, 75 pounds of quartzite lifted from his shoulders, including through four losses to South Dakota State.

It wasn't a dance to “You Gotta Play in Texas” in an FCS semifinal win at Gate City Bank at the Fargodome, but it was close. The 13-9 win over SDSU ended five straight losses to the Jacks.

“There were a lot of emotions, I was late to the party (by grabbing the marker), but it was great,” Miller said.

“This win is huge for his legacy,” NDSU head coach Tim Polasek said. “Cam is a fighter. You can learn life lessons from this victory, you never get out.”

The Bison trailed SDSU by two points heading into the final quarter. Anyone have an explosive game?

At that point, NDSU's longest gain ever was 18 yards, a touchdown pass from Miller to RaJa Nelson in the first half. Moving the Jackrabbits' defensive line was like trying to move Mount Rushmore.

NDSU's offensive line push was rare. There were no holes, the occasional seam, but no gaps in the SDSU armor. Bison running backs rarely saw the secondary.

But there was still a chance, even though it felt like that line from the movie Dumb and Dumber: So you're saying there's a chance.

“Cam ended up asking for the ball,” Polasek said.

The Bison got the ball at their own 8-yard line after an SDSU punt with 7:14 left. A 13-yard completion to Braylon Henderson got them out of the shadows of the end zone. With just under four minutes left, Mekhi Collins hit a 14-yarder at midfield.

David Samson/The Forum

A scrambling Miller hit Chris Harris for 17 yards to the SDSU 32 with 2:35 left, Miller's most athletic play of the drive. TK Marshall ran for 10 more until the 22nd.

With 1:49 left, Miller's perfect pass to Nelson in the corner of the end zone gave the Bison a 13-9 lead, with the two-point conversion failing.

“When we get out of the huddle, we practice it day in and day out,” Nelson said. “We saw the coverage, we knew what it was and took our chance.”

It was a Walter Payton Award-style throw, the kind Bison quarterbacks have made over the years.

“I grew up with him and played all sports,” said SDSU linebacker Adam Bock, a high school teammate of Miller’s. “He is a competitor as he has developed over the years, he is a phenomenal player. But hopefully it won’t be the last time we see her.”

Trey Lance stood on the sideline and his Dallas Cowboys were playing a bye. He did that a lot during his time with the Bison. Lance was under center the last time the Bison won the marker in 2019.

Still, there was still 1:49 left for SDSU quarterback Mark Gronowski.

But Bison linebacker Logan Kopp picked him off with 1:00 left and the marker returned to Fargo.

“I just tried to go to my guy Griffin Wilde and Kopp ended up making a great play, a great catch,” Gronowski said.

Anna Paige / The Forum

NDSU won despite not having much offense. In 2022, the last time they played in Fargo, SDSU outscored the Bison on the ground by 100 yards, 207-107. The five-game rushing average for both teams gave SDSU an advantage of 225.6 to 137.8. Not much has changed in this rematch.

For the sixth straight game in the series, the Bison running backs were crowded. Last year, TaMerik Williams was the Bison's leading running back gainer with 33 yards in SDSU's 33-16 win at Brookings.

At least Marty Brown came close at halftime, which ended with the Jackrabbits leading 9-7.

Brown managed a 12-yard shot toward the end of the second quarter, but that was it.

“We have to find answers faster,” said Polasek. “Our ability to find answers in the run game hasn’t been great.”

The Jacks weren't exactly smart in this trade either, aside from backup quarterback Chase Mason's 66-yard touchdown run that broke up his run on third-and-1 with 4:43 left before halftime. SDSU senior Amar Johnson, who has hurt the Bison in the past, was kept in check by NDSU's best defensive performance of the season. His top backup, Angel Johnson, didn't pose much of a threat either. Amar finished with 41 yards; Angel 17 for a total of 18 runs.

Jeff would like to dispel the idea that he was there when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he is now in his third decade of reporting for Forum Communications. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked at the Jamestown Sun, the Bismarck Tribune and, since 1990, the Forum, where he has covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU's Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” from April to August.