Grand Forks, North Dakota (KNFL/KFGO/UND Atheltics) – No. 22/22 South Dakota State (8-4, 4-4 MVFC) spoiled No. 13/16 North Dakota’s (7-5, 5-3 MVFC) Senior Day in overtime on Saturday afternoon, 34-31. The Fighting Hawks led 20-7 late in the third quarter and then clawed their way back in the fourth quarter to even the score up at 28-28 to force overtime.
UND had momentum and led 20-7 with 3:54 left in the third stanza after a 29-yard field goal from Kenten Laughman. Over the final two minutes of the quarter, disaster struck and saw SDSU claim a 21-20 lead. First, Greyton Gannon scored on a 42-yard pass from Jack Henry to trim the deficit to 20-14. On NoDak’s next possession, the Jackrabbits forced a fumble from Jerry Kaminski and then scored two plays later on a two-yard rush from Josiah Johnson to earn the 21-20 advantage.
The next score came with 6:30 left in the contest when the Jacks engineered a six-play, 64-yard drive which was capped by Johnson’s one-yard rushing score. North Dakota responded 11 plays later, when Kaminski found Nate DeMontagnac for a 16-yard scoring pass to bring the score to 28-26. Sawyer Seidl caught the two-point conversion to knot the score up at 28-28 with 1:52 left in the game.
SDSU ate the final 1:52 of clock to send the game into overtime. The Jackrabbits went on defense first and only allowed the Fighting Hawks to pick up two yards over four plays. Laughman connected on his third field goal of the afternoon and gave the Hawks a 31-28 edge with a 40-yard boot. SDSU faced 3rd & 8 from the UND 23 and Henry found Grahm Goering for a 23-yard touchdown pass, which he high-pointed in the corner of the end-zone to allow the Jacks to come out with the 34-31 overtime win.
South Dakota Sate’s Henry went 6-for-17 passing for 132 yards and a pair of scores, while also throwing two interceptions. Greyton and Gannon had the touchdown receptions, while the Jack receivers were led by Alex Bullock with two grabs for 58 yards. Julius Loughridge amassed 112 yards rushing on 24 attempts and Johnson picked up 76 yards on 19 attempts and a trio of rushing scores.
Kaminski went 20-for-33 through the air for 292 yards and a score, while also allowing one interception. Kaminski also paced the rushing attack with 34 yards on the ground and a rushing touchdown on 14 attempts. Fleming racked up a game-high 123 yards receiving on four receptions, while DeMontagnac had the touchdown grab to send the game to overtime.
The Fighting Hawks were up 17-7 at the halfway point. The first score of the game came with 2:59 left in the opening quarter, when Jerry Kaminski scored on a 14-yard scamper on 4th & 1 from the SDSU 14. That play capped a 98-yard drive. On UND’s next possession, it scored in a matter of just 10 seconds, when Kaminski connected with Fleming for an 89-yard touchdown pass. That pass currently ranks as the longest scoring pass in school history.
The Jackrabbits got on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter with an eight-yard rush from Johnson, which capped a drive that took 9:47 off the clock. All 17 plays for SDSU that drive were rushes. Zach Lewis picked off a pass on the following South Dakota State possession, and nine plays later, North Dakota exchanged the pick for three points on a Kenten Laughman 20-yarder to push the lead to 17-7. Jy Martin shutdown the final Jackrabbit drive before intermission with an interception.
Early in the second half, South Dakota State faced 4th & goal from the UND 2 and elected to go for it but was stopped by North Dakota’s defense. UND was then held to three-and-out, but SDSU muffed the punt and Caden Dennis recovered it at the SDSU 41. The Fighting Hawks exchanged the fumble for another three-points on a 29-yarder from the leg of Laughman to bring the tally to 20-7 late in the third quarter.
North Dakota will find out its FCS Playoff fate on Sunday morning at 11 a.m. (CT) on ESPNU.
Postgame Notes
- North Dakota is now 47-39-5 in the all-time series with South Dakota State. The Jackrabbits are on a five-game winning streak in the series.
- UND is now 8-5 in its overtime history and 3-2 in the Division I era.
- Jerry Kaminski connected with B.J. Fleming for an 89-yard touchdown pass late in the first quarter. It tied the longest pass in school history and is now the longest scoring pass in UND history. The previous record was 87 yards from Reed Manke to Brady Trenbeath vs. Winona State in 2006.
- With a touchdown pass thrown, Kaminski tied for the school record in UND’s all-time record book for touchdowns thrown in a single-season during the regular season. He is tied with Danny Freund, who threw 24 touchdown passes in the 2007 in regular season.
- B.J. Fleming had 123 yards receiving, good for his third 100-yard receiving game this season. He has also now connected with Kaminski for three touchdown receptions of over 75 yards.
- Malachi McNeal and Lance Rucker paced the defensive effort with 11 tackles each. Zach Lewis and Jy Martin both had one interception apiece, while Caden Dennis recovered a fumble.
- Kenten Laughman went a season-best three-for-three on field goal attempts.
- UND forced three turnovers but finished +1.0 in turnover margin.
How It Happened
First Quarter
2:59 – UND | Jerry Kaminski scores on a 14-yard rush. (Kenten Laughman kick). 8 plays, 98 yards, 3:53.
1:10 – UND | B.J. Fleming scores on an 89-yard pass from Kaminski. (Laughman kick). 1 play, 89 yards, 0:10.
Second Quarter
6:21 – SDSU | Josiah Johnson scores on an 8-yard rush. (Eli Stader kick). 17 plays, 80 yards, 9:47.
0:59 – UND | Laughman connects on a 20-yard field goal. 9 plays, 40 yards, 2:34.
Third Quarter
3:54 – UND | Laughman connects on a 29-yard field goal. 7 plays, 29 yards, 2:52. <- dennis=”” fumble=””>
1:19 – SDSU | Greyton Gannon scores on a 42-yard pass from Jack Henry. (Stader kick). 6 plays, 65 yards, 2:35.
0:35 – SDSU | Johnson scores on a 6-yard rush. (Stader kick). 2 plays, 10 yards, 0:37. <- set=”” up=”” by=”” kaminski=””>
Fourth Quarter
6:30 – SDSU | Johnson scores on a 1-yard rush. (Stader kick). 6 plays, 64 yards, 3:38.
1:52 – UND | Nate DeMontagnac scores on a 16-yard pass from Kaminski. (Seidl conversion successful). 11 plays, 85 yards, 4:31.
Overtime
UND – Laughman connects on a 40-yard field goal. 4 plays, 2 yards.
SDSU – Grahm Goering scores on a 23-yard pass from Henry. 3 plays, 25 yards.
Comments