FCS Championship Preview

South Dakota State Jackrabbits (14-0) vs Montana Grizzlies (13-1)

What you need to know: South Dakota State is on the verge of a dynasty. The Jackrabbits have won 28 games in a row, their last loss was their 2022 season opener in a 7-3 loss to Iowa, the infamous game that brought the birth of the “Iowa touchdown.” As you can tell, South Dakota State is the defending FCS champ, taking down rival North Dakota State to win last year’s championship. They’ve been on a warpath to defend their title this year, blowing out most of the teams in their path. The only really close games they’ve faced was an early season 20-16 battle with Montana State, and a weird 23-12 playoff win over Villanova where they battled 45 mph winds. Montana did not seem destined for this game at all early in the year as things got really dicey for the Griz. Their 3rd game of the year was particularly troublesome as they had to survive 2 late redzone trips to avoid a massive upset at the hands of D2 power Ferris State. The following week Montana took their only loss of the year, a 28-14 drubbing at the hands of the Northern Lumberjacks. Montana turned to Clifton McDowell at QB for a spark, and it worked. The Griz survived some close tests against the Hawkins father and son duo of Cody and Dan, beating Idaho State and UC Davis. The real turning point hit on a National TV Kibbie Dome After Dark battle with Idaho, Montana upset the Vandals and that really got the Griz going. They blasted opponents the rest of the way including a 30 point win in the Brawl of the Wild and another 30 point win to open the playoffs in a snowstorm over Delaware. The Griz won some awesome dramatic OT games over Furman and North Dakota State to complete their run to this game.

Why South Dakota State can win: The Jackrabbits are a wagon plain and simple. They can control the ball with their rushing attack, they are efficient passing the ball (QB Mark Gronowski 28 TDs, 4 picks). The Jackrabbits can also stop the run, suffocate opposing pass offenses, and they also take care of the ball. Winning culture? They’re the defending national champs so they have that too. Put it all together and this is a Jackrabbits program ready to take the reigns as the FCS’ greatest dynasty after watching their rival hold that title for so long.

Why Montana can win: If you read above, you know this is a tough task. My first thought was to look at their in-state rival, how did Montana State nearly beat South Dakota State? The formula the Bobcats used was controlling the ball and keeping it away from the Jackrabbits, but eventually in the 2nd half South Dakota State prevailed. Can Montana keep that formula? In a way, yes. Montana does like to control the ball, but another big part of the Grizzlies formula is big plays and they have a guy to do that. Junior Bergen is the most explosive returner in FCS. He was a huge factor in Montana’s dramatic OT wins the last 2 games, with 3 return TDs in those. South Dakota State will do their best to avoid kicking to Bergen, so Montana’s answer will be to find creative ways to get Bergen the ball in space on offense and get those explosive plays they need to overcome this juggernaut. Montana could also stand to force a fumble against the Jackrabbits who have lost 7 of them this year.

Who’s going to win: Montana is going to make this game a battle, the Griz will find at least one big play, but in the end this South Dakota State team is very experienced and knows how to win. They will find a way to pull this off and become back to back champs.