Chris Miller continues his weekly sports columns.
In college athletics there are certain universities that are instantly recognizable by their school abbreviation, or even mascot. If you say, ND, OSU, the Fighting Irish, or the Buckeyes, people automatically know you are talking about Notre Dame or Ohio State.
But what if somebody mentioned a school that goes by the abbreviation NDSU, or their mascot is the Bison. Would you know instantly that I was talking about North Dakota State?
Probably not.
NDSU is a medium-sized school with just under 15,000 students located in Fargo, North Dakota. Athletically, the 14 Division I sports offered at NDSU receive very little national attention.
Some sports fans — myself included — may see this as a surprise given that NDSU football has become an elite program at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level. I would even argue that they have created a dynasty within the last decade since making the move from Division II up to Division I.
Since the move up in 2004, the Bison football program has won five Missouri Valley Football Conference titles (2006, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014) and four consecutive National Championships as well (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014).
It is safe to say that the last four years have been nothing short of spectacular for NDSU football. Over this span, the Bison are 58-3 (.951) including a playoff winning streak that currently stands at 16 games, in route to four consecutive conference championships and four consecutive FCS championships, a feat yet to be accomplished by any other FCS-level program, making them the most successful college football program this decade at any level.
As you might imagine, such a dominant four years has earned NDSU numerous FCS records. Some of these records include: winning 33 consecutive games (2012-2014), winning 22 consecutive road wins (2012-2014) and spending 30 straight weeks at #1 in the FCS Coaches Poll (2012-2014).
Possibly the most impressive accomplishment coming at the end of the 2013-14 season — after their third consecutive National Championship, North Dakota State finished with 17 votes which ranked them at No. 29 in all of Division I football, the highest of any team in the history of FCS football.
At this point, I am left to wonder, why doesn’t NDSU take the next step up, why don’t they join the Football Bowl Subdivision?
They have nothing left to prove at the FCS-level. They are the best and everyone is well aware of that by now. Additionally, they have gone (8-3) against FBS opponents since 2006. Some of these wins were by double-digits against Big Ten, Big 12 and MAC schools.
Just this past week during the 2015 National Signing Day festivities, NDSU had 27 players sign their letters of intent and join the Bison family.
In my opinion, NDSU can only benefit from moving to FBS-level football. The move up will certainly help recruiting, which seems to be doing well already. They will bring in much more national attention to not only the state of North Dakota, but also their university. Playing in FBS has the potential to bring millions of dollars to the school that they may not otherwise get. Most importantly, they will be able to compete against the best competition in college football and prove that they are a top team and that all they have accomplished since moving to Division I in 2004 was not a fluke.
Christopher Miller is a junior studying broadcast journalism and sports management. Do you think these athletes will transfer? Let him know at cm001111@ohio.edu or @MLLRC93.
