FRISCO, Texas (STATS) – When a glimmer of hope has faded for each North Dakota State opponent, the Bison have seemed destined to win yet another FCS national title this season.
If it happens Saturday, they would make it two straight and a record seven championships in eight seasons.
Eastern Washington holds more than a glimmer of hope, however – the Eagles (12-2) are a confident team with a rich history of success despite being a two-touchdown underdog.
Hey, before the NDSU dynasty began, Eastern Washington won the 2010 FCS title when Toyota Stadium became home of the national championship game.
“Go back to the competitor. You have to beat the best to be the best. And they’re the best – no two ways about it,” Eastern Washington second-year coach Aaron Best said Thursday before his team’s practice.
“They came in the preseason No. 1, they are sitting at No. 1, and so you have to beat them to catapult them.”
Considering North Dakota State (14-0) is in a familiar spot, the Eagles seem in agreement that playing a strong first quarter is important, even though they’ve faced deficits in three of their last five wins.
“We know there’s going to be a bunch of Bison fans here, so it’s pretty much going to be like an away game in a way,” sophomore quarterback Eric Barriere said. “We just have to go out there and just try to settle in because I’m pretty sure everybody’s going to be amped up – first championship game for all of us.
“We just have to start all fast – all four quarters.”
While Eastern Washington has had terrific offensive balance this season, the defense is likely vulnerable to NDSU’s power run game, which has averaged nearly 286 rushing yards, and it’s over 361 yards per game in the postseason.
The Eagles’ much-improved defense, which has 23 takeaways in the team’s seven-game winning streak, must dictate situations.
“Defensively, I think it’s just consistency and discipline,” senior linebacker Ketner Kupp said.
“I think winning early – stopping the run, obviously, and trying to get them into situations where it’s 2nd-and-long and 3rd-and-long. Just being disciplined and taking advantage of those opportunities, letting guys make plays and let our defensive coordinator (Jeff Schmedding) put us in position to make those plays and take advantage of it.”
Special teams have to go right as well. Roldan Alcobendas has converted 83 of 84 kicks, including all 15 field goal attempts, and the Eagles’ coverage and return teams will seek to flip the field on the Bison, whose units haven’t been as dominant as in recent season.
“Obviously, it’s an overlooked aspect of the game,” said Alcobendas, a sixth-year senior. “People just think of it as a kicker, (the) ball goes in, that’s it. There’s a lot of pieces and mechanisms that go into it, like whether all the blocks are correct, the snap, the hold, the kick obviously, those are all little aspects that go really hand-in-hand with the operation.”
In truth, so much has to go right for Big Sky power Eastern Washington to upset North Dakota State.
But the Eagles, who gained experience against the Bison in regular-season losses in 2016 and ’17, are anything but intimidated by the challenge.
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