complete release attached
No. 2-seed and No. 4-ranked North Dakota State (11-1, 7-1 Valley Football) is scheduled to host No. 6 Lehigh University (11-1, 5-0 Patriot League) in a NCAA Division I FCS playoff quarterfinal game at 3:05 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, in the Fargodome (18,700 / Artificial Turf) ... D.J. McNorton rushed 19 times for 154 yards and one TD as NDSU defeated James Madison 26-14 in the second round Dec. 3 and advance to the quaterfinals for the second straight season ... The Bison are 12-2 over the past two seasons in the Fargodome and 4-0 vs. nationally-ranked opponents in 2011 ... The Mountain Hawks are 6-0 on the road and 2-1 against nationally-ranked opponents in 2011 ... Payton Award finalist quarterback Chris Lum completed 36 of 48 passes for 351 yards and a TD as Lehigh defeated host Towson 40-38 in the second round on Dec. 3 ... For ticket information, call 1-888-231-678 or visit GoBison.com.
TELEVISION: The game will be available on ESPN3.com ... Trey Bender will handle the play-by-play, and Jay Taylor will serve as color analyst ... The Bison are 97-56-1 (.631) in TV games.
POSTSEASON HISTORY: North Dakota State is making its 25th postseason appearance including 17 in the NCAA Division II playoffs ... NDSU advanced to the 2010 NCAA FCS quarterfinals before falling 38-31 in overtime at eventual national champion Eastern Washington ... North Dakota State defeated Robert Morris 43-17 in the opening round, the program's first-ever NCAA playoff game in the Fargodome ... NDSU defeated Montana State 42-17 in the second round at Bozeman ... The Bison are 38-14 overall in the postseason including a 3-1 record in the NCAA FCS playoffs and 31-12 record in NCAA Division II ... North Dakota State has won eight national championships (1965, 1968, 1969, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988 and 1990) and were national runner-up three times (1967, 1981 and 1984) ... The Bison also were third place five times (1970, 1976, 1977, 1982, 2000) ... Championships & placings prior to 1973 were determined by AP or UPI polls ... Championship & runner-up finishes after that were through the NCAA playoff format ... Third-place finishes after 1973 were the result of semifinal losses in the playoff system.
AT HOME: North Dakota State has compiled a 236-36-3 record at home since 1964 ... The Bison are 91-22-0 in the Fargodome since moving from Dacotah Field in 1993 ... NDSU is 6-1 this season at home and are 42-11 since head coach Craig Bohl took over in 2003.
SERIES RECORD: This is the first meeting between North Dakota State and Lehigh University ... The Bison are 1-0 against current members of the Patriot League ... NDSU defeated Lafayette 42-6 in the 2011 season opener at the Fargodome.
BISON PLACE DOZEN ON VALLEY FOOTBALL TEAM: Co-champion North Dakota State University placed four players -- defensive end Coulter Boyer, offensive tackle Paul Cornick, cornerback Marcus Williams and linebacker Chad Willson -- on the 2011 all-Missouri Valley Football Conference first team and 12 players were honored overall in a vote of league coaches, media and sports information directors announced Nov. 28 ... Named to the Valley Football second team were tight end Matt Veldman, offensive lineman Austin Richard, strong safety Colten Heagle, wide receiver/return specialist Ryan Smith and kicker Ryan Jastram ... Wide receiver Warren Holloway, quarterback Brock Jensen and punter Matt Voigtlander were honorable mention ... Head coach Craig Bohl is the league's Bruce Craddock Coach of the Year ... A finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award, he led the Bison to a conference co-championship, 10-1 overall record, and a No. 2 overall seed in this year's NCAA Division I Football Championship.
BISON IN THE POLLS: North Dakota State has been ranked in the top five for 28 weeks in program history including 10 weeks at No. 1 (Oct. 31, Nov. 7, 2011 / Sept. 1-8, 2008 / Oct. 8-15-22-29, Nov. 5-12, 2007) ... North Dakota State was ranked No. 4 in the final regular season FCS Coaches Poll and The Sports Network/Fathead.com Top 25 polls released Nov. 21 ... NDSU was No. 3 in the 2011 Gridiron Power Index released Nov. 22 ... The final rankings come out Jan. 8, 2012.
RADIO BROADCASTS: KFGO-AM 790, Fargo ... Online at www.GoBison.com ... Veteran sports announcer Scott Miller will handle the play-by-play ... Former NDSU All-American and 11-year NFL great Phil Hansen will handle the color duties, while NDSU director of athletic broadcasting Jeremy Jorgenson is on the sidelines ... Air time is set for 2:30 p.m., kickoff at 3:05 p.m. (Central) on Dec. 10 ... Anchored by flagship, The Mighty 790, KFGO-AM, the Bison Radio Network has 11 stations including KFYR AM 550 (Bismarck), KPOK AM 1340 (Bowman), KRCQ FM 102.3 (Detroit Lakes, Minn.), KDVL FM 102.5 (Devils Lake), KHND AM 1470 (Harvey), KSJB 600 AM (Jamestown), KHRT AM 1320 (Minot), KZZJ AM 1450 (Rugby), KYCR AM 1570 (Minneapolis)and KEYZ AM 660 (Williston) ... The Bison gameday format includes a 30-minute pregame show with comments from Craig Bohl, in-depth analysis, features, and starting lineups ... A complete 30-minute postgame show is covered from the press box and locker room area.
AGAINST THE NATIONALLY-RANKED: NDSU is 13-8 against nationally-ranked opponents over the past five seasons (2011: W vs. James Madison; W at Indiana State; W vs. Northern Iowa; W at Southern Illinois; 2010: L at Eastern Washington; W at Montana State, W vs. South Dakota; L at UNI; 2009: L at Southern Illinois, L vs. UNI; 2008, L at South Dakota State; L, at Youngstown State, W at Southern Illinois, L vs. Western Illinois; L at UNI; 2007: W at Cal Poly, W at Western Illinois, W vs. Sam Houston State, 2006: W at Georgia Southern, W vs. Cal Poly, W vs. South Dakota State).
