Wildcats' Season Ends at North Dakota State

FARGO, North Dakota  – All season, ACU head coach Keith Patterson has said his team has been writing its story in the history of Wildcat football, one chapter at a time. 
 
Through the first 20 minutes of Saturday's FCS playoff game at the Fargodome, the 15th-ranked Wildcats were writing the year's feel-good story, leading the second-ranked North Dakota State 17-3 and brimming with confidence and momentum.
 
In less than 15 seconds, the Bison rewrote the story. When it was over, the nine-time FCS national champions had authored a 51-31 win over the Wildcats, earning a spot in the national quarterfinals for the 15th straight year and ending the best season in ACU's NCAA Division I era. The Bison (11-2) will host seventh-ranked Mercer next week in Fargo with a chance to advance to the national semifinals.
 
On the other hand, Patterson's team finishes its season at 9-5. Still, it will long be remembered as the first ACU team to win a conference championship and earn a playoff spot in football at the Division I level. And they will be remembered for the first FCS playoff win in program history, last week's 24-0 first-round win over Northern Arizona.
 
The Wildcats jumped out to a fast start, scoring on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Maverick McIvor to J.J. Henry, and finished the first quarter with a 90-yard touchdown run by Sam Hicks to give the Wildcats a 14-3 lead going to the second quarter. On NDSU's second drive of the second quarter, defensive end Kaghen Roach intercepted a Cam Miller pass, tipping the ball to himself, intercepting it, and returning it to the Bison 13-yard line.
 
The Wildcats, however, were held to a 29-yard field goal by Ritse Vaes and a 17-3 lead with 10:35 left in the first half. ACU had all the momentum, and the Bison and the home crowd at the Fargodome – where NDSU is now 36-1 all-time in the FCS playoffs – were stunned.
 
That all changed 11 seconds later.
 
Jackson Williams fielded the kickoff from Vaes three yards deep in the end zone, hit the seam, cut to the right, and sprinted up the right sideline for a 100-yard touchdown. The play cut the Wildcats' lead to 17-10 and shifted the momentum in favor of the Bison. That was just the start for the Bison, who added a field goal and touchdown to end the half with a 20-17 lead. They scored the first three times they had the ball in the third quarter – outscoring ACU 21-0 in that span – for five straight scoring drives and 31 unanswered points as they went from down 17-3 to a 34-17 lead.
 
The Wildcats tried to get momentum back on their side in the second quarter with a fake punt from their 33-yard line, but Nehemiah Martinez was stopped after an 11-yard gain on fourth-and-13, turning the ball back to the Bison at the ACU 44. NDSU settled for a field goal to cut ACU's lead to 17-13, but momentum had turned.
 
"They started playing with more intensity, and we never could get back into a rhythm," Patterson said. "They had the kickoff return for a touchdown, then we didn't get a first down on the fake punt, and we turned it over a couple of times in the second half. We didn't come here to play close; we came to win and felt like we could. I didn't think they expected a fake punt that deep on our end, and we had a look we wanted on the play, so there was no second-guessing on that play. I was trying to do what I could to generate momentum and get some back on our side."
 
The Wildcats never could get the momentum back on their side, although they cut the lead to 41-31 with 11:11 left in the game on a 2-yard run by Rovaughn Banks. But the Bison pushed the lead to 44-31 on a field goal with 3:34 to play, and Logan Kopp returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown for the final margin.




 
GAME SUMMARY
How They Scored
1Q (8:52) – The Bison opened the game with the ball and drove for points on their first possession for the 11th time in 13 games. But against a team that has scored touchdowns on 48 of now 61 trips into the red zone, the Wildcat defense came up with some big plays inside the 10-yard line to force NDSU to settle for a 20-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa. Barika Kpeenu had a 29-yard run on the drive, and quarterback Cam Miller had completions of 16 and 12 yards.
             Scoring Play: Griffin Crosa 20 field goal
             Drive:  12 plays, 72 yards, 6:08
             North Dakota State 3, ACU 0
 
1Q (2:45) – The Wildcats answered North Dakota State's opening-possession score with a scoring drive, but ACU punched the ball into the end zone to take a 7-3 lead. Maverick McIvor – playing Saturday after missing last week's win over Northern Arizona with an injury – didn't look like he missed a beat, completing 8 of 9 passes for 78 yards on the drive. He and Nehemiah Martinez hooked up for a 15-yard gain on fourth-and-2, and two plays later, he connected with J.J. Henry in the left flat and outran two Bison defenders into the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown pass.
             Scoring Play: J.J. Henry 13 pass from Maverick McIvor (Ritse Vaes kick)
             Drive:  12 plays, 75 yards, 6:07
             ACU 7, North Dakota State 3
 
1Q (0:00) – Pinned on their 10-yard line after a 40-yard punt by Kaedin Steindorf, the Wildcats seemed willing to play out the first quarter, running a simple power play to the left with Sam Hicks. But Hicks suddenly found himself sprinting up the left sideline with a host of Bison defenders chasing him and nothing but green turf in front of him. He finished the 90-yard touchdown run untouched, and the Wildcats carried a 14-3 lead into the second quarter.
             Scoring Play: Sam Hicks 90 run (Ritse Vaes kick)
             Drive:  1 play, 90 yards, 0:04
             ACU 14, North Dakota State 3
 
2Q (10:35) – ACU defensive end Kaghen Roach created the game's first turnover when he tipped a Cam Miller pass, intercepted it, and returned the pick to the NDSU 13-yard line. But the NDSU defense stood up, held ACU to just one yard on the drive, and forced ACU to settle for a 29-yard field goal by Ritse Vaes.
             Scoring Play: Ritse Vaes 29 field goal
             Drive:  4 plays, 1 yard, 0:57
             ACU 17, North Dakota State 3
 
2Q (10:24) – It took the Bison 11 seconds to answer the field, but they did it with a touchdown as Jackson Williams took the ensuing kickoff in the end zone, hit a seam, and went untouched for a 100-yard kickoff return to cut ACU's lead to 17-10.
             Scoring Play: Jackson Williams 100 kickoff return (Grosa kick)
             ACU 17, North Dakota State 10
 
2Q (5:58) – Facing fourth-and-14 from its 33, ACU ran a fake punt as punter Grant Nickel pitched the ball to Nehemiah Martinez on an option play, and he got the ball to the 44, falling two yards short of the first down. Taking over at its 44, NDSU moved to the ACU 19, thanks to a 14-yard pass from Cam Miller to Joe Stoffel. But two passes from the 19 were incomplete, and the Bison were forced to settle for a 37-yard field goal by Griffin Crosa.
             Scoring Play: Griffin Crosa 37 field goal
             Drive:  6 plays, 25 yards, 2:18
             ACU 17, North Dakota State 13
 
2Q (0:21) – After the NDSU defense forced an ACU punt, the Bison offense took over on its 34-yard line with 2:49 left in the first half. Bison quarterback Cam Miller hit Braylon Henderson for a 32-yard gain down the middle of the field on the drive's first play, moving the ball to the ACU 34. The Bison then chipped away down the field until they got fourth-and-1 from the ACU 11. Miller completed a pass to the ACU seven, and on second-and-goal from the 6, Miller found RaJa Nelson for a touchdown to give NDSU the lead at halftime.
             Scoring Play: RaJa Johnson 6 pass from Cam Miller (Crosa kick)
             Drive:  9 plays, 66 yards, 2:28
             North Dakota State 20, ACU 17
 
3Q (10:38) – ACU had a promising drive to start the third quarter before a strip-sack of Maverick McIvor by Logan Kopp and Kopp's return of the fumble to the ACU 28 put an end to the ACU drive and set up the Bison in scoring position. After an 11-yard run on first down and an incomplete pass, the Bison had second-and-10 on the ACU 17 when Jordan Mukes was whistled for a questionable pass interference call in the end zone, putting the ball at the ACU 2-yard line. On second down, Miller snuck across from one yard away, and suddenly, the Bison had scored 24 straight points to take a 27-17 lead.
             Scoring Play: Cam Miller 1 run (Crosa kick)
             Drive:  4 plays, 28 yards, 1:47
             North Dakota State 27, ACU 17
 
3Q (6:08) – North Dakota State's defense ended a second straight ACU drive with another sack, and once again, the Bison offense took advantage by driving for a touchdown to run its streak to 31 consecutive points. Cam Miller connected with Bryce Lance on an 11-yard pass on second down, and another pass interference penalty on ACU moved the ball to the ACU 34. After a four-yard run, Miller hit TK Marshall on a wheel route for a 30-yard touchdown pass.
             Scoring Play: TK Marshall 30 pass from Cam Miller (Crosa kick)
             Drive:  4 plays, 60 yards, 2:15
             North Dakota State 34, ACU 17
 
3Q (3:23) – Nehemiah Martinez set up the Wildcats with excellent field position after a 53-yard return to the NDSU 39-yard line. Sam Hicks gained 19 yards on third-and-2 to move the ball to the NDSU 12-yard line. After a 9-yard pass from Maverick McIvor to J.J. Henry moved the ball to the 3-yard line, Sam Hicks scored his second rushing touchdown of the game, this time from three yards out to break NDSU's streak of 31 unanswered points.
             Scoring Play: Sam Hicks 3 run (Vaes kick)
             Drive:  5 plays, 39 yards, 2:35
             North Dakota State 34, ACU 24
 
3Q (0:40) – The Bison answered ACU's touchdown drive with one of their own to push the lead back to 17 points. Cam Miller connected with Braylon Henderson for a 23-yard pass on the drive's first play, and on third-and-4 from the ACU 46, he found Bryce Lance for 10 yards to the 36. On the next play, Miller and Lanced hooked up for a 36-yard touchdown pass as the Bison scored on their fifth straight drive.
             Scoring Play: Bryce Lance 36 pass from Cam Miller (Crosa kick)
             Drive:  5 plays, 75 yards, 2:43
             North Dakota State 41, ACU 24
 
4Q (11:11) – ACU got back to within 10 points with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that took just 4:29 off the clock. Much of the yardage came on the ground as Sam Hicks and Rovaughn Banks combined for 48 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown run by Banks, his second rushing touchdown of the season and first since the season-opener at Texas Tech.
             Scoring Play: Rovaughn Banks 2 run (Vaes kick)
             Drive:  10 plays, 75 yards, 4:29
             North Dakota State 41, ACU 31
 
4Q (3:34) – With the Wildcats trying to cut the deficit to one score, Maverick McIvor hooked up with J.J. Henry for a 15-yard pass to the ACU 31. But on the next play, McIvor was rushed, had his arm hit as he threw, and the ball fluttered into the air and was intercepted by Marcus Gulley and returned the ball 37 yards to the ACU 9-yard line.
             Scoring Play: Crosa 24 field goal
             Drive:  4 plays, 3 yards, 1:42
             North Dakota State 44, ACU 31
 
4Q (3:25) – On the Wildcats' first play of their drive, Maverick McIvor's pass to Sam Hicks went through his hands and was intercepted at the ACU 31 by Logan Kopp, who returned it for a touchdown.
              Scoring Play: Logan Kopp 31 interception return (Crosa kick)
              North Dakota State 51, ACU 31
 
POST-GAME NOTES
• Maverick McIvor finished the game 20 of 32 for 153 yards and one touchdown as he moved into fourth in career completions with 655, passing Jim Lindsey (642 from 1967–70), and fourth in career yards with 8,012, passing Rex Lamberti (7,934 yards from 1984-86, 1993). ACU's career pass
• McIvor also passed Luke Anthony for the single-season record for attempts with 499 (Anthony had 484 in 2018). And McIvor's 153 yards passing gives him 3,828 on the season, bypassing Mitchell Gale (3,823 in 2011) for second on the single-season list behind only Billy Malone (3,914 in 2007).
• Sam Hicks' 90-yard touchdown run on the first quarter's last play tied Bernard Scott for the longest playoff run in ACU history. Scott had a 90-yard touchdown run at Chadron State (Neb.) in 2007. The touchdown run was also the longest against North Dakota State in the Bison's Division I era.
• Hicks finished the day with 153 yards and two scores on 16 carries to give him 1,333 yards and 14 touchdowns on 211 carries this season. He is third on ACU's single-season rushing yards list, trailing only the 2,165 yards Bernard Scott ran for in 2007 and the 2,156 he had in 2008. The 14 rushing touchdowns are tied with Charcandrick West (14 in 2013) and Kelly Kent (14 in 1977) for the sixth-most in single-season history.
 
QUOTING ACU HEAD COACH KEITH PATTERSON
 
General thoughts on the game: "We knew this would be a hard-fought game that would go for 60 minutes. I haven't had a chance to dwell on it too much, but if someone had told me before the game that we would hold them to 100 yards rushing (101), I would have thought it might have been a different game. But we made too many mistakes against an opponent like North Dakota State."
 
On North Dakota State's kickoff return for a touchdown: "We've been so good covering kickoffs; that was a shock. I don't know where we had a breakdown, but we had complete control of the game and all the momentum, and the shock value of that play took all of that away from us."
 
UP NEXT
The Wildcats don't play again until the 2025 season opener when they head north to Oklahoma to take on the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025. The following week (Sept. 6), the Wildcats will play TCU at Amon Carter Stadium in Fort Worth. ACU will play its first home game on Sept. 13 against Stephen F. Austin on Saturday, Sept. 13. ACU season ticket holders or those interested in purchasing season tickets can place an early deposit for the 2025 season, guaranteeing they will receive their season ticket book and parking passes.