2021/04/25 07:40 FARGO, N.D. (AP) Dominic Gonnella ran for 163 yards and two touchdowns and Jalen Bussey ran for 143 yards and North Dakota State rallied from a two-touchdown deficit to smash Eastern Washington University 42-20 on Saturday in an opening-round game of the FCS playoffs. The Bison (7-2) advance to the quarterfinals to face No. 2-seed Sam Houston State in Huntsville, Texas on May 1. Eastern Washington (5-2) scored three touchdowns in its first three possessions and built a 20-7 lead. In those first three drives the Big Sky Conference s at-large bid piled up 217 yards of offense scoring on drives of 85, 53 and 79 yards. Eric Barriere s 3-yard slant pass to Andrew Boston made it 20-7 for the Eagles with 10 minutes before halftime.
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Odds as of Friday afternoon and via DraftKings.
Once upon a time, there was no pandemic to delay the start of the FCS football season.
At the conclusion of the 2018 season, there would have been heavy sentiment that North Dakota State and Eastern Washington have the potential to play for the national championship every season. Because of a delayed fall and a short spring, we are now faced with two unseeded teams squaring off in the first round.
These two teams have had spectacular games in the past decade, from the 2010 playoff quarterfinal thriller in overtime to the most recent 2018 National Championship game. With a projected path that runs through Sam Houston and James Madison, the road to the championship will not go past the Bison or Eagles.
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