BROOKINGS South Dakota State is one game away from a return trip to the national championship as the Jackrabbits will host UAlbany on Friday night at 6 p.m. in the FCS semifinals.
Top-seeded SDSU (13-0) is coming off of a 23-12 victory over Vilanova and No. 5 seeded UAlbany (10-3) beat Idaho 30-22 on the road in the quarterfinals. The two teams playoff experience is vastly different as this is the 12th straight playoff appearance for the Jacks and will be their 32nd playoff game as a program. Meanwhile, this is the third time UAlbany has made the playoffs and the Great Danes hadnt made it past the second round until this season.
This is the fourth straight season that SDSU has made the final four in the FCS and head coach Jimmy Rogers said when it comes down to this point in the season, its about finishing the job.
Its a shorter week, playing on a Friday, and were playing one of the top teams in the country and that has its challenges, but were excited for it and its our opportunity to dig deep and punch our ticket to Frisco. This is something that weve all worked for throughout the course of the year and the moment is upon us, Rogers said.
GOING TO THE GAME?
What: FCS semifinals
When: 6 p.m. Friday
Where:Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings
The series: This is the first time the Jacks and Great Danes will meet on the gridiron.
2023 records: SDSU 13-0; UA 10-3
TV: ESPN2
Radio: AM 910 KJJQ
Game notes: This is the fourth straight year the Jacks have made the semifinals. They are 2-3 in semifinal games.
SDSU has won 27-straight games, which is the third-longest win streak in FCS history. The Jacks have won 20 consecutive home games.
This is the furthest UAlbany has been in the FCS playoffs. They have a 3-2 overall record in the playoffs.
UAlbany will bring an explosive passing offense into the game. Sophomore quarterback Reese Poffenbarger comes into Fridays game with the most passing touchdowns in the FCS with 36 and is second in the country in passing yards with 3,371. Rogers said Poffenbarger plays with a certain attitude that has resulted in a lot of success this season.
I think their quarterback plays with a ton of moxie. You can tell hes a winner and the guys respect him. Theyre an extremely competitive and resilient team. You can tell how fast [Poffenbarger] makes decisions. He has the ability to create with his legs and has a really strong arm, which gives him the ability to throw off balance as much as he does and the accuracy in which he completes balls, Rogers said.
Poffenbargers top weapon is senior wide receiver Brevin Easton. Easton is fifth in the country in receiving with 1,055 yards. He also has 13 touchdowns on the season. Against Idaho he had a career-high 228 yards and three touchdowns.
The Great Danes offense will go up against the No. 1 ranked defense in the country on Friday as the Jackrabbits are allowing 253.9 total yards per game. SDSU has the No. 7 pass defense, allowing 159.2 yards per game through the air.
When SDSU has the ball it will be a battle of the top rush rush defense against the fifth-best rush offense. UAlbany gives up 78.1 yards per game on the ground, which is 15 yards better than Princeton, who is second in rush defense. SDSU averages 231.3 yards per game on the ground and has rushed for 588 yards in the playoffs.
Sixth year offensive tackle Garret Greenfield said the Great Danes defense is tough to go against because dont make mistakes.
You look at the tape and its a really talented bunch. They play hard and play physical. I think theyre always in the right spot and are very sound. They dont make a lot of mistakes and their coaches put them in position to make plays and they make them, Greenfield said.
Rogers added that his offensive line will have to do a good job of communicating and playing physical.
Everybody has a job to do. Theyre a defense that does a really good job of setting edges and keeping the ball contained. It will be a tall task this week to run the football, but we have to attempt to because thats who we are. … The communication is going to be huge and then the physicality off of the ball, Rogers said.
This has been a historic season for UAlbany and it is coming off of three seasons where the Great Danes went a combined 5-20. The Great Danes are 21-point underdogs on the FanDuel Sportsbook as of Tuesday night and Poffenbarger said after UAlbany beat Idaho that the Great Danes have relished in being the underdog throughout the season.
Weve just had the mentality that were the underdogs. No matter what, we dont get the kudos that we deserve, but we dont care. We just go out there and fight every single practice and every single game. We dont look at that stuff, Poffenbarger said.
For SDSU, UAlbany is just another opponent that is on the path to becoming the fifth school to win at least back-to-back FCS titles. Against Villanova the Jacks trailed 6-3 in the first quarter and led 10-9 at halftime. There was a bit of a nervous energy in Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium at halftime, but the SDSU players kept their composure.
Sixth year offensive guard Mason McCormick said the Jackrabbits attitude in the playoffs, especially this season, has been to just stay the course.
I think any experience is good experience. You just have to believe. Weve come so far, why shut it down now? Sometimes thats the way a football game goes. Last week we were in the elite eight and this week were in the final four. I mean, everybody is good and you have to be ready to play. Its the playoffs and we have to go 1-0, McCormick said.
SDSU has won 27-straight games and has numerous guys who came back to school for a fifth or sixth season. When those guys came to SDSU the Jackrabbits were chasing the programs first national title. Now, with a second title two wins away, Greenfield said the determination to win it all hasnt changed.
Its a very cool thing to have such a veteran led team and I think we just set the example everyday that last year doesnt matter. We say it all the time, but whats happened in the past doesnt have any effect on the future. So, no matter what has happened, theres so many guys who take that seriously and they dont let anything else factor in and how much they push themselves to get better, Greenfield said.
You can watch Fridays game on ESPN2 or listen to the game on AM 910 KJJQ. The winner will play North Dakota State or Montana on Jan. 8 in Frisco.
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