BROOKINGS South Dakota State will play another rematch on Saturday as the Jackrabbits will welcome Incarnate Word to Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium for a second time this season.
This time it will be in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs. SDSU beat UIW 45-24 on Sept. 7.
Last weekend No. 3 seeded SDSU took down Montana 35-18 in a rematch of last years national championship, while No. 6 seeded UIW beat Villanova 13-6. Each team has a record of 11-2 and SDSU head coach Jimmy Rogers said going up against the Cardinals again wont be an easy task.
We have a tough one this week, Incarnate Word, a familiar opponent and a team that we saw in the second game of the season this year, Rogers said. Theyre really well-coached and have been on a roll, really since their second loss as they havent lost since.
They have a lot of weapons on the perimeter and some of the best wide receivers in all of FCS football, and a quarterback that has done an unbelievable job throughout the course of the season as far as minimizing errors and creating opportunities for his team by throwing the ball very accurately but also [running the ball].
In the first meeting between the two teams SDSU led 17-10 at halftime. The Cardinals then tied the game on their first drive of the second half but the Jacks then scored back-to-back touchdowns to take a 31-17 lead into the fourth. UIW would then score 38 seconds into the fourth to cut the lead to seven but SDSU scored two touchdowns in a span of two minutes and 47 seconds to seal the game.
UIW quarterback Zach Calzada went 31-of-39 with 351 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for 43 yards. Jalen Walthall had seven catches for 137 yards and two touchdowns and Roy Alexander had nine catches for 128 yards and a touchdown.
The Cardinals were the only team to throw for over 300 yards against the Jacks this season and were the first team to do that since Southern Illinois threw for 363 yards against SDSU on Oct. 9, 2021.
Rogers said he thinks UIW had so much success because SDSU had not seen an offense like that and he thinks this time the Jacks will be better prepared.
They play a different brand of football than maybe what we were used to, Rogers said. I think it helped to see two very similar, but not the same, offenses in Oklahoma State and Incarnate Word, that were up-tempo and spread you out wide and took what you gave them. We have to be able to tackle in this game, do a good job of breaking on the ball in the air and create turnovers, not give up explosive plays and do the little things better than they do.
Thats what its going to come down to and we have to be able to execute, play together and play with a certain level of passion to overcome what could be some obstacles in this game that were not expecting.
The Cardinals did a lot of their damage on the ground last weekend against Villanova. In rainy conditions in San Antonio, UIW ran for 255 yards. Lontrell Turner led the way with 120 yards and Calzada added 87.
Rogers said the Cardinals rushing attack is the thing theyve improved on the most since they played SDSU in September.
The run game has improved I think. Last week in bad weather they relied on the run game and the quarterback ran the ball a little bit more, and I think the chemistry, you could see, has developed, Rogers said.
SDSU has been looking to get its passing game going all season and on Saturday against Montana the Jacks took a step in the right direction. Senior quarterback Mark Gronowski was 12-of-16 and had 151 yards and two touchdowns. His top target Griffin Wilde had seven catches for 114 yards and two scores.
Last season Gronowski was the Walter Payton Award winner after throwing for 3,058 yards and 29 touchdowns. This season hes thrown for 2,341 yards and 19 touchdowns. Rogers said hes never been worried about Gronowskis play and hes one of the players that needs to continue to give it his all to keep the chance to win a third-straight national title alive.
Mark is one of the most consistent players in my time here and Id put him up there with all of the greats that have come through here that really thrived off of their work ethic and focus and ability to overcome adversity along the way, and hes another example of that, Rogers said. I think with [the] new people [he was] working with, new O-linemen in front of him and the communication aspect, Mark takes a lot of heat for what doesnt work and gets a lot of credit for what does work.
Theres 10 other guys on the field and he would tell you the same thing. Were starting to gel right now and we need to keep it up and everyone needs to be locked in and ready to play their best football for each other to get one more opportunity for one more week with one another.
Kickoff between the Jacks and Cardinals is set for 11 a.m. Saturday. You can watch the game on ESPN or listen to the game on AM 570 WNAX.
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