The FCS Daily Dose is a blog-style article series featuring an assortment of news, rumblings, quick hitters, and commentary on various topics.
A new Daily Dose will be published multiple times a week.
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Can UND Keep Momentum Going After Its Big Ranked Win?
North Dakota is once again the talk of the FCS after knocking off a highly-ranked team. The question now is can the Fighting Hawks remain in the national FCS discussion?
UND, ranked No. 23 entering Saturday’s game, erased a 24-7 halftime deficit to beat then-No. 4 Montana 27-24 in Grand Forks. It skyrocketed to No. 10 in the FCS media and coaches Top 25 polls, although interestingly still behind the Grizzlies.
The Hawks now look to carry that momentum forward and avoid letdown performances, something that has haunted them in past seasons.
They embarrassed No. 6 North Dakota State last year, winning 49-24. The Hawks had a nice pathway to a playoff seed, but they lost 27-0 the next week at unranked Northern Iowa and then squeaked by struggling Indiana State and Murray State teams. UND got into the playoffs at 7-4 and lost at home in the first round to Sac State. A historic win over the Bison became overshadowed by the ensuing performances.
Similar stories also happened in recent memory.
In 2019, the Hawks beat No. 12 UC Davis 38-36. The next week, they lost to unranked Idaho State 55-20.
In 2018, UND beat No. 5 Sam Houston 24-23. The next week, it lost to unranked Idaho State 25-21.
Guess who the Hawks play this week?
Unranked Idaho State.
UND should be set to go on a nice run here. The Fighting Hawks get three unranked teams at home — Idaho State, San Diego, and Murray State. They then go to NDSU in what should be a Top 10 showdown.
FCS Top 25: Sam Herder’s Ballot
There were plenty of question marks surrounding the Hawks in the preseason after fizzling out last year and only returning four offensive and four defensive starters. But with a respectable performance at Iowa State in Week 1 and then the gutsy comeback over a Montana team with championship expectations, UND has national attention and respect again.
Now it’s up to the program to keep this momentum rolling.
4 Ranked Matchups This Week
There are four ranked FCS matchups this week using the Stats Perform Media Poll:
No. 17 UAlbany at No. 4 Idaho
No. 23 Mercer at No. 14 Chattanooga
No. 12 UIW at No. 9 SIU
No. 24 Nicholls at No. 11 Sac State
A few other games feature teams in the Top 25 mix:
WCU at No. 22 Elon
No. 13 W&M at Wofford
No. 15 UC Davis at Southern Utah
The FCS Adds 3 More FBS Wins
The FCS is now up to four wins over FBS opponents this season.
Montana State beat New Mexico 35-31 in Week 0. And in Week 2, Saint Francis beat Kent State 23-17, Idaho beat Wyoming 17-13, and Southern Utah defeated UTEP 27-24.
It was SFU’s first FBS win in program history and SUU’s first since 2013.
For Idaho, the Vandals grabbed their second FBS win in two seasons. It was the Big Sky Conference’s 10th FBS win since 2021.
Past Daily Doses
3 All-American-Level Montana Players Were Sidelined In Week 1, Statuses Unknown This Week … READ MORE
Sun Belt Admits Officiating Error In UCA-Arkansas State Game-Winning TD + 1-Score FCS-FBS Losses … READ MORE
Idaho QB Jack Layne Out Several Weeks With Broken Collarbone + SEMO QB Paxton DeLaurent Returns From Shoulder Injury … READ MORE
