North Dakota State has been a giant slayer as an FCS program, and the Bison expect that to translate to the FBS, even in nail-biting close games.
Special teams has been a big part of those FBS upsets and the FCS dynasty overall for the Bison. While NDSU can expect to field a strong kicking game again in the FBS, the 105-player roster limit is an issue that could impact special teams.
“The only thing I’m frustrated at all right now with this transition is us continuing to learn when we get to this 105 number, this specialist thing has me on edge a little bit,” Bison head coach Tim Polasek told the Fargo Forum’s Jeff Kolpack.
Polasek and Kolpack discussed in the recent Forum article how the roster limit will impact special teams positions, particularly long snapper and kicker. The article can be read here.
It’s a position group the Bison can’t afford to get wrong as potential close games await in the Mountain West Conference. UNLV, Hawaii and New Mexico will all be on the road, and those are considered the three top contenders in the conference besides the Bison.
NDSU’s kicking game has delivered game-winning field goals before on the road against FBS opponents. Former Bison kicker Cam Pedersen most notably walked off the then-No. 13 Iowa Hawkeyes with a 37-yard field goal in 2016.
NDSU Has Big Shoes to Fill at Kicker
Former Bison kicker Eli Ozick had two big seasons of field goal kicking, but he is off to Iowa for 2026.
Ozick stepped up last season with three field goals against North Dakota in a 15-10 victory. He also hit a 54-yard field goal against Indiana State last season for the second-longest field goal in school history.
Ozick hit a 54-yard field goal the year before against East Tennessee State and another from 51 yards that year. The Bison currently have two punters, Caleb McGrath and Aaron Bickerton, on the official roster but no kickers.
NDSU’s Biggest Kicking Performances
Besides Pedersen and Ozick, NDSU kickers have come through in the clutch for years.
Former Bison kicker Griffin Crosa delivered a 47-yard field goal in the fourth quarter of the 2022 FCS semifinals against Incarnate Word. NDSU won that game 35-32 against a Cardinals team led by now Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward.
Adam Keller came up big, kicking for the Bison in a 22-10 playoff win over Montana in 2014. Keller hit five field goals in that game.
NDSU also gave Montana nightmares in 2003 when the Bison succeeded on a fake field goal to beat the Griz 25-24. Former Bison running back Rod Malone completed a touchdown pass to Mike Wieser on that play.
In 2005, former Bison kicker Shawn Bibeau put the Herd ahead to stay against Ball State in a 29-24 victory. It marked the first FBS win for the Bison after joining the FCS.
Against Kansas in 2010, the Bison won a field goal battle against the Jayhawks 6-3. Former Bison kicker Ryan Jastram hit from 44 and 32 yards in the win, which propelled the team to an FCS playoff run later that year.
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