UND Athletics/Russell Hons
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (UND Athletics) – No. 3 South Dakota State defeated No. 21/23 North Dakota, 38-7, inside the Alerus Center on Saturday afternoon. For the Fighting Hawks, it marks just the fourth loss inside the friendly confines in their last 34 home games.
Isaiah Smith scored the opening points for UND (5-5, 2-4 MVFC) with a 62-yard touchdown scamper with 8:22 left in the opening frame and the Hawks led 7-3 at the end of the first quarter. After Smith’s touchdown, the Jackrabbits (8-2, 5-1 MVFC) scored the next 31 points of the half and led 31-7 at the break.
UND had a balanced attack in the first 30 minutes with 81 yards passing and 80 yards rushing. Smith led the NoDak offensive attack with five carries for 69 yards and a touchdown. SDSU piled up 257 yards of offense, with 130 yards on the ground and 127 through the air. Mark Gronowski was 7-for-12 passing for 172 yards, while tossing a pair of touchdown passes to Griffin Wilde, who had three grabs for 92 yards at the half. Angel Johnson paced the South Dakota State backfield with seven rushes for 68 yards and a score, trailed by Amar Johnson with nine touches for 41 yards and a touchdown.
The only score of the second half came in the form of a 47-yard touchdown pass from Gronowski to Wilde to bring the final score to 38-7. It was the third touchdown strike from Gronowski to Wilde of the afternoon.
Gronowski finished the game 11-for-19 for 193 yards and a trio of touchdowns, while Wilde was his top target with five catches for 140 yards and three scores. Johnson led the Jackrabbits on the ground with 13 rushes for 100 yards and a touchdown and Amar Johnson had 15 carries for 74 yards and a score. SDSU ended the game with 457 yards of total offense, highlighted by 264 yards through the air.
For North Dakota, Simon Romfo finished the game 16-for-23 passing for 124 yards. Bo Belquist and Quincy Vaughn shared the team lead in receptions with four each. Belquist had 40 yards receiving, while Vaughn hauled in 37 yards receiving. Smith led UND on the ground with nine touches for 87 yards and his 62-yard touchdown run. NoDak recorded 248 yards of offense, with 124 yards both rushing and passing.
North Dakota will host South Dakota on Saturday. The Fighting Hawks and Coyotes will square off inside the Alerus Center at Noon. The game will air on Midco Sports and will be carried on the Fighting Hawks Radio Network.
Postgame Notes
- North Dakota now holds a 47-38-5 lead in the all-time series.
- Since the turn of the century, the Jackrabbits have a 6-5 series lead.
- SDSU became just the fourth team to defeat UND inside the Alerus Center in NoDak’s last 34 home contests. The only teams to defeat the Hawks in Grand Forks during that stretch were North Dakota State (16-10 in 2021), South Dakota State (49-35 in 2022) and Sacramento State (42-35 in 2023).
- The Fighting Hawks are now 11-4 against ranked teams at home since 2019.
- Eighteen different UND players recorded at least one tackle, led by Jonnie Wiltshire with 10 solo tackles. Jett Sutton and Josh Navratil each had half a tackle-for-loss.
- SDSU won the time of possession battle by a 33:27-26:33 margin.
- The Jackrabbits finished with a +2.0 turnover margin.
How It Happened
First Quarter
8:22 – UND | Isaiah Smith scores on a 62-yard rush. (C.J. Elrichs kick). 1 play, 62 yards, 0:09.
2:29 – SDSU | Hunter Dustman connects on a 32-yard field goal. 10 plays, 61 yards, 5:48.
Second Quarter
14:52 – SDSU | Angel Johnson scores on a 29-yard rush. (Dustman kick). 3 plays, 50 yards, 0:55.
10:35 – SDSU | Griffin Wilde scores on a 25-yard pass from Mark Gronowski. (Dustman kick). 4 plays, 52 yards, 2:03.
6:30 – SDSU | Wilde scores on a 39-yard pass from Gronowski. (Dustman kick). 3 plays, 59 yards, 1:27.
2:06 – SDSU | Amar Johnson scores on a 6-yard run. (Dustman kick). 7 plays, 27 yards, 2:52.
Third Quarter
5:40 – SDSU | Wilde scores on a 47-yard pass from Gronowski. (Dustman kick). 6 plays, 73 yards, 3:34.
Fourth Quarter
Game Recap: Football | 11/9/2024 4:43:00 PM | Tyler Wells, FightingHawks.com
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