Valley Rundown: FBS/FCS matchups once again don’t mean much, unless you're North Dakota

The Missouri Valley Football Conference had three FBS vs. FCS matchups to open up the 2025 college football season. And like most years, we wonder how much we can take away from those games.

Well, the answer is again the same as it usually is not that much.

FBS vs. FCS Openers: Same Story, Different Year

I’ll touch briefly on the two blowouts that occurred.

South Dakota Struggles in Ames Against Iowa State

Starting in Ames, Iowa, South Dakota looked completely outmatched against a top-25 Iowa State team in a 55-7 loss. The Coyotes had absolutely no answer for Rocco Becht, who only finished the day with one incompletion on 20 attempts.

That’s not so surprising, especially considering USD was throwing a defense out there in the first game that saw a near-complete personnel turnover from last season. I thought the offense looked alright at times, especially early, but ISU boasts one of the better defenses in the Big 12. I liked what I saw from tight end Dallas Holmes, who finished with four receptions. He could end up filling in nicely for JJ Galbreath.

Illinois State Shows Small Flashes in Oklahoma Defeat

Quickly moving to Illinois State, the Redbirds were also outmatched in a 35-3 defeat at Oklahoma. The Sooners entered the game as the No. 18 team in the FBS and handled business like teams of that caliber should.

Like USD’s defense, Illinois State didn’t have an answer for Sooner signal caller John Mateer, who finished just eight yards shy of a 400-yard day. But the Redbird defense did have some flashes, especially forcing multiple turnovers and holding Oklahoma to just over 3.5 yards per rush.

North Dakota Nearly Steals the Spotlight in Manhattan

That being said, you can’t downplay the wild matchup in Manhattan, Kansas, on Saturday.

While the spotlight was centered on USD and Illinois State in those respective matchups, North Dakota was the Valley squad that stole the show this week. As the cliché goes, there aren’t any moral victories in college football, but Eric Schmidt should be very pleased with how his Fighting Hawks performed in their season-opening 38-35 defeat against Kansas State.

Jerry Kaminski’s Impressive First Career Start

First, hats off to Jerry Kaminski. The redshirt sophomore looked good in his first career start, especially considering that first start was coming at a top-25 FBS program that is just a few years removed from a Big 12 title. One aspect of his game I found very impressive was his command of the offense. He looked comfortable, didn’t make too many mistakes and showed off his athleticism more than once.

Was he perfect? Of course not. But everything considered, you probably couldn’t have asked for much more from a guy making his first start. Plus, he got a lot of teammates involved, with 11 different receivers catching at least one pass.

Battling in the Trenches: UND’s Offensive Line Holds Its Own

His offensive line looked shaky at times, but that’s also to be expected in a game like this, where you’re going up against defensive linemen who are more talented than most FCS opponents will boast. But the big uglies up front manhandled K-State on multiple occasions, especially when it came to runs between the tackles.

Defensive Challenges Against Avery Johnson’s Versatility

I thought the defense left some plays out there, but K-State quarterback Avery Johnson is difficult to prepare for. He’s remarkably athletic, can run with the best dual-threat quarterbacks out there and can command the RPO game incredibly efficiently. The unit had a chance to win the game at the end with a lead, but it was clear by that point that they were, expectedly, out of gas.

Resilience Defines the Fighting Hawks’ Performance

One final thought: UND impressed me the most with something you can’t point to on a box score. The Fighting Hawks were admirably resilient. After falling behind by 10 in the third quarter, that’s usually all she wrote in these FBS/FCS matchups. Instead, UND turned the game on its head, scoring 14 unanswered to take the lead with just over four minutes left.

Seeing that early in the season, in that type of game, it’s encouraging to say the least. I said UND should have tempered expectations in Schmidt’s first season, but now I’m starting to think the Fighting Hawks could have a considerable role to play in the Valley race.