Saturday afternoon Nissan Stadium served as the scene of a crime. A herd of North Dakota bison brutally and openly bludgeoned a group of Tigers 59-3 over the course of 60 minutes in front of 8,569 witnesses.
North Dakota State got right to work, scoring on their first two drives – on scoring runs of 10 and 4 yards from Barika Kpeenu- to take a 14-0 lead with 7:08 left in the opening quarter.
Following forcing a quick three-and-out the Bison seemed poised to punch it in for their third trip to the endzone of the period, but the Tigers’ defense showed some steel in their collective spine, forcing NDSU to settle for a 22-yard field off the the foot of Eli Ozick to make the score 17-0 with 1:21 left in the frame.
The onslaught continued in the game’s second 15 minutes. Kendric Rhymes, one of the heroes of winning over North Carolina A&T last week, fumbled which was recovered by Victor Isele at the TSU 33. Five plays later Kpeenu got in the endzone for the third time, this from 5 yards out to extend the North Dakota State lead to 24-0 at the 13:07 mark of the quarter. Following another ineffectual three-and-out on Tennessee State’s next possession, NDSU only needed 2 plays to light up the scoreboard, when DJ Scott took it in from five yards out to push their advantage to 31-0. Although the NDSU offense has had its way, the Bison defense decided to get in on the act. Donovan Wooten picked off a Byron McCNair and took it 28 yards to the house, extending the lead to 38-0 with 9:03 remaining in the half.
In what has become a wash, rinse repeat theme of the game, the Bison got the ball back following another quick Tennessee State three and out. Nine plays later the NDSU lead to the ncreseed to 45-0 when Cole Payton connected with RaJa Nelson on a 3-yard touchdown pass.
The third quarter saw the Bison lead grow to 52-0 on Nathan Hayes’ 68-yard pitch and catch with Mekhi Collins. It was in this period that TSU moved the chains for the first time in the game, following a Rhymes 13-yard run. The Tigers would only be able to generate 4 first downs on the day.
Myles Mitchell’s 2-yard scoring rush ballooned North Dakota State’s advantage to 59-0. A 45-yard field goal off the foot with 4:05 remaining brought the count to 59-3 and prevented the shutout.
Tennessee State finished with just 131 yards of total offense ( 70 rushing, 61 passing), North Dakota State had no such offensive issues, racking up 433 yards of total offense ( 242 passing, 191 rushing). TSU starting quarterback Jordan Palmer completed just 5 of his 13 pass attempts for 38 yards; Kendric Rhymes led the Tigers largely stymied run game with 43 yards on 12 carries.
Up next for Tennessee State is the third of their four game season opening home stand in a matchup that opens the Legacy Series, a four-year series of alternating home matchups between the schools. Kickoff is set for 3:30 pm CST at Nissan Stafium.
