The North Dakota State Bison are the athletic teams of

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota, United States. It was ...

(NDSU), which is located in the city of

Fargo, North Dakota Fargo is the List of cities in North Dakota, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, Cass County. The population was 125,990 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which was e ...

. The teams are often called the "Thundering Herd". The current logo is a

bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...

Sports sponsored

A member of the

Summit League The Summit League, or The Summit, is an NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic conference with its membership mostly located in the Midwestern United States, from Minnesota in the east, to the Dakotas, Nebraska and Colorado to the West, and Mis ...

, North Dakota State University sponsors teams in eight men's and eight women's

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

sanctioned intercollegiate sports: The football team competes as a member of the

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the National Collegiate A ...

. The wrestling team competes as an affiliate member of the

Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida ...

. In the past, North Dakota State has been a member of the

North Central Conference The North Central Conference (NCC), also known as North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, was a college athletic conference which operated in the north central United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division II. History The NCC ...

, the

Great West Football Conference The Great West Conference (GWC) was an NCAA college athletic conference in the continental United States. Originally a football-only league, it became an all-sports entity during the 2008–09 season. The GWC stopped sponsoring football following ...

, and the

United Soccer Conference The United Soccer Conference was an NCAA Division I conference founded in 2005 whose members competed in the sport of women's soccer. On February 10, 2007, New Jersey Institute of Technology joined the conference, however later that year on July 1 ...

. It has also been an independent.

National championships

The Bison have won thirty NCAA national championships, both at the Division I and Division II levels.

Team

Individual

The Bison have won two individual event championships, all at the Division I level. Source:

Individual sports

Football

The Bison football team, which since 1993 played their home games at the

Fargodome Fargodome is an indoor athletic stadium and convention center in the West North Central states, north central United States, located on the campus of North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo, North Dakota. It opened in 1992 and is owned and ...

, was a dominant force in Division II. Through January 2022, they have won 17 NCAA National titles. Eight were at the Division II level (1965, 1968, 1969, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1990) before moving up to Division I-AA (now FCS) in 2004 where they have won nine national championships (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021). NDSU is the only team at any level of NCAA football to have won five straight national championships. The program was the winningest in the history of the NCAA Division II North Central Conference, with 17 outright championships and 27 total league football titles. The program has also been quite successful since moving up to the D1 FCS classification. In 2006 the Bison posted a 10–1 record that included a win over FBS

Ball State Ball State University (Ball State or BSU) is a public university, public research university in Muncie, Indiana, United States. The university has three off-campus centers in Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Indiana, Fort Wayne, and Fishers, Indiana. T ...

. During a 2006 game against FBS Minnesota, NDSU led for much of the game, but a last-second field goal attempt was blocked by Minnesota, resulting in a 10–9 loss. The following season, the Bison won their first Great West Football Conference championship and achieved the number 1 ranking in major FCS polls for a majority of the season. During this season the

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

Bison football team defeated FBS members

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a Public university, public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1892 as a private normal school and became a state institution in 1895. CMU is one of the eigh ...

and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

. In 2010 the Bison defeated the FBS Kansas Jayhawks, 6–3, for their first win over a Big 12 program. The Bison won the 2011 FCS national championship, defeating Sam Houston State University, 17–6. The 2011 title was their ninth overall. The Bison returned to the FCS championship game in 2012 and soundly defeated Sam Houston State University in a rematch of the 2011 title game, 39–13. Expectations were high entering the 2013 season. The season commenced with a game against the

Kansas State Wildcats The Kansas State Wildcats (variously "Kansas State", "K-State", or "KSU") are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Kansas State University. The School colors, official color of the teams is Royal Purple; white and silver are gener ...

, the reigning Big 12 Champions. The Bison took a quick lead, but let a 7–7 halftime score get away from them; trailing 21–7 in the third quarter. The Bison finished the game with an 18-play 80-yard drive that used minutes, leaving 28 seconds on the clock for the Wildcats, trailing by 3. NDSU Linebacker Grant Olson intercepted the first pass attempt by the Wildcats, sealing their 7th win over FBS teams since their move to FCS. ESPN College GameDay broadcast an episode from Fargo. The Bison finished the season 15–0 with a victory over the

Towson Tigers The Towson Tigers, formerly the ''Towson College Knights'', are the athletics teams of Towson University. All of the major athletic teams compete in the Coastal Athletic Association with 19 Division I athletic teams (13 in women's sports, 6 in me ...

, 35–7. Despite a cast of new coaches, the 2014 Bison finished the season with a 15–1 record, including another win over Big 12 Iowa State and won their fourth consecutive national championship. ESPN College GameDay was broadcast from Fargo for the 2nd consecutive year. In 2016, the Bison upset AP-ranked 13

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

Kinnick Stadium Kinnick Stadium is a stadium located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the home stadium of the University of Iowa Iowa Hawkeyes football, Hawkeyes football team. Opened in 1929 as Iowa Stadium to replace Iowa Field, it currently holds u ...

. This still stands as NDSU's most notable win, and one of the highest profile upsets in Division I football history. Despite the impressive win, the remainder of the season would not be like the previous years for the Bison. NDSU would give up the

Dakota Marker The Dakota Marker is the trophy awarded to the winner of the annual football game played between the rival Division I Championship Subdivision North Dakota State University Bison and the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits. Both schools ...

for the first time since the 2009 season. They would also see their national title streak end at five after a loss to

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

in the semifinals at the Fargodome, who would eventually win the

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

that season.

In the 2017 season, NDSU would return to the title game and avenge their loss the previous season, defeating

in Frisco 17-13. The 2018 season would see one of the Bison's most dominant seasons, especially since 2013, when the team went 15-0 for the second time in program history. The team only played one team in a one score game (the Dakota Marker game against #3

South Dakota State South Dakota State University (SDSU or SD State) is a public land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest university and is the second oldest continually operating universit ...

), and accomplished a score differential of 28.9 points). Before the team's eventual victory over South Dakota State in the FCS semifinals, coach

Chris Klieman Christopher Paul Klieman ( ; born September 27, 1967) is an American college football coach. He is the head football coach at Kansas State University, a position he has held since the 2019 season. Klieman served as the head football coach at Nort ...

was announced as the next head coach at

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public inst ...

. Klieman was allowed to finish out his season at NDSU, beating SDSU in the semis and then

Eastern Washington Eastern Washington is the region of the U.S. state of Washington located east of the Cascade Range. It contains the city of Spokane (the second largest city in the state), the Tri-Cities, the Columbia River and the Grand Coulee Dam, the H ...

in the National Championship game. The 2019 season started a new leaf for NDSU, with

Matt Entz Matthew John Entz (born October 9, 1972) is an American college football coach who is the head football coach at California State University, Fresno (Fresno State), a position he has held since 2025. He also served as the head coach at North Dak ...

being announced as the next head coach for the Bison after previously serving as the team's defensive coordinator the last several seasons. As far as the on-field product was concerned, it was one of the best in program history again. With

Trey Lance Trey Aubrey Lance (born May 9, 2000) is an American professional football quarterback for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the North Dakota State Bison, where he received the Walter P ...

at the helm for the Bison in his redshirt freshman season, NDSU achieved a 16-0 record for the first time in program history and for only the second time in Division I football history (1894 Yale being the only other program to reach the mark). This was highlighted by the National Championship game win against

in which NDSU won on a game-sealing interception in the redzone with under five seconds remaining. Unfortunately after the season ended, the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

hit and the 2020 FCS season was postponed to the Spring of 2021. This wouldn't be the first unfortunate thing to happen to the school in that academic year, as the football team would have a very rare year in the team's history, going 7-3 in the shortened season. The Bison also ended their national championship streak of 3 titles (between 2018 and 2020) after they lost to eventual champion

Sam Houston Samuel Houston (, ; March 2, 1793 – July 26, 1863) was an American general and statesman who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and was one of the first two indi ...

in the FCS quarterfinals.

The 2021 season could be categorized as a "return to their roots" type season for NDSU, after the team went 14-1. The team's only loss being in the Dakota Marker game in Brookings to 4th ranked SDSU. The Bison dominated their way to their ninth national championship, beating playoff rival

in the semifinals in a close game, and then beating

Montana State Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...

in the title game 38-10. However, in the 2022 season the Bison would stumble again. The team went 12-3, losing more than 1 game in a season for only the second time since 2011. NDSU lost their first game to an FBS opponent since losing to Minnesota in 2009, after they lost a three-point game at

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. The blows would continue as the team not only did not reclaim the Dakota Marker (losing 23-21 at home to 2nd ranked

), but would fall to the Jackrabbits again in the National Championship game. The 2023 edition of North Dakota State would also have their struggles, losing three games again, this time in the regular season and did not receive a seed heading into the FCS playoffs. The Bison would manage to beat Drake, Montana State in walk-off fashion, avenging their loss to South Dakota earlier in the season, before being bested by Montana in the FCS semifinals. It was also announced earlier that same week that fifth year head coach

would be leaving Fargo to join the

USC USC may refer to: Education United States * Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, Santurce, Puerto Rico * University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina ** University of South Carolina System, a state university system of South Carolina * ...

staff as the linebackers coach and assistant head coach. Tim Polasek was soon named as the next head coach for the Bison. The 2024 season was a return to form for the program, with Polasek at the helm. The Bison would post a 14–2 record, defeating Montana State in the

2025 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game The 2025 NCAA Division I Football Championship Game was a college football game played on January 6, 2025, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. The game determined the national champion of NCAA Division I FCS for the 2024 season, and featured t ...

to claim the program's 10th FCS title and 18th overall title. In the process, NDSU would reclaim the Dakota Marker trophy for the first time since 2019. They would defeat South Dakota State again in the FCS semifinals, starting their first winning streak over their archrivals for the first time since they won 3 in a row in 2018 and 2019. Following the win over the Jacks, NDSU would rise to number 1 in both the FCS STATS and coaches polls for the first time since October 2022. NDSU would fall to a FBS opponent for the second time since 2016, losing a 5 point game to

Deion Sanders Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American American football, football coach with the Colorado Buffaloes football, Colorado Buffaloes. Sanders is also a former professional football and baseball player, having played in the N ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

in the season opener. The Bison would also claim a share of the 2024 MVFC title, their first since 2021.

Men's Basketball

The Bison basketball program includes a men's and a women's team. The teams play at the

Scheels Center Scheels Center is a 5,460 seat multi-purpose arena in Fargo, North Dakota. It was built in 1970 and was home to the North Dakota State University Bison basketball and wrestling teams through the 2013–14 season. It was previously named the Bison ...

inside the Sanford Health Athletic Complex (SHAC). They won five NCAA National Championships during the decade (1991, 1993–1996). The men's basketball team won an upset victory over the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

on January 21, 2006, potentially increasing its chances of being accepted into a conference. The Bison also upset

Marquette University Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...

on their home court at their tournament, 64–60, on December 2, 2006. On February 28, 2009, the Bison men's basketball team captured the Summit League regular-season championship, the school's first at the Division I level, by defeating Oral Roberts 75–72 in Tulsa, OK. Two weeks later, NDSU earned its first men's basketball NCAA berth by winning the Summit League Tournament played at Sioux Falls, SD. The Bison defeated Centenary 83–77 in the tourney quarterfinals, stopped Southern Utah 79–67 in the semifinals, and edged Oakland 66–64 in the championship game. The Bison traveled to Minneapolis for a first-round game with the defending national champions, the Kansas Jayhawks, and fell 84–74. NDSU's tournament appearance marked the first time in almost 35 years that a Division I men's program qualified for the tournament in its first season of eligibility. 2013 NDSU season highlights included a win over Notre Dame for their first ever win over an ACC team. NDSU advanced to the NCAA tournament for a 2nd time and received a #12 seed. They defeated #5 Oklahoma 80–75 in a second-round matchup of the NCAA basketball tournament and fell to San Diego State, one win short of the Sweet 16. In 2014, NDSU won the Summit League Tournament and advanced to their 3rd NCAA basketball tournament as a #15 seed, eventually falling to #2 seed Gonzaga 86–76.
Several years later, the Bison men's team surprised the Summit League and won the conference tournament, advancing to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in program history. NDSU would be handed the 16 seed in the East, and was selected to play in the First Four. The Bison beat NC Central in the program's second tournament win, before falling to top-seeded

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

in the first round.
The Bison appeared ready to repeat as champions in the Summit League in the 2019-20 season. They tied

for the regular season title, and then won the Summit League tournament for the fifth time in program history. Unfortunately, the NCAA tournament was canceled amid the

.
NDSU would continue to appear in the conference tournament title game, but came up short in the 2020-21 season (loss to Oral Roberts), the 2021-22 season (loss to South Dakota State), and in the 2022-23 season (loss to Oral Roberts). In the 2023–24 season, the Bison lost in the quarterfinals of the Summit League tournament for the first time since 2017, marking a downward turn for the typically successful program. The following season would be a rebound for the Bison though, winning 21 games including a program boosting win over

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...

on December 10, 2024. This success would fall short though in the Summit League tournament, with the Bison failing to make it past the quarterfinals for the second season in a row.

Women's Basketball

North Dakota State's women's basketball team is the school's only basketball team to win a national championship at any level and is the school's only other program to win at least five national titles besides the football team. The women's basketball team was a dominant force in Division II throughout the 1990s, as the Bison won five Division II titles. However, since the school emerged from reclassification in 2008, the team has not accomplished much. The Bison have only made it past the quarterfinal round of the Summit League tournament three times. NDSU has also ended the season with a winning record only three times since entering Division I.
Recently, the Bison have started to change under head coach

Jory Collins Jory Michael Collins (born October 14, 1978) is an American women's college basketball coach currently serving as the head coach for the North Dakota State Bison women's basketball, North Dakota State program. From 2010 until 2018, Collins was t ...

. In Collins' second season as Bison head coach, NDSU went 15-9 overall and 9-7 in Summit League play, as the program's third Division I season with a winning record. His time at NDSU has also featured 2 out of the program's 3 total Summit League tournament wins. The 2023-24 season was a start of a new era for Bison women's basketball not previously seen since their Division II days. NDSU would finish the season with a 22-12 record and an impressive 13-3 Summit League record to clinch the 2 seed in the conference tournament for the second season in a row. This time, the Bison made it to their first ever Summit League championship game against women's basketball powerhouse and longtime rival, South Dakota State. They would fall to the Jacks in a close game, but would also clinch a bid to the WNIT. The Bison would win their first postseason game in a home match against Montana, but fell several days later to Minnesota. The following season, the Bison would yet again hit the 20 win mark, but would fall in the conference tournament in the quarterfinal round. NDSU would receive a WNIT bid for the third season in a row, this time improving yet again on their previous season's success in the postseason and made it to the Great 8 round before falling to Troy.

Wrestling

The Bison wrestling program had success under coach

Bucky Maughan Arthur "Bucky" Maughan (1940/1941 – October 15, 2024) was an American wrestler. He was a distinguished member of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and head coach of the wrestling team at North Dakota State University in Fargo, North Dakota, wh ...

, winning four

Division II team National Championships (1988, 1998, 2000, 2001). Maughan retired in 2011 after 37 years and his successor is two-time NCAA All-American

Roger Kish Roger Kish is an American wrestler and the current head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners wrestling team. A native of Lapeer, Michigan, Kish was a four-time Michigan state wrestling champion. Kish is currently tied for ninth all time on the Michigan ...

. Kish led the 2013–14 NDSU to career highs in rankings and tournament placement since the Bison joined the Division I ranks. In 2013, NDSU earned its first D1 All American and four through 2015. The team is a member of the

.
In 2023, the Bison earned their next highest ranking in their Division I era at No. 15 before losing to No. 10

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

. Later that same season, NDSU saw three wrestler's reach the All-American round, a record for the program. After the 2023-24 season ended, coach Roger Kish announced he was leaving Fargo to be the head coach at

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

. He would be replaced by Obe Blanc, who had served on the NDSU staff for the last four seasons in as an assistant.

Volleyball

The 2008–2009 season was when the school first became fully eligible for Division I competition. In December 2008 NDSU's women's volleyball team captured the Summit League's regular season and tournament championships (doing so with a perfect league record) to become the first program at the school to earn a berth in a Division I NCAA tournament. The Bison dropped their opening round match to the University of Minnesota.

Softball

In the spring of 2009, the Bison women's softball team won the Summit League tournament in Macomb, Illinois, becoming the school's third team to appear in an NCAA tournament in the calendar year. In its opening game in May, the Bison upset 9th-ranked Oklahoma, 1–0, in an 11-inning game that spanned two days due to a weather delay. The Bison won the regional with victories over Tulsa, 3–2 and 4–1, to advance to the Super Regional (Sweet Sixteen) of the tournament, where they were eliminated.
Since that season, the Bison have reached nine more NCAA tournaments, including a streak of six straight tournaments from 2014-19. However, the team has not reached a Super Regional since 2009.
Recently, the Bison stumbled since the

caused the 2020 season to abruptly end after just a month. NDSU has not reached the NCAA tournament since 2019, and has not won the

regular season title since 2019.

Baseball

The NDSU baseball team plays their home games at

Newman Outdoor Field Newman Outdoor Field is a baseball stadium in Fargo, North Dakota. It is located on the campus of North Dakota State University and is the home of the independent American Association's Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks and the North Dakota State Bison b ...

on the north side of campus. The team has not had a large amount of success compared to their Spring counterpart: NDSU's softball team. While the Bison won three

titles while in Division II, after the school moved up to Division I in 2008 the team has only won the

twice.

The Bison advanced to their first NCAA tournament in 2014 after winning the

Summit League baseball tournament The Summit League baseball tournament is the conference baseball championship of the NCAA Division I's Summit League. The top four finishers in the regular season of the conference's seven teams advance to the double-elimination tournament, which ...

for the first time. However, they would go winless in their first national appearance. Later in 2021, NDSU would win the Summit League tournament for the second time in program history, upsetting

Oral Roberts Granville Oral Roberts (January 24, 1918 – December 15, 2009) was an American Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christianity, Christian televangelist, who was one of the first to propagate Prosperity theology, Prosperity Gospel Theo ...

to advance to the program's second NCAA tournament appearance in Division I. This time, the Bison found their first national tournament win in a 6-1 victory over

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

at the Stanford Regional.

While the 2022 season did not see the Bison return to the NCAA tournament, the team did achieve yet another first. The team won the Summit League regular season title for the first time in program history, finishing with a 17-5 record in conference play which was another high for the program. In the Summit League tournament, the team fell to fourth seeded Omaha to be eliminated from the tournament.

The following season,

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, the team hosted their first Summit League tournament. In that tournament, NDSU entered as the 2nd seed. The Bison lost to South Dakota State to start the tournament, beat Omaha, but lost to the Jacks again to be eliminated in the final elimination game for the second year in a row.

After another another campaign in 2024 that left the Bison staying at home in Fargo, they would find success in

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

- winning the program's third Summit League tournament. In the NCAA tournament, the Bison would find their second-ever tournament win against

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

. However, they would be eliminated by Creighton after also losing to

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

in the opening round.

Soccer

The North Dakota State Bison women's soccer team plays their home games at

Dacotah Field Dacotah Field is an outdoor stadium in the West North Central states, north central United States, on the campus of North Dakota State University (NDSU) in Fargo, North Dakota. It is the former home of the North Dakota State Bison football team, ...

nestled in between the school's training facility/basketball arena and the indoor track facility on the North side of campus. The NDSU soccer program has only been in existence since 1995, when the program played their first season under coach Gordon Henderson in Division II. The team played at two different sites while in Division II. The Bison started at Cardinal Muench Seminary's field off of NDSU's campus. Then after the 1996 season, the team moved on campus for the first time playing on a field part of the Ellig Sports Complex on the northwest side of campus. While in Division II, the team played in their first and only Division II tournament. In the 1999 season, the Bison placed second in the

regular season. Since the conference did not have a full-league tournament, the top two teams were good enough to make the full Division II tournament. After that, the NCC started a conference tournament, in 2000 NDSU was the runner-up in the final game and missed the national tournament. Between that season and 2004, the Bison wouldn't finish high enough to make the conference tournament and did not see another Division II tournament. After the 2003 season, NDSU started their reclassification to Division I. During their reclassification years, the Bison started as Division I independents, joined the

, and then finally joined the

which has served as their conference of the future. Starting in 2008, the Bison emerged from reclassification and finished 7th in the Summit League and missed the conference tournament. But then in 2009, the team made their first Summit League tournament, and lost in the championship game. In 2010, the Bison women's soccer team achieved the program's first NCAA tournament bid with a victory over Western Illinois in the Summit League tournament final. Since that magical 2010 season, NDSU would make the conference tournament 8 consecutive seasons, which included 4 runner-ups. However, the team could not get over the hump of winning the final game and hasn't reached a Division I tournament since 2010. Under current head coach Mike Regan, the Bison have made three Summit League tournaments in his six seasons in Fargo, at one point missing the tournament for three seasons in a row. In 2024, the Bison won the Summit League regular season title for the first time since 2016. Unfortunately, this wouldn't manifest into success in the postseason, as NDSU would fall in the semifinals to

in PK's.

Mascot

"Thundar" is the official mascot of NDSU athletics. The mascot, which resembles the

American Bison The American bison (''Bison bison''; : ''bison''), commonly known as the American buffalo, or simply buffalo (not to be confused with Bubalina, true buffalo), is a species of bison that is endemic species, endemic (or native) to North America. ...

, comes from the term "thundering herd," a nickname given to NDSU athletic teams since changing its name from "Aggies" to "Bison" in 1919. While some form of a "Bison Mascot" has been used at NDSU athletic events since the mid-1960s, "Thundar" did not become the official mascot of the university until 1991.

Media

NDSU athletics radio coverage rights are held by Radio FM Media with games also airing on the 24-station Bison Radio Network. TV rights for the Bison are held by

Forum Communications Forum Communications Company is an American multimedia and technology company headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota. With multiple online and print news brands throughout Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin, Forum Communications of ...

, a Fargo-based communications company that owns TV stations affiliated with ABC, for all sports. In addition to broadcast rights, the NDSU Bison also receive dedicated print coverage in ''Bison Illustrated''. The monthly magazine brings readers behind the scenes coverage of NDSU teams, players, coaches, administration, and alumni. The magazine is distributed free of charge in locations around the Fargo-Moorhead area and is available via paid subscription for out-of-state readers.

References

External links

* {{Dakota Sports