Make No Mistake About It

Well, looks like our Bison are human after all.

After being seemingly unbeatable coming off the Youngstown State game, NDSU is now brought back down to earth and seems to be a beatable team after getting upset at home against Indiana State.

The Bison aren’t perfect, as I’m sure all of you have now realized after watching the endless amounts of mistakes committed against the Sycamores. Their perfect season is no more. But let’s be honest, a perfect season in the Missouri Valley Football Conference is next to impossible. A loss for the Bison was inevitably coming and it just happened to occur this week.

Now, should we be worried about this particular loss? Heck no. Give Indiana State credit-- they played great and capitalized on NDSU’s mistakes. But, there were plenty of mistakes on the field that were overshadowed by the three interceptions, especially the two that went for scores. A cornerback being offside, the center not knowing the snap count, a wide open and possible touchdown catch dropped, and an untimely pass interference call were all costly mistakes that, quite frankly, the Sycamores had nothing to do with.

Eliminate those uncharacteristic mistakes and it’s a whole new ballgame, even with the interceptions.

If the Bison play that sloppy again this week against South Dakota, then it is time to worry. The chances of that happening, though, are about as likely as me turning down a tailgate brat from the Rollin’ Thunder Bus.

The only thing this loss affects is the heightening of NDSU’s focus. The players and coaches now have a reason to game plan and prepare for each coming game even harder. The mental mistakes will be gone. Brock Jensen and the rejuvenated Bison offense will be dynamic once again and the defense will continue to torment the opposition’s offense.

The Bison will still make the playoffs. They still have a great shot at the Missouri Valley Conference title. They are still ranked in the top five nationally. They are still, in my opinion, the best team in the nation.

So worry not, Bison fans. This loss is the same as last year’s loss to Youngstown; it means nothing in the long run.

NDSU will return to their crisp play. They will win the rest of their season games in convincing fashion and return to the top two in the national rankings. They will host three playoff games and will make a strong and long run in the playoffs.

The key to this happening is simple: eliminate the mental mistakes and go back to playing Bison football. I believe NDSU will come out of this loss a better football team, which is a scary thing for the rest of the FCS to think about.

If all my predictions in this column are completely wrong a couple months from now, well, it sounded good at the time.