Montana State at South Dakota State: FCS Semifinal Preview and Predictions

Montana State and South Dakota State meet in the FCS semifinals on Saturday afternoon. Montana State won the first game 31-17 a year ago. The stakes are the same this time.

Montana State is the fourth seed in the FCS semifinals. South Dakota State, the top seed, is a 12-1 team. Montana State beat William & Mary last weekend. SDSU beat Holy Cross.

Brent Vigen has been the coach at Montana State for two years. He has a 24-4 overall record and is the conference's Co-Coach of the Year. John Stiegelmeier is in his 26th year as the head coach of South Dakota State. Stieglermeier has won 12 conference titles and reached the semifinals four times since 2017.

Montana State is the second best rushing team in the country. The Bobcats average over 300 yards per game. South Dakota State gives up just 85.4 yards rushing per outing. Montana State has a lot of talented backs, including Isaiah Ifanse and Elijah Elliot. Tommy Mellott and Sean Chambers are the quarterbacks for the Bobcat's offense. They will look to pass the ball to Willie Patterson and Ravi Alston. SDSU's secondary is led by Cale Reeder and DyShawn Gales. They are also led in tackles by Adam Bock and Jason Freeman. It's a two-quarterback system.

South Dakota State will play Montana State in the NCAA Championship. The Jacks have a strong ground game with Isaiah Davis and Mark Gronowski. Montana will counter with a secondary that has been coming on recently.  Jaxon and Jadon Janke are the quarterbacks favorite targets. They have 99 catches between them and a combined 1,418 receiving yards. MSU's defense has a lot of talent. It has played well recently and is capable of stopping the run.

Montana State and South Dakota State are playing in the FCS Semifinal. Montana State's special teams are very good. South Dakotan's are better on the field goal and kick return. They have a good return game with Jadon Janke and Taco Dowler. They also have Marqui Johnson who has taken two punts back for scores this year. The game will be played in frigid conditions. It will take place in Billings, Montana.

Montana State and South Dakota State are playing in the FCS Semifinal. The game is going to be very exciting. If SDSU can stop the Montana State rushing attack they will win. If they can't, they'll lose.