In an unexpected shift in the college football landscape, North Dakota State University officially announced on February 9 that it will move up from the NCAA Division 1 Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) to the Football Bowl Division (FBS) and will join the Mountain West Conference as a football-only member effective July 1. 

NDSU Athletic Director Matt Larsen, regarding the move up to the FBS, stated “Our football program has earned this opportunity through the sustained success and leadership of our student-athletes and coaches past and present.” 

The move marks the end of the Bison’s dominance in the FCS, where they have won ten national championships in the last fifteen years. With 137 wins in the 2010s, they were also the most successful team in all of Division 1, surpassing the Nick Saban-led Alabama Crimson Tide by a margin of 13 wins. 

The Bison are the latest addition to the Mountain West’s football roster, which includes Northern Illinois and UTEP after the departure of prominent conference members like Boise State and San Diego State for the Pac-12. 

The move will also be an alteration for post-season ambitions for the Bison, as North Dakota State will be barred from participating in the Mountain West Conference Championship, the College Football Playoff, or bowl games for the next two years, as per NCAA guidelines.  

Despite being technically barred, the Bison still have a chance to play in a bowl game, considering the trend of power schools like Notre Dame and Iowa State declining bowl games after successful seasons due to player opt-outs and the transfer portal. 

As a new era dawns over the Fargodome, one thing is certain: the Bison are ready to compete at the next level.