NDSU FB Dealing with Small Margin of Error with Playoffs Arrival

NDSU hosts Montana State on Saturday

FARGO, N.D. — The Bison football team is feeling refreshed after an easier week of practice.

They focused on healing and taking a mental break during their first-round bye in the playoffs.

After Saturday, they now know they’re up against Montana State in the second round. The bobcats took down Incarnate Word.

Obviously, NDSU is a comfortable favorite, at home, as the top seed, riding a 16-game winning streak.

But, head coach Chris Klieman is quick to remind everyone that games are not played on paper, and the Bison need to be the best team for 60 minutes in order to win this weekend.

“Your margin for error gets smaller and smaller,” Klieman said about the single-elimination format. “I also know that when it does get that small, you get a little tighter. We gave up the kick return against southern illinois, I think everybody thought we were still going to win the game. Even if we didn’t I think we were still setting ourselves up pretty well. All of a sudden, you have that happen in a playoff game, now everybody gets a little tighter. We try to keep the guys loose, but they know what’s at stake.”

Kickoff from the Dome is at 2:00 p.m. Saturday