FARGO, N.D. – North Dakota State has built its reputation around defense, but the Bison needed a career game by running back John Crockett to hold off Coastal Carolina 39-32 Saturday in the Football Championship Subdivision quarterfinals.
The three-time defending champion Bison, who will play at home again next Friday night against Sam Houston State, survived a rare shootout, by their standards. The last time they gave up more points was Dec. 11, 2010, in a playoff loss to Eastern Washington.
Crockett rushed for 227 yards and two touchdowns, including a game-winning 45-yard scamper with less than 10 minutes to play. It was his best performance in a single game and broke the NDSU playoff record of 207 yards, by D.J. McNorton in 2010.
"He's a special player and he loves this stage," NDSU coach Chris Klieman said of Crockett.
NDSU (13-1) and Coastal Carolina (12-2) combined for nearly 900 yards of total offense in front of more than 18,000 fans at the Fargodome. NDSU finished with an even 500 yards.
"It always stings," said Coastal Carolina quarterback Alex Ross, whose team lost to the Bison 48-14 in last year's playoffs. "To invest that much time and that much effort, it hurts. I hurt for those seniors."
The Bison had trouble containing Ross and running back De'Angelo Henderson through the first three quarters, when the pair combined for 352 yards of offense. But the NDSU defense stopped Coastal Carolina on its final three possessions, including an interception by safety Colten Heagle with 53 seconds left.
"I was just so tired, I just wanted to get off the field," Heagle said about the play.
Crockett, a senior from Minneapolis, scored the go-ahead TD early in the fourth quarter on third down. That made it 39-32 and wiped out Coastal Carolina's only lead.
"We did enough things in the fourth quarter to get some stops, and that's a bunch of seniors and a bunch of experienced guys who said we're not going to let this thing slip," Klieman said.