South Dakota
South Dakota State repeats as FCS champs with 29th consecutive win, 23-3 over Montana
FRISCO, Texas (AP) — South Dakota State never bought into all the hype as defending FCS national champions. With standout quarterback Mark Gronowski and a stifling defense, the Jackrabbits just went out and won another title.
“That first one was … really, really sweet, just because it was that first one,” said Gronowski, who started his third Football Championship Subdivision title game. “We got to see the other team do it three years ago and be up on that stage where we weren’t, so I think that’s part of the thing that makes this whole thing so much sweeter.”
Gronowski ran for a touchdown and threw for another after halftime as SDSU repeated as champions with a 23-3 win over Montana on Sunday. The Jackrabbits have won 29 games in a row, including over North Dakota State last year for their first national title.
“With as much hype surrounding this football program, we never paid much attention to it. We stayed consistent. We worked extremely hard week in and week out, and this is the result,” said Jimmy Rogers, the first-year head coach with a 15-0 record after being South Dakota State’s defensive coordinator last season.
SDSU linebacker Adam Boch stuffed running back Eli Gillman for no gain on fourth-and-goal from the 1 on Montana’s opening drive. SDSU allowed only 273 total yards, had five sacks and wrapped up a four-game playoff run in which it allowed only 15 points and had two shutouts.
“Best defense in FCS history,” Rogers said. “I’m proud of that, proud of this football team, proud to go back-to-back.”
South Dakota State had an impressive game-opening drive, but led only 7-3 at halftime. Gronowski then bulled into the end zone for a 10-yard score midway through the third quarter, and on the next possession threw a 23-yard TD to Jadon Janke.
Gronowski was 13-of-21 passing for 175 yards and ran eight times for 62 yards to join Carson Wentz and Brock Jensen, quarterbacks who won multiple championships with North Dakota State, as the only players selected as most outstanding player in consecutive FCS title games. Gronowski was a true freshman when he tore his left ACL on the opening series of the unusual May 2021 title game the Jackrabbits lost at the end of a pandemic-affected season.
“They have a heck of a leader back there. And he makes them go for sure,” Montana linebacker Braxton Hill said.
Montana’s 27 playoff appearances are the most in the second tier of Division I football. National champions in 1995 and 2001, the Grizzlies (13-2) have now finished as the runner-up six times, four under coach Bobby Hauck.
This was the Grizzlies’ first title game since 2009, when they were runner-ups for the third time in Hauck’s first seven seasons. Hauck then left for FBS team UNLV and also was on staff at San Diego State before returning to Montana in 2018.
Less than two weeks after South Dakota State was crowned champions last year, John Stiegelmeier retired after 26 seasons as head coach. He was succeeded by Rogers, a former Jackrabbits linebacker who was captain of their first playoff team in 2009 — when they lost to Montana after blowing a 27-point lead.
Both teams had only one possession in the first quarter Sunday. Montana’s opening drive spilled into the first play of the second quarter, when Boch had the big fourth-down stop.
South Dakota State had opened the game with a 75-play, 11-play drive. Gronowski completed his first five passes for 55 yards and converted a third-and-4 with a 9-yard keeper right before Isaiah Davis’ 6-yard TD run.
“The fourth down stop was a big play in the game,” Hauck said. “They’re just a big, physical senior-oriented team and they do a nice job.”
THE TAKEAWAY
Montana: Playmaking quarterback Clifton McDowell, who had been 11-0 as the Griz starter, was under increased pressure, especially after halftime. He completed 22 of 39 passes for 165 yards, but was sacked four times. After he was stripped of the ball when being sacked late in the third quarter, 295-yard defensive tackle Ryan Van Marel came up with the ball.
South Dakota State: The Jackrabbits became the first team since North Dakota State (2017-19) to repeat as champions.
UP NEXT
Montana: The Big Sky champion Grizzlies take on one of SDSU’s Missouri Valley Conference rivals in their 2024 opener. They host Missouri State on Aug. 31.
South Dakota State: The Jackrabbits open next season on the road Aug. 31 at Big 12 team Oklahoma State, the first major conference team they will play since a 7-3 loss at Iowa of the Big Ten in the 2022 opener that was their last loss.
___
AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Mount Rushmore National Memorial among USA TODAY’s best scenic views
Explore Mount Rushmore National Memorial in Keystone, South Dakota, named one of USA TODAYs Most Treasured Views in America for 2025.
Few states can boast of a culture and history as closely tied to its Native American heritage as South Dakota.
The state has the nation’s fourth-highest per capita population of Native Americans, and about one in ten of the residents in its second-largest city — Rapid City, gateway to Mount Rushmore and the Black Hills for millions of annual visitors — are Native American.
The state can claim historical Native American luminaries like Crazy Horse and Sitting Bill and modern ones like the late activist Russell Means, Olympian Billy Mills, author Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve and Mato Wayuhi, an actor, composer and performer who wrote the score for Hulu’s “Reservation Dogs.”
It’s the site of the Wounded Knee Massacre, but also the American Indian Movement of the 1970s and its occupation of Wounded Knee. More recently, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe drew international attention to protests over the Dakota Access Pipeline just north of the South Dakota border and etched the phrase “Water is Life” into the cultural lexicon.
Those tribal ties help draw tourists. A survey from South Dakota Tourism in 2018 found that around 80% of visitors want a Native American “experience” during their stay. Yet the state’s nine tribal nations typically don’t see much from the billions in economic impact that tourism delivers to the state.
The South Dakota Native Tourism Alliance formed in 2019 to help bridge that divide. The nonprofit organization trains tour guides, plans tribal tour itineraries and works to develop tourism infrastructure in tribal communities.
Recently, it secured one of 10 J.M. Kaplan Innovation Prize awards, earning it $175,000 and connecting it with other early stage nonprofits across the U.S. for collaboration and guidance.
South Dakota Searchlight recently spoke with Rhea Waldman, South Dakota Native Tourism Alliance’s executive director, and Sarah Kills In Water, a Rosebud Sioux tribal member and member of the group’s board of directors.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The following conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
What can you tell us about what you’ve done so far? Can you give us an update on your economic catalyst tours?
Kills in Water: We worked with Destination America and developed multi-reservation tours, a multi-day tour that started in the Black Hills. They came through Pine Ridge, spent two days on Rosebud and went up to Standing Rock. They ended up marketing that itinerary to a company called Trafalgar, which operates heavily in South Dakota. So that was one major win.
Our tour guide training came up out of a need for another initiative that we worked on, helping the Sicangu Oyate Treaty Council and the Wild Foundation host the Wild 12 conference last year. They brought in people from all over the world, and they wanted to hear from our youth on questions like “How is the mining in the Black Hills going to impact your youth for the next seven generations, for the foreseeable future?”
So we went to engage with the Sicangu Youth Council, and they jumped on the opportunity. They provided a tour experience for a group of 50 international visitors at Bear Butte State Park. The kids were excited, and they were wanting to expand and do more, and so I brought them into my Trafalgar itinerary this year. They actually do the tours on Rosebud when Trafalgar comes through.
What’s lacking in the tourism landscape today that your organization aims to improve upon?
Kills In Water: The cultural piece is so important. Having these experiences with us, provided by us, told in our voices, our stories, everything, it makes it more personal, and I think it brings the realization to our visitors that these people are still here. After all the years of government oppression and everything that’s been done to them, they’re still here, and they’re still vibrant.
Tribal people sometimes have a really bad idea when they think about tourism. They think we’re selling our culture, but that’s not what we’re doing. All we’re here to do is help tribal nations define what stories they want to tell. What do you want to share with your visitors?
Waldman: South Dakota Tourism has been a great partner for us, and really helped us, because obviously they have a lot of data. One of those data points is that over 80% of people want to have a Native American experience when they visit South Dakota. Not even half of them actually do, though. So why don’t they do that? It’s because people don’t know where to go, where to find information.
What are the hidden gems that are already there that you point people to?
Waldman: Every tribal nation has their own gems. The tribes along the river have some of the most beautiful scenery you can imagine. Cheyenne River has one of the biggest buffalo herds in North America. There are cultural centers that have phenomenal art, that are showcasing local artists and the breadth of the history that Native Americans have experienced.
One of the challenges comes when you think about the great American road trip. When you’re on Interstate 90 between Sioux Falls and Rapid City, none of the reservations really are right there. I live in Pierre, and even though we’re the state capital, it is actually hard to get people out here. It’s because we are 35 miles from the interstate, so it takes you at least an hour and a half to travel there and back. So how much can you see here in order for people to come? That’s even worse for the reservations, because they are not the capital, and people don’t necessarily know all the things they can do.
What is it that this grant in particular might help you do?
Kills in Water: The nine tribal nations in our state are so geographically spread out. We don’t always have the resources to get out and go to these tribal nations ourselves. I live in Rosebud, and unless there’s gas money or something tied to it, sometimes I can’t just go to Flandreau. Pine Ridge is close enough where I can volunteer my time, because they’re only an hour and a half from us. With these funds, I see us increasing our partnerships with each tribal nation and really strengthening our efforts that way at the grassroots level.
Waldman: The grant is unrestricted, and that is huge. We’re all aware of travel reimbursement after the fact, but if you’re living in a place where you’re maybe living paycheck to paycheck and you don’t have a thriving business yet, waiting for travel reimbursement can take a while. If you do something like gift cards for gas, that is definitely not something that you can reimburse with federal grants.
And we’re not only getting money. There are 10 different organizations that receive this innovation grant, and we are meeting with them frequently. We can learn from those other amazing entrepreneurs. In addition, the entire team at the JM Kaplan Fund are there to help us succeed, because they know they are funding early stage nonprofits. They’re there with us every step of the way. Yes, money is great and we still need more, but having people that rally for you, that are there for you, that are your family and want to see you succeed, that is really special.
This Q&A was originally published on South Dakota Searchlight. South Dakota Searchlight is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
Video: Kirk Ferentz reacts to Iowa’s ReliaQuest Bowl win over Vanderbilt
Kirk Ferentz meets with media after Iowa football’s 34-27 win over Vanderbilt in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
IOWA CITY — South Dakota transfer running back L.J. Phillips Jr. has committed to Iowa football, he announced on Jan. 11.
Phillips had a breakout 2025 season, rushing for more than 1,900 yards, along with 19 touchdowns. He also added 28 catches for 195 yards receiving and one touchdown. Phillips was named a second-team FCS All-American by Phil Steele.
Phillips, listed at 5-foot-9 and 225 pounds, will come to Iowa with two seasons of eligibility remaining.
After rushing for more than 4,100 yards in his high school career, Phillips spent three seasons at South Dakota. During his time with the Coyotes, Phillips rushed for nearly 2,220 yards, along with 23 touchdowns. A majority of that production came in 2025. Phillips rushed for 96 yards while maintaining his redshirt in 2023 and then 176 yards as a redshirt freshman in 2024.
But his numbers exploded last season with some ridiculous performances. Phillips rushed 35 times for 301 yards and two touchdowns against Northern Colorado. He had four rushing touchdowns in two separate games. That includes a 244-yard, four-touchdown outing against Murray State. Phillips finished the season averaging 6.5 yards per rush.
Iowa has seen a pair of departures via the transfer portal in its running back room — Jaziun Patterson and Terrell Washington Jr. Patterson ranked third on the Hawkeyes in rushing yards during the 2025 season with 296.
Iowa still projects to have a talented running back room for the 2026 season. Kamari Moulton, who led Iowa with 878 rushing yards last season, still has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Nathan McNeil showed potential in his true freshman season. Xavier Williams tallied 285 yards on the ground as a redshirt freshman.
And now, Iowa adds another weapon to that room in Phillips. The Hawkeyes’ running back unit looks to be stacked entering the 2026 season.
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The South Dakota Department of Public Safety has released the name of the woman who was killed in a fatal crash in Minnehaha County last week.
64-year-old Patricia Archambeau of Mitchell died on January 5 due to her injuries in a crash that took place in the early hours of Saturday, January 3.
Archambeau’s 2012 Chevrolet Traverse was traveling eastbound on I-90 near mile marker 379, about four miles west of Humboldt, when she attempted to pull off on the side of the road.
At the same time, the Traverse was struck by a semi-truck, also traveling eastbound, and pulling a trailer. The truck continued driving east after the crash and has yet to be located.
On Sunday, the South Dakota Highway Patrol released two images of the semi-truck suspected of hitting Archambeau’s Traverse. The two photos were taken on I-29 near 41st Street in Sioux Falls at 2:25 a.m., about 12 minutes after the crash west of Humboldt.
Highway Patrol is seeking more information about a red Freightliner Cascadia semi-truck, missing its passenger-side headlight. If anyone has information, they’re asked to contact Highway Patrol at 605-367-5700.
Copyright 2026 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
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