2001 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football team

2001 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football
NCAA Division II champion NCC champion
NCAA Division II Championship Game, W 17–14 vs. Grand Valley State
Conference	North Central Conference
Ranking
AFCA	No. 4
Record	14–1 (7–1 NCC)
Head coach	Dale Lennon (3rd season)
Offensive coordinator	Chris Mussman (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Bubba Schweigert (5th season)
Base defense	3–4
Captains	Dan Graf Kelby Klosterman Travis O'Neel Eric Schmidt
Home stadium	Alerus Center
Seasons ← 2000 2002 →

2001 North Central Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 4 North Dakota $^		7	–	1					14	–	1
No. 15 Nebraska–Omaha ^		6	–	2					8	–	3
No. 22 North Dakota State		5	–	3					7	–	3
Northern Colorado		4	–	4					7	–	4
South Dakota State		4	–	4					5	–	6
Augustana (SD)		3	–	5					5	–	5
Minnesota State		3	–	5					4	–	7
St. Cloud State		3	–	5					4	–	7
South Dakota		1	–	7					2	–	8
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant Rankings from AFCA Poll

The 2001 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football team represented University of North Dakota in the 2001 NCAA Division II football season. ^[1] The Fighting Sioux won the NCAA Division II national championship, the team's first. Their head coach was Dale Lennon, a former fullback for the school. The team's quarterback was junior Kelby Klosterman, who threw thirty-two touchdowns and seven interceptions. The leading rusher was Jed Perkerewicz, who rushed for almost eight-hundred yards and seven touchdowns. Three receivers had at least eight touchdowns; Dan Graf had ten, Jesse Smith had nine, and Luke Schleusner had eight. Mac Schneider, an American attorney who now serves as United States Attorney for the District of North Dakota, started three games in a backup role as offensive lineman for the team and served as team captain his senior year. The defense had a plus nineteen turnover margin and allowed fewer than thirteen points a game and just three rushing touchdowns all season. Eric Schmidt led the defense with ten sacks.

Schedule

North Dakota got off to a 6–0–0 start, before playing on October 24 to face the 6–0–0 UNO Mavericks of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. The game was tied at the end of regulation, with UNO winning in overtime, 27–24, by the margin of a field goal. The Omaha team lost 2 of its last 3 games, while the Sioux won all three of theirs, for the NCC title.

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 30	at Central Washington *	No. 14	Tomlinson Stadium Ellensburg, WA	W 17–14	1,250	[2]
September 8	Minnesota–Crookston *	No. 12	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	W 57–6		[3]
September 15	Northern Colorado	No. 11	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	W 13–7	9,265	[4]
September 21	New Haven *	No. 11	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	W 42–10	8,850	[5]
September 29	South Dakota State	No. 11	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	W 44–9	9,182	[6]
October 6	No. 2 North Dakota State	No. 11	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND (Nickel Trophy)	W 19–7	13,500	[7]
October 13	at St. Cloud State	No. 3	Selke Field St. Cloud, MN	W 35–28	3,133	[8]
October 20	No. 2 Nebraska–Omaha	No. 3	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	L 24–27 OT	12,580	[9]
October 27	at Minnesota State	No. 8	Blakeslee Stadium Mankato, MN	W 28–14	1,741	[10]
November 3	Augustana (SD)	No. 6	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND	W 37–14	9,847	[11]
November 10	at South Dakota	No. 5	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD (Sitting Bull Trophy)	W 48–7	3,735	[12]
November 17	No. 13 Winona State *	No. 4	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND (NCAA Division II First Round)	W 42–28	6,700	[13]
November 24	No. 6 Pittsburg State *	No. 4	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND (NCAA Division II Quarterfinal)	W 38–0	8,222	[14]
December 1	No. 12 UC Davis *	No. 4	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND (NCAA Division II Semifinal)	W 14–2	11,696	[15]
December 8	vs. No. 2 Grand Valley State *	No. 4	Braly Municipal Stadium Florence, AL (NCAA Division II Championship Game)	W 17–14	6,113	[16]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AFCA Poll released prior to the game

^[17]

2001 NCAA Division II Playoffs

After finishing the season at 10–1–0 and winning the North Central Conference title, The University of North Dakota qualified for the playoffs as a home team. The first-round game brought the Winona State Warriors to Grand Forks on November 17. Kelby Klosterman threw six touchdown passes, tying the Division II playoff record. The first two TDs were made from catches by John Kyvig, and the last four were to Jesse Smith, and the Sioux won 42–28. Brian Wilhelmi also had one assisted tackle on the punt team to cap the victory.

The Pittsburg State Gorillas were the next team to visit Grand Forks, on November 24 for the quarterfinal round. Cameron Peterka broke the NCAA playoff record with a 59-yard field goal at the close of the first half. The Sioux held Pittsburg State to minus 17 (−17) yards rushing on their way to a 38–0 win.

The semifinal game on December 1 brought the UC-Davis Aggies to Grand Forks, and the Sioux had a 14–0 lead with 30 seconds left. With UND on its own 3 yard line on fourth down, Coach Dale Lennon directed Klosterman to down the ball in the end zone for a safety, giving the Californians their only points in the 14–2 game. North Dakota earned its first ever trip ever to the Division II championship game in Florence, Alabama, to face the Lakers of Michigan's Grand Valley State University.

Though UND had a 7–3 lead at the half, the Lakers took a 14–10 lead with 2:46 to play after Ryan Brady ran 12 yards for a touchdown. The Sioux had the ball on their 20-yard line as the game was winding down. Klosterman's first two passes were incomplete, and on third, he ran for yardage, but the Sioux were still 2 yards short on fourth down. Klosterman gambled and ran seven yards to keep the drive alive. Three downs later, the Sioux were at their 41-yard line, and it was fourth down again. Gambling again, Klosterman completed a pass to Luke Schleusner to get the first down, but Schleusner eluded a tackler and, with the help of a block by Jesse Smith, made it to the one yard line. With 29 seconds to play, Jed Perkerewicz took the handoff for the winning touchdown, giving the Sioux the 2001 Division II national championship.

Roster

2001 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 2 Jesse Smith Jr WR 4 Jamel Alkins Sr RB 5 Adam Roland  Fr QB 6 Shad Carney Fr WR 8 Caleb Johnson  Fr QB 9 Kelby Klosterman Jr QB 12 John Bowenkamp So QB 13 Joe Wilson So QB 14 Evan Nelson  Fr WR 16 Josh Ranson Fr RB 18 Jim Miller So TE 45 Chad Mustard Sr OL 73 Chris Kuper Fr WR 89 Luke Schleusner Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 1 Thayne Bosh Jr DB 3 Dustin Thornburg Jr DB 11 Jamaal Franklin Fr DB 19 Tom Maus So DB 20 Ryan Manke  Fr LB 36 Travis O'Neel Fr FS 38 Josh Brandsted Fr DB 38 Mike O'Neil Sr LB 39 Brian Wilhelmi So LB 40 Digger Anderson Fr LB 40 Eric Schmidt Sr DL 42 Ross Brennan  Fr LB 44 Tyler Dahlen Fr LB 48 Josh Kotelnicki Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 7 Jeff Glas  Fr K 11 Cameron Peterka Sr P 15 Brian Loe Fr P 17 Bret Bentow Jr	Head coach Dale Lennon Coordinators/assistant coaches Chris Mussman Offensive coordinator/Offensive line Bubba Schweigert Defensive coordinator Tom Dosch Outside linebackers/Defensive line Dick Koppenhaver Quarterbacks Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: November 11, 2001

References

1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 10, 2018. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
2. "North Dakota scores early, holds on to beat Central Washington". The News Tribune . September 1, 2001. p. C3. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. Bakken, Ryan (September 9, 2001). "UND starts strong in Alerus Center". The Bismarck Tribune . p. 4D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
4. Bakken, Ryan (September 16, 2001). "Perkerewicz sparks UND over Northern Colorado". The Bismarck Tribune . p. 6D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Klosterman leads Sioux past Chargers". The Bismarck Tribune . Associated Press. September 22, 2001. p. 3D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
6. Bakken, Ryan (September 30, 2001). "Sioux roll past SDSU". The Bismarck Tribune . p. 5D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
7. Collins, Kerry (October 7, 2001). "Sioux-per display by UND's defense". The Bismarck Tribune. p. 1D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
8. Hatten, Mick (October 14, 2001). "Huskies' 'D' gets tricky". St. Cloud Times . p. 5D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
9. Bakken, Ryan (October 21, 2001). "Omaha surges late in game to defeat Sioux". The Bismarck Tribune . p. 1D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Klosterman leads UND past Mavericks, 28-14". The Bismarck Tribune . Associated Press. October 28, 2001. p. 4D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Augustana falls at North Dakota". Argus-Leader . Associated Press. November 4, 2001. p. 4C. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Sioux clinch NCC crown". The Bismarck Tribune . Associated Press. November 11, 2001. p. 5D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
13. "North Dakota ousts Winona State in D-II regional". St. Joseph News-Press . Associated Press. November 18, 2001. p. D3. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
14. "Klosterman leads way as North Dakota rips Pittsburg State, 38-0". Argus-Leader . November 25, 2001. p. 3C. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
15. Bakken, Ryan (December 2, 2001). "Defense shines as Sioux make national finals for first time". The Bismarck Tribune . p. 1D. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
16. "Sioux rally for title". Star Tribune . Associated Press. December 9, 2001. p. C7. Retrieved May 5, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
17. "2001 M Football Schedule". University of North Dakota Athletics. Retrieved December 23, 2022.