The North Dakota Fighting Hawks are the athletic teams that represent the University of North Dakota (UND), located in the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I level as a member of the Summit League. With 17 varsity teams, North Dakota is best known for its Ice Hockey team and American Football team. North Dakota's main rivalries are with the North Dakota State Bison and the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
The North Dakota Fighting Hawks represent the University of North Dakota, competing as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) in the NCAA Division I's Football Championship Subdivision. From 1973 to 2008, they played in the NCAA's NCAA Division II, winning the national championship in 2001. From 1955 to 1972, they competed in the NCAA's College Division where they participated in and won three bowl games.
The North Dakota State Bison football program represents North Dakota State University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level and competes in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Bison play in the 19,000-seat Fargodome located in Fargo. The Bison have won 19 national championships and 38 conference championships. They have won 10 NCAA Division I AA FCS National Championships between 2011 and 2024. The Bison hold the record for most overall NCAA national championships and the record for the most consecutive championships with five titles between 2011 and 2015 for Division I FCS.
The Nickel Trophy is a trophy that was presented to the winner of the annual football game between the rival University of North Dakota (UND) Fighting Hawks and the North Dakota State University (NDSU) Bison. The two universities are approximately 76 miles apart on the eastern border of North Dakota. The two schools suspended play in 2003 before meeting again in 2015, with annual games resuming in 2019. In the entire history of the rivalry, the game has never been contested anywhere beside Grand Forks or Fargo.
The 2008 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football team represented The University of North Dakota as a member of the Great West Conference during the 2008 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by first-year head coach Chris Mussman, the Fighting Sioux compiled an overall record of 6–4 with a mark of 1–2 in conference play, tying for third place in the GWC. North Dakota played home games at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
The 2011 North Dakota Fighting Sioux football team represented the University of North Dakota as a member of the Great West Conference (GWC) during the 2011 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Chris Mussman, the Fighting Sioux compiled an overall record of 8–3 with a mark of 3–1 in conference play, sharing the GWC title with Cal Poly. North Dakota played home games at the Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota. This was the team's final year as a member of the Great West Conference as North Dakota became a full member of the Big Sky Conference in 2012.
The 2012 University of North Dakota football team represented the University of North Dakota in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Chris Mussman and played their home games at the Alerus Center. This was their first year as a member of the Big Sky Conference.
The North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's basketball team represents the University of North Dakota NCAA Division I men's basketball. The Fighting Hawks are members of the Summit League. Prior to membership in the Summit, they were members of Division II's North Central Conference and Division I's Great West Conference and Big Sky Conference. The current head coach is Paul Sather.
The Sitting Bull Trophy is the name of the rivalry trophy that was awarded to the winner of the annual football game between the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks and the University of South Dakota Coyotes. The rivalry stems from the time the two teams spent competing together in the North Central Conference (1922–2007) and later in the Great West Conference (2008–2011).
The 2014 University of North Dakota football team represented the University of North Dakota in the 2014 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first year head coach Bubba Schweigert and played their home games at the Alerus Center. They were members of the Big Sky Conference. They finished the season 5–7, 3–5 in Big Sky play to finish in a tie for eighth place.
The 2015 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by second year head coach Bubba Schweigert and played their home games at the Alerus Center. The Fighting Hawks are a member of the Big Sky Conference.
The 2016 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Bubba Schweigert and played their home games at the Alerus Center. The Fighting Hawks were a member of the Big Sky Conference. They finished the season 9–3, 8–0 in Big Sky play to share the conference championship with Eastern Washington. They received an at-large bid into the FCS Playoffs where they lost to Richmond in the second round.
The 2017 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Bubba Schweigert and played their home games at the Alerus Center. The Fighting Hawks were a member of the Big Sky Conference. They finished the season 3–8, 2–6 in Big Sky play to finish in a three-way tie for 9th place.
The 2017–18 North Dakota Fighting Hawks women's basketball team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Fighting Hawks, led by sixth year head coach Travis Brewster, played their home games at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. They were members of the Big Sky Conference. They finished the season 12–18, 5–13 in Big Sky play to finish in a tie for ninth place. They lost in the first round of the Big Sky women's tournament to Montana State.
The 2018 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Bubba Schweigert and played their home games at the Alerus Center. The Fighting Hawks competed as an FCS independent. They finished the season 6–5.
The 2018–19 North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's basketball team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Fighting Hawks, led by 13th-year head coach Brian Jones, played their home games at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota as first-year members of the Summit League. They finished the season 12–18 overall, 6–10 in Summit League play, to finish in 7th place. In the Summit League tournament, they were defeated by Omaha in the quarterfinals.
The 2019 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Bubba Schweigert, they played their home games at the Alerus Center. They finished the season 7–5. They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs, where they would lose to Nicholls in the first round.
The 2020 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by seventh-year head coach Bubba Schweigert, they played their home games at the Alerus Center as first-year members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
The 2021 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota in the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Fighting Hawks competed as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and were led by eight-year head coach Bubba Schweigert. They played their home games at Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
The 2022 North Dakota Fighting Hawks football team represented the University of North Dakota as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by ninth-year head coach Bubba Schweigert, the Fighting Hawks compiling an overall record of 7–5 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for third in the MVFC. North Dakota received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoff, losing to Weber State in the first round. The team played home games at Alerus Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
