The Dakota Four

The Dakota Four
	North Dakota Fighting Hawks North Dakota State Bison South Dakota State JackRabbits South Dakota Coyotes
Sport	Football
First meeting	November 3, 1894; North Dakota State 20, North Dakota 4
Latest meeting	October 2, 2021, NDSU 16, UND 9
Trophy	Yes (Nickel Trophy), (Sitting Bull Trophy), (Dakota Marker)
Statistics
All-time series	UND146-92-10; NDSU120-92-8; SDSU112-138-14; USD84-126-12
Largest victory	North Dakota State vs South Dakota State, 85–0 (1903)

Last updated October 05, 2021

The Dakota Four are a group of American college football teams which are all members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference:^[1] the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, North Dakota State Bison, South Dakota Coyotes, and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.

Since North Dakota's entry into the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2020, the four member universities in the Dakotas have protected rivalries. With 11 members, the MVFC has an unbalanced conference schedule that results in not all teams playing each other on an annual basis. To promote rivalries, and to reduce travel costs, North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota, and South Dakota State are all guaranteed to play each other every season.

Trophies and rivalries

Nickel Trophy: goes to winner of UND VS NDSU

Nickle Trophy Nickel trophy NDSU.JPG — Nickle Trophy

Sitting Bull Trophy: goes to winner of UND VS USD
Dakota Marker: goes to winner of NDSU VS SDSU
South Dakota–South Dakota State football rivalry

North Dakota State

North Dakota

South Dakota

South Dakota State

Locations of Dakota Four Rivalry Members

All-time series

UND VS NDSU: University of North Dakota leads 62–48–3
UND VS SDSU: University of North Dakota leads 47-34-5
UND VS USD: University of North Dakota leads, 62–30–5
NDSU VS SDSU: North Dakota State leads, 63–43–5
NDSU VS USD: North Dakota State leads 55-26-2 ^[2]
SDSU VS USD: South Dakota State leads 55–53–7

^[3]

Facilities

Team	Stadium	Capacity
North Dakota	Alerus Center	12,283
North Dakota State	Fargodome	19,000
South Dakota	DakotaDome	10,000
South Dakota State	Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium	19,340

MVF Conference titles by school

School	Championships	Championship Years
North Dakota State	9	2011†, 2012, 2013, 2014†, 2015†, 2016†, 2017, 2018, 2019
South Dakota State	2	2016†, 2020‡
North Dakota	1	2020‡
South Dakota	0	N/A

†2-way tie for conference championship
‡3-way tie for conference championship

NCAA Division I Football Championships by school

School	Championships	Championship Years
North Dakota State	8	2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019
South Dakota State	0	N/A
North Dakota	0	N/A
South Dakota	0	N/A

NCAA Division II Championships by school

School	Championships	Championship Years
North Dakota State	8	1965, 1968, 1969, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990
South Dakota State	0	N/A
North Dakota	1	2001
South Dakota	0	N/A

Related Research Articles

The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as a football-only conference.

The North Central Conference (NCC), also known as North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, was a college athletic conference which operated in the north central United States. It participated in the NCAA's Division II.

The Summit League, or The Summit, is an NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic conference with its membership mostly located in the Midwestern United States from Illinois on the East of the Mississippi River to the Dakotas and Nebraska on the West, with additional members in the Western state of Colorado and the Southern state of Oklahoma. Founded as the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in 1982, it rebranded as the Mid-Continent Conference in 1989, then again as the Summit League on June 1, 2007. The league headquarters are in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

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. Since the Bison's older brother, The University of North Dakota, has joined the conference, the Bison have not placer higher than the Fighting Hawks in the conference standings. It is notable that the Fighting Hawks won the conference most recently. The Bison play in the 19,000 seat Fargodome located in Fargo. The Bison have won sixteen national championships and 36 conference championships. They won five-consecutive NCAA Division I FCS National Championships between 2011 and 2015 as well as three more consecutively between 2017 and 2019. NDSU is the only college football program to ever win five consecutive NCAA national championships, and hold the record for most FCS titles with eight.

The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They play their home games in Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the university's Gainesville campus.

The Dakota Marker is the trophy awarded to the winner of the annual football game played between the rival Division I Championship Subdivision North Dakota State University Bison and the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits. Both schools are members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.

The Nickel Trophy is presented to the winner of the currently 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 and resumed play in 2015.

The South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team represents South Dakota State University in college football. The program competes at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). The Jackrabbits play their home games at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium on South Dakota State's campus in Brookings, South Dakota. South Dakota State is considered to be among the few perennial powers in the FCS. South Dakota State is also one of only 13 FCS schools to host ESPN's College GameDay. GameDay came in 2019 when the #3 Jackrabbits hosted the #1 NDSU Bison, where they lost a close battle 23-16 after losing their starting QB to a season ending knee injury.

The Fresno State–San Jose State football rivalry is a college football rivalry between the Fresno State Bulldogs football team of California State University, Fresno and the San Jose State Spartans football team of San José State University. The two teams currently play annual, regularly scheduled contests as Mountain West Conference opponents.

The Missouri–Oklahoma football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Missouri Tigers football team of the University of Missouri and Oklahoma Sooners football team of the University of Oklahoma. The Tiger–Sooner Peace Pipe is the trophy awarded to the winner of the game.

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 South Dakota–South Dakota State football rivalry between the South Dakota Coyotes and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits is a yearly rivalry match-up in football between the two largest public universities in the state of South Dakota: the University of South Dakota in Vermillion and South Dakota State University in Brookings.

The 2015 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by second-year head coach Chris Klieman. The team, which played its 23rd season in the Fargodome, entered the season as the four-time defending national champions. The Bison have been members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) since the 2008 season.

The 2016 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Chris Klieman. The team played their 24th season in the Fargodome, entering the season as the five-time defending national champions and five-time Missouri Valley Football Conference Champions. The Bison have been members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference since the 2008 season.

The 2017 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fourth-year head coach Chris Klieman. The team played their 25th season in the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Bison finished the season 14–1, 7–1 in MVFC play to win the MVFC championship for the seventh consecutive year. As a result, the Bison received the conference's automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs as the No. 2 seed. In the playoffs, they defeated San Diego, Wofford, and Sam Houston State to advance to the National Championship game. There they defeated James Madison 17–13 to win the school's sixth National Championship in seven years. The September 30 game against Missouri State was the 700th victory since the team's founding in 1894.

The 2017 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team represented South Dakota State University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by 21st-year head coach John Stiegelmeier and played their home games at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings, South Dakota as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Jackrabbits finished the season 11–3, 6–2 in MVFC play to finish in a tie for second place. They received an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs where they defeated Northern Iowa in the second round and New Hampshire in the quarterfinals before losing in the semifinals to James Madison.

The 2018 North Dakota State Bison football team represents North Dakota State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by fifth-year head coach Chris Klieman, who also coached his final season with the Bison before heading off to take over for the retiring Bill Snyder at Kansas State. The team played their 26th season in the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. They entered the season as defending National Champions and had won six of the last seven FCS titles. In 2018, the Bison finished the regular season 11–0, the first undefeated Bison season since the 2013 campaign, and won their eighth consecutive MVFC title. They received an automatic qualifying bid to the FCS playoff tournament and were seeded as the No. 1 team. The Bison then went 4–0 in the FCS playoffs to finish 15–0 and FCS champions.

The 1993 North Dakota State Bison football team was an American football team that represented North Dakota State University during the 1993 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the North Central Conference. In their seventh year under head coach Rocky Hager, the team compiled a 7–3 record.

References

↑ "Although UND is set to play first Missouri Valley football contest, coordinators say schemes mostly stay the same". Grand Forks Herald.
↑ "2021 Football Media Guide" (PDF).
↑ "McFeely: NDSU-UND rivalry regains heat faster than expected". INFORUM.

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[1] "Although UND is set to play first Missouri Valley football contest, coordinators say schemes mostly stay the same". Grand Forks Herald.

[2] "2021 Football Media Guide" (PDF).

[3] "McFeely: NDSU-UND rivalry regains heat faster than expected". INFORUM.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e North Dakota Fighting Hawks football
Venues	Memorial Stadium (1927–2000) Alerus Center (2001–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Nickel Trophy (North Dakota State) Sitting Bull Trophy (South Dakota)
Culture & lore	"Fight On Sioux" "It's for You, North Dakota U" Pride of the North Native American mascot controversy
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
National championship seasons in bold

v t e South Dakota Coyotes football
Venues	Darwin Inman Memorial Stadium (1926–1978) DakotaDome (1979–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Sitting Bull Trophy (North Dakota) South Dakota State
Culture & lore	"Hail, South Dakota!" Charlie Coyote Dakota Days
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

v t e North Dakota State Bison football
Venues	Dacotah Field (1910–1992) Fargodome (1993–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Dakota Marker (South Dakota State) Nickel Trophy (North Dakota)
Culture & lore	Thundar "On Bison" Gold Star Marching Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
National championship seasons in bold

v t e South Dakota State Jackrabbits football
Venues	Coughlin–Alumni Stadium (1962–2015) Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium (2016–present)
Bowls & rivalries	South Dakota Dakota Marker (North Dakota State)
Culture & lore	Jack Rabbit "Ring the Bell"
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1889 1890–1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

v t e North Dakota Fighting Hawks rivalries
Football	North Dakota State South Dakota
Hockey	Denver Minnesota Wisconsin

Statistics
North Dakota Fighting Hawks North Dakota State Bison South Dakota State JackRabbits South Dakota Coyotes
Sport	Football
First meeting	November 3, 1894 North Dakota State 20, North Dakota 4
Latest meeting	October 2, 2021, NDSU 16, UND 9
Trophy	Yes (Nickel Trophy), (Sitting Bull Trophy), (Dakota Marker)
All-time series	UND146-92-10 NDSU120-92-8 SDSU112-138-14 USD84-126-12
Largest victory	North Dakota State vs South Dakota State, 85–0 (1903)

v t e South Dakota State University
Athletics	Football Men's basketball Women's basketball
Facilities	Coughlin Campanile Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium Frost Arena McCrory Gardens and South Dakota Arboretum South Dakota State University Innovation Campus Wenona Hall and Wecota Hall
Related	Hobo Day

v t e Missouri Valley Football Conference rivalries
Conference	Nickel Trophy (North Dakota–North Dakota State) Sitting Bull Trophy (North Dakota–South Dakota) Dakota Marker (North Dakota State–South Dakota State) South Dakota–South Dakota State
Non-conference	Steel Tire (Akron–Youngstown State) Blue Key Victory Bell (Ball State–Indiana State) Mid-America Classic (Eastern Illinois–Illinois State)