FCS Football Recap: Week 6 Takeaways

Below are the biggest takeaways from all the Week 6 FCS football action.

NDSU Continues To Roll In Top 25 Win Over Illinois State

No. 1 North Dakota State improved to 5-0 (2-0 MVFC) with a 33-16 win over No. 6 Illinois State. It marks back-to-back Top 25 wins for the Bison following last week's win over South Dakota. The Redbirds took an early 9-7 lead, but the Bison outscored Illinois State 26-7 from the late second quarter to the end of the game.

NDSU's offense took control of the game in the second half, starting with a dominant rushing attack. Running back Barika Kpeenu stole the spotlight with his best performance of the season. He led the Bison with 116 rushing yards and one touchdown on 14 carries, averaging 8.3 yards per carry. DJ Scott added the game-sealing touchdown with 8:21 remaining.

The box score doesn't tell the full story, but quarterback Cole Payton was outstanding for the Bison. He completed 12-of-14 passes for 194 yards and one touchdown. He added another 79 yards and one score on the ground. There were many plays in which Illinois State played excellent defense, but Payton just made a play when it needed to be made. He had five runs of 10 or more yards and accounted for seven first downs with his legs.

Illinois State played well on Saturday night, but failed to capitalize on a handful of key moments. An early fumble led to a North Dakota State touchdown, and the Redbirds failed to come away with points on two drives inside NDSU territory, including a turnover on downs right before halftime. Tommy Rittenhouse made some outstanding throws, while Daniel Sobkowicz showed why he's a top NFL prospect at wide receiver. He led the Redbirds with seven catches for 75 yards and one touchdown.

Montana State Makes A Statement On The Road Against NAU

No. 5 Montana State made a statement with a 34-10 win over No. 13 Northern Arizona. After NAU took an early 7-0 lead, the Bobcats scored 34 unanswered points until a late field goal from the Lumberjacks. It was another impressive performance from Montana State's defense, which is making its case to be the best at the FCS level.

Northern Arizona's offense finished with only 296 total yards, averaging an abysmal 3.8 yards per play. Kenneth Eiden IV had an outstanding game, posting seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 0.5 sacks. The Lumberjacks had three drives in Montana State territory that ended with no points. The rushing attack was inefficient, finishing with 86 yards on 2.8 yards per attempt. The Bobcats also took away the deep ball, such that NAU had zero passing attempts over 20 yards. Pennington also completed only 2-of-7 attempts and threw an interception on intermediate passes (10-19 yards).

On the other side, quarterback Justin Lamson was efficient, completing 12-of-19 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns. It was another impressive showing for Jabez Woods, who finished with three catches for 100 yards and one touchdown. Julius Davis led the Bobcats with 73 rushing yards on only 10 attempts, including a highlight-reel touchdown, hurdling a defender on a 13-yard touchdown run.

Loughridge Leads SDSU To Another Top 25 Win

No. 2 South Dakota State overcame a 14-0 first-half deficit, defeating No. 24 Youngstown State 35-30 on the road. The Jackrabbits outscored the Penguins 21-0 in the third quarter, which was too much to overcome despite a late push by Youngstown State.

Running back Julius Loughridge was the MVP, leading the Jacks with 176 rushing yards and four touchdowns, averaging seven yards per carry. The offense sputtered early with Chase Mason missing some key throws, while the run game didn't click until the second half. Loughridge only had nine carries for 34 yards before halftime, but exploded for 142 yards and four scores on 16 carries after halftime.

Youngstown State had its chances to win the game, but failed to capitalize on them. Dathan Hickey had a huge interception late in the second quarter, giving Youngstown State a chance to extend the 17-7 lead over the Jacks, but SDSU forced a fumble, giving them all the momentum going into halftime. The Penguins also missed a 43-yard field goal, which led to another long SDSU scoring drive.

It's worth noting that South Dakota State was without Lofton O'Groske, but Alex Bullock made some important plays in this game. He led the Jacks with 10 catches for 162 yards, including two explosive plays that sparked two scoring drives in the third quarter. Chase Mason didn't have his best game, finishing 14-of-29 for 189 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He also added 40 yards on five carries.

Youngstown State quarterback Beau Brungard was great despite the loss, throwing for 275 yards and three touchdowns, while also leading the team with 130 rushing yards and another score. Max Tomczak made some impressive plays, finishing with 92 receiving yards and three touchdowns.

Austin Peay Wins Top 25 UAC Battle Against West Georgia

No. 22 Austin Peay picked up a big conference win against No. 16 West Georgia, defeating the Wolves 44-30 on Saturday. The Govs scored 21 unanswered points to win the game, including Will Middleton's 26-yard defensive touchdown to seal the game. It was a must-win game for Austin Peay, which lost its conference opener against Abilene Christian two weeks ago.

Quarterback Chris Parson was outstanding, throwing for 346 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. He also added another two scores with his legs, both on key second-half scoring drives. Jaden Robinson had a team-high six receptions and two touchdowns, finishing with 64 receiving yards. Javious Bond led the rushing attack with 51 rushing yards on only six attempts.

The game changed when West Georgia lost quarterback Davin Wydner to an injury. TJ Lester turned an Austin Peay interception into a one-play touchdown, but that was the only score after Wydner's injury. The Wolves were held to 80 total yards on 30 plays, an abysmal average of 2.7 yards per play, on their final five drives. David Hoage was a defensive force for the Wolves, posting a team-high nine tackles, two tackles for loss, and one sack.

Austin Peay's defense made some crucial stops late, including a fourth-down stop inside the 10-yard line with less than two minutes remaining. Montreze Smith led the Govs with eight tackles, one for loss, one sack, and one forced fumble. Middleton, along with his pick-six, added seven tackles and two tackles for loss. Ellis Ellis Jr. also blocked an extra point, which Rishi Rattan returned for a 90-yard defensive two-point conversion, tying the game in the first quarter.

Other Key Storylines Around The FCS:

• Brown kicked off the Week 6 slate with a major upset over No. 8 Rhode Island. The Rams had four costly turnovers, resulting in 14 points for the Bears. James Murphy had a great game, completing 20-of-27 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns. The Bears converted on three fourth-down attempts, all coming on scoring drives. Not only was it the first win in the Governor's Cup since 2017, but it was the first win over a Top 10 opponent since 1981.

• No. 4 Montana trailed by 10 points entering the fourth quarter, but the Griz scored 14 unanswered to escape with a 42-38 win over Idaho State. Michael Wortham was spectacular, showing he's the most versatile weapon in the FCS. The senior led the team with six catches for 124 receiving yards, adding 41 rushing yards and two scores, while also going 2-for-2 passing for 49 yards and another touchdown. If that's not enough, he also had 82 kick return yards for the Grizzlies.

• What else can be said about Western Carolina quarterback Taron Dickens? Since his return, the redshirt sophomore has thrown for 1,387 yards and 13 touchdowns, all while completing 80% of his passes with no interceptions. If that's not enough, he set a new NCAA record after completing his first 46 passes against Wofford. Dickens is now 3-0 as a starter this season, making the Catamounts one of the favorites to win the SoCon.

• Even without starting quarterback Victor Gabalis and multiple other starters, No. 3 Tarleton State escaped with a 52-42 win over Southern Utah. Daniel Greek played well, completing 16-of-21 passes for 282 yards and three touchdowns. Tre Page III is becoming a star, leading the team with 198 rushing yards and two scores, averaging 10.4 yards per carry. The defense allowed over 10.7 yards per play in the first half, but suffocated the Thunderbirds after halftime. In the second half, Tarleton State only allowed 64 yards on 19 plays, an average of 3.4 yards per play. Yasir Holmes led the defense with 2.5 tackles for loss and one sack.

• Stephen F. Austin picked up a huge conference win over Incarnate Word, improving to 4-2 overall and 2-0 in conference play. Sam Vidlak was outstanding, throwing for 261 yards and three touchdowns. The Lumberjacks dominated the line of scrimmage, holding UIW to 39 rushing yards and 1.3 yards per carry. The defense also forced six sacks and 11 tackles for loss, led by Jaydon Southard with 16 tackles, three for loss, 1.5 sacks, and one forced fumble.

• No. 17 Jackson State made a statement in a 57-24 win over Alabama A&M, moving the Tigers to 2-0 in the SWAC. The Tigers rolled up over 700 total yards of offense, averaging 8.8 yards per play. JaCobian Morgan had his best performance of his career, throwing for 314 yards and four touchdowns. He added 120 rushing yards and another score on the ground. The Tigers had four players rush for 70 or more yards, including Morgan and Travis Terrell Jr., with over 100 rushing yards.

• Mercer continues to look like a completely different team with quarterback Braden Atkinson. The Bears moved to 4-1 with a 45-21 win over Samford, which wasn't as close as the score might suggest. Atkinson finished with 365 passing yards and five touchdowns, making him one of the early favorites for the Jerry Rice Award. The Bears posted 14 tackles for loss and seven sacks, which again featured All-American Andrew Zock with 2.5 TFLs and two sacks.

• UTRGV made history with its first-ever Southland conference win, defeating Houston Christian 27-7 on Saturday night. The schedule hasn't been the toughest, but the Vaqueros are now 5-1 (1-1 SLC) and have exceeded all expectations for their first season. Quarterback Eddie Lee Marburger finished with 236 total yards and three touchdowns, while the defense forced six sacks and held HCU to 214 total yards.