North Dakota defeats Indiana State 42-35 in conference opener

Kaminski Leads Fighting Hawks Offense to 520 Yards

Jerry Kaminski directed a dominant North Dakota offense that accumulated 520 total yards against the Sycamores. Kaminski completed 33 of 48 passes for 381 yards and added 76 rushing yards on 18 carries. His performance included a 39-yard touchdown pass over the middle to Cameron Weir that extended the Fighting Hawks’ lead to 42-21 with 9:21 remaining in the contest.

Deng Deng paced the North Dakota passing attack with 101 yards on six receptions. Cameron Weir contributed a pair of touchdown catches, while teammates Korey Tai and Mason South also hauled in scores during the conference matchup.

Indiana State Late Rally Falls Short

Indiana State mounted a significant fourth-quarter comeback behind Brady Allen. Allen connected on 18 of 33 pass attempts for 270 yards and four touchdowns for the Sycamores, who dropped to a 2-3 record. Following Kaminski’s touchdown pass to Weir, Allen orchestrated two quick scoring drives, the second coming after the Sycamores successfully recovered an onside kick.

After cutting the deficit, Indiana State kicked deep and forced North Dakota into a single first down. Getting the ball back on their own 11-yard line with 3:20 left on the clock, the Sycamores managed one first down before turning the ball over on downs to secure the final margin.

Sycamores receiver Jayden Reed finished the afternoon with eight receptions for 129 yards and two touchdowns.

Upcoming Conference Schedule

North Dakota returns home to host Murray State next Saturday. Indiana State hits the road next Saturday to face South Dakota in its next Missouri Valley Football Conference contest.