Babicz taking a lead role among Bison tight ends with Gindorff sidelined

By Jeff Kolpack, Eric Peterson The Forum Fargo

The winter commencement ceremony at North Dakota State at 2 p.m. on Friday will include 13 Bison football players. Two of them are tight ends who have different outlooks in 2022.

Noah Gindorff will return next season after suffering a season-ending ankle injury in the second round win over Southern Illinois. That wasn’t the original plan since he was invited to participate in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Jan. 29. His pro plans have been put on hold for a year.

Josh Babicz is forging on, invited to the same bowl game. When NDSU takes on James Madison in the NCAA Division I FCS semifinals on Friday night at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome, NDSU’s 1-2 senior tight end punch is no longer.

It’s up to Babicz to take the lead role.

“Yeah, but it’s put more on everybody’s plate because he’s such a big part of our offense,” Babicz said. “Just the whole offense has to pick it up. We’re missing a lot of guys and we have to pick them up.”

Whether the players sidelined include standout wide receiver Christian Watson is uncertain. He’s been out with a hamstring injury. Babicz hasn’t gone without his bruises in the postseason, limping off the field in the second half last week in the quarterfinal win over East Tennessee State.

“When you get down to the nitty gritty, like in the semifinals, everybody’s banged up,” Babicz said. “You have to rehab and push through and be ready to play.”

Gindorff will be on crutches when he goes through graduation ceremonies. Babicz will have more on his mind than a diploma.

“We have to stay focused on, of course, the game,” Babicz said. “But you have to enjoy the little things, graduating and being a senior and enjoying my teammates I came in with.”

Familiar foes

North Dakota State and James Madison are playing for the fourth time since 2016 and the winner of the three previous matchups ended the season as FCS national champions.

The Dukes knocked off the Bison at the Fargodome in the 2016 semifinals en route to a national championship.

NDSU defeated James Madison in both the 2017 and 2019 national championship games in Frisco, Texas.

“Since 2016, the top two FCS programs have been JMU and North Dakota State and we’ve squared off a number of times, and two really good teams and every game is a really good game,” said Dukes head coach Curt Cignetti. “I know our guys know who they are and they know who we are. It will be a great ballgame.”

The Bison have a 30-1 FCS playoff record in the Fargodome with that lone loss coming against JMU in the 2016 semifinals.

Johnson leads potent JMU passing game

James Madison quarterback

Cole Johnson has had a stellar season, completing 262 of 388 passes (68%) for 3,569 yards and 39 touchdowns with two interceptions.

Johnson finished fourth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award, which is given to the top offensive player in the FCS.

“Pretty remarkable, 39 touchdown passes, two interceptions, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that,” JMU head coach Curt Cignetti said.

“He continues to improve. It all kind of started kind of midway through the spring (season).”

The 6-foot-5, 215-pound Johnson is averaging 274.5 passing yards per game. He completed 17 of 24 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns in a 28-6 victory against the Montana Grizzlies in last weekend’s FCS quarterfinals.

“Cole is a really smart guy,” Cignetti said. “He has great poise, he doesn’t get flustered. He shakes off a bad play really quick. He keeps you out of bad plays, too, which is really important for a quarterback.”

Wide receivers Atwane Wells Jr. and Kris Thornton are Johnson’s two favorite targets. Wells has 78 catches for 1,197 yards and 14 touchdowns, while Thornton has 77 receptions for 1,050 yards and 13 TDs.

“They’re hard to cover,” Cignetti said. “They’re both explosive players. When it’s game time they’re at their best. They thrive on competition. They made key plays at clutch times.”

Bison to face stout

JMU

Run Defense

The Bison are averaging 281.3 rushing yards per game, while the Dukes are limiting opponents to 82.5 rushing yards per game. NDSU is averaging 356 rushing yards per game in its past four games, including two playoff victories.

“Their line is huge, they’re veteran, they’re veteran, they’ve got a lot of running backs,” JMU head coach Curt Cignetti said. “They’ve got a really nice scheme. Their receivers separate and make plays. They’re good. They’ve always been good.”

The Dukes are going to have to prepare for two quarterbacks in Bison starter Cam Miller and Quincy Patterson. Patterson has been a strong running threat during the postseason for NDSU, rushing for 113 yards and a touchdown on 13 attempts in two playoff games.

“They have always been a challenge to prepare for offensively because of their multiplicity and personnel groupings, formations, shifts, motions,” Cignetti said. “That really hasn’t changed at all. The quarterback that they’re playing is completing 70% of the passes. Patterson has come in lately to run the ball, but we all know he’s very capable of throwing the ball, too.”

Odds and ends

► Friday is the fifth meeting between NDSU and JMU with the Bison having a 3-1 edge in the series. All previous four meetings were also in the FCS playoffs.

► The Dukes have a 1-1 record in Fargo, losing 26-14 in the second round of the 2011 playoffs. NDSU went on to win the national title that season. JMU earned a 27-17 victory against the Bison in the 2016 semifinals.

► In the previous four meetings between the teams the Bison are averaging 22.0 points per contest, while JMU is averaging 18.5.

► James Madison head coach Curt Cignetti earned career victory 100 in last weekend’s win against Montana in the quarterfinals.

► The Bison are playing in the FCS semifinals for a 10th time. That ranks third in the subdivision’s history behind Georgia Southern (13) and Montana (11). NDSU has an 8-1 record in its previous nine semifinal appearances.

► Five Bison players were named to the Missouri Valley Football Conference allacademic team earlier this week, including linebacker Jackson Hankey, who was named to the first team. Fullback Hunter Luepke, defensive tackle Eli Mostaert, kicker Jake Reinholz and defensive tackle Lane Tucker were named to the second team. Defensive tackle Costner Ching, tight end Noah Gindorff and linebacker Cole Wisniewski were honorable mention selections.

► NDSU has won 39 FCS playoff games, ranking second behind Georgia Southern (45) in that category. Montana is third with 34. The Bison have the highest FCS playoff winning percentage at .929 (39-3). Marshall is second at .793 (23-6).