This title tilt had a bit of everything – big plays, trick plays, turnovers, a 10-minute possession, a late Eagle rally and a lot in-between.
 
In a battle of programs which have never lost in the title game, North Dakota State jumped out to a 17-3 lead and held off Eastern Washington 38-24 on Saturday (Jan. 5) for the NCAA Division I Football Championship at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
 
Eastern fell behind 31-17 in the second half, then NDSU came up empty when it missed a field goal at the end of a 19-play, 88-yard drive that took 10:10 off the clock. Eastern responded with four-play, 80-yard drive to cut the lead to seven with 2:19 to play, but NDSU recovered an onside kick – twice after an penalty on the first one – to help put the game away.
 
"We played our tails off," said Eastern head coach Aaron Best. "I thought we more than held our own for a lengthy period of time. We came in aggressively. We played aggressive. We coached aggressive. And we left here aggressive."
 
The two winningest teams in the 2010's among schools who compete in the playoffs combined for 845 yards of offense and five turnovers. But on a sun-kissed day, an announced crowd of 17,802 witnessed the seventh title in the last eight years for the Bison.
 
The early lead was too much for Eastern to overcome as it closed its season 12-3 and had its seven-game winning streak snapped. The Bison finished 15-0 and were the top-ranked team all season and the No. 1 seeded team. Eastern entered the playoffs as the No. 3 seed and was ranked as high as third to end the regular season.
 
Senior Sam McPherson rushed for 158 yards for the Eagles and had a 75-yard touchdown run in the game, and sophomore Eric Barriere accounted for 208 yards of offense with 198 passing and 10 rushing. Senior linebacker Ketner Kupp and sophomore linebacker Chris Ojoh each had 11 tackles to lead the Eagles defensively.
 
It was the second-most most points EWU has allowed this season (Washington State scored 59) and the second-fewest the Eagles scored (EWU had just six in a 14-6 loss at Weber State. The Bison had a dominating advantage in time of possession, 40:04 to 19:55.
 
The Bison have now won 121 of 134 games since 2010, and have won all seven times they have advanced to the championship game since then (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018). Eastern won in 2010 in its only previous title game appearance, and knocked off NDSU in the quarterfinals 38-31 in overtime that season in Cheney. The Eagles are 90-30 since 2010, a percentage of .750 that trails only the Bison at .903 and the .778 percentage (70-30) of Ivy League member Harvard, which does not participate in the playoffs.
 
"Everyone wanted to know if we were going to walk out of here losing 48-14 with our chins held high," added Best. "We're competitors and we earned the right to play in this game, too. And I'm excited to protect our players -- they earned this opportunity. And we fell short. Very close but short."
 
 
Records & Rankings . . .
 
* Closing the year 12-3 overall and finishing 7-1 in the Big Sky in 2018, Eastern captured its 10th Big Sky title and a 13th appearance in the FCS Playoffs. This is the 12th-straight season the Eagles will have finished 5-3 or better in the Big Sky, with a 12th-straight winning season and 21st in the last 23 years. Eastern, which lost regular season games in 2016 (50-44 in Fargo in overtime) and 2017 (40-13 in Cheney) to drop to 1-2 all-time against the Bison (now 1-3), finished the regular season ranked a season-high fourth by STATS and third by the coaches, and entered the playoffs at the No. 3 seed overall.
 
* North Dakota State finished unbeaten at 15-0 this season, the overall No. 1 seed in the playoffs and was the unanimous top-ranked team throughout the season in the STATS Top 25 poll and the American Football Coaches Association poll.
 
 
What It Means . . .
 
* Both teams entered the championship game playoff tested, highlighted by NDSU's incredible run of what is now 30 victories in its last 31 playoff games (32-2 overall since 2010). Eastern is 14-5 now in that same time frame in the playoffs – with 17 games at home in Cheney and two in Frisco -- but lost in the semifinals in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016. Eastern got over the hump on Dec. 15 by trouncing Maine 50-19, a night after NDSU advanced with a 44-21 romp over Missouri Valley Conference rival South Dakota State. While the Eagles have played 17 games at home in Cheney, nearly all of NDSU's postseason games have been played in the Fargodome. That has translated to a very pro-Bison crowd each year in Frisco.
 
* Eastern has won 12 games for just the fifth time in school history, with the record coming during EWU's national championship season in 2010 when the Eagles were victorious 13 times. Eastern won 12 games in 1997, 2013 and 2016, and had 11 in 2012, 2014 and 1967. Thus, this is the sixth time in the last nine seasons (2010-2018) that Eastern has been victorious at least 11 times.
 
 
What's Next . . .
 
* The Eagles are scheduled to open the 2019 season at Washington on Aug. 31, 2019, in Seattle, Wash.
 
 
Keys to Game . . .
 
* Eastern seized some momentum just before halftime when the Eagles scored on a fake field goal on a 2-yard pass from Gunner Talkington to Jayce Gilder to cut the lead to 17-10 at halftime. But EWU had turnovers on its first two possessions of the second half, and two NDSU touchdowns in the quarter gave them a 31-17 advantage.
 
 
Turning Point . . .
 
* Down by 14, Eastern received a boost when NDSU missed a field goal at the end of a massive 19-play, 88-yard drive that took 10:10 off the clock. Eastern responded with four-play, 80-yard drive to cut the lead to seven with 2:19 to play, but NDSU recovered an onside kick – twice after a penalty on the first one – to help put the game away. Eastern had a chance to get the ball back with 1 1/2 minutes remaining, but the Bison converted a third-and-seven play into a 46-yard touchdown by quarterback Easton Stick.
 
 
EWU Highlights/Records . . .
 
* Sixth-year senior kicker Roldan Alcobendas closed out his career with some impressive school records, plus one FCS mark. His 40-yard field goal in the second quarter in the NCAA Division I Championship game helped him set the record for the best perfect record of field goals made in the history of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision. He finished the year as the only player in FCS to be perfect on the season at 16-for-16, breaking the previous record of 15-of-15 set by Jon Scifres of Missouri State in 2004. He also converted all three of his extra points to improve to 71-of-72 for the season (last 70 consecutively for a school record) and punted five times for a 45.2 average with a long of 58 and one downed inside the NDSU 20-yard line. That punting performance helped him establish new EWU season and school records for punting average – both 44.9 per kick. He finished with a school-record 119 kick scoring points in 2018 after having previously broke the record of 103 set by Josh Atwood in 1997. The 119 points ranks second in Big Sky history, just three from the league record of 122. Alcobendas finished with a school-record 320 career points which is sixth in Big Sky history. His streak of 70-straight extra points broke his own single season record of 63 consecutive in 2016. He set the career record for extra points in a row with 85 from 2016-17.
 
* Senior running back Sam McPherson closed his career with 158 yards on 18 carries, including a 75-yard touchdown in the third quarter. He finished with seven 100-yard performances in his career and six as a senior, and finished with 1,510 on the season to rank fourth in single season school history. The 2,159 yards he had in his career ranks 11th. Eastern as a team averaged 4.8 per rush against the Bison to finish with a school-record 6.62 on the season to break the previous record of 6.41 set in 2001. The Eagles also added to previous team records they broke for rushing yards (3,839) and rushing touchdowns (41).
 
 
Other Top Performers . . .
 
* In the 11th start of his career and 10th this season, junior Eric Barriere accounted for 208 yards of offense. He completed 13-of-25 passes, plus rushed nine times for 10 yards and a touchdown. He finished the season with 613 rushing yards, breaking the previous record for a quarterback of 606 set by Gage Gubrud in 2016. He is now 9-2 as a starter, including 8-2 this season as an injury replacement for Gubrud. Eastern was 8-0 when he's rushed for at least 20 yards this season.
* Senior wide receiver Nsimba Webster closed his career with four catches for 92 yards. He finished his career with eight 100-yard performances, and ended with 156 catches to rank 15th in school history and 2,233 yards to rank 17th. His 18 career TD receptions ranks 16th.
* Junior Jayce Gilder had a touchdown catch of 2 yards from Gunner Talkington on a fake field goal, and finished with three catches for 37 yards. In his last two games of the season he had six catches for 87 yards and three TDs.
* Senior linebacker Ketner Kupp and sophomore linebacker Chris Ojoh each had 11 tackles, one game after each had eight tackles versus Maine in the semifinals. Kupp finished his career with 10 career games in double figures in tackles and a total of 267 to rank 14th in school history. His team-leading 115 tackles in 2018 ranks as the 13th-most in school history. Ojoh, who was making just the eighth start of his career, has four performances with at least 10 tackles, including two with a career-high 11. Ojoh had a sack versus North Dakota State and finished the season with 105 tackles to rank 27th all-time at EWU.
* Sixth-year senior cornerback D'londo Tucker and sophomore safety Calin Criner each had interceptions against NDSU – just the sixth and seventh picks Bison All-American Easton Stick had thrown all season. Tucker finished his career with eight interceptions, 19 passes broken up and 106 total tackles.
 
 
Key Stats . . .
 
* The Bison had a dominating advantage in time of possession, 40:05 to 19:55, and ran 73 offensive plays (54 rushing) to EWU's 59. Eastern finished with three turnovers compared to two for the Bison, but the biggest difference came on third down. North Dakota State was 11-of-17 compared to just 3-of-12 for the Eagles. The Bison finished with 290 yards rushing and 198 passing to out-gain EWU 488-357. The Bison came into the game ranking in the top 10 nationally on both sides of the ball in third down conversions. The Bison were fourth offensively (51.2 percent) and ninth defensively (28.6 percent). In addition, NDSU entered ranked fourth in turnover margin (+1.29 per game), including second nationally in interceptions (21), ninth in turnovers gained (27) and fifth for fewest giveaways (9).
 
 
Notables . . .
 
* The Bison, which lost in the semis in 2016, were the fourth-straight conference champion the Eagles faced in the FCS Playoffs. Eastern opened the playoffs with a 42-21 victory over Southland Conference champ Nicholls, then rallied in the fourth quarter to beat fellow Big Sky Conference co-champion UC Davis 34-29 on Dec. 8. Maine was the outright champion in the CAA (Colonial Athletic Association) and EWU won that game 50-19.
 
* A 345-139 advantage on the scoreboard – an average score of 49-20 and winning margin of 29.4 points – only scratches the surface of how dominating the Eagles were during their seven-game winning streak that ended versus NDSU. Most notably, Eastern is averaging 556.9 yards of offense, compared to 379.3 for opponents, including a 270.9 to 156.1 advantage in rushing. Eastern has a big advantage in turnovers forced (23-8) with 15 interceptions.
 
• This is Aaron Best's first playoff appearance as head coach, but 10th overall. He was a player in 1997, then coached in 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016 and now 2018). He has now been a part of 26 playoff games (17-9), with 23 as a coach (15-8) and three as a player (2-1). He has been involved in 21 of those games at home (15-6), just three on the road (1-2) and two in the NCAA Division I Championship Game (1-1). He was offensive coordinator and offensive line coach in 2010 when the Eagles won the NCAA Division I title with a 20-19 victory over Delaware on a neutral field in Frisco, Texas.
 
* In the last 10+ seasons (2008-18), the Eagles are now 59-1 when they've won the turnover battle, 24-6 when they've been tied and 21-32 when they've lost (total of 104-39). The last time EWU lost when it won the turnover battle came in the 2009 FCS Playoffs at Stephen F. Austin when EWU had two miscues and forced four in the 44-33 loss. Thus, EWU is 50-0 since 2010 when they've won the turnover battle, 21-5 when they've been tied and 19-25 when they've lost.
 
* The Eagles won their 12 games in 2018 by an average of 30.3 points per game – 593-229 for an average score of 49-19. That was nearly identical to EWU's 50-19 victory in the semifinals of the FCS Playoffs against Maine. Until rallying for a 34-29 win over UC Davis in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs, the closest victories for EWU were 21 points versus Nicholls and 24 against Idaho. The largest was a 53-point romp over Cal Pol, which was the biggest winning margin for EWU in a Big Sky game and the third-largest overall as a member of FCS.
 
* You have to go back more than 20 years to find a defense that has been stingier than this year's team. A year after allowing 33.4 points per game, the Eagles finished the season allowing 22.7 for the team's best performance since 1997. That season, on their way to a semifinal appearance in the FCS Playoffs (then I-AA), Eastern allowed just 17.4 points per game. Eastern's nine games of allowing 20 points or fewer in 2018 equals the school record also set in 1997, 1981, 1964 and 1949.
 
* Overall, EWU has faced the No. 1 team in FCS 10 times now, winning twice -- 35-31 in 2004 over Southern Illinois in the FCS Playoffs and 30-21 in 2002 over Montana at Albi Stadium in Spokane, Wash. One of the losses was in 2016 in Fargo, N.D., when North Dakota State beat No. 8 Eastern 50-44 in overtime. The following season, EWU was ranked seventh and lost 40-13 to second-ranked NDSU in Cheney. The Eagles are 9-35 all-time versus top 5 opponents (4-3 since 2010), including 2-8 versus No. 1 (0-2 since 2010). The Eagles are now 10-8 against top 10 foes -- including a 5-3 mark in the regular season and 5-5 in the playoffs Eastern is 19-43 in 62 games all-time versus top 10 opponents, but is 10-8 since 2010. In addition, Eastern is now 59-70 in 129 games against top 25 teams in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision since becoming a member of that classification in 1983 (then known as I-AA). Since 2010, though, the Eagles are 30-16 overall.
 
 
Comments After NCAA Division I Championship Game
 
Jan. 5, 2019 – Head Coach Aaron Best, Linebacker Ketner Kupp, Quarterback Eric Barriere, Running Back Sam McPherson
 
COACH BEST: "The team we faced is a very good football team. Obviously they have proved that over not just the course of the year, but over a period of time now. We fought through a lot of adversity, whether it be bad playing, bad coaching or penalties. We self-inflicted some of the wounds we had and you can't do that against anybody, especially on this stage. Those get exploited all too often. It wasn't a fantastic 60 minutes."
 
What made it so difficult to put together a drive against them? COACH BEST: "Too many penalties. And when we had penalties, they were big penalties. They weren't just the 10- yard variety, but they were 50 because we gained 40 on those plays. Lining up incorrectly. Holding. We had too many penalties and we executed well in areas. On the last touchdown we went down the field and that's what Eric Barriere is going to bring to us in the future. He's a puppy in this game. So was I. We all make mistakes. To succeed you've got to fail. And he didn't fail today. He succeeded with small hurdles along the way."
 
You got the fake field goal right before halftime against the momentum how difficult was the way the second half started with the two turnovers and trading turnovers with them and not being able to get much out of it? COACH BEST: "It was like the five-minute frenzy. I don't know. I looked up at the clock there's 10:44 left in the fourth quarter and there had been three turnovers and three touchdowns in that first four minutes and 16 seconds. It is what it is. We had turnovers too. We're not that bad a team, people."
 
With the crowd being as it was, did you guys notice that? COACH BEST: "There was no intimidation. The crowd was not a factor. We had zero false starts on the game. I know where you're going with this, but the crowd was not a factor. I felt like actually most of the game we controlled and played at our tempo and our pace. We're a better team. We play at a faster tempo. We just couldn't get in the rhythm being first and 20 every drive (after penalties). So it's hard to play our brand of ball. We did play our brand of ball at times. We were doing what we wanted to do, but to do that you've got to be able to move the sticks. The crowd was zero a factor. They have a fanatical fan base and I love it. They are very grateful. A lot of them said congratulations coach meaningfully coming off the field, but the fans were not an issue from a noise standpoint."
 
The fourth quarter you couldn't get their offense off the field – the 10-minute drive sucked the air out of the game. Anything they were doing that drive they weren't doing before or was fatigue setting in, what was the issue? COACH BEST: "Easton Stick carried the ball a lot. We talked about that. When they needed a first down, guess who they're going to have -- 12 is going to keep the ball. He's experienced, talented, big and athletic. I don't know if there's a bad thing about Mr. Stick. And we knew it. And great teams are and great players are hard to step even when you know what's going to go on. So we got them to third down but we just couldn't stop them on third down. And then they missed the field goal which kind of gave us a little momentum and we went down the field and scored. We felt like we had a chance. And that onside kick was right in front of me. It was perfectly kicked by Roldan and we just didn't recover it. They were offside and we did the attempt again and they recovered. They scored and the game was history."
 
Can you put into words what this season has meant for this program, for you, that emotional roller coaster, and how would you describe the season? COACH BEST: "That's a tough one just 20 minutes after the end of the championship game. I would probably say the same thing, win or lose, because it's hard to reflect back on something that's taken place not just from August to this point with this team. It goes all the way back to Thanksgiving of 2017. So I'm going to have to get back to you. And I know where you work. We'll make that happen. But I'm not going to get reflective right now and give a microcosm of the season after we played our absolute backsides off today and came up short. I just think it would be unfair to roll something out that I haven't kind of had time to reflect on to give you more of a detailed answer."
 
Coach, you go for the fake field goal there. What made you decide what you wanted to do there and is that play something that's new or was it something that you kind of had in your back pocket all season long? COACH BEST: "No, it was in the front pocket. We saw film. We were going to attack their field goal block unit. They lined up way different than they had shown on probably 50 field goal attempts. I don't know why. But I watch all special teams as well, as head coach. And so I got the question of: "Is that the look we wanted or thought we were going to get? And the answer was emphatically no. But I didn't answer at the time. We still executed. We knew it was available. We actually were thinking about it to do it on a two-point play but decided to pull it out sooner to get us jump-started and get a touchdown going into halftime while trying to create some momentum."
 
"I want to say thank you, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I appreciate this. It's hard to be up here in these situations to face questions that are hard to answer after this platform that we're on. But I appreciate you folks for doing your job and your jobs well and even though it's hard for us I know that's the job you have to do. Appreciate you and for what you do and what you stand for. Thanks."
 
Can you put into words what this experience has been like? I know it didn't end the way you had hoped. What was this overall experience meant to you? ERIC BARRIERE: "It's definitely a memorable moment just being out here in Frisco and doing the activities – like the Miracle League. Just seeing all that stuff are memories I'm taking back with me. But it hurts losing, especially how we lost."
 
I saw you and Gage talk down at the very end. What was that exchange like between the two of you? ERIC BARRIERE: "Our friendship has grown a lot. So it was just two friends coming together -- saying thank you, going to miss you, pretty much like that. And just telling me to keep my head up because my future is bright and the team's future is bright, too."
 
What was your mentality like coming into this game? Did you feel any sense of nerves or anything like that, seemed like you settled in pretty quick? ERIC BARRIERE: "I wasn't nervous – I just wasn't executing like how I wanted to. But no, I wasn't nervous. I just tried to be as calm as I always am every Saturday when I go out there. Sometimes stuff doesn't go your way."
 
Is it any different playing from behind versus North Dakota State than other teams, can you talk about playing from behind? ERIC BARRIERE: "I don't think there's any difference, because our mentality is we can score fast. So we know if we're behind we can kind of keep the chains moving, go up-tempo. Kind of tire teams out. So in this situation we were just trying to play fast, trying to score, and hopefully our defense gets stops."
 
Your first full year coming into it as a starter, you make it to the National Championship, what do you take from this experience and what do you think just initially, what are the first things you'll learn from this experience on the field today into next year? ERIC BARRIERE: "Just hungry, really, because the offseason starts now. Like since the other game is over, watch film, just take all that with me and just be better, really, that's all I can say, because next year we've got a lot of players coming back and hopefully we can return again.
 
Eric, as explosive as you guys are, how tough was it to watch NDSU hold the ball for ten minutes in the fourth quarter? ERIC BARRIERE: "It was tough. Just seeing them just do what they do. But we all believe in our defense and know that they played their hearts out. Because defense got stops in key moments and we didn't do what we were supposed to do. So it was kind of vice versa, but it definitely sucked just seeing them keep getting first down and moving the chains. But defense was giving them a handful for sure.
 
Eric, what was it that presented such a challenge going up against that defense especially in the first half? ERIC BARRIERE: "Their ends did a good job of just rushing, rushing up the field, trying to make me step up and make me break the pocket, especially with a spy on me. I think we hurt ourselves in a way because we definitely drove the ball, but penalties killed us. And that's tough when you get a big gain of like 20-plus yards but then you lose like 10 or 15-plus yards. But they're a great defense."
 
Ketner, the offense, the biggest challenges you faced with the offense? KETNER KUPP: "Just trying to keep them out of the zone, keep them in second and long and third and long and keep ourselves in a position to have success. They did a good job early on of making the third and ones and third and twos available and taking advantage of those."
 
The first five minutes of the second half was absolute chaos, saw three turnovers and two massive plays for touchdown, what was going through your guys' head at that time. ERIC BARRIERE: "We were really just trying to settle in, I think, especially with the pick that I threw then they threw it right back. I think both teams probably came out a little amped up probably, but once everybody started to settle in then we started to move the ball." KETNER KUPP: "Like Eric said, we were trying to roll with the punches and take advantage of opportunities. We knew they were going to take some shots and make some plays, and it's about being able to ride those out and continue doing what we're supposed to do."
 
Could you follow up with the craziness of the start of the third quarter what was like through your eyes. SAM MCPHERSON: "It was so back and forth. It was so crazy. It seemed like the first or second play we turned the ball over and they turned it over and we turned it over again -- it was wild for sure. It definitely got us up, got us down. And it ended up in their favor and they ended up scoring the touchdown. That kind of hurt us, but we battled back."
 
Seemed like you battled it pretty well. But how would you describe the atmosphere playing here today? SAM MCPHERSON: "It was unbelievable. I've never been a part of a game with this many fans. Actually Montana maybe. But this is the loudest venue I've ever played at. It was just a blast honestly and the NDSU fans are crazy. We didn't have too many fans here compared to NDSU, but ours were super loud too. It was definitely a fun atmosphere." ERIC BARRIERE: "The atmosphere was something I'll never forget. Just seeing fans from both teams just cheering loud and proud, and the intensity of the game, was just crazy." KETNER KUPP: "It was pretty much what you expect going into a National Championship – it was pretty electric out there."
 
Sam and Ketner, this is your guys' last time in an Eastern uniform. Any message for the fan base about your time here at Eastern? KETNER KUPP: "I would just say thank you for the experience and the opportunities. It's been an honor to play with these guys and with these people and something I'll cherish forever." SAM MCPHERSON: "Piggybacking off of that, it's been an absolute honor to play for Eastern. When I signed here this is what I expected -- to be in the National Championship game. Obviously it didn't turn out how I wanted it to but it's been an absolute blast wearing the Eastern uniform."