Skip To Main Content

Indiana State University Athletics

Clark
38
Winner North Dakota St. NDS 7-0 , 4-0
7
Indiana St. INS 2-5 , 0-3
Winner
North Dakota St. NDS
7-0 , 4-0
38
Final
7
Indiana St. INS
2-5 , 0-3
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
NDS North Dakota St. 0 10 14 14 38
INS Indiana St. 7 0 0 0 7

Game Recap: Football | | Seth Montgomery | GoSycamores.com

Sycamores unable to keep first-half momentum in Saturday loss to No. 1/1 North Dakota State

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – No. 1/1 North Dakota State pulled away from the Sycamores in the second half as Indiana State fell to the Bison on a wet and windy day at Memorial Stadium, 38-7.
 
The Sycamores (2-5, 0-4) trailed the Bison (7-0, 4-0) 10-7 at the half as the Sycamore defense turned in a solid effort over the opening 30 minutes. Indiana State struck first as Jorge Valdes intercepted a tipped Cole Payton pass inside the red zone, and the Sycamores converted on the other end with Nick Osho taking a three-yard touchdown plunge to put Indiana State ahead 7-0 with 4:11 to play in the first quarter.
 
NDSU rallied back before the break with a Truman Werremeyer three-yard touchdown pass from Payton and Eli Ozick connected on a 54-yard field goal to give the Bison the 10-7 lead just before the halftime break.
 
Coming out of the half, lightning struck as the teams were forced to sit through a 2:17 delay before reconvening play on the field around 5 p.m.
 
Indiana State quarterback Keegan Patterson threw an interception on the first play of the second half and the Bison converted it into points as Payton took it himself for a three-yard touchdown run to stretch the NDSU lead to 17-7. From there, it was all Bison as NDSU outgained the Sycamores 261-66 in the second half with Barika Kpeenu highlighting the offense with two rushing touchdowns, while DJ Scott added a fourth quarter score to provide the final 38-7 margin.
 
Indiana State had its moments throughout the game as the Sycamores went deep in the playbook with punter Harry Traum gaining 18 yards on a fake punt attempt, while Nick Osho added his team-leading seventh rushing touchdown of the season.
 
Patterson went 14-of-24 through the air for 107 yards with Zack Drawdy Jr. (three catches, 49 yards) and Rashad Rochelle (three catches, 18 yards) the favorite targets. Osho recorded a team-high 16 carries for 48 yards and a rushing touchdown to pace the rushing game.
 
Kimal Clark led three Sycamores with double-digit tackles on Saturday afternoon as the redshirt senior safety posted a game-high 15 stops on the game. Braxton Sampson (13) and Drew Covington (10) were also in double-digits on the day, while Lucas McAllister finished with five tackles, 1.0 sacks, and 1.5 tackles-for-loss on the afternoon.
 
Payton went 12-of-18 for 149 yards and a touchdown through the air, while adding 10 carries for 71 yards and a score on the ground. Kpeenu led the NDSU rushing efforts with 23 carries for 113 yards and two scores, while Bryce Lance had four catches for 74 yards to lead the receiving game.
Peder Haugo and Logan Kopp led the NDSU defense with seven tackles apiece, while Keenan Wilson had a team-high 2.0 tackles-for-loss. Jaylin Crumby recorded NDSU's interception in the win.
 
News & Notes
  • Nick Osho recorded his team-leading seventh rushing touchdown of the 2025 season and eighth overall as the redshirt junior running back scored in the first quarter on Saturday afternoon.
  • Osho's seven rushing touchdowns marks the most by an Indiana State running back since Dominique Dafney recorded seven rushing scores back in the 2019 season.
  • Kimal Clark recorded a season-high 15 tackles, putting him second in the MVFC this season with 73 total stops through the first seven games of the season.
  • The redshirt senior safety currently is averaging 10.43 tackles per game through his first season with the Sycamores.
  • Braxton Sampson (13) and Drew Covington (10) both recorded career-high tackling efforts on Saturday afternoon.
  • The Sycamores fall to 2-2 at Memorial Stadium this season.
Team Green Law Postgame Press Conference


Up Next
Indiana State continues conference play on the road as the Sycamores travel to Grand Forks, N.D. to take on North Dakota on Saturday, October 25, inside the Alerus Center. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET and will be carried live on ESPN+ and 105.5 The Legend.
 
Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Football, visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from both the App Store and the Google Play Store.
Print Friendly Version