North Dakota State Bison at Air Force Falcons
· NCAA - Football
North Dakota St. beats Air Force 38-32, win first Mountain West Conference game
North Dakota State (3-0, 1-0) joined the MWC as part of its move to the FBS in the offseason. NDSU won 10 FCS national championships from 2011-2025.
Hayes completed 15 of 23 for 228 yards with an interception and had scoring strikes of 44 yards to Mekhi Collins with 5:20 left in the second quarter and 41 yards to Logan Conklin early in the third.
Myles Mitchell ripped off a 31-yard run that capped a nine-play, 75-yard drive a little more than 5 minutes into the game and the Bison led the rest of the way.
Hayes threw a long pass to Jackson Williams for a 51-yard gain to set up Mitchell's 1-yard TD run that made it 28-13 with 29 second left in the first half.
North Dakota State safety Darius Givance — a second-team All-Missouri Valley Football Conference pick last season — was ejected for targeting with 1:20 to play.
Air Force safety Cade Paterson was ejected for targeting following a huge hit that forced an incompletion on the fifth play from scrimmage.
North Dakota State's Drew Klein kicked a 56-yard field goal, the longest in program history.
Liam Szarka was 5-of-10 passing for 103 yards and added 88 yards rushing and a TD on 21 carries for the Falcons (1-1, 0-1).
Air Force's Mason Hayes caught a lateral from Szarka and then hit Adam Hrynciw for a 36-yard touchdown and Blake Fletcher returned an interception 85 yards for a score.
Air Force: Visits Nevada on Sept. 26.
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How To Watch
How can I watch North Dakota State Bison vs. Air Force Falcons?
- TV Channel: Bison at Falcons 2021 College Football, week 2, is broadcasted on FS1.
- Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
Scoring Summary
 |
TD | 1st Period 9:54 | Myles Mitchell 31 Yd Run (Drew Klein Kick) |
|
TD | 2nd Period 14:08 | Nathan Hayes 17 Yd Run (Drew Klein Kick) |
 |
TD | 2nd Period 8:14 | Adam Hrynciw 29 Yd pass from Mason Hayes (Carter Cremascoli Kick) |
|
TD | 2nd Period 5:20 | Mekhi Collins 44 Yd pass from Nathan Hayes (Drew Klein Kick) |
|
TD | 2nd Period 1:48 | Blake Fletcher 85 Yd Interception Return (Carter Cremascoli PAT blocked) |
|
TD | 2nd Period 0:29 | Myles Mitchell 1 Yd Run (Drew Klein Kick) |
|
TD | 3rd Period 12:02 | Logan Conklin 41 Yd pass from Nathan Hayes (Drew Klein Kick) |
|
TD | 4th Period 10:59 | Liam Szarka 2 Yd Run (Two-Point Pass Conversion Failed) |
|
TD | 4th Period 4:26 | Kemper Hodges 2 Yd Run (Two-Point Pass Conversion Failed) |
|
FG | 4th Period 1:58 | Drew Klein 56 Yd Field Goal |
|
TD | 4th Period 0:50 | Matt Long 20 Yd pass from Evan Medders (Carter Cremascoli Kick) |
Statistics
 NDSU |
 AFA |
|
|---|---|---|
| 18 | 1st Downs | 21 |
| 4-12 | 3rd down efficiency | 6-14 |
| 3-3 | 4th down efficiency | 2-2 |
| 374 | Total Yards | 386 |
| 228 | Passing | 179 |
| 15/23 | Comp/Att | 9/15 |
| 9.9 | Yards per pass | 11.9 |
| 146 | Rushing | 207 |
| 37 | Rushing Attempts | 51 |
| 3.9 | Yards per rush | 4.1 |
| 5-45 | Penalties | 6-55 |
| 1 | Turnovers | 1 |
| 0 | Fumbles lost | 0 |
| 1 | Interceptions thrown | 1 |
| 29:05 | Possession | 30:55 |
Game Information
Location: USAF Academy, CO
Attendance: 25,970 · Capacity:
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