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Defense rules day in North Dakota State's 30-14 victory
FARGO, N.D. (AP) Levi Jordheim recovered three fumbles, Robbie Grimsley had a 27-yard interception return for a touchdown and North Dakota State took advantage of five turnovers to beat Northern Iowa 30-14 on Saturday.
Jordheim's three fumble recoveries, two created by teammate Nick DeLuca, tied the school record set in 1976 by Don Meyers.
The Bison (8-0, 5-0 Missouri Valley), ranked No. 2 in the FCS, entered the game as the nation's top-ranked defensive team and showed why with six sacks and 12 tackles for loss, holding a Panthers (4-4, 3-2) rushing offense that came in with 399 yards and five scores in its previous two games to just 48 yards and no scores on the ground. DeLuca led the defense with seven tackles, four solo, two sacks and two tackles for loss.
Grimsley's pick-six tied the score at 7-all at halftime. Ty Brooks scored on a 22-yard run, Cam Pedersen kicked a 23-yard field goal, Easton Stick threw a 31-yard score to RJ Urzendowski and Bruce Anderson ran in from the 1 in NDSU's second-half scoring spree.
Eli Dunne threw two touchdown passes to Daurice Fountain for Northern Iowa (4-4, 3-2).
The victory was the 100th since 2010 for NDSU.
