2004 North Dakota State Bison football team

The 2004 North Dakota State Bison football team represented North Dakota State University in the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season. It was the program's first season competing at the NCAA Division I-AA level. The Bison were led by second-year head coach Craig Bohl and played their home games at the Fargodome in Fargo, North Dakota. They finished the season with an overall record of 8–3 and tied for third in the Great West Conference with a 2–3 mark.^[1] North Dakota State was ineligible for the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs per NCAA rules, during their first four seasons at the NCAA Division I-AA/FCS level.

2004 North Dakota State Bison football
Conference	Great West Conference
Ranking
Sports Network	No. 23
Record	8–3 (2–3 Great West)
Head coach	Craig Bohl (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Tim Albin (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Jimmy Burrow (2nd season)
Home stadium	Fargodome
Seasons ← 2003 2005 →

2004 Great West Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 16 Cal Poly $		4	–	1					9	–	2
UC Davis		3	–	2					6	–	4
No. 23 North Dakota State		2	–	3					8	–	3
South Dakota State		2	–	3					6	–	5
Southern Utah		2	–	3					6	–	5
Northern Colorado		2	–	3					2	–	9
$ – Conference champion Rankings from The Sports Network poll

During the regular season, the Bison were never ranked in The Sports Network poll, but beat two of the three top-25 teams they played. After the playoffs, the Bison were ranked #24 in the final rankings. During their first four years in Division I-AA (2004–2007), NDSU had a North Dakota State of 35–9 (.795) and were ranked in the top-25 32 out of 44 weeks.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 28	6:00 pm	Valparaiso*	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 52–0	18,665	^[2]
September 4	2:10 pm	at Northern Colorado*	Nottingham Field Greeley, CO	L 13–15	5,311	^[3]
September 11	6:00 pm	Montana Tech*	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 56–3	11,030	^[4]
September 18	6:00 pm	Carson–Newman*	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 49–19	11,523	^[5]
October 2	4:00 pm	at Nicholls State*	John L. Guidry Stadium Thibodaux, LA (Trees Bowl)	W 24–14	5,421	^[6]
October 9	6:40 pm	at South Dakota State	Coughlin-Alumni Stadium Brookings, SD (Dakota Marker)	L 21–24	12,323	^[7]
October 16	1:00 pm	Southern Utah	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 27–21	15,449	^[8]
October 23	1:00 pm	No. 6 Cal Poly	Fargodome Fargo, ND	L 10–13	11,834	^[9]
October 30	1:00 pm	No. 15 Northwestern State	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 30–17	11,113	^[10]
November 6	1:00 pm	Weber State	Fargodome Fargo, ND	W 31–17	4,112	^[11]
November 13	1:05 pm	No. 21 UC Davis	Toomey Field Davis, CA	W 25–7	6,720	^[12]
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

References

1. "2004 NDSU football schedule". North Dakota State Athletics. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
2. "Crusaders crushed in Fargo". The Times. August 29, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Bears use five field goals to edge NDSU". The Bismarck Tribune. September 5, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "N.D. State 56, Montana Tech 3". The Billings Gazette. September 12, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Strauss had hot hand as Bison roll to win". The Bismarck Tribune. September 19, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "North Dakota State surges past Nicholls State". Argus-Leader. October 3, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Jacks, barely - SDSU scores with 39 second left to beat NDSU". Argus-Leader. October 10, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Bison take flight to ground SUU". The Salt Lake Tribune. October 17, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Ivory's big play leads CP to win". Santa Maria Times. October 24, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Late fade costs Demons". The Shreveport Times. October 31, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Wildcats sputtering away worst season in 28 years". The Salt Lake Tribune. November 7, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "North Dakota State's defense stops Aggies". The Sacramento Bee. November 14, 2004. Retrieved October 8, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.