COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – No. 19/23 North Dakota (8-5) took down No. 6/7 Tennessee Tech (11-2), 31-6, at Tucker Stadium in the FCS First Round on Saturday afternoon. Lance Rucker was disruptive all afternoon for the Fighting Hawks and posted a trio of strip-sacks in the game, with a pair of them leading to scores.

With 1:05 left in the third frame, UND held a 10-6 edge on the scoreboard before Rucker put down his third strip-sack of the afternoon. Nine plays later, Colton Brunell capped the 50-yard drive with an eight-yard rushing score to push the lead to 17-6. Two plays into the ensuing Golden Eagle drive, Jonnie Wiltshire picked off a pass at the TTU 29 and returned it to the TTU 25. Four plays after that, Gaven Ziebarth put an exclamation point on the game with a three-yard rushing scamper to see the lead balloon to 24-6 with 9:19 left in the game.

The final points of the contest came with 3:15 remaining, when Charles Langama rushed ahead for an 18-yard score. The Fighting Hawks used smash-mouth football in the final stanza and rushed 16 times for 94 yards and three rushing scores.

UND's defense created chaos all afternoon and registered six sacks, matching the season-high. The defense was also responsible for six turnovers, led by Rucker's three strip-sacks. Rucker, Kyjuan Vengrowsky, Kaden Vig and Malachi McNeal each posted a fumble recovery, while Wiltshire and Jy Martin recorded one interception apiece.

Prior to the final stanza, UND had trouble moving the ball in the third quarter. On the fifth play of the half, Jerry Kaminski went down with an injury and NoDak only picked up 71 yards the rest of the quarter. UND's defense held strong throughout the stanza and limited the Eagles to 68 yards of offense in the quarter.

Kaminski finished the game 9-for-18 passing for 98 yards and a touchdown, while surrendering one interception. Simon Romfo was 4-for-8 through the air for 48 yards. Deng Deng paced the UND receiving corps with five grabs for 73 yards and a score. Ziebarth led the backfield with 66 yards on 11 touches and a rushing touchdown. Brunell and Langama also put down rushing scores in the final 15 minutes.

At intermission, North Dakota led 10-0. Late in the opening quarter, Kenten Laughman connected on a 37-yard field goal to make the score 3-0 early. On TTU's previous drive, Sam Strandell deflected a punt to set up the great field position. On the first Golden Eagle possession of the second stanza, they had a chance to knot the score up at 3-3 but had their 29-yard field goal attempt land wide left.

Rucker recorded a pair of strip-sacks in the second stanza to help widen the gap. First, Rucker had a strip-sack which was recovered by Vengrowsky at the UND 43 midway through the quarter. The Hawks had a chance to extend their lead but missed on a field goal attempt of their own from 30 yards out. On the following Tennessee Tech possession, Rucker had another strip-sack on the second play of the drive and it was recovered by Vig at the TTU 24. Three plays later, Kaminski found Deng for the 21-yard scoring pass in the left corner of the end-zone to extend the lead to 10-0 with just over two minutes to go until intermission.

In the opening 30 minutes, it was a defensive battle with UND putting down 81 yards passing and 69 yards rushing. TTU accumulated 160 yards through the air and was limited to just 21 yards on the ground. Deng was the most productive offensive player for Hawks with four grabs for 65 yards and the touchdown reception, while quarterback Kekoa Visperas led the Eagles offensively and was 19-for-29 passing for 160 yards. UND got to Visperas for a pair of sacks in the half, and both of them were strip-sacks by Rucker.
 
North Dakota will visit No. 4 seed Tarleton State at Noon on Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and covered on the Fighting Hawks Radio Network.

Postgame Notes

• North Dakota is now 1-0 in the all-time series with Tennessee Tech.
• It was the first game UND football has played in the state of Tennessee in history.
• This was the first road playoff win for the Fighting Hawks in the Division I era. NoDak is 22-17 in its NCAA playoff history, including a 2-5 mark at the Division I level.
• The Fighting Hawks have yet to give up a score on the opponent's opening possession of the game this season.
• With Tennessee Tech being ranked No. 6/7 coming into the game, it is the best road win over a ranked opponent for NoDak since taking down No. 5 Sam Houston State, 24-23, on Sept. 15, 2018.
• North Dakota rushed for 200 yards and passed for 146 in the win. Comparatively, Tennessee Tech put up 278 yards through the air and was limited to just 24 yards on the ground.
• UND had the ball for 34:56 minutes of clock.
• Lance Rucker had three strip-sacks in the game, while Malachi McNeal also added a strip-sack. Jy Martin and Jonnie Wiltshire picked off passes.
• Charles Langama recorded the first touchdown of his career with an 18-yard rushing score in the final moments of the game.
• The two teams combined for eight turnovers in the game.

How It Happened
First Quarter
3:46 – UND | Kenten Laughman connects on a 37-yard field goal. 9 plays, 33 yards, 3:27.
Second Quarter
2:15 – UND | Deng Deng scores on a 21-yard pass from Jerry Kaminski. (Laughman kick). 3 plays, 20 yards, 0:46.
Third Quarter
11:28 – TTU | Brian Courtney scores on a 45-yard pass from Kekoa Visperas. (Dom LeBlanc extra point blocked). 4 plays, 60 yards, 0:11.
Fourth Quarter
11:48 – UND | Colton Brunell scores on an 8-yard rush. (Laughman kick). 9 plays, 50 yards, 4:17.
9:19 – UND | Gaven Ziebarth scores on a 3-yard rush. (Laughman kick). 4 plays, 25 yards, 1:45.
3:15 – UND | Charles Langama scores on an 18-yard rush. (Laughman kick). 6 plays, 49 yards, 3:44.

For more information on North Dakota football, follow on social media @UNDfootball or visit FightingHawks.com.