BROOKINGS — After 33 consecutive home wins, South Dakota State looks to avoid a third straight defeat at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium on Saturday when they host Illinois State.
The Jacks have lost three in a row overall for the first time since 2013. Their last four-game losing streak came in 2011.
One more win would assure SDSU of a playoff spot. With a trip to a similarly-in-need-of-a-win North Dakota next week, this is the Jacks’ best chance to punch their ticket to the postseason.
Illinois State, meanwhile, has won three in a row, and are still in the hunt for a home playoff game and perhaps even a seed.
It’s Senior Day, the home finale, and the Jacks haven’t missed the playoffs since 2011. This is a pretty big one. Here’s what I’ll have my eye on.
SDSU QBs
Again, this is the primary storyline.
Chase Mason gets closer every week, but I’ll be kind of surprised if he plays. The Jacks haven’t given up on Mason returning eventually, but I just don’t get a sense this is the week. Then again, maybe Dan Jackson is intentionally trying to give off that impression to pull a surprise on Saturday.
Assuming that’s not the case, it’ll be interesting to see how Jack Henry performs.
South Dakota State quarterback Chase Mason watches warmups prior to the Jacks’ game against North Dakota State on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025 at Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings.
David Bordewyk / S.D. NewsMedia Association
Without putting too much pressure on the kid I think there’s a decent chance he delivers a good performance. He just made his first college start last week in a rivalry game on the road on national TV and looked pretty good. The circumstances are much more favorable this week and he’s got more under his belt now as far as game experience, practice reps and respect/belief from his teammates.
First quarter
The Jacks need to start fast. If they start slow, panic and lack of confidence can and have set in. Yes, they started as fast as possible last week, scoring a 75-yard touchdown on the first play of the game, but the defense than gave up a long scoring drive immediately after. The Jacks need to win the first quarter, give themselves some confidence, get the fans into the game and make things hard on Illinois State.
Coming into Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium and winning is supposed to be near-impossible. The Jacks need to make the Redbirds feel that.
Fourth quarter
The Redbirds defense has fallen apart in the fourth quarter multiple times this season.
To wit:
vs. Oklahoma: outscored 14-0 in the 4th
vs. Eastern Illinois: outscored 20-14 in the fourth
vs. North Alabama: outscored 13-3 in the fourth (forcing OT)
vs. NDSU: outscored 15-0 in the fourth
vs. YSU: outscored 21-7 in the fourth (blowing a 2-score lead)
They seem to have at least somewhat solved this problem in recent weeks, though going against UNI and Indiana State will help a team do that.
If the #605Hogs can control the LOS and the Jacks can run the ball well and keep the ISU defense on the field, SDSU should have a chance to dominate the fourth quarter.
ISU playmakers vs SDSU defense
Much has been made of the SDSU offense’s struggles, which is appropriate given that they were averaging 34 points per game with Mason under center and have averaged 12 without him.
But the defense has slipped a little during this losing streak, too. The Jacks didn’t have much answer for LJ Phillips last week, and while Aidan Bouman didn’t exactly carve them up, SDSU was unsuccessful in rattling him or creating any turnovers or explosive defensive plays.
Illinois State’s Tommy Rittenhouse takes part in Missouri Valley Football Conference Media Day on Monday, July 21, 2025, at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls.
Trent Singer / Sioux Falls Live
Now they face another dangerous, veteran quarterback in Tommy Rittenhouse. The Redbirds don’t have a bellcow back like Phillips, but they have two good tailbacks in Victor Dawson and Wenkers Wright, who both average more than five per carry, and Rittenhouse is a running threat, too, with 306 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
As a passer, Rittenhouse has been one of the Valley’s best, completing 67 percent of his throws for 207 yards per game with 25 touchdowns and only four picks. Receiver Daniel Sobkowicz is one of the best in the Valley, and Dylan Lord and Luke Mailander are reliable targets, too.
Brian Bergstrom needs to come up with something this week to keep the Birds in check.
The vibe
As deflating as it surely was for SDSU to walk out of the Dome with their third straight loss, there’s no denying the Jacks played much better than they had in the prior two weeks.
That’s little to no consolation for the fans, but the players and coaches need to recognize it, accept it and build on it. This team is desperate for positives right now. It’s the home finale, and my hunch is the crowd is going to be visibly small(er). SDSU can’t let that get to them. They can’t come out flat. They can’t drag their feet. This team can still get into the playoffs and still make noise once there.
But that will require more than just winning another game, it will require getting this team’s morale and confidence back to where it was when they were 7-0.
Matt Zimmer is a Sioux Falls native and longtime sports writer. He graduated from Washington High School where he played football, legion baseball and developed his lifelong love of the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. After graduating from St. Cloud State University, he returned to Sioux Falls, and began a long career in amateur baseball and sports reporting. Email Matt at [email protected].
