While much of the attention of football fans across Texas will be on the UIL High School Football State Championship Games this weekend, another championship game will be happening in our backyard.
For the fifth consecutive year (excluding the canceled 2020 season), McKinney ISD Stadium will be hosting the NCAA Division II Football National Championship. Last year’s game, won by Ferris State (Big Rapids, Michigan) for the second year in a row, led to a fine and suspension after players and coaches lit up victory cigars on the high school property.
This year’s game will feature a battle of undefeated teams between the Colorado School of Mines Orediggers (14-0) and the Harding University Bisons (14-0).
The Colorado School of Mines is the No.1 team and undefeated with four wins over top-25 teams and features six AP Division II All-Americans. The Orediggers boast the nation’s best-scoring offense with 49.4 points per game (tied with Central Missouri) and hold opponents to just 11.21.
Running backs Noah Roper and Landon Walker have combined for over 1,600 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns, while quarterback John Matocha has thrown for over 4,000 yards with 42 touchdowns and just six interceptions, with All-American wide receiver Max McLeod leading the way with 101 catches.
Meanwhile, Harding is making its first-ever championship appearance after joining the NCAA in 1997.
The Bisons enter the game ranked No.3 in the country and have won 18 games in a row, exploding for a Division II record 5,659 rushing yards this season and putting itself in position to become the first-ever 6,000-yard rushing team in NCAA history.
Harding averages 47.5 points per game with a run-based offense that runs for over 400 yards per game, more than 100 more than the next highest average in Division II. The Bisons also have a defense that, at least on paper, competes with Mines, allowing 11.14 points per game.
Both teams are equipped for the battle, but who will come out on top?
Mines and Harding will play at noon CT on Saturday in McKinney. General admission tickets cost $20, while reserved seats cost $25.
“We are anticipating a great crowd for the upcoming Division II National Championship,” McKinney ISD Director of Athletics Jennifer Frazier told The Dallas Express in an email.
“The annual event brings visitors from across the country to McKinney, Texas. It’s a great opportunity to showcase our incredible athletic facilities and the city of McKinney. It has been a great partnership with the NCAA to host the top 2 teams in the country.”
