Road to Frisco

Entering Memorial Day weekend, John Stiegelmeier ’79 still had not watched the national championship game tape. Normally, the Jackrabbits’ head coach would have already reviewed the game play by play, but this game was different.

While it was the Jackrabbits’ first-ever appearance in the Football Championship Subdivision championship game, Stiegelmeier and others have their eyes set on another trip to Frisco, Texas.

“For us to take the next step, it’s by making that play. Which play? There were at least 20 of them in that game, maybe more. You have to have that mentality, every play, every game,” said Stiegelmeier, who has led the Jacks since the 1997 season. “There was a reason we were the No. 1 seed. We won out and beat North Dakota State at the end of the year. Now, we need to do it again, and it’s a lot easier said than done in the game of football.

“There are a lot of things that go into it. One is the team’s attitude in the summer, embracing the grind again and the reminder we fell short,” he continued, picking up a replica NCAA trophy. “We know it says runner-up. It’s not a reward to have that, but it can be a motivational factor, not a pat on the back.”

It was in summer 2020 that linebacker Preston Tetzlaff knew this team was different.

“As seniors, we talked about how this team could go to Frisco,” he said. “We were ready to push the program there. We knew what this team could do, and we were going to do it.

“The season was a roller coaster when you go from last spring, when we heard we wouldn’t have spring ball and then we weren’t sure what was going to happen in the summer,” Tetzlaff continued. “Then the season was canceled in the fall. There were a lot of times when we got our hopes up that we were finally going to get to play only to have the rug pulled out from underneath us. It was disappointing for a lot of guys. I was sure happy we were able to play the spring season, and I was able to finish my football career. It really made us appreciate it when we finally got the chance to play this spring.”

Sticking together

Throughout the months of conditioning and practices and uncertainty, the Jacks stayed together.

“I would say the thing I maybe remember the most is how our team handled this adversity, maybe more so than other teams in years past. About halfway through the season I just felt like, you know, this team is just different,” said Jimmy Rogers ’10/M.S. ’12, the Jacks’ assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator. “They’d just gone through so much and because they went through so much, they’re really, really close, maybe closer than most teams, especially in a year when you can’t have close proximity with people. I think it was a little bit of
misery loves company.”

Tetzlaff agreed.

“I think everybody having each other’s back was one of the biggest components. I’ve never been part of a team as close throughout my time at SDSU,” Tetzlaff said. “Everybody suffered through the dog days of summer and then had their dreams of playing in the fall taken away, but everybody was practicing in the fall while other schools maybe weren’t practicing. Then everybody was here over Christmas break when other teams were home. We knew we were practicing to have the chance to do something special.”

With all but one starter returning to the team, the 2021 fall season could again be something special. Yes, an injury to quarterback Mark Gronowski carries over, but SDSU has many pieces in place for a second trip to Frisco.

“The leadership of the football team is so crucial to what we’re talking about. The leaders take my words, make them our words and bring them to life,” Stiegelmeier said. “They’ve tasted not only the championship but also the ability to get through the tough times. What people talked about as negative, our guys embraced. That will pay dividends in the search for a championship here someday.”

Getting better

Ryan McKnight ’12, an All-America center in 2010 and now a member of the SDSU faculty, said the program has been on a steady improvement since a 29-24 season-ending 2007 win over North Dakota State, a win that gave the Jacks the Great West Football Conference title.

“We’ve kept pushing that ball and getting better consistently,” he said. “That’s just based on Stig’s character and by bringing in the right people. I can’t say enough about that. This program is winning, winning on a consistent basis and winning with class. It’s remarkable. It truly is, especially from when I came here on a recruiting visit.

“My dad (Mike ’81) played here and said not much had changed since 1980 during that visit, McKnight continued. “Going from that phase to where we are now, really is unbelievable.”

Also part of that change has been Rogers, who will be entering his 16th year at SDSU when you count his playing days.

“I am humbled to be a part of a whole bunch of guys who were part of the change here,” said Rogers. “When I came, this place hadn’t won a whole lot. I felt like I could help the program. I’ve just been trying to do my part ever since.

“When I came, the goal was to win a national championship before I left. We got there this year, but we didn’t do it,” he continued.

“The goal has always been to win a national championship. We got close this year, but we didn’t do it,” he continued. “Nobody knew what South Dakota State was when I came but people now know who we are. We’ve been ranked in the top five now for close to a decade now. We have the best facilities in FCS football. And on top of that, we consistently win. I know in my heart that we need to win a national championship here.”

While the title eluded the grasp of Tetzlaff and others this year, the lone departing senior left his teammates with choice words in the locker room.

“I told them to remember that feeling of watching those guys run around, cheering, hugging and crying with each other and how excited they were,” said Tetzlaff, who will attend the University of Nebraska College of Law this fall. “And remember, when things get hard, just remember what that looked like and how close we came. It was a powerful thing to see and to not be able to grasp. I think everybody will use that as motivation going forward. It’s something that will leave an impact on the guys who watched it.”

– Matt Schmidt