NDSU tackle Grey Zabel and South Dakota State QB Mark Gronowski could have moved up to play at a power conference this year. But they stayed put and are looking to pull big upsets in Week 1.
are two players at the heart of the highest-profile FCS upset hopes this weekend. This offseason, they both faced similar big-money crossroads and made throwback decisions.
Despite eye-popping offers, they both stuck around, reminders of an era of college football before the transfer portal when continuity offered a distinct competitive advantage. "Growing up, one of my big dreams was playing in the Big Ten, but the grass isn't always greener on the other side," he said."The grass is pretty friggin' green on this side of the park. It's hard to leave a place you put so much time and effort into and met so many great guys."'s blind side. It'll be a matchup of Zabel's senior class against a school that's taken more than 90 players in the portal the past two years.
"There's nothing I can do to compete with the money," Rogers said, referencing the annual frenzy of higher-profile schools recruiting his players."We have to deliver an experience that's different than most, we have to be genuine. At our level. You have to have your hand in everything." Gronowski is 37-3 as a starter, which puts him in striking distance of both former NDSU quarterback Easton Stick's FCS wins record and former Boise quarterback Kellen Moore's FBS record . An SDSU three-peat, the prime motivator for his return, would mean almost certainly he'd break those records.
He and Lujan bloomed together, as Lujan eventually became the playcaller on both of SDSU's national title teams before leaving after the 2023 title to become Northwestern's offensive coordinator. Gronowski appreciated that when Lujan went back to his native Alaska he'd return with a halibut for a dinner for the quarterbacks.
A true college experience came along with it. Gronowski's undergraduate engineering degree included a senior project building low-cost prosthetic legs. Instead of $3,000, they figured out a way to make one for $67.Ultimately, the experience on and off the field was too much to leave, along with the uncertainty of the role, scheme and all the variables that come with winning instantly at a new program.
Along with helping restore NDSU at the top of the FCS, Zabel wanted to finish the job with his teammates. After NDSU lost to Montana in overtime in the FCS playoffs in December and coach Matt Entz bolted to become a USC assistant, interest in Zabel entering the portal reached a fever pitch. NDSU head coach Tim Polasek also mentioned the power shift in FCS to South Dakota State likely factoring into Zabel's decision."It does matter that South Dakota State has kicked our ass," he said."If this guy has four national titles, what's left to do?"
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