High School

Three of four FCS semifinal teams have players from Iowa

The state of Iowa will be represented across the board in FCS semifinals

Dana Becker

Carter Bell, a former Bettendorf standout, had a big day to help South Dakota advance to the FCS semifinals.
Carter Bell, a former Bettendorf standout, had a big day to help South Dakota advance to the FCS semifinals. / Erin Woodiel / Argus Leader / USA TODAY NETWORK

Three of the four semifinal teams in the FCS Playoffs will have athletes from the state of Iowa who saw action in the most recent games.

South Dakota State, South Dakota and North Dakota State, who all compete in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, make up 75 percent of the final four along with Montana State. The three claimed wins this past Saturday in quarterfinal round action.

South Dakota, who knocked off UC Davis, 35-21, plays top-seed Montana State on Saturday, Dec. 21 on the road. Seven former Iowa preps saw the field against UC Davis, as Nate Ewell from Waterloo recorded 11 tackles with a forced fumble and a tackle for loss.

Carter Bell, a former Bettendorf prep, hauled in four passes for 68 yards with a touchdown while Alta-Aurelia grad Nick Gaes had five tackles with a sack. Mosai Newsom, who joined USD after a stint at Nebraska and is from Waverly, picked off a pass.

Jesse Miller of Greene County and AJ Coons from Solon both played.

South Dakota State took out Incarnate Word, 55-14, behind a team-high 11 tackles by Adam Bock. Bock is a former Solon standout. The defense also saw Sioux City native Kobe Clayborne record five tackles with a sack.

Levi Vanden Bos from Western Christian, Logan Green of Clarinda, Mac Muller from Osage and Dawson Ripperda of Larchwood played in the game.

Up next for the Jackrabbits will be North Dakota State, who downed Mercer, 31-7. Another former Solon standout, quarterback Cam Miller, had 259 yards passing with two touchdowns while rushing for 40 yards and a third score.

Nick Kubitz of Dubuque, Kody Huisman from Pella and Carson Williams of Marshalltown all played. 

Several more former Iowa preps are on the active roster but did not compete in the most recent games.

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Dana Becker
DANA BECKER

Dana Becker has been a sports writer in Iowa since 2000, writing for The Fort Dodge Messenger, Mason City Globe-Gazette, Cedar Rapids Gazette and others. Dana resides in northcentral Iowa and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in 2022 focused on the state of Iowa. Along with providing coverage of football and wrestling, Dana also spotlights cross country, swimming, basketball, track and field, soccer, tennis, golf, baseball and softball. He began writing for High School on SI in 2023.

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