South Dakota State at Northern Arizona

The Records: Northern Arizona brings a 9-2 record into the postseason, as well as a six-game winning streak. The Lumberjacks’ only losses came to Arizona of the Pac-12, 35-0 to open the season, and on the road at Montana State 36-7 on Oct. 15. NAU finished 7-1 in second place in the Big Sky and earned an at-large playoff bid. South Dakota State of the Missouri Valley Conference brings an 8-4 record to Flagstaff. The Jackrabbits went 5-3 in the MVC, losing league games to top-ranked North Dakota State, Southern Illinois and Missouri State. The Jackrabbits also lost to Nebraska. SDSU won four straight to earn an at-large playoff bid.

The Series: This will be the second meeting between the schools. Northern Arizona beat South Dakota State 24-20 in 1985 in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Up Next: The winner will advance to the second round to face No. 3 seed Eastern Washington, the Big Sky champ. That game will take place on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 1 p.m. Pacific at Roos Field in Cheney, Wash.

The Coaches: Northern Arizona’s Jerome Souers is 93-87 in his 16th season at Northern Arizona. He ranks second all-time in Big Sky history in victories. Souers is 1-3 in the playoffs. He is taking NAU to the playoffs three previous times…South Dakota State’s John Stiegelmeier is 110-80 in his 17th season. He is 1-2 in the playoffs, having led his team to the FCS postseason in 2009 and 2012.

Big Sky vs. the Missouri Valley: The Big Sky is 10-10 against teams from the Missouri Valley in the postseason. The Big Sky is 1-0 against South Dakota State, as Montana beat the Jackrabbits 61-48 in the first round of the 2009 playoffs. Northern Arizona has never played a Missouri Valley team in the postseason. During the regular season, the Big Sky went 2-3 vs. the Missouri Valley. NAU and Montana both beat South Dakota. UC Davis lost to South Dakota. Northern Colorado lost to Northern Iowa, and North Dakota lost to South Dakota State.

Notes: Northern Arizona’s defense has recorded eight touchdowns this season, which is tops in the nation…Both teams feature running backs who are Walter Payton Award candidates. Northern Arizona’s Zach Bauman has rushed for 1,355 yards and eight touchdowns. He averages 148.4 all-purpose yards per game. South Dakota State’s Zach Zenner has 1,695 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns. Zenner is third in the nation in rushing yards per game. Bauman is eighth.…SDSU’s top receiver is Jason Schneider, who has 71 catches for 985 yards and 10 touchdowns…SDSU LB R.C. Kolgore has 119 total tackles…NAU’s top receiver is Bauman, who has 41 catches…NAU is 5-0 at home this season…SDSU went 4-2 on the road during the regular season…NAU is 0-2 at home in the playoffs, having lost in 1996 to Furman 42-31 in a first-round game, and in a 2003 quarterfinal game to Florida Atlantic 48-25.