South Dakota Coyotes Survive Scare, Beat Tarleton State

Anything can happen in the postseason, and game one of postseason play was quite the test and quite the scare for the USD Coyotes.

Tarleton State came in as a relative unknown in the first ever matchup between the two programs, and proved themselves early and often.

The Texans struck first, and consistently held a lead throughout the contest inside the Dakota Dome.

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Tarleton State's offense was virtually unstoppable in the first half, and they held a 21-14 lead at the half. Turnovers were the story of the game in the end, as three Texan interceptions opened the door for a Yote comeback, and they answered the call.

Per GoYotes.com:

Three interceptions and 28 points in the second half lifted the No. 4-seed University of South Dakota (10-2, 7-1 MVFC) to their tenth win and sends them into the Quarterfinals of the NCAA FCS Playoffs with a 42-31 win over No. 13-seed Tarleton State (Texas) (10-4, 6-2 UAC) for the second-straight season.

Defensively, the Coyotes forced 3+ turnovers for the third time this season as Shahid Barros, Tim White (Jr., Miami Gardens, Fla.), and Mike Reid all brought down interceptions. For Barros and White, it marked their first interceptions of the 2024 campaign. The Coyotes made the Texans one dimensional, holding their 17^th-best rushing offense in the FCS (198.2 ypg) to just 98 rushing yards. It marks the sixth time the Yotes have held a team to under 100 yards rushing in a game this year.

It was quite the scare for the Coyotes, but they played their best when it mattered the most on Saturday, and now welcome in 5-seed UC-Davis to the Dakota Dome next weekend.

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