FARGO — A new college football season begins in less than 50 days and change is the operative word, not only in Fargo, but across the country.
It’s a brand new world for fans in Fargo and across the Upper Midwest as they prepare for FBS football at North Dakota State.
But the changes are not just limited to moving to FBS for NDSU and Sacramento State and joining new leagues.
Along with FCS teams becoming postseason eligible, the FBS Oversight Committee and Division I Cabinet signed off on three other major changes:
A new five for five eligibility modelAn earlier start to the FBS season (coming in 2027)A calendar change to spring and offseason practices
The earlier start date is not a new topic; in fact, the FCS led the way on that
, as they’ll have a full schedule this year on Aug. 29. This will be the final Week Zero as it’s known for the FBS this year. NDSU is playing in Week Zero because they’re playing a road game at Hawaii.
Come next year, the final Saturday in August will be the regular start date of the season.
“What it does it opens up a bunch of opportunities for building out our future schedules,” said NDSU athletic director Matt Larsen. “If you choose to play in the new Week One, you can get two byes, which is important with the rigors of the schedule. And it’s another broadcast window, which the networks are happy about that too.”
NDSU is slated to play either Thursday, Sept. 2 or Friday, Sept. 3 in Las Vegas next year against Montana State. With this new legislation, the Bison will look to add a game the prior weekend, on Aug. 28. NDSU has a game scheduled for Sept. 11 against Sacramento State in the Fargodome.
GET READY FOR OTA’S
OTA’s (Organized Team Activities) is a term that the NFL created two decades ago. It was a way for teams to say they were having practice by not calling it practice. Teams would gather in the spring months to get together and start installing plays for the upcoming year.
Prepare for it to come to college football next spring and summer. The Oversight Committee introduced a proposal in June that would drastically change what and when college teams could practice in the spring and summer months.
Under the new proposal, FBS teams could have two out-of-season practice sessions, for a total of 21 practices. Currently, college teams can hold 15 practices during the spring, wrapping with the spring game. This new calendar would call for seven total weeks to conduct 21 practices. The additional six practices, which could be scheduled for May and June, would be non-contact without full pads.
North Dakota State running back Myles Mitchell runs drills during practice on Friday, April 17, 2026, at the Nodak Insurance Football Performance Complex.
NDSU head coach Tim Polasek was guarded about the potential off-season changes. The Bison have had a stringent summer workout program for two decades, led by former strength coach Jim Kramer. Any change to that may be detrimental to what NDSU has done in the past.
“I don’t want to take away from our eight week training session in the winter time,” Polasek said. “And I want to make sure everything we do in the summertime to gear our guys up to be the best they can be is first and foremost, and then we’ll practice around that.”
As part of the proposal from the OC, it would call for a reduction in fall camp practice days from 25 to 21. The committee noted in its proposal that additional spring and summer practice opportunities would be available under this new model.
The FBS Oversight Committee is set to vote on this in August and would go into effect Jan. 1, 2027.
RE-WORKING A CHANGING ROSTER
NDSU’s new director of player personnel, Josh Rosenthal, has a huge task in front of him just a couple months into the job. After the NCAA signed off on the new five-year eligibility model, it’s up to him to relay to Polasek on how many years a certain player has left.
For the players that have already used a redshirt season, that equation is simple. They are under the old system, meaning they get four years to play. But the ones that haven’t used a redshirt present a unique opportunity.
Bison standouts like Donovan Woolen, Jackson Williams, Ryan Babatz and Alijah Wayne all gained an extra year of eligibility after this rule went through, because they haven’t redshirted. Whether they decide to use it in Fargo is a story for another day, but those are the new rules. It also potentially changes the decision Polasek was going to make with sophomore quarterback Preston Brown.
North Dakota State quarterback Preston Brown throws a pass during practice on on Friday, April 10, 2026. at the Nodak Insurance Football Performance Complex.
Brown played eight games for NDSU last year, all on special teams. The plan heading into 2026 was for Brown to redshirt to maintain three more years of eligibility. But with the rule change, Brown now has four years to play and reports out of Bison spring practices was that he was taking solid steps forward.
The 6-foot-1, 208-pound Brown warmed up with the quarterbacks before games nearly all of last season, including before the South Dakota State game in Brookings. The Missouri native has a ton of athleticism, and now with this rule change, look for the offensive staff to work Brown into the gameplan as fall camp gets going.