# 2017 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team

The 2017 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team represented South Dakota State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by 21st-year head coach John Stiegelmeier, the Jackrabbits compiled an overall record of 11–3 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, tying for second place in the MVFC. South Dakota State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where, after a first-round bye, the Jackrabbits defeated Northern Iowa in the second round and New Hampshire in the quarterfinals before losing to James Madison in the semifinals. The team played home games on campus at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings, South Dakota.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 7:00 p.m. | Duquesne* | No. 4 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | W 51–13 | 12,218 |
| September 9 | 7:00 p.m. | at Montana State* | No. 4 | Bobcat StadiumBozeman, MT | Pluto TV | W 31–27 | 19,817 |
| September 16 | 6:00 p.m. | Drake* | No. 4 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | W 51–10 | 15,806 |
| September 30 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 6 Youngstown State | No. 4 | Stambaugh StadiumYoungstown, OH | ESPN3 | L 7–19 | 17,450 |
| October 7 | 6:00 p.m. | Southern Illinois | No. 8 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | W 49–14 | 12,891 |
| October 14 | 2:00 p.m. | Northern Iowa | No. 7 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | L 18–38 | 14,347 |
| October 21 | 2:00 p.m. | at Missouri State | No. 13 | Robert W. Plaster StadiumSpringfield, MO | ESPN3 | W 62–30 | 6,253 |
| October 28 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 12 Western Illinois | No. 11 | Hanson FieldMacomb, IL | ESPN3 | W 52–24 | 2,247 |
| November 4 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 2 North Dakota State | No. 10 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (Dakota Marker) | ESPN3 | W 33–21 | 18,130 |
| November 11 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 17 Illinois State | No. 6 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | W 27–24 $^{OT}$ | 9,458 |
| November 18 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 15 South Dakota | No. 6 | DakotaDomeVermillion, SD (rivalry) | ESPN3 | W 31–28 | 10,147 |
| December 2 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 20 Northern Iowa* | No. 6 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (NCAA Division Second Round) | ESPN3 | W 37–22 | 7,815 |
| December 9 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 21 New Hampshire* | No. 6 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal) | ESPN3 | W 56–14 | 5,583 |
| December 16 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 1 James Madison* | No. 6 | Bridgeforth StadiumHarrisonburg, VA (NCAA Division I Semifinal) | ESPNU | L 16–51 | 16,528 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||||

## Ranking movements

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| STATS FCS | 4 (2) | 4 (1) | 4 (1) | 4 (1) | 4 (1) | 8 | 7 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 |
| Coaches | 6 (1) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 8–T | 8 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 |

## Jackrabbits drafted

| Draft Year | Player | Position | Round | Overall | NFL Team |
| 2018 | Dallas Goedert | TE | 2 | 49 | Philadelphia Eagles |