# 2021 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team

The 2021 South Dakota State Jackrabbits football team represented South Dakota State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by 25th-year head coach John Stiegelmeier, the Jackrabbits compiled an overall record of 11–4 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing in a three-way tie for third in the MVFC. South Dakota State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, where the Jackrabbits defeated UC Davis in the first round, Sacramento State in the second round, and Villanova in the quarterfinals before losing to Montana State in the semifinals. The team played home games on campus at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium in Brookings, South Dakota.
After the season, offensive coordinator Jason Eck was hired as the head football coach at the University of Idaho.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 3 | 8:00 p.m. | at Colorado State* | No. 3 | Canvas StadiumFort Collins, CO | FS1 | W 42–23 | 32,327 |
| September 11 | 6:00 p.m. | Lindenwood* | No. 2 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | W 52–7 | 15,162 |
| September 25 | 12:00 p.m. | at Indiana State | No. 2 | Memorial StadiumTerre Haute, IN | ESPN+ | W 44–0 | 6,652 |
| October 2 | 6:00 p.m. | Dixie State* | No. 2 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN+/Midco | W 55–7 | 14,427 |
| October 9 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 8 Southern Illinois | No. 2 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN+/Midco | L 41–42 $^{OT}$ | 12,216 |
| October 16 | 12:00 p.m. | at Western Illinois | No. 7 | Hanson FieldMacomb, IL | ESPN+ | W 41–17 | 2,827 |
| October 23 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 20 Northern Iowa | No. 6 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN3 | L 17–26 | 16,889 |
| October 30 | 1:00 p.m. | at Youngstown State | No. 10 | Stambaugh StadiumYoungstown, OH | ESPN+ | W 47–16 | 9,423 |
| November 6 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 2 North Dakota State | No. 9 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (Dakota Marker) | ABC ND/ESPN+/Midco | W 27–19 | 18,122 |
| November 13 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 19 South Dakota | No. 4 | DakotaDomeVermillion, SD (rivalry) | ESPN+/Midco | L 20–23 | 9,068 |
| November 20 | 2:00 p.m. | North Dakota | No. 12 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD | ESPN+/Midco | W 24–21 | 8,132 |
| November 27 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 14 UC Davis* | No. 11 | Dana J. Dykhouse StadiumBrookings, SD (NCAA Division I First Round) | ESPN+ | W 56–24 | 3,681 |
| December 4 | 8:00 p.m. | at No. 8 Sacramento State* | No. 11 | Hornet StadiumSacramento, CA (NCAA Division I Second Round) | ESPN+ | W 24–19 | 10,031 |
| December 11 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 6 Villanova* | No. 11 | Villanova StadiumVillanova, PA (NCAA Division I Quarterfinal) | ESPN+ | W 35–21 | 3,401 |
| December 18 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 7 Montana State* | No. 11 | Bobcat StadiumBozeman, MT (NCAA Division I Semifinal) | ESPN2 | L 17–31 | 20,457 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Ranking movements

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = 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 | 3 (4) | 2 (11) | 2 (9) | 2 (8) | 2 (10) | 2 (15) | 7 | 6 | 10 | 9 | 4 | 12 | 11 | 4 |
| Coaches | 4 (1) | 3 (3) | 3 (2) | 3 (1) | 3 (1) | 3 (1) | 8 | 7 | 13 | 12 | 7 | 13 | 11 | 5 |

## Players drafted into the NFL

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | NFL Club |
| 4 | 127 | Pierre Strong Jr. | RB | New England Patriots |
| 7 | 241 | Chris Oladokun | QB | Pittsburgh Steelers |