GameDay Notebook: Bison unsure how to balance RaJa Nelson's eligibility – InForum

CARBONDALE, Ill. – The student standing in line at a local sandwich shop wearing a green Masters golf cap with a yellow logo was asked if he would wear it to the game on Saturday. They are the colors of Southern Illinois' opposing team, North Dakota State.

He didn't plan on being there. But he knew something else about the bison other than the school colors.

“Aren't they pretty good?” he asked.

A few blocks away, at a local fraternity house, students probably knew more about the bison. At least they cared enough to write NDSU quarterback Cam Miller's name on a white bed sheet hanging from a porch roof, a derogatory sign to Miller. However, it's questionable whether they've delved deep enough into the Bison to question whether or not receiver RaJa Nelson will redshirt this season.

Nelson returned to the lineup last week against the University of North Dakota, but that doesn't mean decisions still need to be made about his future.

Nelson played in the spring 2021 season as a true freshman, meaning he could still redshirt under the NCAA four-game rule. Last week was his second game after the season opener at the University of Colorado before he was sidelined with an internal illness.

Polasek said Nelson came through the 41-17 win over the Fighting Hawks strong, but now he has to get back to taking care of his health on a daily basis.

“And be really smart about it,” he said, “especially with the potential chance of getting a redshirt.” I'm not going to try to pick one game over the other, but the schedule kind of falls apart, all guns blazing in all the big games to have that could come into play. But we really have to wait and see how he reacts because I want him to step on the gas and finish his career on a good level with his brothers.”

Nelson is scheduled to play at Southern Illinois this Saturday. If he were to redshirt, he would only have one game left in the final five against South Dakota State, Murray State, Northern Iowa, Missouri State and South Dakota. Playoffs do not count toward a player's redshirt eligibility.

Nelson has 69 career receptions and has been used as a receiver in both the backfield and on jet sweeps.

“He wants to be out there as much as possible,” Polasek said. “He wants to help his team.”

David Samson/The Forum

Southern Illinois is at the end of one of the toughest scheduling periods in school history, with the Bison becoming the fifth straight team SIU has played. It started well with a 35-28 win over Incarnate Word (Texas).

But that was followed by a 38-21 home loss to Southeast Missouri State, a 42-12 loss to South Dakota and a 45-10 home loss to Illinois State last week. Currently, USD is ranked fourth in the Stats Perform Top 25 media poll, Southeast Missouri is ranked 11th, Incarnate Word is ranked 15th and the Redbirds are ranked 16th.

In the school's history, it has happened twice before, in 1999 and 2005, against five directly ranked opponents.

“We’re competitors, that’s our job,” SIU head coach Nick Hill said after the ISU game last week. “At some point you have to take responsibility and be proud of how you do it.”

The Bison go to Carbondale and were ranked second in the Stats Perform poll. The series of ranked opponents does not include the season-opening 41-13 loss at BYU, which is 5-0 and ranked 14th in the Associated Press Top 25 FBS poll.

SIU fell out of the Top 25 FCS poll for the first time since 2022, a streak of 19 consecutive weeks. The Salukis finished fifth last season.

The Bison are 5-1 overall and 2-0 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, but not everything is perfect in Polasek's eyes. The Bison are near the middle of the conference in rushing, averaging nearly 56 yards per game and recording the most penalties.

Some of these are disciplinary in nature, such as unsportsmanlike conduct or taunting due to excessive celebration.

“We took a long, hard look at our penalties,” Polasek said. “I’m not really happy where we’re at.”

He said he would take some of the blame by telling his defense to be on guard.

“To be more physical and get some of that meanness back,” Polasek said. “I think we need to rein in the discipline aspect. But I want us to be aggressive, but in this world when you’re trying to lead the world in physicality, it’s a fine line.”

• The Bison will remain in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Friday night before the game. On Saturday it will be a roughly hour-long bus ride to Carbondale, which Polasek told the team this week. “This trip may be a little difficult due to the travel time,” he said. “We have to be ready to win.”
• SIU got off to a winning start this season, drawing 13,421 fans for the September 21 game at Southeast Missouri, the second most in stadium history behind a standing-room-only crowd of 15,276 at its opening in 2010. The number fell to just over 7,000 last week.
• NDSU is 12-4 all-time in the series against SIU, with the Bison holding a 5-4 advantage at Saluki Stadium. The Bison have won 11 of the last 12 meetings, including a 39-game series loss at SIU in the spring of 2021.
• The Bison lead the FCS with fewest turnovers (two) and are second in the minors with an overall percentage of 74%.

Jeff would like to dispel the idea that he was there when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he is now in his third decade of reporting for Forum Communications. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked at the Jamestown Sun, the Bismarck Tribune and, since 1990, the Forum, where he has covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU's Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” from April to August.