Investing in a bold new era for Bison Football

The logo for the Mountain West Conference.
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YOUR IMPACT POWERS OUR ASCENT

The stakes are higher. The competition is tougher. The visibility is greater. And the Bison are ready to compete — will you help them reach new heights in the Mountain West?

On July 1, 2026 the Bison Football moved to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), and the team needs fans like you to rally around them now more than ever. When you give to the Climb the Mountain campaign, you will directly support a successful transition to the Mountain West. 

Why is the need so urgent? NDSU Athletics will not have full access to conference or College Football Playoff revenue until 2032, when current media rights contracts expire. This leaves a significant gap in funding for scholarships, operations, facilities, and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) for the next six years. 

Donors like you have already committed $25 million to help Bison Football sustain its legacy of excellence through this transition period, meaning NDSU is halfway to its goal of raising $50 million between now and 2032, but we need your help to take it across the goal line. 

Football Scholarships

$600,000/year

FBS programs in the Mountain West have a higher scholarship limit. With this change in subdivision, NDSU can offer 22 additional scholarships to Bison Football student-athletes. 

You can provide an expendable scholarship with a gift of $5,000 or a pledged gift of $1,000 per year for five years, or you can invest in an endowed scholarship with a gift of $25,000 or a pledged gift of $5,000 per year for five years.

Your gift of scholarship support will empower NDSU to:

  • Build and sustain an elite roster of football student-athletes
  • Improve competitiveness immediately at an FBS level
  • Enhance recruiting reach and depth at key positions
  • Support football student-athletes through a season that is longer and more physically demanding — whether they’re in the classroom or in competition
NDSU Bison student-athletes review coursework as a group, demonstrating how scholarships help them pursue excellence in the classroom and on the field.

Each and every gift makes an impact. If you are not ready to establish your own scholarship but want to support Bison Football student-athletes, you can make a gift of any size to NDSU Team Makers Endowment. Remember, “the strength of the Herd is the Bison, and the strength of the Bison is the Herd.”

BISON FOOTBALL OPERATIONS

$12.5 million

Moving to the FBS isn’t just a competitive jump — it’s a large-scale operational expansion. NDSU must match the staffing levels, travel demands, and recruiting expectations of its new FBS peers.

NDSU Athletics is seeking to establish five new staff positions, including:

Chief of staff

Director of scouting

Football nutritionist

Assistant equipment manager

Director of creative content

The NDSU Bison Football team runs out of the tunnel before an electric home game and the Fargodome.

Your gift of operational support will empower NDSU to:

  • Reinforce coaching excellence with competitive salary increases that help retain and attract top talent
  • Boost recruiting power to identify and bring in high caliber student-athletes
  • Expand staff to enhance operational leadership, talent evaluation, player performance and wellness, logistical efficiency, and branding and recruitment efforts
  • Cover essential travel expenses to ensure safety, recovery, and performance on the road

NIL GREEN AND GOLD FUND

$2.5 million

NDSU Athletics has set an ambitious goal to double its current NIL fund. As it transitions to the FBS landscape, increased NIL support is essential to stay competitive at the next level.

Join or increase your Green and Gold Fund membership to help:

  • Strengthen NDSU’s national profile by enabling transformational recruiting, competitive depth, and visibility that align with FBS expectations
  • Create program stability and strength in an era where NIL opportunities heavily influence transfer decisions
  • Give NDSU the tools to compete as NIL spending accelerates in a rapidly professionalizing FBS environment

ENHANCED FACILITIES

$10 million

Increasing office spaces and meeting environments will support new staff positions and create dedicated meeting spaces for football program usage.

Your investment in Bison Football facility enhancements will create:

$2 million

New football office spaces at the Fargodome to support a growing staff

$8 million

Full team and positional meeting rooms at the Nodak Insurance Company Football Performance Complex

PLAY WITH 12

The time is now. Let’s kickoff our first FBS season with 12,000 season tickets sold in year one. Place your deposit for Bison Football season tickets by April 30, 2026, to be part of the seat selection process in May.

Any remaining season tickets will go on sale June 15, 2026.

The NDSU Bison football team playing a home game, being cheered on by all the fans that make up the herd.

THE CLIMB STARTS HERE

Are you ready to help Bison Football rise above the rest?

Resources for scholarships, operations, facilities, and NIL support are needed now to ensure Bison Football can move forward with strength and momentum. Your investment will allow our program to focus fully on building a championship-caliber future at the FBS level — without financial barriers slowing that progress.

Our directors of development at NDSU Team Makers and the NDSU Foundation are here to help you connect your Bison pride to immediate needs during this exciting transition to the next level of football excellence.

As you determine how you’d like to make your impact, please work with your director of development.

DERRICK LANG ’13

Justin Swanson ’06, ’07

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NDSU Team Makers

Margaret and her husband, Hugh Veit ’79, established the Eleanor S. Fitzgerald Memorial Graduate Student Scholarship to support NDSU students earning advanced degrees in the Department of Health, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences or the Department of Human Development and Family Science.

Core areas of home economics remain part of current NDSU degree programs such as accounting; apparel, retail merchandising, and design; education; family and consumer science; financial planning; human development and family science; interior design; and nutrition science.

Home economics programs opened doors, particularly for women, to earn college degrees and pursue careers in education, Extension, state and federal government, business and industry, health care, and more. NDAC listed domestic economy as one of its courses in its founding year, 1890.

Established by Dr. Teresa Conner, dean of the NDSU College of Health and Human Sciences, and co-chaired by Dr. Margaret Fitzgerald ’83 and Col. Esther Meyers ’75, the Wisdom Keepers provide support and share their knowledge and expertise with students, faculty, staff, and leadership in the College.

The home management house at NDAC was the first facility built on a college campus specifically for home management practice. In 1954, it was named in honor of Alba Bales, the first female academic dean at NDAC.