South Dakota State’s football team and local fans return from Frisco riding a celebratory “blue wave”
Knowing that bringing the fans could make all the difference when it came to Jackrabbits success in Sunday’s FCS Championship vs North Dakota State, Wade and Christina Christensen decided to roll the dice and charter a bus to Frisco, hoping local fans would join them in “Bringing the Blue” to Texas.
“We really wanted to be able to provide an opportunity for fans to go who wouldn’t otherwise, plus flight prices were ridiculous,” the Christensens, whose son Quinten is an offensive lineman for SDSU, explained. “The fan base makes a huge difference in the game and is a huge piece for us with Quinten on the team.”
They quickly filled over 50 seats on the bus with folks from, and with ties to, Jerauld County, heading south early Saturday morning.
“The crew we had on the bus were from all different walks of life — and all very excited about the Jacks,” she said.
When the bus arrived in Texas Saturday evening, the Christensens grabbed a quick supper with Quinten before he had to head back to team headquarters. “They’re on a pretty strict timeline so it was a quick visit but they are good to let families see the boys,” added Christina.
The next morning, the bus left the hotel promptly at 8 a.m., with the tailgating area at Toyota Stadium the next stop.
Randy Willman of Wessington Springs was one of the bus passengers and can only describe the experience as “once in a lifetime.”
“The camaraderie of all the SDSU fans tailgating across four solid blocks of blue with food, drinks and music — you just can’t beat it. We were running into people from Springs that moved elsewhere and we hadn’t seen in years, it was just awesome.”
Willman added that it was Wade’s birthday the day of the game and his the day following the FCS Championship: “Me and Wade got pretty good birthday presents this year.”
When the SDSU team arrived at the stadium, the Christensens and crew went to see the players get off the bus. They were donning cowboy hats gifted to them as they arrived at the airport in Texas the previous day.
“Quinten spotted us and came over to quickly say hi. He said practices had been tough but good and that the Jackrabbits had the best practice the day before the game. The players were all pumped up, confident and positive about their game and how it was going to go. They had faith in themselves and the team,” Christina said.
Love for the Jackrabbits, love in the air
WSHS alumna Teri Bergeleen booked a solo seat on the bus headed to Texas, as her boyfriend Brandon Jacobs was in Minnesota at his son’s hockey tournament.
“We do a lot with the Christensen family and since Quinten is on the team, we wanted to show our support,” she said, adding that she and Brandon are self-admittedly “sports obsessed” and are first year SDSU season ticket holders. “We host a tailgate at every home game and fly our Spartans flag. I felt I had to see it through and be there to witness the championship. Plus I thought it’d be more fun to go with a bigger group of people and since I thought Brandon couldn’t go, I thought it was a good idea.”
Once she arrived in Frisco, she was shocked to see Brandon waiting for her at the hotel. She was even more shocked when he asked her to marry him.
“Teri is such a big Jacks fan and to have this happen in Texas would be special for her. I got a fantastic response as she ran around the room and screamed bloody murder — it really was everything I could have hoped it could have been — from her reaction to knowing there was a good group of people coming from Springs with her.”
Teri explained that Brandon had asked her dad for permission to propose before Christmas.
“I am very blessed. Peggy Fagerhaug actually introduced Brandon and I — her son Tyler and Brandon grew up rodeoing together,” Teri said. “I owe the Fagerhaug family a debt of gratitude I’ll never be able to repay.”
But that wasn’t the only engagement associated with the charter bus to Frisco.
Wesley Linke, a Woonsocket High School grad and Kendra Kleven, a current student at SDSU heard about the bus from Teri and decided to head south with the local group.
On game day, Legend Seeds, Wesley’s employer, hosted a tailgate that featured live music from a dj.
“He got on the microphone and I thought he was doing something for work...until he got on one knee. Everyone was cheering,” Kendra remembered.
“Originally I went to the DJ and told him I planned on proposing to my girlfriend and asked if he would pause the music,” said Wesley. “When it was time and I went to ask him about the music, he handed me the microphone. The proposal even went viral online...and she said yes.”
South Dakota State went on to defeat North Dakota State 45-21 to win the FCS championship — the first FCS title in Jackrabbit history. With the win, FCS head coach of the year John Stiegelmeier won his first title in his 26th season as South Dakota State’s head coach. Stieglemeier has also led the Jackrabbits to their first playoff win over North Dakota State and their first four-game winning streak over the Bison since 1947-1950.
“It really is a big family up there, a truly tight knit team. Coach Stieg is very genuine and down to earth. As a freshman mom, even at the very first game, he came up to us and talked to us, asking how Quinten was doing. He truly does love those guys like his own children,” said Christina.
Blake Willman of Wessington Springs joked that if Wade and Christina ever want to do something different than owning and operating sale barn Kimball Livestock Exchange, they would make great travel planners.
“This whole experience was pretty sweet, I want to send a big thanks to Wade and Christy,” he said. “It was incredible to be surrounded by likeminded people cheering for the Jackrabbits.”
Willman explained that he saw many others from the Springs area when he was in Frisco such as Jeff and Kim Burg and Phil LaBore.
“It was fun to celebrate the Jacks and the season they had—with the cherry on top of beating our rival. Halfway through the first quarter I looked around and saw all the blue -- the SDSU fans definitely brought the blue,” he said. “Too many times when I was in college I saw SDSU go up to NDSU and lose. For us to take out NDSU the way we did it made it that much cooler to see in person. It was an experience none of us will ever forget.”