Happy Hour with John Gaskins

Nielson, an Iowa native who led five programs to the playoffs and four to at least one conference title in his 33 years of head coaching at six different schools, gave his perspective on his relationship — we dare say friendship — with John Stiegelmeier and plenty of thoughts and memories from USD's rivalry with SDSU.
 
What did Nielson see from his own perspective when he arrived at USD following five other successful coaching stints in Div. III, Div. II, and most recently at FCS Western Illinois?
 
The Coyotes had not experienced a winning season since 2011 and had lost all four of its games against SDSU in the FCS era (2012-15 after USD joined that level and the Missouri Valley Football Conference). 
 
How did Nielson immediately narrow that gap with SDSU — who by then had established itself as a Top 10 program — with a 31-28 nail-biting loss in the Dome in 2017, then his first victory in the series in 2019, at home?
 
Eternally understated and even-keeled, Nielson's eyes widen and voice raises when asked about the 2017 loss, or as he puts it, "we got robbed."
 
Of course, Nielson tells the 2021 Vermiracle from his memory, including his own decision that almost backfired in a loss.
 
Stiegelmeier won the final meeting between the two in 2022. With Happy Hour, he joked he retired partly because he didn't want to coach against the Coyotes in the Dome again in 2023. The Jacks won that Top 5 tilt easily, then beat Nielson's Yotes in overtime in 2024 before Nielson stepped down.
 
So, did Nielson chat with Stiegelmeier about processing life after retirement? 
 
Find out in an hour full of "State vs. U" revelry that reveals more goodwill than ill-will.

You would think that a man who retired three years ago after spearheading a source of immense pride for a university, community, and fan base would only be reminded of his success and 40 years of hard work in that one place whenever he is in public.
 
John Stiegelmeier led South Dakota State first national championship in football in 2022 and retired less than a week after beating long-time nemesis North Dakota State and hoisting the FCS trophy in Frisco, Texas. 
 
It was the culmination of Stiegelmeier helping transform the school he attended and the program where he spent 37 years as a coach from an outfit with only one Division II playoff appearance to an FCS powerhouse in his final decade.
 
In 26 years at the helm, "Stig" won 199 games.
 
And yet, the Selby native told Happy Hour on Wednesday that Jackrabbit fans occasionally remind him that he should have easily won 200.
 
Why? Because SDSU had in-state rival South Dakota beat in the DakotaDome in 2021. 
 
Up 20-17 with eight seconds left, the Jackrabbits possessed the ball on 4th and 1 from the Coyotes' 44-yard-line. Instead of trying to gain the first down to seal the game or even punt, Stiegelmeier ordered quarterback Chris Oladokun to scramble around for a few seconds, then intentionally fling the ball into the stands, designed to run out the clock and let the Jacks celebrate the win.
 
The clock expired. The play was reviewed and officials determined one second remained.
 
USD got the ball off the turnover on downs and you know what happened. Coyote quarterback Carson Camp scrambled and heaved a Hail Mary into a sea of humanity a few yards short of the end zone. 
 
Two Jacks defenders tipped it forward toward the end zone before Coyote receiver Jeremiah Webb snatched it from a third Jackrabbit inside the one-yard-line and fell over the goal line.
 
Yotes win. DakotaDome explodes. The "Vermiracle" forever etched in "State vs U" lore.
 
"Stig," who was 18-4 against USD as head coach, can laugh about it now. The fact that he is still reminded of The Vermiracle — despite all his other Herculean feats in a place where he is no less than walking legend whose stadium statue will eventually be built — confirms just how much the in-state rivalry means to Jackrabbit and Coyote fans.
 
That revelation is why Happy Hour tracked down Stiegelmeier and his adversary on the opposing sideline that day, also-now-retired Bob Nielson, for "State vs. U" conversations.
 
Naturally, 2021 is not Stiegelmeier's fondest memory of the series. He revealed his favorite in this chat, plus articulated more on what the rivalry has meant to him and SDSU students and alumni. (Not to mention, the fact it takes center stage now that SDSU's "Dakota Marker" rivalry with NDSU is dormant now that the Bison have moved to the FBS.)
 
He also expressed his gratitude toward Nielson and how Nielson narrowed the gap between the two programs during Nielson's tenure in Vermillion from 2016 to 2024.

Sure, the bitter hatred between fan bases and the bizarre mystery behind the Little Brown Jug trophy—which no longer goes to the winner—are fun side shows in this week's "State vs. U" game on Saturday.
 
And trust us, we discuss that this week on Happy Hour. Both coaches addressed the trophy issue on Monday's show.
 
But this is also an FCS Top Ten game that will likely determine which squad still has a shot at a Missouri Valley Football Conference title and a top-two seed in the FCS playoffs.
 
So, let's talk about the actual football.
 
Where are the advantages for either team?
 
How do the two dynamic quarterbacks match up against stingy defenses?
 
How concerned should SDSU fans be about the Jacks' lack of a downfield passing game the last couple of games?
 
How much should USD fans worry about a susceptible run defense? It was run over by Boise State and Youngstown State, then held its own against UND's top five rushing game, but now faces arguably the best offensive line and run game in the nation.
 
How much of a difference would the return of just one player — USD running back Keyondray Jones-Logan — make for the Coyotes?
 
How much does the fact that this game is in Brookings and outdoors matter, considering the makeup of both teams?

Who has the advantage if the weather is wet?:
 
What will be the No. 1 factor determining the outcome?
 
If only Happy Hour had a regular analyst on the show who is also SDSU's long-time TV analyst, who possesses a keen eye for quarterback play as a former record-setting national championship quarterback at USF, who has coached and analyzed quarterbacks professionally for over 20 years — from the youth level at Sanford Sports Academy (with Mason among his former clients) to two of the best University of Sioux Falls quarterbacks of all time (Chad Cavender and Lorenzo Brown, who, with Riggs as their QB coach and Kalen DeBoer as head coach won a combined three national titles in four years) — and some of the best Indoor Football League professional QBs of all time.

Oh, wait. We do!
 
Enjoy a full hour of Kurtiss Riggs mostly talking "State vs. U," but also offering the Minnesota Vikings advice on what they should do at quarterback to make the team a viable offense and Super Bowl contender.
 
Riggs also weighs in on Lions coach Dan Campbell's decision to go for it on 4th and 1 inside his own 30 yard line against the Packers in a late tie game, and Broncos coach Sean Payton playing with his food by trying a trick play while trying to put away Arizona.

Both decisions blew up those coaches' faces and made us ask, "What are You Doing?"

And, we have lift-off.
 
Bitter in-state rivals SDSU and USD will play a Top Ten game on Saturday. The week-long buildup is exploding with storylines, high MVFC and FCS playoff stakes, top-end FCS talent, dynamic quarterbacks, injury intrigue, a missing trophy, and plenty of angst between fan bases.
 
Mondays on Happy Hour during the football season are always reserved for the head coaches of the Jackrabbits and the Coyotes. So, what better way to "see how high the feathers fly," as Keith Jackson would say, than to hear Dan Jackson and Matt Vitzthum set the tone?
 
Matt Vitzthum
The Iowa native makes his head coaching debut in the Interstate Series, though he was on the Coyotes staff the two seasons prior as a quarterbacks coach (for an overtime loss in 2024) and then co-offensive coordinator (a 24-17 win last year).
 
Vitzthum comes in fresh off his first win over a Top Ten FCS opponent and his first one-score victory as a head coach. There is plenty to unpack from the 26-23 overtime home victory over North Dakota, including some of his first late-game, gut-wrenching decisions as a head coach. The Happy Hour host asks him about three of those decisions in the final two minutes.
 
How did the USD rushing defense perform better against UND's stout run game than it did in losses to Boise State and Youngstown State?
 
Is freshman quarterback Austyn Modrzewski one of the Coyotes' vocal leaders?
 
Will Saturday mark the return of dangerous running back Keyondray Jones-Logan?
 
How will the Coyotes contain SDSU dynamo QB Chase Mason? 
 
And what does Vitzthum make of the State-U rivalry and the possibility of bringing back the Little Brown Jug trophy somehow, someway?
 
 
Dan Jackson
The Jackrabbits bounced back from a soul-crushing 21-10 loss at North Dakota by sharply and efficiently carving up MVFC last place Murray State 42-9.
 
But how ready are the Jacks for their second Top Ten test in three weeks, particularly a passing game that sputtered at UND and didn't try much to go downfield the next week?
 
What does Jackson think of Modrzewski and former All-American running back Charles Pierre Jr., and what havoc does he think the Coyotes' defense will wreak on Mason?
 
Then, of course, come all the rivalry questions:
 
* Why does this game mean "a little bit more?" The answer goes beyond simply this being an in-state, in-league face-off.
 
* Should these two teams be playing for a trophy? Or perhaps the old Little Brown Jug trophy, which was discontinued several years ago?
 
* What ever happened to that Little Brown Jug the schools played for until 2019?

Bitter in-state rivals SDSU and USD will play a Top Ten game on Saturday. The week-long buildup is exploding with storylines, high MVFC and FCS playoff stakes, top-end FCS talent, dynamic quarterbacks, injury intrigue, a missing trophy, and plenty of angst between fan bases.
The Iowa native makes his head coaching debut in the Interstate Series, though he was on the Coyotes staff the two seasons prior as a quarterbacks coach (for an overtime loss in 2024) and then co-offensive coordinator (a 24-17 win last year).
Vitzthum comes in fresh off his first win over a Top Ten FCS opponent and his first one-score victory as a head coach. There is plenty to unpack from the 26-23 overtime home victory over North Dakota, including some of his first late-game, gut-wrenching decisions as a head coach. The Happy Hour host asks him about three of those decisions in the final two minutes.
How did the USD rushing defense perform better against UND's stout run game than it did in losses to Boise State and Youngstown State?

Is freshman quarterback Austyn Modrzewski one of the Coyotes' vocal leaders?
Will Saturday mark the return of dangerous running back Keyondray Jones-Logan?
How will the Coyotes contain SDSU dynamo QB Chase Mason? 
And what does Vitzthum make of the State-U rivalry and the possibility of bringing back the Little Brown Jug trophy somehow, someway?