WATCH: The top 10 Bison plays in FCS Championship games

North Dakota State's football team will open January in its unofficial second home of Frisco, Texas on January 8th when they match up against South Dakota State for the FCS Championship.

This will mark the second time that two teams from the same conference will meet in the title game. NDSU and Illinois State played in the 2015 title game in likely the best game in FCS history, a 29-27 Bison win.

Here are the top ten selected plays from the previous nine championship games, taking into account the impact it had on the game and when it occured.

10. STICK GOES LONG TO SHEPHERD AGAINST EASTERN WASHINGTON - JANUARY 2019

The 2019 title game was the swan song for NDSU quarterback Easton Stick and head coach Chris Klieman. The Bison had grabbed a 24-10 third quarter lead after Stick hit Darrius Shepherd on a 23- yard touchdown pass.

Eastern Washington responded on the next play as Sam McPherson took a handoff 75 yards for an Eagle touchdown to cut the score to 24-17.

Stick didn't waste any time, two plays later airing it out to Shepherd for a 78 yard touchdown that served as the backbreaker in the title game. Shepherd went on to win Most Outstanding Player as the Bison won, 38-24.

9. WENTZ RETURNS TO ROMP OVER JAX STATE - JANUARY 2016

Carson Wentz's final collegiate game came in the 2016 championship game as he returned after missing eight weeks with a broken wrist. Wentz delivered in a big way, throwing for a touchdown and running for two more in a 37-10 rout of Jacksonville State.

The highlight play came in the second quarter, when Wentz kept the ball and dove to the endzone on a 11 yard touchdown run that put the score at 17-0 early in the 2nd quarter.

Wentz's performance was the start of his skyrocketing draft stock that led to him being selected with the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

8. A PERFECT ENDING FOR LANCE - JANUARY 2020

Trey Lance had a remarkable 18 hour period in Frisco in January 2020. The night before the title game Lance became the first freshman to win the Walter Payton Award.

In the game, Lance was out of this world. On the first play of the fourth quarter, with NDSU ahead 21-13 and the Bison facing a 3rd and 23, Lance decided to keep the ball and run.

Lance faked out nearly every defender that tried to tackle him, scoring a 44 yard touchdown that put the Bison ahead 28-13 at that point. Lance finished the day with 166 rushing yards and a touchdown, becoming the fourth different Bison quarterback to win Most Outstanding Player in the title game.

7. SHEPHERD FINALLY FINDS THE ENDZONE - JANUARY 2018

The 2018 title game was a rematch of a game everyone in the FCS was looking for. James Madison was the reigning champions and searching for back to back titles.

NDSU had a 7-3 lead on JMU in the 2nd quarter when Nate Tanguay came up with his first career interception. The Bison turned that into points as Stick went deep to Shepherd on a 50 yard touchdown pass to give NDSU a 14-3 lead.

That was Shepherd's first touchdown of the season as the Bison went on to win a FCS record tying sixth national championship, 17-13.

6. THE FIRST PICK VS JMU - JANUARY 2018

In that same game, the NDSU defense shone against James Madison quarterback Bryan Schor.

Schor had a tremendous game against the Bison in the 2016 semfinals in Fargo, but this was a different story.

NDSU led 17-13 in the 3rd quarter, but the Dukes had all the momentum. After a bad Bison punt, Schor drove the Dukes to the NDSU 20. Schor floated a pass over the middle but it was intercepted by Bison cornerback Marquise Bridges, who was starting after an injury to starter Jalen Allison.

Bridges was a converted cornerback, he arrived in Fargo as a wide receiver out of Minneapolis. Bridges had one of two interceptions in the Bison title win.

5. THE FAKE PUNT - JANUARY 2012

NDSU's first trip to Frisco was no cakewalk.

The Bison trailed Sam Houston State 6-3 at halftime and their offense was being held in check. NDSU got the ball to start the second half but was held to a three and out and was going to punt.

The Bison called for a fake punt and former running back-turned- punter Matt Voigtlander took off, running 27 yards to the Sam Houston 39.

NDSU wasted no time as Brock Jensen hit DJ McNorton on a screen pass and the Texas native did the rest, scampering 39 yards for a touchdown to give NDSU the lead. The Bison went on to win 17-6 to secure their first Division I championship.

4. NORTH DAKOTA'S OWN BECOMES MVP - JANUARY 2012

In that same 2012 title game, the Bison were led by a group of redshirt freshmen from Brock Jensen to Christian Dudzik.

One of those redshirt freshmen was linebacker Travis Beck. The Calio, North Dakota product came up with the biggest play of the game to cinch it. With NDSU ahead 10-6 in the fourth quarter, Beck stepped in front of Brian Bell's pass and returned it down the sidelines, going 63 yards to the Sam Houston 1 yard line.

Jensen scored on the next play to put it away, but Beck cemented the fact that North Dakota natives would be huge contributors to the Bison title run to come. Beck went on to be named Most Outstanding Player in the game.

3. ANOTHER PICK TO CLINCH VS JMU - JANUARY 2020

Trey Lance may have won the game MVP honors in 2020 against James Madison, but it was another quarterback that clinched the game.

Former quarterback turned safety James Hendricks had already scored a touchdown in the game on a fake field goal. NDSU led 28-20 but JMU had driven to the Bison 3 with eight seconds to go.

Dukes quarterback Ben DiNucci went to the endzone but didn't see Hendricks who left his defender to pick off the pass and ran it out of the endzone, sealing the game. It was the second time a former quarterback turned defensive player had sealed the national title for the Bison, joining Esley Thorton's pick in 2015.

2. THE BISMARCK BOYS LEAD NDSU - JANUARY 2015