[Page S7791]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



     Congratulating the South Dakota State University Football Team

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I want to begin this morning by 
congratulating the South Dakota State University football team on an 
incredible win Saturday in Brookings, SD. I happened to be on hand for 
this great event.
  Thanks to their great performance in Saturday's game, which included 
five scores in their first five possessions, the Jackrabbits are headed 
to the FCS National Championship for the second time in three seasons.
  Saturday's win is the latest in a banner season for the Jacks, who 
have gone 13 and 1 and won the Missouri Valley Conference to become the 
No. 1 seed in the FCS playoffs.
  Of course, Saturday's game would not have been possible without the 
men and women who worked to clear the roads around Brookings, and the 
volunteers and staff who cleared the field and seats after a major 
snowstorm last week.
  When the game got underway, temperatures were in the single digits, 
not including the windchill. When you add in the windchill, it was well 
below zero.
  I am grateful for the hard work of all the staff who made it 
possible, which allowed, by the way, literally thousands of people--
thousands of Jacks fans, like me--to be there to cheer on our team. 
Remarkably, in spite of the conditions, there was a great crowd on hand 
to see this historic win.
  I am looking forward to rooting for the Jacks next month when they 
take on the North Dakota State University Bison in the championship 
game in Frisco, TX, where, hopefully, it will be a little warmer than 9 
degrees.