2016 South Dakota Coyotes football

Conference	Missouri Valley Football Conference
Record	4–7 (3–5 MVFC)
Head coach	Bob Nielson (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Ted Schlafke (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Atiba Bradley (1st season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Tyler Yelk (1st season)
Home stadium	DakotaDome
Seasons ← 2015 2017 →

2016 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 3 North Dakota State +^	7	–	1	12	–	2
No. 6 South Dakota State +^	7	–	1	9	–	4
No. 2 Youngstown State ^	6	–	2	12	–	4
Illinois State ^	4	–	4	6	–	6
Northern Iowa	4	–	4	5	–	6
Western Illinois	3	–	5	6	–	5
South Dakota	3	–	5	4	–	7
Indiana State	2	–	6	4	–	7
Missouri State	2	–	6	4	–	7
Southern Illinois	2	–	6	4	–	7

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2016 South Dakota Coyotes football team represented the University of South Dakota in the 2016 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first-year head coach Bob Nielson and played their home games in the DakotaDome. They were a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. They finished the season 4–7, 3–5 in MVFC play to finish in a tie for sixth place.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 pm	at New Mexico*	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	RTRM	L 21–48	20,221
September 10	2:00 pm	Weber State*	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD	Midco SN	W 52–49 ^2OT	8,114
September 17	4:00 pm	at North Dakota*	Alerus Center Grand Forks, ND (Potato Bowl, Sitting Bull Trophy)	Midco SN	L 44–47 ^2OT	11,477
October 1	3:00 pm	at No. 20 Youngstown State	Stambaugh Stadium Youngstown, OH	ESPN3	L 20–30	15,151
October 8	2:00 pm	No. 11 Northern Iowa	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD	Midco SN	W 28–25	10,221
October 15	2:00 pm	at Indiana State	Memorial Stadium Terre Haute, IN	ESPN3	W 33–30 ^2OT	3,297
October 22	2:00 pm	Illinois State	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD	ESPN3 MVC TV	W 27–24	7,416
October 29	2:00 pm	No. 13 Western Illinois	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD	Midco SN	L 34–35	8,412
November 5	2:00 pm	at Southern Illinois	Saluki Stadium Carbondale, IL	ESPN3 MVC TV	L 28–35	5,689
November 12	2:00 pm	at No. 11 South Dakota State	Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium Brookings, SD (rivalry)	Midco SN	L 21–28	15,345
November 19	2:00 pm	No. 4 North Dakota State	DakotaDome Vermillion, SD	Midco SN	L 21–28	10,011
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS FCS at time of game Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Game summaries

	1	2	3	4	Total
Coyotes	14	0	7	0	21
Lobos	14	21	6	7	48

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	Total
Wildcats	28	0	14	0	7	0	49
Coyotes	14	7	0	21	7	3	52

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	Total
Coyotes	3	24	7	0	7	3	44
Fighting Hawks	7	7	3	17	7	6	47

	1	2	3	4	Total
Coyotes	3	0	3	14	20
#20 Penguins	10	10	0	10	30

	1	2	3	4	Total
#11 Panthers	14	3	0	8	25
Coyotes	14	7	7	0	28

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	Total
Coyotes	17	0	10	0	3	3	33
Sycamores	10	0	7	10	3	0	30

	1	2	3	4	Total
Redbirds	7	10	0	7	24
Coyotes	17	7	3	0	27

	1	2	3	4	Total
#13 Leathernecks	14	0	14	7	35
Coyotes	17	14	0	3	34

	1	2	3	4	Total
Coyotes	0	7	7	14	28
Salukis	7	14	7	7	35

	1	2	3	4	Total
Coyotes	0	7	7	7	21
#11 Jackrabbits	7	0	14	7	28

	1	2	3	4	Total
#4 Bison	7	14	7	0	28
Coyotes	7	7	0	7	21

v t e South Dakota Coyotes football
Venues	Darwin Inman Memorial Stadium (1926–1978) DakotaDome (1979–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Sitting Bull Trophy (North Dakota) South Dakota State
Culture & lore	"Hail, South Dakota!" Charlie Coyote Dakota Days
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1889 1890–1893 1894 1895–1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023