Wentz is from Bismark, N.D., and had ZERO FBS offers. Ain't nobody in FBS looking for QBs from North Dakota. Plus ND State is a big fish its state. No HBCU is "the big state school" in its respective state. ND State, which has the budget comparable to a lower-tiered Group of Five FBS program, also benefitted from donors getting enriched by the oil boom, along with a bunch of then-FCS powers moving up to FBS (SW Texas State/Texas State, Georgia Southern, Appalachian State, etc.). Also, competition for talent up there isn't as hot as it is where our schools are located.
Hell, Southern's Danny Johnson was a two-star prospect when he came to Southern. SWAC and MEAC schools have had higher-rated players come than Wentz did at ND State. Think about it, Steve McNair was the last FCS quarterback taken nearly as high as Wentz, and that's a generation ago.
Now, I do believe the 9-game conference schedule and the SCG were part of an isolationist policy that hurt our schools in the long run when it comes to competing on the field and for talent against other FCS conferences. It lowered the bar of expectations for coaches, ADs and fan bases.
