IOWA CITY, Iowa -- North Dakota State came to Kinnick Stadium with a reputation for beating FBS opponents. On Saturday, the Bison scored their biggest victory yet.

A 37-yard field goal by sophomore kicker Cam Pedersen as time expired gave North Dakota State a stunning 23-21 victory over No. 13 Iowa. The Bison moved to 3-0 with the win, while Iowa dropped to 2-1.

"I can't say enough about the guys in the locker room. What a resilient bunch," North Dakota State head coach Chris Klieman said. "We told them all week long that we belong. We belonged in the game. We belonged in the spotlight. What we had done in the past gave us the opportunity to believe that we belonged."

The Bison had a chance earlier to take the lead when they capped a 15-play, 8:39 scoring drive with a 7-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Easton Stick to senior running back Chase Morlock. Trailing 21-20, North Dakota State opted to go for the 2-point conversion to move ahead, but was unable to convert when a Stick pass into the end zone was batted away. Klieman said he decided on going for two when the drive began, citing how the Bison had played overtime in each of their previous two contests this season.

Iowa's offense then went three-and-out, giving North Dakota State a chance for the win. A 29-yard run up the middle by Stick highlighted what proved to be the game-winning drive.

"That was something we called and that we thought we could get to," Stick said. "That momentum carried us through to the end of the drive."

The clock showed five seconds when the Bison took their final timeout and Pedersen took the field to attempt the winning kick.

"It still hasn't sunk in for me yet," Pedersen said. "I thought I had hit it well, contact-wise, and I thought it was going to go in. It was a little closer than I would have liked, but we got the end result."

For the Hawkeyes, this is a loss that stings after going through a 12-0 regular season last year. But Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz was quick to praise a North Dakota State program that has won the last five national championships at the FCS level.

"I'd say we lost to a really good football team today, it's as simple as that," Ferentz said. "I think anybody that was in the stadium today realized that's a good football team.

"They were the better team than us today."

Both offenses got off to sluggish starts. After exchanging punts to open the game, North Dakota State reached the Iowa 33-yard line before quarterback Easton Stick threw an interception to Hawkeye sophomore safety Brandon Snyder.

But it was the Bison defense scoring the first points on the ensuing drive. Senior linebacker Pierre Gee-Tucker hit Iowa senior quarterback C.J. Beathard from his blind side and Beathard's pass landed in the hands of senior linebacker MJ Stumpf, who returned the pick 21 yards for a touchdown to put North Dakota State ahead 7-0.

The Bison lead carried over into the second quarter before Iowa tied the game on a fourth-and-3 touchdown pass from Beathard to senior receiver Riley McCarron that covered 30 yards. McCarron took advantage of a North Dakota State defender falling and was wide open over the middle the field.

Beathard threw his second touchdown pass of the game on the Hawkeyes' next possession, hitting senior receiver Matt VandeBerg in the end zone on a route that covered 14 yards and put Iowa ahead 14-7. The three-play scoring drive was highlighted by a 51-yard reception from senior tight end George Kittle.

North Dakota State tied the game on its opening drive of the third quarter senior King Frazier punched the ball in from one yard out. Iowa would respond, though, later in the quarter when Beathard tossed his second touchdown pass to VandeBerg on a play originally intended for Kittle. Beathard finished with 152 yards passing on the afternoon, completing 11 out of 22 throws.

While North Dakota State has the luxury of a bye week before facing Illinois State on Oct. 1, Iowa doesn't have time to sulk as the Hawkeyes open their 9-game Big Ten slate at Rutgers on Sept. 24.

"First of all, I think you've got to look within yourself and look at, 'What could I have done better?' Watch the film, 'What could I improve on for next week,'" Iowa senior defensive lineman Faith Ekakitie said. "Then you've got to bring the rest of your teammates along and say, 'Hey, it's not the end of our season.'

"We've still got nine games left. We've still got a lot of football to play. We can't let one loss define the way the rest of our season is going to go."

NOTES: North Dakota State now has a six-game winning streak against FBS opponents dating back to 2010. The Bison's previous FBS wins during that stretch came against Kansas, Minnesota, Colorado State, Kansas State and Iowa State. ... Matt VandeBerg became the 22nd wide receiver in Iowa history to record 100 career receptions during the first quarter of Saturday's game. The career record is 174 receptions set by former wideout Kevonte Martin-Manley. ... The 23-21 loss to North Dakota State marked the first time in school history the Hawkeyes have lost to a FCS opponent. Iowa was previously 13-0 against FCS foes.