To nobody’s surprise, New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock remained at No. 1 in the second nine-man football poll of the season, as voted on by the North Dakota Associated Press Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
There were, however, some developments worth noting in the nine-man and Division A polls released Wednesday.
First, Four Winds received top-five votes for the first time this season. The Indians put up the highest offensive output in all of nine-man on Friday, beating Larimore 66-32. All the more impressive was that they weren’t reliant on the running or passing game; they got a wealth of both. Quarterback Kaleb Keja was 16-for-21 in passing with 309 yards, connecting with six different Four Winds receivers. Running back Dayson Dubois had 22 carries for 196 yards and four touchdowns.
Elsewhere in Region 2, North Border had been tied for No. 5 before getting pummeled by North Prairie, 48-14. Like Four Winds, North Prairie received votes this week but did not crack the top five. North Border still received votes as well.
That makes four teams from nine-man Region 2 receiving votes.
NR-S/M went from 12 first-place votes and 72 points last week to 14 first-place votes and 77 points this week. The Rockets beat Cavalier 50-34 in their season opener. They enter Week 2 having won 26 straight games going back to the start of the 2024 season. One more win would tie them for the second-longest winning streak in North Dakota nine-man football history.
LaMoure-Litchville/Marion got two first-place votes and 65 points for the second straight week. Linton/HMB didn’t receive any first-place votes after getting two last week, but the Lions remained at No. 3.
In Division A, Langdon Area/Munich was listed as tied for No. 1 with Velva/Drake-Anamoose/Garrison with 71 points despite leading in first-place votes 10-4. This would appear to be mathematically impossible, assuming there were just 16 voters. A correction will be added to this article should there be one. Either way, the Cardinals remained in the top slot after beating Oakes 40-14 in their season opener. V/D-A/G beat Valley City 44-6.
LA/M’s Eastyn Schaefer had a good debut at quarterback in the Cardinals’ win, with 130 passing yards and 120 on the ground. Evann Ottem had 23 carries for 115 yards and three touchdowns. TJ Henderson had seven catches for 114 yards and a touchdown.
Dickinson Trinity fell from the top five after losing 28-14 to Bowman County.
Behind LA/M, Bottineau (No. 4) and Thompson (received votes) represent Division A Region 2.
Nine-man
- New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock (14) – 77 points (Previous: 1)
- LaMoure-Litchville/Marion (2) – 65 points (Previous: 2)
- Linton/HMB – 48 points (Previous: 3)
- Divide County – 26 points (Previous: 4)
- Napoleon/Gackle-Streeter – 15 points (Previous: T5)
Received votes: Grant County/Flasher, North Prairie, North Border, Four Winds, Mohall-Lansford-Sherwood
Division A
- (T1) Langdon Area/Munich (10) – 71 points* (Previous: 1)
- (T1) Velva/Drake-Anamoose/Garrison (4) – 71 points* (Previous: 2)
- Ellendale/Edgeley/Kulm (2) – 55 points (Previous: 3)
- Bottineau – 31 points (Previous: 5)
- Northern Cass – 7 points (Previous: RV)
Received votes: Central McLean, Thompson, Southern McLean