Devils Lake football’s 2026 season began with a thud.
Hope is far from gone, though. The Firebirds lost by 30 to Kindred in last year’s season opener and they ended up winning the Division AA state championship. After Friday’s 35-0 loss to No. 1 Kindred at Roller Field, Devils Lake still has three non-region games left before AA West play begins.
Here are some additional thoughts as the Firebirds prepare to host Central Cass for their homecoming game.
Firebirds need to find a formula that works offensively
So much of Devils Lake’s success last year can be attributed to how well the team gelled offensively. Its starting quarterback and running back had superstar seasons, and the team had a reliable offensive line and a wide array of receivers.
Head coach Todd Lambrecht talked preseason about “finding our own identity.” Well, the Firebirds might have a little more searching to do on the offensive front.
Right now, Devils Lake’s running game appears to be ahead of its passing game. Last year, Devils Lake was lethal in both areas. The problem, at least in Friday’s season opener, was that the running game wasn’t explosive enough to offset shortcomings on the passing side. Egan Laite, Will Heilman and Easton Encinas had decent games, but Devils Lake only had one carry of more than 12 yards.
The Firebirds had 30 carries for 111 yards overall, unofficially. That’s an average of 3.7 per carry.
On the passing side, Devils Lake had 55 yards unofficially.
It’s only been one game, but it appears the Firebirds are going to lean more on their running game than last year. Lambrecht talked about putting together “increments” and utilizing players based on how much attention they’re getting from the opponent. Run-heavy teams can have success, but they’re going to need some heftier gains to achieve that success.
Fortunately, most of the teams Devils Lake plays will not be as good as Kindred, and Lambrecht believes there’s still more in the tank for Laite, a first-year starter at running back.
Devils Lake will look to count on its offensive line
Of course, part of the key to a big season on the ground is the offensive line.
On paper, this should be one of Devils Lake’s strengths. The Firebirds are led by senior center Casey Brown, an all-state second-team selection from last year who’s gotten multiple Division-II offers. Four of their five O-linemen are upperclassmen, with the exception of sophomore Aiden Stiven. It’s an O-line that had a ton of success last year and didn’t lose many pieces, especially compared to other position groups.
Lambrecht, who’s also the O-line coach, was understandably critical of the group on Friday. Part of it, he said, falls on him to emphasize the skill of sustaining blocks and “making them move.”
While it might have been a disappointing performance against a tough opponent, the Firebirds still have to generally feel pretty good about who they have at the line of scrimmage. And it wasn’t all bad, with Laite still picking up about 60 rushing yards in his season debut. The Firebirds will look to their experienced offensive line as they attempt to expand their running game going forward.
A team like Kindred is going to have some big plays
Lambrecht went in fully expecting Kindred’s big talent to execute big plays. It’s an unavoidable reality.
It happened last year, too. In fact, last year’s Firebirds — the eventual Division AA state champions — actually allowed more yards of offense in their season opener than this year’s Firebirds did. Devils Lake lost 42-12 to Kindred last August, allowing 443 yards (170 passing, 273 rushing). On Friday, Devils Lake allowed 413 yards (245 passing, 168 rushing).
“We also have to make our plays when the time comes, when the opportunity shows,” Lambrecht said before the season. “And hopefully get a few times where we can stop them from making the big play.”
The Firebirds didn’t match Kindred’s big plays, which is why they lost, and there likely won’t be any moral victories from technically allowing a lower point total than in last year’s season opener. But Kindred averaged nearly 39 points per game last season, so giving up 35 is nothing for the Firebirds to hang their heads about. The Vikings are likely going to do that — and worse — to many opponents throughout this season.
And defense wasn’t really the reason Devils Lake won a championship last year anyway; it was what the Firebirds did offensively that pushed them over the edge.
What are Central Cass’s strengths?
Central Cass isn’t Kindred, but it’s still another quality opponent coming to town on Friday.
Devils Lake went into this matchup last year as the underdog, fresh off that beating by Kindred. The Firebirds won 28-21, the first of several turning points that led to them becoming a championship team.
In fact, multiple players later cited the loss to Kindred as a motivator that forced them to improve and step up their game.
Central Cass returns senior quarterback Brody Kegley, who threw for 2,430 yards and had a completion percentage above 73% last year. Central Cass passed for over 1,000 more yards than it rushed for, though the Squirrels still had an all-state second-team running back in Colton Cruchet, who rushed for 991 yards.
Cruchet has since graduated. The Squirrels maintained a versatile attack in their season-opening 24-6 win over Watford City on Friday, with 155 passing yards and 115 rushing yards. Junior Benji Boway had 76 rushing yards. So Central Cass is still a threat on the ground.
Opponents last year averaged more passing yards than rushing yards against Central Cass. Watford City, which almost exclusively runs the ball, put up 179 on the ground last Friday despite only scoring six points.
So, the Squirrels are potentially beatable both in the air and on the ground.
Devils Lake was pass-heavy in last year’s win over Central Cass, but this is a new team now. As discussed earlier, the Firebirds need to find their footing on whatever works best offensively.
After permitting a big performance in the air by Kindred, Devils Lake is going to have to lock down and limit the big passing plays against an all-state first-team senior quarterback in Kegley. A win on Friday could turn the Firebirds’ season around in a hurry, as it did in this matchup last year.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Roller Field on Friday.