Photo by Noah Clooten
Following the conclusion of the 2024 high school football season in North Dakota, the NDHSAA approved adjusted classes for next year. The announcement was made on Tuesday. These moves are based on up-to-date enrollment numbers.
The class Devils Lake competes in, AA, will still have 12 teams. But two of those teams will be different. Additionally, Devils Lake will be sliding from the East Region to the West Region, despite being located on the eastern side of the state and playing against eastern teams in all other sports.
Central Cass and Kindred, previously in Class A, are both members of Class AA now. West Fargo Horace moved up to AAA, while Valley City went down to A.
Central Cass is already a familiar opponent to Devils Lake; the Squirrels beat the Firebirds 34-27 in their first game of the season. All-time, Devils Lake is 5-3 against Central Cass.
The Squirrels ended up going as far as a Class A semifinal this year — losing, funnily enough, to the other team moving up to AA, Kindred. The Vikings lost in the Class A championship to Velva/Drake-Anamoose/Garrison, 14-12. It ended a streak of 24 consecutive wins for Kindred, which won the Class A state championship in 2023.
Devils Lake is 0-2 against Kindred all-time, with the teams’ last meeting coming in 2020.
Central Cass and Kindred will both play in the East, essentially replacing Horace and Devils Lake. The Firebirds are the lone addition to the West, replacing Valley City. They’ll now compete in a conference with Jamestown, which they triumphantly upset in the regular season, and Minot North, which they lost to in the first round of the playoffs. Devils Lake’s first win of the year was a 26-6 thumping over another of its new region counterparts, Watford City.
Jamestown, a team technically located even farther east than Devils Lake, was already competing in the West.
Devils Lake is 10-1 all-time against Watford City, 6-6 against Jamestown, 4-9 against Bismarck St. Mary’s and 3-4 against Dickinson.
Horace, after beating previously-undefeated Grand Forks Red River in the AA championship game, gets the bump up to North Dakota’s highest division. The Hawks beat Devils Lake 42-0 during the regular season. Class AAA, which previously had six teams in the West and five in the East, will now have six in each region.
Valley City, meanwhile, had a fine 4-6 season. The Hi-Liners lost to Wahpeton in the first round of the playoffs. Devils Lake beat Valley City 27-12 in its third game of the season.
Valley City is another eastern team that was playing in the West Region. It will now compete against more geographically convenient teams in Class A’s Region 1.
For the full listing released by the NDHSAA, click here.
